It wasn't just wizards traveling alongside Leilin — plenty of ordinary people were on the road as well.
Most of these common folk were driving carts loaded with vegetables, fruits, and all manner of produce.
When they encountered wizards, they would bow respectfully, but there was no trace of real fear on their faces. It seemed that within the White Wizard Domain, wizards held an exalted position yet remained approachable to the common people.
This puzzled Leilin somewhat, because in the lands ruled by Dark Wizards, the mere mention of a wizard conjured images of terror and bloodshed — a single Wizard Apprentice could scare an entire town into fleeing.
"So the stories about wizards and ordinary people living side by side in the White Wizard Domain are actually true!" Leilin watched a farmer on the roadside remove his hat in greeting and smiled, nodding in return.
"And besides…" A faint blue light flickered in his eyes. "There are no traces of radiation damage on them. Is it because of the Purification Towers?"
In regions governed by White Wizards, tall white towers were erected at regular intervals, constantly releasing neutralizing energy that eliminated the radiation contamination on wizards' bodies. This was the key technology that made coexistence between wizards and ordinary people possible in this area.
As for territories under Dark Wizard rule — Leilin had seen the blueprints for Purification Towers in the Black Bone Forest Academy library — but it seemed none of the Dark Wizards could be bothered to build such things in their own domains. Beyond the cost, Leilin guessed it probably had to do with the Dark Wizards' preference for ruling mortals through blood and terror.
As his mount galloped on, Leilin felt his field of vision suddenly open up.
Green waves, like the swells of an ocean, rippled gently in the breeze, exuding a sense of rich abundance.
This was the Trigones Plain — a vast expanse spanning tens of thousands of square kilometers, home to dozens of cities with populations exceeding one hundred thousand.
And Trigones City sat at the very heart of the plain, the core of the entire region.
"The plants here are growing so vigorously!"
Leilin couldn't help but marvel. The closer he got to Trigones City, the more impressive the crops became — some wheat grew nearly as tall as a man, and the sight stirred something in his mind.
"Surprised? You must be a wizard from out of town?"
A small red horse cantered up alongside Leilin's mount, and a female wizard riding it addressed him.
She wore a white robe with a necklace of pearls and gems draped across her chest. Her looks were fairly ordinary, but a warm smile graced her face.
This sense of calm was something Leilin rarely experienced.
Despite having the energy fluctuation of a First-level Wizard, she seemed to lack practical experience. Her only defense was a single layer of innate wizardry protection — as if that were enough. But in Leilin's eyes, at such close range, a single Shadow Fireball would reduce this female wizard to charcoal.
"Yes, ma'am. I've come from far away — I'm a wandering wizard! You can call me Leilin!"
Leilin wore an innocent, harmless smile as he introduced himself.
"My name is Jenna. I'm a wizard in Trigones City. Did these wheat stalks surprise you?"
The female wizard smiled and struck up a conversation with him of her own accord.
"Yes. As you know, very few types of wheat can grow this tall, and the yield…" A hint of puzzlement crossed Leilin's face.
"It's a gift from the wizards! It'll be time soon — you'll get to see for yourself!"
A mysterious, almost expectant look appeared on the female wizard's face.
"I look forward to it!" Leilin smiled faintly.
He could tell — this woman was like a pure, innocent lamb, lacking experience dealing with wizards of equal rank and curious about everything beyond her world.
She reminded him of some young lady who'd wandered away from a great family.
But Leilin soon put that thought aside. As the distance closed, Trigones City finally came into view.
The first thing he saw was a black dot on the horizon.
Then the dot grew larger, and larger still, spreading like a dark cloud that seemed to blot out the sky itself.
Leilin's mouth fell open in astonishment. Before him stood an impossibly tall mountain peak, rising into the clouds, standing silently on the plain.
Leilin had seen plenty of mountains in both his past life and this one, but he could guarantee he had never encountered anything so massive — a peak vast enough to darken the sun.
Moreover, countless structures and tiny moving dots covered the mountainside, layered one atop another all the way up.
At the mountain's base, a towering circular wall of gray granite enclosed the perimeter, easily several dozen meters high, radiating an imposing grandeur.
At the summit, patches of pristine snow glistened, and thin tendrils of black flame curled upward from the peak, as though the mountain were about to erupt.
"A live volcano! Trigones City is built on top of a live volcano!" Leilin blurted out.
"That's right! Keep watching!"
The female wizard Jenna smiled and pointed toward the crater.
Boom!!!