Chapter 262 262

"What do you think will happen to us when we enter that place they called a city? Is this strange liquid the only thing we could drink to feel full?" Jenna asked as she stared at the small glass tube in her hand while tilting it causing the liquid inside to swirl lightly

"Probably not since this is not as easy to prepare as real food" Rezen answered as he swallowed the nutrition liquid and he immediately felt full

The nutrition liquid might be one of the easiest potions to create but at the end of the day, only those that dabbed on alchemy could possibly create them

Nutrition liquid is definitely not as economical as real food and not to mention, they are popular with mages that desire to climb high

If a mage wants to advance, they have to be mindful of their body's impurities. Even if they cleanse their bodies to reach the Junior Rank, they still have to do it over and over again

Eating food would cause the mages to accumulate impurities over time. Normal food contains a lot of impurities as such, many mages would often use nutrition liquid to satiate their hunger as they often contain a lesser amount of impurities

Resources that could cleanse one's body are pricey and rarer than many resources after all

"Hmm, tastes like meat. Is this their normal rations or are they being considerate to tribal people?" Rezen muttered to himself

Fortunately, the nutrition liquid does not have a horrible taste. In fact, it even has an added flavor

While it wouldn't be as satisfying as eating real food, the nutrition liquid at least provided some flavor to the consumer though prolonged consumption would make the taste feel boring

"Meat?" Jenna knitted her brows before she drank her own nutrition liquid and it really did tastes like roasted meat. She can't help but be surprised at that

——

Three days later

Inside one of the rooms in the flying ship, two double-decked beds were placed. For every room, four people would share it but the tribesmen are not complaining

Originally, they used dried grass as their bed but now, they are able to use real beds. The comfort between a grass bed and a real soft bed can't even be compared

Aside from the occasional outbursts of the tribesmen because of the way the representatives treated and looked at them, they were given ample comfort

This might be because of the Guardian's kindness as not all people on the ship are the people of the Elders. The Guardian himself also has his own people here and they are to ensure that the tribal people wouldn't be mistreated too horrible

In the room that Rezen shared with others, he could be seen sitting in a meditative posture as he attracted and gathered the free mana in the atmosphere to his stomach where his elixir field is located

The further the ship flew from the Drakery Forest, the higher the mana concentration which is enough for Reze to be happy

The higher the mana concentration is, the easier it is to cultivate and absorb mana. Even if Rezen can't learn otherworldly magical theories, he could at least increase the amount of mana that he possesses

However, his cultivation was cut short because of a certain nosy person

"Hey, hey, do you know what I just learned?" Treen said. It was not enough to talk to a mage that was cultivating, he even sat next to Rezen and hit him with his elbow

That forced Rezen to end his meditation and open his eyes

"What?" Rezen grumbled. He was already anxious enough to enter a place with Senior and Great Mages and he was trying his best to increase his strength even by a little bit yet Treen just has to be this talkative

"Hehehe, this is what I heard from the representative that I slept with, don't tell this to anyone or I would be in trouble. These representatives are too scary and crazy strong!" Treen said with a wide smile and Rezen doesn't know whether to admire this man or what

He actually slept with a representative? He's too bold!

"We are now only a day from the City of Hope but do you know that we should have taken a month? The representatives are trying to recruit people not just from our Drakery Forest but also from other places!"

"However, just like what happened to the tribes in Drakery Forest, the same thing happened to the tribes of other places! Because of that, I think they call it their superiors. Those people ordered them to return to the city as fast as possible"

"We all think that the representatives are crazy strong, right? But it turns out they are not even strong enough to investigate! They are ordered not to do anything!"

High-ranking Junior Mages could dominate the tribes in Drakery Forest but when there are existences at the Senior and Great Mage ranks, they don't amount to much

This just means that whatever manipulated the scattered tribes and caused them to be annihilated are entities that could not be defeated by high-ranking Junior Mages

Perhaps only Senior Mages or even Great Mages could do that

Once again, Rezen was grateful that he escaped the Drakery Forest before his own tribe was annihilated

"Good job, Treen. Sleep with that representative again if you can" Rezen said as he changed his perception of Treen

This man is actually useful. He slept with one woman and provided Rezen with some information. If Treen were to continue sleeping with the representative, he might be able to learn more intel

——

A day later

On the deck of the flying ship, Rezen along with the other tribal people stood as they approached the City of Hope

Even from this distance, they could see the towering walls built to protect the city

The walls were taller than any tree that they have seen before. On those walls, magical inscriptions glowed from time to time

Clearly, the city walls are not just your normal walls. They have been enchanted with the aid of magic. They don't only have their raw physical durability to rely on when they are being attacked

"Rezen! Rezen! Come with me!"

While Rezen was admiring the construct of the City of Hope, his previous neighbor, and roommate while staying in the flying ship suddenly pulled him away

Rezen doesn't know what was happening but he let Treen pull him to their room where they could be alone without anyone hearing what they have to talk about

"What's wrong?" Rezen asked. He knew that Treen has been sleeping with one of the representatives and he even obtained some information from her

Now that Treen has an anxious expression on his face, Rezen can't help but worry too

"You remember when I said that I slept with one of the representatives, right?" Treen asked and Rezen nodded his head

Because Treen was given some intel, Rezen even supported him to continue sleeping with that representative. How could Rezen easily forget about it?

"S-she said that if anyone from the city offered me anything that could instantly increase my strength, I shouldn't take it. She also asked me not to tell this to anyone or I might die!"

"You didn't see how scary she was while telling me these things. I don't know why but I feel like something bad will happen to us in that city and I want to tell our family but I'm scared. What if they really kill me? Rezen, you are smart, what should I do?"

Rezen watched as Treen paced back and forth inside their room. He does not exactly know the whole picture but he instinctively knew that this is something he should tell the tribe

Who would have thought that Treen have this acute instinct? Despite not understanding everything, he can't help but be anxious as his heart was telling him that what that representative said is very important

"If I have to guess, the resources would really increase a mage's strength in one go but according to the logic of fantasy worlds, these resources have severe side effects"

"It can range from insanity to having unstable power or the worst outcome for a mage that wants to climb high; unable to advance any further"

The logic of the fantasy cultivation world states that power that could easily be gained has severe side effects and one of the most common is that the consumer's path would be blocked forever

Once they consumed such resources, no matter how hard they try, they wouldn't be able to become stronger again. Their magic path is completely cut off

"Is the city that desperate for manpower/cannon fodders?" Rezen thought before his eyes shrunk as he thought of another possibility. For now, there is no way to verify his theory but it sounds plausible

"Treen, that representative is right. Don't ever tell anyone this except for me. If not, our whole tribe will be in danger!"