Chapter 470 – Zhizhi Takes the Reins

Chapter 470 – Zhizhi Takes the Reins

Taking advantage of the fact that they had just left Green Forest Town but hadn’t gone far—still on the nearby main road where the path was reasonably wide, the conditions decent, and the route perfectly straight—Lilith half-skeptically moved aside and let Zhizhi give it a try.

Zhizhi hopped onto the cushion and plopped right down.

Then it expertly tapped a spot on the carriage wall twice.

Click~

A wooden panel that had been seamlessly flush with the wall popped open, revealing a small viewing port covered with transparent glass.

The height and size matched Zhizhi’s shrunken form perfectly.

Seeing this, what was there left for Lilith and the others not to understand?

Mo Lan had clearly planned from the very beginning to have Zhizhi drive the carriage—otherwise there wouldn’t be such a perfectly fitted hidden viewing port.

Moreover, there was no trace of the viewing port visible from outside the carriage. It had obviously been deliberately concealed.

In truth, Mo Lan wasn’t nearly as calm as they imagined.

Everything else was part of her plan, but Zhizhi’s driving skills were not.

No matter how clever it was, sometimes it couldn’t help being clumsy and reckless.

Although she had repeatedly told Zhizhi that when driving the carriage, it was better to go slow than to rush.

But Zhizhi had never practiced beforehand. It had only watched attentively from the side yesterday when Lilith and the others were driving.

None of that could guarantee Zhizhi would be able to control the magic carriage smoothly.

Mo Lan was genuinely sweating bullets for it.

If it couldn’t manage, she would have no choice but to serve as the coachwoman herself.

After all, no one could see inside the carriage anyway.

When she noticed that Zhizhi, after taking the controls, didn’t move the little wooden horse, Mo Lan relaxed just a tiny bit.

The position of the little wooden horse right now corresponded to the most appropriate speed for the carriage.

Slow enough, and safe enough.

Being able to resist the urge to floor it was already half the battle won.

To keep the driving job it had been coveting for so long, Zhizhi forcibly restrained its naturally restless and hyperactive temperament, resisting the impulse to speed up. However, once this straight stretch ended, there would be curves ahead.

It needed to familiarize itself with the steering controls in advance.

Gripping the horse head, it was careful and then more careful, only slightly turning the horse head’s direction to test the steering.

After the carriage made several small left and right turns on the straight trade road, Zhizhi finally got a feel for it.

By the time the straight stretch ended, it successfully controlled the carriage through a beautiful turn around a bend.

Only then did Mo Lan relax, proudly telling her companions, “How about that? Zhizhi’s doing a great job, isn’t it?”

Lilith, Vasida, and Sylph: “…”

They really couldn’t find a single fault.

It seemed those scrolls were definitely getting transcribed after all.

“《Essential Survival Skills for Apprentices》, is it?” The three Sorceresses resigned themselves to their fate, pulling out their Grimoires and locating this mage book they had transcribed before leaving the Wilds, and began reading.

Mo Lan, also satisfied, took out some alchemical materials and began crafting blank magic scrolls.

She had only just learned to make Apprentice-level blank magic scrolls—after that there were still Beginner and Intermediate levels to go!

Beyond those, she didn’t have the crafting methods.

But it wouldn’t be too late to search for them after mastering what she had on hand first.

Come to think of it, these magic scrolls actually shared a remarkable similarity with her {Magic Cards}.

Both could release magic upon use. However, {Magic Cards} could only be created by her—or rather, by the Book of Cards—and the magic contained within was limited to what she, as the Book of Cards’ master, knew.

But blank magic scrolls could allow any mage to record their own magic into them.

Mo Lan wanted to thoroughly research the principles behind blank magic scrolls and create a type of {Blank Magic Card} that could record any kind of magic.

Not just mage magic, but witch magic, Angel magic, Dragon magic—all of it.

Human mage Alchemy Magic certainly had its unique strengths, but the way human mages controlled access to knowledge also left her in awe.

She had managed to learn how to make Apprentice-level blank magic scrolls, yes.

But she had only been copying the process mechanically based on her experience with witch Alchemy Magic.

In reality, she hadn’t understood the meaning of a single mage alchemical rune.

The books Grandma Dayla had sent contained alchemical blueprints for Apprentice-level, Beginner-level, and Intermediate-level blank magic scrolls, but not a single word explaining the alchemical runes involved.

Whether it was mage alchemy or witch Alchemy Magic, the most core and fundamental element was those special runes that could channel magical energy.

Without knowing their meanings, how could one possibly understand the principles behind these alchemical blueprints?

It was just like the Alchemy classes at the Academy back then—mechanically copying alchemical processes only taught you the bare surface, enough to make simple alchemical items.

But anything more complex was beyond reach, and there was no room whatsoever for creativity or modification.

Back at the Witch Academy, this approach existed because many witches had only mediocre talent in Alchemy Magic, so this method was used to help them quickly master the creation of commonly used magical items for daily life.

But among mages, it was done to keep the core alchemical heritage firmly in their own hands.

Mo Lan had asked Grandma Dayla about this. The most orthodox and comprehensive alchemical heritage in the Mage Empire was held within the Imperial Magic Academy’s Alchemy Branch—everywhere else, you could only learn superficial knowledge.

Many mages could make simple magical items, but only mages who had trained at the Imperial Magic Academy’s Alchemy Branch could truly call themselves alchemists.

Many mages might have collected alchemical blueprints, but the core books on alchemical runes existed only within the Imperial Magic Academy’s Alchemy Branch.

For now, Mo Lan could only rely on her experience with witch Alchemy Magic to study more mage alchemical blueprints, hoping that with enough study, she might be able to deconstruct the runes on the blueprints and decipher their meanings and uses.

After all, she had already learned everything she could of witch magic. Now it was only her magic level that was still a bit lacking.

But that wasn’t something that could be maxed out all at once—it required long periods of accumulation and practice.

Right now, on the carriage, she had plenty of energy to research other things.

For an Advanced mage to study mage alchemical blueprints was perfectly normal.

Mo Lan figured that many mages without an alchemical heritage had probably had the same idea as her.

As for what results they achieved—that was anyone’s guess.

Immersed in her alchemical blueprints, she stopped paying attention to how Lilith and the others were progressing with learning to transcribe magic scrolls.

But Lilith and the others didn’t actually need Mo Lan hovering over them for everything.

When Mo Lan occasionally looked up at them, they were studying so earnestly that she felt increasingly gratified.

It seemed they had only been hesitant before starting. Once they began, they were giving it their all.

In reality…

Lilith, Sylph, and Vasida had been spurred on by Mo Lan’s competitiveness once again.

Who was it that said witch alchemical runes had broader applicability than mage ones, just with insufficient development?

And now she was studying more diligently than anyone, progressing faster than anyone!

They couldn’t outpace her as witches, and now as mages, they still couldn’t outpace her!

Surely they could at least manage something as simple as transcribing magic scrolls, right?

<(`^´)>