A Difficult Road of Study

Thor had no idea how he had made it all the way back to the dormitory.

He slammed the door shut, threw all the books and the Crystal Ball onto the bed, then slowly slid down against the bedpost until he was sitting on the floor.

"Why can't I sense many Dark Elements? Are the elemental particles in the classroom unevenly distributed?"

With that thought, Thor immediately opened a book, picked up the Crystal Ball, and began meditating while still seated on the floor.

This time, he sensed Dark Element particles, but there were still pitifully few of them—fewer even than the white ones.

"White is light. How is that possible? My Dark Element affinity was clearly the highest during the test."

"Did Sid tamper with it back then? Unlikely. If he didn't want me to pass, what would be the point of messing with my elemental perception?"

Though he was reluctant to consider it, Thor ultimately thought of Kongsha.

The image in his mind froze on the bottle of Healing Potion Kongsha had given him.

"If Dark Element isn't actually the element I'm most attuned to, then that potion most likely altered my Mental Power temporarily."

Thor had known from the beginning that Kongsha must have had some purpose in helping him become an Apprentice. Now, he was merely more certain of it.

He let out a long breath, tossed aside the Crystal Ball, and looked up. It was nearly time for afternoon class.

He could not confront Kongsha about meditation right now, so he could only take things one step at a time.

He did not see Keli when he left again.

His plan to ask her about her meditation state fell through, so Thor could only head alone for the fifteenth floor of the East Tower.

Mentor Kazi had his own private Laboratory there.

Ordinary Apprentices who wanted their mentor's guidance usually had to go to the Laboratory—while the mentor was conducting experiments, they might answer a few questions.

But most of the time, Apprentices were reluctant to seek out their mentor before they hit a bottleneck.

The answers they received were more likely to be, "You don't even know something this simple?" "Didn't I explain this question already?" or "I don't think you need to wait for the next test. You're eliminated now."

Only newcomers who had never seen a mentor lose their temper would be excited to meet one up close.

With so many worries weighing on him, Thor felt no excitement at all as he headed to the fifteenth floor.

He arrived at Mentor Kazi's Laboratory and locked eyes with someone the moment he pushed open the door.

The owner of those eyes immediately went through a vivid sequence of shock, anger, lingering fear, and forced composure.

Thor looked at Duke and scratched his chin with a bony knuckle.

Duke immediately looked away.

After all, faint purple finger marks still lingered on his face.

Don't provoke him. Don't provoke him...

Not many had chosen Kazi. Among the roughly twenty newcomers, there were only three.

Thor, Duke, and a rather cute girl named Angela.

She seemed unaware of the conflict between Thor and Duke. Her large eyes blinked innocently, and a gentle smile rested on her lips.

There was also a young man wearing a Level 2 Apprentice badge in the Laboratory, tidying things up.

Seeing the three of them standing silently in the Laboratory, he came over and greeted them with a smile. "Mentor Kazi usually doesn't come this early in the afternoon. In the future, you can come around three o'clock."

Then he chuckled again, his meaning unclear.

"Of course, it's fine if you don't come."

After the brief exchange, the Laboratory fell silent again.

The Level 2 Wizard Apprentice turned back to his work, clearly uninterested in continuing the conversation.

Seeing no sign that Mentor Kazi would arrive early, Thor simply took out a book, found a table without clutter on it, and sat down to study.

Seeing this, the other two also found places to read.

There was distance between all three of them, their boundaries clearly drawn.

With too much on his mind, Thor could not focus on his book this time. Every so often, he would look up to check the time.

Finally, when the hourglass reached three thirty in the afternoon, the Laboratory door was pushed open again.

Everyone put down what they were doing and stood up.

"Mentor!" The Level 2 young Apprentice greeted him with a broad smile.

Following his gaze, Thor saw a skinny, withered old man with white hair.

He looked extremely old. His wrinkled skin and slightly clouded eyes made Mentor Kazi appear to be well over ninety.

Kazi walked in slowly, though his steps were steady.

He did not respond to the Level 2 Apprentice. His eyes merely swept across the Laboratory.

Thor noticed that the Level 2 Apprentice seemed very nervous.

"My requirements are simple." Kazi spoke coldly to the Level 2 Apprentice. "Put used items back where they belong. If you can't even do that, then you don't need to come to my Laboratory anymore."

