Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2497: Chapter 2498: Sandworm Market

”Camel bells are dreams, the dust is home, where is the traveler’s heart?”

A gentle voice came from within the Camel Bell Squad. Even amidst the swirling sand, it reached Angel’s ears, clearly someone was speaking to him.

Upon hearing this sentence, Angel was full of confusion. What’s being said? Is this some kind of secret code?

Previously, he hadn’t heard that one needed a code to enter the Wizard Market of the Laksum Principality.

The Camel Bell Squad stopped not far away. Seeing Angel not responding for a long time, the woman who spoke tried to turn and leave on her camel.

However, at that moment, the leader of the Camel Bell Squad called the woman back, whispering, ”Look at that man’s shoulder.”

Not only the woman, but everyone in the Camel Bell Squad turned their gaze to Angel’s shoulder, where Dangross, in the form of a severed arm, was walking back and forth.

Seeing Dangross, everyone seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.

The leader approached slowly with the Camel Bell Squad.

”Sir, are you headed to the Sandworm Market?”

Angel nodded.

”We are the guiding team for the Sandworm Market. Please, sir, do come up.” As he spoke, an empty camel walked slowly over to Angel.

Angel originally wanted to say he could use the Gondola, but after thinking about it, he decided to ride. He had never ridden a camel before, so he figured it could be a rare experience.

After Angel mounted the camel, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing Angel’s puzzled look, the leader explained, ”Many Transcendents have their own means of transportation, so when asked to ride a camel, most refuse. We end up having to explain a lot, and some with bad tempers can even cause conflict with us... We wish they could use their own means, but to enter our Sandworm Market, the camel is the only beacon.”

”Do you mean, if we use other means, we can’t enter the Sandworm Market?” Angel asked in confusion.

The leader smiled mysteriously, ”You’ll understand this matter soon enough.”

The Camel Bell Squad set off again, the camels seemingly slow-moving, yet Angel was astounded to find that every time the sandstorm blew, following the sound of camel bells, the squad seemed to leap through space, arriving at another unfamiliar place.

After several space jumps, Angel began to grasp why riding a camel was mandatory.

Every time a sandstorm appeared, the camels traversed an unknown extent of space. Using one’s own means of transportation in the boundless desert to keep pace with the camels was nearly impossible.

Understanding the process, Angel became intrigued by how the camels traveled through space.

He could confirm the camel he was sitting on had a slight touch of Transcendent nature, but it wasn’t enough to enable space jumping.

Angel shifted his gaze from the camels to the camel bells tied around each camel’s neck.

Although disguised outwardly, Angel could faintly perceive the extraordinary nature of those camel bells.

Seeing Angel examining the camel bells, the leader laughed, ”Sir, you have a keen eye.”

The leader always stayed by Angel’s side, wrapped head-to-toe, his appearance obscured, identified only as a gentleman.

”Those camel bells, are they the secret behind space jumping?” Angel asked.

The leader generously admitted, ”Correct, each camel in our squad has such bells. Inside, an expert in spatial art has engraved a location teleporter. When a sandstorm hits, they absorb external energy to execute the teleportation.”

After a pause, he continued, ”Each bell contains a Blood Covenant, allowing only the Bound Covenant camels to use them, and these camels come from the Lawrence family at the Sandworm Market.”

Though it seemed he was explaining to Angel, he was actually warning him not to covet the camel bells.

The leader’s timing was perfect... because Angel indeed had considered disassembling a bell to study it.

The Camel Bell Squad continued for several more minutes, jumping through space two or three more times, arriving at the second staging area.

This fixed platform had two people standing atop it, dressed similarly to the Camel Bell Squad, entirely wrapped, including their hair.

Clearly, they were also heading to the Sandworm Market.

”Camel bells are dreams, the dust is home, where is the traveler’s heart?” The gentle voice came again from the Camel Bell Squad.

The person at the front of the platform glanced left and right, unsure of what to do.

The one at the back stepped forward, kneeling and spoke reverently, ”The heart is in the open sky, only Mesomyia’s glory remains unfallen.”

