The Surprise Linley Brought

Wushan Town

Night fell, and the land lay shrouded in darkness. Linley returned to Wushan Town from the Magical Beast Forest with a large bag of Magic Crystals, intending to ease some of the burden on the clan.

Several candles burned in the Baruch clan's sitting room, illuminating the entire hall. After dinner, the servant Agatha cleared the table. Once only Linley and Hogg remained in the hall, Linley placed his bundle before his father.

With a mysterious look on his face, he took out the bag he had been carrying behind him.

"What is this?" Hogg looked at Linley in confusion.

"Open it in a moment." Linley got up and shut the sitting room doors, making Hogg chuckle. "So mysterious? You even had to close the doors?"

Linley sat down confidently. "Father, open this bundle."

"I'd like to see what exactly you have in there." Hogg curiously opened the bundle, only to find another large bag inside. Its opening was tied tightly shut, and it was stuffed full with Magic Crystal Cores.

Hogg felt the large bag and asked doubtfully, "Such a large bag... it doesn't seem like it contains gold coins. Could it be broken stones?" Hogg could not make sense of it. As he spoke, he opened the bag.

The moment the bag was opened—

Magic Crystal Cores of every color, bright and dazzling, gave off brilliant rays of light. Hogg's eyes nearly blurred from the sight. He had never seen such a huge bag full of Magic Crystal Cores in his entire life.

"Those are Magic Crystal Cores?" Hogg's eyes widened in shock as he stared at Linley. Then he swallowed with difficulty. Hogg had seen Magic Crystal Cores before, but never so many of them. The sheer sight of them was overwhelmingly shocking.

Linley nodded. "Yes. This bag contains almost entirely Magic Crystal Cores. Only a small number—around a dozen—are Magic Crystals. Based on the values of Magic Crystal Cores recorded in the books, these should be worth more than one hundred and seventy thousand gold coins."

Because of Wharton, Linley was far stronger than he had been in the original story, and his gains were correspondingly much greater.

"More than one hundred and seventy thousand gold coins?" Hogg felt his heart convulse violently.

Hogg had been troubled by money all these years. If he were asked to produce five hundred gold coins now, he would probably have to borrow them. His straits were easy to imagine.

More than one hundred and seventy thousand gold coins!

What did that mean? More than seventy thousand gold coins would be enough to support the entire Baruch clan for over a hundred years.

"Of course, the figure of more than one hundred and seventy thousand gold coins is only calculated according to the prices recorded in the books. Those prices were from the past, and current prices should be a little higher. I estimate they could sell for eighty thousand gold coins." Linley answered honestly.

Looking at the pile of colorful Magic Crystal Cores before him, Hogg felt as though he were dreaming. His whole body seemed to float.

"Whew... whew!"

Only after taking several deep breaths did Hogg barely manage to calm himself.

"Linley, where did these Magic Crystal Cores come from?" Hogg suddenly came to his senses and stared fixedly at Linley. "You went to the Magical Beast Mountain Range?"

Linley nodded. "Yes, Father. These Magic Crystal Cores were all obtained from the Magical Beast Mountain Range."

"You... you..." Hogg was somewhat angry. "The Magical Beast Mountain Range is the most dangerous place on the entire continent. Entering it is no small matter. How could you go in on your own without discussing it with me first? Do you know how dangerous it is inside?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Hogg gave a self-mocking smile.

Linley had already gone in, so of course he knew how dangerous it was.

Seeing Linley standing there with his head lowered in silence, looking as though he were seriously listening to a scolding, Hogg could not help but shake his head and sigh. "Linley, it is not that Father wants to scold you. You must understand that you are now a genius mage of Ernst Academy, with limitless prospects ahead of you. The burden of our Baruch clan will fall upon your shoulders. After all, your younger brother is still young. Who knows how long it will take before he becomes a true Dragonblood Warrior? You carry my hopes, and the hopes of our Baruch clan. So you cannot treat your life as a joke."

Linley did not dare make a sound.

"Take off your shirt. Let me see whether you were injured." Hogg suddenly said.

Take off his shirt?

Linley hesitated. Others could not see through his clothes, but Linley himself knew just how terrifying the dense scars across his body were.

"Take it off." Hogg frowned.

After hesitating for a moment, Linley finally removed his short shirt, exposing his sturdy upper body. That sturdy body was likewise covered in scar after scar, and several of them had even been fatal wounds!