The Wraith, clad in red, attacked ceaselessly, tearing strips of blood-soaked flesh from Lei Lin's body.
Lei Lin's expression shifted from fury to cold indifference.
Minutes later, he finally managed to force his mouth open: "Gulisass~Doruxian!"
A column of emerald-green flame erupted directly from Lei Lin's body and set everything in the laboratory ablaze…
"Phew…"
After the emerald flames burned out, Lei Lin regained the ability to move.
Only now did he have the strength to raise his head and look around.
The laboratory was just as before — all manner of instruments sat undamaged in their original positions.
The pentagram formation that had once bound the Wraith had long since lost all its glow, and the Wraith itself was nowhere to be found.
As for Lei Lin himself, not a single wound marked his body, yet his expression was anything but pleasant.
The Chip's notifications were plainly displayed before his eyes: "[Subject attacked by unidentified Field — cross-referencing database, identified as Wraith! Constitution -0.1]"
"[Subject attacked by unidentified Field — cross-referencing database, identified as Wraith! Constitution -0.1]"
"[Subject attacked by unidentified Field — cross-referencing database, identified as Wraith! Constitution -0.1]"
The notifications had flashed three times in a row, making Lei Lin's expression even uglier. "Chip, display my current status!"
"Ding! Lei Lin Farrell — Third-rank Apprentice, Official Knight. Strength: 3.1. Agility: 3.3. Constitution: 3.4. Spiritual Power: 16.1. Mana: 16 (Mana synchronized with Spiritual Power). Status: Healthy."
Thanks to the enhancement from
"Never tamper with ancient potion recipes!"
Lei Lin let out a long breath. He had taken it upon himself to alter many of the procedures in the formulae, and this was the consequence.
"However, compared to the drop in Constitution, the rapid increase in Spiritual Power fully demonstrates the value of this potion!"
Lei Lin expressed his approval of the improved ancient potion recipe for Maria's Tears.
"Ancient potion — Maria's Tears successfully improved. Please name it, Master!"
The Chip's notification sounded once more.
"Blood Resentment Potion!" Lei Lin thought of that final flash of crimson and blurted it out without hesitation.
This potion required wraiths as ingredients. It was somewhat cruel, but for an apprentice, it was an exceptionally rare resource!
A single use boosted Spiritual Power by as much as 3 points! The side effects were minimal — it could rival the improved
As for whether the brewing process was cruel or not, Lei Lin didn't give it a second thought.
For Lei Lin, doing ruthless things — even killing — for the sake of profit was understandable and even acceptable!!!
Only those who killed for pleasure were psychopaths and misanthropes.
In his previous life, the prevailing environment was peace, and he naturally valued peace as well.
But in the
The principles of the strong devouring the weak and survival of the fittest were blatantly preached by every organization and faction.
After arriving in this world, Lei Lin had learned to follow local customs and had become a complete egoist.
As long as this potion was useful and wouldn't bring him too much trouble, he would brew it without hesitation!
"So this is what Spiritual Power at 16 feels like — it's truly incredible!"
Lei Lin closed his eyes, savoring the difference this upgrade had brought him.
Under his control, his Spiritual Power swept through the room like silver threads, sensing the objects around him and relaying their precise shapes and dimensions back to his mind.
For an ordinary apprentice, this would be an utterly novel sensation. But in Lei Lin's view, a Wizard's Spiritual Power, once it reached a certain threshold, finally produced an effect similar to the Chip's scanning ability!
"If I use this effect well, I can detect most hidden threats and never have to fear an ambush again!"
Lei Lin savored the wonders of Spiritual Power.
"What a pity — for me, this is nowhere near as useful as the Chip!"
Inside his sea of consciousness, wave after wave of silver Spiritual Power lapped against its borders, steadily expanding its expanse.
"The problem is, this external manifestation is far too obvious!"
Lei Lin picked up a bronze mirror. In its aged, coppery surface, the reflection of a brown-haired young man gazed back — his features rather ordinary, but those gleaming eyes shone like diamonds set against the dead of night.
For most apprentices, the threshold to advance to the Third Level was a Spiritual Power value of 15. Lei Lin far surpassed that standard.
Moreover, when Third Level apprentices reached the point of attempting a breakthrough to become formal Wizards, their eyes would typically develop conspicuous abnormalities.
It was the involuntary leakage of vast Spiritual Power.
But for Lei Lin, this was anything but good news. He had publicly claimed to have only just advanced to the Third Level, yet now he stood on the very verge of breaking through — that was sure to spark curiosity and suspicion from others.
If it were mere fellow apprentices, Lei Lin wouldn't worry. But if a formal Wizard demanded to cooperate with some kind of inspection, Lei Lin would find himself in real trouble.
After all, whether a formal Wizard could detect the Chip's existence — Lei Lin had no certainty whatsoever.
"I can only conceal it for now!"
Lei Lin murmured a few short syllables.
