Chapter 902 – The Centennial Gathering

“You need to understand — when the flow of time around you accelerates, the time you personally experience is also passing faster! What it consumes is your real lifespan!

Once the time you’ve personally experienced exceeds your natural lifespan limit, even your Mana will begin to drain away. Without sufficient Mana replenishment, once it drops to a certain level, you’ll rapidly age until death!

Is it truly worth it?”

Cecilia’s tone grew heavier as she laid bare the cost Mo Lan would have to pay, urging her to reconsider carefully.

“Indeed,” Pushila said, worry written across her face as she gently cautioned her. “We work hard to study Magic and improve our strength so that we can better explore the world, enjoy longer lives, and live more freely. Trading your life for extra study time — the price is simply too steep… Even as a Sorceress, your natural lifespan isn’t infinite. Squandering your life’s capital like this just isn’t worth it!”

A Witch’s natural lifespan was only five hundred years. Among the Witches present, aside from a few newly joined Sorceresses, virtually all had already surpassed that age.

Although their magical power had all been converted into Mana, it would no longer grow naturally — in fact, it was diminishing with each passing day.

Without finding other methods to extend their natural lifespans, they could essentially only sustain their lives by continuously acquiring more Mana.

Once their Mana dwindled to zero, their lives would come to an end.

“I understand the cost of time acceleration… Adjusting the flow of time for study and research — given everyone’s limited lifespans, it truly must be used with extreme caution. I wouldn’t recommend anyone try it lightly.”

Mo Lan responded calmly, while simultaneously tapping her fingers to clearly display before everyone the cards she had recently compiled: {Knowledge Card — Eighth Rank Witch Magic}, {Knowledge Card — Seventh Rank Witch Magic}, {Knowledge Card — Eighth Rank Mage Magic}, {Knowledge Card — Seventh Rank Mage Magic}, and others.

“These cards contain relatively mature, systematized magical knowledge that I organized after studying the memories of Dao Ancestor cultivators, combined with my own understanding and verification.

Everyone can directly study this already-organized content, which will save an enormous amount of time that would otherwise be spent on independent exploration and derivation.

The prices aren’t cheap, but bartering is also accepted. If anyone has invitations to worlds of Thirteenth Rank or above, you can exchange them directly with me for a complete set of Knowledge Cards!”

These were the heavyweight cards she had prepared for trading this time, and she took this opportunity while the crowd was large to advertise them.

Seeing that everyone still wore worried expressions, Mo Lan said in a lighthearted tone:

“There’s no need to worry about me. For me, the process of studying Magic, exploring the unknown, and continuously making myself stronger — that process itself is tremendously joyful and fulfilling. It has never been a waste of life, but rather the best use of it… This is the perfect opportunity for me to personally test just how long a Sorceress’s natural lifespan really is!”

Sorceresses, as a special existence, had not appeared in Valen’s long river of history for particularly long.

To this day, Valen’s very first Sorceress — the Book Witch, Traci — had already lived through over a thousand years, yet her Mana was still growing naturally, without the slightest sign of decline.

Just how long was a Sorceress’s natural lifespan?

The answer to this question remained unknown to anyone.

Seeing that Mo Lan was genuinely immersed in the ocean of knowledge and deriving pure joy from it, rather than being driven by some external pressure, the Witches finally set their worries to rest.

They had secretly feared at first that this young yet heavily burdened junior — perhaps because of the crises and responsibilities the Witch race had once faced — had developed an overly desperate drive to grow stronger, pushing herself to the breaking point regardless of cost.

If she truly found happiness in it, then this time wasn’t wasted after all. And yet… gazing at Mo Lan’s eyes that sparkled whenever she spoke of learning, more than a few Witches couldn’t help but feel a flicker of puzzlement and disbelief — could someone really find such immense pleasure in that dry, abstruse magical knowledge?

For the vast majority of them, at least, studying Magic was merely a necessary means to grow stronger and pursue freedom and independence. The hardship in the process far outweighed any enjoyment.

“Truly worthy of the title Grindlord Sorceress!”

The exclamation rang out from the crowd once more, but this time, the tone carried less teasing and more genuine admiration.

“Perhaps… only someone who truly loves knowledge itself from the bottom of their heart could reach such heights.”

Another Witch echoed softly, a trace of envy in her gaze that she herself hadn’t noticed.

They might not be able to fully understand Mo Lan’s choice, but in this moment, they respected and admired this nearly obstinate focus and perseverance born from heartfelt passion.

Seeing the topic veer off course yet again, Mo Lan couldn’t resist enlarging the Card Shop interface, making its glow even more brilliant.

Her fingertip tapped the magical light screen, her tone tinged with eagerness:

“Is no one really considering buying a couple of Knowledge Cards? The content is incredibly detailed, the methods are clear and straightforward — guaranteed to be the kind you can start using the moment you read them!”

She deliberately expanded the introduction pages of several high-rank Knowledge Cards for everyone to see.

“Buy now and enjoy the Starsky Gathering special offer — buy one, get one free! Buy one Eighth Rank Knowledge Card, get a Seventh Rank Knowledge Card free. Buy one Seventh Rank Knowledge Card, get a Sixth Rank Knowledge Card free. Limited time only~”

Mo Lan blinked, flashing a playful smile. “These are magical knowledge I spent several hundred years organizing — absolutely incredible value!”

Her sudden sales pitch caught the Witches off guard — they had been lost in their “Grindlord” reflections — but after a moment of surprise, they all broke into knowing smiles.

Some had already begun seriously browsing the product details, while others quipped: “Seems like you’re not only an ultra-grinder, but quite the businesswoman too!”

This once-in-a-century grand gathering was an extremely important platform for exchange and trade among high-rank Witches.

Everyone had accumulated considerable stores of rare materials, unique magical creations, or precious knowledge, all prepared for trading during this period.

Leveraging her abundant reserves of knowledge and Mana, Mo Lan successfully traded for quite a few things that piqued her interest.

Among them, magical knowledge from various other worlds comprised the vast majority. These magical systems, distinct from Valen’s own, held considerable reference value for her continued magical studies and research.

Unfortunately, what she wanted most — invitations that could directly lead to high-level worlds of Thirteenth Rank or even Fourteenth Rank and above — remained beyond her reach.

She had inquired with multiple senior Witches of deep experience and extensive travels, but none of them had any in stock.