Absorption

"...I understand. I'll send it to you right away."

After ending the communication, Jane's expression turned somewhat serious. She took two Earth Magic Cores from her Spatial Bag and handed them to Xuan Ye. Once the transaction was complete, she tied the scroll to a small Puppet Bird and released it through the window.

Playing with the Magic Cores in his hand while watching the Puppet Bird fly away, Xuan Ye's eyes filled with curiosity.

Puppet arts were truly useful. Leaving aside Ian's skeleton, which possessed formidable combat abilities, even this small bird was sufficient for communication. If one also mastered spells like Soul Link or Mage's Eye, it could even be used for reconnaissance and early warnings.

Unfortunately, most of the information Xuan Ye possessed consisted only of basic apprentice-level knowledge. In specialized fields, he knew only the basics of potion-making and how to identify herbs. As for puppet arts, he did not even have a shadow of them.

"Whew, this is all we can do. The rest will have to be left for the teachers to consider."

After Jane returned to the sofa, her expression remained solemn.

"Haha, why worry about all that? It's rare for a new Advanced Apprentice to come here. There are already four of us present, so why don't we hold a Discussion Meeting? He's also interested in Dragon Language Magic, so I think we'll have plenty to talk about."

Compared with Jane's deep concern, Blade, whose voice seemed capable of shaking the little cabin apart, appeared rather carefree. Hadn't Jane already said that this was not something apprentices should be worrying about? So why think about it so much?

Xuan Ye had already accomplished the primary purpose of entering the city and had planned to find somewhere to break through to Ninth-Grade Apprentice. After hearing the man's words, however, his heart stirred.

Magic was indeed not something one could perfect by working behind closed doors. Aside from a little basic knowledge, he understood nothing at all. Since such an environment was available, he might as well stay for a while. After all, he had provided them with something so important, and they surely would not object.

"An exchange meeting? I agree. Lit should be here too, right? Call him over, and invite the other apprentices to come listen as well..."

Meanwhile, Ian and Blade had already begun discussing the details of the Exchange Meeting.

Over the next half hour, several apprentices gradually arrived at Jane's little cabin. Aside from the handsome young man named Lit, who was an Advanced Apprentice, the rest were Intermediate Apprentices between the fourth and sixth grades.

After listening from the side for so long, Xuan Ye also learned that these Intermediate Apprentices had come merely to broaden their horizons. They generally did not participate in the discussion or ask questions. Before speaking, they had to raise their hands and obtain permission.

Even such an insignificant rule showed how clearly status was divided within their group. Everything was determined by personal strength. This applied even to the several older apprentices among the Intermediate Apprentices.

"Everyone except the person beside me is already familiar to you. Now let me introduce this magic genius, Night. He's not yet twenty, but he's already an Advanced Apprentice and has begun preparing the materials for his ritual. Becoming a Formal Mage is only a matter of time. Since a newcomer has appeared, we might as well gather together. Everyone can exchange ideas and share their recent discoveries and opinions. What do you think? Night, would you like to say a few words first?"

Ian was clearly more outgoing than Jane. He was not as rigid as she was, nor did he have Blade's booming voice. Having him host was naturally the best choice. After briefly introducing Xuan Ye, he handed the conversation over to him.

Faced with such courtesy, Xuan Ye nodded and said sincerely,

"I've been in contact with magic for a shorter time than all of you. Although my talent for meditation is decent, my reserves of knowledge are far inferior to yours. I hope you won't hesitate to guide me. Among any three people walking together, there is always one who can be my teacher. I believe everyone will gain something from this discussion."

"Among any three people walking together, there is always one who can be my teacher? Hmm, well said! The words are simple and easy to understand, yet they contain profound truth. That sentence alone is enough to show that your future achievements will be limitless. It embodies the foundation of a mage's thirst for knowledge. Hahaha, this Discussion Meeting has already been worthwhile on the strength of that sentence alone."

Lit, the last Advanced Apprentice to arrive, voiced his agreement loudly after Xuan Ye finished speaking. The more he pondered the words, the more deeply he felt their meaning. He could not imagine that such a summary of life experience had come from the mouth of someone younger than himself.

Xuan Ye felt extremely pleased by the praise, while also feeling slightly embarrassed for once. He had casually borrowed Confucius's words. Even though Earth had neither magic nor martial arts, this was still the sage's summary of a profound truth about life.

Precisely because Xuan Ye had begun with such an impressive statement, he successfully created an image of unfathomable depth in everyone's eyes. Thus, even though he rarely spoke during the later discussion, no one thought it was because he lacked ability.

