Translator: AnubisTL
Since he was already at Noren Academy No. 13, Jieming was in no hurry to return to his remote Noren Plane No. 147.
On one hand, he needed to wait for the Expeditionary Force Command's follow-up on the intelligence report and any potential summons. On the other hand, the opportunity to study under Mentor Clark again was too precious to pass up.
In the days that followed, he kept a close watch for any news from the Command while remaining in Mentor Clark's vast and complex laboratory. There, he served as a senior assistant, processing intricate experimental data and preparing materials.
Of course, the memory of being instantly erased from existence still haunted him.
It was no exaggeration to say that, as one of the few people to have truly experienced the sensation of death, Jieming found that his fear of it had not diminished, but had instead grown.
Furthermore, Jieming still had no idea of the exact value of the Substitute Death Puppet he had used. After all, he had not yet paid Mentor Clark for it.
This was the norm in the wizard world. Wizards, who adhered to the principle of equivalent exchange, kept clear accounts even between the closest of mentors and students when dealing with such precious resources.
A mentor could grant sanctuary, knowledge, and opportunity—even go as far as Clark did, by advancing a life-saving artifact.
But the student had to pay the corresponding price.
Discounts were possible, but the cost could never be waived.
Previously, Jieming hadn't actually used the artifact. It was essentially an unused insurance policy, so he could afford to ignore the matter.
But now, he couldn't pretend not to know.
During a break in an experiment, he casually probed Mentor Clark, who was in the middle of calibrating a complex energy-focusing array.
"Mentor... about that Substitute Death Puppet. Do you have any more in stock? Or perhaps you know where I could find something similar for life preservation?"
Without looking up, Clark remained focused on the runes he was engraving. His tone was flat as he replied, "The last one I had is already on you. If you wish to purchase another, I can contact my own mentor on your behalf. He occasionally takes such orders."
Jieming's heart leaped with joy, but before he could speak, Clark added, "However, let me warn you in advance: this item is extremely expensive."
"How expensive?" Jieming instinctively touched his terminal.
His terminal held all his savings from the past few years. Thanks to the "Self-Stabilizing Field Regulation Protocol" technology, Jieming felt his fortune was quite substantial.
Clark finally stopped his work and glanced at him. Instead of quoting a price, he simply said, "The High-Tier Military Merit Exchange Zone on the Magic Network has the public listing. Go check it yourself. You should have the clearance."
Jieming's heart sank.
The High-Tier Military Merit Exchange Zone?
The items there were all genuine hard currency.
He immediately connected to the Magic Network via his mental link. After authentication, he entered the area he rarely ever visited.
After a quick search, he found the listing for the "Substitute Death Puppet (Standard Alchemy/Fate Science Composite Product)."
Just one glance at the long string of zeros following the price made Jieming's heart skip a beat.
Ten billion high-tier military merits!
His brain quickly did the math: according to the unofficial floating exchange rate, this was roughly equivalent to one hundred billion ordinary military merits!
Moreover, high-tier military merits weren't just numbers—they were access tickets to recovery time and rare resources!
This price...
Even with his entire net worth, Jieming probably couldn't afford a single one.
Even more despairing was the clear note beneath the entry: Stock: Extremely Low (Pre-order required; production cycle measured in centuries).
Jieming gasped, his face twisting into a mournful grimace as he looked at Mentor Clark. "Mentor... this... even selling me off wouldn't be enough to buy it..."
Mentor Clark remained utterly unfazed. He picked up his tools and resumed engraving, his voice flat and devoid of emotion. "It is of no consequence. You will simply carry some debt. With your potential, you can repay it slowly. A wizard's life is very long."
Jieming's mouth twitched. Some debt? This was an astronomical sum!
He had been able to mock Senior Viola for becoming a debt-slave, but now he was about to join her in the ranks of the overburdened...
Refusing to give up, Jieming searched for other artifacts or wizarding scrolls with similar death-substitution or resurrection effects.
The results were even more devastating.
Any item or service involving domains like "Causality Reversal," "Soul Anchoring," or "Instant Death Evasion" carried an absurdly high price tag. Worse, most came with extremely strict usage restrictions or severe side effects.
By comparison, the Substitute Death Puppet was practically the most cost-effective option with the fewest drawbacks.
"Forget it, forget it..." Jieming completely abandoned the idea of acquiring another life-saving divine artifact in the short term. "With these resources, it would be more practical to focus all my efforts on improving my own strength."
Even if he truly had the money, exchanging it for knowledge and resources to invest in himself would undoubtedly be more cost-effective.
At the same time, he was secretly alarmed by the terrifying "money-making" ability of high-tier alchemy, especially alchemists involved in the Fate Domain.
A seventh-tier alchemist who could stably manufacture Substitute Death Puppets would have a wealth accumulation speed and channels that were likely more frightening than many eighth-tier battle wizards who were poor at business.
"Wait..." Jieming suddenly froze, looking at Mentor Clark. "Peak-stage alchemy, combined with fate science... Mentor, isn't this the very path you are walking?"
Once Mentor Clark advanced to the seventh tier, wouldn't that mean...
His eyes lit up, and he said half-jokingly and half-expectantly, "Mentor! You have to work hard and advance quickly! Whether I can use cheap 'internal-price' Substitute Death Puppets in the future depends entirely on you!"
Upon hearing this, Clark finally looked up.
Clark sneered. He pointed his rune-engraving pen at the mountain of data crystals piled nearby. "Want to ride my coattails? Fine. First, pay a little interest on the debt you owe me—go, right now, and finish processing and analyzing all seventeen sets of energy dissipation wave data from the third workbench. If you don't finish, don't even think about leaving the lab tonight."
"Yes, Mentor! Mission guaranteed!" Jieming immediately dropped his playful attitude and scurried off to the third workbench, beginning the first grueling task of his "debt repayment" career.
Two months passed in this whirlwind of a research assistant's life.
Just as Jieming was almost getting used to this routine—and had even started reworking the designs for his rune-imbued magical artifact and the Black Giant—news arrived about that otherworldly plane.
However, the latest update on that bizarre plane didn't come from an official announcement by the Expeditionary Force Command.
Instead, it was because...
Viola had returned.
(End of the Chapter)
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