Lynn emerged from the teleportation array's white light, the familiar Bone Spire Teleportation Zone beneath his feet.
The teleportation zone was far less crowded than on his last visit. Back then, the war had been at its fiercest, and apprentices had been traveling through the arrays to various demiplanes to "fill the lines."
Now, there were few people around. The war seemed to have ended.
Lynn took a deep breath. The air was thick with the potent negative energy and aura of death unique to the Eternal Night Graveyard. It was no different from when he had left, yet it gave him a long-forgotten sense of... warmth?
Tsk... after spending so long in the Main World, I actually missed this place a little.
Lynn wasted no time. After leaving the teleportation zone, he headed straight for his mentor Gregor's Laboratory.
The apprentices he encountered along the way still bowed to him. Most were first-class or Second-Class Apprentices; he rarely saw any Third-Class Apprentices.
Some looked extremely young, clearly members of a new intake recruited over the past two years.
Looks like this war did quite a number on the Academy. Even Third-Class Apprentices have become a rarity.
Arriving at Gregor's Laboratory, Lynn reached out and pushed open the heavy bone door.
Hmm... looks like my access hasn't been revoked. This laboratory still lets me in without any restrictions.
Inside the laboratory, a familiar sight greeted him.
Gregor was working at full throttle. Countless energy arms shimmering in different colors darted through the laboratory, operating various instruments and handling materials with precision.
The air carried a complicated mixture of potions, metal, and the smell of energy-scorched matter.
Gregor himself stood before the central workbench, frowning deeply at a constantly writhing lump of flesh, its surface covered with faces contorted in pain.