Chapter 234: Chapter 188: Philo: You Call This ’A Bit Troublesome’?
Isaac was very satisfied with this quota of one million Artificial Humans. Combined with the over one million already summoned, the total of more than two million was more than enough for Isaac to pull off something big!
After all, in this day and age, a blood sacrifice of two million people...
...was purely a pipe dream!
Forget two million people, even twenty thousand would be nearly impossible. Under the watchful eyes of the Teaching Country and the Truth Association, such a plan would be discovered the moment it began, only to be snuffed out by the two great powers working in tandem.
This was also why the Master of Billions of Flesh, rather than being angered by the forced awakening from Isaac’s ritual, had instead helped him enhance it. The truth was, the poor thing had been starving for far too long!
There was a downside, however. The Crystal Ball wasn’t Francis’s true Life Derivation Technique; it was merely a projection split off from the original artifact.
The liberation faction had one as well, but fortunately, the two shared the same energy source, so Isaac wouldn’t have to make an extra trip.
Still, it wasn’t a major loss. He could borrow the original artifact after all this was over, and he was quite interested in it. After all, with his [Analysis] Authority, he might be able to create a pirated version. If not, he should at least be able to learn the Magic inscribed within it.
’When that time comes...’
’The production of Artificial Humans will be limitless!’
’And with a limitless supply of Artificial Humans, his trades with the Master of Billions of Flesh could become much more frequent!’
’His own Dimension would have a plentiful source of nourishment!’
However, that was all in the future. For now, he had to focus on the present. Casually setting the Crystal Ball to automatic production, Isaac rose and walked toward a small hut behind the little plaza.
Since a protective layer of Refined Gold already guarded the entrance, the Itra had apparently not bothered with any special defenses inside, simply constructing a wooden hut.
As he walked into the hut, Isaac reflexively closed his eyes.
’Too many treasures!’
’The light is blinding!’
The hut’s interior was spartan, containing only four rows of four-tiered wooden shelves. If not for the treasures overflowing with radiant light, no one would have ever associated this place with the word "treasury."
Looking at the dazzling array of treasures, Isaac once again marveled at the wealth of the Itra Royal Family. And this was just their smaller treasury; they had an even larger one that held more important treasures.
It had to be said, for the Kingdom to have held out this long, they must have had a few tricks up their sleeve.
But no matter how many tricks they had, it was all over for them now. ’In this world, might is the only real Truth!’ he thought.
After a brief moment of reflection, Isaac walked into the treasury and began picking out his spoils. Normally, this was something that should have waited until everything was truly over. To keep the other major players from flipping the table, Mensa had already signed several trade agreements with the other powers.
In other words, some of the treasures in here were already spoken for.
However, Isaac and his group had some special privileges. They could pick a few treasures first. If that caused a conflict later, well, they could just claim the item was never there in the first place. Who could prove otherwise?
Of course, they couldn’t take too much. If they only took a little, no one would say a word—nor would they dare to.
Walking among the treasures, Isaac wasn’t distracted by the dazzling, multicolored glows. He was seriously searching for the items he needed: the Kaleidoscope Eye, the Time Page, and the Witch’s Memory...
Originally, the third item on his list was supposed to be the Witch’s Certificate, which would have helped Lorna quickly become a Great Witch. Unfortunately, plans rarely survive contact with reality. He had been here for far longer than expected—so long that Lorna had already become a Great Witch while this War was still dragging on.
So, the Witch’s Certificate wasn’t the best choice anymore. Of course, it was still beneficial for a Great Witch, but it couldn’t compare to the Witch’s Memory. That item could simulate the energy fluctuations of a Witch’s promotion, allowing her to draw a new Magic from her bloodline.
For a Witch who relied on a single core Magic for her tactics, this was an exceptionally precious item.
The only drawback was that the item was only effective for Tier Two Witches and below. High-level Witches already had a considerable degree of control over their own bloodlines and could unearth new Magic themselves, even without the Witch’s Memory.
Soon, Isaac found his target: the Kaleidoscope Eye.
The item was kept in a small box. Before being transplanted and activated, it was just a stone eyeball, but its entire surface shimmered with a rainbow-colored light.
After confirming it was the real deal, Isaac put it away with satisfaction. He could begin the transplant procedure once he returned. Then, by leveraging the trading ritual with the Master of Billions of Flesh, he could complete the first stage of his Grand Wizard training.
During this period, while developing his Privilege Magic, Isaac had also taken the time to transplant another Magic Organ into himself.
He had transplanted the vocal cords from a descendant of the legendary Demon, the White Whale. It had two effects: first, it could produce a Mystical Sound with the [Mysterious] attribute; second, it enhanced the effects of all Magic that required a Spell. The latter was particularly useful.
