Wizard: I Can Refine Everything-Chapter 471 - 16 Mayfly Gem

Under Mila’s arrangements, work at the fortress began to proceed in an organized fashion.

The damaged turrets were replaced, the destroyed ground repaired, the wounded Wizards treated – everything was orderly.

Richard, the theoretical Commander, looked upon this orderly scene with an odd thought springing to mind – he was an outsider.

To this thought, Richard offered a faint smile before tossing it aside.

As long as one followed commands, being an outsider didn’t matter.

He was just a temporary Commander, not the true leader of this troop. Once the Wizard World mobilized, there would surely be a new White Wizard to replace him.

Entering the interior of the fortress, Richard entered the Command Room and began using the Monitoring Arrays around the fortress to surveil everything around it.

Commanders of the White Wizard Army are known for their multi-tasking prowess. Apart from daily decisions, a Commander’s superior strength also means far surpassing the average Wizard in certain tasks.

Thus, the important duty of battlefield surveillance fell upon the shoulders of the Commander.

Of course, under normal circumstances, a Commander would appoint several subordinates as their staff to assist with, or simply take over, this duty.

But now, with the whole fortress short-handed, he had no choice but to earnestly shoulder his responsibilities.

In the darkness of the room, crystal balls projected the scenes captured by their corresponding Monitoring Magic Arrays, all guided by Richard’s thoughts.

These projections were each incredibly mundane and boring. Due to scorched earth tactics, the entire mountain range had been stripped of vegetation, and caves had been collapsed. Animals that once lived in the mountains had either relocated or been exterminated.

The once vibrant mountain range now lay barren, as desolate as a desert.

But this was all a necessary sacrifice... at least in the eyes of Wizards.

After some time, the door to the Command Room was pushed open, and Mila, who had finished arranging various tasks, entered the room.

"Hmm, Mila, at last you’ve come," Richard said, as he rose from his chair, giving up his seat.

"You keep an eye on things here for a while; I need to study something," he instructed.

"My lord, please go ahead with your business. I used to watch the images before," Mila responded.

"Thank you, it’s been hard on you," Richard acknowledged.

Leaving the Command Room, Richard did not proceed to the Commander’s private rest area, but instead, he went directly into the Secret Realm.

Within the Secret Realm, the Snake King was discussing plans for body reconstruction with Ulysses.

Voluntarily reconstructing one’s body was a delicate task.

The Snake King needed to integrate the collected Bloodlines, then plan his bodily structure, determine each system, each organ’s functions... among other details. Reconstructing a body was not like creating a Synthetic Beast – every problem had to be considered.

Even for Ulysses, it wasn’t until he had recovered to the strength of third-level creatures that his body construction began to refine. Before that, Ulysses had to replace his body every so often.

Richard approached the two, taking out a Crystal Ball with the intention of recording the process.

This discussion was undoubtedly a repository of precious knowledge.

"Well, let’s leave it at that for now," Ulysses said, halting their discussion shortly after Richard had arrived. By then, he and the Snake King had roughly planned the direction for the new body.

What remained was to execute the plan, reconstruct the body, and then gradually refine the details.

Richard, somewhat reluctantly, stopped recording. Discussions like this were rare. The knowledge contained within was derived from the experiences of two formidable beings.

It was knowledge that could be directly applied.

"Why have you run off to the Secret Realm?" Ulysses turned and asked.

Richard spread his hands: "As a Black Wizard, I’m completely out of my depth on the front lines. Except for the Mayfly attack, I might be of some use, but otherwise, I’ll let those White Wizards busy themselves."

"That’s true," Ulysses nodded slightly, "Though you could learn some of that too. Chances to infiltrate behind enemy lines may be rare for you in the future."

Ulysses had learned about the situation in the Wizard World from Richard. According to his estimates, if this battle didn’t turn out well, Wizard Civilization could enter a substantial period of defense.

Wizards are not wanting for resources; many of the worlds occupied by Wizard Civilization have only been developed superficially. Most of the mines, in order to keep the market steady, have been sealed off.

Even if they were to spend extravagantly, these mines could sustain Wizard Civilization for an epoch.

So, rather than taking the initiative to attack, it was more likely that Wizard Civilization would opt for defense.

When the End of Magic Era concludes, and the tide of Magic Power returns, that would be the most appropriate time for Wizards to counterattack.

Of course, if the Galaxy Mayfly civilization proved too incapable, Wizard Civilization certainly wouldn’t mind taking a big bite out of the spoils.

Richard agreed with Ulysses’ suggestion but had more pressing matters at hand.

"We can leave learning for later. For now, let’s focus on these things," he said.

