Ge Zheng looked at the letter and asked, "The Royal Challenge, what kind of competition is this?" The Duke explained, "The imperial nobility system is very complex, almost every person related to the royal family can be considered a member of the royal family. However, the empire's power is limited, and not every member of the royal family can benefit from it. To avoid unfairness, every four years, an internal royal competition is held. Those who perform well in this competition have the chance to enter the inner circle of royal power." The Duke was troubled, "This competition itself is not a problem, but it is a royal matter and generally does not allow outsiders to participate. However, His Majesty seems to want to use the Southern Three Duchies' dispute in this Royal Challenge as a solution. Although it is said to be for entertainment, I'm afraid it is not so simple."
He looked at Ge Zheng, "Although His Majesty did not explicitly state how to resolve the issue in the letter, according to the information gathered by my emissary to the capital, His Majesty's intent is to have the alchemy dispute resolved by alchemists, so..."
Ge Zheng remained silent. The Duke quickly continued, "Master, if you are able to help me win this competition, I am willing to pay you 300,000 gold coins!" Ge Zheng thought to himself, "The hush money from Lord Dekumont was 500,000 gold coins, and now for a trip to the city of Delson, you're only willing to pay 300,000? This price is a bit too low." He also realized that this Royal Challenge would certainly not be simple, and it was difficult to imagine the risks involved.
Seeing that Ge Zheng was not satisfied, the Duke added, "In addition, I can also bestow you the title of baron! If you win at the competition, any rewards from His Majesty will be yours, I will take nothing. I will also bear all the expenses of the trip to the capital. If you are still worried, I can send my daughter to accompany you to the city of Delson!"
This was Ge Zheng's concern: if the danger arose, the Duke would ignore him, leaving him alone in the city of Delson, which would be akin to throwing him to the wolves. With Miss Feifei accompanying him, the Duke would ensure his safety no matter what.
As for the title of baron, the baronial title granted by Duke Maris was only valid within the duchy and of little use to Ge Zheng, who was bound to leave eventually.
Ge Zheng nodded, "Alright."
The Duke seemed very eager to show his sincerity, and immediately handed Ge Zheng a crystal card. "Master, this is 310,000 gold coins, along with the 10,000 from the last time." The Duke had promised to reward him with 10,000 gold coins for deciphering the Solomon Demon Pillar last time.
With 310,000 gold coins in his pocket, Ge Zheng's thoughts changed. All the pre-godly artifacts he had created were commissioned by others, and the materials were provided by others, so he only earned a processing fee, not much profit. Furthermore, although they reached the level of pre-godly artifacts, there was no authoritative organization, such as the Adventurers Guild, Alchemists Union, or Wizard's Guild assessment, so his value did not increase. Moreover, in the city of Wangshan, it was not easy to find a knowledgeable buyer. Lord Starka was arrogant and unwilling to do business. However, that was no longer the case.
Buying materials was no longer an issue, and there was now a sales channel—the Adventurers Guild's consignment store. Wangshan City only had the Guild, without a consignment store. After leaving the Duke's mansion, Ge Zheng went to the Adventurers Guild early the next day. After searching the consignment warehouse, Ge Zheng found that pre-godly artifacts were indeed scarce, as there were no pre-godly artifacts for sale, but there were several inquiries regarding pre-godly artifacts among the task inquiries. Ge Zheng carefully examined one inquiry after another and was shocked: the price of each pre-godly artifact was in the range of one million gold coins!
Paying one million gold coins was already the annual protection fee for a city, and a single weapon could sell for one million gold coins, which was truly astonishing.
This indirectly led to Ge Zheng's bewilderment: why were the materials wasted by Dou Dou in the summoning magic ceremonies so expensive?
On the continent, there was a "divine artifact barrier", and it was impossible for humans to create divine artifacts, so the materials remained in human hands, only capable of creating pre-godly artifacts. A pre-godly artifact cost around one million gold coins, so if the materials for those top-level materials were used, the funds would not be enough.
In fact, there were many factors, first, pre-godly artifacts created were not necessarily for sale. Some pre-godly artifacts were very expensive to produce, but after they were created, they had their own unique uses. Although the cost was high, success was guaranteed once the goal was achieved. It did not involve any loss.
Also, these materials were not necessarily sold to "people".
Knowing the price of pre-godly artifacts, Ge Zheng figured with a bit of calculation that creating seven or eight pre-godly artifacts and selling them all would be enough to cover the cost of buying materials. He was pleasantly surprised and quickly opened the consignment store, searching for materials one by one.
