Moffett had a strong tolerance for alcohol, and Richard slept for a full seven days.
On the eighth day, Richard woke from his slumber, not feeling the headache that usually accompanies a hangover; instead, he felt refreshed.
"Wow, that was some strong drink," Richard exclaimed.
Ulysses flew over to him, laughing loudly:
"Ha! It's not that the drink is strong; it's that your tolerance is too low. One cup and you're out! You should sit at the kids' table from now on."
Richard's face flushed, and he shot a fierce glare at Ulysses.
"I say it was the drink that was strong!"
Ulysses fell silent, only continuing to laugh uproariously in the air with his raspy voice.
Richard temporarily ignored the boring World Master and took out two crystal balls from his pocket.
Upon waking, Richard felt that both his mental strength and physique had improved.
[Mental Strength: 120, Physique: 141, Magic Power: 24000]
"To think my mental strength increased by four points, and my physique by three points."
Richard looked at the data with some surprise. He had spent over sixty years in Crimson Sun World, and his mental strength had only increased by six points. His physique had improved by twenty-six points due to the effects of Lava Sea and the physique enhancement gland. Yet, just one cup of that drink had given him four points of mental strength and three points of physique.
If this drink were sold on the market, it would definitely cost at least seven or eight hundred Magic Essence.
In fact, Richard was still not fully aware of the prices. In Moffett's tavern, this drink was priced at one thousand Magic Essence, and it was limited to one cup per week, making it a rare commodity.
In the Wizarding world, any item that could directly enhance physique and mental strength was extremely valuable, especially physique.
This required no intelligence, just the act of swallowing was enough.
And a powerful body, even for a mentally evolved Wizard, was a form of strength enhancement.
Putting the crystal balls back into his pocket, Richard took out the one that recorded the Tesla Mark IX Shield Guard Alchemical Golem.
This puppet, starting with Tesla, was likely a product of the largest war merchant in the Wizard World, the Tesla Consortium.
Tesla Consortium products were known for their high quality and stable effects, and they were the origin of the trend for quality among Alchemist Wizards.
How the blueprints of Tesla Consortium products ended up in Moffett's hands, Richard did not know and did not care to find out.
In any case, the blueprints were in his hands now, and as long as he didn't run into a technical Wizard from the Tesla Consortium, he was safe.
Moreover, as an Alchemist Wizard, he had the ability to disguise the alchemical puppets.
...
Richard studied the blueprints for the Tesla Mark IX Shield Guard Alchemical Golem for half a month, during which he continuously sketched the designs on paper.
The alchemical puppet was indeed an advanced product of the alchemical golem; its performance far exceeded that of traditional golems, both in offense and defense, being several times more effective.
Of course, this performance enhancement came at a high cost.
After reviewing the blueprints, Richard estimated the material cost for this alchemical puppet.
Just for the materials, this alchemical puppet would cost five thousand Magic Essence.
Moreover, many of the puppet's components required a high level of alchemy to produce, meaning hiring such skilled Wizards would also incur significant labor costs.
Richard estimated that this puppet would need to be sold for at least ten thousand Magic Essence to avoid a loss.
However, the puppet's performance only matched that of a first-ring Wizard.
Although many first-ring Wizards could be instantly killed by him, some experienced old Wizards could still find ways to deal with it.
"Only the Wizarding world is still expanding; this kind of alchemical puppet army can still be used. If the Wizarding world stops expanding, this kind of puppet will definitely be the first to be abandoned," Richard remarked after estimating the price.
The Wizarding world was still expanding, with virgin worlds waiting for Wizards to develop; thus, this expensive alchemical puppet army was not without its uses.
After all, these puppet armies were indeed powerful.
But if expansion were to end, or if they encountered opponents of equal civilization, this expensive alchemical puppet would become extreme—either reverting to the cheap production of alchemical golems or pursuing combat power at any cost.
But despite the complaints, the Tesla Mark IX Shield Guard Alchemical Golem was indeed a finely crafted piece. It was no wonder it was a product that had gone through nine iterations by the Tesla Consortium.
Richard called over the Fire Lizard Alchemy Masters on the other side of the Secret Realm and handed them the blueprints.
"This is a Wizard's alchemical puppet," Richard introduced. "Although Wizard Alchemy is vastly different from Dragon Alchemy, the design concepts are still worth referencing and learning from.
Take these blueprints back and see if you can learn something."
Several Fire Lizard took the thick stack of papers Richard handed them and respectfully said, "Yes, my lord."
...
After leaving the Secret Realm, Richard suddenly remembered that he had an agreement with a Wizard named Damir.
He recalled that Damir had mastered a more efficient method of compressing elements.
He went to the Frost Legion's base, hoping to find this Wizard, but the result left him somewhat disappointed.
"Master Richard, Damir is dead," Iyad said regretfully.
Richard could hardly believe it: "He's dead?"
"Yes, he had some bad luck and encountered a Dragon Guard Warrior while capturing slaves."
