Crystal Energy Barrier

Nolan arrived quietly, watching the crowd at the entrance with cold eyes.

His situation was extremely dangerous. When fighting over the Tranquil Flower in the secret realm, he had ruthlessly killed more than a dozen Advanced Apprentices. The forces behind them were now hunting him with everything they had.

This time, he had come to Nightfall Town without intending to cause too much of a stir. He planned to act in secret.

"That formula should still be in Ian's hands. Good. I can retrieve the formula and avenge my younger brother at the same time."

His subordinates had already investigated thoroughly. Ian had been hired as a resident Potion Master, but so what?

No one Nolan wanted dead had ever escaped his grasp.

As for Ian's family, they were too far away, in a region where Magic Power was scarce.

With so many hounds hunting him, he could not possibly spare the time to travel there and wipe out Ian's family.

Ever since he had seized the Tranquil Flower, not only had Advanced Apprentices from other organizations been pursuing him, but even within the Shadow Society, people were secretly watching him.

Now that he had slipped here in secret, only a few trusted subordinates remained at his disposal. They could only be used for surveillance.

From that day onward, Ian had lived the shut-in life of someone who never left his door.

In the courtyard, he reclined in a chair and chatted with someone while leisurely drinking Crimson Honey Water. Crimson Bee honey calmed the mind and focused the spirit, and the shop specially prepared it for Potion Masters.

Still, both its effects and flavor paled beside Malena's Fairy Flower Honey Tea.

"Clayton, I heard you have a decent defensive witchcraft. I'm quite interested."

"You haven't stepped outside these past few days. Where did you hear that?"

Clayton did not deny it. His eyes shifted slightly as he waited for Ian to name a price first.

"The Christine next door mentioned it once. Just tell me your price."

"Ah, I've hit a bottleneck while brewing Awakening Potions. My success rate has remained around thirty percent."

Ian understood. Clayton wanted guidance from him.

Ian's success rate for Awakening Potions had now risen to nearly sixty percent. In everyone's eyes, he was a genuine potion-making prodigy.

His recent collaboration with Malena had made the other Potion Masters in the shop even more envious.

Ian did not keep his knowledge to himself. With his current attainments, teaching Clayton was effortless.

The two continued discussing for half an hour, and Clayton's face occasionally showed a thoughtful expression.

"All right, that's all I know. The rest is up to you."

Ian stopped explaining. Clayton rose and solemnly thanked him.

"Ian, thank you for your guidance. Otherwise, it would have taken me quite some time to understand it."

After speaking, Clayton took a thin booklet from his clothes and handed it to Ian.

"This is my family's witchcraft. Please don't pass it on to anyone else."

Ian nodded in agreement. He was not short on magic stones, so he certainly would not teach it to others in private. The two had not made any strict contract, either.

During his time working at the Magic Potion Shop, he had earned more than 1,300 magic stones in total.

That was an astonishing rate. Ian had not expected magic stones to be so easy to earn. Although they were also spent quickly, his supply continued to grow.

"Master Potion Studies, and it's like having a hen that lays magic stones."

After Clayton left, Ian picked up the parchment in his hand and began studying it carefully.

The witchcraft recorded in the book was called Crystal Energy Barrier. The minimum requirement for learning it was Intermediate Apprentice, which Ian happened to meet.

Unfortunately, it was not a light-based Witchcraft-like Ability, so his talent offered no bonus.

Once the witchcraft took shape, it did not create a uniform circular shield.

Instead, it condensed a translucent shield in front of the caster. It could move forward, backward, left, and right, making it extremely flexible.

Its overall structure consisted of countless tiny hexagonal energy units densely arranged together.

The weakness of Crystal Energy Barrier was obvious: its strength was average.

If a certain unit suffered an overloaded attack, that section would shatter locally and the spell would need to be cast again.

Its advantages were equally apparent. It consumed little Mental Power, cast quickly, and could handle sudden attacks.

It provided decent protection against both physical and energy impacts.

After carefully reading through it, Ian decided to learn this witchcraft immediately.

Others worried that its defensive strength would be insufficient, but he was not afraid. At worst, he could just grind it for longer.

This witchcraft consumed little Mental Power, making it even more suitable for him to level up quickly.

Moreover, he vaguely saw the tremendous potential of this witchcraft.

[Crystal Energy Barrier: Not Initiated (0/100)]

"At last, I have a shield witchcraft. I'll feel a little safer when I go out in the future."

Recently, in order to guard against Nolan's retaliation, he had not stepped outside the shop even once.

Half a month had already passed, and there had been no word from Kenna and the others. That counted as good news.

Now, an eye patrolled the area fifteen meters above his residence.

This Eye of Vigilance could not normally be deployed freely around town, since wizards placed great importance on privacy.

The only reason he had been allowed to cast it freely to grind proficiency was because he had spoken to Malena and pestered her relentlessly until she agreed.

Ian closed his eyes and connected to the Eye of Vigilance overhead, carefully "examining" the surrounding area.

He had noticed that someone seemed to be keeping watch nearby, though he was not sure whether he was mistaken.

"I can't determine whether Nolan has come to Nightfall Town. I don't dare go out, so I can't raise the proficiency of my other witchcraft."

His strongest method, Lesser Frost Ray, could not be practiced because of the location, so his strength had not changed much.

The only consolation was that Clarity Potion was only a dozen or so proficiency points away from a Limit Break.

"I wonder what surprise the breakthrough will bring me."

The Magic Potion Shop actually had a small witchcraft practice room.

However, it was occupied for long periods by the Advanced Apprentices stationed at the shop, so Ian rarely got to use it.

Some time ago, an unfamiliar apprentice had delivered a letter on Wade's behalf.

The letter described Nolan's information in detail, and Ian secretly rejoiced that he had not gone out.

That Nolan had disappeared for a long time, yet he was still offering a reward in the Black Market for the capture of Kenna and the other three.

This man truly acted arrogantly. He dared to openly issue warrants for High Tower apprentices. His confidence came from the influence of his mentor.

Nolan had been exceptionally gifted since childhood and had always been deeply favored by his mentor. He had already spent more than twenty years at the High Tower.

"So Nolan has been an Advanced Apprentice for more than ten years."

After pondering for a moment, Ian decided to ask Malena for help. It would be best if she could investigate personally and confirm whether Nolan had already arrived in Nightfall Town.

Having made up his mind, Ian quickly went to Malena's residence.

"Malena, are you there?"

Before long, Malena came out in a nightgown to open the door. She seemed to have just taken a bath.

Seeing that Ian had come looking for her, she looked somewhat surprised.

"Is something urgent? Come in and talk."

After entering, Ian did not let his gaze wander over the lush, snow-white body before him.

"I'd like to ask you to help me find out who has a powerful Wizard Tool, preferably one that could pose a fatal threat to an Advanced Apprentice. I want to buy one for protection."

Malena froze for a moment, then slowly walked up to Ian. As she moved, the full curves of her chest swayed constantly.

"Ian, with your current means, you really can afford such Wizard Tools. But you don't need to hunt Magic Beasts, so what do you want one for?"

Malena stared at Ian's face, her expression thoughtful.

"Have you encountered some danger recently? Is that why you haven't left home?"