After the simple celebration ended, Locke returned to the office assigned to him by the treatment center and briefly instructed the few Second-Class Wizard Apprentices who liaised with him there.
Since he had no immediate tasks and the library had already sent two B-grade articles to his office, Locke sat down and began reviewing the two B-grade articles he had purchased from the library for 100 Magic Stones.
The treatment center had many Potionology Assistants, so he didn't have healing duties every day. Additionally, the center had assigned him an office shared with Essie and Angulo, seemingly with the intention of forming the three of them into a treatment team.
Locke first read the article about the mysterious factors of ancient creatures.
Half an hour later.
Locke frowned and wrote in his notebook: "This First-Class Wizard Apprentice believes that ancient creatures were powerful because they universally possessed a special factor called [Mythic Factor] during ancient times. Later, these [Mythic Factors] suddenly went extinct en masse, causing the ancient creatures to give way to the ancestors of modern Magical Creatures."
"Therefore, the strength of ancient creature bloodlines doesn't stem from them being ancient creatures but from the Mythic Factors within them. So, the ancient bloodline of the Orcney Giant Bear within me should also contain this Mythic Factor."
"The author of this article suggests that [Mythic Factors] might be related to deities, which in the Wizard World are little more than fairy tales. This world may have once truly had gods, who left behind many descendants. These [Mythic Factors] likely originated from their bloodlines..."
"The source of every ancient creature's power lies in their divine ancestors."
"The final part is baseless speculation and can hardly be trusted. This is also why the article nearly failed to qualify for a B-grade rating."
"Some scholars of General Studies consider this nothing more than unfounded conjecture."
Locke pondered. "But regarding special factors, the archaeologist McCarthy has made similar claims."
"The author of this article must have had some exposure to archaeology. However, archaeologists are rare in White Wizard society, so it's unclear how he came across such knowledge."
"His article contains many detailed data points and case studies that would be nearly impossible to obtain within White Wizard society. Either he knew a highly skilled archaeologist, or... there's something else at play."
Locke keenly noticed this discrepancy. However, upon checking the author's name, he found it belonged to someone from a century ago, so he could only let the matter rest.
This First-Class Wizard Apprentice seemed to have left Lilith's Cottage after becoming a Formal Wizard to pursue opportunities elsewhere.
Whatever unknown events occurred a hundred years ago were now irrelevant to the present.
"Mythic Factor..." Locke tapped his fingers on the desk, his mind replaying the strange resonance between the two bloodlines within him during his battle with the vampire Howard.
With a peculiar expression, he pondered: 'I wonder if the bloodline I inherently possess is an Ancient Creature Bloodline—whatever it is, it triggered a chain reaction.'
Locke continued reading the second article by the same author, which listed 245 types of Ancient Creature Bloodlines.
Compared to the vast number of Ancient Creature Bloodlines in existence, these 245 were merely a glimpse.
The problem was that in White Wizard society, research on the Ancient Creature Bloodline Domain was practically nonexistent.
Yet suddenly, this article presented a comprehensive summary, making one question where the author had obtained all that data and information.
Moreover, it even passed the value assessment of General Studies magic.
Locke identified three Ancient Creatures recorded in the article whose innate primary elemental affinity was the Gold Element.
"The first is the Golden Griffin. The wizard organization [Golden Dynasty] in the [Twilight Zone] regards it as their symbol, believing it to represent 'supremacy.'"
"However, no living Golden Griffins remain in the [Twilight Zone], only modern Magical Creatures carrying traces of this Ancient Creature Bloodline."
"Modern Magical Creatures with the Golden Griffin's Mythic Factor—such as the Golden Toad and Golden Serpentfolk—possess rapid regeneration and immunity to certain spells."
"The second is the Deep Sea Golden Matriarch. Some remnants still exist in the endless mystic sea, and the [Golden Dynasty] has records of capturing this Ancient Creature sea monster in the deep ocean."
"It has eighteen massive tentacles, an enormous body capable of summoning tsunamis when it moves, and is followed by a Golden Storm. Even Formal Wizards find it a headache to deal with."
"The last one is... the Golden Dragon." Locke frowned. The article provided almost no description of the Golden Dragon.
There was only one line—[An Ancient Dragon species, suspected to be the pinnacle of modern Magical Creatures. The reason dragons are so powerful is that they retain a vast amount of Mythic Factors unique to Ancient Creature Bloodlines.]
Locke took notes on all the useful information and organized it.
At the same time, he planned to scrutinize the article again, hoping to find other special Ancient Creature Bloodlines that might trigger resonance or mutation in his own bloodline.
However, the hidden bloodline within him was most likely related to his Gold Element affinity. Back when the White Wizard Sophia first saw him, she had already sensed something unusual.
She later conducted a basic bloodline trace test on him, but nothing particularly noteworthy was found.
This was also why Locke initially suspected that his unique bloodline might be an Ancient Creature Bloodline.
"The Twilight Zone lies far to the northeast, distant from the Southeast Corner Domain, separated by the endless mystic sea. However, that region seems to have extensive research on Golden Element-related Ancient Bloodlines."
"The power hierarchy there appears higher than here. Finding the origin of my special bloodline might be closely tied to uncovering the truth about this body's mother."
Locke retrieved the ring that had belonged to the original owner's mother from the Astral Ring.
"However, there's no need to rush this."
"Besides, research materials on this subject might not be limited to that one place."
"It seems I'll still need to study archaeology with McCarthy after all."
"From what I can see now, the most reliable research method is to uncover the mysteries of Ancient Creature Bloodlines through archaeology." A glint of interest flashed in Locke's eyes. This approach could both clarify the condition of his own body and potentially help locate the original owner's mother.
Most importantly, he was genuinely fascinated by the Mythic Factor hypothesis regarding Ancient Creature Bloodlines.
Whether the hypothesis was true or not, it undoubtedly represented a form of tremendous power.
Locke recalled accidentally activating the special power within his body before, which had resulted in a peculiar golden force field enveloping him.
That seemed to be a rudimentary form of Golden Magic.
Perhaps he should also look for materials on Golden Magic.
Not necessarily to learn it, but at least to familiarize himself with it.
As Locke was deep in thought, a Second-Class Wizard Apprentice suddenly knocked and barged into the office, addressing Locke, Essie, and Angulo: "Honored ones, please come take a look. Another person whose Magic Plant has been cursed has been brought in."
"Since you three are the only ones in the treatment center with experience in this, they've been sent to you first."
Angulo glanced at Locke and Essie. "Seems we've been conscripted into service."
Locke sighed. "Until we find a targeted solution, I'm afraid this kind of thing won't stop happening."
"This is a contest between curse casters and us Potionology Masters."
"Have either of you come up with any good solutions this time?"
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