Wizard: I Can Refine Everything-Chapter 497 - 42 Wild Beastmen
Chapter 497: Chapter 42 Wild Beastmen
A shattered... large world?
Listening to the objective of this expedition, Richard felt his brain momentarily crash.
According to Ulysses, every large world is the cradle of a civilization. Unless there is a Plane War, it is essentially impossible for a civilization to possess two large worlds.
Yet now, Jimmy was telling him that he was about to head to a shattered large world for a Plane expedition.
Had the world gone mad?
"Hello? Hello? Did you hear clearly? This expedition is no small matter; we must bring enough supplies." freewebnøvel.com
Richard rubbed his face and replied somewhat listlessly, "I heard you, Master. I’ll provide you with the land-based floating mother ship. To be honest, Master, do you know the inside story of this expedition?
Why would they choose to conquer a large world at this time?"
"It’s a shattered large world," Jimmy corrected, before falling silent for a moment and then adding in a low voice, "I heard from the dean that the world we are going to invade is the homeland of the Lost Ones. If nothing goes wrong, there should be abundant Lost Relics and Lost One research there."
Hearing this explanation, Richard instantly understood why Garon the Great Wizard and the Truth Council behind him had chosen such a resource-intensive Plane expedition at this time.
For wizards, a shattered large world might be dispensable. But the essence of a possible civilization, they would never let it go.
Wizards are a race that is rational yet mad, restrained yet greedy.
In the face of such a situation, no wizard could resist this temptation.
However, Richard soon saw a problem.
"Since we’re heading to the homeland of the Lost Ones, wouldn’t using the Lost Ones’ weapons against them pose a risk of being counter-controlled?"
"Counter-controlled? Impossible," Jimmy said confidently with a smile. "According to the Reconnaissance Wizard’s intelligence, the creatures inside this world don’t possess Dragon Blood. According to the main controller, these creatures aren’t even part of the new permission system."
Hearing the word "main controller", Richard immediately knew where Jimmy’s confidence came from.
The land-based floating mother ship was using a new permission system compiled by the main controller, which was not initially created by the Pioneers. So, for the natives to counter-control, they would first have to break through the revamped permission system.
But, the permission system is one of the most crucial among the systems created by the Pioneers. If the natives could break through it, they would have already been contesting across the galaxy, not waiting for the rise of the wizard civilization.
"It seems the dean has also made some breakthroughs with the research on the Star Realm Fortress," Richard said with a laugh. "He’s even managing to use the main controller."
"Ah, what breakthroughs? The Star Realm Fortress is complex, and up till now, we’ve only just started to understand some of its minor features. The dean is able to use the main controller all thanks to some giant dragons he’s been raising in the Otherworld."
"Ah? Why is the dean raising dragons?" Richard asked in surprise.
"What else? For eating. Roasted whole dragon is the dean’s favorite snack; he likes to snag a couple to eat whenever he can."
Snacks... Richard recalled Garon Great Wizard’s towering figure in the Green Forest World; if judging by that figure, indeed, the giant dragons could only qualify as snacks.
"By the way, since we are going to a large world this time, we do have intelligence. I will send you the details soon. Truthfully, this world is very suitable for wizards who specialize in Physique Evolution. Likely, we will be leading the charge."
Having said this, Jimmy ended the communication, and soon after, Richard received a message.
"You’ve just come down from the front lines, and now there’s a war to fight." Ali looked at Richard, somewhat worriedly saying, "This Plane expedition might not be as easy as the front lines of the civilization war."
While checking the information Jimmy had sent, Richard said nonchalantly, "Can’t run away from it. If I want to become a Great Wizard, war is inevitable. War tempers a person’s will, capable of transforming rough ore into resilient steel. The dean told me that spiritual cultivation is most crucial in becoming a Great Wizard. Without sufficient tempering, even going through the Promotion Ceremony would just be a suicide."
Richard’s words made Ali’s heart tremble slightly.
Great Wizard, a term that had once felt incredibly distant to her, yet now her beloved was preparing to become one.
Suddenly, a wave of fear enveloped Ali.
It was the fear of being left behind.
The ascension to Great Wizard was not simply the promotion from Three Rings to Four Rings, but more akin to a transformation from a mortal to a wizard.
It was a difference in the level of existence.
To a wizard, a mortal is like dust.
"No, I must become stronger quickly!"
Ali made up her mind in her heart, though she knew that realistically, she could not catch up with Richard’s pace of promotion.
But she did not need to catch up.
She only needed to become a Three Rings Wizard, and once she did, she would be eligible to enter Richard’s headquarters as a staff member during the war. If she survived the war, she could also serve as the Deputy Dean of the Wizard Academy.
Richard, standing beside her, had no idea that his casual remark had a huge impact on Ali. He was currently immersed in the intelligence Jimmy had transmitted to him.
"No wonder Jimmy said he wanted to take the lead. This world is indeed suited for Physique Evolution Wizards."
According to the intelligence, this broken large world was very special. Fragments that had broken off from the main large world were orbiting around it, forming a ring of satellite worlds.
