Although the cost of alteration involves reduced power, this issue was easily resolved through the magic cube synthesis.

The revised Demon Pattern Core after the fusion with the Secret Puppet has a power roughly equivalent to the original Tier 6 Demon Pattern Core.

It’s not that Sunan is unwilling to fuse a higher-tier Demon Pattern Core, but this is already the limit of what the Secret Puppet can bear.

After all, a Tier 6 Demon Pattern Core requires the Spiritual Power of an Official Wizard and a physique surpassing the Tier Four Legendary level to fuse. Even Sunan now can at most only fuse a Tier 6 Demon Pattern Core.

That said, the combat power of the Secret Puppet has advanced by leaps and bounds after fusing with the Demon Pattern Core.

Even Sunan, without using Witchcraft Artifacts and Engraving Gemstones, can only barely fight it to a draw.

And that’s under the condition that his Spiritual Refinement Level has increased significantly.

Had it been during his initial promotion, he would definitely not have been an equal match.

Now, the Secret Puppet girl faces off against the half-spider Divine Favor, at least in a fifty-fifty battle situation.

However, the price for this surge in combat power is a sharp increase in costs.

Aside from the fusion of the Tier 6 Demon Pattern Core, the body structure of the Secret Puppet was also upgraded to bear it, resulting in a final cost of four hundred and eighty thousand Gold Coins.

It’s worth noting that forming a small Golem Legion only costs a little over four hundred thousand Gold Coins.

In other words, the cost of a single Secret Puppet is equivalent to a small Golem Legion.

"The crafting cost of high-level puppets will only continue to rise, after all, many materials can only be obtained through synthesis, which is much costlier than manufacturing."

Sunan sighed inwardly.

Take the Tier 6 Demon Pattern Core as an example. If it were manufactured by hand, it would cost at least half what it does by synthesis.

Just like with Tier One Legend puppets, the cost of manufacturing a Steel Golem is much less than that of an Elite Stone Golem.

This is the price of using the synthesis magic cube.

Of course, compared to the magical abilities of the magic cube, this price is trivial.

After all, the synthesis capability of the magic cube is theoretically limitless; there are many things that cannot be manufactured regardless of how much Gold Coins are spent, yet the cube can effortlessly synthesize them.

In fact, for Sunan now, Gold Coins are no longer an issue; what truly limits development is resources.

After gaining control of the southeast region of the underground world and having the Starlight Empire as a market for goods, the Star Alliance can generate over ten million Gold Coins in revenue every year.

But, like the Mithril needed to craft Secret Puppets, the Silver Ore Veins controlled by the Star Alliance are limited in number, and the annual output of Mithril fluctuates within a fixed range. No matter how much Gold Coins you have, you can’t increase it out of thin air.

The same goes for other rare resources.

This issue will become even more pronounced once control over the entire Starlight Continent is achieved.

In the absence of third-party trade partners, the resources Sunan can command are only those of the Starlight Continent. No amount of Gold Coins will be of use.

"Fortunately, the resources of the Starlight Continent are sufficient for me to build a Wizard Tower."

"Once the dimensional barriers are restored in the future, and the Starlight Continent can trade with other planes, the resource problem will be resolved."

Sun shook his head, reined in his thoughts, and focused on crafting the Secret Puppet.

He still had enough Mithril to craft two more Secret Puppets at hand.

...

Underground world, Northwest Domain.

Thick smoke rose above Mushroom Forest City, which had just emerged from war, illuminated by the fluorite light cast from the caverns above, shining upon the ruins below.

Clay Golems wandered among the debris, carrying blood-stained corpses, moving them outside the city for centralized incineration and disposal.

Cole, weary and covered in dust, crossed the ruins, with remnants of bloodstains on his gray robe, and an expression of fatigue, evidently having just endured an intense battle.

Mushroom Forest City had gathered the last batch of elite forces in the Northwest Domain, putting up fierce resistance to the extent that even he, the commander, had to personally step in, battling for half a day before finally conquering this tough nut to crack.

And he had his reasons for doing so.

After taking Mushroom Forest City, there would be no more organized resistance forces in the Northwest Domain, with only a few scattered remnants left that could be easily dealt with.

The Northwest Domain could be said to have fallen into the hands of the Star Alliance.

At most, within two more months, the battles here will be over.

Thinking about not having returned to Dragon Forest for many years, even Cole, who was rarely sentimental, couldn’t help but sigh.

