"Door Opening" Ritual: Obligations and Benefits

Ron set down the booklet, feeling his heart race with excitement.

Advancing from Primary Apprentice to Intermediate Apprentice within three years? It might be quite a challenge for ordinary people, but for him, with the Career Panel and bonuses from multiple professions, reaching that threshold seemed effortless.

He continued reading, wanting to learn more about the details of the advancement system.

"An Formal Wizard's advancement ritual is called 'Door Opening.' Every candidate must complete a trial and, under their mentor's guidance, undergo the highly dangerous brain-domain opening ritual."

"This ritual requires a specially made 'key' potion as its medium. The formula for this potion is strictly confidential and known only to a few professors within the School."

So that was it, he murmured inwardly.

That explained why there was such fierce competition among High-level Apprentices—every candidate qualified for advancement had to fight over extremely limited resources and opportunities.

The covert rivalry between Holt and Oliver now became much clearer: both were close to advancing to High-level Apprentice, and both longed to obtain one of those scarce advancement slots.

The booklet also listed in detail the differences in authority and benefits between the various apprentice ranks, leaving Ron dazzled.

Primary Apprentices could only use public laboratories, and their monthly usage time was strictly limited;

Intermediate Apprentices, on the other hand, could apply for dedicated research spaces, while High-level Apprentices could even gain access to independent experimental Towers.

The gap in resource allocation was even more astonishing. The basic monthly Magic Stone income available to High-level Apprentices was more than ten times that of Primary Apprentices, and after entering the Candidate Wizard Sequence, that amount would multiply again.

"So class rigidity exists everywhere..." Ron gave a self-mocking smile. "But at least now there's a clear path upward."

When he turned to the next section, "Apprentice Obligations and Benefits," his expression grew even more focused.

According to the rules, as a Primary Apprentice, he had to complete a fixed number of potion-making tasks for the School every month.

The exact quantity and types would be adjusted according to his personal skills and strengths.

In addition, he had to regularly participate in maintaining public areas or take on certain patrol duties outside.

In exchange, the School would provide basic living security and learning resources, such as housing, food, access to public facilities, and a small monthly quota of Magic Stone Fragments.

The booklet also specifically mentioned that apprentices could exchange extra completed tasks or rare materials for Magic Stone Fragments and credits, which could be used to purchase paid courses within the School.

"Paid courses?" Ron raised his brows slightly.

He quickly flipped to the relevant pages and discovered that the School offered a wide range of paid courses, from the basic "Mental Power Control Techniques" to the advanced "Principles of Energy Conversion," covering nearly every aspect of wizard cultivation.

These courses were graded by difficulty, with prices ranging from a few Magic Stone Fragments to several whole Magic Stones.

But what truly interested Ron was the section at the end of the booklet regarding "mentor guidance."

"Within the School system, apprentices with mentors receive many conveniences and privileges. In addition to fixed monthly one-on-one guidance, they can gain priority access to their mentor's research results and may even participate in spell-improvement experiments."

"However, Formal Wizards are extremely cautious when choosing students. Apprentices usually need to demonstrate extraordinary talent or provide rare research materials. Those aspiring to obtain a mentor should strive to increase their own value in order to attract the attention of potential mentors."

Ron closed the booklet and took a deep breath.

"Advance to Intermediate Apprentice within three years and enter the Candidate Wizard Sequence," he softly repeated his goal.

With the bonuses from multiple professions granted by his cheat, this goal should be easy to achieve.

But the competition afterward would be the real challenge. How could he stand out among so many geniuses and obtain the precious opportunity to become a Formal Wizard?

Ron walked to the window and looked out at the Black Mist Forest.

It was already late at night, yet the strange halos circling above the forest remained clearly visible, like countless watchful eyes.

Inside a High Tower deep within the Black Mist Forest, Oliver stood before a window, holding a report that had just been delivered.

"Ron Ralph has successfully passed the Primary Apprentice qualification assessment..."

He continued calculating, his pale, slender fingers lightly tapping against the window frame. "Several months earlier than I expected."

The room inside the High Tower was luxuriously decorated, yet it exuded an extreme sense of eeriness.

Various well-preserved human skins hung on the walls. Each one had been carefully treated to retain its owner's final expression in life—some terrified, some agonized, but most bearing an incomprehensible emptiness and confusion.

On the platform in the center of the room lay a badly stitched-together corpse, its body filled with complex tubes and rune needles.

The corpse looked human, but a closer look revealed that some of its parts clearly came from different individuals—the left arm was noticeably longer than the right, the proportions of its head and torso were mismatched, and the crude stitching around its neck was clearly visible.

Beside this corpse was an Experiment Subject that had only recently been delivered: Darund, after fully undergoing Aberration.

The enormous exposed brain tissue on his body had been carefully removed and preserved in a specially prepared solution.

Oliver placed the report on a nearby table, walked to Darund's corpse, and gently stroked the massive brain tissue. His eyes gleamed with poorly concealed regret and fury.

"Look at this, Amanda." He spoke softly to another corpse beside him. "It should have been flawless Mutant brain tissue, but that Ron destroyed it ahead of time."

The corpse named Amanda naturally could not respond, but Oliver did not seem to care.

"Everything was proceeding according to plan," he muttered to himself.

"The Mental Catalyst dosage was precise, and I made sure Darund could find the correct formula to attempt. Logically, he should have been able to maintain his sanity longer while retaining consciousness."

Oliver irritably tapped the tabletop. "If that damned Ron hadn't interfered early, Darund would have completely transformed into a complete Aberrant far beyond his current form after his brief period of sanity ended—a terrifying existence capable of rivaling a High-level Apprentice."

He walked toward the window, a cold calculation flashing through his eyes.

"What a perfect plan—those foolish Candidate Apprentices would inevitably have been crushed by fear, hiding in their rooms and trembling; when Holt arrived in response to the noise, even he would have been caught off guard by the suddenly appearing complete Aberrant."

Oliver's fingers lightly rubbed the window frame. "If Holt were severely injured by Darund, or contaminated by the sonic attack, he would inevitably fall behind me in the competition for the Candidate Wizard Sequence. And now..."

As he spoke, he picked up a syringe filled with dark red liquid and carefully injected it into the veins of Amanda's corpse.

"Fortunately, although the plan was interrupted, it was not without gains." Oliver consoled himself. "At least Darund's brain tissue is now in my hands."

The corpse suddenly convulsed violently, its eyes flying open. Its mouth gaped wide, yet no sound came out. Those eyes were filled with inhuman terror and pain, as though it were enduring some unspeakable torment.

"Be patient, Amanda." The gray-robed young man's voice remained gentle.

"Fusion takes time. You are now receiving part of Darund's thought-construction ability. If it succeeds, you will become my thirteenth masterpiece."

He returned to the window and picked up the report again, greed gleaming in his eyes.

"Ron Ralph, from a Sixth-Rank Star piece of trash to a qualified, even stable, Primary Apprentice..."

Oliver raised a hand and gently touched his cheek, where there was an almost imperceptible stitch mark.

He walked to the other side of the room and opened an exquisite cabinet.

Inside, several glass jars were neatly arranged. Each contained an intact brain soaked in liquid, its surface covered in strange runes.

"That guy is definitely not simple. He actually killed a Mutant that had begun undergoing Aberration with nothing but a wooden sword."

A trace of fanaticism flashed through Oliver's eyes. "If he has truly awakened some Special Talent, then... this will be the final piece of my puzzle for advancing toward Formal Wizard."

A chilling smile appeared on his face.

"Patience. I need patience. Prey is always easiest to catch when it is most relaxed."