Defensive Armor

Huo Ling browsed the online marketplace for a while, and it truly opened his eyes. The goods within were a dazzling jumble—things he had heard of and things he had never heard of.

He even saw dragon blood inside: the blood of an adult red dragon. But upon seeing the string of zeros behind the price, Huo Ling knowingly closed the link.

Then, Huo Ling remembered the real matter at hand.

He opened the task section, and the listing pinned at the top of the homepage was exactly what he was looking for.

<Seeking!! Charged Mana Extraction Compression Device!>

A line of strikingly large text. Huo Ling clicked into it.

There was a brief introduction. This was a long-term task with no time limit and no upper limit.

Every ten Spirit Awakening Orbs could be exchanged for one magic stone, and every one hundred submitted would earn an additional reward of one credit.

That meant every ten Spirit Awakening Orbs could earn around one hundred thousand yuan. Not a bad deal, Huo Ling thought.

Without giving it further thought, he accepted the task.

As a newcomer who had not yet enrolled, with Professor Li and Guan Borong's help, he could also accept tasks just like a freshman who had just entered the school.

Looking at the description, he saw that as a new student, he could apply for fifty Spirit Awakening Orbs without a deposit by using his student number.

Fifty—wasn't that a little too few? Greedily, Huo Ling tapped the plus sign, intending to get more Spirit Awakening Orbs.

"Pop!"

A notification appeared on the screen: Spirit Awakening Orbs beyond the allotted amount required a deposit.

Huo Ling clicked in to check the deposit amount, and immediately abandoned the idea. Fifty Spirit Awakening Orbs were quite good enough.

The deposit terms stated that every Spirit Awakening Orb required a ten-thousand-yuan deposit.

Good heavens. That meant if he went to the Spirit Realm carrying fifty Spirit Awakening Orbs, it would be like carrying five hundred thousand yuan on his back.

And since he had acquired these Spirit Awakening Orbs through his student number without paying a deposit, if they were lost, he would still have to pay for the loss himself.

After filling in the information, Huo Ling waited at home for the Spirit Awakening Orbs to be delivered.

Before the mailed Spirit Awakening Orbs arrived, Professor Li's call came first.

Professor Li asked, "Student Huo, I heard from Xiao An that you're planning to go to the Spirit Realm to meditate, and that you've also accepted a mana collection task?"

"Yes, Professor Li. The Spirit Realm on my teleportation route is relatively safe. Meditation efficiency on Blue Star is too low, so I'm planning to cultivate in the Spirit Realm and take this task while I'm at it," Huo Ling answered honestly.

"Mm... Blue Star's mana concentration truly isn't suitable for cultivation. If your teleportation point in the Spirit Realm is really safe, then you can go."

Professor Li pondered for a moment before saying, "How about this? I'll send you two practical zero-tier spells. Learn them first; they'll improve your ability to protect yourself."

"Remember, don't be reckless in the Spirit Realm. Staying alive is the most important thing!"

"Alright, thank you, Professor!" Huo Ling hurriedly thanked him with delight.

"No need to be polite. You'll be able to borrow and study these zero-tier spells from the library after enrollment anyway. I'm merely giving them to you in advance. Alright, I'll send them over shortly. Keep an eye out for them."

"Mm... Once you've learned these two spells, you can ask me for more, and I'll send you some new ones."

"Alright, Professor Li!"

Professor Li then hung up.

Immediately afterward, Huo Ling received several pages from him, containing two spells from the Spirit Realm.

Lesser Defensive Armor. Lesser Eye of Surveillance.

One was a defensive spell, while the other was a reconnaissance spell.

They were both spells that Huo Ling desperately needed right now. Professor Li had truly put thought into this.

Professor Li was a good man!

The delivery was remarkably fast. On the third day, the fifty Spirit Awakening Orbs arrived at Huo Ling's home.

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you don't lose it next time.

After making his preparations, Huo Ling picked up the box containing the Spirit Awakening Orbs early one morning. He did not tell his parents, lest they worry.

He directly activated the teleportation and arrived in the Spirit Realm.

With beacon teleportation in the Spirit Realm, wherever one left from last time was where one would return to next time.

And unlike the first time, the beacon had now finished charging. After waiting only about an hour each time, he could return to Blue Star again.

As blinding light flashed past, Huo Ling arrived in the Spirit Realm once more.

He surveyed the abandoned house where he had stayed some time ago. Feeling the abundant mana, he could not help but shudder comfortably.

The difference between the Spirit Realm and Blue Star was like that between someone at low altitude and someone who had returned to high altitude—that uncomfortable feeling of struggling to breathe.

The Spirit Realm was like low altitude, with abundant mana that made every breath feel smooth and comfortable.

Blue Star was like high altitude, with thin mana that required far greater effort to absorb.

After resting for a while, Huo Ling did not rush outside to place the orbs. He intended to wait until the beacon for returning to Blue Star had finished charging before heading out.

After all, once the beacon had finished charging, even if he encountered danger, he would only need a few seconds to escape it and return to Blue Star.

It was another trump card for saving his life.

Naturally, Huo Ling did not idle away this time either. After receiving the two spells Professor Li had sent yesterday, he had studied them first and gained a general understanding of their effects.

Now, he sat on the bed, preparing to completely master these two Spirit Realm spells.

"Use potential points to accelerate learning?"

Potential points, charge!!!

He had yet to use the potential points he had obtained from that Silver-rank ghost.

They would not produce offspring just sitting there. The sooner he used them, the sooner he would grow stronger.

After spending several hours, Huo Ling emerged from his absorbed state of study.

He called up his status panel.

Name: Huo Ling

Skills: Dark Breath Meditation Method Zero-tier Spells: White Bone Fangs, Ashen Mist, Touch of Fatigue, Lesser Defensive Armor, Lesser Eye of Surveillance

Potential Points: 5

He had fully mastered both spells.

I'm still a genius as always! Huo Ling could not help praising his own learning ability.

After sensing the effects of the two spells again, he mentally gave Professor Li a thumbs-up.

Lesser Defensive Armor

Spell Effect: Forms a defensive armor upon the target, protecting the chest, abdomen, and head. While the spell remains in effect, it provides partial all-round defense. Its duration can be extended through continuous mana input, and after being attacked, mana can be supplied to maintain the armor's defensive strength.

Casting Time: 8 seconds

Spell Cost: 5 mana

Duration: 15 minutes

Sustained Effect: Requires 2 mana every 10 minutes.

Armor Strength: 12 degrees (each point of mana restores 3 degrees of armor)

The armor's defense rating was a new concept, calculated according to attack power.

Ordinary apprentice-rank spells generally had attack power between 5 and 10 degrees.

The attack power of White Bone Fangs, the zero-tier spell Huo Ling knew, was 7 degrees.