Leilin discussed the specific timing with Kreweir a while longer before taking his leave.
The decision to go on missions with Kreweir's squad had taken Leilin a long time to make.
He still had plenty of potions in his possession, but none of them could be seen publicly, so he needed to find channels on the outside.
Besides, after learning spells, he needed to convert them into actual combat power, which required a process of constant fighting.
From this perspective, Kreweir's squad had an average strength similar to his own, and since they were all from the same area and already knew each other, they were naturally a better choice than other unfamiliar groups.
Moreover, Kreweir had accumulated considerable experience through all his time hustling and battling, making him fairly seasoned. Following along with them gave Leilin a measure of confidence.
"Next, once I've mastered the spell model, I can join Kreweir's squad for missions, accumulate some experience first, and then try going out alone to find channels…"
Back in his dormitory, Leilin first picked up the spell book on Shadow Hand.
The spell book's yellow cover was sturdy, like cowhide, with patterns that could be felt under his fingertips and a cool sensation that seeped from his fingers into his body.
An iron chain clasp held the book shut tight, connected to something resembling a button on the back.
"Learning Shadow Hand requires Shadow Energy Research and Evocation Basics—two subjects I've already completed!"
Through selling potions, Leilin had continuously collected advanced knowledge of the Dark System to study, and he was now even more knowledgeable than apprentices who had Dark System mentors.
"The incantation is—Mansidala!" Leilin's voice was low and deep.
After hearing the spell, the book suddenly began to tremble. Amid the shaking, the black chain lock opened on its own, and the pages started flipping one by one.
"Chip, begin recording the data!"
Leilin kept flipping through the book detailing the Shadow Hand spell model, skimming through it roughly. Once he heard the notification that the Chip had finished recording everything, he finally set the book down.
"The construction of a spell model is the foundation that enables a wizard to cast spells. It involves a series of extremely intricate transformations and precise spell architecture. Learning a single spell takes a minimum of three months!"
Leilin sighed. Through this, he could feel just how difficult it was for wizards to learn spells. Without the Chip, he would have had to rely on endless practice and trial, enduring countless failures before he could master a single spell.
"Data recording complete. Beginning analysis!" the Chip's voice came through.
"How long will it take?"
"Estimated time: 106 hours and 32 minutes!"
"106 hours and 32 minutes! That's about four or five days. That's actually quite fast!" Leilin nodded.
He stood up, put away both spell books, and dusted himself off.
Walking into an adjacent room—originally meant as a reception area for apprentices or other purposes—Leilin had converted it into a small potion laboratory.
Although it was a bit risky, with the Chip in hand, he could guarantee nothing would go wrong.
"Mission deployment is only a few months away! I'd better brew some special potions to prepare for emergencies."
Leilin lit a candlestick and set to work on potion preparation.
Black Bone Forest Academy's educational system was quite lax. In Leilin's view, it was more akin to the ancient model of one teacher and one student.
The academy only provided the space and the most basic services. All advanced knowledge had to be learned from one's own mentor, which was quite inefficient.
Furthermore, there were no mandatory tasks each year—as long as you could pay tuition and didn't end up with a terrible teacher, you could coast here for five years.
Of course, with no obligations came reduced benefits. At the very least, Leilin had never heard of any good fortune like receiving a few Magic Stones for free each month.
If you wanted to earn Magic Stones yourself, you had to take on missions and risk your life out there!
The world of wizards had always valued fair exchange. Trade was the most fundamental principle.
Over the next ten-odd days, Leilin simultaneously monitored the progress of the spell model analysis and purchased supplies like water and dry rations to prepare for the upcoming mission.
One afternoon, Leilin arrived at the Spell Experimentation Zone.
"The Spell Experimentation Zone is a place the school set aside specifically for apprentices and wizards to test the power of their spells. After all, various spells are far too destructive, and there are issues like energy contamination—if left unchecked, the whole academy would be blown sky-high!"
The Spell Experimentation Zone was located at the far left of the academy, in a very secluded spot.
The surrounding walls were constructed entirely of white marble, looking very solid.
On the walls, there were various reinforcement runes. Leilin recognized only two of them—one for isolating radiation contamination, and another for strengthening the wall structure.
"Want to test some spells?" Leilin approached the counter, where a bald, burly man greeted him with a grin.
"I'd like to conduct a spell experiment. What areas are available?"
"We have two main sections—the apprentice zone and the wizard zone. You can only go to the apprentice zone. Within the apprentice zone, there are also public rooms and private rooms. In the public rooms, you experiment alongside others, which can be a bit disruptive, but it's cheaper. As for private rooms—the price is considerably higher!"
"How much for a private room?" Leilin asked.
The bald man's eyes lit up—clearly a big spender. "One Magic Stone for three hours. Our private rooms also come with specialized testing equipment that can calculate precise data on your spells. Plus, we have… absolutely worth every penny!"
"Give me a room." Leilin tossed a Magic Stone to the man.
"Right away! Just a moment!" The bald man quickly made the registration and handed Leilin a piece of black crystal-like material.
"This is your room key. Number 32!"