Beneath the giant windmill of Windmill Town, a crowd of people eagerly gathered around a podium.
The town mayor stood on the stage, speaking passionately.
“The wind was born of our hopes, carrying our longing for a bountiful harvest. In those dark days when we struggled to even feed ourselves, it was the Archmage who brought us hope, who brought us the wind.
“With his profound wisdom, he created the great windmill before us today, blowing the winds that bring us our harvest...”
Xia De's gaze drifted to the great windmill behind the mayor. He had already appraised this creation of the legendary mage the moment he saw it.
To his surprise, the magic within it could actually inflict damage on par with Tier Eight. This also meant that the cultivation level of the person who created this thing was at least Tier Eight.
This brought a trace of pleasant surprise to Xia De's heart.
This trip was truly proving to be worthwhile. First, there was a pseudo-god with a Combat Power of one million, and now he had encountered the creation of a powerhouse who was at least a Tier Eight Calamity.
Xia De quickly analyzed the principles behind the mage's spell. The concept was actually very simple.
All one had to do was inject mana into the windmill to activate the magic circle hidden within, launching wind wheels toward the lake's surface to create water spouts.
Furthermore, this spell structure was composed of three smaller spell formulas: a mana amplification magic, a perception magic, and finally, a wind magic.
Xia De calculated that if a Tier One extraordinary injected mana, they could actually unleash a wind magic spell comparable in power to a Tier Four extraordinary.
This was even stronger than Charles's buff magic.
From this alone, it was clear that this mage possessed an extremely high level of attainment in the field of magic.
Because his own magical power was already strong enough, and because he had learned Charles's buff magic, he had spent almost all of the past year and a half researching fields he previously wasn't skilled in.
Such as mental, space, and necromancy, developing new moves centered around these elements.
Xia De hadn't paid much attention to amplification.
Now that he had seen this spell formula, Xia De easily learned it on the spot, planning to refine and improve it later.
He marveled internally: “It seems there are still many geniuses in this world. I should look for a place that specifically collects magic spells later.”
He decided he would learn those spells, which would help him save a lot of time.
After all, compared to creating from scratch, improving upon an existing foundation was much faster.
Xia De named this wind wheel spell the "Great Windmill Wheel."
However, as Xia De looked at the great windmill towering like a high-rise building, a few hints of doubt appeared in his eyes.
Its full name should actually be the Great Windmill Slaughter Wheel, because this device that launched magic somehow reminded him of a turret.
Moreover, Xia De felt that this wind wheel was more like a meat grinder, capable of tearing living beings apart and mincing everything within its range into a bloody pulp.
It felt like something designed to be deployed in war.
Thinking about it this way, it made perfect sense.
The amplification magic allowed weak soldiers to unleash power far beyond their own, while the perception magic could distinguish between friendly and enemy mana to prevent friendly fire.
But if that was the case, it raised the question of why this mage had built the great windmill in the first place.
Was it truly just to help the original villagers of Windmill Village? Or was it for war?
At this thought, Xia De looked around once more. Every face in Windmill Town wore a joyful smile, including the mayor who was currently giving his speech on the stage.
Their spirits were high, and they were genuinely happy for the Windmill Festival from the bottom of their hearts.
Well, whatever his original intention might have been, his final actions had genuinely saved Windmill Village and allowed it to prosper into the Windmill Town of today.
Besides, with a maximum power of only sixty thousand Combat Power, it wouldn't even tickle Xia De, so he decided not to overthink it.
As for war?
In this era where the gods had vanished and the peak power was only Tier Nine, who could possibly threaten him?
Moreover, Xia De had a feeling that as long as he cleared a few more dungeons, the mountain of ten million Combat Power weighing on his chest could easily be swept away.
If Xia De were to be aggressive, he could completely slaughter this entire continent. By then, his Combat Power would reach an unimaginable level.
It was just that he didn't do so. Knowing that he could achieve absolute invincibility eventually, Xia De wasn't an aggressive person by nature.
He would, eventually, be invincible.
That was why, after a year and a half, his mindset had shifted. He had completely changed his main quest and began writing an adventure log to record his journey.
His old main quest: Survive.
His current main quest: Have fun.
Xia De stood beside Finn, blending in with the crowd. While listening to the mayor's festive greetings on stage, he glanced at Finn beside him and asked,
“Are you... alright?”
A bright red handprint was stamped across Finn's handsome face, showing no signs of fading anytime soon.
Yet upon hearing Xia De's question, Finn looked at him with a bewildered expression and said,
“Why do you ask? This is the proof of Peishan's love for me!”
As he spoke, he scratched his head sheepishly.
“Ah, but then again, Peishan is really shy. She actually rejected my kiss of love.”
Looking at the completely lovesick Finn, Xia De was at a loss for words. In the end, he could only stare at him with a bizarre expression.
Xia De changed the subject, directing his gaze toward the mayor on stage.
“Is this the special event you were talking about? Standing here like we're being punished just to listen to the mayor tell stories?”
“Of course not! The event the mayor is about to announce is the main highlight of the Windmill Festival, and it's what all the residents of Windmill Town look forward to the most.”
“The most anticipated event?”
“That would be the ‘Fish King Grand Prix’!”
“What's that?”
“The story of Windmill Town began with the legendary mage who brought us a bountiful harvest with his magic. Windmill Town sits right against Bezerlati Lake, making us a famous fishing town not just in this region, but across the entire country!
“To commemorate the harvest the mage brought us, a special event is held every year during the Windmill Festival—the ‘Fish King Grand Prix.’
“On that day, contestants can use any means necessary to catch fish from Bezerlati Lake. Once you catch a fish you're satisfied with, you can return to the town to register it.
“At the very end, the person who caught the largest specimen will be announced, and that fish will be crowned the Fish King.
“The one who catches the Fish King is named the Wind Harvester. The Wind Harvester has a special duty, which is also an honor that everyone in Windmill Town dreams of achieving.
“And that is to inject mana into the great windmill at the end of the festival, activating the wind magic within to bring a great harvest to the town.”
After listening to Finn, Xia De's eyes lit up.
He thought back to his previous experience of having his fishing interrupted.
The magic part didn't really matter, but the title of "Fish King" certainly did.
How could he not record such an interesting event in his adventure log!
Seeing Xia De's expression, Finn grinned, brushing back his bangs with one hand as he said confidently:
“My friend, it seems you are quite interested as well.
“Perhaps you will become a formidable opponent of mine, but please remember, the final champion can only be this genius right here.
“Because, I am a genius!”
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