Ernst Institute

Ernst Institute

At daybreak the next morning, Zhao Nan had barely stepped outside when he saw Linley waiting for him outside his room.

After meeting Linley, Zhao Nan took him straight to the back hills of Wushan Town to begin training.

However, Zhao Nan didn't start by teaching Linley how to meditate. Instead, he had him practice the Yunqi Style first.

Having read the original novel, Zhao Nan knew very well that whether one became a mage or a warrior, the ultimate goal was to become a god.

But it had to be said that, at the very beginning of their training, warriors were indeed more powerful in combat than mages. After all, fledgling mages took a long time to cast spells, and their magic wasn't very powerful.

Warriors were different. With weapons to enhance their strength, they could beat a mage to death if they managed to get close.

Moreover, after becoming gods, they had even more ways to fight their enemies, and these leaned more toward a warrior's style.

For that reason, Zhao Nan had no intention of making Linley give up the path of a warrior. As in the original novel, he would have Linley train as both a mage and a warrior.

Warriors all began their training with the Yunqi Style. Even members of great clans did the same. It was the most widespread and fundamental method of cultivation.

An hour passed in the blink of an eye. When Zhao Nan saw Linley's body beginning to tremble, he called a halt and told him to stretch.

Once Linley had loosened up, Zhao Nan had him sit cross-legged and began guiding him through meditation.

The first attempt at meditation was very difficult, especially for Linley, who was exhausted from training.

But with the system doubling his training speed, and Linley's own impressive talent, he entered the meditative state surprisingly quickly, even on his first try.

Linley soon emerged from his first meditation.

Zhao Nan saw him stop training but didn't think much of it.

Meditation was a lot like finding a partner: the first time was the hardest. After that, things fell into place naturally.

So when Linley came out of his meditation, Zhao Nan took him for a leisurely walk through the back hills and began explaining all sorts of things about magic and warriors.

Zhao Nan didn't talk about combining laws, nor did he discuss concepts like Weight as Light as a Feather, Weight as Heavy as a Feather, or Momentum.

He simply explained his own understanding of magic and warrior battle qi.

His explanations were simple enough that even Linley, who was only six years old, could understand them.

Of course, while explaining magic and battle qi, Zhao Nan also shared all kinds of information about magical beasts, herbs, and more.

Before long, half a day had passed, and it was time for lunch.

On the way home, Zhao Nan said to Linley, "Little Linley, remember: a teacher can show you the door, but the rest is up to you.

"I'll take you through half a day of training every morning from now on. The rest of the time is yours.

"You don't need to come looking for me."

"Okay, teacher!"

Linley obediently nodded at Zhao Nan's words.

Time flew by, and the seasons came and went!

Before long, Zhao Nan had spent half a year in Wushan Town.

During that time, Linley had become both a first-level warrior and a first-level mage.

Once Linley had reached the first level in both disciplines, Zhao Nan told Linley and Hogg that he had to take his leave.

Both Hogg and Linley tried in every way to persuade him to stay, but Zhao Nan explained that he was still a student at the Ernst Institute. In the end, he said goodbye and left.

He promised that he would come back in a year to check on Linley's training and give him more guidance. That was enough to stop the six-year-old Linley from crying.

The Ernst Institute, the greatest magic academy on the entire Yulan Continent.

It stood in a wooded region more than twenty miles south of Fenlai City.

As the Holy Capital of the Radiant Church, Fenlai City was also home to the Ernst Institute, which had been built with the church's funding.

As one of the two great churches on the Yulan Continent, the Radiant Church was naturally fabulously wealthy.

The institute covered an enormous area, nearly ten miles across.

It was so large that it was practically a city in its own right.

The area outside the Ernst Institute was deserted, surrounded by open mountain ridges.

Restaurants, clothing stores, bars, and other businesses were all located inside the institute. In a sense, the students of the Ernst Institute lived entirely within its grounds.

"Now that's impressive." Zhao Nan had lived at the Ernst Institute for several years, but after being away for so long, he couldn't help exclaiming when he returned.

The main gate of the Ernst Institute was a full fifty meters wide. Above it stood a huge, crescent-shaped structure covered in intricate, mysterious magic runes. Its sheer complexity made it clear that the magic array above the entrance was a large-scale spell.

After taking in the Ernst Institute, Zhao Nan once again stepped through its gates.

Zhao Nan lived in dorm room 1653.

There were three other people in the room besides him, making four to a dorm.

Just as Zhao Nan entered, a young man about a meter seventy tall with purple hair was coming out.

"Hey, Zhao Nan, you're back!" The young man saw him and called out happily.

Zhao Nan looked at him and cheerfully clapped him on the shoulder. "That's right, As. Your big brother's back!"

As had been grinning, but at Zhao Nan's mention of being his big brother, his expression stiffened. He angrily punched Zhao Nan in the chest. "Damn it, I'm the boss of our dorm!"

"Fine, fine, Boss As. I'm starving. How about treating me to a meal?" Zhao Nan didn't argue. He just replied with a grin.

As shook his head. "Grab something to eat on your own for lunch. I have to head out. Let's wait until our third and fourth roommates get back tonight, then we can all go eat together. My treat."

Zhao Nan didn't say anything more. He simply nodded to show he understood and let As get on with what he had to do.

After As left, Zhao Nan began thinking about what to do next.

He had the Teacher System as his cheat, so he needed to find students and take them on as disciples.

But when he thought about the original novel, Linley had transcended in no time at all.

As his teacher, Zhao Nan had already bound himself to Linley. He could simply lie back and wait for Linley to transcend.

But Zhao Nan knew very well that although Linley's transcendence in the original novel seemed to happen smoothly, the Path of Transcendence was anything but easy.

The slightest misstep could keep Linley from transcending and leave him dead, body and soul.

What's more, Zhao Nan still had to change the regrets in Linley's heart. He couldn't just wait around for Linley to slowly grow strong enough to transcend.

Most importantly, what if Zhao Nan's arrival changed some of the turns in Linley's life, and Linley failed to transcend in the end? What would Zhao Nan do then?

So, in the end, he would have to rely on himself.