So It Was This Big (Seeking Recommendations)

Bai Mo had no idea that two girls had their minds on him. He was replaying the brief battle from moments ago.

Wanting to test what he was truly capable of, he admitted that he had been careless.

It was the first time he had felt death so close, and he was also grateful that he practiced casting magic every day.

It might have looked like he had sent the Demon Beast flying with a single blow, but by the time he had finished constructing his spell, the Sparrow-headed Yellow Toad had already darted to within ten meters of him. He could even smell the foul stench coming off the Demon Beast.

At a Servant Level Demon Beast's speed, such a short distance was practically face-to-face.

If he had been even a blink slower at constructing his magic, it was uncertain who would have been sent flying.

And that was while the Sparrow-headed Yellow Toad had been pursued by the City Demon Hunting Squad and had clearly been worn down.

If it had been a Demon Beast in peak condition...

Or if one day, like those passersby earlier, he was simply taking a walk when a Demon Beast he could not handle suddenly sprang out...

Bai Mo shuddered at the thought.

Sure enough, becoming a mage and cultivating properly was the right path. Otherwise, even his life and health might not be guaranteed.

After silently thanking his past self for meditating and practicing magic every day, Bai Mo, now deeply aware of the importance of cultivation, pulled over.

There happened to be a supermarket selling mage Cultivation Resources by the roadside. Bai Mo went inside and spent a million on a Space Magic Crystal the size of two thumbs.

He had already used up the ones his family had given him.

He resolved to use this Summer Vacation to catch up, giving back to his beloved Space Element the effort he had wasted on eating, drinking, and having fun.

He would strive to reach Elementary Level 3 in the Space Element by the start of his second year of high school.

This was definitely not the pointless rat race he opposed. It was the reasonable development of his peerless talent, all so he could enjoy life better in the future.

After all, the core principle of meditating seven hours a day had not changed. He merely went over it a little sometimes, which troubled him greatly—he was simply too enduring.

Now, he had also adapted to the circumstances by adding another basic policy: using resources reasonably to develop his talent.

This was perfectly reasonable.

When he returned home, as expected, the house was pitch-black.

Patriarch Bai was probably still drinking tea in his private study, while Madam Zhuang was likely playing mahjong at one of her sisters' houses.

Bai Mo made himself some Fish-flavored Shredded Pork. After filling his stomach, he returned to his room and took out the Stardust Magic Tool his family had given him, pondering for a moment.

He had to find an opportunity to let Patriarch Bai, who Appeared and Disappeared Mysteriously, know that his genius son had already reached Elementary Level 2.

Shouldn't he show some appreciation? Spirit-grade Stardust Magic Tools were always being rotated through. Bai Mo neither wanted one nor could get one, but at the very least, he could reimburse the money Bai Mo spent on Space Magic Crystals, right?

He then took out the Space Magic Crystal he had just bought, sank his consciousness into his Mental World, and looked at the silver stardust that had grown twice as large as it had initially.

Then he began to meditate.

Ever since his first meditation, when he had been able to clearly sense the growth of his cultivation, Bai Mo had known that his cultivation speed was far faster than that of his peers.

After all, ordinary mages could not sense changes in their cultivation through meditation. Only after persisting over a long period could they see their cultivation increase.

That was why mage meditation was known for being tedious.

Yet every time he meditated, he could sense

his cultivation growing.

It was like everyone had a bucket. Every time they meditated, they poured a drop of water into it. They could not feel the change in the water level at all; they only knew that they had added water.

As long as they persisted, it would surely fill up. Yet the waiting process was enough to wear away most people's initial expectations.

But he was pouring a cup of water into his bucket, so he could feel it.

And now he had a Stardust Magic Tool that accelerated cultivation. Although it could only amplify it by ten percent, he had also bought Space Magic Crystals.

It was equivalent to replacing his cup with a larger one.

As a result, Bai Mo could feel the growth of his Magic Energy even more clearly.

He enjoyed that distinct thrill until the second Space Magic Crystal in his hand had been completely used up.

Feeling that his stardust had doubled in size once again, Bai Mo tossed away the shattered magic crystal in his hand and nodded in satisfaction.

Come to think of it, Space Magic Crystals really were the only Space Element cultivation resource he could afford.

They were also relatively easy for his family to obtain.

This was likely because magic crystals' cultivation-boosting effects did not do much for mages above the Elementary Level.

