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Chapter 66: 006: The Advantage of Knowledge
On the other side, Lynch was casually strolling through the market.
"This is really interesting."
This kind of Wizard Market was his first visit. Watching the bustling crowd of Transcendents and the array of peculiar goods, Lynch felt as though he had returned to the Dark Forest.
After wandering for a while, Lynch finally stopped at a stall selling Magic Books.
A wide, oversized rug was scattered with piles of books. Lynch crouched down and casually picked up a few, flipping through them. Each book had been enchanted with special Magic, showing only the cover and a portion of the opening content. The rest remained frustratingly blurred.
After flipping through a few books, Lynch lost interest; they were all Basic Magic Knowledge that he’d already read and practically worn out.
He straightforwardly asked the stall owner, "Do you have any Magic Models for sale here?"
The stall owner, an elderly man with a white beard and hair, was seated on a wooden chair smoking a pipe. The badge on his chest revealed he was a High-level Apprentice.
Wizard Markets primarily served apprentices, as the number of full-fledged Wizards throughout the entire Ancient Ruins was limited. Those prominent figures had their own exclusive trading venues.
Upon hearing Lynch’s inquiry, the old man placed down his pipe and knocked on a large wooden chest beside his feet. The chest immediately extended two long arms from its sides, flipped its "head" open, and revealed stacks of thick books inside.
The stall owner asked, "What type? And what Level?"
Lynch replied, "Mid-level Apprentice Level. As for the type... Hmm, can I look at all of them?"
The Tower’s management of Magic Models was strictly regulated—unlike Knowledge, which could be borrowed from the library, Magic Models had to be purchased with Magic Stones. Apprentices at corresponding Levels could only purchase Models matching their Level. Since Lynch had just advanced to Mid-level Apprentice and had not yet reported to the Tower, he naturally had no official Models.
The stall owner glanced at Lynch in surprise. Despite Lynch wearing a mask, it was still clear that he was a young man: "Are these for your personal use?"
Lynch nodded.
The stall owner’s gaze grew envious. Advancing to Mid-level Apprentice at such a young age was no simple feat. Unlike him, who had a belly full of white whiskers yet was still stuck as a High-level Apprentice, uncertain if he’d ever advance to Wizard in his lifetime...
Thinking thus, the stall owner softened his tone somewhat. Pushing the wooden chest lightly with his pipe, he said, "Take your time looking through it yourself. The prices are marked on the back side."
"Alright."
Lynch nodded and began rifling through the chest’s contents.
The chest wasn’t particularly large, but it held a considerable number of books—easily several hundred. The collection included Magic Models spanning Low-level and Mid-level Apprentice Levels, representing various factions and schools under the Three Major Sects.
Lynch asked doubtfully, "Are all these your own Models?"
"Of course not!"
The stall owner couldn’t understand why Lynch would ask such a strange question; clearly, no ordinary apprentice could master so many Models.
He explained, "These are produced by our Wizard Tower. They include creations and collections from my mentor, as well as some public templates. Rest assured, all are legitimate, learnable Magic Models without any Curse markings."
The Wizard World strictly regulated Magic Model transactions. Wizards were highly conscious of copyright. Upon creating a Magic Model, they would submit it to the White Witch Council for registration and place Spell markings or similar protections upon it.
Unauthorized copying or selling of such Models would result in Curse markings. Even if the markings were successfully removed, any infringement discovered would still lead to accountability from the White Witch Council.
"Oh, I see." Lynch realized his earlier question had been rather naive.
After a round of sifting and sorting, Lynch selected all the Mid-level Models from the chest—totaling dozens of books. About half were public templates, such as the Large Fireball Technique and Flesh Split.
Public templates, as the name suggested, were Magic Models created by renowned Great Wizards and submitted to the council for public release. These Models were relatively stable and were widely studied by apprentices.
"So expensive..."
After browsing for a while, Lynch discovered that the prices for these public template spells were universally about thirty percent higher than at the Tower—and some were marked up by as much as fifty percent.
This wasn’t surprising. Most public templates originated from large Wizard Organizations, and some were directly created by Wizards from the Shadow Tower. The Tower naturally offered discounts to its own apprentices.
This advantage was one of the reasons organizations like the Shadow Tower surpassed smaller fringe Wizard groups.
"Hmm? This spell is..."
At that moment, Lynch noticed a Mid-level Magic Model priced at just 1000 Magic Stones—a stark contrast amidst the other Mid-level Models that typically cost thousands. Even the cheapest public template from the Tower wasn’t priced below 2000 Magic Stones.
Intrigued, he picked up the Magic Model and flipped it over. The cover bore the bold title: "Elemental Voidification."
The stall owner noticed him picking up the Model and said, "If you’re interested in this one, I can give you a further discount—but honestly, I bought it at a high price myself, so I can’t afford to take too much of a loss."
Lynch asked suspiciously, "What’s the issue with this spell?"
The stall owner took a draw from his pipe before replying at a leisurely pace, "Check the description for yourself—you’ll understand."
So Lynch opened the pages to read the description, and after a glance, he immediately understood.
Elemental Voidification: Merges one’s body with surrounding elements to achieve "Elemental Voidification." In this state, one can gain immunity to attacks, pass through solid objects, and more.
Sounds promising, doesn’t it?
The problem is that to achieve Elemental Voidification, one must first understand elements and their interactions.
Simply put, to voidify with nearby water, you must master Water Element; for soil, you must master Earth Element.
The world is composed of six fundamental elements, and to achieve effects such as passing through walls, one must master all the composing and derivative elements of the wall—allowing one’s body to partake in intricate Elemental Voidification.
To summarize—
It’s ridiculously hard!
An ordinary apprentice mastering one or two elements is already praiseworthy, but for Elemental Voidification to work effectively, it requires a minimum of four elements. It’s far beyond the skillset of most apprentices.
The stall owner snorted lightly through his nose and said scornfully, "I have no idea what kind of fool created this spell. All those elemental reactions—who can even learn it?"
Due to its sheer difficulty, few could study the knowledge required for this spell. Fewer learners meant less demand, hence the low price. 𝓷ℴ𝓿𝓅𝓊𝒷.𝓬𝓸𝓂
This comment, however, made Lynch’s eyes light up involuntarily.
The stall owner’s remark sparked an idea.
Wizards creating Magic Models often find their initial concept diverges significantly from the final product. Consequently, bizarre spells like Elemental Voidification often emerge.
Additionally, some spells are developed purely for academic verification or research purposes. Such creations might have impressive power but demand exceedingly complex knowledge, ensuring minimal adoption among apprentices. These spells often boasted great attributes yet came at bargain prices.
Perhaps...
He could search for more spells like these?
"Let’s talk about the price."
With this thought in mind, Lynch picked up the Magic Book and began negotiating with the stall owner...
