Chapter 74 - 74 71 Great Harvest_1

74: Chapter 71: Great Harvest_1 74: Chapter 71: Great Harvest_1 The remnants of the campfire were no longer shooting straight into the sky but were instead swaying around. If the flames had been moving in just one direction, one might have attributed it to the wind. However, now that the flames were scattering in all directions, that explanation no longer held. It was not only the campfire. The steam billowing from the pot above it was behaving similarly, twining around the Gnolls gathered nearby, creating a haze of smoke. The wind had also become strangely peculiar. It was not sweeping across the plaza but was instead circling Blackwell Plaza repeatedly. “I see, I understand now,” Gaven couldn’t help but exclaim aloud. The Maiden Priestess withdrew her probing gaze and asked curiously, “Mr. Gaven, what do you understand?” “I understand the true benefit of the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony,” he said. Without waiting for Anna to ask further, Gaven continued, unable to contain himself, “While Dragon Seeking Meditation is a personal matter, at its core, it’s about syncing deeply with the Magic Network and elements through such meditations and, in turn, stimulating the inherited powers in our bloodlines to fully manifest. “When many people perform Dragon Seeking Meditation at the same time, it gathers a significant amount of Magic Power here and activates the elements around us. This external force will, in turn, help them, making it easier for them to activate the inherited powers within their bloodlines. I’m certain that tonight there will definitely be people initiating the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony, and there won’t be just a few.” “I’ve presided over the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony no less than a hundred times, yet this is the first time I’ve heard someone analyze this matter so thoroughly,” said Susie, who had just finished hosting the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony, as she came over. Not only Susie had not entered Dragon Seeking Meditation, but also ten Gnolls from the Pitfall Tribe hadn’t either. They were spread out across the plaza, observing the state of all the Gnolls to determine if any were entering the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony. “This is my analysis from the perspective of a spellcaster, my personal opinion. It shouldn’t be taken as an absolute truth. After all, matters involving racial bloodlines and souls are beyond the grasp of those who haven’t truly experienced them. Don’t be misled by my words,” Gaven added. “We can leave the accuracy of the other points aside for now. But Leader, your point about the confluence of Magic Elements stimulating their bloodlines is correct,” Susie was eager to delve deeper into the issue with Gaven. But at that moment, an urgent yet excited shout came from elsewhere, “Leader, he has entered the Dragon Seeking Meditation, he has found his own True Dragon! His strength is so powerful that it’s almost out of control. We need to prepare the Ritual, quick, woof…” Those on the podium all peered down at once. A Gnoll from the Pitfall Tribe was calling out anxiously, while another Gnoll was enveloped by a thick mist, becoming denser until the entire figure was nearly vanishing. Without asking, it was clear that he had initiated the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony. It was a familiar face—the current chief warrior of the Blackwell Tribe, Cangya. Unexpectedly, he was the first warrior to enter the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony. “Leader, over here, here too!” another Gnoll from the Pitfall Tribe shouted, next to whom a Gnoll was being enveloped by blazing flames. “Leader, over there…” With an apologetic smile to Gaven, Susie said, “You weren’t wrong about that either. Tonight’s Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony is going to exceed our expectations. We can discuss the earlier topic another time. I need to go set up the Ritual Array to help them tap into their strength more easily.” “Go ahead, please hurry,” Gaven said with unrestrained joy, not caring about anything else at the moment, “If there’s anything you need, just send for me. I’ll do everything in my power to help.” “Sure,” said Susie, already sprinting off, merely waving her hand without any indication she had heard. The Dragon Seeking Ritual Array didn’t seem complex. It merely required placing several Spirit Crystal Stones, filled with Psychic Energy, around the Gnolls who had initiated the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony. But to someone knowledgeable like Gaven, the placement of those Spirit Containers was very insightful, placed precisely on the key points of the Magic Network’s pulsations, forming a small circle. Inside and outside the circle, two worlds were formed. The flow of elements inside the circle became extremely slow, which not only could slow down the speed at which elements dissipated but also could alleviate the pressure on the deeply meditating gnolls’ bodies cause by the massive convergence of elements. Outside the circle, the flow of elements, in contrast, became extremely rapid. To be more precise, it actively drew in the same type of elements from its surroundings, pouring them into the circle to make the concentration of elements inside even higher. This further confirmed Gaven’s earlier speculation that the success of dragon-seeking indeed had a lot to do with element synchronization with the external environment. The entire Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony lasted for nearly an hour, and most of the gnolls gradually awoke from meditation. The expressions on these gnolls’ faces were complex. There was certainly disappointment. There was also envy, for among them were acquaintances who had initiated the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony. But more prevalent was excitement, for they had felt, more or less, that pulsation, that call from deep within their hearts. They firmly believed that as long as they persisted in their meditation daily, they would one day initiate the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony too; it was merely a matter of time. A total of forty-nine gnolls had initiated the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony. Not only was Gaven taken aback, but Susie was also quite stunned. This was not a small number, representing three percent of the population. This was even considering that one hundred of the strongest warriors had been on duty and could not join the ritual ceremony. Otherwise, Gaven believed, the percentage might have been even higher, possibly reaching four to five percent. According to the original plan, once most of the gnolls had finished their Dragon Seeking Meditation, they were to be arranged to undergo it. Sёarch* The ηovёlFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Now, the plan had to be canceled abruptly. The Spirit Containers that had been infused with Psychic Energy had run dry, and it was necessary to resort to using Spirit Crystal Stones that had not been imbued with Psychic Energy, which was one reason. There was a visible difference between the Spirit Containers and the Spirit Crystal Stones used in setting up the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony Arrays — the latter’s ability to attract and slow down elements was clearly inferior to the former’s, leading to a lower concentration of elements in the arrays set up using the latter. Another reason was Gaven’s earlier musings about the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony. Whether correct or not, these one hundred gnoll warriors deserved another Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony organized by Gaven. But this Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony would have to wait for ten days. The Blackwell Tribe was already not operating very smoothly due to the sudden drop in population, and now with an additional forty-nine gnolls needing protection, their defensive forces were even more overstretched. It was necessary to wait until they awoke. Susie did not advise holding the Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony frequently either, as it was an event of high consumption and high stress for the average gnoll, and they needed a period to recover from the mental strain and bodily erosion by the elements — individual Dragon Seeking Meditation didn’t bear such a heavy burden, as the magic power elements gathered were comparatively limited. Ten days was a reasonable rest period. Initially, Gaven planned to designate the last day of the ten-day cycle as Blackwell Tribe’s Dragon Seeking Day, but upon further thought, such a set pattern was too conspicuous and could be exploited by others. This matter would have to wait until the Blackwell Tribe became strong enough; before then, the date of each Dragon Seeking Ritual Ceremony would be set on the spot. There was a small surprise for Gaven himself — his Professional Level had increased, and he now was a second-level Psychic Sorcerer.