Chapter 98: The Sorcerers’ Continent

“Brent was still a mortal when he first came here, wasn’t he?” Lin Wei asked Herik.

“Yes, my lord.” Herik wore a grave and earnest expression, as though he truly were a loyal little mouse.

“Then how did he go from an ordinary mortal to a third-rank wizard apprentice in just two years?” Lin Wei voiced the doubt that had been lingering in his heart.

Herik blinked in mild confusion. “By drinking elixirs that enhance mental power, of course!”

“Mental power elixirs?” Lin Wei paused, a little uncertain. “You’re saying a mental power elixir can turn a mortal into a third-rank wizard apprentice in two years?”

His surprise was understandable. From everything Lin Wei had encountered and understood, there were indeed elixirs that could increase mental power, but they were exorbitantly costly, the gains they offered were extremely limited, and they came with all manner of restrictions and side effects. Forget turning a mortal into a wizard apprentice; even raising a wizard apprentice by one rank was virtually impossible.

“Why wouldn’t it be possible? That idiot Brent drank Snow-White Tears elixirs. A bit of mental power gained that way is easy enough.” Herik answered honestly.

“Snow-White Tears?” Lin Wei’s intelligent orb core contained nearly all the common knowledge of wizard academies, yet he had never heard of a Snow-White Tears elixir that could strengthen mental power.

Seeing Lin Wei’s baffled expression, Herik suddenly slapped a short paw against his head and, in doing so, shoved his crooked glasses back into place. “Right, I remember now. In a remote little place like yours, there isn’t such a thing as Snow-White elixirs.”

As he spoke, Herik could not help puffing himself up again. The way he looked at Lin Wei was as though he were gazing down at a bumpkin. A superior sense of self-importance welled up inside him, and even the psychological harm Lin Wei had inflicted on him earlier seemed to fade considerably.

“A remote little place? What do you mean?” Lin Wei suddenly thought of the owner of the holy pearl who had brought wizard civilization to Starlink Continent, and a faint guess began to take shape.

Herik interpreted Lin Wei’s question as a humble attempt at flattery. He snorted, rose from the ground, and tried to clasp his short forelimbs behind his back, but his body was far too round, and his little paws could not even meet.

Herik raised his brows, his beady eyes gleaming as though with wisdom. “Your Starlink Continent... no, I must condemn you natives! To think you dare call a mere corner of the world a continent! Do you even know what a continent is? The Wizard Continent—that is a true continent! It is countless times larger than your land, and its wizarding culture is so prosperous it would be beyond your imagination! If not for the great wizard Weigarus coming to your Starlink... coming to your tiny Starlink island, you would not even know wizards existed! Let me tell you...”

Herik spoke with great animation, criticizing Starlink Continent to the point of utter scorn, his gaze toward Lin Wei filled with lofty superiority.

“Wait...” Lin Wei suddenly interrupted.

Herik was in high spirits and very displeased at being cut off, but remembering the beating he had just taken, he gave a sheepish smile and once again assumed the appearance of a faithful big mouse.

“You mean Starlink Continent is only a remote corner of this world?” Lin Wei said in a low voice, almost to himself. “The center of this world is the Wizard Continent?”

“Exactly! The Wizard Continent is the center of this world. In fact, one might even say this world is the Wizard World!” When Herik said this, a rare trace of reverence appeared in his eyes. “The Wizard Continent is where wizardry in this world first originated, the holy land of all mighty wizards.”

“And the great wizard Weigarus you mentioned just now is...?” Lin Wei continued.

Herik’s tone held a note of admiration. “Great Wizard Weigarus is a renowned figure even on the Wizard Continent! More than three thousand years ago, he traveled far and wide, passed by your tiny Starlink island, and casually left behind a Devouring Spirit Pearl. That is what gave rise to your wizard civilization.”

Devouring Spirit Pearl, the true name of the holy pearl!

“A great wizard... is that a wizard of what rank?” Lin Wei hesitated for a moment before asking softly.

“It is the collective title for wizards of the fourth through sixth ranks.” Herik also grew serious. “You may not know this, but the gap between a fourth-rank wizard and a third-rank wizard is even greater than the gulf between an official wizard and a mortal.”

After hearing that, Lin Wei only felt a fire burning in his chest.

On Starlink Continent, among all the wizard alliances, the strongest official wizard was only a second-rank wizard; even third-rank wizards had already vanished into the marks of history. Yet this Great Wizard Weigarus was actually a being beyond the fourth rank?!

Lin Wei felt a faint tremor pass through his whole body, not from fear, but from excitement.

Every ambitious person longs for a larger stage, and Lin Wei was no exception.

“Herik, are you from the Wizard Continent?”

Whether it was Herik’s own strangeness, the breadth of his knowledge, or the Snow-White Tears elixir he had mentioned earlier, everything pointed to the fact that Herik was no ordinary mouse.

At that, Herik not only straightened his back, but even lifted his head high. “Indeed, I come from the glorious Wizard Continent!”

A trace of a smile appeared at the corner of Lin Wei’s mouth.

“Since you were able to come here, then you must also know the way back to the Wizard Continent?” Lin Wei’s longing for the Wizard Continent grew ever stronger. He could abandon everything he had now—wizard academies, the Fanged Blood Shadow, all of it—and disappear into the distance.

Unexpectedly, at this question Herik fell silent at once. He scratched his head awkwardly. “I do know the way back to the Wizard Continent... but I can’t go back at all!”

“Why not?” Lin Wei asked, puzzled.

“The distance between the Wizard Continent and Starlink Island is simply too great, and there are countless dangers in between. Back then, I was brought here by my old master. Now, it’s impossible for me to return alone. At the very least, one needs the strength of a third-rank official wizard to pilot a vessel across the endless ocean and reach the Wizard Continent.” Herik sounded depressed.

Lin Wei sharply caught the key point in Herik’s words.

“Old master? Who is your old master?” Lin Wei asked.

“The old master is the owner of this laboratory! Everything here was left behind by him. Mm... though there wasn’t much good stuff...” Herik curled his lip. Though his tone was dismissive, nostalgia still surfaced in his eyes.

“Laboratory?! Old master?!”

Lin Wei was suddenly at a loss. Could this not be the wizard’s hidden treasury?!