Chapter Summaries

Ron advanced in his mental power course, impressed Potion Masters with his improved formulas at a gathering, and learned that Corinna might observe him at the next Candidate Wizard Sequence meeting. After a month without seeing Trish, he learned she had arrived at his workshop with a Leopard Girl and went to receive her.

• Ron successfully constructed and infused a Starlight Model, and Eric said he could qualify for the advanced course next month.
• Ailan presented Ron with the workshop’s accounts and a prepared list of materials to buy.
• At a Potion Master gathering, Ron presented improved potions, exchanged ideas with Adrian, Sophia, and William, and learned that Corinna was interested in his progress.
• Magnus told Ron that Corinna might observe him at the upcoming quarterly Candidate Wizard Sequence meeting.
• Ailan warned Ron that Trish had arrived with a Leopard Girl, and Ron went to meet them in the reception room.

Ron reunited with Trish, who demonstrated her awakening Forest Elf bloodline and explained her efforts to advance it toward the Moon Elf bloodline. She revealed that the Black Fog School’s location was tied to a rift leading to the mysterious Bloodline Altar, leaving Ron stunned by the discovery of another world.

• Ron welcomed Trish and learned that she had been helping Mentor Corinna with a Bloodline Activation experiment.
• Trish used Nature Affinity to accelerate a seedling’s growth and described the changes caused by her Forest Elf bloodline.
• Ailan reacted with familiarity and fear to Trish, who recognized Ailan as an unusually advanced Tree Spirit with a potentially ancient bloodline.
• Trish explained that Corinna hoped to guide her toward the Moon Elf bloodline using a special Meditation Method, but progress was slow and caused considerable mental pressure.
• Trish told Ron that a rift near the Black Fog School connected to an Extra-dimensional Rift and the mysterious Bloodline Altar.

Ron learned that the Bloodline Altar would open in a little over half a year and resolved to earn one of Black Fog School's limited slots. He then advanced to Alchemy Apprentice, gained Extraordinary Identification through skill fusion, and discovered he could assess extraordinary materials with a glance.

• Trish told Ron that the Bloodline Altar supported bloodline activation and Source Tracing, opened every five years, and tested entrants with potentially deadly trials.
• Ron promised Trish they would look out for each other if both earned slots, and learned that the Candidate Wizard Sequence's quarterly meeting would be an opportunity to impress Mentor Corinna.
• Ron offered to help Ailan activate a deeper layer of her bloodline, and she agreed to try if he presided over the ritual.
• Ron successfully sealed energy inside a stone, advanced his Alchemy skill to Proficient, and became a one-star Alchemy Apprentice.
• The synergy between Ron's Potion Master and Alchemy Apprentice careers fused Herb Identification and Material Analysis into Extraordinary Identification, letting him sense the composition and history of materials by sight.

Ron used Extraordinary Identification to inspect materials and learned that his Time Guardian's Pocket Watch needed time-attribute energy to recharge. After excelling in an alchemy test, he was promoted to advanced elemental study and received a rudimentary Ring of Radiance spell model from Laila.

• Ron identified Twilight Grass, an improved Amber Thought Fluid, and his pocket watch, discovering the watch was made from Interstellar Silver and Void Gem and required time-attribute energy to recharge.
• Ron decided to investigate where the pocket watch had been dug up in Lizard Alley and went to Thompson's weekly alchemy test.
• Ron completed a stable, high-purity Standard Energy Core well ahead of the time limit, and Thompson praised his skill and suggested he was ready for more advanced study.
• A School messenger summoned Ron to Laila, who explained Elemental Dual-State Resonance and gave him a rudimentary Ring of Radiance spell model.
• Laila told Ron she had recommended moving his Elemental Affinity course to the advanced stage, while she later checked his mental Contamination with a reagent.

Ron perfected the Ring of Radiance and tested his new spells against Andre, whose Crimson Blood Wyvern bloodline had advanced. After defeating Andre in their sparring match, Ron asked him to help with a potentially dangerous matter in Lizard Alley the next day.

• Ron adjusted the Ring of Radiance spell’s elemental balance, mastered its basic form, and experimented with changing its size, speed, and effects.
• Andre visited Ron and revealed that his Crimson Blood Wyvern bloodline now let him control his scales and briefly release Dragon Breath.
• Ron and Andre sparred at the Training Ground, where Andre’s enhanced strength and scales met Ron’s superior swordsmanship.
• Ron struck Andre with Sonic Oscillation and Ring of Radiance, blinding and burning him before giving him an improved Wound Healing Potion.
• Ron asked Andre to accompany him to Lizard Alley the next day, and Andre agreed to meet him at the South Gate at noon.

