Leilin followed Tran into the large white tent.
A heavy scent of incense permeated the interior, masking the stench of slave sweat and various bodily wastes. The atmosphere was considerably better than outside.
The slaves within at last wore a few thin strips of linen, giving them a modicum of dignity.
Tran led Leilin before several extremely powerful adult men. "They are all trained, certified Knights! How about it? They absolutely meet your requirements!"
Leilin nodded and walked up to a bald, heavily muscled man. "Chip! Scan!"
*Ding! Target organism data — Strength: 3.1, Agility: 2.8, Constitution: 2.9, Spirit: 1.5, Status: Under the influence of a certain neurotoxin!* The data from the other Knight-class slaves was similar. Only then did Leilin notice their somewhat vacant eyes and dilated pupils.
"These Knights' minds seem to have been affected by something…"
Tran hastily put on an apologetic smile. "Knights generally have quite strong resistance. To cater to different customers' needs, we can't use a single mental imprint to control them! Instead, they've been subjected to continuous suggestion and punishment, then further controlled with drugs — top-quality fighters! They may not be as agile as ordinary Knights, but they can still understand simple commands."
A mental imprint was the means by which certified Wizards controlled their servants, but for an apprentice, it was somewhat beyond one's ability.
Tran had clearly seen through Leilin's level of strength, which was why he'd specifically recommended this batch of goods.
"Not bad! What's the price?" Leilin asked.
"One hundred Magic Stones each!" Tran replied.
Leilin nodded, selected the two with the highest stats, and after paying the Magic Stones, received from Tran a scorpion-like creature.
"This is a Desert Stinger Scorpion. Each Desert Stinger Scorpion carries a unique venom. To make them easy to control, we've administered the venom produced by this scorpion to the two slaves you've purchased. As long as these two Knights don't take the antidote derived from this scorpion within ten days, they'll wish they were dead! Of course, this is only a last resort for control. During their training, instructions to obey their master's commands absolutely were already implanted in these two Knights' minds! Now, the lives of these two Knights are yours!"
Tran respectfully handed the box containing the scorpion to Leilin.
Leilin nodded and stored the box away. "Additionally, I need a maidservant who can serve as a simple laboratory assistant…"
When Leilin left the market once more, two armored Knights and a fair-featured maidservant followed behind him.
The maidservant had clear, bright eyes and wore a black gauze dress. According to Tran's introduction, she had received various forms of training since childhood, was fully capable of handling simple laboratory work, and could satisfy Leilin's needs well. Moreover, she had been treated with Datura Extract, which could effectively shield against
As the price, her lifespan was only thirty years.
"The Anling Bird Market really delivers on this front! You can even choose to exit freely! Though it's only a service for high-tier customers!"
When Leilin and the other servants reappeared, they were no longer in the small village from before, but on the outskirts of a walled city.
This was another service offered by the high-tier markets — and naturally, it came with a fee.
Still, since it could save a great deal of trouble, for Leilin, whose strength was far from formidable at this point, spending a few extra Magic Stones was well worth the cost.
"Master!" The Knight and the maidservant knelt on the ground in greeting.
"Hm." Leilin nodded faintly. "Do you have names?"
The two Knights exchanged glances, and in the end their eyes dimmed. "No, we humbly ask the master to bestow names upon us!" The maidservant shook her head as well, looking rather pitiful and delicate.
"You — Gelin!" Leilin pointed at the bigger Knight. "You — Fuleisa!" He indicated the other Knight.
"As for you!" Leilin glanced at the strikingly pretty maidservant once more. "
"Thank you for bestowing names upon us, Master. We shall engrave this loyalty upon our hearts!" The three subordinates knelt forward and kissed Leilin's boots.
"Enough." Leilin waved a hand, letting them rise, then looked around.
It seemed to be a small grove of trees. In the distance, the silhouette of a massive city was visible — at least ten times larger than the one Leilin had stayed in before. At the city gates, horse-drawn carriages laden with goods flowed in and out ceaselessly. It looked quite prosperous.
"Gelin! Go into the city and buy a carriage. I'll wait here for you!" Leilin tossed a small black pouch to the big Knight.
"Pick up some travel supplies and clothes while you're at it," Leilin added casually.
Ever since destroying the spellbooks and selling the potions, his net worth had swollen to nearly three thousand Magic Stones. At the same time, his luggage had been cut by more than half — a single bundle could hold everything. As for the things left behind at the previous campsite, they were worthless anyway; he had already burned them before heading to the market, just to save himself the trip back.
"As you command, Master!" Gelin caught the pouch, bowed slightly, and turned to leave.
"Oh, and from now on, don't call me 'Master.' Just call me 'Young Master.'" Leilin touched his own youthful face, somewhat exasperated.
"As you command!" This time, all three knelt in unison.
