How to Choose?

Morris gave him a long look and fell silent for a moment, as if weighing something.

If it had been an ordinary apprentice, he would never have taken such care of him.

After all, during the decades he had spent in Bone Spire, rising from a Wizard Apprentice to a Formal Wizard, he had seen far too much intrigue and death.

It was precisely because he and Xilu were relatively "stable" and "normal" among Dark Wizards, and did not casually slaughter people, that they had been assigned recruitment duties.

Otherwise, if a wizard whose mind had been ruined by negative energy and whose personality had become twisted were in charge of recruitment, there probably would not have been many boys left on this ship.

But this boy before him...

He had potential!

He could accomplish great things!

If Morris invested in him and forged a good connection, perhaps he might receive generous returns in the future.

Morris looked at Lynn, the youth who had displayed astonishing talent and intelligence aboard the ship, and finally spoke.

"With your talent, [Bone Emperor] Victor and [Soulweaver] Marfa will definitely fight over you."

His bone-blade arm pointed toward the front of the hall, where the two most terrifying presences stood.

One was a burly figure shrouded in dense black mist, with only two scarlet points of light visible.

The other was a woman in flowing black robes, her face hidden in the shadow of her hood. Only a pale chin bearing a mysterious smile was exposed.

As if sensing Lynn's gaze, both of them looked over.

Seeing that the two had noticed his little gesture, Morris lowered his voice even further, until it practically drilled into Lynn's mind.

"Follow them, and you'll gain access to the finest Undead or soul knowledge as quickly as possible. You also won't lack resources."

Morris shifted the subject, his voice carrying a faint warning.

"But they—especially Victor—regard talented apprentices as the finest 'materials' and 'test subjects'!"

"Your exceptional soul might be the perfect foundation for soul stitching in Marfa's eyes. Your soul and earth-element talent, meanwhile, might make you suitable in Victor's eyes for conversion into the core of an Earth Bone Golem."

"If you follow either of them, the death rate... is extremely high!"

Lynn's heart tightened. Just as he had expected.

He had originally thought that following a soul or Undead Department mentor would be good. The Wizardry he currently possessed belonged to those two branches, and both were powerful.

But... compared to his own life, everything else had to take a back seat.

"Then what do you suggest, Mentor?"

Morris's compound eyes turned toward an inconspicuous corner of the hall.

A middle-aged wizard sat there, dressed in a gray robe stained with all sorts of grime. His hair was like tangled weeds, and his eyes were somewhat cloudy and unfocused.

Unlike the other wizards, he did not even display his emblem or achievements. He merely kept his head lowered, writing and sketching on a bone plate, completely deaf to the surrounding clamor.

"His name is Gregor, known as the [Hand of Myriad Phenomena]."

Morris introduced him. "A stubborn... oddity."

"He advanced to become a Third-Ring Wizard nearly a century ago, yet he has never been able to condense a Stigma and step into the Fourth Ring."

"A few decades ago, he became obsessed with a mad theory—the [Death Metamorphosis Ritual]."

"Death Metamorphosis?"

Lynn's heart stirred.

"Yes. Gregor believes that comfort is what hinders a wizard's evolution. Only when one comes infinitely close to death, or even experiences a 'death-like' state, can the soul and mind break through their shackles, undergo a qualitative leap, and perhaps even... improve one's talent."

"He is trying to create a ritual that allows people to experience such a state and then revive."

Morris let out a sneer like grinding bones.

"The theory is enticing, but in practice... the success rate is infinitely close to zero. He himself has nearly died several times in rituals of his own design."

"Gregor dabbles in an extremely broad range of fields. He has studied Undead, souls, curses, modifications, and even elemental Wizardry, but he is a master of none."

"Because his research is so broad, he has few resources to give you and will not spend much effort guiding you. He completely 'free-ranges' his apprentices, and his apprentices have the highest survival rate, because..."

Morris paused.

"He never actively sacrifices his apprentices. He is even somewhat... afraid of trouble. As long as you behave under him, your chances of surviving are actually higher than under those two."

"For a genius like you, who needs time to grow and does not wish to be treated as expendable material, he might be a good choice."

"Of course, that is assuming you do not participate in that so-called 'Death Metamorphosis' experiment..."

"I'm only giving you a little advice. The choice is still yours. The path of cultivation can never be smooth sailing. Perhaps this kind of 'free-range' approach will get you killed faster."

Lynn instantly understood Morris's deeper meaning.

This was an academically oriented mentor who could provide only basic protection, but offered the greatest degree of freedom.

Choosing Gregor would not earn him much "guidance" or "support."

But... he would not become deeply bound to his mentor and turn into his mentor's "private property."

In an Academy atmosphere where "mentors came first," Lynn naturally leaned toward choosing such a "research fanatic" as his mentor.

As for that mad [Death Metamorphosis Ritual]...

A gleam flashed through Lynn's eyes. It was not baseless nonsense. Wasn't Alphonse a fine example?

He, too, had only awakened his death talent when he was on the verge of "death," and his Mental Power had surged to fifteen points!

Hmm... still a little behind Lynn.

"Thank you for your guidance, Mentor!"

Lynn bowed sincerely.

However, he still intended to look at the other mentors first, to gain a better understanding of the Academy's various "specialties" and the directions of the mentors' research.

Inside the great hall stood one "light screen" after another, listing the "factions" each mentor belonged to and their main information.

There were two top-tier mentors in the Undead Department.

[Bone Emperor] Victor: Specialized in Bone Armament and the construction of Undead armies, advocating that "quantitative change leads to qualitative change."

Research topic: <On the Amplifying Effect of Collective Consciousness on the Coordination of Undead Creations and the Feasibility of Ultimate War Weapons>

Research direction: The art of large-scale Undead warfare, dedicated to creating an Undead legion with high discipline and tactical coordination.

His specific research included war weapons—the Titan Bone Project, Undead Array Resonance, specialized Undead troop design, Undead war fortifications, and more.

Victor was a living textbook of Undead Warfare Studies.

His Undead army had played a decisive role in planar wars and was also known as the "Mobile Calamity" and the "Plane Killer."

Wherever he passed, all things withered, leaving behind only bones.

To weaker planes, his arrival itself was an irresistible calamity.

[Master Stitcher] Grasha: An authority in the field of flesh stitching, a mad artist who broke the taboos of life, and a pinnacle figure in biological modification who enjoyed "creating" new species.

Research topic: <Transcending the Boundaries of Life Forms: Selection of Optimal Flesh Units and Forced Life Alchemy>

Research direction: Forced Life Alchemy and ultimate flesh weapons, dedicated to using violent stitching and alchemy to "create" stronger and more "perfect" life forms.

Her specific research included extraordinary organ transplantation, targeted mutation induction, the intelligent development of flesh Golems, and more.

She was also known as the "Life Profaner" and the "Nightmare Creator."

Above the semi-plane Eternal Night Graveyard, where the Academy was located, countless of her "proud creations" wandered.

Her finest works included the Putrid Hive, the Nine-Headed Dragon, the Abyssal Maw Leviathan, and more.