Sovereign of the Ashes

Eileen was the one who attended to Sein on this occasion.

In fact, just three days earlier, she was the person who had informed Sein about the arrival of exceptionally rare items today.

The recent Regional Inter-Divine Tower Academy War had significantly altered how Eileen and Master Jovian viewed Sein.

At that time, upon seeing Sein emerge from the trial space, Master Jovian was rendered speechless, pointing at him in astonishment.

Meanwhile, Eileen had not only exchanged crystal ball contacts with Sein but also, through numerous conversations, began to regard him as a peer rather than merely an initiate.

“It’s been just a few days since we last met, yet I detect a slight change in your aura. Come here, let me assess your focus and mana levels with my crystal ball,” Eileen urged, pulling Sein along.

Sein was currently in a secluded room, looking through a crystal ball to check the new arrivals at the exchange hall.

When Eileen tried to pull him closer, Sein deftly evaded her grasp.

He was more aware of his current state than Eileen. That very morning, he had evaluated his focus level, validating Eileen’s remarks about its improvement.

However, this increase in focus was not a result of Sein’s intense meditation or the effects of potions and rare magic items.

Instead, it was from the golden light the Summer Guardian had bestowed upon him before departing.

His mentor, Lorianne, explained that the light was known as Planar Light, possessing profound and long-term benefits, which Sein would take centuries to fully comprehend.

For now, the immediate advantage of this Planar Light was to aid Sein in rapidly advancing to Rank One in the near future.

This power was a gift from the guardian, originating from the very essence of the plane.

The Planar Light bestowed upon Sein was enough to evoke envy in any Rank Three grand mage.

Hence, Lorianne advised Sein to keep his possession of a strand of Planar Light a secret.

Once the Planar Light became a part of Sein’s essence, it was nearly impossible to extract. Even so, flaunting such a gift was unwise.

Under the protective laws of the divine tower and the guardian, it was unlikely that anyone in the Magus World would maliciously target Sein.

Nevertheless, jealousy from Rank One and Rank Two mages was a real concern.

Any future schemes or underhanded tactics against him could prove troublesome.

Therefore, until he gained a significant level of strength, it was prudent for Sein to maintain a low profile.

Heeding his mentor’s warning, Sein chose not to divulge anything about the Planar Light, even to trusted full-fledged mages like Eileen.

While Sein offered no clear explanation for his surge in focus level, this did not stop Eileen from making her own assumptions.

Leaning closer to Sein, she inquired, “Let me guess, the tower master gave you something nice right?”

“Aaaaah, to have a Rank Four tower master as a mentor is truly a blessing!” Eileen wailed dramatically, covering her mouth with her hand.

Sein was momentarily speechless, taken aback by her theatrical reaction.

Once their light-hearted exchange concluded, they shifted their focus to the matter at hand.

Browsing through the crystal ball’s exchange list, Sein identified several items of interest or necessity:

Two kilograms of Aiel Water.

Three Blackthorn Branches.

Two hundred Firepool Pearls.

Half a ton of Extraplanar Iron Hawkcock’s comb.

Rare magic metals like Red Ant Gold and Blue Sandalwood Silver.

***

These items were all precious materials Sein needed for his practice and experiments.

The Extraplanar Iron Hawkcock’s comb that weighed half a ton was acquired as a nutritional supplement for Sev.

Given its appetite, the amount should last for quite some time.

Sein’s casual use of hundreds, kilograms, and tons as units in his transactions highlighted his formidable presence in the exchange market.

At that moment, Eileen could not help but look at Sein with unmistakable envy. Even her family’s resources paled in comparison to Sein’s current wealth.

Sein had enlisted Eileen as his proxy for trades because, in doing so, she earned a share of the transaction points. This arrangement was mutually beneficial and Sein was content with Eileen’s services.

“What’s this?” Sein inquired, pointing to an item labeled “Astral Stone” on the crystal ball’s display.

The crystal ball provided a brief visual description alongside each item listed.

Sein was unfamiliar with the “Astral Stone”. It was a seemingly unremarkable small black stone priced at 8,000 points, making it one of the most valuable items in the current list.

“Hmm, Astral Stone? I recall hearing about it. It’s an extremely rare spatial stone, used for interstellar and interplanar communication. Many full-fledged mages use it to engage in trade and communication with entities from different planes in the distant star domains.

“However, as the Magus Alliance’s influence expands across numerous star domains, beings from distant planes have started either joining the Magus Alliance or establishing trade links with our Magus Civilization. As a result, items like the Astral Stone are gradually becoming less popular.

”Apart from that, interplanar portals also utilize this type of ore, but these days they’re rarely used because there are better alternatives to Astral Stones,” Eileen explained.

As a full-fledged mage with decades more experience than Sein, Eileen’s extensive knowledge and expertise in various domains were far more advanced than that of a magic initiate like Sein.

Sein, nodding with keen interest, decided to add the Astral Stone to his list of exchanges.

His generous spending habits had significantly depleted his reserve of 220,000 points.

To Sein, points and magicoins were merely abstract figures. He believed in their true value only when converted into tangible strengths and knowledge.

Thus, Sein never hesitated to invest his resources.

***

Upon exiting the exchange hall, Sein made his way toward the academy library.

He had learned from his mentor, Lorianne, about a special library within the divine tower, reserved exclusively for full-fledged mages.

However, Sein, fully aware of his current level, felt that the initiates’ library was adequately equipped to meet his learning needs.

The items he had acquired from the exchange hall were already safely stored in his space bangle.

His visit to the library was primarily to seek information on occult arts and curse spells.