Chapter 264: The Trials of the Younger Generation

After concluding his thoughts, the mage casually leaned against the low stool on the ** and quietly read a book. At that moment, the crystal ball floating on a small stand beside him suddenly flashed rapidly. Shaoke had never seen such rapid blinking before, and he understood what such a swift flash signified. Upon noticing this, the mage quickly put away his book, grabbed his staff, and moved to observe the crystal ball.

A small group dressed like mercenaries appeared in the mage's crystal ball, with the weakest being a Fourth Tier Warrior. Shaoke quickly made this judgment because, according to the alert ward he had set up outside, if any entity above a certain energy threshold approached, the crystal ball would flash this rapidly. At this moment, the mercenary group in the crystal ball temporarily stopped, as someone in the group had already sensed the existence of the ward upon triggering it.

"Leave here." After quickly uttering a few syllables, the mage initiated a conversation with the intruders several miles away through the crystal ball. "You have entered the territory of a mage. Don't talk to me about your purpose here. Turn away from this direction and continue your journey, or you will face the wrath of a mage." Having said this, Shaoke stared intently at the crystal ball, carefully observing the mercenary group's situation.

Through the crystal ball, he saw that after a very brief pause, the mercenaries quickly retreated. Seeing this, Shaoke returned to his low stool to continue his work. But at this moment, he could no longer focus on reading. Mercenaries had never before so rashly intruded into his territory, as those in the past had always been warned by the residents before entering this area. However, the unusual arrival of this mercenary group today alerted the mage that something was wrong.

In just three days after that mercenary group left, roughly five more mercenary groups recklessly entered Shaoke's territory. This infuriated the mage greatly, so his warnings to the intruders became increasingly harsh. "Leave here alive or stay here forever." That was the warning Shaoke gave to the latest group of intruders.

After that mercenary group departed, in frustration, Shaoke replenished the energy of the external wards, intending to go to the small town to check the situation. At that moment, the legion officer in charge of guarding the town led two soldiers to the mage. "Honorable Mage, the town is full of mercenaries, and this time they refused to listen to our advice." The low-ranking legion officer nervously explained the reason for his visit, then occasionally glanced at the mage who was examining the detection wards.

"Do you know why they are here?" asked Shaoke, casually glancing at the officer, who replied nervously, "According to them, they're here to survey some terrain as part of a public task issued by the Academy City. The mercenaries themselves don't know the specifics."

"Tell the mercenaries in town that if they step into my territory, death will be their only outcome." Shaoke casually added some high-grade crystal powder to a ward, then tightened his cloak and walked back to his hut. "This is not a place they can enter."

The mage's unusual tone made the adjacent officer feel a chill. It was the first time in over a decade that he had heard the mage speak with such a grim voice. The officer quickly nodded in agreement and hurried back to town with his two soldiers. He didn't want any accidents caused by the mercenaries recklessly disturbing the mage, as he had already learned something about the mage's identity through the Blizzard Trade Guild affiliated with the Blizzard Legion.

Perhaps due to the officer's warning, for the next half month or so, none of the mercenaries in town dared to venture into the territory Shaoke had designated for himself. This territory, of course, included the small hill behind him. However, whether any mercenaries secretly approached the hill from other directions remained unknown to Shaoke.

After quietly recording the reaction of the materials before him, Shaoke planned to return to the laboratory on the mountain once again, where he would spend another long period researching spell knowledge. But before he could leave, two unfamiliar guests interrupted him.

Seeing the figures of two mages in the crystal ball, Shaoke scowled, grabbed his staff, and left his hut. He walked slowly and directly toward the two mages while releasing all of his mental power. The overwhelming, unbridled mental force locked tightly onto the two mages. Despite such a hostile display, the two visitors made no defensive moves but stood still, patiently waiting for the owner of this place to arrive.

"Esteemed mage, we are mages from the Academy City. We deeply apologize for disturbing your peace." An older male mage first bowed to express his apology, and the younger mage beside him did the same.

Faced with this, Shaoke merely nodded indifferently to indicate it was fine. But he then followed the proper etiquette and returned the greeting to the two Seventh Tier Mages before inquiring about their purpose. The mage did not believe that two Seventh Tier Mages would come together simply to apologize; he was certain they had some matter requiring his assistance or permission to conduct activities on his territory. Following the ancient mage traditions, Shaoke first asked about their intention.

Seeing that this mage consistently adhered to the rules of the ancient magic era, the middle-aged mage relaxed a little. This meant they could engage in conversation with this mage or even seek his help. "Esteemed mage, we are here to request your assistance to a certain extent." After a brief pause, the middle-aged mage explained his purpose.

It turned out that the Academy City was organizing all students from its academies for a field exploration in the Misty Forest. This was the first time the city had attempted such an endeavor, so they had to dispatch a large number of mercenary groups to survey the long border region in detail, to facilitate the Academy City's future actions.

"Esteemed mage, we hope that if any Academy City students come to your area for field activities, you might offer them some help." After saying this, he anxiously awaited the mage's nod of agreement. When Shaoke nodded, the mage thanked him, then took out a thick book from a small magic bag. "We would like to leave a book here. If you deem any passing students worthy, you can give this book to them."

Hearing the Seventh Tier Mage's somewhat self-deprecating request, Shaoke was silent for a moment before asking, "When will they arrive? If time permits, I will agree." He performed a salute to the mage and stood aside, waiting for an answer.

"When the blizzard arrives this year, they should be here." The middle-aged mage gratefully saluted Shaoke, then handed him the thick book bound in copper leather. "This book contains records of all the academies in Academy City, along with detailed introductions."

After a simple detection spell to verify the book's safety, Shaoke forced a faint smile at the mage, then accepted the book and remained silent. This was mainly because he did not wish to invite these two mages to his residence, as he was not very familiar with the Academy City's affairs.

Under the circumstances, the two Seventh Tier Mages gave a salute in the style of the ancient magic era, then took their leave. They had many important matters to attend to. Watching their figures recede into the distance, Shaoke sighed helplessly. He admired these two busy mages; it was rare for high-rank mages to speak so courteously to a low-rank mage. Once he could no longer sense their mental fluctuations, Shaoke leaned against a tree trunk, silently stroking the book. After a brief inspection, he casually tossed it into a magic bag at his waist.

For a strict mage who adhered to the rules of the ancient mages, time was most precious. There was always plenty to do, and sleep became a luxury for such mages.

When the blizzard fell again, Shaoke returned from his mountain laboratory to his wooden hut. After a quick glance through his diary, he realized he had been in this small town for nearly twenty years. Thinking of this, the mage let out a low sigh. Twenty years had passed, and even with the aid of the silver light, he had been unable to advance further to the Seventh Tier.

But based on his experience over these years, if everything went smoothly, he believed he could become a Seventh Tier mage within twenty years.

Twenty years might be enough for an ordinary person to start a family and raise children, but for a mage or other professionals, it was merely a brief memory in their lives.

On the day the first large snowflakes arrived with the cold wind, a small group arrived at the small town where Shaoke's home was located. After a brief rest and gathering some information, they continued their journey toward the Misty Forest, which was about seven or eight days away. There, they needed to collect sufficient materials and retrieve items stored by some high-rank mages at that location, thereby proving they had reached the Misty Forest.