Free Web NovelChapter 251: Chapter 245: Preparing to Transition
A blue halo began to spread, eventually engulfing the last remaining area of the dark red lava lake.
The perimeter of the lava lake has been cleared. All high-energy sources have been eliminated.
On the map of Zone 18, everything had lit up with the blue markers indicating control, save for a deep black patch in the northwest corner.
Allen leaned back in his chair, his gaze sweeping over the conspicuous black patch.
The Silent Abyss.
"Any updates on the reconnaissance data from the Abyss’s periphery?" Allen asked.
"The Spider Slayer probe team lost contact immediately upon entering the Abyss’s perimeter. We couldn’t establish a feedback loop. Optical and Magic Power surveillance cannot penetrate it, and no signs of biological activity have been detected nearby."
Allen tapped his fingertips on the desk.
The unknown meant risk.
’My current combat power is enough to sweep through the Magical Beasts in the zone, but that doesn’t mean I can be fearless. I’ll wait a few years before I go and probe its depths.’
"Establish a quarantine line around the Abyss. Deploy one hundred Jumping Spiders and ten Demon Eye II units for round-the-clock surveillance. Report any anomalies immediately."
"Orders confirmed. Mobilizing Golems now."
Allen withdrew his gaze.
It had been seven years and two months since he arrived in this plane.
There were still nearly thirteen years left of the twenty-year advanced study period his mentor had set.
Once he left this place, he would never again have such a golden opportunity to monopolize an entire zone and exploit its resources without restraint.
He had to consider whether this was the only golden age of development he might ever encounter in his life—a period with minimal interference from outside forces.
’I have plenty of time now. The energy crisis is resolved, all four Golem Legions are at full strength, the major mines are operating automatically, and my defensive lines are stable. Do I really need to keep mass-producing units?’
"What’s the manufacturing progress on the Earthworm Volcano Type?"
"The outer layer of Molten Titancrystal armor has been enchanted and is currently undergoing initial testing. It’s expected to be operational in thirty-six hours."
Allen opened the production capacity allocation panel that Jarvis had prepared.
The main workshop’s production capacity was 75% idle.
"Commander, shall we utilize the idle capacity to begin production for the establishment of a Fifth Golem Legion?" Jarvis suggested.
Allen didn’t answer immediately.
He pulled up the zone’s financial report.
Current liquid assets: 820,000 Low-Level Magic Stones.
His recent expenditures had been staggering. Ammunition consumption, procurement of High-tier Materials, the creation of the Flame Fiends—each item was voraciously consuming Magic Stones. His liquid assets on paper hadn’t exceeded one million for some time.
Allen stood up and walked over to the sand table.
’I need to stop this endless expansion of conventional forces.’
’The more troops, the better?’
Allen shook his head slightly.
In his past life on Earth, even the most militaristic empires had a strict red line for the ratio of military spending to GDP.
"Jarvis, create an economic projection model. Use the current four legions and all garrison forces as a baseline to calculate daily consumption and maintenance costs."
[Creating model...]
[Calculation complete. Current daily consumption for conventional forces (including wear on anti-weathering coatings, basic Rune Circuit maintenance, and replacement of parts due to metal fatigue) is equivalent to approximately six thousand Low-Level Magic Stones.]
[In the event of a medium-intensity war, factoring in the consumption of high-value munitions like Crystal Armor-Piercing Bullets and Red Lotus Magic Missiles, daily military expenditure will exceed 50,000 Low-Level Magic Stones.]
Allen’s expression darkened as he looked at these numbers.
A high-turnover model was a powerful tool during expansion, but it was prone to catastrophic failure once his territory reached its limits and growth slowed.
If he encountered a massive Magical Beast tide or an attack by Black Wizards, causing his combat losses to skyrocket and his ammunition to be depleted, his entire financial chain could snap at any moment.
Once the ratio of military spending to GDP crossed that red line, the massive army would become a heavy burden dragging down the economy.
He now commanded four legions, and just the daily maintenance and basic Golem patrols consumed countless Magic Stones.
He was a ruler now; he had to consider a healthy economic cycle.
BEEP—
The communication channel lit up with a red light.
[Incoming communication request. Source: Zone 19, Victor Iron Flame.]
The notification from Jarvis interrupted Allen’s train of thought.
"Patch him through."
The communication channel activated. A holographic bust of Victor Iron Flame appeared on the screen.
"Allen, what’s the progress on my ’Purgatory’?" Victor got straight to the point. The sound of Engineering Golems moving materials could be heard in the background. "My production here has already expanded. Workshop capacity is insufficient, and I urgently need to reinforce my outer defensive lines."
"It will be delivered within seven days. I always honor the spirit of a contract," Allen said, picking up his cup of water.
Victor snorted. "You’d better. The commotion on your end has died down. Looks like you’ve completely taken the lava lake?"
