After the Floating Spirit incident, the journey returned to a state of general calm.
Time passed in a flash of high-intensity Cultivation. Before they knew it, it was the seventy-seventh day.
In the silent cabin, Ian sat cross-legged with his eyes tightly shut.
Deep within his Sea of Spirit, the silvery-white light of the Seed of the Stars had become incredibly solid and pure after nearly three months of continuous refinement.
Star Orbit patterns, like fissures spreading across a layer of ice, had completely covered the seed’s entire surface.
Suddenly, a soft HUM echoed in his mind, as if a string had been plucked at its perfect resonant frequency.
The silver patterns on the seed’s surface abruptly lit up before collapsing inward, condensing...
And then, they exploded!
Countless pale gold fragments of Spiritual Power burst forth from the Crystal Core.
Like a miniature nebula storm, they swirled rapidly above his Sea of Spirit.
Each rotation pulled at the countless tiny stellar phantoms above, causing them to resonate in unison.
At the storm’s center, the Crystal Core finally stabilized.
It emitted a constant, gentle, pale golden halo, its surface covered in clear, flowing silver patterns.
’Spiritual Power Elementalization has finally reached 10%.’
Ian slowly opened his eyes.
In the dim light of the cabin, a speck of silver light flashed in the depths of his pupils and was gone.
It was brighter and more stable than ever before.
He felt his entire Sea of Spirit was nearly forty percent larger than before, and the circulation speed of his Spiritual Power had almost doubled.
Its density and his control over it had taken a quantum leap.
He raised his right hand, his five fingers forming a loose fist.
Above his palm, a pure black sphere about two centimeters in diameter silently appeared.
There were no violent gravitational fluctuations, no obvious distortions of space.
It floated there, stable and dense...
...like the core of a black hole that had been forcibly solidified, radiating a heart-pounding, restrained pressure.
With a slight thought from Ian, the black sphere instantly vanished from his palm and reappeared out of thin air before the cabin wall three meters away, silently pulling the air into a visible crease.
The casting distance and Power had increased by at least one and a half times.
’It’s the Star Rule within the Crystal Core that amplified this multiplier...’
Ian muttered to himself, a thoughtful glint in his eyes.
"GAGA!"
An excited chirp came from his shoulder.
A ball of Shadow rolled off Ian’s shoulder and blinked three times in mid-air.
Each time it vanished and reappeared, it landed precisely in a different corner of the cabin.
Gaga finally landed back on Ian’s lap. Its heterochromatic eyes sparkled as it nudged his hand with its little head.
"Ian, you broke through!"
The little guy’s voice was full of joy.
"Yeah."
Ian was in an excellent mood. A smile touched his lips as he reached out and ruffled its little head. Its feathers were warm and soft.
He opened his left hand, revealing the Star Core Fragment in his palm.
The originally fist-sized fragment was now just a dim, sesame-seed-sized speck of silver light embedded in the velvet cloth.
"What a pity." Ian sighed softly and put away this last bit of residue.
In the days that followed, the journey entered its final stage, and they encountered fewer and fewer incidents.
Ian’s interactions with Aidele and Delia became more frequent.
In the small cabin, the three of them sat around a low table, its surface covered with thick sheets of Parchment.
On them, Aidele had used silver ink to map out family relationship charts, files on potential rivals, and the intricate distribution of power among the Seventeen Cities of the Eastern Border.
The candlelight flickered, casting their three shadows on the Metal cabin walls.
Ian didn’t hide his identity as a Magic Potion Alchemist.
"I have mastered the high-purity formula for the Starlight Potion."
His voice was calm, as if stating an inconsequential fact.
The moment he finished speaking, Aidele’s once tired and dull eyes suddenly lit up.
The fingers resting on her lap unconsciously curled, then quickly relaxed.
Beside her, Delia, the gentle-faced Witch, also had her breath catch for an imperceptible moment.
Afterward, when she looked at Ian, her elder-like gentleness was tinged with an unconcealable surprise.
"Ian..." Aidele’s voice was a little hoarse.
She cleared her throat before continuing, "You always bring... unexpected surprises."
She paused, a relieved smile appearing on her delicate face.
"It seems my ’Time Trace’ bloodline perception was right. From the first time I saw you and your Summoned Demon in the corridor, I knew... you were extraordinary."
She looked at Ian, her expression complex.
"I’m not yet a hundred years old, a Middle Stage Level Two Wizard, and I’m already considered a genius in my clan. But you... you’re too young."
She didn’t ask his specific age, but Ian knew she had guessed it.
A Level Two Wizard under the age of thirty would be a true genius anywhere on the Central Continent.
What’s more... Ian came from a remote little island.
Delia nodded slightly at the side. Her gaze toward Ian had changed from initial scrutiny to a kind of subtle anticipation.
「Day Ninety-Three.」
In the early morning, the view outside the porthole was still a deep, inky blue.
Ian finished his Meditation and walked to the window.
For the first time, a color different from the deep black of the Endless Sea appeared on the horizon.
A blurry, heavy gray shadow stretched across the end of the sea.
At first, it was just a faint line. As the Skybound slowly descended, its speed also seemed to decrease.
The gray shadow began to expand and sharpen rapidly, rushing toward them with a silent, oppressive feeling.
Mountains.
Not the kind of mountains common on the Anoroya Continent, with relatively gentle slopes covered in green.
These were true, black colossal peaks that looked as if they had been carved out by an ancient titan with the crudest Power.
The peaks were sharp as if hewn by blades and axes, their edges so piercing they hurt the eyes.
The mountains’ surfaces weren’t Rock, but were covered in flowing Magic Power patterns of interwoven silver-blue and dark red.