”You may come, the other can leave on her own.” The gentle voice made the judgment.

The one who answered the code quickly said, ”She’s my attendant, could you let her accompany me?”

The Camel Bell Squad fell silent for a moment; the leader contemplated before nodding. Though the person answering the code seemed weak, who knows what connections he might have at the Sandworm Market. Better not to offend him if possible.

The two mounted the camels and drove themselves to the back, their bodies tense, evidently quite nervous.

The strongest in the Camel Bell Squad, the leader, a Second Level Apprentice, couldn’t discern their strength; yet Angel could tell at a glance they were ordinary people, although they seemed to possess some Extraordinary Items, perhaps inflicted with magical beast blood, giving off brief waves of transcendence.

Angel didn’t know why ordinary people would venture to the Sandworm Market, possibly another adventurous youth seeking fortune, yearning to enter the Extraordinary World.

Angel chose not to expose their identities, instead turning to the leader beside him, ”Was that a code you just exchanged?”

The leader nodded, ”Yes, to prevent common folk from stumbling into the Sandworm Market, the Lawrence family issued a command requiring the code before boarding a camel. Such codes are abundant across the Wizard Market of Laksum Principality, with each having a unique code.”

”How do you ensure outsiders know the code?” Angel inquired, oblivious to the whole concept of codes.

The leader gave Angel a deep look, ”I assume, sir, you haven’t paid attention before visiting the Laksum Principality.”

Angel nodded.

”Just a slight attention toward the Extraordinary Scene of Laksum Principality will surely lead you to the ’Mesomyia Good Person Newspaper.’ Issued monthly by Mesomyia’s official channels, it lists each Wizard Market’s code.”

”For various reasons, ’Mesomyia Good Person Newspaper’ might reach the hands of ordinary people, so many Wizard Markets frequently change the code. Thus, subscribing to this monthly is advisable for traveling within the Laksum Principality.”

As the leader explained, those who had mounted the camel seemed to tremble markedly.

After hearing the explanation, Angel understood.

Mesomyia is an Extraordinary City, almost all wizard markets in the Laksum Principality revolve around this Extraordinary City. Thus, even the secret codes for the wizard markets are announced via Mesomyia’s Monthly Report.

”Then why wasn’t I matched with the secret code earlier...” Angel thought about the initial time when he wasn’t matched with the code and wondered why they would let him ride the camel.

The leader pointed to Dangross on Angel’s shoulder: ”Is this a flame creature?”

”Wizards who can command elemental creatures are always powerful.”

Even though they couldn’t confirm whether Angel was indeed a wizard, seeing the elemental creature made them naturally respectful.

The existence of the secret code is meant to filter out ordinary people, not to embarrass the Transcendents.

So, the leader welcomed Angel aboard.

In fact, if Angel had shown his true appearance, the leader wouldn’t just have welcomed him, but treated him with utmost respect. After all, the name of the Transcendental Wizard was already very famous in the Southern Domain Wizard World, even more so than some True Knowledge Wizards.

The Camel Bell Squad continued forward, picking up people entering the Sandworm Market at each fixed station.

After visiting four consecutive stations and picking up more than ten people, the Camel Bell Squad finally started to return to the Sandworm Market.

The efficiency of returning to the Sandworm Market was even faster than Angel had imagined.

A burst of dark sandstorm swept in, and the camel bells on all the camels’ necks simultaneously emitted a faint red glow, with a pattern resembling a teleportation array faintly forming beneath them.

About ten seconds later, everyone disappeared from the original spot.

When they reappeared, they were in a vast oasis where the sun was gentle and birds chirped among fragrant flowers.

This place was the Sandworm Market.

...

Saying goodbye to the Camel Bell Squad, Angel walked into this garden-like Sandworm Market.

Various exotic flowers and plants bloomed on the streetside, and special bred bees fluttered in the sky, with colorful butterflies dancing about, making it feel less like the Laksum Principality and more like the fairy capital of Genoa.

In truth, it was indeed not in the Laksum Principality, as this was a piece of Other-dimensional Space.