Well, the truth was that he rarely spoke precisely because he lacked ability. He was constantly using his wildly imaginative mind to absorb the knowledge shared during the meeting. He would speak only after confirming it was completely correct and ensuring that it aligned with the basic knowledge he had previously studied.

As a result, every time he spoke, he was remarkably accurate and thought-provoking. After all, having come from Earth's internet-explosion era, his divergent thinking and imagination were indeed far beyond those of ordinary people here.

With the support of the Soul Database, Xuan Ye's foundational level was still lacking, but he viewed problems from a comprehensive, top-down perspective. Whenever his insight exposed an issue, it was bound to amaze the apprentices before him.

He was organizing his knowledge desperately while astonishing everyone at the same time. Seeing the trust and admiration in their eyes made Xuan Ye feel unusually embarrassed.

Because of their preconceived impressions and his stunning performance at this first meeting, all the apprentices present wholeheartedly welcomed his request to stay for a while longer.

Furthermore, because of their previous agreement—and because Xuan Ye had provided that crucial scroll—no one refused his request to browse the non-core books in their collection.

Roland's insights and research regarding puppets and barriers were certainly not accessible to outsiders. They would have to exchange items or knowledge of equal value for them. However, as a Six-Star Mage at the peak of the professional rank, Roland also possessed a vast amount of other information and books.

The apprentices had copied versions of many less important works, and Xuan Ye plunged into them without the slightest hesitation.

The days that followed were exceptionally fulfilling. During the day, he immersed himself in the ocean of books, absorbing and storing everything he read in the Soul Database, whether he understood it or not. At night, he meditated. Every few days, he also attended the Exchange Meetings to digest and organize his new knowledge.

In private, he secretly studied the pronunciation and spoken forms of Elvish and Dragon Language with Ian, who lived with him. His excuse was that he had originally only intended to accumulate apprentice-level knowledge rather than cast the corresponding spells, but now that he could not return to his mentor for the time being, he might as well learn from Ian first.

Because of Xuan Ye's stunning performance at the Exchange Meeting, Ian did not suspect anything and taught him very earnestly...

Inside Blade's "large" cabin, Xuan Ye leaned against the wall while holding a thick book whose cover was cracked and whose parchment pages had yellowed with age. Tracing a line of writing in the middle of a page with his finger, he unconsciously murmured,

"...The Bronze Dragon Race, the most mysterious of the five dragon races. They have never participated in the wars of the gods or races, nor did they appear during the disaster invasion. Only their name has been heard, with no historical records to be found. It is said that they may possess the powerful ability to control the past and future, and were therefore restricted..."

"The powerful ability to control the past and future, huh? Bronze Dragons..." As he murmured to himself, Xuan Ye unconsciously lowered the book and rubbed the strange mark on the back of his left hand.

Dragon Envoys! High-ranking dragons bestowed this title upon mortals, allowing them to represent the dragons as they walked among the mortal races. Ever since the High Elves had revitalized the ancient world and nurtured the myriad races, Dragon Envoys had appeared only rarely.

According to human records, the last Human Race Dragon Envoy had appeared in Year 4841 of the New Era, more than twelve hundred years ago. At that time, a young red dragon had accidentally left the Dragon Domain and arrived in Reizel. It was mistaken for a young dragon banished for committing a grave offense, attracting the covetous attention of numerous experts from Reizel's various races.

The Dragon Envoy had been the legendary human expert who rescued the young dragon and signed a contract with it: the Dragon Knight Harman Kenze. For saving the young dragon, he had been granted the status of Dragon Envoy.

According to rumors, Dragon Envoys held a status equivalent to Divine Envoys and possessed certain unknown rights and qualifications.

"Tsk... It doesn't seem like a bad thing, but it can't exactly be called a good thing either. What are these unknown rights and qualifications supposed to mean? Give me something practical. So I've gained an employer I know nothing about, and that employer is some high-ranking Bronze Dragon?"

Tapping his finger against the book's cover, Xuan Ye felt a strange sensation. Whether Dragon Envoys were truly as rare as the book claimed was anyone's guess. Wasn't he himself an unrecorded Dragon Envoy? The one who had been recorded was simply too famous. Whew, he would just have to take things one step at a time.

Uh, and why did "Dragon Envoy" sound so awkward? Although Reizel's common language pronounced it differently, the language Xuan Ye used in his thoughts was undoubtedly his mother tongue. That character in "Envoy" was seriously...

The one thing that gave him some hope was that the Bronze Dragons, whose control over space and time surpassed even that of the gods, might possess a way for him to return home...