And most mages who awakened Space Element magic were likely already Advanced Level or even Super Level. Their cultivation through meditation alone was already fast, so they had little need for such things.

That was why Space Magic Crystals were relatively inexpensive and widely available.

School started tomorrow, and the goal he had set before the holiday—to reach Elementary Level 3 by the beginning of his second year of high school—had been perfectly achieved.

Bai Mo was quite pleased with this.

The next day, as Bai Mo stood on the balcony of the third floor of the teaching building and looked down at the new students below, he felt something indescribable.

It was like a sigh over the passage of time, yet also like reminiscing over days gone by. There was much more besides, things even he could not sort out.

In any case, as he watched the neatly lined-up new students on the field, Bai Mo sighed. "How wonderful. I finally don't have to do radio calisthenics anymore."

Because Grade 1 was the stage when most students had only just mastered magic, the school had not canceled the compulsory education broadcast calisthenics program, lest the students become too quiet and focused solely on cultivation.

Its purpose was to keep the classmates energized and in their best condition for the practical combat classes to come.

In Bai Mo's eyes, that reasoning was utter nonsense.

Still, seeing others suffer through what he had already endured filled him with anticipation.

Beside Bai Mo, his deskmate Zhou Tianyuan leaned against the railing with him, enjoying the breeze as they watched the new students awakening below. He sighed, "Ah, idle clouds and pond reflections, the days drift by; stars shift and seasons change through how many autumns~"

"..."

Here he went again. Bai Mo looked at his deskmate speechlessly.

He was the only boy in the entire school with long hair. His looks also leaned toward the androgynous, with soft facial features.

Combined with his slight frame, slender build, and modern clothing adapted from traditional ancient attire, he gave off the refined, artistic air of a delicate young lady.

If one did not look carefully, it would be hard to tell his gender.

The reason he dressed like this was simply because he loved traditional ancient poetry.

Even Bai Mo, an oddball among the scions of great families who constantly talked about taking it easy, found him strange.

Still, aside from occasionally throwing out ancient poetic lines he had read in books, he was normal enough in every other respect.

"Look! It's the Plant Element!!!"

The cries of surprise from several classmates on the left, who were also watching the spectacle, caught his attention.

Bai Mo turned his head. Was White Magic this common now? He raised an eyebrow and followed the direction of the classmate's finger.

At the far right side of the field, near the teaching building, stood the formation of Class 8 of Grade 1.

A girl stood at the very front. Due to the angle, he could not see her face, but he could clearly see the green glow brimming with life from the Awakening Stone.

It really was the Plant Element. Bai Mo narrowed his eyes. However, it did not look very bright, which indicated that this classmate's talent was ordinary.

"Holy shit!"

"Wow!!"

"So big~"

The boys' hushed exclamations from the other side reached Bai Mo's ears. He discreetly glanced at them and saw that, amid their cries and whispers, more boys had run over to take a look, with several girls mixed in as well.

They were probably looking at the mage who had awakened the Plant Element.

But Bai Mo was curious. What had they seen that made them so amazed? What was so big?

"Bai Mo, do you know what they're shouting about?"

Zhou Tianyuan had long been drawn in by the commotion over there, but he felt that joining the crowd would not suit the bearing of a cultured scholar. So he merely watched quietly. Yet as more and more people gathered, he could not help but ask curiously.

"How would I know?" Bai Mo stared at the girl below, also curious about what was so remarkable.

Until the person in his sight turned around, revealing a pair of full, bouncing curves beneath her white Pikachu T-shirt.

Only then did he suddenly understand.

So this was what they meant by big!

That eye-catching, distinctive figure, combined with the Plant Element, reminded him of someone from the original story.

But out of caution, Bai Mo decided to observe more carefully.

Emmm, he could not make it out. He needed to look more carefully.

"Bai Mo, why are they coming over here? Bai Mo? What are you look—"

Zhou Tianyuan's voice abruptly stopped, followed by a sharp intake of breath. Then came two awkward coughs and a few words as soft as a mosquito's buzz:

"Do not look upon impropriety, do not look upon impropriety!"

Once the suspicious figure merged into the crowd and he could no longer see her clearly, Bai Mo withdrew his gaze. Before this side became packed with people as well, he pulled Zhou Tianyuan to a less crowded spot.

He was sure now. That was Aitutu, because he saw the next person awakening.

He recognized Mu Nujiao of the Mu Family.

"What a small world~"