281 Chapter 281
The ‘wonderful’ and easy job of Treen made Rezen think that it should be that bastard that these tribesmen should be jealous of. At the very least, Rezen still has to work hard for the things that he has while Treen only has to use a particular part of his body
“Yeah, sure, if you’re not impotent, you could help populate the city” Rezen replied with a sarcastic tone yet Treen seems to have taken his words seriously
The man’s eyes lit up as if he just discovered his path in life and he smiled brightly. “Rezen, you’re really a genius! I haven’t thought of that before! I should ask her if that is possible!”
At that, Rezen could only shake his head helplessly. He doesn’t want to continue talking with this idiot as idiocy might be contagious if a person is idiotic enough
Rezen turned his focus on the people that his tribe would send to the military. The first one with no surprises was Stone Head. He is still set on atoning for his sin and since there’s a high chance that those that would become soldiers would have a premature death, Stone Head wanted to shoulder the burden and danger
The second person is Jenna. She doesn’t really need to sacrifice herself but she still decided to become a soldier since as much as it was dangerous, the rewards are also plentiful
Since the soldiers constantly protect the city, they naturally receive a huge chunk of the city’s resources as protection requires power. If a mage with no background wants to grow strong and obtain resources, their best choice is becoming a soldier although it was also the most dangerous
The third person is someone that Rezen didn’t expect. It was actually Yvter. Rezen doesn’t know what’s up with that guy as he definitely doesn’t give a selfless vibe. He’s the type of guy that makes people think he is selfish and only cares about himself. It was a surprise that he even volunteered to become a soldier
Aside from those three, there are seven more people from Rezen’s tribe that has to become a soldier. Since the tribe at most has a hundred people, that’s around 10% of the tribe’s total population
Fortunately, everyone basically is now Junior Mages. They are stronger than ever though their surroundings made it so that even though they are at their peak, their strength is still nothing
——
Dormitory
Inside a vacant room, Rezen could be seen sitting in a meditative posture. On the outside, it looks like he was simply cultivating but his mind was actually inside his elixir field, specifically inside his farm
Just like usual, Rezen harvested and pluck the Spirit Plants he grows on 1/2 of his farm. These Spirit Plants are the ones that could increase a mage’s talent upon constant consumption
After a month in the City of Hope and entering the resource points for a total of seven times, Rezen now has a large variety of Spirit Plants that could increase his talent in different areas
Normally, buying some of these resources is not difficult for many people but buying them constantly is not something that just anyone could afford
As such, only the rich could use these Spirit Plants to increase their talent as they need to consume a lot of them. While Rezen is still far from being rich, thanks to his farm, he is able to grow these Spirit Plants with ease
He was even consuming them as if they were normal vegetables that you could buy a ton of for a cheap price
“With my increase in talent, I should be able to reach the 2nd cycle in my Body Mage Path” Rezen muttered to himself
If it was possible, he wanted to advance quicker in his Spirit Mage path since these mages use complicated magic and Rezen believes that only such magic could return his parents to him
However, resources that have to do with one’s physical body are still more common than the ones that help a mage’s soul. As such, it would be easier for Rezen to become a 2nd cycle Body Mage rather than a 2nd cycle Spirit Mage
“Still, although my progress is incomparably fast that is only relative to the tribal people. I’m not even eligible enough to be a normal genius in the City of Hope. My progress is still slow. The only thing I can do now is to constantly seek for resources to improve my talent”
While there are various ways to improve a mage’s strength by a large margin in one go, those methods mostly has severe consequences. The best way to increase power is still by cultivating and progress would only be fast if a person is talented enough
“I have to use a Fortune Fruit again to sought for even more precious resources” Rezen muttered
A heaven’s blessed is not the same as a realm’s chosen. A realm could have as many heaven’s blessed as it wants and although they are not as common as the stones in the road, Rezen still managed to extract a fortune aura and grow another Fortune Fruit after his first time
He originally planned to use the fortune fruit to help him when he is in danger but he changed his plans due to his progress which is still at a snail’s speed for him
“Hmm?” Suddenly, Rezen sensed a disturbance and his mind returned to his physical body as he opened his eyes
He can hear someone shouting downstairs and out of curiosity, Rezen went out of the room to check what was happening
“No! No! No! I don’t want to be a soldier! You can’t force me! My tribe already chose the people that would become soldiers!” A young man cried out as he tried to take his arms back from the people holding him
His face was painted with fear as he thrashed around, unwilling to be sent to the battlefield. A place where the chance of dying is higher than the chance of surviving
“You consumed an Omal Fruit. You might have become a 3rd cycle Mage from the 1st cycle, but you don’t have any future anymore. It is the city’s law that those that don’t have the chance to become any stronger should become selfless soldiers. The resources and safety that would have been given to you would be given to others that still have the chance of growing strong”
Upon hearing those words, the young man wildly shook his head. “No! No! No! I didn’t know that rule! I was tricked! They said that I would be a peerless genius if I eat that damned fruit! I’m my tribe’s successor, you can’t send me in danger!”
“If you continue being selfish, a fate worst than death would be given to you”
Rezen watched this scene unfold and he unconsciously shuddered. While he was still in the flying ship, Treen informed him of what the female representative said to him and that is to not consume anything that could suddenly increase his strength
Aside from Treen, he actually also received the same warning from Philome and Wermon. They warned him not to be foolish as the best-case scenario would be he would live his whole life as a soldier. As for the worst-case scenario, Philome and Wermon didn’t say what would happen but with the way that they shuddered, Rezen could guess that it might be even more horrible than what he could imagine
“This city might be darker than I think” Rezen thought and this just grew his resolve to grow stronger by only using his own effort and talent. He definitely cannot consume anything with an instant power-up effect but would cut off his future as a result
“This guy is done for” Rezen thought as he watched the young man get dragged by the police
Since he continue resisting, the best case scenario for people with no future like him might not be given to him. His fate instead would become something that even Rezen doesn’t know of
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“Well, considering that the city is always in constant danger and everyone must contribute for collective safety, this kind of thing might not be bad and is for the best. I just hope that I wouldn’t end up like him…”