Exploring

The pirate ship captured by the dark wizards of the underground world sailed quietly on the magnificent sea.

After the initial panic, the wizard apprentices on the ship continued their dull and boring sea life every day.

However, unlike the original escort wizards, the two powerful wizards, Ronald and Simon, treated the teenagers very kindly, even protecting them like precious property.

"No fighting" was no longer just talking. Anyone who dared offend would be hung on the mast under the sun.

So on the second day after the ship was hijacked, after the usual fighting in the dining room, everyone immediately witnessed the means of the dark wizards.

Without judging right or wrong, four teenagers involved in the fight were stripped naked and hung upside down on the mast for two full hours enjoying the sea breeze. By the time they were let down, they were like spineless worms, unconscious.

"Don't try to challenge my bottom line again. Such punishment does not even count as an appetizer!" Ronald said calmly, not even glancing at the plight of the four punished, directly ordering them to be dragged into the cabin to recover on their own, and warning everyone for the last time.

Although the punishment was extremely cruel, after demonstrating such a thunderous approach, the two dark wizards showed their erudition and omniscience to everyone.

Designated as the supervisor of all the teenagers, Raymon carefully observed them for a few days and found their weaknesses.

Ronald was the most powerful, and he was Simon's direct boss, but the two had been life-and-death comrades fighting together for 30 years.

The hearty and steady Ronald was very patient, while Simon was irritable.

So after observing their personality differences for a few days, Raymon began to target them purposefully and inquire from them everything he needed to know.

Of course, the first thing Raymon did was to identify the uses of the things he got from Wizard Koch.

Several dozen magic stones, a black card the size of two fingers, several small bottles, powdery substances wrapped in sheepskin, and a fragment of a map sewn into the lining.

When these things were placed in front of Ronald, even his breathing became heavy. The surprise and astonishment in his eyes startled Raymon.

Staring straight at the things Raymon took out, after a long silence, Ronald took a deep breath and smiled bitterly. "If I had known the white wizards were so rich, I should have stripped them naked and thrown them into the boat..."

Very emotional, Ronald did not conceal his envy. He explained to Raymon one by one the things plundered from Wizard Koch.

The black card was a magic crystal card, equivalent to a thousand low-level magic stones, a huge fortune.

The small bottles and powder wrapped in sheepskin were potions frequently used by wizards.

The map fragment could not be identified, but based on the age of the sheepskin, it should be over a thousand years old. Unfortunately, only one-sixth remained, and the hope of piecing it together was small.

Magic stones were actually a kind of currency used for transactions between wizards. Because the energy contained in the magic stones could be extracted, and most wizards needed to use them, they had become the universal currency in the wizarding world countless years ago.

The black magic crystal card had refined the energy of a thousand magic stones using a special compression method. To Raymon, it was like a windfall because magic stones were more valuable as hard currency in the underground world than on the surface.

Keeping the joy in his heart, Raymon was quite open-minded about this unexpected wealth. After making sure Ronald did not intend to take it away, he carefully put it in his waist pouch.

Then Raymon took the opportunity when Simon was in a good mood to ask him about studying in the underground world and learn from him the withered vine technique he had performed.

Raymon was eager for the technique Simon had performed because its power was absolutely incomparable to Principal Barmer's green vine technique.

The irritable Simon did not mind Raymon's sincere asking for advice, but the technique he mastered was wood-based and could only be learned after becoming an official wizard.

The outspoken Wizard Simon also warned Raymon that even if he became an official wizard, he would have to pay a sufficient price to learn this technique from him. Wizards in the underground world followed the principle of equivalent exchange. To gain without paying the price was the patent of robbers.

In communicating with Wizard Simon, Raymon did not know if this Simon was less accustomed to dealing with people. Under Raymon's flattery, he often showed shy expressions.

A short, stout, and sturdy man with such expressions on his face made Raymon's hair stand on end and almost vomited.

Fortunately, Wizard Simon had no particular hobbies and sincerely told Raymon many things to note after entering the underground world.

The underground world was completely different from the surface world. Among human wizards, there were fewer disguises than in the surface world. Basically, strength was respected.

Especially away from the bases, killing people, robbing treasures, and destroying corpses were very common. There were even evil existences that specialized in ambushing other wizards for a living.

Then, away from the gathering places of wizards, those strange creatures had to be handled with extra care. Some seemingly weak creatures might possess destructive power.

"Kid, although the underground world is terrifying, there are rich resources here that the surface world does not have," Simon said mysteriously, patting Raymon's shoulder vigorously in a hearty tone. He specially warned Raymon, "When you enter the underground world, don't be tempted by the Shadow City. The death rate of apprentices there is the highest."

Startled, Raymon had expected that the underground world that plundered apprentice resources would not be as free as Ronald described, but terms like "death rate" were still shocking.

With a solemn expression, Wizard Simon knew he had said too much as soon as he finished speaking and immediately changed the subject, unwilling to continue the discussion.

But as something related to his vital interests, Raymon would not give up questioning. He kept chasing Simon for a week, annoying Simon to some extent. Only then did Simon furtively pull Raymon aside and give him some vague hints.

The more Simon avoided such questions, the more Raymon would not give up. Without grasping such important information, Raymon would have no way out once he entered the underground world.

Using soft and hard means, with all tricks...

Finally, after Raymon swore not to reveal anything Simon said, this seemingly impulsive guy secretly told Raymon that the best choice was the Red Swamp. This place was relatively safe and also the best place for wizard apprentices to study...