"It’s mostly been cleaned up."
"Not bad. You’ve occupied the entire territory of Zone 18," Victor said, a hint of envy in his tone. He then changed the subject. "Now that your territory is complete, you should start saving up. It costs a fortune to become a proper Second-level Golem Wizard."
Allen’s movements paused for a fraction of a second, a flicker in his eyes.
"Once I develop the mineral resources in the lava lake region and get all the mines running at full capacity, I expect my net profit to exceed two million Low-Level Magic Stones. I’ll be more worried about not being able to spend it all," Allen said, deliberately throwing out a number to gauge Victor’s reaction.
Victor was taken aback.
He stared at Allen, then suddenly burst into laughter.
His laughter was filled with the superiority a scion of a great clan feels when facing a grassroots nouveau riche.
"Two million Magic Stones? You think that’s a lot?" Victor shook his head, a hint of pity in his eyes. "Allen, you’re usually a smart guy. How can you be so naive about this?"
Allen’s brow furrowed slightly.
"What do you mean?"
Only then did Victor stop smiling, his tone turning serious.
"You have no idea what the world of a Second-level Golem Wizard is really like."
Victor leaned closer to the light screen. "You think you can secure your footing at the second level just by piling up a huge number of Golems? You think all we need to do after becoming Second-level Wizards is meet the requirements for Spiritual Power and Magic Power?"
Victor even reached out and jabbed a finger at the screen.
"Resources. Massive amounts of High-tier Materials you can’t even imagine. Once you reach the second level... haha, you’ll find out eventually. Hurry up and save your Magic Stones. That little income of yours won’t even be a rounding error."
Victor took a step back and waved his hand dismissively.
"Don’t come crying to me for a loan on the day you finally touch the threshold for promotion." frёeweɓηovel.coɱ
The communication line was cut.
The control room fell silent.
"Playing mysterious with me," Allen sneered.
Victor’s words had hit a sore spot.
The information gap. Although his cultivation had been extremely fast in the early stages, he lacked the deep-seated heritage of a Wizard Clan.
His mentor and the academy had only taught him the fundamentals, not the common knowledge of higher levels.
’So where exactly do the expenses for a Second-level Wizard lie? Is it in constructing a Core Witchcraft? Or the special materials for High-Level Golems? Or perhaps some kind of mandatory strategic resource?’
’Could it be higher-tiered Soul Cores and some sort of expensive experiments involving the fundamental laws of reality?’ That was all Allen could guess for now.
’A "proper" Second-level Golem Wizard.’
The term carried a great deal of information. It implied that an extremely exaggerated gap in combat power or resources existed between Second-level Wizards.
"Jarvis, search the database for any records related to the resource consumption of Second-level Wizards."
[No relevant information found.]
Allen felt a surge of irritation.
Whether Victor was telling the truth or not, the information he revealed was alarming. The high-turnover, unit-spamming model had to be stopped.
With his current four Golem Legions and two Freedom Gundams, his combat strength was more than enough to handle first-level enemies. But if he were to face an experienced Second-level Wizard, even a hundred Freedom Gundams would be nothing more than scrap metal, wiped out by a single large-scale Witchcraft.
The gap between realms could not be bridged by a large quantity of low-end units.
"Jarvis, record strategic plan," Allen said, standing up and walking to the holographic panel.
[Awaiting instructions.]
"Establish one more Golem Legion, a fifth one, to fill out our patrol and mobile forces. Also, build two more Freedom Gundams, assigned specifically to guard the main workshop."
"After this batch of armaments is complete, aside from maintaining mine operations and replenishing necessary losses, leave one production line open to manufacture reserve ammunition. All other surplus production capacity is to be suspended."
[Orders confirmed. The Fifth Legion and the new Freedom Gundams are estimated to be fully equipped in five months.]
"For the remaining time, our focus will shift."
"We are going to turn Zone 18 into a giant laboratory and resource-gathering site. We will earn every Magic Stone we can, squeeze this land dry, and save up a small fortune. I refuse to believe there’s anything I won’t be able to buy."
He pulled up his personal status panel.
[Cultivation Progress:]
[1. Fourth Core Matrix (Wizard Stage): 27/36]
[2. Fourth Cognitive Sub-thread (Wizard Stage): 14/15]
’Progress is a bit slow.’
He had poured all his energy into expanding his territory and developing weapons recently, letting his own cultivation realm fall too far behind.
"Jarvis, I’m leaving the workshop to you. Starting today, I will resume my ten hours of daily Meditation. Handle any non-urgent matters yourself."
[As you command, Commander.]
’Once the mineral veins at the bottom of the lake are surveyed and developed, we will enter a full period of dormancy.’
Allen turned and walked toward the private Meditation Room behind the control room.
Allen sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and his Spiritual Power quickly sank into the depths of his Sea of Consciousness.
The path to greater heights still seemed very long.