Ron prepared to travel to Lizard Alley, while Oliver worried about Ron’s rapid rise and his own dangerous secrets. The next day, Ron and Andre learned about Mora, the Old Spider, and encountered an ambush of Lizardman warriors on their way to her pawnshop.

• Ron prepared potions and other supplies for his trip with Andre to Lizard Alley.
• Oliver reviewed Ron’s rising Candidate Wizard Sequence rank, questioned whether Davod had hidden research, and visited his mutated brother Marcus, who fixated on Ron’s photograph.
• Ron and Andre met at the School’s South Gate and traveled to Lizard Alley to find the old woman who had attacked them before.
• At Sunset Tavern, Ron showed Otto his Potion Master Badge and offered Magic Stone Fragments and an appraisal in exchange for information about Mora, the Old Spider.
• Otto told Ron and Andre that Mora ran the Labyrinth Pawnshop, commanded Lizardman warriors and other thugs, and kept an Ogre Mage.
• As Ron and Andre headed deeper into Lizard Alley, eight armed Lizardman warriors blocked their path and demanded their valuables.

Ron and Andre fought their way through Lizard Alley, defeated Mora’s forces, and confronted Old Spider Mora at the Labyrinth Pawnshop. Mora admitted that the attacks had been her “greetings,” leaving Ron and Andre facing her inside the shop.

• Ron and Andre killed eight Lizardman warriors, and Ron found a spider-shaped mark on their leader that he suspected belonged to Mora.
• Ron and Andre defeated an Ogre Mage and its three Earth Stone Giants, and Ron took the Energy Crystal from its staff.
• Ron and Andre reached the Labyrinth Pawnshop and met Old Spider Mora.
• Mora confirmed that she had arranged the earlier ambush and the attacks by the Lizardmen and Ogre Mage.

Ron discovered that Mora was the Skin of the Shapeshifter, a relic that had exposed fragments of his secrets and copied his appearance and abilities. The relic overwhelmed him in battle, but Ron prepared to use something it did not possess.

• Mora froze Andre and transformed into Mrs. Allen, claiming to know Ron’s secrets and warning him to leave.
• Ron recognized Mora as the nearly fully charged Skin of the Shapeshifter and exposed the Labyrinth Pawnshop as its soul-gathering trap.
• The Shapeshifter transformed into Ron and attacked, while Andre remained hypnotized and unable to help.
• Ron fought the Shapeshifter with copied spells and swordsmanship, but it matched or surpassed his abilities and drove him into the alley.
• The Shapeshifter struck Ron into a wall, and Ron activated his bloodline’s healing while reaching into his chest for an advantage the relic lacked.

Ron defeated the Shapeshifter, chose to erase its personality and bind the Skin of the Shapeshifter to himself, then returned to the School with Andre and the Sands of Time. In his laboratory, he began questioning the now-obedient relic about the information it possessed.

• Ron used the Silver Pocket Watch, potions, flashbangs, and spells to defeat the Shapeshifter and contain the Skin of the Shapeshifter.
• Ron chose Complete Obedience, and the relic's original personality was erased before it attached to him and granted him disguise abilities.
• Andre regained consciousness, and Ron claimed they had defeated the old woman and found the Sands of Time.
• Ron and Andre left Lizard Alley and returned to the School, where Ron sent Andre to his dormitory and greeted Ailan in his workshop.
• Ron entered his laboratory, summoned the Shapeshifter from his skin, and asked it to share its intelligence.

Ron learned that the Sands of Time came from the Bloodline Altar, where the Crystal Spire sent a Dark Sun Rank wizard, and used them with his blood to unlock the Time Guardian’s Pocket Watch’s Time Stasis ability. After testing it, he planned his research and advancement toward securing entry to the altar.

• The Shapeshifter gave Ron ten Magic Stones and a piece of Soul Steel, then explained that its stored Sands of Time had been gathered from the Bloodline Altar.
• The Shapeshifter described the Bloodline Altar as a temporal projection and revealed that a Dark Sun Rank wizard from the Crystal Spire led each expedition there.
• Ron decided to pursue a Bloodline Altar entry slot, and the Shapeshifter promised to alert him if it sensed other Rare Relics nearby before returning to hibernation.
• Ron discovered that blood helped the Sands of Time charge the pocket watch, unlocking Time Stasis, which froze a white mouse’s movement but still allowed it to react to touch.
• Ron recorded plans to study bloodline modulation, improve his spellcraft and alchemy, rise in the Candidate Wizard Sequence, and reach High-level Apprentice within six months.

Ron visited Blake Exchange to inspect its new Battle Slaves, where the merchant told him about the upcoming Bloody Gladiator Tournament and its Abyssal Secret Treasure prize, the Surrogate Puppet. Ron became intent on obtaining the puppet and began planning how to prepare for the tournament.