The smile vanished from the Level 2 Apprentice's face, leaving him looking embarrassed. "Yes, Mentor. I'll finish tidying it today."

"When is your next test?"

"In one month."

"Good. Then your test will be whether you can clean up the Laboratory properly."

"Yes."

Thor noticed that upon hearing Kazi's testing requirement, the Level 2 Apprentice actually seemed relieved.

After that, Kazi looked at the three newcomers. "Come here. Stand in front of me. Are you expecting an old man like me to walk over to you?"

The three hurried over and lined up before Kazi.

Kazi's gray pupils swept over the three one by one. When they finally landed on Thor, he suddenly asked in an unfriendly tone, "Why is your Magic Power so low?"

Duke, standing on Angela's other side, immediately brightened. He seemed to be debating whether to step up and "explain" things for Thor.

But just as he was about to speak, the wound on his face throbbed faintly, and no sound came out.

Thor knew he could not hide his condition from an Official Wizard, so he said directly, "Mentor, my Magic Power talent is not very good, but my Mental Power talent is decent."

Kazi was unimpressed. "Mental Power without Magic Power makes you a scholar, not a Wizard. Being a Wizard isn't just about knowing how to read."

Then he muttered under his breath, "Can't they find even one decent Apprentice out there these days?"

Thor had already prepared himself and was not discouraged by Kazi's words. But if even his own mentor looked down on him, how was he supposed to continue his studies in the future?

"Mentor, I will work hard to improve my Magic Power. Please give me a chance."

Kazi rolled his eyes. "Work hard how? Witchcraft modification? Fine. If you raise your Magic Power to 10 joules within three months, I'll count you as having passed your first test. Otherwise... my Laboratory can never have too many materials."

Joules were a unit used to measure Magic Power.

During Wizard Apprentice tests, the Black Crystal was responsible for measuring the innate Magic Power in a person's body.

Generally, one had to reach 10 joules before the age of fifteen for their talent to be considered acceptable.

However, Thor's Magic Power talent was definitely below 10 joules, perhaps even below 5. Otherwise, Mentor Kazi would not have believed he had no chance at all.

Completing in three months what normally took three years was indeed difficult.

Thor stepped forward half a pace, intending to plead with his mentor for more time.

But Kazi raised a hand, preventing Thor from speaking further.

He said to Duke, who was secretly delighted, and Angela, whose eyes showed sympathy, "You two, come with me."

"You." He glanced at Thor. "Learn from Mark first."

Mark was the Level 2 Apprentice in the Laboratory.

After saying that, Kazi left the Laboratory with the other two newcomers. No one knew where they were going or what they were going to do.

Mark was not surprised. He escorted them all the way to the door.

Once Mentor Kazi and the others had left, Mark shut the door and returned to the cabinet to continue organizing things.

He showed no intention of acknowledging Thor.

Thor was not discouraged. He still had Kongsha behind him.

He had now fulfilled Kongsha's requirement and become Mentor Kazi's student.

She would likely give Thor his next order soon.

But Kongsha used Thor far more than she helped him.

Ignoring Thor's situation, she had forcibly altered his elemental perception, most likely so that he would choose Mentor Kazi.

If Thor wanted to use Kongsha's influence to grow stronger, he could not let her continue treating him as disposable cannon fodder.

He had to tread carefully between refusing her dangerous orders and gaining her protection.

First of all, his study of Witchcraft absolutely could not stop.

"Senior," Thor took the initiative and walked behind Mark, "can I help you tidy up?"

Mark turned around, completely unsurprised by Thor's choice, as though he had been waiting for him to speak.

"Sigh, you newcomers have no Magic Crystals and no Credits, so physical labor is about all you can do. For the next month, you'll be responsible for cleaning the Laboratory. I'll spend an hour each day teaching you."

Thor looked around the not particularly large but densely packed Laboratory and said hesitantly, "Clean the entire Laboratory? Senior, with my current abilities, won't I get in the way of your work?"

"Of course I won't give you all the work. I'll tell you what to watch out for. You only need to handle the final cleanup."

Mark suddenly raised his hand. A mouth split open in his palm, and a bright red tongue stretched out, nearly licking Thor's face.

"If you don't focus on your work and make a mistake, I'll tear off your skin!"