The Floating City fortress remained as magnificent as ever, but unfortunately, this Floating City was not the one belonging to the Great Wizard Qingshuang.
The academy that fought alongside the Great Wizard Qingshuang was called the Inferno Wizard Academy, led by the Inferno Great Wizard, a five-ring Great Wizard who had been exploring the path of the Great Wizard for a long time.
Within the fortress, Richard revealed his identity and obtained a map of the Wizard-controlled area from the logistics Wizard. He also entrusted the logistics Wizard to send him a message when Moffett returned.
Following the map, Richard spent a week returning to the Floating City of the Great Wizard Qingshuang.
At this moment, it had been ten years since Richard had undertaken his mission.
Upon returning to the Floating City, Richard drafted a weapon testing report and submitted it.
As a technical advisor accompanying the troops, this was his primary responsibility.
However, when he found the logistics Wizard to submit the report, he was met with a look of surprise from the logistics Wizard as he stared at Richard.
"Technical advisor Richard?"
He compared the image in the crystal ball with Richard, scrutinizing him closely.
After confirming that it was indeed Richard, he spoke with admiration in his tone:
"Master, I never expected you to escape. I will submit your report right away.
Also, if you have no other matters, you might want to find Master Vladimir. He has come to inquire about your whereabouts more than once."
Richard was taken aback; he hadn't expected this old Wizard to have such confidence in him.
"Master Vladimir? I will do that."
The logistics Wizard nodded: "Master Vladimir has never believed you were dead. Every time he returns to the rear, he asks us if we have any news about you."
As he spoke, the logistics Wizard's tone carried a hint of emotion: "We originally thought this was just the Master unwilling to face reality, but now it seems we were too shortsighted."
Richard smiled, asked about the outcome of that mission back then, and then turned to leave.
In that mission, Alchemist Wizard Damir, Captain Iyad, and Shaping Wizard Savo all survived, but they relied on soul boxes.
But surviving was undoubtedly a good thing; the effectiveness of the Magic Support Vehicle had witnesses, which was far better than just a report.
After returning from the logistics Wizard, Richard took the opportunity to check out the accompanying merchant association.
These years, the accompanying merchant associations must have made a fortune.
Richard wanted to see if he could obtain something that could be refined, and he also lacked some knowledge about Alchemy Machines. The Wizard merchant associations could sometimes act as brokers, facilitating transactions between Wizards.
With the war raging so fiercely, many Wizards must have suffered soul injuries, and Richard's improved sacrificial fungus was undoubtedly a good trading tool.
Arriving at the commercial district, Richard headed straight for the Nine Stars Merchant Association.
Most Wizards were still on the front lines, and due to the shortage of Wizards, the returning White Wizards had become rare, causing the business of these associations to cool down.
Upon entering the shop, the mechanical clerk immediately recognized Richard.
"Lord Richard, welcome."
Richard waved his hand: "I'm looking for Bob."
The clerk turned and entered the back of the shop, and soon, Bob, wearing gold-rimmed monocles, walked out.
"Richard, my old brother, long time no see."
Bob opened his arms and gave Richard a hug, then invited him to sit down and had the mechanical clerk brew a pot of fine magic tea.
"Richard, your skills are quite impressive; you managed to return in one piece from such a situation."
Richard chuckled lightly: "You're overpraising me, old brother. It's just that my methods happened to suit the environment of the Crimson Sun World."
Before long, the magic tea was ready.
Bob poured a cup for Richard, and the faint aroma of tea instantly filled the entire shop.
"You must have just returned; coming straight to my shop, did you encounter some treasure over the years that you want to show me?"
Richard shook his head: "What treasure could I have? I escaped from the Fire Lizard for ten years, and aside from a few decent fire elemental gems, I didn't find anything. But you, old brother, must have collected quite a few treasures over the years."
At Richard's words, a glimmer of light flashed in Bob's eyes.
Although Richard's words sounded like an excuse, Bob sensed something different from them.
Richard had been trapped behind the Fire Lizard for a full ten years, which seemed far from normal.
The place where Richard undertook his mission was the Red Soil Plain, a location Bob had personally surveyed, and there was no place to hide.
Moreover, the Fire Lizard patrols in the Red Soil Plain were known for their speed and marksmanship.
Surviving their pursuit solely by running was clearly impossible.
Before this, Bob had been speculating on how Richard had escaped the Fire Lizard's pursuit, but upon hearing Richard mention he had some decent Fire Elemental Gems, a sudden guess arose in his mind.
Richard must have escaped through the magma network beneath the Red Soil Plain, and he likely had some opportunities within the magma network.
Otherwise, Richard would not have wasted ten years.
As his thoughts raced, Bob smiled slightly at Richard and said, "Decent Fire Elemental Gems? If they caught your eye, they must be more than just decent. Can you show me two?"
Richard was unaware that Bob had mistakenly guessed his opportunity from his casual remark. But upon hearing Bob wanted to see the gems, a question suddenly arose in his mind.
In the Crimson Sun World, Bob might lack many things, but he would certainly not lack Fire Elemental Gems.
Bob should have grown tired of Fire Elemental Gems by now; otherwise, he wouldn't have used them as an excuse.
