Chapter 477: Getting It Done
Chapter 477: Getting It Done
The Academic Asylum.
This was one of the most notorious places in the Floating City, not due to its strange architecture, but because it housed once-renowned Arcane Masters who’d gone mad. Every resident here had been an elite in their field before losing their minds.
“You’re sure this is it?”
Zuo Meng stared at the magic-castle-like asylum, his jaw slack.
In his imagination, an asylum meant crumbling courtyards with rusty iron doors chained shut, guarded by a senile old man reading newspapers. Inside would be a couple of odd nurses and a deranged head doctor. That’s how it should be!
But this?
Were it not for the “Academic Asylum” sign, he’d have mistaken it for a grand library or an old noble’s fortress.
“No mistake. My cousin lives here. Noble owls with royal blood, they are…”
Owl Jones puffed his chest proudly, implying he too belonged to this noble owl lineage. The act was wasted—Zuo Meng knew nothing of owl nobility or any noble class existing in the Floating City beyond Arcane Masters.
“How do we get in?”
Zuo Meng had originally planned to storm in—his idea of asylums allowed that. But the layers of glowing magic circles and spinning Arcane crystals made him reconsider.
Morning Star level power rivaled ordinary Arcane Masters, but its limits were unclear. One thing Zuo Meng knew: he wasn’t unbeatable here. The thousand-year-old Grand Arcane Masters who could seize stars? He couldn’t match them.
No invincibility meant playing by the rules.
“This is the Academic Asylum! Ordinary people can’t just sneak in!” Owl Jones rolled his eyes. His new friend clearly didn’t grasp Floating City laws—unsurprising for someone who’d slept in parks.
“Visiting a patient?”
“Denied. The youngest inmate is two centuries old. That excuse won’t fly.”
“But Arcane Masters live forever. Two visiting relatives isn’t weird.”
Half a day’s research on the Floating City had been too brief. Surface-world myths didn’t apply here.
“Arcane Masters live long. Their offspring don’t!”
Owl Jones sighed. Basic common sense eluded this guy.
“Visiting a friend?”
“They’re all lunatics!”
“Visiting family, then?”
“What family?”
“Your cousin!”
“He’s an owl!! He lives in a rooftop nest. You think that’ll get you past security?”
“You said he’s noble! Don’t nobles have privileges?”
“Owl. Nobles. Are. Owls.”
Jones gave up. Zuo Meng rubbed his temples.
Force failed. Bribery required money. Every plan hit a wall. They’d reached the entrance but were stuck.
“I know another way. Costs cash, though.”
Owl Jones, a native of the Floating City, knew tricks others couldn’t imagine. Being part of the information-dealing Owl Clan gave him extra advantages. Though the Academic Asylum had strict management, loopholes still existed – exploiting them just required the right methods and enough wisdom coins.
“How much?”
Zuo Meng skipped asking about methods and cut straight to the cost.
“Two hundred should cover it.”
Jones quoted forty coins higher than the actual 160 needed – fair compensation for his efforts.
“Wait here half an hour.”
They’d come too far to get stuck now. Zuo Meng disappeared into shadows while Jones perched on a branch, rotating his head completely to watch the retreating figure. Data flickered in his eyes – he’d already sold Zuo Meng’s details to the Owl Clan’s database earlier. Whether purchased or not, the information now enriched their archives for future retrieval.
The black-clad figure returned precisely thirty minutes later.
“That was fast.”
Jones fluttered down to Zuo Meng’s shoulder.
“Check the amount.”
Zuo Meng tossed a wallet stolen from a crook he’d later dumped at Floating City’s security office – after “borrowing” cash and confiscating illegal earnings.
“272 coins. Extra here.”
Jones’ wings counted money with human-like dexterity.
“Keep it all.”
Zuo Meng casually waved. The tip came from leftover change after pocketing most stolen funds.
“Generous!”
Jones brightened at the bonus.
Producing two 100-coin notes, he retrieved a green bottle beneath his wing. Dipping his feathers in glowing liquid, he drew a circular Formation. Particle-mist rose from the coins, swirling around him before sinking into the pattern.
An Arcane Formation?
Zuo Meng raised an eyebrow – impressive for a scrappy bird.
“Almost there.”
Jones retrieved the coins post-ritual. One note had vanished completely; the remaining showed 40 coins.
Zuo Meng’s eyes narrowed. Now he understood why counterfeiting failed – these were consumable Arcane materials, their values shifting with energy expenditure rather than fixed numbers.
“Done.”
Jones pocketed the 40-coin remnant without blinking, gesturing to two temporary passes now lying on the ground.