• Ron arrived at Blake Exchange, and the merchant led him to inspect a batch of dangerous Battle Slaves.
• Ron identified instability in a Deep Sea Hybrid and a Composite Warrior, while secretly studying the creatures’ bloodline modifications.
• The merchant told Ron that the Bloody Gladiator Tournament would take place in three months and offer valuable prizes to Apprentices who entered Battle Slaves.
• The merchant revealed that a top prize would be an Abyssal Secret Treasure called the Surrogate Puppet, which could house its user's consciousness in a second body.
• Ron realized the puppet could complement his Dual Soul talent and began planning to acquire it through the tournament.

Ron rejected the unstable, overpriced Battle Slave embryos and bought a high-potential juvenile Siren and nine Autophagic Slimes for Bloodline Modulation experiments. Back in his concealed laboratory, he began studying the slimes and preparing to test their properties.

• Ron used Extraordinary Identification to expose the severe instability and short lifespans of the merchant’s premium embryos.
• Ron found a malnourished juvenile Siren with a rare high-purity bloodline and the Glutton talent, then bargained it down to thirty Magic Stone Fragments.
• Ron bought nine Autophagic Slimes for seventy Magic Stone Fragments, spending one hundred fragments in total on the Siren and slimes.
• Ron returned to his workshop, instructed Ailan to prepare high-nutrition concentrate and conceal the laboratory, and settled in the Siren.
• Ron studied the Autophagic Slimes and read how their colors revealed bloodline traits, rejection, stability, and fusion.

Ron entrusted the malnourished Little Siren to Ailan’s care while he studied Bloodline Modulation using Autophagic Slimes, and he built the Siren a suitable habitat and feeding plan. The Little Siren recovered, grew quickly, learned to speak, and was named Dail; Ron left her future in the Gladiator Tournament dependent on her strength and willingness.

• Ron introduced the frail Little Siren to Ailan, who eagerly took responsibility for caring for her and used Tree Spirit nutrients to aid her recovery.
• Ron created a mana-rich aquatic habitat for the Little Siren, fed her nutritious food, and began researching Bloodline Modulation through experiments on Autophagic Slimes.
• Ron’s experiments revealed that bloodline compatibility, fusion order, purification, buffer media, and energy guidance affected stability, raising his Bloodline Modulation skill to Novice 12.
• Under Ailan’s care and Ron’s feeding plan, the Little Siren recovered, grew rapidly, developed self-awareness, and began speaking.
• Ron named the Little Siren Dail after she asked for a name, and she promised to become his partner.
• Ron told Ailan that Dail might eventually enter the Bloody Gladiator Tournament, but he would only consider it if she was strong enough and willing.

Ron excelled in Solon Griffith’s advanced Mental Power Control course and received special instruction in the foundations of Mind Blast. He also qualified for advanced Alchemy and Elemental Affinity classes, rose to nineteenth place in the Candidate Wizard Sequence, and continued developing his experiments and Dail’s growth.

• Solon Griffith took over the advanced Mental Power Control course and taught the students to construct two Spell Models simultaneously; Ron successfully combined Sonic Oscillation and Slime Splash.
• After class, Solon explained that Mind Blast built on Mental Interference and offered Ron special exercises to strengthen the ability.
• Ron earned early entry to advanced Alchemy and Elemental Affinity classes, while his Candidate Wizard Sequence ranking rose to nineteenth.
• Ron advanced his Bloodline Modulation and Supernatural Biology studies as Dail grew, learned to flip while swimming, and began showing talent for controlling water.
• Solon taught Ron Mind Blast theory and observed that Ron had accumulated almost no Mental Contamination, warning him not to rely too heavily on his Potion-Body Resonance talent.

Ron attended Yuni Seraphin’s first Advanced Elemental Studies class, where he learned about elemental transformation and impressed her with his perception and precise mental control. Yuni gave him an Energy Anchoring Crystal and taught him advanced techniques; back at his workshop, Ron began practicing her Elemental Meditation with the crystal.

• Ron arrived at the advanced Elemental Studies classroom and listened as Yuni Seraphin explained the Law of Elemental Transformation.
• Ron mapped the classroom’s elemental fluctuations, and Yuni praised his broad perception and precise control before guiding the class through practical transformations.
• Ron stayed after class to ask Yuni about energy loss, and she gave him an Energy Anchoring Crystal and taught him about elemental Resonance.
• Yuni told Ron that she and Mrs. Allen had been classmates and invited him to consult her again after a future class.
• Ron returned to his workshop and practiced Yuni’s Elemental Meditation, sensing the crystal’s unusual elemental rhythm.

