Chapter 839: Magic Power Dust

Clutching the Staff of Time and riding the Invisible Dragon Bard, Liszt concealed himself at the boundary between realms while exploring the uses of the staff in his hand. The Time Gem, shimmering with iridescent hues, was remarkably peculiar—it couldn’t be activated by mana at all. Any magic power that approached its surface would slowly dissipate, as if imbued with eternal time magic.

Yet, since it had been crafted into a magic artifact, there must be a way to control it.

“I wonder how large the Twilight Dragon is. It must be far bigger than the Invisible Dragon, right? After all, the Time Gems it produces are as large as fists, while the Space Gems from Invisible Dragons are only the size of a fingernail.” Tossing the staff lightly in his hand, Liszt’s thoughts wandered.

Unfortunately, no matter how much he pondered along the way, he still couldn’t grasp how to manipulate the Staff of Time. It seemed he would have to seek Acheronides’ assistance after all.

Given Acheronides’ status as an Archmage, her ever-expanding knowledge, and her sharp intellect, deciphering the staff’s usage shouldn’t be too difficult.

Upon returning to Ember Town, before he could even find Acheronides, Liszt received shocking news from the Magic Guild, personally reported by Kenley Truth: “Your Highness, we have deciphered how the Ancient Wizards passed down their magic. Many Moon Killers’ Ancient Wizards had far less talent than modern wizards, yet they successfully mastered magic—all thanks to ‘Magic Dust.’”

“Magic Dust?” Liszt was puzzled.

Kenley’s next words stunned him: “Magic Dust enhances a wizard’s affinity with magic power, and its raw material is… Spirit Bugs!”

“Spirit Bugs?”

“Yes.”

Liszt’s face clouded with immediate understanding. Suddenly, he understood why, despite capturing so many Moon Killer tribes, not a single Spirit Bug had been found. He had assumed the Moon Killers didn’t know how to utilize Spirit Bugs, but now it seemed they simply used them differently.

According to Kenley’s further explanation, the Moon Killers’ magical inheritance was laid bare.

Small tribes, during hunting or gathering, would trade any Spirit Bugs they found to larger tribes in exchange for supplies. The Listeners of the larger tribes knew how to process Spirit Bugs into Magic Dust, which they used to nurture more Ancient Wizards.

These Ancient Wizards were exceptional children selected by various tribes, their magical education paid for through their tribes’ tributes.

Spirit Bugs, Magic Dust, Ancient Wizards… This was how the Moon Killers ensured their magical lineage never died out. With Ancient Wizards, tribes could secure survival resources from magical beasts—a perverse counterpart to nurturing Spirit Bugs.

Though cruel, it was standard practice among the Moon Killers.

However, the lesser tribes remained unaware that Spirit Bugs were used for Magic Dust—that knowledge was monopolized by the Listeners of the larger tribes.

“This is unforgivable!” Liszt’s face twisted in anger. Wild Spirit Bugs were already scarce, and the Moon Killers had hunted them relentlessly.

Within the Moon Killers’ territory, Spirit Bugs were virtually nonexistent. Their hunting grounds likely covered most of the Flame Island’s forests, and generations of slaughter meant countless Spirit Bugs had perished.

“Your Highness, if the Moon Killers’ Listeners aren’t lying, the method of processing Spirit Bugs into Magic Dust… also originated from the Moon Empire.” Kenley’s voice was somber. In this era, Spirit Bugs had become symbols of purity and beauty.

Though some nobles still secretly forged Spirit weapons, killing Spirit Bugs was widely condemned as immoral.

The Moon Empire, so revered by wizards, seemed to have built its magical legacy on the blood of Spirit Bugs—which devastated Kenley’s worldview. The earlier revelation about the Moon Empire’s inferior spellcasting had already shaken her.

Now, this revelation would likely shatter whatever admiration she had left.

“The value of Spirit Bugs lies in their influence on plants and their evolutionary potential. Human greed should never be built on their blood.” Liszt declared firmly. “Kenley, promulgate an immediate ban upon your return: No wizard may kill a single Spirit Bug under the guise of research!”

Kenley bowed. “Yes, Your Highness.”

After she left, Liszt let out a heavy breath.

Though he regretted the Spirit Bugs’ plight, his true motive for the ban was to prevent wizards from studying Magic Dust and churning out more magic-users.

This was the knights’ era—it was best for wizards to gracefully recede from history’s stage.

Leaning back in his chair, he suddenly thought of the Moon Empire ruled by mages: "What kind of place was that? How did mages govern the world?"

...

The Scepter of Time was handed over to Acheronides for research.

However, after briefly examining the Time Gem, she set the scepter aside. Her magic door project had reached a critical stage, leaving her no time for cultivation, let alone diverting attention to other studies.

To date, her advanced spells remained limited to four: the Chainsaw-style Ultra-High-Pressure Water Blade, the Spiral Ultra-High-Pressure Water Drill, the Centrifugal Water Molecule Shield, and the *Magic Eye*.

Her Ice Element avatar was still not perfectly mastered, preventing her from switching to a new elemental form.

Although the practical application of the magic door would take time to transition from theory to reality, Acheronides still gave Liszt a tremendous surprise.

"Brother, this is a magic item I specially crafted for Bard, who tends to get lost in worlds outside the material realm. Its function is to locate coordinate nodes in the material space. As long as these nodes are remembered, Bard can always find his way back, even if he gets lost."

She handed over a string of crystal pendants.

With a glance, Liszt recognized the material used to craft this magic item—the scales of the *invisible dragon*! He had no idea when Bard had given Acheronides so many of his scales. For a dragon, scales were far more important than the gems they produced.

Despite being so familiar with Liszt, Bard had never voluntarily gifted him space gems, yet he had given the even more precious scales to Acheronides.

Such preferential treatment would have infuriated anyone less open-minded than Liszt.

"Never mind. What's given to Acheronides is as good as given to me. No need to dwell on it." Suppressing his urge to give the *invisible dragon* a beating, he accepted the magic item.

He then asked, "Acheronides, what is this device called?"

"Node Finder."

"Hmm." Liszt said nothing more, feeling that her naming skills lacked the elegance and refinement he preferred—it was too straightforward. "So how is Bard supposed to use it?"

"It’s for you to use, brother. After merging with Bard in the dragon-human merged state, activate the *Crystal White Trace* to power the Node Finder, leaving markers at the boundaries between worlds you traverse. If you can’t find a node to return to the material world, you can use it again to locate the original node."

This string of crystal pendants was clearly designed for human use.

Liszt nodded faintly. "Understood... So, in theory, Bard and I can now freely cross between worlds and fly into worlds beyond?"

"Theoretically, yes. But I’m concerned the Node Finder’s range might be too short, so caution is still advised when crossing. Based on feedback during use, it may require several more refinements."