After all, pre-godly artifacts naturally could not be bought at an ordinary materials store. Ge Zheng selected a series of materials for several adventurers guild commissions. He chose one task in particular, all pre-godly artifacts commissions were anonymous, so he couldn't see the identity of the customer, only the task content. The content of this task was: to purchase a pre-godly artifact monster equipment.
Monster equipment was of course meant for a monster, and the customer was definitely a monster rider or a summoner. The task also provided valuable information about the appearance of this monster, based on which the alchemist could tailor it. With the extra 100,000 gold coins, the total reward was now 1,100,000, and upon deduction of the guild's 1.5% commission, he would have over one million. Since they were all pre-godly artifact commissions to Ge Zheng, what difference did it make? Why not earn a little extra?
In the description of the appearance, there was also a magical projection, the monster was over two meters tall, with a length of five meters, a level seven monster called the Exploding Flame Tiger.
The Exploding Flame Tiger was a ferocious and powerful creature, with broad shoulders, a stable waist, strong limbs, and was covered with white and black intertwining flame patterns. It was not only ferocious and aggressive but also able to unleash several level five fire magic spells.
According to its characteristics, Ge Zheng decided to create a pair of shoulder guards for it. The Exploding Flame Tiger was more suited to charging, and it was vulnerable to shoulder injuries.
The quality of pre-godly artifacts naturally could not be poor. In addition to the necessary strength for protection, there had to be multiple additional functions.
The Adventurers Guild consignment warehouse indeed had a complete range of products, and after selecting some rare materials, Ge Zheng arranged to buy them. A guild representative came over, signed an agreement with Ge Zheng, and received a deposit of 10,000 gold coins.
These materials are all very precious. Although the quantity needed for each type is not large, when added together, it would cost nearly one hundred thousand gold coins. Previously, buying a ghost flower tree only cost ten thousand gold coins.
In fact, the ghost flower tree is rarer than most of these materials, but its use is very narrow. There are few people who know how to use it, so its price naturally cannot be driven up.
Now the materials are scattered in different places and will be sent over in dribs and drabs. Ge Zheng can rest assured and wait. Although the emperor's letter has arrived, it will still take more than a month for the imperial documents to arrive. After receiving the documents, Maris Grand Duke naturally needs to prepare, and before setting off to the Delson King City, there is still at least two months, which is enough time for Ge Zheng to complete this refining.
In addition to these precious materials, Ge Zheng also has some other preparations. After leaving the Adventurer's Guild, he went to the commercial district in the southeast of the city to find the materials store he often visited.
"Todd, 500 kilograms of raw iron, 10 kilograms of magical mosquito eggs—do you have any king mosquito eggs? If so, that would be great..." Ge Zheng asked. Todd is the owner of this materials store, and because he is a rare craftsman among the dwarves, he had to change his profession to trading.
Todd was surprised, "What do you need so many materials for?" Ge Zheng waved his hand, "Do you have them or not?" Todd nodded, "I do have the king mosquito eggs, but not many, there are a total of sixty." Ge Zheng frowned, "Sixty, that's a bit too few..." Todd was very business-savvy and immediately said, "If you need it, I'll order it right away and it can be delivered tomorrow." Ge Zheng nodded, "Okay, I want 300 king mosquito eggs."
"Also, 100 kilograms of blue platinum, 20 iron sunken woods, and 3 superior magic crystal stones." Ge Zheng said in one breath. Todd calculated as he spoke, "Wait a moment, let me calculate for you... Hmm, the total is 26,000 gold coins." He then said to Ge Zheng, "I have all the goods ready, and my associate will deliver them to you tomorrow." "No problem."
Ge Zheng's alchemy shop is also in the southeast city district, so it only took him no more than the time for a meal to return from the materials store. As soon as he entered the shop, Conmins said, "Mister, someone is looking for you." Conmins looked towards a corner of the shop where there were tables and chairs for some guests to rest.
A middle-aged man dressed in luxurious clothing was sitting there, nodding with a smile when Ge Zheng approached.
Ge Zheng went over and politely asked, "Sir, are you looking for me?" The man stood up and smiled, "Master, let me introduce myself first. My name is Ulda, and I also have a few small shops in the city." Ulda's reputation in the southeast city district is well known. He is the first wealthy merchant in Oba City, and he claims to have control over nearly half of Oba City's long-distance trade.
Ge Zheng found it strange because this person didn't need to try to please him like the other small nobles. Ulda said, "Pardon my visit, Master. I actually have some business I would like to cooperate with you." Ge Zheng gestured for him to sit down, "Sir, please sit. What kind of business are you referring to?"
