Chapter 93: Chapter 93

Inside the massive botanical garden, with overlapping peaks and ridges and an artificial sun hanging high, specific magical radiation continuously emanated from the artificial sun. Locke was certain this was Mana Co-frequency Cultivation Method equipment more advanced than a Radiation Cauldron.

In this space that seemed like a miniature alternate dimension, even the gentle breeze carried magical fluctuations.

Within the botanical garden, many high-level slaves were working, while first-class wizard apprentices walked among them, directing second-class wizard apprentices in maintaining magical plants or personally tending to those easily dying magical plants.

A second-class wizard apprentice who had signed a contract with the public botanical garden bowed to Locke. "Lord Augustine, welcome to Lilith's Cottage's most important area, the public botanical garden."

"Please follow me. This area is a private cultivation zone. The five hundred acres of magical plant fields you need to maintain belong to the public magical fields, allocated by the academy for first-class wizard apprentices and breeders like yourself to take turns managing portions of them."

Locke understood. This was somewhat like the well-field system.

Most of the magical fields in the public botanical garden should be communal, but at least one-third of the magical fields would be distributed to others for use as private magical fields.

The second-class wizard apprentice secretly glanced at Locke. Locke's young age caught his attention.

Those who could work in the public botanical garden were currently mostly from the seventy-two local wizard families, who had connections to find such good jobs.

Moreover, he didn't dare show this depression in front of Locke.

This second-class wizard apprentice could only dutifully fulfill his job, introducing Locke to the work areas he would be responsible for.

The second-class wizard apprentice led Locke about seven kilometers, with magical fields planted with various magical plants everywhere they went.

Many slaves were harvesting mature magical plants in the fields. Most of these magical plants weren't combat magical plants, but magical plants used as potioncraft raw materials.

"Lord Augustine, we're here. These five hundred acres of magical fields are entirely your responsibility for one month, then next month the academy will commission others to be responsible." The second-class wizard apprentice bowed to Locke and said somewhat ingratiatingly, "The public botanical garden has complete sets of nutrient solutions, nutrient soil, various farming tools for managing magical plants, special magical insecticides, and magical plant herbicides targeting specific weeds."

"Lord Augustine, if you need anything in the future, you can always come find me for help."

"Additionally, you can outsource the work."

This second-class wizard apprentice smiled, "You can commission several second-class wizard apprentices to help you work while you just supervise from the side."

"It's just that some magical plants are too dangerous for second-class wizard apprentices to handle, and according to academy regulations, you must at least be present to oversee."

"Lord Augustine, I'm Thomas Belen. If you need anything, you can always come find me."

Locke looked at this second-class wizard apprentice with surprise. Belen... this should be a member of the seventy-two local wizard families, the Belen family. That family also seemed to have several first-class wizard apprentices.

It's just that like the Reeves family, those first-class wizard apprentices had no possibility of advancement and their lifespans were nearly at their limits.

The seventy-two local wizard families had been facing problems of lacking successors.

Locke said indifferently, "Hmm, I understand."

After Thomas left, Locke focused his attention on his surroundings. Besides himself, there were quite a few other first-class wizard apprentices managing the academy's public fields.

About five hundred acres per person.

At a glance, there were at least twenty-some first-class wizard apprentices working here.

'First-class wizard apprentices have long lifespans. Second-class and third-class wizard apprentices often lose academy support if they can't advance within ten years, or even are forced to drop out and become wandering wizards,' Locke thought. 'Or they're forced to enter lesser academies.'

'But first-class wizard apprentices themselves have extremely high value, so the academy can continuously support them. First-class wizard apprentices also have at least two hundred years of lifespan, so the number of first-class wizard apprentices in the academy should be quite large.'

'All accumulated over time and remaining.'

For first-class wizard apprentices to advance to formal wizards often took over ten years. Those with dim advancement prospects might have been first-class wizard apprentices for fifty or sixty years and were still preparing to make one final attempt to become formal wizards.

If one didn't become a formal wizard before age forty, the success rate would greatly decrease, but it couldn't be said to be completely impossible.

These first-class wizard apprentices often had some attendants, and quite a few second-class wizard apprentice students surrounded them.

When Locke entered, several first-class wizard apprentices did look at him a few more times. A minority nodded at him, then paid no further attention.