With that, Richard took out the pocket that Rico had given him earlier.

Opening the pocket, he poured out an oddly shaped crystal ball and those gemstones that seemed to have been refined from Mayfly corpses.

"Take a look at what’s inside this Crystal Ball."

Richard handed the Crystal Ball to Ulysses, who received it and used his spiritual power to access the information inside.

Soon, he spoke with some surprise, "These bugs are quite imaginative. The technology inside should be fine, but I’d question its effect.

These bugs have buried a Mind Suggestion inside the Crystal Ball. Once you come in contact with the information here, you’ll unconsciously want to share it with others."

Ulysses’ words made Richard break out in a cold sweat. Had Ulysses not stopped him in time, he might have fallen prey to the suggestion.

The Galaxy Mayflies must want this technology to spread because it helps them achieve certain goals.

Given the abilities of these Mayflies, Richard guessed that the gemstone could most likely enhance the Mayflies’ mind control.

"These bugs are cunning indeed," Richard remarked with a slight sigh.

In the conquest of Otherworlds by Wizards, brute force breaks all spells. Any cunning plans and tricks would be as frail as paper tigers before the Magic Concentrated Fire of the White Wizard Army.

As long as progress is steady, even if the natives have a temporary advantage, they would eventually be annihilated by Wizards.

But these Galaxy Mayflies were different.

"Just a little trick," said Ulysses dismissively, "Any wise man among you Wizards could see through it. It won’t affect the grand scheme.

Let’s look at these gemstones first."

Richard and Ulysses each took a Mayfly Gemstone and began to determine the nature of the stones based on their own experience.

At Richard’s end, with the measurement of many instruments, the basic properties of the gemstone were quickly understood.

Overall, the gemstone could indeed be called a fine alchemy material. Its physical data suggested it was more like plastic than a gemstone. And the spiritual protection it was claimed to provide did indeed function as such.

At first glance, there seemed to be no problem with the gemstone.

Soon after, however, Ulysses discovered something peculiar.

"This thing has an interesting protection against Spiritual Shock."

Holding the Mayfly Gemstone, he continually probed with his spiritual power. Suddenly, the Mayfly Gemstone became cloudy, and from within, an intense Spiritual Shock burst forth.

In an instant, all the Holy Tree Elves in the Secret Realm felt a sense of dizziness, while the Fire Lizard Craftsmen vigilantly turned their eyes toward Richard’s direction.

"Such a strong Spiritual Shock."

Richard watched the Mayfly Gemstone in astonishment; by now, it had returned to its original pale green color.

But its interior was filled with fluffy, willow-like matter, rendering it murky.

"This thing is useless now," Ulysses said, discarding the gemstone, "A one-time use object, probably just to trick you."

Richard picked up the discarded Mayfly Gemstone and promptly started to inquire about the details of Ulysses’ experiment.

While recording the data, Richard quickly noticed something was amiss.

"Unless the gemstone itself contains a Magic Model, the Spiritual Output you described and the power you described are not proportional."

If Ulysses’ output was merely that of a hand grenade, then the Spiritual Shock from the gemstone was like a shell.

"The data is correct; I’m sure of it."

Richard closed his notebook, a hint of excitement on his face.

"Then we’ve probably found something novel."

If he could find the cause of the amplification of the Spiritual Shock, he could use these gemstones to create devices similar to the Alchemy Power Armor he had seen on the Airship, which included a spiritual power amplification device—and it would be extremely cheap.

For Richard, and indeed for all Wizards, this would be a significant enhancement.

If such devices were made common among Wizards, then Three Rings Wizards could use these devices to command Alien armies and conduct Legion Magic’s concentrated fire.

But after the excitement, Richard soon calmed down.

The Galaxy Mayflies, as creators of these gemstones, had surely studied them for thousands of years before the Wizards.

If the property was real, the Galaxy Mayflies must have discovered it long ago, knowing its strengths and weaknesses well.

Although the Galaxy Mayflies didn’t know much about Wizards, they must have realized that Wizards are a race of Spiritual Evolution.

If the Mayfly Gemstone truly had the ability for continuous amplification of spiritual power, they wouldn’t let the Mayflies spread them. Unless the gemstones lacked such capability, or this feature could be exploited.

Richard regarded the Mayfly Gemstone in his hand; under the sunlight, the pale green gemstone glowed with a gentle luster.

"Forget it," Richard shook his head, casting aside the tangled thoughts in his mind, "My approach to research has become increasingly utilitarian.

That’s not a good sign.

Driven by utilitarianism, one can only be blinded. Better to be pure.

This thing’s nature is quite interesting; it’s worth researching."