Ron advanced his Elemental Perception through meditation, gaining the Resonance trait and improving his spellcasting, while his mental power grew closer to the High-level Apprentice threshold. Solon recognized Ron’s talent and continued giving him special guidance, drawing other students’ attention; after class, Ron encountered the two students who had asked Solon for help.

• Ron discovered that the elements were interconnected, then reached Proficient Elemental Perception and gained the Resonance trait, strengthening his Light Element and Fire Element spells.
• Ron used Amber Thought Fluid to deepen his Whispers of the Star Eater meditation, raising his mental power from 3.7 to 3.8 before resetting mild Mental Contamination with the Timekeeper Pocket Watch.
• Solon warned Ron about the dangers of Whispers of the Star Eater, then taught him advanced techniques for Mind Blast compression and mental stability.
• Ron overheard students discussing Solon’s preferential treatment, and Morris and another student stayed after class to request guidance from Solon.
• After Solon resumed his private instruction with Ron, Ron left the classroom and encountered Morris and the other student.

Ron endured jealousy from other apprentices as Solon explained that the Grace system rewarded mentors for students’ growth. While visiting Mrs. Allen, Ron used Extraordinary Identification on her new assistants and discovered that Lillia possessed a Second-Tier special talent.

• Morris and another apprentice accused Solon of favoring Ron, but Ron calmly defended Solon’s teaching and left.
• Solon told Ron that his greater progress brought Solon more Grace and predicted Ron would soon rise another rank in the Candidate Wizard Sequence.
• Ron visited the Candidate Apprentice District to search for overlooked talent, but found no exceptional aptitudes among the apprentices there.
• Ron heard Candidate Apprentices using his rapid rise as encouragement, though he knew his hidden advantages made his success difficult to imitate.
• Ron visited Mrs. Allen’s Herb Shop and met her assistants, Fina and Lillia.
• Ron used Extraordinary Identification on the assistants and discovered that Lillia had the Second-Tier special talent Diligence Makes Up for Mediocrity.

Ron visited Mrs. Allen’s Herb Shop, where she warned him to be cautious of powerful people who might take an unusual interest in him and suggested he take Lillia as his assistant and first personal disciple. Determined to escape the threat of Og Keynes, Lillia prepared to approach Ron using her beauty and Love Dew, while Ron trained at his workshop.

• Mrs. Allen discussed Fina and Lillia’s strengths with Ron, heard about his recent progress, and warned him that his rapid growth could attract dangerous attention.
• Mrs. Allen suggested that Ron make Lillia his assistant and personal disciple, and Lillia watched him leave before privately investigating his background and workshop.
• Lillia recalled how she had survived her harsh upbringing and escaped being sent to a nobleman, then resolved to seek Ron’s protection from Og Keynes.
• Lillia dressed carefully, applied Love Dew, and set out to visit Ron’s workshop.
• Ron practiced controlling Light Element and Fire Element in his workshop’s Training Ground.

Ron accepted Lillia into his workshop after learning she was fleeing Og Keynes, while Solon Griffith and Yuni Seraphin discussed raising Ron’s Candidate Wizard Sequence ranking. Lillia began studying potion-making under Ron, who taught her the principles behind combining ingredients.

• Lillia asked Ron to take her on as an assistant, and he agreed to shelter her from Og Keynes if she followed the workshop rules and studied sincerely.
• Solon Griffith and Yuni Seraphin recognized Ron’s exceptional progress and agreed to propose raising his ranking from nineteenth to the top fifteen.
• Ron received notice of his ranking increase, while Lillia settled into a room at his workshop and resolved to adapt to her new life.
• After observing Ron’s powerful elemental control, Lillia decided to take her studies seriously.
• Ron began teaching Lillia Basic Potionology and demonstrated how Evening Primrose and Silver Star Vine could work together with a Stabilizer.

Ron trained Lillia in Potions and Mental Power Control, and her diligence helped her progress rapidly as she settled into workshop life. After experiencing the Grace earned from mentoring her, Ron directed it toward increasing his maximum mana.

• Ron taught Lillia Potions, encouraged her to learn through practice, and began planning lessons in Mental Power Control.
• Rumors that Lillia had become Ron's special assistant reached Keynes, who abandoned his pursuit of her after learning Ron had a powerful patron.
• Over the next few weeks, Lillia helped run the workshop, cooked for its residents, cared for Dail, and rapidly improved her Potion skills and meditation control.
• Lillia proposed a better ingredient ratio for a potion, and Ron praised her independent observation and confirmed she was developing a Potion Master's way of thinking.
• Ron felt the Grace he received as Lillia's mentor and channeled it into increasing his maximum mana.