Chapter 125: Counting the Harvest

Chapter 125: Tallying the Spoils

Li Wei watched as the golden anteater vanished into the mine shaft, descending underground.

Before disappearing, the creature glanced back at him one last time.

Li Wei called out loudly, “There’s another of your kind down there—you won’t be alone. Go on.”

Alan looked at him, then handed a smaller ring to Leina. “This is the Beastmaster Ring—it works in tandem with the Taming Ring.”

“The one who holds the Beastmaster Ring can control the tamed beast—restrict or unleash its power.”

“If you don’t plan to stay in the mine, give it to someone you trust.”

Leina nodded and took the ring. “Thank you, Magician Alan.”

Though the Ant King was dead, the iron-eating ants remained.

Even after Alan had slain over a thousand, countless still thrived beneath the mountain.

Dealing with them was no small task.

Scattered, they were even harder to eradicate.

But Li Wei’s gift of the golden anteater had come just in time.

So long as their numbers could be kept within bounds, silver ore mining could resume.

Complete annihilation, however, was nearly impossible.

Having settled matters with the golden anteater, Li Wei bid farewell to Alan and Leina and left the camp.

Leina gazed at his retreating figure. “Summoner Timo is… unusual.”

Alan nodded. “Yes, quite unusual—and mysterious.”

“I feel I can’t quite read him.”

Leina glanced at Alan, surprised.

She turned her eyes toward the horizon; Li Wei’s silhouette had already shrunk to a tiny speck.

“Indeed. There’s much about him that remains hidden.”

Only after walking a great distance did Li Wei suddenly remember something.

“Damn—I forgot to ask about Rayan…”

He’d been too eager to leave, and the thought slipped his mind.

Otherwise, he would’ve questioned Leina about Rayan’s true identity.

“Now that I think of it, where exactly did Rayan and Lilith go?”

It felt strange.

He clearly remembered following them out of the cave.

Yet once outside, neither had been in sight.

“Never mind. Doesn’t matter. I’ll deal with it later.”

Same old method: Shadow Servant took control of a wild beast, which carried Li Wei galloping back to Maple City.

Rubbing his sore backside, Li Wei approached the city gate.

“That wolf-dog runs fast, but its spine digs into my ass—nowhere near as comfortable as riding a bear.”

“Later, I’ll modify the Invisibility Armor spell model so you can carry me directly.”

The Shadow Servant stared at him, silent.

*Don’t you have legs of your own?*

Near the wall, the Shadow Servant melted into Li Wei’s shadow and slipped into the city.

Back at the mage tower, Li Wei found that Guze and Rota hadn’t returned yet.

“I hope Master Guze is safe and comes back unharmed.”

Beyond prayer, there was nothing more he could do.

Since the cave-in, he hadn’t seen either man.

First, he went to the library—last-minute studying, searching for books on soul imprints and spatial rings.

Not until nightfall did he finally emerge.

He idly spun a black ring between his fingers. “This should do it.”

Following the book’s instructions, he’d spent two contribution points to buy a vial of Disintegration Elixir to soak the spatial ring.

Disintegration Elixir was typically used in refining material essences—rarely handled outside alchemists and potion-makers.

Using it to cleanse residual soul imprints was obscure knowledge.

He’d only stumbled upon it by luck.

Otherwise, he’d have needed the far more potent Soul Imprint Stripping Elixir—something well beyond his means.

Still, the Disintegration Elixir could only remove lingering traces.

If the soul imprint remained intact, the elixir couldn’t penetrate the spatial ring at all.

Back in his room, Li Wei began sorting through his spoils.

One third-rank magic core from the Ant King.

Two second-rank cores from iron-eating ants—one retrieved from Veld’s spatial ring.

Seven first-rank cores from unknown beasts, all from Veld’s ring.

A fragment of the Ant King’s carapace.

Four pieces of mithril ore.

A heap of miscellaneous items of unknown value.

His loot: dagger, breastplate mirror, gold ring…

From Veld’s ring: a spare set of mage robes, several unlabeled potions, a pile of odd magical materials…

Clatter, clink, jingle!

Gold, silver, and copper coins spilled onto the table.

He dumped them all out.

After counting: thirty-six gold, three hundred seventy-two silver, two hundred twenty-one copper.

Less than forty gold in total—most of it Veld’s.

Others hadn’t carried everything like Veld had with his spatial ring.

Not counting unsold items, the coin in his hands now exceeded two hundred.

With everything accounted for, his wealth firmly surpassed four digits.

Li Wei revealed a satisfied smile.

The gains this time were enormous.

Apart from these items, the most important thing was naturally the spatial ring itself.

Spatial rings were inherently extremely valuable—rare treasures one could only obtain by sheer luck.

Ordinary people never had the chance to acquire such a thing.

Li Wei pondered what he should do next.

"First, I need to find a way to refine the mithril."

"Then, exchange the magic cores and other useless items for money when the opportunity arises."

"But none of this can be rushed. Take it slow."

Li Wei felt himself becoming overly excited.

He realized he needed to calm down.

Otherwise, he might lose his head and do something foolish.

He hadn’t cultivated at all today.

Li Wei seized the moment, diving into meditation and cultivation.

Using the practice to steady his racing emotions.

By the time his meditation and magical energy cultivation concluded, it was already deep into the night.

After showering, he lay on his bed and activated the "Great Dream Soaring Heaven Technique," slipping into the dream realm.

Within the dream, he simulated the Invisibility Armor spell, attempting to imbue it with adaptive transformation—so that Shadow Servant could carry him while moving seamlessly.

Shadow Servant: All-Terrain Mobile Vehicle—coming soon.

The night passed. Li Wei had regained his composure.

The simulation of the Invisibility Armor spell continued, progressing slowly.

He refused to sacrifice the spell’s original essence just to achieve functionality.

Thus, advancement was gradual.

It would likely take some time before it reached the desired capability.

Li Wei began searching within Maple City for someone capable of purifying mithril.

The simplest method—post a commission at the Adventurers’ Guild.

"Post it anonymously," Li Wei told the young female attendant at the guild center.

"Of course, please wait a moment. Fill out the commission form."

The attendant handed him a sheet of paper.

After completing the details, he hesitated at the reward section.

"How much should I offer?"

Too low, and no one would bother.

Or those who accepted might lack the skill, failing to meet his standards.

Too high, and Li Wei winced at the thought of wasting money.

The attendant glanced at the form and said, "For mithril purification commissions, the standard reward is ten percent of the mithril itself."

"The higher the purity required, the greater the percentage demanded."

"Ten percent of the mithril?" Li Wei twitched involuntarily.

That was outright robbery!

"Never mind. I won’t post it after all."

Li Wei left the Adventurers’ Guild and returned to his mage tower.

He decided to learn the mithril purification technique himself.

After all, as long as he was willing to grind, he could master anything.

(End of Chapter)