Chapter 659: The Homeless Void Merchant Caravan
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 659: The Homeless Void Merchant Caravan
"Yes, they come from outside our world—a group calling themselves the Void Merchants."
"And you believed them?"
"We were skeptical at first, but... you are aware of the Ley Line Shackles."
"Oh, so they aren't Transcendent experts? Did you confirm this with a Mentor? Otherwise, I don't think you would have traded with them so easily," I interjected, catching on quickly.
"No, the club will trade with anyone if the profit is right. However, Assistant Xiao Han, you guessed correctly. They are indeed not Transcendents. We confirmed this with Mentor Elena. That said... those merchants are important suppliers of rare resources for Ninglan New City in the Expansion Realm, and they are currently our temporary partners," Fu Xinglan explained carefully.
"I see... but I don't recall seeing them at the welcoming ceremony?"
"They were there. They even expressed interest in you, though you didn't seem to notice. Would you like us to pull some strings and arrange a conversation?"
"Hmm... how long will they be staying? If they aren't in a hurry to leave, I won't go out of my way to meet them," I asked curiously, completely ignoring the awkward fact that I’d missed them at the ceremony.
"We aren't sure. Perhaps until they sell off all the stock they brought? But as merchants who traverse the layers of the Void, it’s difficult for us to pry into how much cargo they have in their storage equipment."
"Aren't you curious why they’d cross the Void just to sell coffee beans? Is that even enough to cover their costs?" Finally, I voiced the question that had been bugging me.
"We are curious, but... the fact remains that they are selling them. And don't forget, they aren't Transcendents. Their strength isn't even that impressive; they can barely hold their own against an average senior student from the Witch Academy." After saying this, Fu Xinglan stopped and prepared to change the subject. "Assistant Xiao Han, aren't we drifting a bit off-topic? We’ve prepared a Witch Contract in anticipation of this meeting."
"Right... fair enough." I tactfully stopped asking. They had said this was "bonus" information, and pushing further would be prying. The previous favor hadn't even been finalized with a contract yet; if I squeezed all the info out of them without promising anything, they’d be ready to cry.
I naturally accepted the contract—a thick stack of papers accompanied by a badge.
The core content was simple, exactly as they had described: one favor, within my capabilities.
The thick stack consisted entirely of supplementary details—a list of names, factions, and families. Anyone recorded on these pages could come to redeem the favor, provided they held the "token" delivered with the contract: the badge.
Typically, once a Witch Contract is signed, it burns, and its power settles into the bodies of the signees. In this case, it was me, Fu Xinglan, and Tracy, so the power would be split three ways.
However, because the badge acted as a redemption token, the power was split into four parts. This meant only the designated people on the list, holding that specific token, could approach me to call in the favor.
It wasn't complicated; it was a standard template for a token-based favor contract. It included various secondary clauses, such as a prohibition on the redeemer being killed by the granter as an excuse to avoid fulfilling the debt.
Because there were so many legalistic twists and turns, I spent a long time checking it with my Ley Line Identification Art. Only after confirming there were no traps did I sign.
The Witch Contract ignited without a flame, turning to ash. I felt a surge of contract power settle within me, signaling the end of the process.
"Alright. Now, would it be convenient to tell me more about those merchants?" I took advantage of their current joy to make a "small request."
"Of course." Fu Xinglan and Tracy clearly looked like they had just finished their most important task.
They didn't hesitate to reveal more. Perhaps they wanted to use this information to gain a bit more favor. After all, if I were willing to take the trouble, I could just go find the merchant and ask him myself. Providing information I was bound to find out anyway in exchange for goodwill was a bargain for them.
"What else would you like to know?"
"Since you've dealt with that merchant and even established a trade partnership, I assume you've traded information as well?" I asked.
"Naturally. Does Assistant Xiao Han wish to know about things beyond the Void?"
"Yes. Did you buy any such information?" I inquired. "Since they are merchants, that kind of knowledge should be a commodity. And I imagine you were quite curious yourselves."
"We were."
"However... they aren't Transcendents, so their knowledge is limited. How about this... Assistant Xiao Han, you ask what you're curious about, and we’ll give you targeted answers? We won't hold anything back, we promise."
"That works." I nodded, then dropped a heavy question right out of the gate. "Do you know how they severed their Ley Line Shackles?"
"We wondered about that too. If you're asking because you want to imitate them... I don't think their method is applicable to us. Their original world was destroyed. Since the world is gone, the Ley Line Shackles vanished with it. That’s how they became Void Merchants."
"I see... that is indeed extreme." A flash of surprise crossed my mind, but it made perfect sense.
It was certainly an effective way to lose the shackles, if a bit hard on the world itself.
"Next question: who do they work for?"
I asked this because I knew one thing: there is nothing outside the Void. There isn't even a foundation for physical space. Without ascending to the Transcendent level, one shouldn't even be able to survive in the Void—it’s far more lethal than the gravity-less vacuum of outer space.
If their world was destroyed, someone must have saved them. It could be a rescue, or it could be enslavement, but they definitely had a patron.
"They call themselves members of a Void Merchant Caravan. This caravan frequently takes in people from destroyed worlds and trains them to be merchants who travel between the various open worlds of the Void. They call themselves merchants, but they’re really just employees—at least, that’s how they put it."
"Then that caravan must have many Transcendents, right?"
"Undoubtedly. Otherwise, they couldn't have reached our world."
"Aside from these merchants, has anyone else arrived in our world?" I continued.
"That... we aren't sure. So far, we’ve only encountered these merchants. Their arrival was permitted by the Transcendent Academy, so I suspect even if there are others, there aren't many."
"And there’s a high probability that no Transcendent-level powerhouses have descended. As you know, the number of Transcendents in our world is kept at a stable, fixed value."
