Eye of Truth

A flock of white-feathered gulls soared above the rolling waves as darkness fell, black as ink.

Below them, a massive steam-powered ship, half machine and half vessel, cut through the surging waves and entered a stretch of deep, dark sea.

Water rushed back into its wake, carrying the crushed flesh of several sea beasts.

More sea beasts swarmed in to devour the bloody remains.

A Black Crow fluttered down onto the sill of a round cabin window.

A pair of hands scooped her inside.

Ryan shut the window and set the crow on a nearby coat rack.

Colorful decorative paintings hung on the wood-paneled walls.

"Show up late again, and I'll lock you up for three days."

The black-haired, black-eyed boy had delicate features and arched brows.

The crow was more than twice the size of her ordinary kin. With feathers of another color, she might have passed for some unusual bird of prey—an eagle or a falcon.

Her powerful talons curled around the coat-rack bar. With a little pressure, she could have sliced it in two.

Ryan watched the crow roll her eyes upward in an almost human gesture and decided to put up with her for now, keeping her well fed and comfortable.

She was the Experimental Material for his first wizardry spell, after all. He had devoted most of his energy to her these past few days.

Once the wizardry was complete, the little creature would pay what she owed.

Ryan ground his teeth to himself and fed her fresh sea beast meat caught from the ocean. A wave of delight came through their mental link.

Only then did he wash his hands in the cabin's washroom.

Books stood neatly on the shelves, their covers thick and every page made of specially prepared parchment.

He sat in the chair beside the desk. A brown book lay half-open before him, with pages of notes covering the draft paper nearby.

The writing was not Chinese from his previous life.

Fourteen years after arriving in this Wizard World, he had become one of its natives through and through.

His old memories lay buried deep in his mind, distant now.

His current identity was that of a Wizard Freshman aboard this Wizard Ship.

Among the eighty freshmen, he hardly stood out.

Wizard Aptitude varied from person to person, but he had no interest in flocking around the few with the highest aptitude and hoping they would help him along his path as a wizard.

For Beginner Wizardry, he had chosen Iron Claw Steel Skin, a minor branch of the Supernatural Nurturing Department.

Amid freshmen who had chosen the Elemental Energy Series, he stuck out like a husky in a wolf pack.

At the freshmen's daily gatherings in the dining hall to exchange insights on wizardry, he was always left out.

Yet time and knowledge were the most precious things to a wizard. No one shared knowledge for free.

Wizard Tuta, the recruiting wizard who lived at the bow of the ship, had declared this one of the principles of the Wizard's Theory of Essence on their first day aboard.

Ryan did not care about the so-called gatherings. They were a waste of time. Instead, he immersed himself in the complexities of Wizard Knowledge.

Over seven days and nights at sea, he had come to understand his chosen Iron Claw Steel Skin Nurturing Wizardry.

After three months of nurturing, all he needed was a little more time. Then the Black Feather Crow he had named Harak would be able to tear through steel with her claws and deflect sharp arrows with her feathers.

His Iron Claw Steel Skin Nurturing Wizardry would be complete.

Their destination was the Umbral Expanse, a Wizard Force.

To truly join it and become Wizard Students of the Umbral Wizard Academy, the freshmen aboard had to master one wizardry spell first.

Wizard Tuta had once said, "Newborn Wizards have six months to spend at the academy. Anyone who cannot master even the minimum requirement of one wizardry spell will be expelled to a nearby Wilderness Wizard Camp."

That meant being abandoned.

Wilderness Wizards had no Knowledge Inheritance and no supply of resources. Their prospects on the path of wizardry were bleak.

Most died of old age or modified their bodies to cling to life.

Tiny flecks of blue light flashed deep in Ryan's black eyes.

Target: Black Feather Crow

Supernatural Nurturing progress: 82%

Ability: Steel Claw

Nurturing requirements: 5 kg of high-protein supplements daily; one session of particle-energy nourishment daily.

The Eye of Truth could detect, collect, and store information, then analyze it to produce results.

It had been a passive skill for the wizard class in a strange, macabre game—the only gift Ryan had brought into this world.

It suited his new calling perfectly.

With those special eyes, the Wizard Knowledge that baffled every other freshman was no longer difficult for him to understand.

Each freshman had received a basic Meditation Method for tracing Wizard Runes in their Sea of Consciousness. Ryan had been the first to complete a rune and generate particle energy within his body.

Unfortunately, his innate Spiritual Power was only 6.1, below average for Wizard Aptitude. He could not hold that lead forever.

The most gifted freshmen soon caught up. Their powerful innate Spiritual Power allowed them to affect the physical world and draw in more Natural Particle Energy.

By using the fine radiation of particle energy to influence the body, a wizard could increase its strength and capacity to hold more particle energy.

Here, Ryan had the advantage. With the Eye of Truth, he could control that process with the utmost precision.

The other Wizard Freshmen could hardly avoid damage from excessive radiation. Forced to proceed cautiously, they advanced slowly.

Ryan was also furthest along in mastering his Beginner Wizardry.

Most freshmen had only just generated particle energy. They were still trying to understand their Beginner Wizardry and had yet to begin practicing it.

There was plenty of time, wasn't there? Six whole months.

How could dry, tedious knowledge compare with a dining-hall gathering full of clinking glasses and beautiful people?

Beneath the warm lights, hormones ran wild.

But could newcomers who barely understood the Wizard World really learn the Wizard Runes and master a wizardry spell in six months?

Spells of the Elemental Energy Series could only be cast after both Spiritual Power and the particle energy within the body reached the required levels.

Ryan thought it would be very difficult unless someone was a true genius with ample resources.

Everyone made their own choices.

Like an outsider, Ryan quietly watched the freshmen turn mealtime into a lively candlelit party.

In the shadows of a corner seat, he chewed bread spread with sauce. Its slightly sweet taste still made him frown.

The freshmen clustered around a few people at the center, their words mostly serving to flatter them.

Arthur's brilliant blond hair and tall frame gave him a commanding presence, and his eyes shone with confidence. Taking charge of the room, he said, "Friends, today I'll share my experience with the radiation of elemental particle energy."

Only those with innate Spiritual Power of at least 7 were qualified to join his circle.

Including him, there were only four. His gaze lingered most often on the sole young woman. Under the warm lights, her red hair seemed to set his heart ablaze, but the Crimson Pupils that met his eyes were cool.

That did not matter. Even the proudest swan would one day lower her slender white neck. Aptitude determined a person's future value, and his Spiritual Power was 7.5.

He had the best chance of Advancing to Formal Wizard.

Sooner or later, she would understand that attaching herself to someone stronger was the only way to go further on the path of wizardry.

"How enviable. Arthur, Anna, Rowena, Orson... If only I had their aptitude."

The speaker's voice carried a smile. He dropped into the seat opposite Ryan, helped himself to a piece of sea beast meat, and began to eat.

A new author with a new book—please show it some love!

"Algorithm Chip," "Supernatural Gene Programming," "Cosmic Radiation Energy," "Quantum Consciousness Condensation." Ryan crossed into the Star Sea Wizard World carrying the Truth Refinement Ritual. Once he met its conditions, he could directly refine the desired result.