108 Experience Points

There was no time limit, but he would have to bear the mental strain himself... Su Ran understood that this would probably test him more than a time limit would.

Focusing on deciphering such an advanced language for a long time placed an enormous burden on the mind. The slightest carelessness could plunge him into confusion or subject him to a backlash.

He took a deep breath, walked up to the wall on the left, and began reading Study of the Basic Etymology of Dragon Language.

Lv.5 [Knowledge Insight] ran at full power, helping him quickly memorize and understand the complex character structures, the meanings of their strokes, and the symbolism that might be derived from them.

Then he consulted the first dictionary and attempted to decipher the first floating core rune.

It was a character shaped like rising flames, yet also like a grasping claw.

He carefully compared it with the basic character forms and descriptions of their meanings recorded in the dictionary...

"Power, scorching heat, rising... Combined, they might represent the power of combustion or rising heat..."

Su Ran murmured to himself, cautiously extending his mental power toward the rune and attempting to read the fluctuations of information within it.

Hum...

The rune trembled slightly and gave off a gentle golden light, offering no resistance.

Su Ran felt a faint stream of information return to him, carrying a scorching aura and confirming part of his interpretation.

Success! The first rune turned into a golden speck of knowledge and entered his forehead, bringing him a faint insight into the concept of combustion.

But Su Ran also felt that deciphering this single rune had consumed more mental power than constructing a first-circle spell model!

And further on, the runes would clearly grow more complex and contain more information.

He dared not relax in the slightest. He immediately moved on to the second rune, all the while needing to cross-reference the dictionary fragments on the three walls, verify his findings, and reason through them.

It was an extremely tedious, difficult, and draining process.

The meanings of some runes were relatively clear and could be worked out by directly comparing their forms and definitions.

Others required him to piece together fragments of information from multiple dictionaries, using logical reasoning and associative imagination.

Still other runes had vague energy orientations, requiring Su Ran to draw on his own understanding of arcane energy,

and sense the subtle energy rhythms within the runes, then compare them with the dictionaries' descriptions of energy associations before he could barely decipher them.

Time trickled by.

Su Ran became completely immersed in the ocean of Draconic Runes. He forgot his exhaustion and where he was; all he saw were the golden characters and the definitions on the walls.

His mental power poured out like a flood through opened gates, while the [Mind-Calming Jade Pendant] on his forehead continued to give off a cool aura, helping him stay clearheaded.

[Knowledge Insight Lv.5] became his most powerful tool, allowing him to process this complex information with unprecedented efficiency and depth, and find the clues hidden in the variations of the characters and the incomplete definitions.

One, two, three... ten... twenty...

His face gradually paled, and stabs of pain came in waves from his temples, signs that his mental power was severely overdrawn.

But he gritted his teeth and pressed on. Whenever he felt he could not hold out, he paused for a short meditation.

He used [Meditation]'s rapid recovery properties, or took a sip of the [High-Quality Mana Recovery Potion] he carried with him, which also helped restore his mental power a little.

Finally, after nearly two and a half hours, the thirtieth and most complex rune—

a character that seemed to be formed from multiple spatial folds and the trajectories of stars—was examined by Su Ran using the fragments of all three dictionaries and his own faint understanding of space and stellar arcana,

and successfully deciphered. It turned into the last speck of knowledge and entered his consciousness.

The thirty specks of knowledge gathered in his consciousness, forming the phantom image of an incomplete Dragon Language passage containing ancient wisdom, which was deeply imprinted there.

[Ancient Language Corridor test passed.]

In the center of the room, where the thirty core runes had vanished, a familiar milky-white pillar of light descended from above, enveloping Su Ran, whose mental power was overdrawn and who was nearly exhausted.

[Instance: Blackstone Tower (Trial) settlement in progress...]

[Contribution assessment: 100%] (Completed all three levels of tests alone)

[Base experience reward: 88 points]

[Basic Interpretation of Dragon Language Runes (Beginner) achievement detected. Additional experience reward: 20 points]

[Settlement complete.]

A total of 108 experience points!

[186/400]

Although he had not leveled up directly, his experience bar had advanced another stretch.

At the same time, a chest giving off a soft silvery-white glow appeared before him. It was the reward for clearing the trial instance: a Silver Chest!

Using almost the last of his strength, Su Ran put the chest into his Personal Space. The pillar of light's teleportation power began to take effect.

He took one last look at the hexagonal room covered in Draconic Runes, and at the three walls bearing the priceless Dragon Language dictionary fragments—unfortunately, he could not take them with him—before he vanished along with the pillar of light.

The next moment, Su Ran appeared in a wilderness clearing outside [Blackstone Tower].

The afternoon sunlight was somewhat dazzling. He staggered a step and steadied himself against a nearby rock.

His head felt as though it had been hollowed out and stuffed with a tangled mess. It was heavy and aching with sharp pains, the aftereffects of severely overdrawing his mental power.

He forced himself to keep going, got his bearings, and slowly headed toward the Iron Cross Guild.

Though exhausted to the point of death, he was filled with a sense of accomplishment.

He had passed all three levels of tests perfectly.

He had obtained three precious records of knowledge: Golem Construction, Arcane Shaping, and the insights from the incomplete Dragon Language passage in his consciousness.

The experience rewards were generous.

He had also obtained a Silver Chest.

More importantly, this trial had greatly honed his ability to use [Knowledge Insight], as well as his resilience in carrying out precise analysis and reasoning under intense pressure.

Only after joining the Iron Cross Guild had Su Ran learned that this was what a Mage truly ought to do, rather than fight and kill every day.

Back at the guild's temporary dormitory, Su Ran did not even have the strength to inspect the Silver Chest. He only managed to set up a small warning spell,

before collapsing headfirst onto the bed and sinking into the deepest sleep.

He needed rest. He needed to recover.

Su Ran slept like the dead and was not awakened until the sun was high in the sky the next day, when the clamor of voices outside the window and the faint sounds of training in the distance roused him.

He opened his eyes, and the first thing he felt was the lingering mental fatigue, as though he had been drained dry and then filled with water again. But it was far better than his state of near collapse yesterday.

His head was still somewhat heavy, but his thoughts were clear again.

He lay in bed without getting up immediately, first looking inward to check his condition.

His mana had essentially been replenished through sleep and the automatic operation of [Meditation].

His mental power had recovered more slowly, reaching about seventy percent. The remaining fatigue would take more time and quiet rest to dispel.

His body was in good condition. The vitality gained from leveling up and increasing his attributes had allowed him to quickly recover his physical strength after a deep sleep.

Only then did he turn his gaze to the two-cubic-meter space, where an item lay quietly: the Silver Chest he had brought back from [Blackstone Tower].