"Exclusive Intermediate Alchemy Witchcraft: ’Non-Magical Material Recomposition Technique’ and ’Flaw Detection Technique.’ Borrowing for three days, a total of three thousand Low-Level Magic Stones."

"Six generic Intermediate Witchcraft: ’Damage Transfer,’ ’Advanced Flying Magic,’ ’Counterspell,’ ’High-Level Magic Shield Technique,’ ’Blink,’ and ’Walking in the Shadow Realm.’ Borrowing for three days, a total of six thousand Magic Stones."

"Low-level Witchcraft: ’Magic Energy Burst’ and ’Magic Pulse.’ Borrowing for three days, two hundred Low-Level Magic Stones."

He finally stated the total price: "A total of nine thousand two hundred Low-Level Magic Stones. A reminder, all Witchcraft models are protected by the academy’s contract. They can only be studied within the designated area and cannot be taught to others."

Nine thousand two hundred.

The number echoed in Allen’s mind. Even for him, the cost was enough to make his molars ache.

The profits ’New Western’ had painstakingly earned over the past few months were nearly wiped out in one go. ’And I was hoping to save some money to produce the PX-1,’ he thought. ’Guess that’ll have to wait.’

The paywall for knowledge, at the level of an Official Wizard, was staggeringly high.

"I’ll pay."

Without hesitation, Allen handed over his identification card.

As a faint light flashed, the data from DSeek in his mind refreshed in sync.

[Current Account Balance: 5,312 Low-Tier Magic Stones.]

[Interest-Free Loan Limit: 26,841.4 / 50,000.]

[DSeek: Emotional fluctuation detected. Analysis model: ’Pain of spending.’ Current humanity value increased by 2%.]

’There are benefits to spending money? Am I supposed to maintain my humanity by raising my blood pressure?’

He took back his identification card and noticed that the ’Advanced Apprentice’ insignia on it had been automatically updated to ’First-level Wizard’. It must have been identified and his permissions updated by the Detection Array at the entrance when he entered the Witchcraft Zone.

The apprentice soon brought a ghostly blue Crystal Ball, the size of a human head, into the Quiet Chamber.

Allen placed his palm against it.

The structure of each of the eight Intermediate Witchcraft spells was a hundred times more complex than all the Low-level Witchcraft he had previously learned combined, like magnificent edifices built from countless precision parts.

Even with the full processing power of DSeek and his three brains, he could barely manage to record them simultaneously. It was impossible to immediately analyze and convert them into executable ’programs’.

’Looks like I can’t learn them all at once.’

He decided to spend a few hours in the library every day from now on, learning this knowledge in batches.

Today, he would first tackle the most pressing issue.

Leaving the Quiet Chamber, he walked toward another section—[Specialized Crafts and Rune Technology].

Vera and the others were waiting to start production. The order for over a hundred Spider Slayers needed to be completed urgently.

He had to solve the mass production problem for the Shadow Travel ability module as soon as possible.

Without a rare material like the Shadow Demon Spider Gland, he would have to use Rune technology and other materials as a substitute, which should be possible with his current manufacturing capabilities.

He moved between the bookshelves, DSeek simultaneously scanning the information on the plaques and filtering it at high speed.

[Cross-Dimensional Rune Design—The Shadow Realm Volume]

[Description: A detailed explanation of how to design a multi-layered Rune Array to tear a stable rift from the Material Realm to the Shadow Realm. Contains thirty-seven basic Rune combinations and three core array models.]

[Borrowing Permissions: Advanced Apprentice and above. A 72-hour loan costs 800 Low-Level Magic Stones.]

’This is it.’

This booklet contained the exact methods and techniques he needed. Once he mastered them, he could use corresponding conductive materials to inscribe artificial ’Shadow Travel’ Rune Circuits onto any Mechanical Body.

The effect might not match that of the natural material, but its advantages were controllable costs and suitability for mass production.

This was the crucial step in transforming the ’prototype’ from the laboratory into a ’standardized product’ on the assembly line.

’Keep going.’

Allen wasn’t satisfied with just this. His sights were set on something further.

The export version of the Spider Slayer was planned to be a steady cash cow. To keep that cow producing milk, he needed to install an ’anti-theft lock’ that others couldn’t easily replicate.

He didn’t want a bunch of knock-offs flooding the market shortly after his product was released.

Patent protection in the Wizarding World was far more fragile than on Earth. Fists and technological barriers were the only things that truly mattered.

Soon, he unearthed another key technology.

[Rune Encryption Technology (Advanced)]

[Description: Encrypts core Rune Circuits by embedding misleading Runes, setting traps, and constructing multiple Rune locks. Forcible cracking will most likely lead to the circuit’s self-destruction.]

[Fee: 500 Low-Level Magic Stones.]

Two swift, decisive payments, and the balance in his account shrank again.

The idea of mass-producing the Peacemaker had been on his mind for too long, but to make it a reality, he needed an industry that could provide a continuous transfusion of capital.

When Allen walked out of the Central Library’s main entrance, it was already three in the afternoon. The sunlight on his skin felt incredibly pleasant, especially since he hadn’t seen the sun much lately.

His newly promoted body was exceptionally sensitive to the flow of external Magic Power. Even without entering Meditation, he could feel the free-floating elemental particles in the air.

Within him, his ocean of Spiritual Power was vast and boundless, and his Magic Power surged like a great, unending river.

In his mind, a dozen new Witchcraft models lay quietly in DSeek’s database, waiting to be learned.

An unprecedented feeling of power and freedom filled his entire being.

[DSeek: Task list updated.]

The mechanical voice echoed in the depths of his consciousness, pulling him back from his thoughts.

[Current Task List:]

[1. Produce the basic model of the ’Spider Slayer’ (10 units/24 hours) for delivery to ’New Western’.]

[2. Design and prototype the upgraded ’Spider Slayer’ (Shadow Travel module).]

[3. Learn and practice new Witchcraft (Priority: Advanced Flying Magic, Short-Range Teleportation, High-level Magic Shield).]

[4. Schedule a meeting with Mentor Mercer to consult on the cultivation path for a First-level Wizard and methods for acquiring subsequent resources.]

[5. Initiate the PX-1 mass production construction plan (Phase One: Fund-raising and confirmation of the material procurement list).]

[6. Academy Asset Trusteeship Plan: Before leaving the academy, consolidate all of ’New Western’s’ business operations and find a suitable manager or sell the enterprise.]

The clearly defined tasks were laid out like a precise military campaign map.

Lifting his head slightly, he looked up at the sky.

"Efficiency... can still be improved a little," Allen muttered to himself.

The next second, his feet silently left the ground, and his body slowly began to float.

[Advanced Flying Magic] had already been learned at high speed.

Pure Magic Power held his body aloft, stable and light.

He adjusted his posture, leaned forward slightly, and instantly became a black afterimage, shooting toward the distant workshop district.

On the ground, a few apprentices who had just walked out of the library only felt a gust of wind and instinctively looked up, but all they saw was a black dot rapidly disappearing.

"Wh-what was that just now?" an apprentice asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Looked like a person... flew away?" his companion replied, uncertain.

"I didn’t feel any Magic Power fluctuations from an Alchemy Creation... It must have been an Official Wizard. I’m so jealous."

The wind howled past his ears as the buildings and crowds below receded rapidly, blurring into patches of color.

Even his [Mechanical Mind] couldn’t suppress the feeling of breaking free from the earth’s bonds and soaring freely.

He had to hurry back to the workshop and turn those eagerly awaited orders into the first round of startup capital for his ascent to greater heights.