Earth's Greatest Magus

With the information provided by Jinkan and cross-referenced with intel gathered by VIA, Emery 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. Emery 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, Emery learned about the intricate web of relationships within the family and their past internal conflicts, hoping to exploit any potential weaknesses.

Yet, after considering numerous strategies—from sowing discord within the family, undermining their businesses, or even targeting one of their grand magus—none of these plans seemed 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, Emery hesitated to invest too much time in such dangerous endeavors.

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During his time gathering information and seeking opportunities, Emery made full use of his exclusive Sky City memberships. 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 investment proved to be fruitful, as the trees thrived in ways they hadn't before.

Beyond that, Emery 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 meant that acquiring them within the city was a significant advantage, one Emery fully capitalized on.

To secure a steady flow of supplies, Emery also committed another 100 million spirit stones as a future order, successfully negotiating a trade agreement 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, Emery viewed these transactions as sound investments, confident they would yield substantial returns in the future.

These endeavors not only secured Emery's access to essential resources but also elevated his standing among merchants and magus in Sky City. The one place Emery 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 Emery 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 immense challenge, requiring an enormous investment of time and effort. Emery, 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 came in. Like many expert magus who frequented the facility, Emery 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, Emery opted for something 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, Emery 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 me 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 mechanics of his magic.

Emery started with his movement spell [Light Soaring Wings], then to his defensive spell, [Sylvian Armor] to his summoning spell, [Summon Nature's Familiar]. Lastly, Emery showcased the most dependable spell in his arsenal—[Jade Root]. All four of these spells were high-grade light and nature techniques, which Emery 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 Emery 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 elements into Emery'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 Emery to focus with razor-sharp precision. This mental clarity was crucial as he painstakingly experimented 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 mental aid, the process was anything but easy. Each spell required an intense level of focus and trial and error. In the end, it took Emery 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 Emery 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 Emery 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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