The dragon head's right hand gently flicked the shaft of the staff.
The shaft vibrated, letting out a clear, crisp hum.
The sound did not seem like something wood could produce, but more like the vibration of metal.
The humming echoed in the hall for several seconds before slowly dissipating, each echo stirring a faint emerald-green ripple in the air.
“Self-absorption,” the dragon head said. “A trait unique to Third-Tier Wizardry Tools. It doesn't require the user to actively channel mana; it will automatically absorb and store the surrounding wood-element energy particles on its own. During battle, the energy stored within the shaft can be released all at once. It's essentially an extra, free mana reserve.”
He flipped the staff over, turning the base upward.
Under the reflection of the glowing patterns, the growth rings on the cross-section of the base were exceptionally clear, with a faint emerald-green light flowing through each ring.
“Furthermore, this staff can grow.” The dragon head's voice paused. “In the future, if you obtain higher-quality heartwood or auxiliary wood-element materials, you can let the staff devour them, and it will continue to evolve. Right now, it is only a high-grade Third-Tier tool. After devouring enough materials, it is not impossible for it to reach the Fifth-Tier or Sixth-Tier. Of course, that is assuming you can live until then.”
He tossed the staff into the air.
The staff flipped twice in midair and flew toward Ethan.
Ethan reached out and caught it.
The staff felt slightly heavy in his hand, weighing about twenty pounds.
It felt warm to the touch, the wood fibers snugly fitting his palm, as if he were holding a branch that was still growing.
The feel was absolutely superb.
He tried to inject a sliver of mana into the staff.
The moment his mana touched the surface of the shaft, it was sucked inside.
The absorption speed was incredibly fast, so rapid that his mana was swallowed clean the instant it left his body.
An emerald-green glow welled up from the vortex patterns, spreading along the wood grain toward the tip of the staff.
Wherever the light passed, the air began to vibrate.
A rich wave of wood-element energy fluctuated outward from inside the staff, causing the points of light on the hall's vaulted ceiling to tremble slightly.
Ethan withdrew his mana.
The light dissipated, and the staff returned to its ordinary appearance.
“Good,” he said.
The Energy-Eating Insect poked half its body out from his head, tapping his forehead with a front leg. “Just 'good'? This is a Third-Tier Wizardry Tool! I owe seven hundred and eighty-three magic crystals for auxiliary materials, plus another ten magic crystals for the crafting fee—that's almost eight hundred magic crystals in total! And all you have to say is 'good'?”
Ethan stored the staff in his storage ring. “Thank you, Sir.”
The vibration of the Energy-Eating Insect's wings slowed down slightly. It flew up from his head, hovering in midair, its compound eyes staring at Ethan's face for several seconds before finally letting out a muffled snort. “Whatever, I won't argue with you.”
The Three-Headed Wizard leaned back in his chair.
His deep teal robe wrapped wrinkled around him, his collar thrown open even wider.
The dragon head's mouth still held that unstoppable smile, but the light in its vertical pupils had begun to fade.
The flood dragon head's whiskers drooped limply onto the table, no longer twitching.
The snake head slumped directly to one side of his shoulder, its forked tongue slipping from the corner of its mouth, resting motionlessly on the edge of the table.
He was utterly exhausted.
Yet, his eyes were filled with complete satisfaction.
The quality of the World Tree heartwood itself utterly outclassed star core fragments, and the pairing of auxiliary materials was practically perfect. Although the crafting process had been just as difficult, that difficulty was controllable and predictable.
Every fluctuation of the energy furnace, every adjustment of the runic circuits, and every reorganization of the wood fibers had been pushed forward with absolute precision, backed by his nine hundred years of accumulated experience.
Not only had he successfully crafted this staff,
but his understanding of crafting Wizardry Tools had also broken through during this process.
The snake head mumbled something unintelligible.
Its forked tongue flicked once on the table before drooping limply again.
The Energy-Eating Insect flew up from Ethan's head and landed on the stone table, poking the tip of the snake head's nose with a front leg. “Old geezer, what did you say?”
The snake head did not respond. Its vertical pupil was already half-closed.
The flood dragon head barely raised itself, its deep blue eye pausing on the Energy-Eating Insect. “He said... it was worth it.”
With those words, the flood dragon head also slumped onto the table.
The dragon head was the last to close its eyes.
Before its dark gold vertical pupil closed, it cast one last glance at the storage ring on Ethan's finger.
There was no greed in that glance, only a sense of satisfaction akin to an author looking at their completed, thick manuscript.
Then, the dragon head also closed its eyes.
All three heads began to breathe in a steady, even rhythm.
The snake head's tongue slipped in and out with its breath, the flood dragon head's whiskers trembled gently, and the dragon head's fangs peeked from the corner of its mouth, rising and falling slightly.
The short, chubby robot stepped out from behind the door, carrying a dark teal blanket on its mechanical arm, and gently draped it over the Three-Headed Wizard.
The Energy-Eating Insect flew up from the stone table and landed back on Ethan's head. “Let's go. This old geezer will sleep for at least three days. Don't disturb him here.”
Ethan bowed to the Three-Headed Wizard and turned to leave.
But before he could take more than two steps, the Three-Headed Wizard, who had just closed his eyes, suddenly snapped them open. “Wait!”
Both Ethan and the Energy-Eating Insect shuddered.
The Energy-Eating Insect flew up from his head, its compound eyes bulging. “Hey, old geezer, why are you making such a fuss? What are you doing?”
“I forgot an important matter, an extremely important one!!!”
“Ah? What?”
Ethan was also puzzled. Could there be some issue with the staff?
He pulled out the staff and turned it over several times, but couldn't find anything wrong with it.
The Three-Headed Wizard's dragon head grinned, its dark gold fangs faintly visible through his laughter. “This staff hasn't been named yet!!!”
The Energy-Eating Insect's six legs froze in midair, the entire bug looking as if it had been nailed in place. “You put us through all this drama just to give it a name?”
The Three-Headed Wizard sat back in his chair. “What do you know! A Third-Tier Wizardry Tool is already worthy of having its own name. This is my first Third-Tier creation in one hundred and twenty-three years. It must have a name worthy of it!”
The flood dragon head nodded in agreement. “Delivering a Wizardry Tool without naming it is an insult to the tool.”
The snake head poked out from the left. “It must be named.”
Ignoring Ethan, the Three-Headed Wizard's three heads turned and huddled together.
“Emerald Wood Staff,” the snake head said.
“Too ordinary,” the flood dragon head shook its head.
“Devourer of the World Tree,” the flood dragon head said.
“Not imposing enough,” the snake head countered.
“Wooden Dragon Spine,” the dragon head suggested.
“He's not of dragon lineage,” the flood dragon head flicked its whiskers aside.
“Emerald Heart.”
“That's jewelry.”
“Thorn Kingship.”
“He doesn't practice Thorn magic.”
“Wrath of the Deep Forest.”
“A mouthful.”
“World Eater,” Ethan said.
The three heads turned simultaneously, six eyes landing on him.
The dragon head's vertical pupils narrowed. “World Eater?”
“A staff made from devouring the World Tree's heartwood, which will devour even more materials in the future. Let's call it World Eater.” Ethan held the staff horizontally in front of him.
The Three-Headed Wizard fell silent for a moment.
The dragon head's mouth slowly curled up, revealing two rows of dark gold fangs. The flood dragon head's whiskers stopped twitching, and the snake head pulled its tongue back in.
Rate on N.U.
