CHAPTER 23: CHAPTER 23: METEOR GRASS

On the first floor of the library, there was a massive wall, and written on it were the different genres of books available on each floor in great detail.

Herag’s goals were clear; he wanted to start with world geography, which was located on the second floor.

As he ascended the stairs, he noticed a space resembling a study room on the first floor, with rows of tables and chairs. Many students were already there reading and studying, which gave Herag a feeling of déjà vu, as if he was back in a library from a past life.

Herag arrived at the section for geography books, finding mostly those related to the Coleson Continent, with few on world geography.

"Shenlan, start recording the contents of every book I read to expand the database."

"Task has been archived, commencing execution."

Altogether, Herag found three books that discussed world geography, yet each book’s content was far from detailed. The authors themselves had visited very few places, and much of the information was hearsay, with its accuracy in question.

"Shenlan, organize the information from these three books, summarizing the available world geography-related information."

Herag skimmed through the three books without needing to read them thoroughly, as long as Shenlan could record everything completely.

"Organization complete."

Browsing through the results compiled by Shenlan, Herag was presented with a map of the world as it was currently known.

The land he stood upon was called the Coleson Continent, estimated to be fifteen million square kilometers. The continent closest to Coleson was the Karg Continent to the northwest.

Between the Coleson and Karg continents was a sea, the specific distance unknown, lacking supporting data. Based on some travel notes and biographies, it’s guessed to be around six thousand kilometers.

The map of the Karg Continent was also incomplete, currently knowing only an extended corner, with no further detailed data available.

Beyond these two continents were infinite seas and numerous small islands.

"The information is truly lacking," Herag mused, gazing at the pieced-together map, reflecting on how people of the Coleson Continent were almost in the dark ages concerning knowledge of the world outside their continent.

The productivity level of the Coleson Continent was too backward, making long voyages challenging.

What Herag could determine was that the ship carrying wizard apprentices was heading to the Karg Continent.

According to Claude, the ship came from the east, passing by the Coleson Continent, then heading northwesterly towards the Karg Continent.

However, there was no record of the eastern continent, not even basic details on size or location on the map.

"Seems like they need a Columbus," Herag quipped to himself.

Having found no other information related to world geography, he turned and proceeded to the fourth floor.

The plant books were on the fourth floor, as Herag wanted to check for information related to Meteor Grass.

"Found it." Herag found Meteor Grass in a book titled the "Encyclopedia of Rare Plants."

"Meteor Grass, with fiery red petals, grows only near meteorites, holding some ornamental value while its medicinal value remains unknown."

Herag then looked up information related to meteorites, discovering that there was a famous meteorite crater ten kilometers near Swan City.

Slam!

Herag closed the book, returned home to grab his Fine Steel Bow and Longsword, and rode out of the city on horseback.

The meteorite crater outside Swan City was enormous, with a diameter of five hundred meters, forming a circular depression on the ground.

Riding hard, Herag reached the meteorite crater in half an hour.

The soil here was vastly different from other places, with fiery red soil and sparse vegetation.

Herag slowly walked down a slope into the depression, all the while observing the surroundings for traces of Meteor Grass.

Inside the crater were many puddles and some scattered vegetation.

He roamed inside for quite some time before finding a fiery red flower at the base of the innermost mountain wall.

Taking out the small spade he had prepared, Herag began digging from the root of the Meteor Grass, trying to keep the root intact.

"Warning, a high-energy Magical Source is rapidly approaching!"

"A high-energy Magical Source?" Before Herag could react, a powerful impact struck him, sending him flying, yet he held onto the Meteor Grass tightly.

"Severe burn detected on the back, immediate use of Holy Healing Technique is recommended."

Herag grimaced in pain, turning to see a red-haired boy smiling at him, appearing to be around sixteen or seventeen years old.

"You didn’t die?" The red-haired boy seemed surprised.

"Shenlan, scan the opponent’s body data."

"Power: 1.5, Agility: 1.6, Constitution: 2.1, Spirit: 3.9."

Taking a deep breath, Herag thought, "Spirit 3.9, 0.4 higher than mine. It seems he’s also a First-Class Wizard Apprentice."

He had once estimated that at least five points in Spiritual Power were necessary to break through to become a Second-Class Wizard Apprentice.

Herag’s back was badly burned, some superficial flesh charred.

"That flower is mine..." The red-haired boy was about to say something more, but Herag had already drawn his Longsword and charged forward.

The boy raised his right hand, a greenish ring on his middle finger glowed green, and quickly formed a basketball-sized fireball which shot at Herag with great speed.

Herag and the red-haired boy were at least three hundred meters apart, which was why Shenlan hadn’t detected him.

Because of the distance, Herag couldn’t attack first and was forced to dodge, initiating a retreat to avoid the fireball.

Adjusting his posture in time, Herag shifted his force direction, jumping behind a nearby mound of earth.

The fireball exploded where he had stood.

"It doesn’t seem to have homing abilities," Herag concluded.

He drew his Fine Steel Bow, nocked an arrow, and fired swiftly after peeking out.

The red-haired boy reacted quickly, chanting, "Partial Petrification!"

His left hand’s skin color changed, becoming a grayish, stony texture.

As the arrow flew in, the red-haired boy blocked it directly with his left hand.

Sparks flew from the impact between the arrow and his palm.

The red-haired boy seemed a bit angry, "It really hurts!"

Seeing this from behind the mound, Herag felt the situation was a bit tricky.

Though possessing Magic Power, he lacked any offensive magic, putting him at a disadvantage.

"Shenlan, disable my pain receptors."

"Disabled."

Herag channeled Magic Power into his pocket watch, casting Holy Healing Technique on himself, and much of the injury on his back healed.

"Remaining Magic Power: 70%."

The red-haired boy sensed the magic fluctuation, eyes lighting up, "You actually have a Demonized Item! What an unexpected gain!"

He gloated, "So, you’re also a wizard apprentice, yet you know no spells at all. Is it because your aptitude is too poor, or is your teacher’s level too low? Although Coleson Continent lacks wizard training resources, you should at least know some basic spells. And it seems your Demonized Item is healing-auxiliary type; you’re dead for sure."