Even within Black Sail, it was the same. Many wizards had already exhausted themselves gathering the resources needed for cultivation and simply did not have much savings.
Simon and the others Duke knew were just like that. Simon had also advanced to become an official wizard not long ago, and had taken on quite a few debts because of it.
He had even refused Duke's financial support, saying he could solve those problems himself. After advancing to an official wizard, he would be able to earn money faster.
Simon was not only earning money for himself, but also for his two companions. Now, he took any job and accepted any mission, as long as it could earn him magic stones.
Wizards like Duke, who possessed exceptional skill in potion-making, were always a minority. More ordinary wizards could not even afford to learn potion-making, much less burn through the enormous investment it required.
The shortage of resources also meant that these wizards did not have many resources to improve their own strength. Whether in the depth or power of the spells they mastered, they were inferior to wizards with abundant resources.
Take Yoni and his five companions before them. Although Yoni was already a liquefaction wizard, he had reached that level entirely through the passage of time. His true combat ability was far inferior to Duke and Merrick's.
Duke only needed the innate spell Sand Guardian to remain invincible, while Yoni's group had no means of breaking through Sand Guardian's defenses.
Sand Guardian itself had been built upon vast resources. The value of over a hundred tons of magical metal alone was beyond what ordinary wizards could imagine.
Not to mention that Duke had mastered so many spells of all types, and many of them had been painstakingly raised to max