A huge thanks to GreenKiTea in Kofi for the kofis. Enjoy these bonus chapters!

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Even though there were so many people in the green zone, the moment they stepped through the light gate, all the figures and the commotion vanished completely. 

Qiyu saw a man wearing a green robe, with a warm smile on his face. He had a badge pinned to his chest—he must be a staff member from the resource zone.

“Hello, Mage. Please hand me your resource card.”

As Qiyu handed over the card, he eyed the man with suspicion.

He had a vague feeling that something was off about this man, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. 

The staff member asked with a smile, “Mage, would you like the resource zone on the left or the one on the right?”

Qiyu: “What’s the difference?”

The staff member maintained his perfect smile: “The left side is the standard area; you can go there directly. The right side is the premium area, where the resources are of higher quality.”

Qiyu’s intuition told him it wasn’t that simple. He asked cautiously, “Is that all? Then wouldn’t everyone choose the right side?”

Staff member: “Oh, yes. Subjectively speaking, everyone would prefer a premium area, but there is a fee involved.”

Qiyu:…

Once the conditions are laid out, it seems quite reasonable.

“How much is the fee?”

“5,000 gold coins, or 2,500 Level 1 Beast Crystals.” 

…It seems the resource zones use the same pricing structure as the mages’ markets. 

Qiyu didn’t make a decision right away. He asked, “What exactly are the differences between the three different-colored resource zones? Are there any precautions I should take when entering a resource zone?”

Staff member: “Answering these questions isn’t part of my job description; I’ll only answer if you pay extra gold coins. Of course, if you choose to enter the Premium Zone, I’ll prepare a free guide to the resource zone for you.”

Qiyu: “…How many gold coins?”

Throughout the conversation, he had been observing the man in the green robe. Just then, a thought struck him, and he finally realized what that uneasy feeling was.

“You’re not human—you’re an alchemy puppet?”

The man in the green robe continued to wear his warm smile and replied candidly, “Yes, Mage.”

His appearance and demeanor—even his subtle expressions and movements—were flawless; his gaze would even shift to follow the points of the conversation as he spoke.

If Qiyu hadn’t quietly scanned him with his mental energy while he spoke—discovering that the man showed not a single trace of emotion or mental fluctuation from start to finish—he would never have detected anything out of the ordinary.

He had originally assumed alchemy puppets would have that distinctly “alchemical” style common in his own domain, but it turned out they could be so lifelike?

“Answering this question will cost 100 gold coins.”

Qiyu took 5,000 gold coins out of his backpack; the gleaming coins piled up like a small mountain at his feet.

The alchemy puppet’s eyes actually lit up, just as a person’s would at the sight of wealth, and it said cheerfully, “As expected, it’s so much easier to make money off mages!” 

Qiyu：？？？

He watched as the alchemy puppet waved its hand; the gold coins flew into his sleeve as if summoned, quickly vanishing.

Then, it returned the green card to Qiyu, who noticed that the originally translucent card now had a gold border around it. Along with the green card, a sheet of parchment paper was handed to him.

As he took the parchment paper, a flood of information poured into his mind—that was information from the resource zone.

Resource Zones are a unique phenomenon in this world, similar to individual mini-worlds. 

Resource zones are divided into several categories.

One type consists of naturally formed resource zones, such as mineral veins and magical plants.

Another type consists of trial grounds. These are typically established by powerful experts and feature various challenges; completing these challenges yields rewards.

Another type is the Chaotic Lands. No one knows what they will encounter there. It could be a rare treasure found once in a thousand years, or it could be a demigod-level mutant.

The three card colors do not indicate the type of resource zone but rather the level of safety. Green represents safe zones, red represents moderately dangerous zones, and black represents uncontrollably dangerous zones. Self-harm and killing are prohibited within safe zones; this rule does not apply to other zones.

Each resource card is valid for 24 hours, starting from the moment you enter the resource zone; once the time limit is reached, you’ll be teleported out. You can use multiple cards of the same type at once. 

Qiyu had two green cards, meaning he could stay in the resource zone for 48 hours. However, he planned to first check out what was in the “Premium” resource zone.

He bid farewell to the alchemy puppet and headed down the right-hand passage.

The moment he stepped out of the passage, he clearly sensed that he had passed through a mysterious barrier.

The dense magical energy almost made him want to sit cross-legged immediately and begin meditating. 

He saw a high mountain—no, a mountain range…stretching as far as the eye could see.

Such a strong magical presence—is it coming from this… what is it?

Qiyu hurried over to the mountain wall. Could there be something hidden inside?

He tried to chip away a piece of rock to see what was inside.

Crack.

The mountain wall didn’t budge an inch.

Is it that hard?

Qiyu took a few steps back and cast a Fireball, which struck the rock. 

The expected shower of flying debris never materialized; the Fireball spell struck the strange mountain wall like a drop of water hitting the ocean, dissolving silently.

“It’s a magic crystal vein! I finally got lucky! I’m rich! I’m rich!” A voice filled with delight reached Qiyu’s ears.

Two figures appeared one after another, just in time to see Qiyu attacking the wall with Water Arrow spells. Both wore strange expressions.