Richard sighed, "Alright then, did he leave any belongings?"
Iyad frowned, his tone serious: "Master Richard, the belongings of a fallen Wizard must be distributed according to his will; this is the strictest rule of the Legion. Anyone who violates it will be burned to death by the flames of the soul."
Richard realized he had misspoken and quickly apologized.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I just wanted to ask you for a favor; if anyone comes to claim his belongings, please contact me."
Saying this, Richard slipped a small bag of Magic Essence to Iyad.
Iyad did not accept the Magic Essence but simply asked Richard for a contact method.
"This is just a small favor; there's no need for the master to go to such lengths."
After leaving the Frost Legion's base, Richard returned to the Wizard Tower, where Ellie had been waiting for him for quite some time.
"If you didn't come back soon, I would have thought you forgot about me," Ellie said with a hint of grievance.
Richard smiled awkwardly; no one expected that designing a set of equipment would take so long, even with clear technology and a bunch of Fire Lizard Alchemy Masters.
"Sorry, sorry, there was a bit of an accident."
Ellie did not press further. She walked up to Richard and whispered in his ear, "So, what's your new idea?"
Ellie was very close, her fiery body pressed against Richard, igniting a rush of blood.
"…I obtained some fire element curiosities in Crimson Sun World and would like your help analyzing them. A few of these curiosities have very peculiar properties."
Ellie's body stiffened, and her gaze turned resentful again.
"Is that all?"
Richard nodded affirmatively: "That's it. What did you think it was?"
Ellie's face instantly flushed, and she punched Richard hard in the chest.
"You, you, you… where's your stuff? You left me hanging here for so long; there's no discount this time!"
Richard took out several sealed fire curiosities from his pocket. Some were obtained from Bob, while others were from the Fire Lizard.
These curiosities referred to extraordinary items that seemed to defy logic. For example: flames burning in water, stones that could reproduce automatically without absorbing energy or elements, and magical conch shells that could produce music without any skill… all of these were considered curiosities.
At first glance, these items often seemed impossible, hence the name curiosities.
Of course, these curiosities did not truly defy logic; rather, they possessed some special characteristics that made them appear illogical.
Each curiosity contained a secret, making them natural subjects for research.
"Charging for research on curiosities? You can't just take advantage of our good relationship to rip me off for Magic Essence," Richard complained.
But seeing Ellie's flushed face, Richard decided to temporarily ignore this issue.
After all, many of their rewards would ultimately turn into something more intimate.
At worst, he would just have to work a little harder.
...
While Richard and Ellie were studying the fire element curiosities, the Fire Lizard Alchemy Masters in the Secret Realm were enthusiastically examining the blueprints.
The completion of the flesh factory not only provided Richard with a continuous supply of Semi-Elemental Living Flesh but also significantly advanced the skills of the Fire Lizard craftsmen under him.
Several Fire Lizard Alchemy Masters had reached a bottleneck in their alchemy skills, but under Richard's guidance, they all broke through to a new level.
This improvement in skills broadened their horizons.
Combined with the alchemical puppet blueprints Richard provided, the collision of two different types of alchemy reignited their previously exhausted well of inspiration.
"How marvelous! The mechanical structure can be so intricate," Kallion exclaimed as he looked at the blueprints in his hands.
On the other side, Sulina, who was on par with Kallion, chimed in, "Indeed, I never thought mechanical creations could be more agile than living beings.
These blueprints even remind me of the intricate structures on the Sacred Armor.
However, compared to the incomprehensible structures of the Sacred Armor, the Wizard's structures are a bit crude and more suited to our level."
Suddenly, a Fire Lizard Alchemy Master, who had been deeply engrossed in studying the design, looked up. He gazed at Sulina and Kallion with shining eyes and exclaimed, "Yes, the Sacred Armor! Many of these structures can be applied to armor!"
Saying this, the Fire Lizard Alchemy Master ran frantically to the break area and rummaged through a pile of ancient texts to find a leather scroll.
He returned to the group of Fire Lizard Alchemy Masters and unfurled the ancient leather scroll.
The scroll depicted an unfinished exoskeleton armor filled with unreasonable structures.
Even so, the eyes of the many Fire Lizard Alchemy Masters remained fixed on the armor depicted on the scroll.
This scroll opened up a new line of thought for them.
The Fire Lizard holding the scroll spoke with a hint of fervor:
"Everyone, in the ancient past, we had a sacred title—[Mechanics]! Back then, we needed to maintain the Sacred Armor and various divine relics.
But as our skills regressed, we could no longer understand the structure of our own armor, nor could we produce a single armor plate.
Thus, we lost this sacred title.
Now our skills have improved, but we have lost the Sacred Armor and divine relics.
We can no longer prove that we are worthy of this sacred title.
But now, we have an opportunity."
The many Fire Lizard Alchemy Masters looked at him, and a somewhat crazy idea began to emerge in their minds.
"Perhaps we can forge a set of Sacred Armor that belongs to us!"