369 Rezur City
It was not long before Andar reached his destination which was Rezur City, inside this sprawling metropolis would be the Teleportation Portal that would take him to Trial Grounds.
If it was possible he would have preferred to use other methods to reach the Trial Grounds, but he was left with only this option, he only hoped that his Master would have delayed Silas and the rest long enough to ensure his safe passage.
Rezur was the largest City in Ikaron V. It was the center of commerce and every major guild and organization had branches in this city. He had visited this place a few times with his master and he had never forgotten the experience.
To the young Andar, the city was filled with mysteries and adventure, and every corner that was revealed showed a new story.
He tapped the Cloud Whale twice while communicating with Aegis for it to slow down and land before the opened gate of the Walled City.
Except for Mages of Rank 3 and upwards, certain governmental bodies, and security forces, everyone else was forbidden from flying over the city. To ensure that regulation there was a massive formation shrouding the entire city, and only powers of a certain extent or those that were authorized could use the city's airspace.
Andar landed a few meters from the great gate, his Cloud Whale drawing surprised stares and exclamations, such a rare and powerful beast like the Cloud Whale was rarely seen, and Andar's presence was also shocking.
His silver eyes and inherent air of nobility and grace distinguished him from anyone around, even a pair of passing mages could not help but check him out again, the power of his mount and his appearance gave Andar the distinguished presence of an Archmage Progeny.
Andar with Rowan's memories and bearing was used to power and nobility and he effortlessly exuded that grace that could not be faked.
Andar waved his hand, and the Cloud Whale was covered by a silver film and it shrunk until it disappeared into the Aegis Script with a loud whoosh that stirred up dust and a large burst of wind.
The Cloud Whale appeared inside the Script and looked around in awe with its many large eyes. The inside of the Aegis Script was filled with a silver fog and there was also a small growing pool of silver below.
The Cloud Whale gave a loud bellow of excitement for this was dense and concentrated Aether that was of high quality. It basked inside of it and closed its eyes in pleasure and it began to slowly breathe in the Aether as its cultivation and rest began.
Andar, seeing the comfortable state of the beast, smiled and began entering the city.
People unconsciously steered away from Andar's path as he called up to the open gates and entered the City. The security checkpoint at the gate had already scanned him with their specialized devices and no discernable threat or bounty was assigned to him, so he could easily enter the city with no obstructions.
He knew his way to the Teleportation Portal, and it was in the central part of the city. Andar hailed a passing vehicle and stated his directions. The driver gave him a transportation time of six hours, with the fare being three Origin Chips. This was a bit too expensive, but Andar told him he would pay him double if he could reduce the transportation time by half.
The man grinned exposing brown teeth stained by years of substance abuse, and placed the pedal to the metal. The sudden speed jolted Andar and when he clutched the side of the chair in surprise, his hand depressed the metal.
Andar sighed and took the time to repair the chair bit by bit making sure the driver was not aware of his blunder.
Regarding the issue of money, Andar was surprised that his master was able to give him one hundred Origin Shards. This should be most of the money that he would have gathered over his lifetime. His debt to this man was growing and Andar kept this favor in mind.
To understand what the Alchemist had truly given him, it was necessary to note that, one Origin Shard could be broken down into One thousand Origin Marks, One Origin Mark was a thousand Origin Bale, and One Origin Bale was a thousand Origin chips.
In other words, the currency distribution was from the lowest to the highest, Origin Chip, Origin Bale, Origin Mark, and finally Origin Shard.
Most people would never come across a single Origin Shard in their entire lives, and it was the exclusive currency of Mages, for only they could live for that long and earn such an amount of money in their lifetime.
A single Origin Shard was enough for an average family of five to live comfortably until the end of their life, and still leave enough for descendants, after all, a single Origin Shard equals a billion Origin chips.
So it could be understood that for his master to give him one hundred Origin Shard, it was a serious investment towards Andar future and many things would be easier for him to purchase. If not for his haste to reach the Trial Grounds, then he would have taken his time to shop around the City, he may have come across something surprising along the way.
Andar's eyes were open as he watched the city going by, the driver moving at breakneck speed was meandering through traffic, drawing curses and outrage from his fellow motorists. Andar noticed that even with this speed, the man was very much in control, most likely because he was a Rank 2 Acolyte, and the risk of an accident was minimal with his enhanced Spirit.
Speaking of the Ranking in the Worlds of Mages, Andar had been able to gather some preliminary findings, and the division of power was very clear almost simplistic at first glance, but he understood that there must be a deep undercurrent beneath its simple surface, after all this was the power system of a Supreme World.
You begin as a Mortal, and then you proceed to unlock your Spirit Matrix, after that is to become an Acolyte using a specified Training Manual. From there you had to transcend three ranks, from Rank 1 Acolyte up to Rank 3 Acolyte, but that was only the start of your journey.
He did not know the intricacies of what came next, but it was pretty simple, there was the elevation to become a Rank 1 Mage after you broke through from the Realm of an Acolyte, and you would need to proceed all the way to a Rank 9 Mage, at that point you would prepare for your elevation to Archmage. A power level that was comparable to a god.
There were various subdivisions within each Ranks that Andar was not too clear about, nevertheless, all this confusion would be solved in time.