Setting Up

In other words, this defensive spell could withstand one attack from White Bone Fangs without shattering.

It could then be replenished with mana to restore the lost armor capacity.

Using combat professionals' attacks as a reference, an ordinary slash from an apprentice-level combat professional generally ranged between 2 and 3 degrees.

If they burst forth with physical strength through a breathing technique, the attack might double, reaching 4 to 6 degrees of power.

Overall, with this spell, Huo Ling was like someone wearing a lightweight but exceptionally protective bulletproof vest.

However, the spell also had its flaws. Its protective coverage extended only over the body's main torso. The head, chest, and abdomen were protected, but the limbs received no protection.

If he wanted the kind of all-round protection that covered everything, he would need to advance—become a Black Iron Mage and acquire first-rank spells, true defensive spells.

The second zero-rank spell: Lesser Eye of Surveillance.

Spell effect: Three Eyes of Surveillance could be released and fixed in designated locations. The Eyes of Surveillance would gather information from their surrounding field of vision and share their view when the caster checked them. The effect vanished if they were attacked and destroyed.

Casting time: 6 seconds

Spell cost: 6 mana

Duration: 30 minutes

Spell range: Mental strength × 100 meters

Sustained effect: 3 mana was required every thirty minutes. Each additional eye increased the required mana by 1 point.

Armor strength: 1

This spell could be considered another addition to his security. After learning it, Huo Ling went downstairs and placed an Eye of Surveillance in a dark corner on the first floor.

Through the spell, he could view the scene seen by this magical eye.

Its visual range was roughly twenty meters. He could set targets for it, and if anything passed by, it would alert Huo Ling.

Checking the Eye of Surveillance felt quite novel, as though a small window had opened within his own field of vision, much like watching a surveillance feed.

With these two spells and his preparations complete, Huo Ling began working.

He opened the box filled with Awakening Orbs, took one out, and carefully read the instruction manual.

Then, following the instructions, he officially activated this Awakening Orb's mana-gathering function and placed it in a corner of the room.

According to the manual, an Awakening Orb had a collection range of thirty meters in every direction. To fill up completely, it needed to remain here for two months.

That was no short time, but it worked out perfectly. By the time Huo Ling went to Southern Heaven University and the semester began, it would be fully charged. Then he would have a sizable extra sum of spending money.

The manual also noted that each Awakening Orb had to be at least thirty meters away from the others, or else their mana absorption would be affected.

Putting them too close together would lengthen the time needed to reap the harvest.

Looking at this box of fifty Awakening Orbs and thinking about how far apart each one needed to be, the workload truly was not small.

But for the sake of his financial future, he had no choice but to do it.

Huo Ling then embarked on his great money-making venture, cautiously listening for signs of other creatures while searching for places to set down the Awakening Orbs. The Orbs had a matte appearance, designed to prevent Spirit Realm creatures from being attracted by their distinctive shape.

Huo Ling went to the trouble of finding dirt and wrapping the Awakening Orbs in it, then finding buildings and tossing the dirt-covered Orbs beneath beds.

He did everything he could to reduce the chances of the Awakening Orbs being discovered.

He knew that aside from the ever-present walking corpses, there were goblins in this city as well.

Those goblins were poor wretches too. If they saw an Awakening Orb, they would definitely pick it up and take it home.

Although there were no walking corpses active in the city during the day, Huo Ling did not dare relax. Who knew whether there were other Spirit Realm creatures in the city?

To him, the city was actually safer at night than during the day.

At night, walking corpses roamed freely through the city, and other creatures did not dare show themselves at all.

As long as Huo Ling stayed silent on the upper floors at night, he was completely safe. These walking corpses were practically serving as his free bodyguards.

During the day, on the other hand, these ferocious walking corpses were as fragile as quails. Goblins could hunt them as easily as slaughtering chickens.

During the day, this city was when every sort of demon and monster came out to scrape together a living.

For Huo Ling, who was all alone, daytime was far more dangerous.

Before dusk arrived, Huo Ling had quickly placed all the Awakening Orbs around the residential complex where he was staying.

He had originally wanted to place an Eye of Surveillance on the road he had to take to return to the complex, but later abandoned the idea.

The distance was too great. If it exceeded 270 meters, he would not be able to receive the images transmitted by the Eye of Surveillance.

Besides, within a range of over two hundred meters, Huo Ling could see everything at a glance from the fifteenth floor, looking down from above. There was no need to waste the mana.

Before nightfall, Huo Ling returned to his little nest on the fifteenth floor.

Now all he had to do was wait for his walking corpse bodyguards to appear.

In the meantime, Huo Ling even took the time to return home for dinner. Then he told his parents that he would be meditating in seclusion and not to disturb him unless there was something important.

Only then did he teleport back to the Spirit Realm.

By the time Huo Ling returned, night had fallen here as well, and the city had once more become silent and still.

Feeling the abundant mana of the Spirit Realm, Huo Ling sat on the bed and began his first proper meditation in all these days.

"Would you like to use potential points to accelerate learning?"

"Yes!"

As Huo Ling entered deep meditation, mana, caught by his mental strength, continuously flowed into his body.

In the desolate night sky, cold wind blew into the room through the shattered glass, while mana circulated within Huo Ling's body.

His strength continued to grow, second by second.

As the morning sunlight shone upon his face, Huo Ling woke from his deep meditation.

"Phew~"

After exhaling a long breath of stale air, Huo Ling summoned his status panel to check this time's gains.

Name: Huo Ling

Bloodline: Human

Rank: Zero-Rank Apprentice

Strength: 1.4

Constitution: 1.2

Agility: 1.1

Mental Strength: 3.2/3.2

Mana: 32/32

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

Potential Points: 0

His potential points were all spent, but they had not been wasted. His mental strength and mana had increased again, reaching 3.2 and 32.

Feeling the abundant mana within his body, Huo Ling could not help but smile.

At the same time, he discovered that both his Constitution and Strength had increased by 0.1.

It seemed that under mana's influence, his physical fitness would gradually begin to improve as well.

Contrary to common belief, mages' bodies were not actually as frail as people imagined.

On the contrary, some mages possessed physical qualities even stronger than combat professionals.

There was some unknown legendary mage who had specialized solely in Flash Spell. Relying on his powerful physique, along with spells that enhanced Constitution and Strength, he could even engage legendary abyssal demons in hand-to-hand combat.

Truly terrifying beyond measure.