Magic Farm 81

Chapter 81: The Legendary Land

Qi Yu lay quietly amidst the pile of magical crystal stones.

The magic he had overdrawn in the past few days was now recovering rapidly, enveloped by the dense wood-elemental energy.

His spiritual power, too, was soothed by this immense vitality.

He had no need to “see” with his eyes; not far away, every movement of the Gareth siblings was within his perception.

“Why hasn’t he gotten up yet?” Gareth whispered.

Although they had seen Qi Yu knocked down by the tide of magical crystal stones with their own eyes, neither of them believed he had truly fainted: with a physique rivaling that of a martial artist, how could such a person possibly be knocked unconscious by something like this?

Mia wore an expression of longing. “If only I could be buried in magical crystal stones, I’d gladly swim in this ocean of magic. This vulgar mortal world is not worthy of my presence!”

She took a deep breath, trying to absorb some of the luck and magical energy that filled the cavern.

She elbowed her brother. “Come on, let’s go! Let’s get out of here, quickly!”

She was afraid that if she stayed any longer, her martial heart would be thrown into chaos.

Damn this resource zone.

Why did such a treasure have to fall into the hands of a wealthy mage who didn’t even need it?

How infuriating—could the god of wealth not spare a glance at a truly impoverished, gold-starved martial artist?

Their auras gradually faded away.

Qi Yu watched them leave in silence, his body nestled in the pile of magical crystal stones. For the moment, he felt too lazy to get up, and simply took advantage of the abundant elemental energy to begin cultivating right then and there.

An hour later.

The mage, now restored to his peak state, walked out of the cave.

The siblings were noisily working as miners, and when they saw him approach, they offered their congratulations.

“Congratulations,” Gareth said sourly. “Mage, you’re even richer now.”

By this time, most of the allotted time in the magical crystal vein had already passed.

Qi Yu asked them, “Would you like to cooperate?”

“What kind of cooperation?”

Qi Yu replied, “I’ll point out a spot for you to dig. If your haul exceeds a hundred crystals, give me twenty percent.”

Gareth looked at him in surprise. “And what about you?”

Qi Yu answered, “I’ll go dig somewhere else.”

This way, he could earn an extra share of magical crystal stones.

Mia asked curiously, “Do you really have some special way of sensing things?”

Qi Yu thought for a moment. “Maybe it’s because I’m a magical genius, and also quite lucky, so my perception of magical elements is especially keen.”

The Gareth siblings: ?

How could anyone say something so boastful in such a flat tone?

And yet, the listener could tell he wasn’t deliberately showing off, but simply stating a fact.

Now Mia was feeling sour as well. “All right, so you’re not just a wealthy mage—you’re a lucky, wealthy, genius mage.”

Yet, despite their words, the siblings happily accepted Qi Yu’s proposal. After all, who, having seen such a scene, wouldn’t fantasize about being the one lying in a sea of magical crystal stones?

Qi Yu pointed out an area to them based on his senses, but he was honest: “This place probably won’t be as good as before.”

That intense sixth sense had only been triggered that once.

“Mage, as long as we can get a decent haul, we’ll be satisfied,” Gareth declared loudly. “Forget it, there’s no reasoning with people like you, favored by fate!”

“He’s a mage, he worships the Goddess of Nature,” Mia corrected him.

Ten hours later.

“Oh, dear, generous, kind, and friendly genius mage Lord Qi Yu,” Gareth sang out, clutching his heart with theatrical affection, “I will never forget you.”

Mia nodded vigorously. “Yes, yes, it’s just a pity that twenty-four hours pass so quickly. What a shame we didn’t get more resource zone cards.”

Qi Yu still had one left.

When he took it out, he saw the look of utter regret on the siblings’ faces.

Only then did he learn that resource zone cards could not be “renewed.”

Moreover, everyone had only one chance to decide how many days to spend in the resource zone.

In other words, when he’d met that alchemical golem staff member, if Qi Yu had wanted to use up all his time, he would have had to hand over all his cards at once.

“What if my cards are different colors?” he asked.

Gareth told him, “When the time’s up, you’ll be randomly teleported to the corresponding area.”

But the two also explained that the cards wouldn’t be wasted; if there was time left after this month’s resource zone period ended, he could use the remaining card next month.

Now, there was less than an hour left before their resource zone exploration ended.

The three of them lay sprawled on the ground, not wanting to move a single finger.

“So tired,” Mia said.

“But it’s a happy kind of exhaustion,” Gareth sighed. “If I could have this many—no, even just half as many—magical crystal stones every day, I’d gladly perform such glorious labor day after day.”

The three began to chat idly.

The siblings told Qi Yu they were from Ambunel, the capital of the Orra Empire.

“I’m from the Forest of Stars. Have you heard of it?”

“The Forest of Stars?” Gareth mused. “Sounds unfamiliar, but I feel like I’ve heard it somewhere before.”

Qi Yu wasn’t at all surprised by their reaction. He added, “It’s a mysterious land of magic, once home to the elves.”

“Oh, I think I remember now,” Mia said. “When I was little, I heard stories about it from the adults.”

