Chapter 221: Chapter 176: The Surprising Heart of the Secret Star
The plan was a success—a monumental one. Judging by its aura, the Silver Knight had become a true living being, possessing both limitless potential and considerable intelligence.
But Philo wasn’t happy in the slightest!
Because as the Silver Knight knelt before Isaac and pledged its loyalty, she finally realized what that nagging feeling of wrongness, which had been surfacing in her heart for days, was...
She had only considered how bestowing life upon the Demonic Puppets would help her complete her plan. She had completely overlooked the fact that once a Demonic Puppet was granted life, its ownership would transfer to the one who bestowed it!
And this ownership was non-transferable!
It was like this: if the parents who had painstakingly raised you for more than a decade suddenly asked you to accept a complete stranger as your father, would you agree?
Of course, it wasn’t impossible for such people to exist, but if they did, she wouldn’t dare place her trust in them.
If someone would betray their own parents for personal gain today, they would betray you for personal gain tomorrow.
Therefore, these Demonic Puppets brought to life by Isaac were destined to become his property!
As far as she was concerned, she was only borrowing them for a period of time!
But she was the one who had paid for the materials!
Damn it!
The problem was, it wasn’t easy to ask Isaac for money. Isaac could do without this Demonic Puppet army; he already had the Great Sword Demon Legion. To him, the Demonic Puppets were just icing on the cake.
But for Philo, it was a different story!
Without a Demonic Puppet army, it would be virtually impossible for her to seize the Itra Kingdom!
"Ahem... Tell you what, I’ll buy the Demonic Puppets off you," Isaac said with a light cough, a bit embarrassed.
Like Philo, he had only just realized the implication of them recognizing a master. This wasn’t about a few Demonic Puppets; this was about several thousand, perhaps even tens of thousands!
That was no small sum of money!
His conflict with Philo had only just begun to ease. He didn’t want new problems to arise over something like this. For him, at this moment, the Terra Royal Family still held considerable weight.
Besides, it was better to avoid trouble. If he could, Isaac just wanted to conduct his research and study Magic in peace.
Moreover, a Demonic Puppet army was truly useless to him, unless they were all on the level of the Silver Knight.
The Silver Knight itself might be a piece of junk with terrible cost-effectiveness, but once granted life, it was a completely different story. Under the influence of the Heart of the Secret Star, its expensive materials would be wholly converted into potential. It was a complete metamorphosis!
But Philo wasn’t an idiot. Even if she had originally been rich enough to entertain the idea of building an army of Silver Knights—which she hadn’t—she would definitely change her mind now.
The Demonic Puppet army was expected to consist mainly of Non-Rank Demonic Puppets, interspersed with Tier One ones. This way, they would have enough power to defend her territory without the costs being too high, and production speed could keep up.
So, for Isaac, a Demonic Puppet army of this caliber wasn’t just of little value—it was of no value whatsoever!
These weren’t Ordinary Demonic Puppets; they were living ones. Their nascent intelligence might not be an issue at first, but over time, conflicts would inevitably arise among them. That would lead to one troublesome mess after another, and he had neither the interest nor the ability to manage such chaotic affairs.
’So, after I get back, I’ll either disband the Demonic Puppets and let them act freely—like the Secret Mages being trained on my territory, or even turn them into Secret Mages themselves—or I’ll sell them to my elder brother. I bet they’d be very interested in such a unique army.’
’Then again, maybe not...’
’After all, these Demonic Puppets gained life through the Heart of the Secret Star, which belongs to the Master of the Eternal Secret Star. My brother and the others might not dare to use them.’
Meanwhile, hearing Isaac’s offer, Philo breathed a small sigh of relief. It wasn’t that she cared about the Demonic Puppets themselves—it was just a few thousand mixed Tier One and Non-Rank ones, not her elite Silver Knight Knight Order. She could afford to lose that amount of money.
What she couldn’t stand was being taken advantage of by Isaac!
If she had her way, she wouldn’t let him have them for even a single Copper Coin!
Unfortunately, there were no ’if’s.
Philo sighed and said resignedly, "How about fifty percent of the material cost?"
Though she didn’t want to lose out, Philo adopted a humble posture. She knew very well that the Demonic Puppet army was a necessity for her, but not for Isaac.
This put her at a natural disadvantage in the negotiations. Isaac’s willingness to pay was already a huge concession. She knew she should be tactful and take a step back as well, allowing them both to save face.
"Half the material cost?" Isaac raised an eyebrow, looking at Philo in surprise. He had expected her to ask for the full cost and was already prepared to haggle. He hadn’t expected the current Philo to be so agreeable. He then nodded. "Alright, half the material cost it is. We’ll settle the bill when it’s all over. When do we begin the Activation?"
Philo shook her head. "Let’s wait a few days. I don’t have that many Low Tier Demonic Puppets on hand. I’ll need to have them made."
"Oh? Alright, just let me know when you’re ready." Isaac was a little surprised. ’Does this woman really only have Silver Knights? Are Tier One Demonic Puppets even considered Low Tier?’
