Chapter 8

With a goal in mind, the initial confusion of adapting to this new world dissipated significantly. Gaodeng felt he had already adapted to life in the new world and fully integrated into his current identity.

As a mage, there were only a few ways to earn money using his professional skills.

Tutoring noble children who aspired to become mages and charging tuition. For a low-level mage like Gaodeng, who only mastered first-level spells, this path was clearly not feasible.

Joining an adventure party and hoping to find hidden treasures in some dangerous ruins to become rich overnight? He had almost lost his life recently because of an adventure party, so this path was immediately ruled out.

Copying scrolls, concocting potions, crafting magical items, and enchanting items. These were the four safe and effective ways to earn money.

For low-level mages, the first two methods were more suitable because they required lower costs and simpler knowledge, needing only to master a single skill.

Enchanting items required a mage to master runes, arrays, and enchantment, which could be described as a composite discipline in modern terms.

However, from Gaodeng's actual situation, making money through item enchanting was more practical than other methods.

Firstly, Gaodeng's mother was a mage, though her rank was not high, or she wouldn't have married his father, a minor noble. However, she had a certain level of expertise in crafting magical items and enchanting.

Among the inheritance she left Gaodeng, there was not only a book related to item enchanting but also a fully functional magic workbench.

Not long ago, Gaodeng had worked in a magic workshop in Bishui City for quite some time, which greatly honed his enchanting skills.

It was always easier to stick to what he knew rather than starting from scratch, and it was also less risky.

However, just as Gaodeng was excited about his plan to make money, he discovered a serious problem: he had no raw materials to make magical items, and he didn't have enough money to buy them!

This feeling was like spending eight hours downloading an AVI file, only to find out it was the complete series of "The Snail Boy" after taking off your pants!

"Damn! It looks like I need to find a job first to earn enough startup capital," Gaodeng counted the silver coins in his money bag, which were only enough for a few days of food, feeling helpless.

Xieona, who was good at managing the household, had excellent cooking skills. After eating a tender and juicy venison steak in the kitchen, Gaodeng, with a full stomach, confidently walked out of the house.

Surely, he could find a job in one day, right?

Bishui City, with a population of 100,000, was named after the Bishui River that divided the city into two. Thanks to this abundant river, Bishui City, with its well-developed waterway transportation, became one of the top trade centers in the north.

The main streets were paved with large blue stones, wide enough for four carriages to travel side by side. Just building two top-quality roads that spanned the city in all directions cost the city lord a year's tax revenue.

It was early autumn, and the leaves were turning from green to yellow, creating a brilliant golden landscape. There was a sense of desolation as winter approached, but also the joy of a bountiful harvest.

Starting from the eastern district where the nobles lived, Gaodeng crossed the Bishui River and arrived at the western bank.

Due to its proximity to the water transport docks, the western bank had convenient cargo flow and a large population, making it a popular location for merchants to set up shops and workshops. Over time, it had developed into a large commercial area.

Bishui City was a vibrant commercial city with many job opportunities. Gaodeng believed that although his level was not high, he was a mage, a highly educated talent, and should easily find a job.

However, while the ideal was grand, the reality was harsh.

He ran around all day without any results. He even spent a few more coins on a meal at a small tavern at noon, making his already empty money bag even lighter.

In the evening, Gaodeng returned home, dragging his tired body.

The day was not entirely fruitless; he at least understood why it was so difficult to find a job.

A low-level mage's average monthly hire fee was 10 gold coins. In the countryside, a typical family of three farmers' monthly expenses were only one gold coin.

Clearly, there were not many people in Bishui City who could afford this fee. It was normal for Gaodeng to have trouble finding a new job. Just like a farmer with no high demands could easily find work, a company executive who had just quit would find it difficult to quickly find a job with a suitable salary.

Although he had nothing to show for his day, Gaodeng was not discouraged by this minor setback.

After dinner, he went to his small study.

"Light."

Gaodeng snapped his fingers, and a ball of light rose in his palm, emitting a soft white glow that filled the entire study.

In this world, books, especially magic books, were very valuable. Using candles or other open flames for lighting in a study was dangerous. Moreover, the light source created by the Light spell was brighter and more stable than a candle. He didn't want to become nearsighted before becoming a legendary mage.

