Chapter 716: Chapter 440 Miracle Meeting_2
And the yield of wheat wasn’t solely dependent on the variety; agricultural techniques in the Yanan World were still relatively backward. Most serfs relied on experience passed down through word of mouth and demonstration, lacking a systematic approach and certainly not the most efficient. There was substantial room for improvement later on in areas such as fertilization and pest control.
He believed that once agricultural techniques were optimized, the yield of this wheat could increase even more than what Lillian had estimated.
It was just a pity... The main staple crop of the Yanan World was still primarily wheat.
But this was only temporary; he would find suitable rice seeds sooner or later.
As far as yield was concerned, rice yielded more than wheat.
Of course, that wasn’t the main reason.
—He had been wanting to eat rice for far too long.
"I’ve kept about a hundred acres of farmland; it’s not too late to sow now, to await the wheat harvest in May next year, which will be just in time for the autumn seeds." Colin went on to say.
"It’s not hard work." Lillian shook her head, "This is what I should do."
Colin nodded and didn’t thank her further.
Some things, when said too often, become trivial; it’s better just to keep them in one’s heart.
Autumn sowing had already passed; even with the mighty power of wizards, it wasn’t as easy as one might imagine to accelerate the growth of a hundred acres of wheat to catch up with the planting schedule.
...
The days spent on the Tilaimei Plain were, on the whole, peaceful for Colin.
Atbolde took over the main burden of political affairs for him, while Lillian aided in the management of government affairs and also took charge of agriculture. Shelley, in turn, helped him work towards industrialization.
Colin was truly grateful that in this world, he could still meet people he could trust with confidence.
Otherwise, what good was great power... It would ultimately be lonely; he certainly didn’t want to become a heartless god, unaware of the delight of food or the warmth of human hearts.
And so, time swiftly progressed to November.
Colin still had a little less than half of the Divine Blood left in his possession.
From his experiments, if he used his body to absorb Divine Blood, for the him of now, the optimal frequency was roughly once every three days.
Compared to a third-rank soul, his body was only second-rank, a touch inferior; however, his body seemed to have a stronger capacity for absorbing Divine Blood.
Thus, offsetting one another, the frequency was also once every three days.
On the 3rd of November, the weather was a bit gloomy, and the temperature had begun to cool, with autumn nearly completely past.
And on this day, Colin received a special visitor.
"Please come in."
The door to the study was pushed open.
"We meet again, Mister Colin." Ryden greeted with a smile, taking a seat in the armchair opposite Colin with a confident posture.
Seemingly feeling quite familiar with Colin by now, he acted more at ease, unconcerned with formalities.
"Mister Ryden." Colin smiled.
"I came this time to deliver a spot on behalf of my mentor."
Ryden was as direct as ever, not beating around the bush, nor making small talk, and he dove right into the matter at hand.
"A spot?" Colin raised an eyebrow, setting aside the proclamation from the Supreme Council.
"Yes, a spot for the Miracle Meeting, have you heard of it?" Ryden nodded, handing over a comically intricate cloud-pattern badge to him.
"I’ve heard of it once, but I’m not familiar with the specifics."
Colin took the badge and examined it carefully.
The term Miracle Meeting, he had indeed heard once before. It was during the conversation between Nickler and Nois back in Neustadt City, as mentioned by Nois.
"Simply put, the Miracle Meeting is a triennial event hosted jointly by the Nine Great Miracle Cities, and the next one will be held in Pansai City.
Although the event is extremely prestigious, it’s not of large scale, and those who have the opportunity to participate, aside from Great Councilmen, include only the topmost forces within each Miracle City."
"As for the purpose, it’s mainly to exchange knowledge. Of course, many forces also negotiate the distribution of interests for the next three years at the Miracle Meeting."
Ryden paused and added, "Of course, for us, what’s more beneficial is the exchange of knowledge.
The most top-tier and cutting-edge witchcraft research knowledge from the entire Siya Continent will appear at the Miracle Meeting. Even just to observe, without understanding the specifics, is immensely beneficial. Not to mention, any wizard who meets certain conditions can acquire specific knowledge without any cost."