In a moment, Richard's thoughts turned quickly, and combining the situation from his mission, he quickly reached a conclusion.
Bob probably guessed that he had escaped the pursuit by relying on the Magma Sea and had also inferred that he had some opportunities within the Magma Sea.
And his request to see the gems was likely to confirm his guess.
Having reached this conclusion, Richard naturally had a countermeasure. Although he certainly couldn't consume the Flame Behemoth ecosystem himself, it wouldn't hurt to use this information to exchange for some Magic Essence.
Thus, Richard took out a Fire Elemental Gem from his pocket, which, while of good quality, was not exceptional.
"Here, this is it."
Seeing the gem, Bob frowned slightly. This was not what he had expected; if Richard had entered the magma network, the gem should have been very pure. How could it be this mediocre?
Had he guessed wrong?
Bob glanced at Richard out of the corner of his eye, only to see Richard sigh and pick up the magic tea to sip.
Unable to decipher Richard's thoughts, Bob could only suppress his doubts for the moment and tentatively said, "Old brother, did you pick the wrong one? This gem is too mediocre."
"Ah, old brother, don't say that. Having something is already good enough," Richard said with a face of regret, "If it weren't for... ah, let's not talk about it."
If one were to ask what behavior in this world is most likely to provoke annoyance, leaving a sentence half-finished would surely rank high.
Bob was intrigued by Richard's half-finished sentence and couldn't help but ask, "Old brother, your words are too tantalizing. What exactly happened back then?"
But Richard shook his head repeatedly: "Forget I said anything, forget I said anything."
Seeing Richard like this, and recalling how Richard had come straight to him upon returning, Bob speculated:
"Richard is usually cautious in his actions. Could it be that his earlier words were not unintentional but rather a deliberate bait to draw me in? It seems he encountered some opportunity in the Red Soil Plain that he couldn't consume alone, so he came to me to exchange for some Magic Essence or perhaps to collaborate."
Richard was unaware of Bob's thoughts, but he indeed had prepared an "opportunity" for Bob.
He had quite a bit of the flesh and blood of the mutated Flame Behemoth on hand, and the potential of this material would definitely attract the attention of the Wizard merchant associations.
Bob felt he had guessed Richard's intentions and spoke directly: "Old brother, let's be straightforward. You came straight to me upon your return, so you must have something to discuss. What did you discover in the Red Soil Plain?"
Seeing Bob speak so openly, Richard didn't say much and soon took out a chunk of blue ice, within which was a mass of mutated fire lizard flesh.
"Hmm? The Dead Silence Ice Mountain Sealing Technique of the Great Wizard Qingshuang!"
Bob clearly recognized the sealing technique of the Great Wizard Qingshuang, and upon seeing the blue ice in Richard's hand, he exclaimed. But soon, he realized that this was merely a semblance.
Bob wiped the cold sweat from his forehead:
"Old brother, your sealing technique is too frightening; I almost thought you were a student of the Great Wizard."
The feeling of a familiar acquaintance suddenly becoming a student of a top authority was indeed somewhat alarming.
"Haha, old brother, you're overpraising me; it's just a facade," Richard laughed.
Richard unsealed the ice, and a strong life radiance instantly filled the entire shop.
This mass of flesh, though only the size of a fist, contained a life force that was even comparable to a first-ring Wizard.
Bob's eyes widened, and he quickly adjusted his monocle. In his monocle, data began to appear.
The life intensity of this mass of flesh had already exceeded that of a level three creature! "What kind of flesh is this? How can its life force be so vigorous?" Bob murmured.
Richard did not answer the question but tapped on the table beside him.
"Old brother, my sincerity is already on the table; what about yours?"
At Richard's words, Bob seemed to awaken from a dream and hurried into the back room, taking out a Magic Pocket and tossing it to Richard.
The pocket contained all the fine items Bob had received over the years.
"Old brother, name your price. Where did you get this?"
Richard took the pocket, scanned its contents with his mental power, and then shook his head.
"What's wrong? Is this not enough?"
At this moment, Bob had lost his previous calmness; the value of this mass of flesh had clouded his mind.
"No, no, no, it's just that I don't know where this came from. The reason I was able to escape was that the owner of this mass of flesh suddenly appeared and wiped out those Fire Lizards. I was caught in the aftermath, fell into a false death, and lost track of it.
Over the years, I searched the magma network for a long time, and aside from this mass of flesh, I found nothing."
Richard's explanation instantly cooled Bob's excited heart.
Indeed, if such a creature were fixed in one place, it would have long been captured by the Fire Lizard King, and it would have been impossible for a Wizard to discover it.
Calming down, Bob adjusted his monocle, exhaled, and slowly said, "Old brother, then what price do you set for this piece of flesh?"
Richard nodded in satisfaction and then took out various items from his pocket.
Among these fine items were top-quality Fire Elemental Gems, exquisitely crafted alchemical swords and knives, and some fiery curiosities, like a mass of golden flames sealed in a crystal ball and an indestructible fire tree that had been sealed. Each of these items was quite valuable.
But unfortunately, Richard had not found any relics of the pioneers among them, not even fragments.
"Since you're so straightforward, then I won't hold back."
(End of Chapter)