"Thank you for the information."
After learning a few more minor details, the meeting came to an end.
However, the arrival of outsiders in the Main World weighed on my mind.
The merchants themselves weren't the point, though learning that non-Transcendents could traverse the Void was a useful takeaway. My real concern was the Rebel Witches, or other Transcendent experts like them.
The Transcendent level was terrifying. It was a leap in the very essence of life, touching upon Real Time. My understanding of Transcendents was still rudimentary, but my general impression was that they were virtually immortal.
If senior students who hadn't even ascended yet possessed such frightening immortality, wouldn't Transcendents be impossible to kill by any conventional means?
Still... if you asked me if I’d be afraid to face such an enemy, I’d still grit my teeth and charge in.
What gave me confidence was the power of my Domain. Even many Witches who ascended to the Transcendent level hadn't mastered a Domain; therefore, mine was my greatest trump card.
Even if... mine was technically only a Domain Prototype, it didn't change the fact that it was a Domain in essence.
As for my Great Spellbooks... though I had two, neither seemed to have direct offensive capabilities. My only viable weapons were derived techniques, like the reverse application of Wisdom Granting.
But I had never used such methods on a Transcendent. I didn't know if they would work.
My main worry was the soul.
A Transcendent Soul is a fundamental metamorphosis compared to mere Soul Essence. At the end of the day, the life level represents a massive leap in raw power.
Thinking about it that way, encountering a Transcendent really would be dangerous.
This realization brought a strong sense of unease. But if I forced myself to break my rhythm now just to research ways to kill Transcendents, it felt like putting the cart before the horse. Yet, if I didn't research it, I felt the anxiety of not having my fate in my own hands.
It was a contradiction—like a child seeing a juvenile delinquent and agonizing over whether to learn "child self-defense."
The answer was actually obvious: there was no need to learn it. What I needed to learn was how to accept reality and take precautions.
Besides, Sister Mei told me not to worry. She said she had handled the crisis, so she probably had. With so many Witches in the Main World, I didn't believe a horde of Rebel Witches could just brute-force their way in.
And... the Core World of the Main World still had the Great Weakening Spell!
The original purpose of that Great Spell was to prevent Transcendent experts from destroying the Main World's final Core World.
Under these circumstances, my simple goal of ensuring my soul survived should be quite easy to achieve.
Since I had a safety net for my life, what was there to fear?
After sorting out my feelings, I left the Expansion Realm and returned to the academy.
I had to admit, recent events in the Main World had been tugging at my emotions, especially when my life felt truly threatened. I needed to manage my emotions better. Perhaps I should find something to distract myself.
Like... studying Totemology?
I had already read most of the available materials on Totemology, though. The library only mentioned names; there were no actual instructional books. If I wanted to learn quickly, I’d have to find research notes or journals myself. If things went well, it would be a good way to pass the time.
Maybe... I should ask Sister Mei?
I just didn't know what price I’d have to pay to trade for those materials.
Setting those thoughts aside, I followed the earlier suggestion and went to find Teacher Lina as soon as I returned to the Witch Academy.
Currently, Lina was swamped in her role as Grade Dean. The final monthly exam of the semester had passed, and the final exams were looming.
Although it had been announced that the finals would take place in the Expansion Realm, there were many logistics to consider, especially with the Multi-School Joint Exam involved.
She was currently huddled with several other Grade Deans, discussing the arrangements for the lower-grade finals.
"Hmm? Isn't this Xiao Han? What brings you here?" Sensing a somewhat familiar but uncommon presence, Lina looked up and spotted me.
Her greeting caused the other Witches to look up in surprise. None of them were strangers to the name "Xiao Han."
"Hello, Sister Lina. Hello, sisters. I came today because I was hoping to ask Sister Lina for a favor." I pushed open the office door, my voice sweet as I addressed them, immediately stating my purpose.
"A favor? Xiao Han, shouldn't you be busy in the Expansion Realm? I heard your Omni-Link Main Network Tree project has already spawned an entire laboratory. You aren't planning to drag me into that, are you?" she teased, setting down her work.
"How could I? Sister Lina is so busy, I wouldn't have the heart to ask even one of your clones to help. You don't need to worry about that. I’m actually here about the upcoming College Entrance Exam in the outside world."
"The College Entrance Exam? You're interested in that, Xiao Han?"
"Yes. I want to take on a proctoring mission for the exam. I was wondering... if Sister Lina could help me out. I want to be assigned to a specific testing center."
"Is that all? That’s easy. I’m not the one in charge of it, but I can certainly put in a word. Where do you want to go?"
"Uh..." I was surprised by how quickly she agreed. "Aren't you going to ask what I’m up to, Sister Lina? Aren't you afraid I’ll do something bad?"
"Alright then, Xiao Han, what are you up to?" Lina asked, following my lead as if realizing it late. "As for doing something bad... do you think the Witch Contract signed for the mission is just for show?"
"True..." I said quickly. Witches really did have an unshakable faith in the power of their contracts. "A so-called younger brother of mine is taking the College Entrance Exam this year. I wanted to go check on him."
"You have a brother?" Lina’s hands, which had been reaching for her work, suddenly paused. "Any plans to kidnap him and bring him to the Witch Academy?"
"Huh?"
"If he has a sister as wonderful as you, he can't be that bad, right?" Lina said with a smile.
"Well... we’ll see. He might not be as exceptional as you think, Sister Lina..."
"You used to say the same about yourself, didn't you? But that woman Xi Lan... I have to admit, she has a sharp eye for people. No one knows if an unpolished stone will eventually shine. If he’s mediocre... well, that’s fine. The Witch Academy has plenty of mediocre students."
"So, Sister Lina, you're really set on having me kidnap him, aren't you!"
"I’m joking. Such things... are entirely up to you, of course."