With the information provided by Jinkan and cross-referenced with intel gathered by VIA, Ery gained a deeper understanding of the Astiel faction's intricate power dynamics. He even went so far as to purposefully approach Astiel-affiliated magus visiting Sky City, using any opportunity to acquaint himself with them.
Annara proved invaluable in these efforts, showing her skill in information gathering. Ery found himself learning a few useful tricks from her.
The Astiel family was a force to be reckoned with. Ranked among the top 10 Nephilim families, they ruled over five planets and controlled eight major businesses, earning them more than half a billion spirit stones each month.
Their influence stretched far and wide, with over 500 magus on their payroll and 30 grand magus either active or in seclusion. Most importantly, Ery learned about the intricate web of relationships within the family and their past internal conflicts, hoping to exploit any potential weaknesses.
Yet, after considering nurous strategies—from sowing discord within the family, undermining their businesses, or even targeting one of their grand magus—none of these plans seed worth the high risk involved.
The sheer resources and power of the Astiel family made it nearly impossible to guarantee success, and with the duels looming in less than two years, Ery hesitated to invest too much ti in such dangerous endeavors.
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During his ti gathering information and seeking opportunities, Ery made full use of his exclusive Sky City mberships. One of his primary activities was scouting rare items for purchase or trade. He spared no expense, spending 20 million spirit stones on [Aetherwoods], a Tier 7 light-based material that significantly enhanced the growth of his Elysian trees. The investnt proved to be fruitful, as the trees thrived in ways they hadn't before.
Beyond that, Ery poured over 50 million more into acquiring various high-grade materials, which were notoriously difficult to find outside the city. These rare resources were crucial for advancing his apothecary recipes, pushing his expertise further, and ensuring he could create more potent concoctions. The limited availability of these materials ant that acquiring them within the city was a significant advantage, one Ery fully capitalized on.
To secure a steady flow of supplies, Ery also committed another 100 million spirit stones as a future order, successfully negotiating a trade agreent with one of Sky City's renowned shops. This deal provided him with raw materials in exchange for his finished apothecary products, ensuring a profitable cycle. Despite the staggering amount of spirit stones being spent, Ery viewed these transactions as sound investnts, confident they would yield substantial returns in the future.
These endeavors not only secured Ery's access to essential resources but also elevated his standing among rchants and magus in Sky City. The one place Ery found himself gravitating toward the most was a facility known as the [Heavenly Pagoda].
This majestic six-story building, categorized as a training ground, offered far more than its unassuming title suggested. The pagoda operated as both a vast library and a cutting-edge training facility, housing over a million techniques for sale. Its collection spanned from basic spells to advanced Tier 8 spells that were valued at over 100 million spirit stones. As Ery explored the library, he marveled at the sheer variety of techniques—each one more spectacular than the last. Despite the temptation, he refrained from purchasing new high-grade spells.
Though impressive, learning a new, advanced spell was an imnse challenge, requiring an enormous investnt of ti and effort. Ery, who already possessed a wide array of versatile spells, knew that his energy would be better spent mastering what he already had.
This was where the true value of the Heavenly Pagoda ca in. Like many expert magus who frequented the facility, Ery took full advantage of the pagoda's advanced training rooms, which provided specialized guides to help magus refine and enhance their spells. These rooms weren't just ordinary practice spaces—they were equipped with resources and knowledge stored within the pagoda's vast library, making the learning process highly efficient.
While the common training rooms, guided by veteran magus, were available for free, Ery opted for sothing far more exclusive. For an additional cost of 5 million spirit stones per day, he gained access to a private training room, complete with the guidance of a grand magus-level instructor. Unfortunately, the Nephilim weren't renowned for their proficiency in darkness spells.
The ratio of light-to-darkness spells was staggeringly one-sided—ten to one—making it difficult for him to find relevant material for his darkness, Khaos-based abilities. However, Ery had no intention of revealing his more secretive spells tied to Khaos. Instead, he opted to focus on enhancing his nature-based techniques.
Upon entering one of the private rooms, he was greeted by the grand magus guides.
"Show which spell you want to improve," the guide said, gesturing toward the area which was equipped with formations designed to analyze and break down the chanics of his magic.
Ery started with his movent spell [Light Soaring Wings], then to his defensive spell, [Sylvian Armor] to his summoning spell, [Summon Nature's Familiar]. Lastly, Ery showcased the most dependable spell in his arsenal—[Jade Root]. All four of these spells were high-grade light and nature techniques, which Ery had spent years mastering. However, with his ever-increasing power and the challenges he now faced, these spells needed to evolve to keep up.
The facility operated in a highly structured way, with the expert guides playing a key role in helping Ery break down the intricate rune formations of his spells. Like assembling a puzzle, the guides walked him through the process of deconstructing each spell's architecture, carefully analyzing how the runes interacted.
From there, they scoured the vast resources of the Heavenly Pagoda, introducing him to alternate rune formations pulled from various other spells. The goal was to incorporate these new elents into Ery's existing techniques, boosting their potency and efficiency without compromising their core structure.
The practice room itself was a marvel of magical engineering. Its walls were inscribed with calming runic formations that soothed the mind, allowing Ery to focus with razor-sharp precision. This ntal clarity was crucial as he painstakingly experinted with different rune combinations, seeking to find the right balance that would enhance his spells while keeping them stable.
Despite the advanced guidance and the room's ntal aid, the process was anything but easy. Each spell required an intense level of focus and trial and error. In the end, it took Ery a week of nonstop effort.
He purchased over two dozen spells and various high-grade materials, carefully selecting only the most compatible runes to create the foundation for his newly enhanced techniques spending an overall total of 40 million spirit stones.
The task wasn't complete, though. The guides had helped Ery design the new spell formations, but now he needed weeks of personal training to truly master the enhanced spells and integrate them into his combat style. As Ery wrapped up his sessions, he couldn't help but notice the significant dent in his finances. What worried him even more was his next venture—the Nephilim-facilitated auctions, where rare and powerful items could fetch astronomical prices. If his recent spending spree was any indication, the upcoming auctions could drain him even further.
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