Later, Leo learned that the incident stemmed from many wizards deliberately driving down prices when trading with Wakeda and his group.
Wakeda didn't understand, but he trusted Leo, so he tried to test Leo in another way. Whenever Leo offered supplies at a higher price than the other wizards, he would do everything he could to get those things into Leo's hands.
This is a form of bundled sales that uses moral blackmail; regardless of whether Leo needs these supplies or not, they are all given to Leo.
He had a vague idea of Leo's plan, and he believed that Leo wouldn't argue with him over such a small matter.
So when Leo left, he had ten magic rings stuffed full in his hand.
Knowing this was the last transaction, Wakeda almost dismantled the entire warehouse and stored the contents in the Wizard's Ring.
Leo gave these things to the logistics wizard, who could exchange them for at least 1,000 energy crystals. Then, he used 200 of these energy crystals to buy supplies and send them to the Wakeda Tribe. Leo Xi would earn 800 energy crystals for free!
Did Wakeda not know what was going on here?
Of course I know.
But apart from Leo, no one else would offer him such a high price, so he had no choice but to trade with Leo, even though he knew Leo was making a lot of money too.
Wizards monopolize all high-end resources, seemingly engaging in economic exchanges with the world through trade and commerce, and are affiliated with the Wizard Alliance.
But upon closer analysis, it turns out that this is all about unscrupulous one-sided pricing and one-sided profit-making.
The power to set prices is in the hands of the wizards, as is the monetary system; essentially, whatever the wizard says is the price.
Wizards are both buyers and sellers, and they are the kind of hegemonic force that is unique and unparalleled.
After joining the Wizard Alliance, the Giant World did indeed open up a new world, witnessing a more brilliant civilization and a more colorful universe. However, at the same time, they were experiencing exploitation beyond their imagination.
Of course, in most of the current Giant World, the word "exploitation" does not yet exist. In their eyes, the wizard army is a great race that brought the seeds of advanced civilization.
It is the greatest gift that the great God of Giants has given to the entire Giant World!
When Leo left the Giant World through the spatial passage, he had already earned more than 10,000 energy crystals in the Shadow Space through trade.
This was faster than robbery; Heavenly Capital, people tried every possible way to stuff energy crystals into Leo's hands.
Leo's actions were all small-scale; the real big profits went to those few Stigmata Wizard.
They trade with the entire Giant World, and it's a long-term, stable form of exploitation. While the profits from this may not seem as high as those from simply conquering the Giant World, over a period of thousands of years, the profits would be dozens of times greater than those from simply occupying the Giant World.
After all, it saved a lot of manpower and resources, and also reduced the losses of the wizard army.
Developing the Giant World through Titans not only doesn't cost money, but also generates more profit – all of that is profit.
"Go and inform Charlotte that Leo, the holder of the First-Class Wizard Medal, has come to demand the outcome of the original dispute, as agreed."
After Leo brought Yaoyao and Benji back to the outer office tower of the Tower of Elements, he did not immediately return to his wizard tower, but instead went to the Green Cottage shop.
"Li... Leo the Wizard,"
The same white-bearded wizard was still looking after the shop. He had a deep impression of Leo, after all, Leo was a generous Third-Class Wizard Medal holder and a Level-One Elemental Body Refinement Wizard.
He had watched Leo when he participated in the Level 1 Championship promotion tournament, and he still couldn't forget Leo's speed in resolving battles.
I never expected that Leo would one day appear before me wearing two Third-Class Wizard Medal and one First-Class Wizard Medal.
Leo's aura was no longer at level one, but at level two!
Feeling the pressure emanating from Leo, the white-bearded wizard bowed tremblingly. This was the first time he had seen a holder of the First-Class Wizard Medal. The intense Wizard Will will impacted his mind, making him stutter and almost forget the proper etiquette.
"Go tell Charlotte, don't tell her you can't reach him."
Leo's face turned cold. His goodwill towards Green Cottage disappeared after his information was betrayed during the last Level-One Championship.
If Charlotte hadn't possessed information he desperately needed, he would have already turned around and partnered with other merchant groups.
Faced with the three wizard medals on Leo's chest, any merchant group would treat Leo as their most precious guest.
"Respected Wizard Leo, I will inform Deacon Charlotte to come see you. Please wait a moment."
The white-bearded wizard quickly ran to the back of the shop and reported the news to someone, but when he returned, he smiled and told Leo to wait a moment, saying that Deacon Charlotte would be there soon.
Leo didn't wait long. Ten minutes later, Charlotte appeared in front of Leo with an anxious look on her face.
