Currently, Azrael had three potential sources from which he could obtain a suitable Substance.
The first was the shop in his status window. There were countless Substances related to wind power available there, and some of them were so powerful that merely looking at them made him feel excited.
However, the price of those Substances ranged from 10,000 task points all the way up to 500,000 task points.
The one priced at 10,000 task points were of the lowest qualities. Once embedded, they could increase the strength of his wind power by only 0.2 to 0.4 times.
Azrael naturally had no intention of using such a low-quality Substance, so he immediately dismissed the idea of buying one from the shop as his current task points were not enough to get a good one from there.
The second option was the academy itself. But the problem, once again, was the price. Although he hadn't checked it personally, he was certain that the amount of academic credits required to purchase a good Substance from the academy would not be low, and his current credits were far from sufficient.
That left him with the third option—using his family's influence.
As one of the largest manufacturers of Artifacts, Props, and Relics in the Human Federation, the Thorne family owned countless stores, auction houses, and shops scattered all over the world.
Since Planet Arkanis was the most prosperous world in the Stardust Galaxy, it was only natural that the Thorne family would have a presence here as well.
The grand building that entered Azrael's view as he looked out of the hover car was the Star Auction House, an auction house belonging to the Thorne family.
Previously, Azrael had spoken to Ashara about his problem with obtaining a suitable Substance, and together they had visited the Star Auction House to see if they could find something appropriate.
As one of the largest auction house chains in the Human Federation, the Star Auction House not only carried goods from Planet Arkanis but also from across the Federation and other regions, as its branches were spread throughout all the major worlds.
Azrael had been surprised when Ashara first brought him here as he hadn't expected the Star Auction House to be owned by the Thorne family.
But considering that he had never concerned himself too deeply with his family's wealth or business operations, he found it understandable that he hadn't known.
During that visit, he hadn't found a suitable Substance. At the time, Oliver, the vice president of the auction house had promised to request wind-related Substances from the other branches of the Star Auction House across the Federation and other regions.
It had been two days since then, and Oliver had finally managed to acquire several Substances from the other branches.
When the hover car stopped, Azrael stepped out and made his way toward the entrance of the building.
Besides serving as an auction hall, the Star Auction House also functioned as a large-scale shop, selling Artifacts, Props, Relics, and many other items. As such, even though no auction was scheduled for today, the place was still bustling with customers searching for a suitable Artifact or item.
The Star Auction House was a grand ten-story building. The first five floors contained Artifacts, Props, and items ranging from Warrior Apprentice level to Star Level. The sixth floor served as the auction hall, while the floors above it contained extremely rare treasures, including Artifacts and Props above Star Level and even… Relics.
As Azrael arrived at the entrance, several staff members were busy greeting customers. The moment he appeared, a man in a neatly tailored black suit quickly approached him.
"Young Lord, the Vice President has asked me to guide you to him," The man said with a slight bow.
"Thank you," Azrael replied politely, nodding before gesturing for the man to lead the way.
The other staff members were momentarily stunned when they saw the Vice President's secretary personally guiding Azrael and they couldn't help but look at him curiously, wondering about his identity.
The secretary escorted Azrael into the lift and brought him directly to the ninth floor, where Oliver's office was located.
After stopping in front of a door, the man knocked.
"Vice President, the Young Lord has arrived."
"Please, come in," A calm voice responded from within.
The secretary stepped aside and opened the door, motioning for Azrael to enter.
Azrael nodded slightly in acknowledgment before walking inside.
What greeted his eyes was a clean, neatly arranged office. Sitting on the couch was a man who appeared to be around forty years old, watching him with a calm smile.
The man had a head full of black hair, deep black eyes, and a well-groomed beard and mustache that gave him a dignified, imposing presence. He was dressed in a navy-blue suit, his posture composed as he sat on the couch.
"Hello, Uncle Oliver," Azrael greeted politely.
"There's no need for such formalities. Come, have a seat," Oliver said with a slight shake of his head, gesturing toward the opposite couch.
Azrael walked over and sat down.
"In the past two days, I contacted several other branches of the auction house and managed to gather three wind-related Substances that should meet your requirements," Oliver explained.
As he spoke, he retrieved three small wooden boxes from his storage ring and placed them on the table between them.
"Take a look and see if any of these satisfy you. If not, I can continue searching, but it will take some time before I can obtain another batch of Substances that meets your requirements."
"Thank you for your help, Uncle Oliver," Azrael said sincerely, reaching for the first box.
As he opened it, a small, round sphere about three centimeters in diameter came into view, gleaming with a faint moss-green light.
"This wind Substance was discovered on Planet Sovara," Oliver explained. "That planet is famous for its unnaturally high density of wind essence and its terrifying storms and hurricanes. Over the course of thousands of years, it has produced countless top-quality wind Substances. This one, among the low-level Substances can be considered top-notch."
Listening to Oliver, Azrael picked up the small sphere from the box and immediately used his status window to examine its details.