Chapter 517: Seed of Sunlight
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
With the unique powers of different races for reference, the progress of Link's team skyrocketed. They were practically in a different world.
With Link as the leader, the five members of the team all had their own strengths.
Vance had the most experience. He created the Battle Aura field single-handedly. Battle Aura itself was a unique power. It just didn't seem as powerful or versatile as Dragon Power or the power of demons. However, it gave Vance rich experience, especially in his understanding of the human body. Thus, the work of creating seeds was built on Vance's foundation. Eliard had a great imagination, and his thoughts were creative. Many times, they broke through bottlenecks with his creativity. Alloa, the Maiden of Truth, had remarkable magical insight. This was an instinctive sensitivity to the truth. She could glance at an idea and know if it had potential. Reality proved that she was always right. This saved a lot of time. Secret Magician Eleanor had great attainments in the Secret spells. Power seeds naturally touched on the target's soul. She was experienced in this.
Finally, there was Link.
He was the most powerful; this gave him the widest vision. He also had the richest knowledge of magic. He'd studied secret, elemental, spatial, and time magic. In addition, he possessed grandmaster-level enchantment and alchemy skills. He was pretty much a master at magic.
If this team was a ship steering through uncharted seas, then Link was the captain deciding their direction.
The five worked day and night. Eliard and Eleanor had to rest occasionally, but Link, Vance, and Alloa all had crazy bodies. They could work without stop.
This craze lasted for 20 days. Finally, they created the first successful power seed.
The seed was packaged in a high-level crystal Mana bottle. It looked like 30 milliliters of liquid. It was light blue and viscous. At closer inspection, one could see semi-transparent vortexes constantly flashing in and out of existence. It also radiated with a strange aura.
"For some reason, this aura reminds me of sunlight, like sunbathing on a summer afternoon at the beach." Vance provided a very poetic description.
Hearing this, Eliard's eyes brightened. He laughed. "Yes, I have a similar feeling. It has to be the beach by Ferde's pier. You lie on the fine sand and watch the merchant ships in the distance come and go. Seagulls fly in the air, the wind isn't heavy, but it's still there—"
"Alright, it's just an aura," Eleanor cut him off, not able to bear it anymore. "There isn't that much to talk about. But it really does feel like sunlight. In that case, let's call it the Seed of Sunlight?"
"Seed of Sunlight? That name is nice, and it's similar to its effect." Alloa nodded in agreement. "As long as the person has human blood, it can fuse with the seed and become effective. Just like sunlight, anyone who can feel it will benefit."
It was just a name; Link obviously didn't have complaints. "Then let's call it that. Now, let's begin the next step. Find some volunteers and test its effects."
This seed of power was already very refined and had no theoretical problems; no one could ensure that it didn't have potential flaws. They must experiment on a human to create a true seed.
"It's best to find a volunteer from the army. We need Jacker," Vance said.
Link thought this too, so he summoned Jacker. The man arrived within five minutes.
After receiving Epic Battle Art, he didn't stop training and improved quickly. He was only a step away from breaking into Level-8 and was a very powerful Warrior now.
Link met with him alone in the library. After arriving, Jacker saluted. "Lord, what are your orders?"
Link pointed at the crystal bottle on the table. "We created a new power seed. It's similar to the Dragon Power of dragons and the power of nature of the High Elves. It's new though. We need to verify its effects."
Jacker's eyes brightened. "Understood," he said immediately. "I'll find a Warrior right away. Are there any special requirements?"
"No physical requirements; a regular person would be fine. This must be kept a secret, so the Warrior must be loyal. It's best if he doesn't have any special background. As for the number, 100 would be good."
"No problem. Lord, give me one day's time," Jacker said.
"You can go now."
Jacker turned to leave while Link returned to the alchemy room with the seed. Clapping, he said to his four companions, "Alright, let's prepare at least 100 seeds now. Let's go."
