The Apprentice Trading Market was never short on hustle and bustle.

Allen made his way through the crowd and entered a shop called "The Breeder’s."

The shop’s sign bore a red and white spherical design. It was one of the few shops in the market that openly purchased live Magical Beasts, and it was rumored to be backed by an academy professor.

"Boss, take a look."

Allen wasted no time, placing a specially made metal cage directly on the counter.

Inside the cage, four Volcanic Fierce Ape cubs were huddled together, shivering.

Their fiery-red fur seemed a little dull, and their eyes were filled with fear.

A kindly old man in white research attire, with the strange name of Da Mu, was carefully observing the four cubs.

"Good condition. They’re a little listless, but it won’t affect their upbringing. For all four, one price: three thousand Low-Level Magic Stones." Da Mu held up three fingers.

"Shopkeeper Da Mu, these are high-quality Magical Beasts capable of awakening a ranged attack talent, not some ordinary pets. Besides, their frames are well-proportioned and they’re full of life. Their future potential is immense."

Allen tapped the cage lightly. "Four thousand Magic Stones, and not one less. I also have a batch of materials I’m looking to sell."

With that, he began taking items out of his Space Ring in batches.

Over a dozen complete Magical Beast hides, a Flame Spirit’s core, Magma Dog claws... All sorts of materials suffused with a dense fire-elemental aura soon piled high across half the counter.

The kindly old man’s eyes instantly lit up.

These materials were of exceptionally high quality, and they had been processed with clean precision.

"A real expert."

The smile on Da Mu’s face became much more sincere. "Young man, you’re a straight shooter, so I’ll be one too. Thirty-eight hundred for the cubs. As for this batch of materials, I’ll round it up for you to ten thousand five hundred. That’s a total of fourteen thousand three hundred Low-Level Magic Stones. How does that sound?"

"Deal." Allen nodded; the price was close to his own estimate.

The transaction was completed quickly.

His ID card now showed an additional 14,300 Magic Stones. Allen had only kept nine Transformation Crystals and the Soul Material for himself, selling off nearly everything else.

Instead of leaving immediately, he began to browse through the market.

"Boss, do you have any spatial storage devices made specifically for holding Mechanical Body modules?"

"Oh? What capacity do you need?" The shopkeeper, who specialized in spatial equipment, grew interested. ’Looks like another big sale just walked in the door,’ he thought.

"Something large, around a hundred cubic meters. It needs to have adjustable internal partitions to prevent collisions and damage," Allen described his requirements.

"Then you’ve come to the right person." The portly shopkeeper retrieved a black metal bracelet from deep behind the counter. Its surface was etched with intricate mechanical patterns, giving it a strong industrial aesthetic.

"A specialized bracelet for Alchemy Wizards. Ten independent compartments, all freely resizable. The price is six thousand Low-Level Magic Stones, non-negotiable."

’This thing is designed specifically for carrying Mechanical Bodies. PX-0 alone requires a 4x2x2 space, for a total of 16 cubic meters. The rest of the space could still hold nine Spider Slayers.’

’It’s not like I have a choice. As I build more Golems, I’ll need to buy an even more expensive one. When you factor that in, it feels like I didn’t make much of a profit from this hunt after all.’

"Alright." Allen handed over his ID card without hesitation.

Allen’s willingness to spend so readily made the portly shopkeeper’s smile grow even wider.

...

「Zone F, Workshop No. 37」

Allen stood before the "Pacifist" prototype, PX-0, craning his neck to look up at it. Its imposing Magic Steel frame was fully assembled, and its weapon modules had passed live-fire testing. Now, only the final part remained.

The brain that would grant it intelligence: the Control Core.

"DSeek, compile the manufacturing plan for the Control Core."

[Manufacturing plan for "PX-0" Control Core generated.]

[Project divided into three main modules:]

[1. Soul Processing Module: Cleanse and reshape the captured adult soul of the Volcano Tyrant Ape Leader, processing it into a combat AI to serve as the core’s central processor. Technique requires further study.]

[2. Perception Integration Module: Design and manufacture a new multi-dimensional sensor array integrating various detection modes—such as thermal, Magic Power spectrum, and sonar—to serve as the Golem’s ’eyes’ and ’ears’.]

[3. Command Link Module: Learn and etch the specialized Runes for the ’Cluster Link Art’ to establish an information channel between the "Pacifist" and the "Demon Eye" scout units, enabling networked, coordinated combat. Technique requires study.]

Looking at the task list on the glowing screen, Allen pinched the bridge of his nose. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Soul processing would be his first time putting the *Soul Processing Art* taught by Master Mercer into practice. Extracting a soul was merely the most basic application of the technique.

He would need to take that soul, filled with its brutal and chaotic will, and process it like a block of code—deleting its "junk files" like memories, emotions, and most of its self-awareness. He had to retain only the purest combat instincts, then modify them to create "drivers" that would allow it to adapt to its new body and support its ray emitters.

It was a delicate operation; the slightest misstep would cause the soul to collapse completely. He needed to study more with his master and get some practice on other Violent Ape Spirit Monkeys first.

The command link module was also essential.

In a combat system where he served as the command hub for various scout units and combat platforms, it wouldn’t be wise for Allen to process all the information and make every decision himself as the number of Golems grew. A single moment of carelessness could cause him to lose everything.

Since the Golems themselves had basic intelligence, it would be better to fine-tune them so they could use battlefield information to make autonomous decisions at critical moments.

And that would involve a deeper application of the Cluster Link Art, establishing interconnections between the Mechanical Bodies.

For this key technology, he would have to wait for Master Mercer’s next lesson.

’There’s still so much to learn... and time waits for no one.’

Allen pulled up his personal status panel, examining his progress over the last six-plus months.

[Financial Status Summary:]

[Current Account Balance: 9,312 Low-Level Magic Stones.]

[Interest-Free Credit Line: 26,841.4 Low-Level Magic Stones.]

[Financial Assessment: Healthy. The ’PX-0’ project has entered its final stages; no further large-scale capital investment is required.]

Thankfully, the personalized academic path service he’d launched and the hunt on his return trip had given his finances a much-needed boost. Otherwise, he probably would’ve had to dip into his credit line again.

Allen’s gaze shifted downward.

[Progress: *Myriad Machines Resonance Meditation Method*]

[Core Matrix (Stage One): 31/36]

[Mind Split Rune Array (Second Thread): 10/15]

[Core Witchcraft Inscription: 2/3]

The effects of those three Spiritual Enhancement Potions were beyond imagination. After taking all three, his overall training speed had increased by nearly forty percent.

The progress on his Will Rune inscription was very encouraging. At this rate, he would be able to advance to the rank of Official Wizard by the end of his third year as an Advanced Apprentice.