Watching Gelin's retreating figure grow smaller and smaller, Leilin suddenly turned to Fuleisa behind him and asked, "Do you have any memories of life before you became a slave?"
Fuleisa had long brown hair and blue eyes, with multiple scars of varying ages scattered across her body — the marks of a rich and painful past.
"I can't remember clearly! Every time I try to recall, I get terrible headaches!" Fuleisa rubbed her forehead, and as if something had come to mind, a pained expression surfaced on her face.
"I see!" Leilin guessed it was the effect of some kind of potion or sorcery — something that only worked on ordinary people. With a little effort, he could break through it now, but he had absolutely no intention of helping.
After all, he was here to recruit subordinates, not to invite trouble. Almost all who had been captured as slaves were losers of some prior conflict. What if they recovered their memories and demanded that Leilin seek revenge for them? Even if they said nothing, there would be no loyalty to speak of in the future.
"What about you?" Leilin turned to the timid-looking Anna.
Anna's features were exquisitely delicate, like a porcelain doll.
"Anna was raised by merchants from a young age, and later sold to Lord Tron..."
For a serving girl like her, it was naturally more convenient to train her from childhood. She had to learn a great deal of knowledge and cultivate an air of refinement, all to win the favor of important people. Anna looked at Leilin. He was still wrapped in his black robe, his face hidden from view, but judging by his voice alone, he seemed quite young. Anna felt a measure of reassurance.
"What courses did you study before? How much do you know about Wizards?"
"I studied 'Universal Studies' and 'Herb Identification,' but it was only... only some basic material pre-processing. Since Anna is not a Wizard Apprentice, she is powerless when it comes to any experiments that require the use of energy particles... I'm sorry, Young Master!" Anna fidgeted with her clothes, looking anxious and uneasy.
"That's already quite good!" Leilin was actually quite satisfied.
He had many secrets, and letting outsiders participate in his experiments was never ideal to begin with. Having someone help with preliminary processing was more than enough.
As for a true Wizard's assistant, that would require at least the cultivation level of a Wizard Apprentice. Slaves of that caliber were extremely expensive and usually came with troublesome baggage.
Although he hadn't seen any at the slave market today, Leilin knew that somewhere in the market, hidden from public view, there was likely another slave market that specifically dealt in Wizard Apprentices and similar merchandise.
After all, for many Dark Wizards, only Wizard Apprentices who could resist radiation contamination made for the ideal human test subjects.
The source of these Wizard Apprentice slaves was likely certain war criminals or captives.
If Black Bone Forest suffered a complete defeat this time, with even its headquarters breached, then most of the apprentices at the academy — unless they had powerful backing to protect them — would face the grim fate of being enslaved.
Someone like Leilin, who had fled, could only sever all ties with the academy from now on and become a wanderer — rootless and alone in the world.
"For now, all I can do is pray for the academy's victory... even if it fails, let it not be a crushing defeat..." Leilin gazed westward, his expression dark and somber.
Anna and the nearby Fuleisa watched their somewhat despondent Young Master, both standing with heads bowed, not daring to say a single word.
The clattering of cart axles rang out, and as the sound drew nearer, Leilin could make out a Knight sitting at the front of the carriage, the face faintly resembling Gelin's.
The carriage was painted entirely black, with no decorative patterns on it — since the seller didn't know whether the buyer would turn out to be a noble, they hadn't dared to engrave any designs. But it looked sturdy enough, hitched to two large black horses that pulled it at tremendous speed, covering the distance to Leilin in the time it took a gust of wind to pass.
"Young Master!" Gelin climbed down from the carriage and presented the money pouch to Leilin with both hands. "The carriage cost…"
"No need to say more!" Leilin snatched it and tossed it casually back into Anna's arms. "From now on, you handle the small change. If it runs short, come ask me for more!"
"Yes! Young Master!" Anna carefully tucked the money pouch away.
It contained only mundane gold coins and the like. For Leilin, as long as he put in a little effort, such things were available without limit. The only currency he truly cared about was Magic Stones — the universal medium of exchange among Wizards.
Unfortunately, even on the South Coast, Magic Stones were a highly sought-after commodity. Leilin had visited countless markets and seen plenty of shops that converted Magic Stones into ordinary currency, but not a single one that would sell Magic Stones for gold coins.
These people would all be his subordinates in the future. Leilin considered for a moment, then removed his cloak, revealing a handsome face — though still a disguised one.
"You will all be my trusted confidants going forward, so it's time you saw my real appearance!"
Leilin had been wearing a disguise solely for the purpose of trading goods. Now that every last potion had been sold, there was naturally no need to stay in disguise at all times. Moreover, these people would be meeting him every day from now on and would certainly be able to tell — so he might as well drop the act right now.
As Leilin dispelled the magical effect, the muscles on his face rippled and shifted, restoring his original youthful features.
Seeing Anna and the others all nod in acknowledgment, Leilin gave the order: "Set out! For East Forest Province!"