Like the Earth’s blood vessels, they shimmered with a cold light.
At the foot of the mountains, the view suddenly opened up.
A port city stretching for hundreds of kilometers, like a crouching Metal beast, unfolded before them.
The arrangement of the buildings was not chaotic but followed a kind of profoundly esoteric geometric Order.
Countless circular figures contained nested, shrinking rings of Runes.
The view was filled with towers of varying heights, factories, warehouses, and residential areas...
Together, they formed a gigantic, three-dimensional Rune Array over thirty kilometers in diameter, slowly rotating!
And the central hub of this magnificent array was seven giant towers that pierced the low-hanging clouds.
The bodies of the towers were not made of stone but were constructed entirely from some kind of pure, transparent Crystal, with a silvery brilliance like liquid stars flowing within.
They projected halos of light onto the clouds above the port.
Silver Sail Port, the gateway to the Eastern Territory of the Central Continent.
Ian stood before the porthole, watching in silence.
His Spiritual Perception spread out like an invisible tide, silently and cautiously touching this unfamiliar world.
And then, he "heard" it.
Not a real sound, but countless solid, vast auras, like dormant volcanoes.
They were entrenched in those seven giant towers and scattered throughout the port.
Level Four, Level Four, and still Level Four...
With just a rough Perception, he could clearly identify no fewer than five auras of Level Four Morning Star Wizards!
And deeper still, there were even more obscure and terrifying fluctuations hidden within the core of the Rune Array.
Ian slowly retracted his Perception, his fingertips brushing against the cool window frame.
Everything Anoraya took pride in... the Morning Star Wizards of the Silver Ring, the so-called "continental balance of power."
Here, they were merely part of the scenery at a border port.
A slight weight settled on his shoulder.
Gaga had squatted there at some point, its small claws tightly gripping his collar.
Reflected in its heterochromatic pupils was the silvery light flowing from the seven sky-piercing towers outside.
Its small body was a little stiff.
"Ian..."
It sent a soft mental message, a hint of barely perceptible tension within it.
"The people here... are so scary, gaga."
The sea breeze seeped through the cracks in the ship’s Shield, carrying a dry, cold air.
The saltiness of the seawater, the corrosion of Metal, and the complex smell of countless unfamiliar Magic Potions and Energy Ores.
This was the smell of the Central Continent.
Ian was silent for a few seconds.
"Yeah," he replied softly.
His gaze shifted from the seven giant towers to the bustling, vast port city below, a place filled with the unknown and with danger.
"So what do we do now, gaga?" Gaga asked again, leaning its little head against the side of his neck.
Ian raised a hand and gently stroked the feathers on its back.
"First, we find a place to settle."
His voice was calm, yet it carried a confidence that could sweep away all obstacles.
"Then... we get stronger."
He looked out the window at the land drawing ever closer, glittering with the light of countless instances of Witchcraft.
Deep within his black eyes, that speck of silver light shone steadily.
「Dusk.」
The setting sun dyed the seven Crystal Giant Towers a molten gold.
The massive hull of the Skybound emitted a low hum as it slowly docked at Star Orbit berth number seven, on the west side of the port.
With a CLICK, the Metal gangway connected precisely with the Obsidian ground of the port.
Ian gave the empty cabin one last check to make sure nothing was left behind, then pushed the door open and stepped out.
People were already waiting in the corridor.
Aidele had changed into a more formal, deep cyan dress, over which she wore a cloak embroidered with a Dark Gold family crest.
Her face was still pale, but her eyes were bright, and her back was held ramrod straight.
Delia, dressed in a sharp, blue butler’s uniform, stood quietly half a step behind her, holding an inconspicuous leather suitcase.
Seeing Ian emerge, Aidele gave a slight nod.
Ian stepped forward, the soles of his boots touching the soil of the Central Continent for the first time.
The Obsidian ground beneath his feet was cool and hard, soaked in the sea breeze and twilight.
Then came the sounds...
To his left, a burly, weather-beaten man was waving a giant, slime-dripping tentacle, shouting and spraying spittle at a few young people dressed as Apprentices.
"Freshly hunted Deep Sea Thorn Nightmare! High-grade Enchantment Materials! Ten standard Magic Stones, price is firm!"
To his right, two Mercenaries in different styles of Leather Armor were arguing.
They were red in the face, arguing over whether the Rune inlaid on a piece of Arm Armor was "Sharp III" or "Solid II," their fingers nearly poking each other in the nose.
In the distance, a squad of Apprentices in uniform gray robes trotted past, their faces hurried, clutching thick tomes or tightly sealed material boxes.
Ian took a deep breath. Sea salt, Metal, ozone, dust...
The scents of countless Magic Potions and Energy he couldn’t identify flooded his nostrils.
Vast, chaotic, and full of vitality, yet also pervaded by an invisible pressure.
Gaga huddled in the shadow of the hood on Ian’s shoulder, only its two small eyes visible as it scanned its surroundings warily.
Aidele walked to his side and followed his gaze, also glancing at the noisy port.
"The Justice Clan’s Magic Potion Workshop is at number seventeen Wutong Street, in the west of the city."
Her voice was steady, betraying no emotion.
"It’s about a half-hour drive from here. Shall we depart now?"
Ian looked up, past the port’s dense thicket of towers and clamorous crowds, toward the far distance.
Twilight had completely fallen, and the dome of the sky had turned a deep, inky blue.
At the top of the seven Crystal Giant Towers, the light of Runes, more brilliant than any star, lit up.
At the end of that light was an unfamiliar, starry sky.
After a long moment, he retracted his gaze, his black eyes becoming calm and tranquil once more.
"Let’s go."
The journey on the Central Continent, at this moment, officially began.