In these worlds, the creatures of the satellite worlds had not been explored, but the main inhabiting race of the main large world had been identified as a humanoid species.
This species was normally around two meters tall, with a facial structure similar to humans but with protruding jawlines and large, fierce teeth in their mouths.
This species was tentatively named Wild Beastmen by the Truth Council, and their adult physique could reach the level of a high-level Wizard Apprentice. Their evolution followed a method they called "Martial Arts," which was a type of Physique Evolution.
This "Martial Arts" evolution method, unlike the single and unchanging evolution of the native species, was comparable to that of wizards.
By practicing different Martial Arts, Wild Beastmen could exhibit various distinct abilities, the diversity of which could even compare to a wizard’s witchcraft.
Moreover, the reconnaissance wizards had brought back a terrifying piece of information.
Wild Beastmen needed "talent" to practice Martial Arts, but according to the intelligence explored by the wizards, this "talent" was something that could be present or absent.
In the world of the Wild Beastmen, virtually every city had records of individuals who, through sheer effort and unbreakable will, had become masters of Martial Arts.
According to the wizards’ reconnaissance, these records were not exaggerations but real truths.
And such examples were abundant in the society of the Wild Beastmen.
This meant that if a Wild Beastman firmly believed that diligence could make up for shortcomings and persisted in their practice, they would definitely achieve success in Martial Arts.
This was distinctly different from wizards, who, if they did not have ten points of spiritual power by the age of fifteen, could never become wizards in their lifetimes.
Fortunately, in the Wild Beastmen society, and because they were naturally prone to rage and impulsivity, it was difficult for them to persist in one thing, so nobody had clearly realized this point.
In their view, a Wild Beastman being able to settle down and consistently study Martial Arts for decades was itself a talent.
Having read through the intelligence conveyed by Jimmy, Richard already had some ideas about the upcoming war.
Although the Wild Beastmen were strong, they had not reached the level of civilization. Therefore, the war would definitely be conducted in the form of Black and White Wizards.
If nothing went wrong, he would definitely need to infiltrate the Wild Beastmen from behind.
Therefore, in the coming period, what he needed to study most was knowledge about shape imitation.
Yes, Richard was not planning to be a mouse this time; he intended to disguise himself as a Wild Beastman and enter their society.
Wild Beastmen followed the route of Physique Evolution, and their abilities could change dramatically due to Martial Arts.
Physique Evolution Wizards from the Garon Wizard College could slightly alter their appearance and disguise themselves as Wild Beastmen without any problem.
"Let’s go, Ali," Richard said, pocketing the Crystal Ball and smiling at Ali, "Although all the Three Rings Wizards have been conscripted, the master chef was requested back from the Military Department by the Dean.
His cooking skills are guaranteed to please you."
...
After showing Ali around the Garon Wizard College, Richard handed in his tasks and exchanged for two pieces of knowledge at the Contribution Store.
One was the Unity of Heaven and Man, which Richard had experienced on Jimmy, and the other was an extension skill of the Transformation Battle Body—Invisible Face.
The Transformation Battle Body was an extremely complex piece of knowledge. Garon the Great Wizard had thrown everything useful he had ever researched into the Contribution Store.
And Invisible Face was a technique that complemented the Transformation Battle Body.
Invisible Face allowed for manipulation of bones and muscles to disguise oneself as another wizard, or even another species. Moreover, this technique could involve absorbing Bloodline to allow wizards to mimic completely.
Whether it was organs, nerves, or even muscle vessels, Invisible Face could simulate them all.
However, during a complete imitation, the Transformation Battle Body would be in a sealed state. If one were to act, the effect of the complete imitation would be disrupted.
Nevertheless, the Martial Arts of the Wild Beastmen naturally altered the Wild Beastman’s body, so disrupting the complete imitation effect was not an issue.
After exchanging for the knowledge, Richard treated Ali to a big meal at the food hall of the Garon Wizard College.
Luckily, since the master chef had forgotten that all the Three Rings Wizards had been conscripted and inadvertently stewed a cauldron of Dragon Meat that ordinarily only Three Rings Wizards could consume in large quantities.
Richard conveniently took this opportunity to enjoy the pot of meat.
The taste of the Dragon Meat was exquisite, and its toxicity was strong—a typical Second Ring Wizard could die from just one bite. Surprisingly, Ali was able to eat the Dragon Meat without any concern, just like Richard, thanks to her Bloodline.
Through years of development of her Bloodline, Ali’s body had undergone significant changes.
Now, Ali in terms of strength, agility, and response was even not inferior to a Three Rings Wizard who had not trained in Physique.
And during this process, Richard discovered the evolution path of the Abyss Demon—the Evolution Tree.
All Abyss Demons were essentially one type of creature. But through the development of Bloodline, Abyss Demons would choose different evolutionary branches at each promotion node, thereby transforming into completely different demons.
In other words, a lower-ranking demon could keep advancing to become a higher-ranking demon.
This method of evolution led Richard to speculate—perhaps the Abyss Demons were also biological weapons left behind by some powerful civilization that had vanished.