Ulda said, "During the grand opening, the fire magic released by the young lady, it is said to have been done with a certain prop?" Many people saw it at the grand opening that night; the fireworks were released from some scrolls. People in the Star Refining World naturally did not understand the mystery behind it and thought it was some magical prop.
Ge Zheng gave a faint smile and did not explain further, "Exactly." "I wonder if this prop can be mass-produced?" Ulda asked hopefully. Ge Zheng furrowed his brow, but Ulda quickly added, "I think this kind of prop has a great market on the continent. I want to cooperate with you. You produce, and I will be responsible for selling. I can also provide the materials, and as for the profits, we will split them fifty-fifty. What do you think?"
Ge Zheng was very tempted. He was only responsible for manufacturing, and both the costs and sales would be handled by Ulda. It seemed that Ulda really had a great view of the market for fireworks to show such sincerity. However, despite it being a lucrative deal, Ge Zheng hesitated. Gunpowder was not from this world. The process for making fireworks is simple, and if a large quantity flowed into the Star Refining World, there are also many excellent alchemists in this world. The gunpowder formula would likely be cracked within three months. Ge Zheng remembered a segment of history from another world. After gunpowder from the East flowed into the West, the gunpowder originally used for celebrations turned into a deadly weapon.
He had made up his mind - this money couldn't be earned. Ge Zheng apologized with a smile, "I'm sorry, Mr. Ulda, it is really difficult to mass-produce this kind of thing." Ulda was disappointed, "Master, is there really no way? With your expertise..." Ge Zheng shook his head affirmatively, "Really, I apologize. I also want to make money, but I really can't do it."
Ulda left disappointed, and Conmins kept complaining to the side, "Mister, this is a huge deal. With Ulda's sales network, gold coins would flow into our home like water..." Ge Zheng raised an eyebrow, "Conmins, if you shut up right now, I might still change my mind and mix and produce the transformative elixir." Conmins immediately shut his mouth with his hand.
With Conmins looking after the alchemy shop, Ge Zheng could focus all his attention on alchemy. After looking around the shop and giving some instructions, he went home.
"Pant... pant..." There was a gust of wind in the courtyard, and a gray-white vortex stirred up the fallen leaves and weeds on the ground, rising higher and higher. Ge Zheng pushed open the door, and a cold light zipped past his nose within an instant.
Ge Zheng's face didn't look good, "Dinora!" In the whirlwind, the female warrior gave a playful smile and twirled her sword, then "swoosh," she sheathed it behind her.
Ge Zheng looked at the sky strangely, "Why are you so diligent today? Normally at this time, you should still be lazing in bed. Did Dunke open early today?" Dinora was indignant, "You're calling me a lazy beast!" Ge Zheng shrugged with a smile, "You said it yourself."
"You!" The female warrior wasn't going to give up. She knew Ge Zheng's abilities, but she was surprised when Ge Zheng tried to dodge her neck grab and retreated more than ten meters, darting through the gate and onto the street outside.
"Aha..." A loud and violent neighing sound came from where Ge Zheng had just left. He turned his head and saw four hoof-sized horse hooves lifted high into the air, nearly about to land on his head.
Four powerful steeds reared up, their bodies black all over except for a white line on their foreheads, like a sword piercing the night sky.
Dinora roared like a lion and charged out like a whirlwind, flicking her sword in a rotation, then with a backhanded slash, she severed the legs of the strong horses. She pulled Ge Zheng out and transformed the momentum into her own strength, stabilizing him ten meters away.
Ge Zheng frowned, "Dinora, this is big trouble. These horses are quite valuable, and while I may not be as skilled as you, at least I have the ability to escape from under their hooves..."
Dinora was startled, realizing that she had "repaid" Ge Zheng in a way, but upon careful thought after the crisis, she realized that she didn't need to sever the horse legs, she just needed to pull Ge Zheng out. However, seeing those powerful horses trampling over Ge Zheng's head had ignited her anger, and her strike, although careless, achieved a perfect result. She regretted wasting that strike on animals.
The horse-drawn carriage, led by these four horses, had lost control and was heading towards one side at high speed. The front two horses stumbled and fell, while the back two horses, running at high speed, could have jumped over, but due to the reins' restraint, they ended up entangled with the front horses, tumbling together and causing the unharmed rear horses to also break their legs. The carriage continued to slide for several dozen meters on the cobblestone road, leaving a deep mark, before crashing into the road's stone wall and coming to a stop.
