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Chapter 25: Initiation

Contemplation Method, Initiated!

In the Mental Sea surging with distracting thoughts, Karl's consciousness was like a small boat, bobbing in the waves.

Although it seemed like it could capsize at any moment, it battled the tides relentlessly with sheer willpower.

As time passed, not only did it not capsize, but it became more and more stable.

"Hoo..."

Opening his eyes, Karl's gaze brightened slightly.

The world before him seemed to have shed a veil, and everything he saw was clearer than ever before.

This wasn't because his eyesight had improved, but because the refinement of his Mental Power had made his perception of the outside world more acute.

"Finally..."

Karl clenched his fists:

"In the real world, I can finally cultivate the Contemplation Method myself."

To initiate the Contemplation Method and construct a Zero-ring Sorcery within the Mental Sea made one a novice Wizard Apprentice.

And Karl had accomplished both of these.

In other words, In less than a month, he was now a formal novice Wizard Apprentice.

Even a Level One Talent would likely not be this fast.

No!

A Level One Talent probably wouldn't be this quick either.

"Low-key, low-key."

"A tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind; a pile that stands out on the shore will be eroded by the current; a person whose conduct is higher than others will be criticized by the masses. The experiences of our predecessors should be remembered."

After taking a few deep breaths, the excitement on Karl's face gradually subsided.

"According to the level classification of Wizard Apprentices, learning one Zero-ring Sorcery makes one a novice Wizard Apprentice."

"Learning three Zero-ring Sorceries makes one an Intermediate Wizard Apprentice."

"Learning six Zero-ring Sorceries makes one a Senior Wizard Apprentice."

"And only by mastering one First-ring Sorcery and breaking through the limits of Mental Power can one be considered a true Wizard."

Of course, Tricks were not included.

Karl took out his notebook and wrote with his quill.

Constitution: 0.77

Mental Power: 0.96

The data provided by the Divine Domain shard was accurate. As a Knight Squire, his constitution was 0.77. By this standard, an ordinary person's constitution should be around 0.5.

And Knights, Most likely exceeded 1.

Don't be fooled by the seemingly small difference of a few tenths in constitution; the real experience was almost like heaven and earth.

It was by no means as simple as one plus one equals two.

Karl's Mental Power was significantly higher than his constitution. Hibel had also mentioned this, possibly due to transmigration.

The consciousness of the transmigrator merged with the dying original body, and the sum of the two naturally resulted in Mental Power greater than that of ordinary people.

Therefore, as long as he initiated the Meditation Method and refined his Mental Power, he naturally possessed the foundation of a novice Wizard Apprentice.

"Constructing the Spell Model for the Lesser Force Field consumes 0.7 Mental Power. By extension, three Zero-ring Sorceries would require at least 2.1 Mental Power. This means the standard Mental Power for an Intermediate Wizard Apprentice is 2.1."

"No!"

Karl shook his head slightly:

"The Lesser Force Field is among the more complex types of Zero-ring Sorcery, consuming more Mental Power."

"The Stun Technique might only require 0.5 or 0.6. Calculated at the minimum standard, 1.8 Mental Power should be enough to advance to Intermediate Wizard Apprentice."

Once a Spell Model was formed, it would stably occupy a portion of Mental Power. This meant that to construct a second Spell Model, one must have surplus Mental Power, unless the first Spell Model was voluntarily erased.

Similarly.

Although Wizard Apprentices had extraordinary means, they only mastered a few Sorceries. If their abilities were all known to others, it would be easy to create specific countermeasures.

Therefore, every Wizard would try to conceal the Sorceries they mastered, or hide other trump cards.

If all their trump cards were revealed...

is no different from seeking death!

"Let's see if the power of sorcery has changed."

Putting down his pen, Karl had a thought and activated the Lesser Force Field Model located in his Mental Sea.

An invisible force field appeared.

Unlike before, after mastering the Meditation Method, his control over the Lesser Force Field became more precise.

With the same amount of power, he could now expand or shrink its range, and its power would change accordingly.

"Swish!"