Tier One might be the lowest rank for a Transcendent, but a Tier One Extraordinary Item was by no means "low-tier." Many Tier One Transcendents couldn’t even afford to use Tier One Extraordinary Equipment. As for something like a Demonic Puppet, only the wealthiest of the wealthy would use them.
Take the Black Knight Demonic Puppet Isaac had purchased in the past; it was only Tier One, but its price was a staggering one hundred Gold Coins!
For many Tier One Transcendents, especially the melee-focused brawlers, this was still an incredibly high price!
’So, just how rich is this woman?’
’Does the Terra Royal Family value her that much?’
Suddenly, Isaac felt a pang of regret. ’I shouldn’t have opened my mouth. Damn, she’s so loaded, why am I saving her money?’
But a deal was a deal, and there was no sense in going back on his word. So Isaac waved his hand, dismissing them. He needed to take stock of his gains.
Especially the Heart of the Secret Star...
Isaac’s gaze fell upon the Silver Knight, still kneeling on the ground. ’This ability... it seems to have even more potential than I thought...’
He felt that the Silver Knight had the potential to advance to Tier Three!
And unlike Demonic Puppets and Golems that required Artificial Authority, the Silver Knight was a living being. It could awaken its own Authority!
Normally, this would be difficult—extremely difficult. Hundreds, even thousands of times more difficult than for a human.
Although it had become a living being, it was a completely new type of life. It would have to carve out its own path forward, step by step; the paths of others could only serve as a reference.
Of course, that was just the normal situation.
But the current situation was clearly not normal. Isaac possessed the [Analysis] Authority. He could help the Silver Knight scout the path ahead. The Silver Knight wouldn’t even have to walk it itself—Isaac could do all the work!
In any case, this would be highly beneficial for Isaac himself. For one, it would allow him to scout the path for his own advancement. For another, he might be able to use the process to figure out the technique for creating Artificial Authority.
Artificial Authority was a great invention of Mechanical Alchemy. Although it could only be used on Mechanical Bodies, it had drastically raised the ceiling for the Mechanical Assembly Technique, allowing Mechanical Alchemy to shine with new brilliance!
While Isaac wasn’t currently proficient in this field, he aimed to become a jack-of-all-trades Wizard who knew a little bit of everything. Venturing into the field of Mechanical Assembly was an inevitability; it was just a matter of taking those steps a little sooner.
"Rise," Isaac said after scrutinizing the Silver Knight for a moment. "Introduce yourself. Tell me about your abilities."
"As you command, Master." The Silver Knight rose as ordered, but it didn’t speak to introduce its powers. Instead, its eyes, which flickered with blue Flame, flashed. A pale blue virtual screen appeared before Isaac, detailing all of the Silver Knight’s parameters.
"This is..." Isaac was taken aback for a moment. He had thought for a second that he’d accidentally summoned his own status panel. But when he saw the complex data, he understood.
The Silver Knight was not a normal life form; it had originally been a Mechanical Body. And whether it was a Golem or a Demonic Puppet, a Mechanical Body’s data was always meticulously detailed. They possessed a dedicated system for recording their own data, which allowed one to intuitively observe changes in all aspects.
After all, even though modern Mechanical Bodies were mass-produced on assembly lines with highly uniform and stable data, the fact remained that they weren’t just purchased by large factions. Individual Wizards also bought them for the convenience of their experiments, especially those who researched Mechanical Alchemy.
In such a market, adding a system that allowed a user to intuitively view the Mechanical Body’s specific data would undoubtedly give a product a competitive edge over others.
Unfortunately, the technology wasn’t complex, so it had long since become a standard feature. After all, if your competitor had it and you didn’t, you’d be at a clear disadvantage, wouldn’t you?
And the Silver Knight, being the ultimate money pit that it was, naturally came equipped with this system. The system even remained after its transformation into a living being.
Isaac gave the screen a quick scan and raised his eyebrows. The Silver Knight’s parameters were surprisingly good. Most of them were at the peak of Tier Two. The only things it lacked were Combat Techniques and combat experience.
This was to be expected. Its Combat Techniques all came from pre-programmed modules, making its movements rigid and formulaic compared to a true Great Knight. But this was normal. Demonic Puppets were designed for zerg-rush tactics; in the face of absolute numbers, a little finesse was hardly worth mentioning.
However, this was likely only a temporary state. The Silver Knight had become a true living being with its own intelligence. It could make up for these deficiencies on its own.
But the biggest surprise the Silver Knight gave Isaac was its ridiculously expensive body!
[Secret Silver Body: Magic Resistance 99%, Magical Conduction 99%, Superior Hardness, Mysterious (Extreme Magic Effect)]
The first three traits were average; they were part of its original specifications. Mithril itself isn’t that hard—at best, it’s lower-mid grade. However, other materials had been incorporated without affecting its Magic Resistance and Magical Conduction, so its hardness was also quite good.
But compared to the fourth attribute, the first three were complete garbage!
A Mysterious Attribute!
And a Mysterious Attribute with a modifier, at that!
He, a Legendary Mage pursuing the path of the [Mysterious], didn’t even have something like this!
’This thing... is a born magic cannon!’
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