Settlement

Velint picked up the two green jade stones and tossed one to Fran.

As soon as Fran caught the green jade stone, she felt the book in her possession vibrate.

"Then... goodbye..."

Velint said, and Fran replied:

"Goodbye."

Only then did Velint breathe a sigh of relief. To be honest, she'd been a little afraid that Fran might suddenly get the idea to snatch the stone from her hand and combine them. She couldn't beat her, after all.

She hurriedly recited the incantation. Five seconds later, her figure gradually turned transparent and disappeared.

Only then did Fran start checking what had happened to her book.

When she opened it, she saw a line of text on the title page.

[You have collected three jade stones. Recite the incantation to exit the trial.]

Fran didn't hurry. Instead, she first examined the small pouch she'd taken from the person who had ambushed her earlier.

She opened the pouch. Inside were only some colorful crystals.

"What are these?"

Fran was quite puzzled. She had extraordinary-level Pharmacy, but she couldn't make heads or tails of them, which meant they weren't medicinal ingredients.

She also had mastery-level Runology, but still couldn't figure them out, which meant they probably had little to do with enchantment materials.

"Forget it. I'll check the Spirit Realm Atlas when I get back. Maybe it'll be in there. I just don't know if I can take these things back with me."

Two items had dropped from the person Fran killed. Based on her previous experience carrying this book, she shouldn't have been able to bring either of them to the Material Realm.

But Fran had a feeling that she could take them back.

She checked everything once more. After confirming there were no problems, she recited the incantation.

Her consciousness began to sink, but she felt that it had only sunk halfway.

When she regained consciousness, she found herself in a space with a black background.

Several lines of text appeared in the air. She didn't recognize the characters, but she found that she could understand them.

[Trial Settlement

Red Jade Stone: Obtained.

Blue Jade Stone: Obtained.

Green Jade Stone: Received half for a two-person challenge.]

Fran glanced over the text and saw the explanation for the green jade stone.

If a two-person challenge only gives you half, wouldn't I get more for doing it alone?

What a loss. She felt she could've taken care of the Vine Giant in another minute or so. If she'd known, she wouldn't have teamed up with someone else.

Fran watched for a while, but nothing changed. She stepped forward and tapped the text. It began to fade and rearrange itself.

Why does it need interaction, too?

White text gradually appeared in the air again.

[Reward: Trial Key, one random spell.]

Then an object shaped like a key appeared before Fran, floating in midair. It stood out starkly against the surrounding void and darkness.

A green orb of light also appeared in the air, glowing warmly as it waited for Fran to touch it.

Fran hadn't expected to get a Trial Key so quickly.

It seemed that once she returned, she could start preparing to advance through the trial.

But she had no intention of doing that for now. Just from Ichi's description, she knew that becoming a Spirit Realm Mage was no casual undertaking.

This time, she'd been lucky enough to find a Trial Key right away. But what about next time?

If she ended up like Ichi and couldn't find a Trial Key for her entire life, she'd be done for.

Fran stepped forward and touched the key. A line of text appeared in her mind.

[This trial will take place in Brilliant Dream. Time until the trial opens: 184:13:46:30. Participants should enter the trial one hour in advance. Entry will close five minutes before the trial begins. All spells and Combat Techniques are permitted.]

At the same time, the final digit in the countdown kept decreasing.

The other world used the same units of time as Earth.

As Fran understood it, the numbers were arranged as days:hours:minutes:seconds. When the final number, which was continuously decreasing, reached zero, she saw the number before it decrease by one, while the last number changed to sixty and began counting down again.

In other words, the trial wouldn't open for another six months.

She took the key and put it in her pocket.

There was no need to rush. She still hadn't decided whether to participate, so it wouldn't hurt to hold onto it for now.

Then she looked at the floating mass of green light, hoping she'd get a good spell.

As for getting a Trial Key, she thought that was only right. Her strength far exceeded that of a Spirit Realm Traveler.

By rights, someone at her level should've advanced to Formal Rank long ago. If the Spirit Realm had a will of its own, it should give her a key and tell her to stop picking on the weak.

So for Fran, the spell in the orb was the real reward. If it wasn't any good, then she'd practically gone through this trial for nothing.

She also knew what Ichi had told her: after becoming Formal Rank, Spirit Realm Travelers could hardly learn any skills from the Material Realm.

That was the price, but the Spirit Realm also offered compensation.

As long as you explored the Spirit Realm, you were bound to find all sorts of strange spells, Combat Techniques, and items.

They were all directly instilled into your mind. Based on Fran's Panel's calculations, these skills started at mastery level at the very least.

This was the least gatekeeping chapter. If you were a Spirit Realm Traveler, as long as you were lucky and put together a good set of skills, you could easily crush a member of a school.

There were no connections you could rely on at all. At most, those second-generation Spirit Realm Travelers had a Guide of the Spirit Realm and better equipment.

They couldn't inherit even a single spell. If they were unlucky, they might spend their whole lives stuck at the apprentice rank.

There was another downside to using skills granted by the Spirit Realm: you basically couldn't improve your proficiency in them. They stayed the same as when you first received them, right up until you died.

But it seemed Fran's Panel could bypass that limitation.

During the trial, Fran had received a [Prayer of Light] from the book. By rights, it had also been granted by the Spirit Realm, but she could still raise her proficiency when she cast it.

Fran gently touched the orb. It released a dazzling light, then vanished as if it had never existed.

Fran felt that knowledge of a spell had appeared in her mind.

[Hardened Scale Rock (Mastered) (Proficiency: 143/1000): When used, a layer of hardened scale rock covers your body. Your movement speed decreases slightly, and you gain powerful defensive capabilities.]

It was a defensive skill. Fran wasn't especially excited, but she could accept it. She did need a defensive skill.

Other apprentices didn't learn them because they lacked the time and energy. With her Panel, Fran had no problem learning a few support skills.

It was just that she'd had too much on her plate before: brewing potions, carving runes, and practicing swordsmanship every now and then. She'd even planned to buy a Mage Armor from Elan the next time she went to deliver a potion order.

Seeing that there was nothing else to do, she recited the incantation. Her consciousness sank, and she returned to the Material Realm.

When she regained consciousness, she felt around and found a key, a short sword, and a small pouch. The only thing missing was the battered book.