Li De kept track of the events happening in Dawn City every day through his bats.
Although he hadn’t personally witnessed the arrival of the second batch of people, Harrison’s letter conveyed an unmistakable excitement that leapt off the page.
Several orders issued by Harrison caught Li De’s attention.
Especially the bold idea that vampires should appear in their true forms while working.
Fear stems from the unknown. Vampires were terrifying not only because they drank human blood but also because they only appeared at night, making them mysterious and enigmatic to humans.
Now, vampires were exposing themselves in their most genuine state. Initially, it would surely shock humans, but it would also dispel the mystery and enigma surrounding them, laying everything bare before humanity.
Li De could imagine that once humans adapted to seeing vampires in their working state, it would only benefit their integration into Dawn City, with no drawbacks.
Once the fog of the unknown was lifted, and humans realized vampires weren’t as fearsome as imagined, their fear would be minimized.
Especially since vampires would live alongside them daily; once humans became familiar with each vampire’s personality, even if their appearances remained terrifying, they would likely seem less intimidating over time.
This order was undoubtedly a double-edged sword. If handled well, Dawn City would no longer need to worry about humans resenting vampires.
If mishandled, it could leave deep psychological scars on humans and further widen the gap between them and vampires.
But Li De supported this approach. Vampires couldn’t always face humans in human form indefinitely—it was better to address this early on.
Moreover, he wasn’t afraid of human resentment. It was still the beginning; his real strategies hadn’t even started yet.
These people had no chance of escape. The meat was already in his mouth, and he could devour it however he pleased.
The fact that Odys had brought back the second batch of humans so quickly delighted him. He had a premonition that perhaps before winter arrived, Dawn City’s gains would exceed expectations.
It was now October 22nd.
December marked the official start of the Month of Deep Winter, leaving Dawn City with just over a month to gather more people.
He also had one more month to purchase supplies.
Once winter set in, the entire Green City would enter a brief standstill. Many activities would cease, and the effort and time required to acquire materials would increase several-fold compared to usual times.
At this moment, taking advantage of this window of opportunity, he finally had some time to study magic—yes, study magic.
After improving Mage Hand, he hadn’t had time to work on another spell. Now, while Laurent was still busy purchasing supplies, he decided to begin researching improvements for a second spell.
Li De’s love for magic was beyond words. He cherished the feeling of controlling mana when casting spells.
Fireballs danced in his hand, and Mage Hand transformed into various weapons—every moment was exhilarating.
Studying magic felt like slowly unraveling the goddess’s sash, giving him a sense of exploring the world's mysteries.
Small Fireball Spell.
Li De confirmed this as the target of his research.
Almost every mage knew the Small Fireball Spell—even Harrison, the second-generation bloodline descendant who disliked offensive magic, knew it.
There was no other reason—it was simply effective.
High damage, low mana consumption, simplicity, ease of use—it boasted a series of outstanding advantages, making it a must-learn Tier 1 spell.
The Small Fireball Spell consisted of 50 magic nodes, barely passing the minimum threshold.
Though the number of magic nodes was small—30 fewer than Li De’s improved version of Mage Hand—the Small Fireball Spell was the most powerful among all Tier 1 spells, without exception.
Small Fireball Spell: Forms a scorching fireball in the hand, which explodes upon hitting an enemy, consuming 8 mana points.
A simple description, but its destructive power surpassed even Li De’s improved version of Mage Hand by a significant margin.
The improved Mage Hand emphasized transformation capabilities, while the Small Fireball Spell prioritized maximum destructive power, favoring brute force.
Of the 50 magic nodes, aside from those necessary to stabilize the magic model, all others were designed to maximize damage.
This made the Small Fireball Spell’s explosive power equivalent to that of a gas tank explosion, capable of blasting through a wall in one hit.
The Small Fireball Spell’s formidable destructive power earned it the favor of nearly all mages. Low-level mages often faced the dilemma of insufficient mana, and the powerful Small Fireball Spell effectively compensated for their lack of offensive capability.
Li De had given it serious thought. The original intent of the Small Fireball Spell was to achieve maximum damage with minimal mana consumption.
This idea was sound. After becoming a formal mage, most apprentice mages wouldn’t have more than 30 mana points.
At this stage, even if they possessed powerful spells, they couldn’t cast them. Therefore, low-mana, high-damage spells were essential.
Whether in the Crimson Mage Tower or among vampires, the Small Fireball Spell was currently a very practical spell.
Vampires had more abundant mana than humans, but they couldn’t recklessly use Tier 2 spells.
The advanced version of the Small Fireball Spell—Tier 2 Large Fireball Spell—consumed three times as much mana, requiring 25 mana points per cast. In prolonged battles, the cost-effectiveness of the Large Fireball Spell was clearly inferior to the Small Fireball Spell.
This was why he chose to improve this spell. If successful, it would immediately boost the combat effectiveness of the vampires.
The Small Fireball Spell differed from Mage Hand. The improved Mage Hand’s primary advantage lay in its element of surprise, catching enemies off guard with sudden transformations.
Even though Mage Hand’s power was decent, it wasn’t suitable for frontal combat. Spells like the Small Fireball Spell and Large Fireball Spell, with their immense power, were the mainstream.
Furthermore, there was another point: the Small Fireball Spell was the starting point of a complete series. Tier 1 Small Fireball Spell, Tier 2 Large Fireball Spell, Tier 3 Explosive Fireball, and even Tier 4 Magma Fireball and Tier 5 Meteor Shower followed.
This was a fully developed series of spells. The Small Fireball Spell was a prerequisite for the Large Fireball Spell, which in turn was a prerequisite for the Explosive Fireball, leading up to the ultimate spell in the series: Meteor Shower.
Thus, improving the Small Fireball Spell would also pave the way for enhancing the Large Fireball Spell, with significant future benefits.
While the Small Fireball Spell’s power was impressive, it had one glaring flaw that couldn’t be ignored:
Its flight speed was too slow.
After being released, the fireball traveled at approximately 30 blades per second.
Though it seemed fast, any Level 2 or higher formal warrior possessed the reflexes to dodge it.
As a result, this otherwise formidable Small Fireball Spell was often relegated to ambushes or used in coordination with teammates. In direct combat against warriors of the same level, the Small Fireball Spell was impractical—it was difficult to hit enemies after casting.
Li De’s thoughts began to wander.
While high damage was excellent, missing the target entirely was a major issue. What was the point of immense power if it could easily be dodged by other classes?
Seated cross-legged on the seventh floor of the Mage Tower, Li De gazed at the bright moon outside the window and slowly closed his eyes.
Could he create a supersonic fireball? Or one that teleported? Or one that ignored evasion and guaranteed a hit?
Or… a Gatling fireball??
Li De’s heart skipped a beat as a bold idea took shape.