Gatekeeper

Three days later.

Angel's research into "Breathless Confinement" had made considerable progress. Only the final magic pattern remained unfamiliar to him. If he used the Holographic Tablet to project it, he could already inscribe it. But the Holographic Tablet's projection was ultimately an external aid; it would naturally be best if he could master it himself.

Today, however, Angel temporarily halted his research into "Breathless Confinement" at the final juncture. Another important matter now lay before him.

Without his realizing it, the magic source within his mental space had reached an unprecedented fullness.

In the past, whenever Angel sensed the magic source in his mental space, he had always felt a sense of emptiness. But now, for the first time, the magic source felt swollen to bursting.

This meant that his cultivation as an apprentice had reached its end.

If he wished to further increase the capacity of his magic source, his only path was to advance to an official wizard.

Peak apprentice!

Only upon reaching the peak did Angel discover an unfamiliar discomfort within himself, as though he were trapped in a mire, unable to pull himself free no matter how he struggled.

It was as if an extra layer of shackles and fetters had been placed upon both his soul and flesh.

"Is this the great barrier?" Angel muttered to himself. He had long known that once one embarked upon the wizard's path, every stage would have a barrier. A barrier was the hurdle one faced after reaching the peak of a stage and needing to advance to the next.

For instance, a barrier would appear when a level-one apprentice advanced to a level-two apprentice.

A great barrier, meanwhile, referred to the hurdle between one rank and the next. For Transcendents walking the wizard's path, the first great