He heard that a Starlight Academy was newly established in Dragon Forest, and he wondered what kind of academy it was?

As he pondered, Cole had already arrived at the stone pillar in the center of Mushroom Forest City and walked inside.

The Wizard Apprentices following him also filed in.

The interior space of the stone pillar was exceptionally spacious, with Clay Golems moving supplies.

Cole quickly found the warehouse, and before entering, he saw Ethan coming out, with a delighted smile on his face.

Seeing this, Cole knew that they had reaped a significant haul, yet he still asked.

"How did it go?"

"The haul was substantial." Ethan beamed, "The resources from the warehouses of the previous city-states should have all been gathered here."

Cole’s face also displayed a slight smile.

The richer the spoils, the more Contribution Points he would earn.

After having the resources that had been checked sorted and stored, Ethan and Cole walked side by side outward.

"Should we rest here for a couple of days?"

"No need, there aren’t many resistance forces left, let’s take advantage of the situation to solve it all in one go, lest delay brings more problems."

"That’s true." Ethan nodded in agreement.

After leading troops for almost seven years, he was also a bit exhausted and wished to end this war quickly and return to Dragon Forest to focus on his practice.

The Contribution Points earned over the years should suffice for a long time.

He missed Dragon Forest a bit, having been away for so long.

The two arrived at the intact city wall on the other side of Mushroom Forest City, gazing into the distant darkness.

That was the last remaining region not yet encompassed in the Star Alliance’s territory, covering an area less than one-fiftieth of the Northwest Domain on the military map.

Looking at the entire underground world, it was merely a tiny corner.

"When I first took up the position as commander, I never imagined the Star Alliance would unify the underground world so quickly."

A trace of emotion appeared on Ethan’s face.

In just seven or eight years, the Star Alliance first pacified the southeast domain, even capturing Magic Spider City with divine protection, and then swept across the Northwest Domain, unstoppable in its advance.

Watching the Star Alliance on the verge of unifying the underground world, and being a participant, having personally experienced and witnessed all this, it was impossible not to feel moved.

Cole maintained a composed demeanor but inwardly shared the sentiment.

Back when he was just a student of his teacher, the base was just a small spot next to Flash City. Who would have thought that in less than thirty years, it would become a behemoth on the verge of unifying the underground world?

To many, it was nothing short of a miracle!

"That’s because our teacher is leading us," Cole said.

Having partnered with Cole for years, Ethan had long grown accustomed to his fanatic reverence for their teacher, smiling without surprise at his words.

"I heard the empire is preparing to attack the Northwest Domain. Once it succeeds in unifying the Northwest Domain, the entire Starlight Continent will be in the hands of the Star Alliance."

"That day will come soon," Cole nodded.

In their view, although it would be the Starlight Empire unifying the surface world in the future, it was no different from the Star Alliance doing it themselves.

The Starlight Empire is fundamentally reliant on the Star Alliance for its current development, essentially making it a subordinate organization of the Star Alliance.

This is not Cole and Ethan being arrogant or conceited.

Among the Wizard Apprentices in Starlight Academy and the nobility of the empire, this notion had already become a consensus.

Though the Starlight Empire and the Star Alliance are nominally independent and equal entities, in reality, equality is only viable when both sides possess matching strength.

The Starlight Empire, for all its deterrence on the continent, substantially lacks the true strength compared to the Star Alliance.

In terms of resources, the Starlight Empire is heavily reliant on the Star Alliance, and not the other way around.

In such circumstances, the Starlight Empire naturally has little say.

Through long-term trade and cooperation, the Starlight Empire will inevitably become a subsidiary of the Star Alliance over time.

And from the emperor to the nobles, there is no resistance to this.

If anything, they are eager to deepen their ties with the Star Alliance.

"The future will belong to the Star Alliance," Ethan smiled, suddenly having an intriguing thought, "What do you think will be the Star Alliance’s next target after conquering the Starlight Continent?"

Cole paused, pondering for a while before answering, "I heard ancient Wizards loved to invade other civilized planes. Maybe the teacher has similar intentions."

Ethan’s eyes brightened.

That would indeed be a worthwhile goal.

He too was eager to witness the landscapes of other planes.

If one day the Star Alliance decides to venture into other planes, he would certainly join and see what those planes have to offer!

But before that, he would have to first advance to a Level 3 Wizard Apprentice.

For the Star Alliance today, a Level 2 Wizard Apprentice is a bit too weak.