After all, Locke had just become a first-class wizard apprentice, while some of these people were only a few steps away from becoming formal wizards, and others, though hopeless of becoming formal wizards, had been first-class wizard apprentices for fifty or sixty years and were experienced.

Moreover, they basically all wore breeder certificate badges.

Seeing the breeder assistant certificate badge Locke wore, their eyes inevitably showed disdain, naturally having no intention of actively befriending Locke.

Wizards were all realistic.

Since they saw no benefit in befriending him, these veteran first-class wizard apprentices naturally had no interest in him.

Some veteran first-class wizard apprentices gathered in small groups, chatting with each other or exchanging insights, leaving the work to those second-class wizard apprentices they had hired.

Locke heard several first-class wizard apprentices complimenting a female first-class wizard apprentice named Mary.

"Senior Mary, you should be the first-class wizard apprentice closest to becoming a formal wizard in the academy... so envious."

Mary said distantly and indifferently, "Hmm. Next year I'll participate in the breeder competition and start accumulating resources. For first-class wizard apprentices to become formal wizards requires accumulating vast resources."

"You all should also prepare early."

The several first-class wizard apprentices surrounding her all laughed.

"We're all still early. We might need to wait another ten-plus years to reach Senior Mary's level."

"I recently took on an academy task, cultivating a batch of vervain magical plants and earned quite a few magic stones."

"That was probably issued as an urgent task for the Blood Curse Court. Vervain doesn't have much other use." Mary said, "I heard the academy, to retaliate against the Blood Curse Court, introduced vervain that causes mana allergies when vampires touch it into the upstream of the Blood Curse Court's water sources. I heard quite a few wizard apprentices from the Blood Curse Court died as a result."

While they were talking, Mary suddenly looked up at a male young first-class wizard apprentice not far away, nodded slightly at him, and proactively greeted, "Anglon, you're here."

"I heard you obtained a breeder assistant certificate. I didn't expect it was true."

Anglon basically ignored the others and greeted Mary. "The mental strength enhancement potion project I've been working on recently hasn't been very successful. To draw parallels, I simply applied to Teacher Harlen Vera for a breeder assistant certificate, then came to work at the public plantation."

"Mary, I didn't expect you to also be here. That's great, we can exchange ideas with each other. At least there's someone to talk to, otherwise it would be too boring."

Mary smiled and nodded. She had the same intention, since communicating with those wizard apprentices surrounding her didn't yield much.

Anglon glanced at Locke in the distance. Since Locke was a new face, he caught his attention slightly.

But soon Anglon focused his attention on Mary, who was also a formal wizard seed, chatting and laughing with her.

Locke withdrew his gaze from observing the people around him.

He also had no intention of actively greeting others. When you're relatively weak, it's best not to think about how to socialize, but to improve yourself. Then friends will naturally come to you.

Otherwise, forcing yourself into those circles will only backfire.

Locke just hadn't expected to encounter that first-class wizard apprentice Anglon here.

The other party looked physically strong, with muscle masses all over his body, quite different from typical wizard apprentice appearances. He had a buzz cut, clean and sharp, but gloomy eyes. He indeed looked like someone who would use any means necessary.

Locke turned to look at the five hundred acres of magical fields he was responsible for. "The academy probably considered that I only have a breeder assistant certificate, so they didn't assign me overly complex magical plant care tasks. They assigned me the simplest magical plants."

"Managing them will be much easier."

"First is removing specific harmful fungi from Phoenix Feather Flowers, which requires special sterilizing gel."

Locke spent the entire next day working in the public botanical garden.

However, after working all day, no other first-class wizard apprentices came to chat with him, and lower-level wizard apprentices didn't dare actively disturb him.

Therefore, Locke enjoyed some peace and quiet. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn novel✶fire.net

When evening came and Locke returned to his wooden house complex, he entered the medium-scale botanical garden the Reeves family had given him. The botanical garden had already been organized by the minotaur slaves, with large amounts of nutrient soil scattered throughout.

Locke inspected it once. "About twenty acres of new magical fields can be opened in roughly a week."

Locke looked at his Horadric Synthesis Cube rotating in the void, which was currently synthesizing three ordinary [Palm Fire Lotus] plants.

In a week, his third magical plant variety should be ready.