Gareth seemed to recall as well, and was astonished. “I always thought that was just a legend. The Forest of Stars actually exists?”

The siblings turned in unison, staring intently at Qi Yu, as if trying to pierce through his mage’s robe to see if the person underneath had pointed ears.

Qi Yu, for once, found himself on the same wavelength as others. “Don’t bother looking, I’m human.”

“Oh!” The two let out identical sighs of disappointment.

“We were hoping to see a legendary elf.”

“The last time I heard news of elves was… what, more than seventy years ago?”

Qi Yu asked curiously, “So where do elves live now?”

Gareth: “No idea.”

Mia: “I heard His Majesty the King has an elven tutor.”

Gareth: “If that rumor is true, then that elf has served as tutor to several kings by now.”

Mia: “Who knows? After all, elves are said to be immortal; seeing off dozens of kings wouldn’t be unusual for them.”

As they spoke, the two of them suddenly burst into inexplicable laughter.

Qi Yu couldn’t quite grasp what they found so funny, so he asked, “Do you know about the Golden Sand Desert?”

Gareth: “Huh? Isn’t that the place from our ancient Orra ballads?”

Mia began to hum softly, “Golden Sand Desert, land of riches, land of curses… O weary traveler, if you see the blood-red moon and the golden sands, do not linger—leave at once…”

It was called a ballad, but it sounded more like a story.

In the tale, it was a cursed land, yet also incredibly rich; it was said that gold and pearls were hidden among the sands, and beneath the desert lay minerals more precious than gold or pearls.

“That’s a fascinating ballad,” Qi Yu said. “Are there more legends about the Golden Sand Desert? If it’s really so wealthy, I’d like to go exploring myself.”

“It’s just a song, nothing more,” Gareth laughed. “A made-up story—there couldn’t possibly be such a place.”

Qi Yu neither agreed nor disagreed. “The Forest of Stars was a legendary place too, and yet it exists.”

Mia smiled sweetly. “If the Golden Sand Desert really did exist, who would care about curses? Plenty of people would rush in to seek their fortune. Poverty is the greatest curse on any martial artist.”

With that, the topic came to an end.

Knowing that Qi Yu hailed from an ancient forest, the siblings understood his lack of common knowledge.

They shared with him a wealth of information about the resource zones.

As the time for teleportation approached, Mia snatched her brother’s communication orb.

She said sincerely, “Our orbs aren’t bound, my lord—please, you must accept it. If you ever come to Ambunel, you must let us know, so we can show you proper hospitality.”

Gareth showed not the slightest annoyance at having his orb taken, instead giving his sister a look of approval: “You’re so clever.”

Qi Yu accepted the orb. “You probably won’t be able to find the Forest of Stars, but I hope I’ll have the chance to visit Ambunel someday.”

The capital, huh.

It sounded grand just from the name—surely much larger than Gold Cavern City. He was still very curious about this world.

The twenty-four hours were up.

Two beams of light enveloped the three of them, each separately.

Qi Yu had thought he would return to the plaza where he’d arrived, but when he found his footing again, he was already standing on that mysterious little path.

There was no way back, only forward.

So, leaving meant being sent straight home.

It was still a ten-step walk. Qi Yu took a stride forward.

The scenery behind him began to shift; the mysterious path vanished without a trace, replaced once more by forest.

A damp, cold wind swept in with icy rain. Having just left the temperature-controlled resource zone, Qi Yu shivered violently.

The Forest of Stars seemed colder than ever.

The Guardian’s mage robe had a thousand virtues, but only one flaw: it offered no warmth.

But Qi Yu thought about it and realized that perhaps the master who crafted this semi-artifact had never imagined that such a treasure would fall into the hands of a mere third-level mage like himself.

Once a professional reached a high enough level, they would no longer be affected by the changes of heat and cold in the outside world.

It wasn’t a flaw in the Guardian’s robe—it was his own shortcoming.

He glanced quickly at the inhabitants of his domain. The cold hadn’t sapped their vitality, but a few plants had already shown signs of the “slow growth” debuff.

Qi Yu cast a wide-area blessing spell, and decided to check the association shop later to see if there was a magic array that could keep the territory at a constant temperature.

After seeing the prices of elemental arrays last time, he had given up on them completely.

But now, things were different.

He had become a very wealthy mage!

He returned to his small building.

The effect of the Brocade Flame Feather ornament made the temperature inside much more comfortable.

Qi Yu lit the fireplace as well; golden flames crackled, and the room gradually warmed.

He sat down and opened the survival panel.

[Current location: Forest of Stars.]

[Today’s weather: rain, 0°C ~ -5°C. Wind force: level 4.]

The temperature had actually dropped below zero—no wonder it felt so cold.

It was now two in the afternoon.

Qi Yu’s gaze swept over the information on his personal panel, then suddenly paused.

His personal attribute panel had changed.

His attack points had increased.

Before entering the resource zone, it had been forty-eight; now, it had become fifty.

In just a single day.

Thinking back on what he’d done today, Qi Yu: …

So, swinging a staff could actually raise one’s attack attribute.