184: Convincing Mr. Joyce (Part 2)

"Teacher, I've thought it through," Green said firmly, his wise eyes filled with confident assurance.

"I carefully considered your suggestion, Teacher. If I were to focus on studying with you, I would indeed learn a lot of profound knowledge and advance my wizard's path further in these 10 years."

"But what then?"

"After leaving you, I'll have to conduct research independently. Our Botany School has two specialties: one is the cultivation of various Demonized Plantss, which requires a lot of manpower and a long time to achieve results, and I'll need to continuously invest money."

"The other is potion refining, which goes without saying. That's a money pit. Without extremely strong financial support, how can one make progress?"

"My Pharmacology talent isn't very good, so to make progress in that area, I'll need to spend even more money, wouldn't you agree?"

"Add to that the daily cultivation of a Formal Wizard and the study of various Tier 1 spells—all of these require vast resources, meaning a lot, a lot of magic stones."

"...You mean, all these reforms you're implementing are just for making money?" Lord Joyce couldn't help but smile, teasingly.

"After I leave, this entire Wizard Academy will be yours. Tens of thousands of wizards will work for you, at your command, collecting resources. Isn't that enough?"

"Not enough, far from enough, Teacher..." Green feigned grievance. The squeaky wheel gets the grease; if not now, when?

"Our Heart of Plants Academy can't possibly have only one Formal Wizard forever, can it? Don't you also want to develop and expand the legacy of our Botany School?"

"Without enough magic stones, we can't cultivate enough geniuses. Without a sufficient base of genius wizards, we can't cultivate Formal Wizards one after another..."

"Teacher, now is the perfect time for us—the right circumstances, location, and people are all on our side. This is the best opportunity to lay a solid foundation for our academy's development and build a thousand-year legacy."

"I guarantee that as long as this wave of expansion is successfully completed, our Heart of Plants Academy will be able to take root in the Mist Coast for a thousand years without decline, with an unbroken lineage."

"...Oh..." Lord Joyce became interested. A thousand-year unbroken legacy—what a boast! In the entire Mist Coast, only Radiant Fire Wizard Academy has a thousand-year legacy, which shows its difficulty.

"I'd like to hear what profound insights you have."

"Teacher, first, regarding the circumstances: the current power structure of the Mist Coast is very suitable for our expansion, and the main reason for all this is you, Teacher."

"On one hand, with you, a Tier 2 Wizard, in charge, no one foolish enough would dare to provoke us. Even our closest old neighbor, Blood Fortress, can only obediently back down. In this Wizarding World where the strong prey on the weak, strength is the basis for speaking. With enough strength, one can stand tall. At this time, our academy's expansion faces the least resistance."

"On the other hand, it's still because of your great influence, Teacher. Didn't you release news that you would cross the Sea of Fog in 10 years to go to the Middle-earth Continent Wizard World?"

"Hehe..." Green showed an auntie-like smile.

"That is the center of civilization for the entire Wizard World, the origin of all elemental resurrections! There are many Formal Wizards who want to board your big ship."

"At this time, as long as you open a channel and recruit some Formal Wizards, we can gain many allies. Who would offend us then and hinder our academy's development?"

"They'd probably even rush over to help, wagging their tails."

"Haha..." Teacher Joyce laughed, taking a shallow sip of fragrant black tea.

"Green, your teacher, I, am not going to the Middle-earth Continent for a vacation. I'm going for revenge. My Wizard Academy was destroyed back then, and I could only flee in a sorry state."

"Now that I've become a Tier 2 Wizard, I have a bit of confidence to seek revenge. Tell me, do these Formal Wizards from the rural areas of the Mist Coast have the guts to go with me for revenge?"

"Teacher, you're not thinking straight," Green couldn't help but advise. Couldn't his mind be a bit more flexible?

"Why do we have to use the name of revenge? Even if we want revenge, we can do it secretly. How can revenge be done openly?"

"Teacher, I've already thought of a revenge strategy for you."

"You should publicly announce that you're going to the Middle-earth Continent Wizard World to build a career, recruit a group of like-minded partners in the Mist Coast, and form an alliance, a community of interests."

"Once in the Middle-earth Continent, you shouldn't immediately seek revenge. Instead, establish a small force in a place you're familiar with, then take root and develop this force, secretly accumulating strength, gathering information on your enemies, and then waiting for the right moment to annihilate the enemy in one fell swoop."

"This is the correct way to approach revenge! If you do it this way, who would have any concerns?"

"Or are you perhaps thinking of charging directly to the enemy's stronghold and starting a fight?"

"Ahem..."

"Of course not!" Mentor Joyce glared at Green in annoyance.

"Am I that stupid, Teacher?"

"My plan has always been exactly what you described. Otherwise, what would I have been doing staying in the Mist Coast for over a hundred years?"

"Oh, then, Teacher, you should recruit as many Formal Wizards as possible. These are all your helpers and the foundation for your revenge."

"I believe that as long as you relax the conditions, no Formal Wizard can resist the temptation to go to the center of civilization of this world. That is an incomparably prosperous Wizarding Holy Land!"

"Hehe, at that time, just gather everyone who wants to go. Wouldn't that mean you'd have allies everywhere? If our academy doesn't seize this opportunity to expand its influence, wouldn't all your hard work be in vain?"

Green explained with a smile, "This kind of once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—don't you think you'd regret it for the rest of your life if you missed it?"

"You, Green..."

"The Tier 1 treasure ship built by the Seven Towers Alliance can generally only carry 20 Formal Wizards. Besides, I'm going to the Middle-earth Continent to revive our Botany School. This is an arduous task, and not just anyone can be recruited. Quality over quantity. If there are too many people and their hearts aren't united, what's the use?"

"Teacher, then you are greatly mistaken..." Green directly shook his head and retorted.

"In your situation, Teacher, the more help you have, the better. There's no need to be picky. As long as they are Formal Wizards, you can take them."

"Don't forget, you're going to the Middle-earth Continent, which is incredibly far from this Mist Coast. When you're away from home, who do you rely on? You rely on fellow townsfolk."

"In the Middle-earth Continent, you Formal Wizards from the Mist Coast share a common hometown and have known each other for over a hundred years, knowing each other's backgrounds. That makes you natural allies. At that time, you wizards will naturally band together."

"Therefore, the more Formal Wizards Mentor Joyce recruits, the more it will not only benefit the safety of the journey but also help you better establish yourselves and grow in the Middle-earth Continent Wizard World. Ultimately, it could even shorten the time it takes to get revenge."