Although his current combat Magic was mostly spell-less, and he foresaw his future Magic would be the same—after all, chanting Spells in the middle of a fight...
’...is just too much of a hassle.’
But that only applied to combat. In the lab, it was a completely different story. Not only did he have plenty of time for chanting, but he also frequently used a large number of basic Magic Spells to aid his experiments. When stacked with his Golden Finger, the effect was far greater than simple addition.
Of course, the most important part was that it possessed the [Mysterious] attribute!
Isaac’s future Magic Organ transplants would all follow this direction. Individual power was less important than creating a cohesive system.
After securing the Kaleidoscope Eye, Isaac went on to find the Time Page for Angel and the Witch’s Memory for Lorna. While he was at it, he also grabbed two Tier Three Hearts of the Giant Dragon and five vials of pale golden Dragon’s Blood. It wasn’t like anyone else wanted them, anyway.
’Well, as long as the list of claimed items hasn’t reached my hands, it means no one wants them!’
After securing his spoils, Isaac left the hut. He didn’t go anywhere else, just stood in the plaza, watching Harmon repeatedly clear out the endless stream of freshly made Artificial Humans.
The fact that the War still hadn’t ended led Isaac to a certain suspicion—the major players were likely waiting for him to successfully complete his ritual before they concluded it—but that was just a guess.
He didn’t intend to act rashly without confirmation. It was better to play it safe and finish preparing the sacrifices first.
’As for the main treasury...’
’Who cares? It’s not like I can skim anything off the top from that one. I can always look for it later. Besides, I still have Philo, don’t I?’
The Itra Kingdom had almost no power to resist anymore, so her sweep would be swift. Once she was done, he could just have her find it.
「And so, time slowly passed...」
Soon, another month had passed. Isaac had finally converted the Crystal Ball’s entire one-million-unit quota of energy into Artificial Humans, and he had killed every last one of them.
Meanwhile, Philo had led her army of Demonic Puppets to occupy the entire Itra Kingdom. Yes, an army of Demonic Puppets.
Half a month ago, after confirming there was no significant resistance left within Itra’s borders, she had disposed of all the Artificial Humans under her command and replaced them with Demonic Puppets.
It was worth mentioning that while Philo had been busy occupying and administering Itra this past month, she hadn’t been idle in other areas. For instance, she had found the Itra Royal Family’s main treasury!
But unlike Isaac, not only did she lack the [Analysis] Authority, but her own knowledge of Magic Barriers was also insufficient. As a result, she couldn’t break the treasury’s Magic Barrier and was still locked out.
She didn’t dare to force her way in, because this type of treasury Barrier typically included a self-destruct mechanism. A forced breach would result in the destruction of everything inside.
Of course, considering the quality of the treasures within, it was debatable whether they could truly be destroyed.
But this was a treasury!
Who would dare to take that risk?
Even the slightest loss would be agonizing. So, despite her reluctance, Philo could only work on restoring the nation’s administration up above while she waited for Isaac to finish his business.
...
"So this is the main treasury!" Isaac exclaimed, marveling at the towering Refined Gold Gate before him. The previous vault, made entirely of Refined Gold, had already been astonishing.
But this thing was even more damn impressive!
In addition to the Refined Gold, it was layered with numerous defensive Enchantments. And beyond the outer Refined Gold Gate, he could sense an inner layer made of a special Magic Alloy. He didn’t know what kind of alloy it was, but Isaac could feel its mountainous weight and solidity.
You didn’t need a close look to know this was no simple door.
"Can you crack it?" Philo asked, looking at Isaac with a tone of frustrated resignation.
"Should be fine. It’s a bit of a hassle, though," Isaac said, stroking his chin.
For some reason, Philo felt an inexplicable sense of relief at his words. ’A hassle is good,’ she thought. Though she had mentally given up on competing with Isaac, she was still young; it was impossible not to feel a competitive spark.
But...
...just as she was having that thought, she saw Isaac was already starting to dismantle the treasury’s Magic Barrier!
"Wait a minute! Didn’t you say it was a hassle!?" Philo stared at Isaac, dumbfounded.
"It is. Didn’t you see me have to look at it a few times?" Isaac replied matter-of-factly as he continued to undo the Magic Barrier.
Philo: "...You jerk!"
Isaac shrugged helplessly. ’See? People just can’t handle the truth.’
CREAK...
In no time at all, Isaac had completely dismantled all the Magic Barriers. He reached out and pushed, and the towering Refined Gold Gate swung open.
In an instant, a dense aura of treasure washed over them. Isaac and Philo stood frozen in place, dumbstruck. The contents of this vault were truly a bit...
...beyond their wildest imaginations!
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