Ghost Market

The Ghost Market covered a considerable area, lined with all kinds of shops. One section, known as Apprentice Corner, was specifically set aside for apprentices to set up stalls.

It was noisy and chaotic, filled with cries of vendors and haggling customers, carrying something of the bustling atmosphere of an ordinary mortal marketplace.

Lynn wandered around for a while and found that the goods for sale were incredibly varied.

There were finished Undead for sale, dismantled parts and organs, magical materials and herbs, as well as handwritten copies of all kinds of wizardry scrolls.

Since the black bone fragments containing Witchcraft Models could only be made by Formal Wizards, apprentices could only copy the complex model structures, runes, and incantations onto parchment or specially made paper themselves.

Unlike the direct mental imprinting of bone fragments, these handwritten copies had to be read, understood, and constructed independently, and errors and omissions were extremely common.

As a result, they were cheap. A Zero-Level Cantrip scroll cost around five Magic Stones.

Apprentice-Level Sorcery, which only Second-Class Apprentices could barely master, cost thirty Magic Stones.

As for First-Ring Sorcery wielded by Formal Wizards, none could be found in this market.

After all, a First-Ring Sorcery required the transcription of hundreds of thousands, even millions, of characters, along with a vast number of model constructions.

The workload of copying and reading was immense, and errors were everywhere.

First-Ring Sorcery... it would probably take an entire stall's worth of scrolls just to fit it all, and the hidden mistakes within would likely drive someone mad.

Therefore, First-Ring Sorcery was generally traded through legitimate shops or directly with Formal Wizards. It was difficult to find at an Apprentice Market.

Lynn stopped before a stall. Its owner was a kindly-looking, round-faced man with a full beard.

A "Dark Silver" Nameplate hung from his body, marking him as a Second-Class Apprentice. Three or four wizardry scrolls were displayed on his stall.

"Brother, you're a new student, right? The Academy's Three Trials of Life and Death aren't easy to deal with."

"Come, take a look at this [Weak Negative Energy Blast]. Fifteen Magic Stones, and you'll have absolutely no problem dealing with the assessment..."

Fifteen Magic Stones? Did I really look that much like a sucker?

Ignoring the stall owner's endless sales pitch, Lynn picked up the scroll he had mentioned and began flipping through it.

The introductory section at the front could be read normally, but the contents behind it had been "locked" by a simple restriction.

With the slightest exertion of Analysis, even the restriction's deepest secrets were laid bare.

Lynn's heart stirred as he began attempting to use the panel's [Record] function on the handwritten copies at the stall.

Sure enough, although the contents might be incomplete or erroneous, the panel could still record them!

This could save him quite a few Magic Stones.

More importantly... the joy of getting something for free was beyond imagination!!

After reading the introduction to this cantrip, Lynn saw that it condensed Negative Energy and blasted it at an enemy ahead.

Good grief, how could anyone scam people like this?

Negative Energy? Against Undead creatures?

Was this supposed to be a joke?

If he truly used this [Weak Negative Energy Blast] against the Living Corpses two months from now, not only would it fail to deal even the slightest damage, it would instead provide them with "nourishment."

Hit them a few more times, and he might even make the Living Corpses feel good.

Speechless, Lynn put down the scroll and activated Record to copy down every other scroll at the stall.

Seeing that Lynn did not seem very interested, the stall owner hurriedly picked up another scroll.

"Student, if you don't like that one, there's also this..."

Lynn ignored his sales pitch, turned, and left the stall.

Using Analysis, he went through the several cantrips he had just recorded one by one.

Lynn discovered that for models with obvious errors and omissions, the analysis rate could not reach 100%. However, the panel's [Optimization] function could correct and complete them on that basis!

Without a word, Lynn lingered before stall after stall, quietly recording every piece of wizardry.

The Zero-Level Cantrips included: [Faint Illusion], [Whispers of the Dead], [Basic Toxin Identification], [Negative Energy Nourishment], [Minor Fireball], [Minor Pain Curse], [Dust Cloud], [Visage of Fear], [Mental Perception], [Glimmer Illumination], [Magic Trick], [Skeletal Reinforcement]...

Although these cantrips were not high-tier, they greatly expanded his arsenal. More importantly, they confirmed that the panel could still function even when faced with incomplete knowledge.

There were fewer Apprentice-Level Sorceries in the market, but each took longer to record.

Lynn could only pretend to be tempted yet unable to make up his mind, lingering at the stalls as he flipped through the scrolls.

At first, the stall owners welcomed him enthusiastically. But after talking until their lips were nearly worn out, Lynn still looked hesitant and indecisive, so they eventually stopped wasting their breath.

Some of the more hot-tempered stall owners even directly drove him away.

After whiling away most of the day, Lynn finally recorded several useful Apprentice-Level Sorceries.

[Skeleton Revival]: Awakens a complete humanoid skeleton and transforms it into a Skeleton Warrior under your control. Its combat power depends on the skeleton's strength in life and the quality of the casting materials.

[Soul Shock]: Launches a powerful mental attack against the target's soul, causing intense mental pain and having a chance to interrupt the wizardry they are currently casting.

[Undead Eye]: Temporarily shares vision with an Undead under your control, allowing you to observe the world through its eyes. An excellent reconnaissance method.

[Pain Curse]: Places a curse upon a single target, causing them to continuously suffer intense nerve pain and severely disrupting their casting focus and physical movements.

Just as he was immersed in the joy of "freeloading" knowledge, a scene at one stall made his gaze pause slightly.

A burly, fierce-looking Second-Class Apprentice had a petite female apprentice in his arms, openly being intimate with her as though no one else existed.

That female apprentice was Mary!

By now, the wounds on Mary's body had been treated with ointment, and she no longer looked so miserable. She had also changed into a relatively clean robe.

Faced with the male apprentice's intimate behavior, she forced out a faint smile in response.

The stall owner noticed Lynn stopping and invited him to take a look around for anything he might need.

When Mary looked up and saw that it was Lynn, a flash of embarrassment and humiliation crossed her face. She instinctively tried to break free, but the male apprentice held her tightly.

"Baby, don't be shy. I want everyone to witness our love!"

With that, his fleshy face planted another loud kiss on Mary's cheek.

Lynn's gaze rested on her face for less than a second before calmly shifting away as though she were a stranger, and he continued browsing the goods at the stall.

See? Even without his help, Mary was doing just fine.

They had not seen each other for only a few days, and she had already become the "boss's wife."

Lynn looked around, found nothing he needed at the stall, and turned to leave without hesitation.

Lynn's indifference made Mary bite down on her lips. The last remnants of shame in her heart were buried beneath even deeper resentment.

How could a genius like you possibly understand the way people like us survive!