Throughout Laksum Principality, except Mesomyia, the Extraordinary City in the real world, all other wizard markets existed in Other-dimensional Space. After all, the outside environment was so harsh, even a wizard wouldn’t want a chaotic life.

The Sandworm Market’s architectural style was very desert city-like, mostly constructed with yellow brick and rock.

The overall style was uniform, carrying a unique flavor.

However, such uniformity of color also had drawbacks, as prolonged viewing caused eye strain. No wonder every building was surrounded by bright flowers, probably to soothe the eyes.

On both sides of the main road were extraordinary shops, but Angel barely glanced at them, quickly losing interest.

These shops were mainly prepared for low-level apprentices, and were of no use to Angel. However, Dangross was curious about everything, roaming Angel’s shoulders while looking around, displaying such a naive demeanor that Angel was embarrassed to converse with it, hoping to stride forward and finish his task with Esos’s disciple as soon as possible.

After about half an hour of wandering, Angel checked the name of the street beside him — Thistle Skin Road.

Then he looked down at the address on the envelope: ”Sandworm Market, Sandworm Long Street, Lane 8, Door No. 818.”

Initially, Angel thought that any street named Sandworm Long Street should be a main street. However, after walking along what he thought was the main street, from Green Skin Road to Yellow Skin Road and then to Thistle Skin Road, he saw no sign of Sandworm Long Street.

Helpless, Angel walked into a nearby shop to inquire with the clerk.

Possibly sensing Dangross’s intense heat, the clerk was very polite. Under the clerk’s guidance, Angel learned that Sandworm Long Street was the core trading area of the Sandworm Market and critical, not found in the external world.

To enter Sandworm Long Street, one must find a sandworm statue at the entrance of the Sandworm Market. Only through passing the statue’s test can one enter.

Angel heaved a sigh and retraced his steps back from Thistle Skin Road to the entrance of the Sandworm Market.

Just as the clerk described, there was a gigantic sandworm statue here, appearing to lay flat. The first time Angel passed by, he mistook it for a long strip of stone.

Angel stood before the sandworm statue.

The ugly sandworm seemed to sense the presence of the living, and its eyes began to turn red. A low buzzing sound emerged from its nose.

”Stranger, since it’s your first time to the Sandworm Long Street, you must state your purpose and answer my three questions.”

As the clerk mentioned, the sandworm statue was a spiritual creature, and everyone entering the Sandworm Market for the first time had to undergo its test. Generally speaking, the tests weren’t difficult, and the sandworm statue would let you pass as long as you followed the rules.

Angel gazed at the sandworm statue without speaking but slowly released a trace of wizard-level pressure.

After a moment of silence, the sandworm statue said: ”Stranger of strength, Sandworm Long Street welcomes you.”

With those words, the sandworm statue opened its giant mouth, its densely packed circular teeth invoking fear. However, Angel showed no concern and walked right in.

After taking a few steps forward, the sandworm closed its mouth, and the path ahead naturally lit up with candlelight.

A winding staircase leading downward appeared in front of Angel.

Following the staircase downwards, he soon reached the bottom, pushed open a stone door, and was immediately flooded with the bustling sounds of vendors.

Behind the stone door lay a vast underground space, no smaller than the one above ground.

Even what Angel could see from the end exceeded the size of the underground market below the Barbarian Cave Apprentice Town.

This underground space was incredibly lively, with people coming and going, starkly contrasting the relative emptiness above ground. The architecture here wasn’t confined to the desert style; various styles mingled together, reminiscent of when Angel first constructed Originheart City. Though diverse, the styles weren’t chaotic but harmonious, quite different from Originheart City.

Angel strolled through the underground market with great interest.

Through familiarizing himself with the market, Angel also roughly understood its layout, which could all be called Sandworm Long Street. Mainly, it dealt in sandworm products, and while other items were available, they were scarce.

Sandworm Long Street had twelve lanes, and the farther back the lane, the higher the sandworm grade it traded.

Lanes ten, eleven, and twelve required a qualification assessment for entry, while the earlier lanes allowed unrestricted access.

Esos’s disciple temporarily stayed in the eighth lane, fortunately exempt from qualification assessment.