Hearing the unfamiliar voices, Qiyu tensed for a moment. But he quickly recalled what the parchment paper had said—adventurers within the safe zone were not allowed to harm or kill one another—and relaxed again.

As he continued moving, he pondered what a “magic crystal vein” might be. Could it be… a mountain range hiding magic crystals inside?

Thinking of the dense magical elements inside, Qiyu’s breathing grew slightly heavier.

Unfortunately, the Water Arrow spell still showed no response.

He silently took a few steps away from the two men. The Heart of the Great Tree Staff twitched slightly, and a wind blade shot through the air, slashing toward the mountain wall.

The two had originally intended to leave immediately upon seeing someone there.

But Qiyu’s mysterious display made them pause. They watched quietly as he cast a Water Arrow spell, followed by a Wind Blade.

It was obvious that neither had any effect. Seeing that Qiyu seemed about to gather his magic to try again, one of them spoke up:

“Hey! Rookie mage, is this your first time seeing a magic crystal vein?”

“Attacking a magic crystal vein with magic won’t do any good.”

Qiyu turned around.

Only then did the speaker notice the badge on his chest. He froze, his expression one of utter disbelief:

“You’re a Level 3 mage, and you don’t even know that?”

Qiyu recalled what a player had said when he struck up a conversation with him on the island.

He said casually, “Hello, everyone. I’m a mage from the countryside. This is my first time leaving home, and my first time seeing a magic crystal vein. I really don’t know anything about it. May I ask why magic attacks are ineffective?” 

The two martial artists: “……”

The two were utterly stunned, momentarily unsure whether to mock this unique self-introduction or marvel at the fact that “a mage from the countryside could actually be this wealthy?” 

After all, you have to pay five thousand gold coins just to enter this Premium Resource Zone!

Seeing that the two remained silent, Qiyu thought he understood. He took a small pouch of gold coins from his backpack and handed it to them: “Is there a fee for answering questions?” 

The two: “……”

“Is this how your country’s mages talk?” the speaker muttered. “Throwing gold coins around at the drop of a hat?”

That said, he quickly caught a small bag of gold coins in his hand and gave them a quick count—there were several dozen.

The girl beside him gave his shoulder a hard slap and retorted loudly, “Watch your mouth! This is clearly a wealthy and generous patron!”

With a beaming smile, she continued, “Esteemed and generous mage, you may be so focused on your training that you’re unaware: the magic crystal vein possesses nearly insurmountable magical resistance, rendering the vast majority of spells ineffective against it.” 

So that explains it.

Qiyu asked, “Are the crystals inside the magic crystal vein actually magic crystals?”

The question was met with an affirmative answer.

“Then how do you usually mine them?”

He had overheard what the two had just said; clearly, since they knew there was a magic crystal vein in the resource zone, they must know how to mine it.

“It’s purely a matter of brute force—hammering away. Of course, you can also make use of a few tools to make the job a little easier.”

A silver, hammer-shaped object appeared in the male martial artist’s hand.

“This is a Shattering Hammer. It was forged with spessartine mixed into the process—it’s a tool specifically designed for magic crystal veins.”

The female martial artist picked up on his words: “Generally speaking, it’s rare to see a mage at a magic crystal vein. We were indeed a bit surprised to see you just now.”

Qiyu looked at the Shattering Hammers in their hands, then turned his head to glance at the Heart of the Great Tree Staff in his own hand. He wondered if the staff could be used as a hammer. 

The two people, however, misinterpreted his gesture. The male martial artist cheerfully handed him the hammer: “If you don’t mind, I’ll give you this broken warhammer.”

Fearing that Qiyu might reach for his gold coins again, he added, “Spike crystals aren’t worth much; this thing is only somewhat useful in magic crystal veins—you could say it’s pretty useless. As for the information we just shared, you’d have heard it yourself if you’d been out and about a few more times. Consider this Shatter Hammer a little bonus for the tip.”

Since self-harm and killing were prohibited in the safe zone, and it was rare to encounter a wealthy mage from the countryside, building a good relationship with him was a surefire win. Only then did Qiyu accept it: “Thank you.”

Since they were intent on building a good relationship, after a brief farewell to Qiyu, the two didn’t stray too far. They found a spot, each grabbed a battering ram, and began smashing the wall with a series of thuds.

Qiyu watched for a moment and silently concluded: The way martial artists smash walls doesn’t seem much different from how he chopped down trees. 

He stowed the Heart of the Great Tree Staff in his backpack, mimicked the two men’s stance, and gripped the hammer with both hands to strike the mountain wall.

After one strike, he felt it lacked power.

If he stowed the “Heart of the Great Tree Staff,” he wouldn’t be able to use its 15-point attack bonus.

He had no choice but to take it out again, equip it, and let the staff hover quietly by his side.

Then he began striking the mountain rock again.

Two people who witnessed this scene from a short distance away: “……”

“Bro, do you think this staff floating beside him is some kind of weird ritual?” the female warrior asked in a low voice. 

The male warrior replied without hesitation, “How should I know? I’ve only met a handful of mages, let alone one from the countryside who lacks even basic common sense.” His eyes sparkled with intelligence. “He’s a mage who came here himself to mine magic crystals—it’s only natural he’d do something like this.”