"Very good."
Cold blue light fell quietly across the laboratory.
Faint red traces lingered in the air where the Blood Sacrifice Array had operated. Ripples of energy spread slowly, like rings on water, then faded into stillness.
Clark sensed the change in his spiritual power. His eyes, usually as undisturbed as an ancient well, paused for an instant.
Then he looked at Benjamin. "Your technique works remarkably well."
His tone was flat, without the slightest shift in emotion.
But anyone who knew him understood that, coming from Clark, this was exceptionally high praise.
On the other side of the laboratory, a childlike figure could wait no longer and sprang forward.
Anton Buchanan felt the change in himself, and his young face, which looked no more than ten years old, lit up.
"Hahahaha! It really is good!"
He nodded again and again, grinning like a child who had just received a new toy.
Anyone unaware of his identity would have struggled to believe that this little fellow, not even as tall as the laboratory equipment, was a genuine Level 8 Wizard.
As he laughed, rings of nearly transparent force fields spread outward. The entire laboratory seemed to contract gently with his breathing, as though space itself bent to his will.
When Benjamin had contacted Clark, his mentor happened to be with Grand Mentor Anton Buchanan, comparing data from their recent research. After hearing Benjamin explain the Blood Sacrifice Method, both had become interested almost at once.
One had just advanced to Level 7, and the other to Level 8. They were precisely the two largest groups of potential customers for this technique, so Benjamin had invited them immediately.
Both had agreed that experiencing it firsthand would be better than examining the experimental data remotely.
They had therefore come straight to Benjamin's