The black-clad coachman had already jumped off the carriage, but the people inside were not able to escape in time. The coachman was shocked and was about to run up, but the already deformed carriage burst open with a bang. A gray mist billowed out and quickly converged, finally taking the shape of a person and dropping from the air in a tumbling somersault.
It was a person holding a snake-shaped staff. This was the first impression Dinora and Ge Zheng had of the figure. It was then that they realized that it was a young sorceress of the dark race, not very old, probably only eighteen or nineteen years old, but her expression was very grave, far from the appearance of an eighteen or nineteen-year-old girl.
No matter who it was, after a car accident, their complexion would not look good. Dinora knew she had caused trouble and stood up, saying with a forced smile, "I cut off your horse's legs. How much do you want, I'll compensate you." Ge Zheng asked her from behind, "Do you have a lot of money?" Dinora turned back and whispered, "After all my years as an adventurer, I've managed to save up some money." Ge Zheng nodded in agreement, "That's true. An adventurer's gold has two main destinations: the tavern and the brothel. If you only go to the tavern, naturally you can save up half the money."
Dinora glared fiercely at him, "Who said I can't go to the brothel? Someday, I'll take you there and show you how I tease the girls, and let you experience that as well..." Ge Zheng was taken aback, he knew Dinora was fierce, but he didn't expect her to be this fierce.
The coachman from the opposite side pointed at Dinora and scolded, "Do you know what kind of person you have offended? These horses are not something you can buy with money!" Dinora, unafraid, knew she was in the wrong and was not willing to back down, "Do you know that your animals almost trampled someone? Since you can't buy them, I'll compensate you for them."
The dark race girl approached the horse and carefully examined the horse's wounds, nodding, "Good sword, good swordsmanship!"
The girl took a step forward and asked, "May I ask where this hero's sword comes from?" Dinora pointed with her thumb at Ge Zheng behind her, "It was forged by him."
The girl's gaze turned to Ge Zheng and Ge Zheng happened to be looking at her, and as their eyes met, Ge Zheng's body trembled. A portion of the mental cultivation of a Warlock is also a part of the internal alchemy cultivation, and compared to the people of this world, Ge Zheng's mental strength was much stronger. He hadn't expected that this young sorceress of the dark race also had a mental strength that was no weaker than his own.
Similarly, the young girl was also shaken. A Warlock wields a battle spirit to fight, and because they control the battle spirit, the mental strength of a Warlock is incredibly powerful. The unintentional collision of their mental strength caused the girl's foundation to fluctuate for a moment, even though her opponent seemed to waver as well. However, it was surprising to encounter a person like that in Oba City.
"An alchemist?" The dark race girl noticed the badge on Ge Zheng's chest. Ge Zheng nodded.
The dark race girl smiled, "I never expected to find hidden dragons and crouching tigers in Oba City, not only such a powerful warrior but also a master alchemist of unfathomable depth. To witness such weapons and blade skills, the deaths of these four horses are worth it."
She raised her snake staff, bowed slightly to the two, and smiled, "Until we meet again!"
"Sir, our carriage..." The coachman was very unwilling, but the girl raised her hand, "What's the carriage? Just go buy one or two more."
"Yes, ma'am." The coachman reluctantly glared at Ge Zheng and Dinora, and followed the girl. Dinora felt guilty and hurriedly chased after them, saying, "I'll accompany you on the carriage." The girl turned around and smiled, "No need. It's enough to meet two such figures. The carriage accident was also worth it. If the female hero passes by the Hera Temple, be sure to enter and take a look. My name is Lively. You can find me if you ask around." Ge Zheng nodded in praise, "Your demeanor..."
Dinora was jealous, "Do you men just like this kind of woman? Putting on a show to impress, it's all vanity!" Ge Zheng looked at her with a strange look, and Dinora tried to put on a fierce look, "What's the matter?" "I'm just reminding you, you used the wrong term just now. It's not 'you men', it's 'we men'—do you see yourself as a woman?" Ge Zheng!"
Dinora let out a furious roar and drew her sword, but Ge Zheng quickly somersaulted over the wall and disappeared into the courtyard. Honest Dunke, wearing an apron and holding a butcher's knife, came out smiling and bumped into the angry Dinora. Dinora angrily asked, "What are you doing?"
Dunke gestured towards the horse carcasses outside smiling, "Solgveiren asked me to come out and pick up the horse meat. Today, we're having a great feast of horse meat." Dinora was stunned; Solgveiren, that guy hadn't come out and yet he somehow knew what had happened outside? Remembering the incident last time, she realized this guy was indeed peculiar!