A Shocking Number

Quake admitted that he had underestimated Charles before.

After hesitating for a moment, he asked, "Teacher Loran said you were quite skilled in witchcraft. I'm curious—how many spells do you know?"

Charles smiled faintly. "Lord Quake, isn't that question a little inappropriate?"

Quake hesitated after hearing that. "It is indeed a little inappropriate, but I'm rather curious. How about this? You can ask me one more question. We trade one for one. What do you say?"

"You can pick a high-value question to ask."

Hearing this, Charles sorted through his questions. At the moment, there was only one thing he was curious about.

After pondering for a moment, he looked at Quake and said, "Then I'll ask. If you think it's inappropriate, neither of us has to answer."

Quake nodded.

Charles asked, "Lord Quake, you agreed to join Teacher Loran's assistant team. What conditions did she offer you?"

Quake froze upon hearing this and appeared quite hesitant. Clearly, he did not particularly want to answer that question.

Seeing this, Charles smiled. "If it's difficult to answer, then let's pretend neither of us asked anything."

Quake let out a breath, shook his head, and smiled. "There's nothing I can't say. The reason I was willing to leave Isata and help Teacher Loran..."

"Was because Teacher Loran was willing to share with me her experience on how to advance to a first-ring wizard."

"I'll add one more thing. Not just me—I suspect Sal and Golder, those two first-grade wizard apprentices, were also drawn here by that condition."

Charles was greatly surprised.

He truly had not expected that to be the condition. Quake and the others had actually come to help Loran because of this.

But on further thought, it was indeed a good offer.

In Isata, everything required Magic Stones. Everything required resources.

Even a teacher's guidance required Magic Stones for tuition.

Wasn't Charles himself here because Loran had been willing to lend him resources and help him cultivate?

For first-grade wizard apprentices like Quake and the others, the greatest temptation was how to break through and become first-ring wizards.

It was no surprise that they had been attracted by such a condition.

Charles had been in Isata for too short a time. He only lacked resources; as for cultivation experience and insights, he was not lacking them. Wuduo could help him with that.

Quake and the others were different. Wizards were rarely willing to share this sort of knowledge. It was not a matter of resources.

Charles nodded. "I understand. So that's how it is."

Quake asked, "What about you? You said Teacher Loran thought your witchcraft was good. What spells do you know?"

Charles smiled faintly. "I know many zero-ring spells. I won't go into each one in detail. How about I tell you how many spells I know?"

Quake was somewhat displeased and frowned.

Charles said directly, "I know a total of thirty zero-ring spells, and I can cast every one of them proficiently. I've used them in battle as well. That is also the main reason Teacher Loran asked me to join."

"How many?!" Quake's furrowed brow vanished as he became like a duck with its throat seized.

The astonishment in Quake's eyes could not be contained, and his voice suddenly shot up several pitches.

"Thirty!"

"You're only a second-grade wizard apprentice. How can you know so many spells?!"

Charles nodded and said firmly, "That's right. Thirty."

"Can't a second-grade wizard apprentice learn that many spells?"

Quake took a deep breath. Looking at Charles, he said, "Did you spend all your time learning spells? Why didn't you spend more time meditating? Wouldn't you have broken through to become a first-grade wizard apprentice long ago?"

Charles shook his head. "I've already made the fullest use of my time for meditation."

Only then, as Quake looked at Charles's face, did he realize just how young Charles was.

Suppressing the shock in his heart, he asked, "How long have you been in Isata? Five years?"

Charles smiled faintly, then shook his head.

"Four years? Three years?!"

Quake did not continue asking. His voice had become dry.

After a long while, he could not help but let out a breath of stale air and said with emotion, "I finally understand why Teacher Loran invited you."

"You were truly born to learn witchcraft."

Charles smiled. "Lord Quake, why do you say that?"

Quake sighed. "Even if you had only been here for a year and became a second-grade wizard apprentice, I wouldn't be so surprised. My speed back then was about the same."

"But you've only been in Isata for such a short time, yet you've learned thirty zero-ring spells. That's simply too astonishing."

"Do you know how many spells I know?"

Charles shook his head. "I don't know, but definitely more than me."

Quake's expression was complicated. "It is more than you, but I've already been in Isata for ten years."

"Yet after ten years, the spells I've learned and can use proficiently still number fewer than forty."

"I'm already considered a first-grade wizard apprentice who knows relatively many spells. Sal and Golder may know even fewer spells than I do."

"So now you know why I was so shocked just now!"

Only then did Charles understand.

He had previously only known that others spent longer cultivating witchcraft than he did. He had not realized that not everyone mastered a large number of spells.

But he had never expected them to know so few spells.

Still, on further thought, it made sense that they did not know many spells.

Charles had always possessed exceptional talent for learning spells. He had learned his first zero-ring spell, Acid Missile, in just a week.

But Molly had spent more than half a month learning her first spell.

And for most spells, merely knowing how to use them was far from enough. They also required longer periods of study and continual casting before one could become proficient with them.

Even with Charles's talent for learning spells, it had taken him a month to use Acid Missile proficiently.

For an ordinary person, the time would only be longer—perhaps two or three months.

Charles had the Wu Duo Duo Mall, where he could buy the cultivation insights of other apprentices and wizards, greatly speeding up the time it took him to learn and master spells.

Others did not have such an opportunity. They could only spend vast amounts of time learning.

Two or three months to learn and master one zero-ring spell was simply too time-consuming.

Many wizard apprentices in Isata also had to work and earn Magic Stones, which consumed a great deal of time as well.

Not every spell they learned could be used to make money, so many people squeezed down the time they spent learning spells.

Meditation took time. Working to earn Magic Stones took time. How much time was left for learning spells?

Therefore, hearing that Charles knew so many spells at such a young age, Quake truly felt as though all these years, he had lived like a dog.