"When exactly does this Miracle Meeting start?" Colin asked, stowing away the badge.
Such a grand gathering naturally was not to be missed.
"November 11th," Ryden said with a slight smile as he saw Colin accept the badge. He stood up and finally added, "The journey to Pansai City is long, and even with the use of the Transmission Array, you’ll need to transfer twice. You should make preparations in advance."
"I will," Colin nodded, rising to see him out.
"By the way, Mr. Colin, have you heard about the recent developments on the Sea Domain battlefield?" As they reached the door of the study, Ryden seemed to remember something, and suddenly asked.
"The Sea Domain battlefield... Are you referring to the several minor harassment offensives launched by the Divine side?" Colin asked.
Before Ryden’s visit, he had just finished reading the day’s Supreme Council announcement, which mentioned this matter.
After the Divine side withdrew their troops, the main forces had been hiding behind the Sky-reaching Grey Tower. However, in recent days, they had launched several small-scale raids, specifically targeting the weaker spots in the defense line.
These actions kept the stationed wizard forces frantically busy and quite troubled.
However, these small-scale raids didn’t actually pose much of a threat to the overall war situation; they were merely annoying.
"It’s related to that." Ryden shook his head and said, "The tutor told me that the Supreme Council also plans to establish several roaming squads to carry out tasks like gathering intelligence."
"I haven’t heard of that yet," Colin nodded.
"With the Divine enemy before us, we can’t always be passive. The Council is likely considering some sort of retaliation," Ryden continued.
...
"Newspapers, today’s latest newspapers! Divine forces launch another raid on the strait, met with complete defeat by the defense forces!" On the bustling streets of Si Mao City, a paperboy was running fast with his bag on his back, waving newspapers.
"I’ll take one!" called the owner of a shop along the street.
"Right away!" The paperboy said with a beaming smile and ran over.
"I’ll take one too."
Just as he had handed a newspaper to the shop owner, another voice came.
The paperboy looked in the direction of the sound and saw a young man in a wizard robe with a somewhat youthful face and a hint of stubble.
’A wizard lord!’
The paperboy’s movements involuntarily became more respectful, as he ran over with quick steps and handed the newspaper to him with both hands.
"Here’s your newspaper!"
The young wizard took the newspaper and casually tossed down a few gold coins.
The paperboy, showing a surprised joy, quickly bent down to pick them up, at the same time glancing around vigilantly to make sure no one had noticed before he relaxed.
When he looked up again, the wizard had already walked away.
’He looks young, probably not one of those powerful wizards, what’s it called—yes, an Apprentice, a Wizard Apprentice.’
The paperboy watched the man’s retreating figure and thought to himself, then continued to run off to other places with his bag, calling out.
Young Wandering Wizard Apprentices like this were not uncommon in this city near the battlefield.
Most of them didn’t have much in the way of knowledge or lineage; they came here to try their luck on the battlefield for a chance to advance further.
"A complete defeat, huh..."
In the distance, the Wizard Apprentice finished reading the newspaper, sneered inwardly, and expressionlessly crumpled it up and tossed it aside.
He then headed towards the city’s stables.
The plan had been a success; he had broken through the defense line and returned to the Siya Continent.
But Si Mao City was still far from where he wanted to go; he couldn’t simply walk there—he needed to buy a horse first to hurry to Merredith City.
Once in Merredith City and using the Transmission Array, it would only take a moment to reach Neustadt.
And from Neustadt, he wouldn’t be far from his destination, the Roon Kingdom...
As for entering the Wizard City, Calvin Adams hadn’t worried for a moment that he might be discovered.
Because no matter how one looked at him, he was now a bonafide... Advanced Wizard Apprentice.
Calvin clutched at his chest, where the flames of revenge churned inside.
Once more, he silently recited the name that had torn his family apart, left him utterly alone, the name he’d accepted the Pope’s plan without hesitation, the name he loathed to the bone—
"Colin Leonard—!"