Chapter 91: The Key Figure 'Chen Ying'

After the battle with the Silver Monarch, West Lake had returned to its usual calm. Walking once again along the tree-lined Su Causeway felt entirely different now.

Not only were willow leaves drifting everywhere, but the causeway was also filled with tourists. People constantly gazed westward toward the lake, hoping to catch a glimpse of the Totem Serpent, the mighty creature that had defeated the White Eagle Tribe.

Overnight, the Totem Serpent had become a tourist attraction, drawing large crowds. People had seemingly forgotten that this place was under strict security not long ago.

Unfortunately, the Totem Serpent had vanished after the battle, leaving no trace.

Meanwhile in Tang Yue's apartment:

"Teacher Tang Yue, you need to relax."

"Stop calling me teacher!"

"But you are my magic teacher."

"Get lost!"

Mo Fan really felt like he'd made a great deal. Not only had Tang Yue done something special for him, but he'd also obtained some high-level Totem Serpent scales and absorbed the souls of nearly ten thousand defeated White Eagles, including a rare Commander-grade soul.

Mo Fan had become a hero, saving the city of Hangzhou. As for the death of Luo Mian, no one even mentioned it. With a menace like him eliminated by the Totem Serpent, everyone felt it was just.

After the Hangzhou crisis, once Zhu Meng and others had recovered, they sought out Mo Fan. Initially, Zhu Meng had planned to give Mo Fan a nomination for the national team. But considering Mo Fan was already a high-level mage, why would he need it?

While the national team was competitive, very few young people had reached Mo Fan's level. There was no need for him to compete—his spot was practically guaranteed. In recognition of his achievements in saving the city, Zhu Meng and the Hangzhou officials decided to reward Mo Fan with a rare pair of wings stored at Lingyin Temple's judgment hall.

"These wings come from a fire-attribute dragon. Not only will they increase your speed, but they'll also boost the power of your fire magic, potentially doubling its effect, especially for spells below the super-level." explained Tang Zhong.

Hearing this, Mo Fan was thrilled. He never expected to receive wings, which granted him the power of flight.

Zhu Meng added, "Kid, no matter what, I owe you one. If you ever need anything, just ask."

Mo Fan casually nodded, not really taking it seriously. He had little faith in these so-called favors. In critical moments, there were always complications, rendering such promises useless. However, at least this favor gave him some leeway in the city—like using magic freely without fear of punishment from the authorities.

After the Hangzhou events, Mo Fan contacted Elder Bao to find Huo Tuo. He exchanged the two vampire fangs from Nie Dong for a chance to have his own magic tools crafted.

When Huo Tuo saw the fangs, he was astonished. He felt as though Mo Fan knew exactly what he wanted and had come prepared! But Mo Fan still had a big problem—money. Training in multiple magic systems required vast resources.

While Liu Xian and Liu Ru had started generating income after taking control of the Shanghai vampires, they weren't exactly printing money. The monthly profits were around 10-20 million yuan, which was decent.

He had initially thought their earnings could fund his ambitious goals, allowing him to skyrocket in power. But clearly, unless he was willing to push the Liu sisters and the blood clan to do unscrupulous things, he'd have to remain resource-strapped. He had already discussed this with Leng Qing, knowing it was best to maintain peace in the Magic City. Thus, he remained in his poor state.

Back in Magic City, Mo Fan didn't continue competing in the Fire Department's challenge tournament.

Since he was already at the high-level, competing was unnecessary. Principal Xiao didn't push him to graduate either. Instead, he planned to have Mo Fan join the national team when the time came. Given his age and strength, there was no reason not to include him. This also granted Mo Fan certain privileges, like access to the Three Steps Pagoda for a full month each semester.

A month after the Hangzhou incident, Mo Fan emerged from the Three Steps Tower after another intense period of cultivation. Despite the monotony, he had made considerable progress. Within that month, his Light and Space magic systems had both reached level two of the mid-level, with their star clouds on the verge of advancing to level three.

His Little Loach pendent was able to help his star rivers, so it had no problem supporting his star clouds as well.

At this rate of improvement, Mo Fan believed he could have three or even four elements at the high level by the time the national tournament began. Maybe even five.

At Zhao Manyan's family auction house:

"Zhao Manyan, what's that over there? It looks like you're selling something in a scroll. Could it be a Star Atlas book?" Mo Fan asked curiously.

The real reason Mo Fan came to Zhao Manyan's place was his cousin, Chen Ying. She was key to obtaining Flame Belle. Otherwise, Mo Fan wouldn't have bothered with Zhao Manyan and would have taken Xin Xia straight to the scorching plains himself.

"Oh, those aren't spell scrolls. We're selling lottery tickets," Zhao Manyan replied.

"Want me to get you a few? I can arrange a discount for you." he offered.

"Sure, I don't have a contract beast in mind right now anyway." Mo Fan said.

Given that this was Zhao Manyan's family business, he had some perks. Before long, Mo Fan had several "mystery scrolls" in hand.

These Scrolls were finely crafted, made for mage consumers. For ordinary people, spending tens of thousands of yuan on something as uncertain as this would be unthinkable.

Soon, after opening several useless scrolls, Mo Fan came across one with information about Flame Belle in the northern region of the scorching plains.

"Holy crap, this info is worth a fortune!" Zhao Manyan exclaimed before Mo Fan could even react.

"Get me more intelligence on Flame Belle." Mo Fan said.

"Got it." Zhao Manyan replied.

(End of Chapter)