…
Allen was 18 this year and was very young. Thanks to the rich food of the Ferde army and hard training every day, he was muscular and strong. He was more than six feet tall and weighed more than 180 pounds. If not for his youthful features, he would look like a 30-year-old man.
Despite his age, he was a veteran already. When he was 16, the king of Delonga had gone crazy. He'd been separated from his family during the chaos and fled all the way from the South. He didn't have anything other than his life when he arrived at Ferde. Coincidentally, Ferde had been recruiting soldiers. He'd been a bag of bones at the time but had a large frame, so he'd been recruited. Almost two years had passed.
He'd fought in the border war last year and killed more than 20 Undead Warriors. Now, he was a captain in charge of more than 50 soldiers. His strength had reached Level-4 too. He didn't have to care about food or necessities in the army; he could even receive two gold coins for his monthly salary.
To him, Ferde was now his homeland, and the army was his family.
This place contained his brothers, comrades, and the glory he yearned for. Even if his family were alive and wanted him to go back to the South, he would refuse. The South was too messy compared to Ferde.
Today, he returned from the training field and was wiping his sweat in his own room when the door suddenly opened. A middle-aged man stood in the doorway. He had a gold star pinned on his chest—he was an associate general. Allen knew this man. It was General Rotokan, commander of his corps. He was a Level-6 Warrior.
"General!" Allen immediately straightened and saluted.
General Rotokan nodded. He studied this spirited youth, appreciation flashing past his eyes. "Allen, there is a mission," he said. "It's very dangerous, but if you succeed, you'll become a major and have authority over 500 soldiers."
As soon as he finished, Allen replied without hesitation, "General, I'll definitely complete the mission!"
"Very good. Remember, this is a mission announced personally by the lord. Don't disappoint me," Rotokan reminded.
Allen's heart started pounding; his body was even trembling. This was the lord's mission. Did this mean that he would have the chance to see the lord in person?
He was so excited. To the soldiers, even though Marshal Jacker was just a human, he was extremely powerful and had a high status. One would feel honored to meet him. The lord of Ferde, though, was from legends. He was an undefeatable war god—able to do anything, was impossibly wise, and extremely brilliant.
Practically every soldier's dream was to be appreciated by the lord. They would feel unparalleled honor even if they could only exchange a phrase. Now, he received the lord's mission! What did he do to deserve this?
"General, I know!" Allen almost yelled.
"Good. Come with me but keep low. This is a secret mission."
Hearing this, Allen forced down his excitement. He put on his armor and tried to act normal.
He followed the general outside the training grounds and climbed onto a black carriage. There were three other soldiers there.
The four stared at each other. They wanted to speak but remembering that this was a secret mission, they kept silent.
After a while, the carriage rode out of the camp and all the way to a big house in the inner city of Scorched Ridge. After getting out of the carriage, Allen saw that there were almost 100 other youths like him. They all had repressed excitement on their faces. He knew many of them too—they were all elites of the army.
Seems that many people are here for the secret mission. I have to work hard! Allen thought.
The other youths had similar thoughts. They looked at each other, feeling slightly competitive.
More carriages arrived after that. When there were close to 100 people, the carriages stopped coming. After a while, Marshal Jacker actually came.
He announced some rules. Basically, they would rest at this house tonight and head to the Mage Tower tomorrow morning.
Since the marshal was announcing this personally and they'd go to the lord's Mage Tower, the youths went "crazy." Thankfully, they were soldiers. Ferde's military discipline was very strict. Even though they were totally excited now, they didn't dare make a sound with the marshal present.
When Jacker finally left, they immediately started discussing amongst themselves.
"What kind of secret mission is this? We're even going to the Mage Tower."
"Is it to use a portal? The type of magic that sends you hundreds of miles instantly?"
"It's time to accomplish something!"
"We might see the lord tomorrow. What if I can't fall asleep tonight?"
All sorts of voices sounded in a cacophony. Allen listened quietly without speaking. He clenched his fists and thought, No matter what, I must accomplish this mission perfectly!
