At present, the vast Green Isle Forest was tightly sealed by the wizardry array of the Furnace.
With the astonishing drive of the Furnace Lord's policy "Battle Merits for All Things," over ten thousand wizard apprentices had perished within just three months.
Among them were both internal apprentices from the Furnace and adventurers from external forces.
Even several official wizards had met their demise on this battlefield.
Inside the highest chamber of the Furnace stronghold, the Furnace Lord coldly observed the developments in the Green Isle Forest.
His gaze flickered slightly as he turned his head to the side.
The space twisted slightly, and a figure slowly emerged it was the Whiteheart Tower Lord.
The Whiteheart Tower Lord, ruler of the Fourth Level faction Whiteheart Tower, had heavy responsibilities and could not stay here permanently.
He visited periodically to assess the progress of the battle.
"Still far from enough..."
After flipping through the latest battle report, the Whiteheart Tower Lord shook his head.
According to their plan, they needed to sacrifice a sufficient number of people to provoke the world's natural rules into rejecting and reacting against the foreign [Landscape].
As Morning Star wizards, both the Whiteheart Tower Lord and the Furnace Lord had left the Wizarding World before and were deeply familiar with the aura of world laws.
However, at this moment, they felt no interference from the world's rules, indicating that the Furnace Lord's plan had yet to reach its target.
"Now, the number of apprentices sacrificing themselves each day has significantly dropped. Official wizards are even more cautious; after witnessing their comrades' tragic deaths, fewer and fewer dare to step forward."
The Whiteheart Tower Lord spoke in a low voice, clearly dissatisfied with the current situation.
The Furnace Lord's strategy had shown initial results, but as time passed, the apprentices and wizards gradually became more rational.
At first, they had rushed to their deaths for the sake of rich rewards, but now, seeing the fate of those before them, many were unwilling to take the risk.
After all, no matter how tempting the rewards, one had to be alive to claim them.
"Increase the rewards. Heal those who manage to return alive. Even if only a severed head makes it back, the Furnace will provide them with a new functional body."
The Furnace Lord's voice was calm and unwavering as if this was nothing more than an ordinary decision.
The Whiteheart Tower Lord stood by his side, shaking his head slightly, his expression complicated.
Such a promise would undoubtedly require an astronomical amount of resources.
Though the Furnace had accumulated enough wealth to support this, how long could it sustain such a bottomless consumption?
Yet, upon seeing how determined the Furnace Lord was, the Whiteheart Tower Lord could understand his reasoning.
After all, the Furnace Lord had been marked by the Landscape...
That very Landscape had united the entire Wizarding World against it.
Even black wizards and white wizards normally at each other's throats had temporarily set aside their high-level conflicts to ally against the Landscape.
Watching the Whiteheart Tower Lord's figure disappear, a gleam flickered through the Furnace Lord's pale eyes.
Time passed, and soon a full day and night had gone by before the Furnace Lord finally made his decision.
"The first plan has failed. Even if I increase the benefits, I might see short-term gains, but it will never be enough to achieve the goal... If that's the case, I must proceed with the second plan..."
The Furnace Lord let out a long sigh.
If the first plan only resulted in losses of wealth and resources, it was still manageable so long as he remained alive, he could always earn them back.
But once the second plan was enacted, he would lose the vast majority of his Morning Star Wizard abilities.
Everything he had built in the first half of his life the Furnace, his influence, his prestige would be shattered.
Yet even so, it was still far preferable to being seized by the Landscape...
With this thought, for the first time, the Furnace Lord left the stronghold and headed in another direction.
That direction was toward the Furnace itself.
As a Morning Star Wizard, whether coming or going, none of the wizards below would notice his movements. Even a Third-Level Grand Wizard would fail to detect anything.
And during this single day and night, the Furnace stronghold had already been turned upside down.
Many apprentices had ventured into the Green Isle Forest and survived by sheer luck. Some had managed to earn enough battle merits to exchange for resources and recover.
But the majority had only scraped together the most basic of merits not even enough to heal their injuries.
However, now, the Furnace had promised to heal them!
As soon as this news spread, it caused a massive uproar.
Inside a small surgical chamber, Sonya lay quietly on the operating table.
She had once longed for battle merits, but now her body was covered in wounds, and her delicate face was like a shattered porcelain doll, barely held together by countless stitches.
Most of her body was no longer her original flesh but had been pieced together from foreign materials.
The final suture was threaded through her flesh. The surgeon gave a sinister grin, clapped his hands, and said:
"All done. Your new body is stitched together. Now, what do you plan to do next?"
Sonya remained silent for a moment before the cracks on her face stretched slightly into a broken smile.
"Go back into the forest!"
Furnace, Potion Garden
In a vast open field within the Potion Garden, Lynn found a secluded spot.
Today, he planned to maintain Little Green.
After processing those 300-point-value tiny spirits, he had barely managed to refine a few bottles before running out of materials.
Today, he intended to test Little Green after maintenance.
Lynn retrieved a space artifact inscribed with runes from his waist. With a gentle stroke of his finger, a flash of spiritual light appeared, revealing a grotesque little tree creature.
It stood just over a meter tall, its entire body resembling a withered old tree trunk, full of wrinkles and cracks. Its frail frame looked like it could topple over with a single gust of wind.
Especially its face it was eerily similar to a shriveled goblin, with jagged fangs and lifeless, murky eyes, making it look like a decrepit wooden monster.
"Open your mouth." Lynn's voice was calm and commanding.
The little tree obediently parted its maw, revealing a deep abyss lined with sharp teeth, exuding a chilling aura.
Lynn held a tattered-looking bell and gave it a gentle shake, producing a distant, ethereal chime.
He then tossed a bottle containing a magic potion its liquid a tender green tinged with an orange glow into the tree creature's mouth.
"This bell is becoming a nuisance. I'll have to find time to improve my alchemy skills and reforge this creature to be more obedient."
Lynn mused while closely observing Little Green's reaction.
This potion was quite valuable, and Lynn had high expectations.
At first, nothing seemed to happen.
But a few minutes later, a vibrant green light began to radiate from the tree creature's withered body.
Then a miracle occurred.
Little Green rapidly grew its dried-up limbs thickened, its chest expanded, its arms swelled with muscle, and its once-scrawny legs became sturdy as pillars.
In no time, it had grown to a height of two meters, resembling a towering warrior, its arms thicker than a normal person's thigh.
Its body was now covered in wooden armor plates, resembling a formidable knight.
Even its face transformed the wrinkles smoothed out, revealing a fresh green hue like budding leaves.
Though it still had fangs, it no longer looked grotesque, instead exuding an awe-inspiring, eerie majesty.
"No wonder Count Greenwood once named you 'Green Titan,'" Lynn smirked, his tone tinged with amusement.
"Now you finally live up to the name."
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