Crackling sounds erupted across his face, and his eyes dulled to something entirely unremarkable, no longer radiating that piercing light.
It was a simple application of the Mimicry Spell — capable of making subtle adjustments to one's features.
Many female Wizards who obtained the Mimicry Spell and refined it further often cast it upon their own faces to achieve a beautifying effect.
"I hope this can mask things temporarily!" Lei Lin felt a twinge of uncertainty.
The Chip-enhanced version of the Mimicry Spell was incredibly potent — no Third Level apprentice would ever detect the flaw.
But when it came to formal Wizards, Lei Lin had absolutely no confidence.
Fortunately, if it was merely a passing encounter and the other party didn't pay Lei Lin any particular mind, so long as the formal Wizard didn't deploy any detection Wizardry to probe him, it would generally be enough to get by.
Deep in Lei Lin's heart, he had already made his decision. In the near future, he would use the excuse of traveling through the Marsh Duchy and searching for ancient ruins to leave Black Bone Forest Academy and head to the Moon Lute Mountain Range to pursue the trail of the Crimson Grand Wizard's relics.
He had already expressed his desire to travel to Mentor Guofate before, so bringing it up now wouldn't seem too abrupt.
After sorting out his plans for the days ahead, Lei Lin rubbed his growling stomach. A bitter smile tugged at the corner of his lips — his most recent experiment had lasted over a day and a half.
No matter how exceptional Lei Lin's physique might be, as long as he was still mortal, he could not escape the laws of nature. Hunger was inevitable.
He could have solved the problem with a Stamina Potion, but Lei Lin was thoroughly sick of drinking the things. Besides, when a better option was available, he saw no reason to deprive himself.
Since the academy had a proper dining hall, why waste a vial of potion?
Lei Lin freshened up quickly and opened the outer door of his dormitory room.
Snap! A white slip of paper fell to the floor. It seemed someone had come to visit while Lei Lin was holed up inside, but since he had been wholly absorbed in his experiment, the visitor hadn't dared to barge in — leaving behind a simple message instead.
"Who could it be? Biji? Niss? Or someone else..."
With a flicker of curiosity, Lei Lin opened the note.
When he saw the name at the bottom, a look of surprise crossed Lei Lin's face. "It's actually Jiamen!"
As a prodigious apprentice with fifth-grade soul aptitude, Jiamen had always been rather aloof, rarely socializing with the other apprentices.
And now, Jiamen had actually taken the initiative to leave a note inviting Lei Lin to meet. It was genuinely surprising.
"Well, since he came all this way, I might as well see him!"
Lei Lin considered for a moment, then extended his pale index finger and began writing directly on the white slip of paper.
Each stroke of his fingertip left a trail of red characters on the note.
The paper used for these slips had spell effects woven into it, allowing simple messages to be transmitted — though only within the bounds of Black Bone Forest Academy. It was a favorite among the apprentices.
The reply came swiftly, and Lei Lin soon found himself meeting Jiamen in a private room of the dining hall.
Jiamen looked even more taciturn than before. Lei Lin noticed that where his severed arm had been, a slender new limb had already regrown, and he couldn't help but smile.
It seemed the Regeneration Flower had indeed been used on Jiamen by
"I haven't thanked you yet, about the Regeneration Flower last time!"
Jiamen sat in a white cushioned chair, raising his cup toward Lei Lin.
This gesture was somewhat rude. Lei Lin furrowed his brow slightly in his mind, but said nothing.
He casually found a chair and sat down, ignoring the fragrant delicacies and elegant tableware spread across the white tablecloth before him. With a sincere smile on his face, he said, "I should be the one thanking you—for the information that Mentor Duolote had data for sale about advancing to become a formal Wizard!"
Lei Lin had, of course, not known before that Duolote possessed information about the path of the Brand Knight.
It was Jiamen who had volunteered this information to him. As for his motive, perhaps it was because Lei Lin had "unintentionally" let slip in front of Jiamen that he possessed a Regeneration Flower.
For Lei Lin, Jiamen—who had been desperately in need of a Regeneration Flower to regrow his arm at the time—was someone from whom he could extract the greatest possible benefit.
Jiamen's expression grew even gentler. "Regardless, we're apprentices from the same region. We should be helping each other..."
After Lei Lin offered a few perfunctory replies, Jiamen finally revealed his true reason for seeking Lei Lin out today.
"Lei Lin, Mentor Duolote already told me long ago that the data he has is far too incomplete to serve as a reliable basis for advancing to become a formal Wizard. And you've been searching for information about ancient ruins—you want to go exploring, don't you?"
"Of course. Whether it's the Academy or the noble families, the conditions they demand are all far too steep!"
Lei Lin interlocked his ten fingers.
This was also a common practice among third-tier apprentices in the Academy. Only when they had explored ancient ruins multiple times without results and were on the verge of missing the golden age for advancing to Wizard would they consider signing a Soul Contract with the Academy or a noble family.