Only Gaodeng, who could cast spells using mana, could afford to use the Light spell for lighting. Other mages could generally only cast four zero-level spells a day!

Gaodeng picked up the book "Principles and Applications of Common First-Level Spells."

In "Ancient Era," players could gain experience points in two ways: theory or practice.

Theory included reading books, scrolls, stone tablets, wall carvings, and other items that carried information, or paying NPCs for education and training.

Practice included combat, adventures, and completing quests.

When Gaodeng checked his attributes, he found he was only 20 experience points away from reaching level 3.

In "Ancient Era," a level 1 mage could use zero-level spells (also known as cantrips) and first-level spells. For every two character levels gained, a mage could learn a higher-level spell.

Being able to cast second-level spells was a significant temptation for Gaodeng, as it would greatly enhance his power.

"Ancient Era" was a virtual online game that claimed to be identical to the real world except for the lack of pain. The game paid attention to every detail. Players couldn't just skim through books to gain experience points and learn skills.

Only after carefully reading all the text, fully understanding the content, and memorizing key information would the system recognize the reading as complete.

Reading a book in the game was equivalent to reading a book in real life.

Fortunately, Gaodeng, who had undergone potential development and modern education, was not unfamiliar with reading and learning.

The system showed his intelligence was now 19 points. The average intelligence of ordinary humans in this world was 10, equivalent to an IQ of 90 to 100, similar to the level of the 21st century in Gaodeng's world.

In Gaodeng's time, with the development of technology and improvements in education, the average IQ reached 130, equivalent to an intelligence of 17 in the game.

Gaodeng, who had been admitted to a world-class university, had an IQ of 150. After his soul transmigrated, although his body changed, his brain still maintained the high intelligence level of a highly educated person from a highly civilized society.

A mage needed an intelligence of at least 10 points higher than the spell level to learn a spell. For example, to learn the third-level spell Fireball, Gaodeng's intelligence needed to be at least 13.

The previous Gaodeng, who had been learning magic since childhood, had spent over a decade without breaking through to the second layer of the magic network, indicating his intelligence was only 11, slightly better than the average person. He would likely only master first-level spells in his lifetime.

With an intelligence of 19, Gaodeng had a natural advantage in his mage career. Moreover, every four character levels gained, players received one free attribute point. As long as he didn't die prematurely, mastering ninth-level spells was just a matter of time. Of course, whether he could break through and become legendary would depend on fate.

The future was bright, and the prospects were great. This was why Gaodeng abandoned the path of gaining experience through combat and adventures.

Because the risk was too high.

As a low-level mage, Gaodeng's combat power was not strong, and he could only serve as a support in an adventure party. Powerful adventure groups usually had their own dedicated casters and wouldn't consider Gaodeng. Low-level adventurers, while welcoming any mage, were weak and had poor self-preservation skills. Joining such a group was almost like suicide.

It was safer and more comfortable to stay at home, read books, and learn the magic knowledge of this world, gradually gaining experience.

Before mastering third-level spells, Gaodeng had to be extremely cautious about combat and avoid it unless absolutely necessary.

In just one night, Gaodeng finished reading "Principles and Applications of Common First-Level Spells." Since he had already read 63% of the book, he only received the remaining 37 experience points and two Arcane Knowledge skill points.

However, it was enough. Gaodeng took 20 experience points from the experience pool and allocated them to his character, feeling a warm current surge from his chest, spreading to his limbs. This feeling was familiar, and he had experienced it countless times in "Ancient Era" — he had leveled up.

Each level up, Gaodeng gained 20 maximum mana points and 2 basic skill points. The human race's Quick Learner trait allowed him to gain an additional skill point per level. With his 19 intelligence, which provided a +4 modifier, he gained an additional four skill points, totaling seven skill points per level up.

Gaodeng invested two skill points in item enchanting, two in array studies, and the last three in rune studies.

This brought all three skills related to item enchanting to level 8.

Then, Gaodeng turned his attention to the feats.

When a character's level reached a multiple of three, they gained a feat point.

Without hesitation, he chose to learn "Agile Crafting."

This feat increased the success rate and quality of the items he crafted.

While feats like "Combat Casting," "Empower Spell," "Heighten Spell," and "Spell Penetration" were also good and could enhance combat power, they were not very meaningful for Gaodeng.

Earning money was the most pressing issue he faced now.

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