The Strong Remain Strong

The Mutual Aid Society? What a joke.

Quite a few Apprentices in the Academy had formed organizations now, but most of them existed to better exploit others.

A Mutual Aid Society like this was doomed not to last.

In this dog-eat-dog Academy, everyone had their own schemes and weighed their own interests.

Though the Mutual Aid Society claimed its members would advance and retreat together, once conflict arose, most members would still choose self-preservation.

After all, standing against senior students meant weighing whether their frail bodies could bear the consequences.

Were they truly willing to stand up for other members of the Mutual Aid Society?

At Bone Spire, only one's own strength was an eternal truth.

When Lynn returned to the dormitory, Kevin was already meditating inside.

After attending the public lesson, he had also gone to visit his mentor, but the mentor had no time for him. Kevin could only return disappointed.

After all, a Wizard's time was precious. Without paying a sufficient price, it was difficult to make them take notice of you.

Without Contribution Points or Magic Stones to assist him, Kevin could only devote all his time to meditation, hoping to lay a solid foundation over these three months and pass the Three Trials of Life and Death.

The Basic Meditation Method was much easier to learn than Lynn's Soul Whisper Meditation Method, but its effects were far inferior.

After all, it was merely the simplest entry-level meditation method, so its results naturally left much to be desired.

However, the Basic Meditation Method was also the safest and most stable. It did not conflict with any other meditation method.

If he found a suitable meditation method in the future, he could replace it directly.

Kevin had attended a major lesson today specifically about meditation methods and condensing the Mental Core. He had gained many new insights and hurried back to the dormitory to try them without even eating.

Sure enough, this meditation session was far more effective. He could already retain some Negative Energy Particles within his Sea of Consciousness.

This restored his confidence, and he planned to meditate more tonight while he was still in the zone, accumulating energy.

Lynn didn't disturb Kevin. He opened his dinner and ate by himself.

White bread was much softer than black bread. Dipped in the gravy from the potato stew, it was quite delicious.

White bread was actually better suited for dipping into a slightly sweet creamy soup, but Lynn always found it strange to eat a sweet staple for dinner.

After dinner, Lynn comfortably soaked in a hot bath, washing away the day's fatigue.

After washing up, he changed into a soft robe, spread a thick cotton quilt over the stone bed, then sat cross-legged on it and entered a meditative state.

He had exchanged Contribution Points for these things on his way back. It only took one point to improve his quality of life and lift his mood, so it was quite worthwhile.

It just meant he was one Contribution Point short, and his living expenses for the month would no longer be enough. It seemed he still had to find a way to earn some.

The moment Lynn entered meditation, Kevin broke down again.

The Negative Energy Particles he had painstakingly drawn in were sucked away by a sudden vortex before they could even enter his Sea of Consciousness.

This predatory method of meditation monopolized most of the nearby Negative Energy Particles, leaving only a small amount close to Kevin's body to survive.

This severely diminished Kevin's meditation efficiency, forcing him to open his eyes.

Although fresh Negative Energy Particles kept flowing in to replenish the area, Kevin simply couldn't compete with Lynn.

He wanted to speak up and remind him, but ultimately couldn't bring himself to say it.

He couldn't exactly ask Lynn to shrink his meditation range and reduce his meditation efficiency, could he?

They were both new students. They had come here to grow stronger and advance to Formal Wizards. Why should Lynn accommodate him?

Although Lynn was meditating, he also noticed that the Negative Energy Particles around Kevin were being drawn in and absorbed by him.

His drawing range was enormous, and his attraction was equally powerful. Kevin simply couldn't contend with him.

But Lynn didn't hold back.

Cultivation was inherently a path of life-and-death competition. The strong remained strong, while the weak could only be gradually eliminated.

Seeing that Lynn had no intention of holding back, Kevin could only helplessly retreat into a corner, trying to get as far from Lynn as possible.

Sitting cross-legged on the hard stone floor, Kevin entered meditation once more.

The effect was somewhat weaker here, but it still hadn't returned to how it had been at first.

Kevin could only meditate while silently cursing Lynn in his heart, his resentment gradually building.

Early the next morning, the energetic Lynn noticed that Kevin wasn't in very good spirits.

Kevin had spent the entire night trying his best to draw in Negative Energy Particles, exhausting much of his mental energy. Naturally, he wasn't feeling well.

Lynn gave him a simple greeting, and Kevin forced out a faint smile in response.

Yet inwardly, he was considering how to get rid of this plague god.

If this continued, Kevin's own cultivation would inevitably suffer greatly. Condensing his Mental Core within three months would be nothing but a fantasy.

Breakfast was a simple meal of white bread, ham, a fried egg, and a cup of wheat porridge.

The wheat porridge here wasn't simply made by adding wheat. It was cooked with salt, onions, cabbage, and other ingredients.

Mm... compared to bland plain wheat porridge, it had a much richer flavor.

As usual, they first went to report to the laboratory in the morning.

After yesterday's cleanup, the formerly messy laboratory was now orderly, while Gregor was staring blankly at a bone plate.

There were still several small nodes on it that he couldn't crack, leaving him at a loss.

Lynn glanced at the bone plate and firmly memorized those nodes through scanning, planning to analyze them later.

Seeing that his mentor had no time for him, Lynn tidied up the vessels Gregor had scattered around and left the laboratory directly.

He didn't have much need for the laboratory now. He was still in the learning stage, and the library alone was enough to keep him scanning for quite some time. Only with sufficient knowledge could he participate in research and experiments.

His current priority was still to accumulate knowledge, improve his Mental Power and level, then learn more Wizardry.

As usual, he made a sweep through the library.

Lynn had originally hoped to discover some hidden knowledge on the first floor, or some awesome Wizardry that only he could cultivate, but after scanning around, all he found was basic knowledge.

Over the following week, Lynn mainly focused on the library, returning to the dormitory at night to meditate and cultivate.

After enduring several consecutive days of "bullying," Kevin finally couldn't take it anymore. After rehearsing his words in his mind, he protested to Lynn.

"Lynn, I'm at a critical stage of meditation these days. Could you please restrain the range of your meditation a little, just until I get through this period..."

Lynn's response was equally simple.

"Oh."

That single word stopped everything Kevin had been about to say, nearly giving him internal injuries from holding it in.

But seeing that Lynn had responded, Kevin felt much better. He should restrain himself... right?

Although he had responded, Lynn continued doing as he pleased without the slightest restraint.

You can't compete for Negative Energy Particles, and that's my fault?

We're under the same roof. Why should I accommodate you? If you can't stand it, then get lost.

Seeing that Lynn hadn't changed at all, Kevin could only run outside with a livid face and make do for the night by the door.

Mm, getting angry at himself.