Chapter 291: The Mages’ Time

Once, the number of mages gathered outside the city was not large, only over thirty, consisting of those Shaoke was somewhat familiar with, and the rest were strangers. The leader was still the same middle-aged mage. Upon sensing Shaoke's arrival, he quickly explained Shaoke's situation to the mages, then led them to greet Shaoke, bowing to him and the female spellcasters beside him.

A large quantity of magic materials was laid out by these mages in a certain order, amounting to more than half again as much as the taxes Shaoke collected from merchants, and most were precious. There were also many worn-out books or other strange carriers of text placed on the ground, awaiting Shaoke's selection. It seemed they were all aware of the organization's rules and Shaoke's needs.

The transaction took a long time. Mage Roman carefully examined these magic materials and, based on Shaoke's requirements and her own needs, selected a large number of them. Meanwhile, Shaoke focused on quickly flipping through those old carriers of text, hoping to discover some special books or original manuscripts. Mage Yisier and the White-robed Cleric stood quietly behind the two, guarding against any unexpected incidents.

While there was great gain in magic materials, Shaoke was deeply disappointed in terms of books. He didn't find a single useful book among those items, but he knew that obtaining precious ancient magic books or even older texts from these wandering mages was a slim chance, so he didn't dwell on it.

After paying enough potions according to the materials delivered by these mages, Shaoke had the newly joined mages write their names in the book, issued a few rules, gave them some cloaks, and prepared to leave. However, the first fifth-tier mage who had joined Shaoke's organization raised an objection.

"Honorable Mage," said the fifth-tier mage, touching the magic bag at his waist and casting a greedy glance at the three female spellcasters behind Shaoke, quickly voicing his suggestion. "Holding a transaction here once a month seems a bit tight on time and will also waste a lot of your time. I wonder if you might consider opening a shop in the city where we could exchange things at any time." After speaking, the middle-aged mage fell silent, knowing that saying more would displease the mage before him. After all, some rulers did not like their subordinates to elaborate too much on matters.

"The estate I previously led you to," Shaoke said after a brief thought, quickly making a decision. "I will build a shop there. You can come at any time to exchange magic materials with me in any form. And my previous promises will remain unchanged." By this, he referred to the possibility of trading large amounts of magic materials for better meditation methods, or even spell knowledge.

After giving some further instructions, Shaoke led the three female spellcasters away. Upon returning, they built a small stone tower at the entrance of the estate and arranged for a sixth-tier mage to guard it. In return, Shaoke allowed this mage to skim a certain amount from the exchanged items. The mage gladly agreed, and though it somewhat restricted his freedom, he gained more magic materials than other mages. He still had time for personal study, as the shop wasn't busy.

Shaoke didn't require the shop to be open daily; instead, it opened once every ten days. If members had special requests, they could enter the estate directly for exchanges.

It took the mages three or four days to draw up a price list for exchanged materials, which they copied into several different books. Afterward, Shaoke handed that book to the sixth-tier mage so that when new members joined, he could have them sign their names. Shaoke would then periodically review.

There were few conflicts, disputes, or unpleasant incidents.

Time passed quickly amid the busy mages. Ten years after Shaoke arrived in the Fallen Imperial Capital, minor changes occurred in the city.

First, in the territory controlled by the Blue Feather Empire, large-scale nighttime street fights disappeared. Wandering mages no longer faced raids by organizations or forces. More importantly, the number of members in Shaoke's organization had grown to several hundred low-rank mages. Under the care of the eighth-tier female mage and with help from the Death Mage Corps and the Blizzard Legion, Shaoke's team became one of the most powerful forces in handling affairs within the Blue Feather Empire's controlled area. However, this came at a cost: they had to carry out extensive peacekeeping duties, which displeased some mages.

Fortunately, Shaoke selected nearly one hundred low-rank mages from among the wandering mages to replace these high-rank mages in patrol duties. For this, Shaoke had to pay these wandering mages some potions each month to compensate for their loss of magic material trading opportunities.

As the Blizzard Legion of the Blue Feather Empire suddenly dispatched a group of military mages to the Fallen Imperial Capital, other empires also sent corresponding forces. For instance, the Desasi Empire sent about sixty sixth-tier mages, who engaged in territorial struggles. Three or four other empires did the same, maintaining around sixty to seventy sixth-tier mages each.

According to Mage Yisier's observations, after the arrival of imperial military mage teams, the area under the Mage Guild's control shrank significantly—by more than half of its original size. This was mainly due to the chaos of that period, when organizations and alliances from various empires launched large-scale attacks on the Mage Guild's territory. Shaoke's group also joined in that chaos, plundering a great deal of wealth and a few street sectors from the Mage Guild. If not for fear of extreme retaliation later, Shaoke could have seized more, provided that the eighth-tier mages didn't intervene.

After four or five years of chaos, the Fallen Imperial Capital gradually settled down. In the Blue Feather Empire's controlled area, under the joint efforts of Shaoke and other allied organizations, the territory expanded wildly, increasing by half compared to when Shaoke first arrived. It became the largest force outside of the Mage Guild.

After the Blue Feather Empire and the Mage Guild occupied one-third of the Fallen Imperial Capital, the remaining three or four empires, along with other dispatched organizations and alliances, took control of the rest. Overall, after a period of turmoil, the Fallen Imperial Capital regained its calm.

Despite many events during this time, Shaoke's progress in magic spells remained unchanged. Notably, after three or four years of deciphering, the golden book given to him by the eighth-tier female mage was successfully and permanently deciphered. The techniques within greatly improved Shaoke's spellcasting abilities. At least, he could now cast spells enhanced by the Command Technique several times in succession.

Meanwhile, the young woman Lan Wei'er had successfully advanced to a first-tier mage. With guidance from high-rank mages like Shaoke and the aid of precious potions, she, at eighteen, was on the verge of another breakthrough. This was largely due to the pure mage bloodline of the Roman family and her hard work. Influenced by Shaoke and others, Lan Wei'er rarely played; most of her time was spent reading books to replace rest after meditation, as Shaoke instructed.

Due to controlling a large area of the imperial capital, with support from the Death Mage Corps and ongoing transactions with wandering mages, Shaoke received a steady stream of precious magic materials each month. With these resources, he once again attempted to design his mage tower. This time, he made some changes to the original plan and built a modified, formal laboratory on the estate.

With the assistance of many high-ranking mages, the construction of this laboratory went smoothly. However, since underground construction was forbidden, the mages used massive stones to build a low, squat stone tower within the estate. To ensure its longevity, they spent nearly a year digging a circular pit about