An iron ball was tossed from Karl's hand, falling into the force field from above. Under the influence of the invisible force field, it arced and landed on the ground.

"The power hasn't increased much, but the control is more precise, and it can suddenly erupt, enough to twist the attacks of a Knight Squire."

"And its endurance has increased significantly compared to before."

After a series of tests, Karl showed a satisfied expression.

"Not bad!"

"With the protection of the Force Field now, as long as I don't encounter a peak Knight Squire like Dina, I have a great chance of winning."

"Hmm."

"And there's the Light spell!"

The Light spell seemed useless, but if suddenly cast during a fight, it might cause the opponent to be temporarily blinded.

At that moment, it would be very useful.

The next day, Karl returned the remaining Necromancer's Dust to the manor and paid to attend two classes on pharmacology.

Several days later.

Bedroom.

Karl's eyes snapped open, his expression grim.

"Level Four Talent, why is my Mental Power increasing so slowly?"

With the data panel, he could clearly see his progress and also knew how slow it was.

"At this rate, it will take ten days to half a month to increase my Mental Power by 0.01."

"It will take at least three to five years for a single point of Mental Power!"

And this was with the help of cultivating with Divine Domain fragments.

Looking at the error-free version again!

Three to five years to reach the level of an Intermediate Wizard Apprentice for Mental Power was actually not bad.

After all, even a Level Three Talent might not be this fast.

However, this was only the time spent cultivating the Meditation Method.

If building Spell Models were added...

Moreover, Karl couldn't dedicate all his time to this; his Martial Skills couldn't be too weak either.

To truly reach the level of an Intermediate Wizard Apprentice, it would likely take ten years or more.

"Forget it!"

Shaking his head, he turned to the Divine Domain fragment.

"I won't wait for the Day of the Burning Moon; I'll go explore the other world first."

*

*

*

"Snow?"

Standing at the doorway, Karl reached out and caught a snowflake falling from the sky, his eyes filled with confusion.

Snow itself wasn't strange.

What was strange was that the snow in his hand was mixed with some black specks.

And unlike the snowflakes in his memory that melted instantly and felt light, the snow here had weight and was gray.

To call it snow, it was more like ash.

Gray snow fell everywhere, covering the entire Black City, and even the roads were covered with a thick layer.

"Crunch... crunch..."

His leather boots crunched on the snow, and the biting cold intensified with the weather.

Laka Market.

The market was sparsely populated, not only far from the Day of the Burning Moon's crowds but even less than half of its usual traffic.

Vendors, wrapped in thick coats, huddled behind their stalls, waiting for customers.

"Uncle!"

Aya looked up with surprise.

"You're here."

"Mm," Karl nodded faintly. "I didn't expect you to still be setting up shop here."

After some time apart, Aya had become even thinner, 'skin and bones' being a perfect description. There were clear bruises on her cheeks, and her clothes were tattered.

Enduring the cold to keep her stall open, her hands and feet were cracked and oozing pus, a gruesome sight.

"I have no choice,"

Aya grinned. "I took over the stall from Uncle Kolong and spent all my savings. If I can't make money..."

"Life goes on."

A flicker of sadness crossed her eyes before she quickly masked it.

She was a very strong girl, having paid a hefty sum for the stall and still having to pay monthly rent.

Unfortunately, business wasn't good.

Aya had emptied her savings to buy the stall, hoping for a chance, a way out. Now, it seemed this path was not easy.

It was already remarkable that she had persevered this long.

Karl squatted down, picked up a small pinch of Soul Powder from the stall, and asked, "How much is it?"

"Two Black Stones per portion." Seeing a customer, Aya quickly said, "Uncle, if you want it, I can give you a discount."

Two Black Stones.

The price was about the same as elsewhere.

Even with a discount, it probably wouldn't be much cheaper.

"The price is fine," Karl said without haggling. "It's just that you have too little Soul Powder here."

"Little?"

Aya's breath hitched, her face flushing. "Uncle, how much do you want?"

"As much as you have, I'll buy it all," Karl stood up, his voice calm. "Money isn't an issue."