Ron slightly raised the corners of his mouth:
"Madam, you look rather well yourself. From the environmental background, it seems you’ve traveled quite far from the Black Mist Jungle."
"Hmph, your eyes are still sharp."
Lady Allen raised an eyebrow:
"We’ve already reached the border of the Faruk Kingdom and are preparing to cross the Dragon Ridge Mountain Range. If all goes well, we’ll see the outline of the Jade Forest in two weeks."
In the projection, behind Lady Allen stretched a vast plain.
In the distance, the continuous mountains could be vaguely seen; they were the famous Dragon Ridge Mountains, named for their resemblance to the spine of a sleeping giant dragon.
"Was your journey smooth?" Ron asked.
Lady Allen let out a light laugh:
"Much smoother than I expected. You, young man, have surprisingly amassed such a wide network in such a short time. Even those Lizardmen have provided us with an escort for the entire journey."
"Lizardmen?" Ron slightly frowned, then suddenly understood: "The tribes from the Snake Scale Swamp?"
"Exactly." Lady Allen squinted her eyes:
"I was originally prepared for battle in the swamp with those Lizardmen, who are known for being cunning and cruel, and expected to get some blood on my hands."
She lightly shook her head, with a hint of incredulity in her voice:
"Upon reaching the swamp’s edge, we encountered a welcoming party led by Kazak. Apparently, they had already received notification from the Black Mist School and knew of our close connection with the ’Ron Wizard’, so they came to escort us voluntarily."
Ron was slightly taken aback: "Kazak...is he the old Lizardman who participated in the Alchemist examination?"
"Yes, that’s him."
Lady Allen’s eyes showed a scrutinizing light:
"As soon as we met, that guy rambled on about how you showcased your astonishing talent in potion-making during the examination, and how you traded modified potion formulas with them, enhancing their tribe’s healing abilities to a new level."
She suddenly let out a light laugh:
"It seems you’ve not only built networks in human society but also won over those non-human races."
Ron smiled lightly. During the Alchemist examination, he had indeed met Kazak once.
And later maintained contact, providing him with some basic modified magic potion formulas.
In exchange, they also provided him with a stable supply channel for swamp materials.
He didn’t expect such a simple reciprocal relationship to play such an important role at this time.
"Kazak is just the beginning." Lady Allen continued, with a slight teasing tone:
"When we crossed the swamp and reached the kingdom’s border, a Royal Guard unit greeted us. The new King Andre personally issued orders for us to receive the highest level of hospitality and escort."
"Andre?"
Ron was a little surprised: "Has he officially ascended?"
"Not only ascended, but reportedly performed quite impressively."
Lady Allen gave him a meaningful look:
"The Faruk Kingdom’s border situation is stable, and I’ve heard that the new king introduced a new set of bloodline enhancement training systems in the army, making neighboring countries hesitate to act rashly."
Ron understood in his heart that this training system had something to do with the things and potion recipes he gifted upon farewell.
"That Andre also gave us a Mixed-blood Earth Dragon Beast."
Lady Allen continued, a look of joy on her face:
"This big creature will help us cross the Dragon Ridge Mountain Range. Without this gift, it would probably take us twice the time to detour along the safe route."
Listening to these unexpected yet reasonable developments, Ron felt a trace of warmth in his heart.
Those past fortuitous encounters had now transformed into support for his mentor’s journey, this indirect return made him quite content.
"How’s Lilia?" he suddenly asked, with a slight concern in his words.
Lady Allen’s expression softened too:
"That girl is stronger than I imagined. The first few days she was indeed very depressed, like she had lost her soul. But gradually, she seems to have found some kind of motivation to move forward."
There was a hint of solace in her eyes:
"Recently, her enthusiasm for learning Magic Potion Making is more intense than it was in my shop, often studying those basics books day and night. Last night I accidentally found her staying up late reading in the tent, with that focused expression, it somewhat reminded me of you back then."
"Give her my regards," Ron finally just said, as usual.
"You can tell her yourself when you get the chance." Lady Allen snorted lightly:
"I’m not a messenger for you young people."
"By the way." The old woman suddenly lowered her voice, her tone becoming serious:
"Regarding the situation in the Central Lands, I need to warn you of one thing, try to be cautious of those who show excessive enthusiasm towards Primordial Wizards."
Ron immediately became alert, his gaze fixed on the projection: "What do you mean?"
"Some forces in the Central Lands are extremely eager for the ’favors’ of Primordial Wizards, especially those High Tier Wizards who are severely affected by spiritual contamination. They will try every means to lure some geniuses into signing unequal contracts, turning them into exclusive ’Energy Springs’."
Ron frowned tightly.
This corroborated some things he had previously known. Clearly, in the Central Lands, his special identity was both an opportunity and a risk.
"However." Lady Allen’s tone was slightly more relaxed:
"Now that you have officially become a Primordial Wizard, with the protective constraints of the Witch King’s decree, they can’t actually force you to sign any contracts, only deceive or lure you. With your cautious nature, I trust I don’t need to remind you further."