Chapter 292: Successful Construction

The year little Lan Wei'er turned eighteen, Shaoke also reached the seventh tier, but before that, he needed to fully complete the construction of the mage laboratory. Since the Alchemist Mage Roman had not conducted high-tier experiments for a long time, she urgently needed a proper lab to run experiments, to deepen her understanding of spells and the crafting of certain items.

One day, while Shaoke was reading books in a pavilion with the White-robed Cleric, a Sixth Tier Mage came looking for him. "Mage Xueye, the external array carving of the laboratory is complete. Mage Roman asks when you will conduct the official activation," the mage said, standing quietly awaiting Shaoke's reply. The White-robed Cleric also set down her book and looked at Shaoke.

"Now," Shaoke replied without delay. In the past few days, he had stopped participating in the external array carving of the laboratory to rest and reach his peak condition, ensuring a successful one-time activation of the laboratory's operation.

With that decided, the three of them hurried to the center of the estate, where the laboratory—covering about five acres—was located.

The laboratory was divided into five levels. The bottom floor went about thirty meters into the black soil, serving as a place for summoners to conduct summoning and other experiments. Of course, the team currently had no summoners, but that didn't mean there wouldn't be any in the future. The next floor up was slightly shorter and served as a warehouse for magical materials.

On the ground floor was a large hall for mages to swap spell knowledge and relax. The second floor held rare books, training rooms, and spots for growing herbs and renewable magical materials. The top floor was the heart of the lab, with seven or eight elemental pools and a ton of equipment and tools. It was the center of the entire laboratory, and all energy supply for the laboratory came from this third floor. Of course, each floor had a certain number of rooms for mages to rest.

The squat obsidian tower, built from massive blocks, looked imposing. The exterior was carved with numerous protective and offensive arrays, as well as many magical traps.

All the magical materials Shaoke had amassed over a decade went into this lab, covering only two-thirds of what was needed. In the end, Shaoke used the crystal ball he'd gotten from the Death Mage Corps years ago to contact them again, and after paying a price, got a bunch more materials and other stuff.

Instead of waiting outside, Shaoke told the other mages to back off, then led the White-robed Cleric to the third floor. There, Mage Roman, Mage Yisier, and some other mages were inspecting the arrays. When Shaoke arrived, it meant the lab would be activated today. Roman was so happy she gave him a kiss as a reward.

After a short talk, Shaoke sent everyone else away, even Roman, but kept the White-robed Cleric for some boosts to up his chances of a successful activation.

Once alone, Shaoke closed his eyes to steady his racing thoughts. The White-robed Cleric was a bit nervous and took her time before casting support spells to lower Shaoke's mana drain and boost his mental control. As Shaoke had asked, after those spells, she used her golden book to send a steady stream of golden magical script into him, constantly restoring his spellcasting energy.

With everything prepared, Shaoke stood before the massive stone pillar that ran through the entire tower. Using the previous method, he began chanting spells. This time, with the Cleric's help, he chanted in the Ancient Magic Tongue, which would enhance the laboratory's abilities to some extent, especially in terms of confinement. Though the enhancement was minor, Shaoke still chose this method to give his utmost effort in completing the laboratory.

The flames in the cauldron and the various magical materials flowed smoothly into the linked scripts and arrays, driven by the blue flame, beginning a slow operation. Due to the large scale, the consumption was slightly higher than anticipated, but it did not exceed Shaoke's estimate.

When the last elemental pool was formed, all the arrays and magical scripts on the stone tower activated, and the blue flame gradually diminished until it vanished. However, Shaoke deliberately preserved the last wisp of blue flame in the cauldron. With this arcane fire, the laboratory's master could control it to some extent and even use it to attack enemies, drawing energy from the elemental pools.

The arrays on the massive stone pillar flowed slowly. The seven smaller elemental pools, scattered around, operated quickly as Shaoke had expected. Wisps of gray mist gathered above the pools, and after a while, a drop of gray liquid fell into the pool. With the addition of these drops, the complex arrays within the pools began rapid operation, supplying energy to all the arrays in the laboratory.

Everything went smoothly. After several magic hours of activation, the laboratory was successfully completed. At this moment, Shaoke and the Cleric did not leave but closed their eyes and stood before the massive pillar, sensing the fluctuations generated during the startup. Although such fluctuations did not significantly aid spell comprehension, mages still cherished this unexpected gain.

After the fluctuations subsided, Shaoke and the Cleric did not stay long. Instead, they both imprinted their mental and magical marks onto the massive stone pillar. Then, they each dripped some of their blood onto it. After a brilliant light signifying success, they knew they could now move freely within the stone tower without being attacked by the numerous arrays.

After completing this, Shaoke took an obsidian stone tablet, briefly baked it over the blue arcane fire, and quickly pressed it onto the massive pillar. When fine arrays and magical scripts emerged on the tablet, it automatically detached.

Shaoke and the White-robed Cleric then made over a dozen more tablets using the same method and stopped. Once a mental imprint was placed on these tablets, the holder could freely enter and exit the stone tower. Tablets made on the top floor allowed the holder to access all areas of the tower once. Tablets from the second floor allowed access only to the first and second floors. For the underground levels, certification from the pillar there was required.

After hastily making these tablets, the two quickly descended, as Roman and the other mages were waiting outside.

"Did it succeed?" Roman asked excitedly, embracing Shaoke tightly. She knew how much effort and cost he had put into building this laboratory, all to create a personal laboratory for her. Ignoring the onlookers, she kissed him repeatedly. Only one person in the crowd was dissatisfied—Lan Wei'er, who was close to becoming a Second Tier Mage. She disliked her mother kissing a male mage, even if he was her nominal father.

After a pleasant exchange with the surrounding mages, Shaoke had Roman, Mage Yisier, and the mages he was familiar with imprint their mental marks on the tablets and then imprint their marks on the top-floor pillar. Roman, for her part, had to pay a certain price to take full control of the lab, which Shaoke declared now belonged entirely to her. The other mages could only imprint their marks on the second floor; the underground and third floors were off-limits to them unless they obtained a token from the master.

After nearly a magic hour, the Sixth Tier mages from the former military department had fully imprinted their mental marks on the second floor. The mages who had joined Shaoke's organization were only allowed to imprint their marks on the first floor. Only the wandering mages who'd traded a lot of materials with Shaoke got the privilege of imprinting there. Others were not allowed entry, though they might be permitted in the future if their transactions reached a certain level.

After everyone finished, Shaoke instructed the maids to prepare ample fine food for a banquet. He also asked Mage Yisier and Lan Wei'er to prepare enough stone tablets, as he planned to hold a large feast today to celebrate the laboratory's completion. (To be continued. If you want to know what happens next, please visit the source website.)