C23 I Have Eaten Enough Wolf Meat

Zhang Xing's cheeks flushed with excitement. He had just spent a considerable sum, and the thrill of spending felt so liberating!

He had acquired a wealth of magic skills and warrior martial techniques this time around. Brimming with confidence, he felt ready to ascend to the rank of a high-level magician.

"Congratulations, Island Master. You've leveled up and are now a high-level magician with 80/500 experience points."

"Your next mission: elevate the Black Dragon to Fourth Rank. Current experience points stand at 239/500."

"Construct a pond, cultivate aquatic life, and provide sustenance for the Black Dragon!"

"I could hunt demonic beasts outside to supply the Black Dragon with food and the essential points for his advancement. It seems pointless to build these structures."

Zhang Xing expressed the doubts that weighed on his mind.

The System responded, "Divine Dragon Island is akin to a nation. It can only grow stronger and continue to upgrade through relentless development, ensuring the dragons on the island are well-cultivated."

"In the future, the island will boast expansive forests, woodlands encircled by mountains, scorching deserts, oceans with towering waves, snow-capped mountains, and volcanoes spewing lava. All these will require your efforts to build, Island Master!"

Zhang Xing was taken aback by these words. He nodded pensively, a sense of understanding beginning to dawn on him.

He navigated to the System's Building Panel, located the pond, and initiated construction.

A white light streaked across the orchard, and suddenly, a two-kilometer-long river materialized.

Is this what they call a pond? He had been puzzled why building a mere pond warranted ten thousand gold coins. Now, he realized that to the System, a small river qualified as a pond.

He accessed the shop to browse aquatic animals. The most affordable were the large carps—just one gold coin for a hundred fry.

The priciest fish demanded a thousand gold coins each, far beyond his means.

He decided to purchase some smaller fish, given his dwindling gold reserves.

Since he was to farm in the river, he couldn't limit himself to just one species.

After much consideration, Zhang Xing invested in ten thousand carp fry, another ten thousand crucian carp fry, fifty thousand shrimp fry, and added thirty thousand tadpole fry to his burgeoning river farm.

An adult doghead fish measures approximately one to one and a half meters in length and weighs around fifty kilograms. That should be plenty for Black Treasure to feast on.

Watching 100,000 fish fry swim into the river, Zhang Xing couldn't help but feel like a major fish breeder, a sense of pride swelling in his chest.

With 17,000 gold coins left, he was set for now. But when it came to planting trees and carving out mountains and seas, his funds fell short.

After leaving Dragon Island, Zhang Xing returned to the academy. With over ten minutes to spare before the afternoon classes, he skipped the dorm and headed straight for the classroom.

Students were already seated, eagerly awaiting the arrival of their instructors, chatting and horsing around.

"Zhang Xing, over here!"

At the call, Zhang Xing's gaze shifted to Linder Cleef, the thirteen-year-old scion of the West City's Count Linde family and class monitor, his face dotted with freckles and pale as parchment.

Zhang Xing paid no mind to Linder Cleef, who, bolstered by his noble lineage, had rallied a handful of lesser nobility's children to lord over the class.

In the first month of school, Linder had approached Zhang Xing three times, eager to have him join the Linde family ranks, to become one of his lackeys.

Zhang Xing had consistently ignored them, leading Linder Cleef to mistakenly think he was intimidated.

The entire class shared this view. To them, a pauper, regardless of magical prowess, was nothing without the backing of a powerful noble family. Progress was impossible.

Being a mage was expensive, and without money, advancing one's level was a pipe dream.

They were all aware of Zhang Xing's intermediate mage talent, yet he hadn't earned a single credit, nor had they seen him spend so much as a penny.

Clearly, Zhang Xing was impoverished.

If things didn't change, he'd still be at an intermediate mage's level in his teens, lacking the true power of a mage.

"Zhang Xing, just join the Linde family," Linder Cleef pressed, "and my grandfather has agreed to give you five, no wait, three gold coins a month. Plus, I'll treat you to wolf meat-stuffed buns every week!"

Zhang Xing curled his lip dismissively. "I've had my fill of wolf meat."

He was full?

At the sound of Zhang Xing's voice, the entire class burst into laughter.