Feeling the oppressive aura emanating from Leo, and the three wizard medals on Leo chest, especially the First-Class Wizard Medal inscribed with the word "Knowledge,"
Charlotte's face was ashen; her stiff joints resembled those of a puppet. After a moment's hesitation, she could only helplessly bow and say, "Greetings, Wizard Leo."
Even though Leo eliminated Charlotte, who once had over a hundred First-Level Wizard protecting her, their statuses were worlds apart.
Before this, Charlotte had always regarded Leo as a very good Level-One Elemental Body Refinement Wizard. If she could recruit Leo, it would definitely be a great help to her career.
But now, when Leo reappeared before him, he could only bow down before Leo.
He hasn't yet voiced his desire to recruit Leo.
The speed at which Leo's strength increased completely shattered Charlotte's worldview, as if any laws applicable to other wizards were not applicable to Leo.
"Tch, you've finally met your match." Yaoyao stood on Leo's shoulder, wrinkling her nose in disdain, and said.
"I'm not here to settle scores with you. Just give me the answer I want, and I'll pretend nothing happened before, and all conflicts will be wiped clean."
Leo pointed to the First-Class Wizard Medal on his chest. Back in the tournament, Charlotte had said that if Leo obtained the First-Class Wizard Medal or became Level Three Great Wizard, he would give him the answer to the question Leo wanted to ask.
Now Leo is here!
"Please come with me, Wizard Leo, let's talk somewhere else."
Charlotte, with a stiff smile on her face, led Leo to the back of the shop, where there was a secret room.
Once the protective array of the secret chamber is activated, no information within the chamber will be leaked.
"Wizard Leo, your question concerns the secrets of our Green Cottage, so you need to promise that once the answer is given to you, you will not divulge it to anyone."
"I swear by the Wizard Will, I will never tell the answer Charlotte gave me today to a third wizard."
Leo's heart couldn't help but race a little. Leo was nervous as the answer she had been longing for was about to appear before her.
Like a traveler who has been away from home for many years suddenly returning to their long-lost hometown, all the anxiety and anticipation along the way turn into nervousness when stepping into the threshold of their hometown.
The closer I get to home, the more timid I become!
Sensing the tension emanating from Leo, Yaoyao gently stroked Leo 'Leo ear to calm him down and prevent him from losing his composure due to nervousness.
"Wizard Leo, we noticed you when you first received the Third-Class Wizard Medal, so we've gathered a lot of information about you. Please don't take offense," Charlotte said.
"It's alright, it was unavoidable."
"We know you are an alien native life form captured from the Wizard World, and you may one day inquire about the whereabouts of your home planet, so my Green Cottage has already prepared the intelligence."
Please take a look.
Leo was surprised when Charlotte directly took out a crystal ball and placed it in front of Leo.
Taking a deep breath, Leo placed one hand on the crystal ball. As his mental energy fluctuated, Leo began to obtain the information he wanted from the crystal ball.
A few breaths later, the crystal ball shattered, and Leo opened his eyes from his reverie.
The pounding of his heart indicated that Leo's emotions had reached their peak; his calm eyes were like two volcanoes ready to erupt at any moment.
The atmosphere inside the secret chamber, shrouded by the magic circle, instantly became tense. In the low-pressure environment, there were clusters of menacing shadows tearing each other apart.
No longer suppressing his aura, Leo made Charlotte feel as if she were facing a prehistoric beast that could devour her at any moment—a sense of oppression that no other Level Two Wizard could give her.
'Is this the overwhelming pressure Elemental Body Refinement Wizard after advancing to the second level?'
Charlotte swallowed nervously, fearing that Leo might impulsively kill her because he couldn't accept the information inside the crystal ball.
He has First-Class Wizard Medal and two Third-Class Wizard Medal, so even if Leo kills him now, he won't suffer too much punishment.
"No wonder I haven't been able to find any information about humans on Earth all these years. It turns out you've concentrated all Earthlings on one planet, isolating them from the wizards' information. You've really gone to great lengths."
Leo remained expressionless, and even as he expressed his gratitude, Charlotte only heard the cold sound of a knife being sharpened from Leo mouth.
Leo had been searching for Earth humans since his Wizard Apprentice. Gru once told him that these Earth humans who integrated into the Wizard World would establish new homes and start new lives with the help of the natives.
Although Leo was still immersed in the grief of the shattered Earth and the separation from his loved ones, he was also gratified to hear that humanity could continue to thrive in the Wizard World.
When Leo became stronger enough to leave the wizarding academy and survive, he specifically searched for towns where humans lived on Earth. However, the towns that Gru had told him about did not exist at all; he couldn't find a single one. It was as if all humans on Earth had evaporated.
Ironically, Leo once asked Green Cottage to help him search for traces of humans on Earth. Isn't this foolish behavior akin to asking a thief if they know who stole the money?