Darkgold Wood

As Luo Lin left the meditation room, he ran into another assistant from Wizard Eric's laboratory.

A taciturn Third-Rank Apprentice named Buck.

Buck rarely spoke with others, but today, he gave Luo Lin a rare glance and said quietly, "Kyle Silverglow is a member of the Elemental Ring. His background isn't simple. Be careful."

"The Elemental Ring?" This was Luo Lin's first time hearing of it.

"A small group made up of apprentices who specialize in elemental factions and have powerful backing. They hold considerable influence within the academy."

After offering that brief explanation, Buck said no more and hurried away.

Luo Lin remembered the name. It seemed the academy's internal factions were more complicated than he had imagined.

He became even more determined to keep a low profile and strengthen himself.

A few days later, Lina found Luo Lin as promised and took him to Gray Marsh.

The trade fair was held in an abandoned warehouse. The lighting was dim, figures moved through the shadows, and everyone kept their voices low.

The stalls displayed all kinds of goods:

Unappraised minerals, crudely processed magical plants, damaged enchanted items, unknown beast bones, and even some scrolls and notes of dubious origin.

Luo Lin activated Weak Force-Field Armor, remained vigilant, and used Literacy to swiftly scan the items bearing text.

Most of the goods were ordinary, or inferior products passed off as better ones.

Lina, meanwhile, was more interested in small objects that could potentially be used for stealth or scouting.

At a stall in the corner, Luo Lin's attention was drawn to an inconspicuous, pitch-black chunk of wood that looked as though it had been scorched.

The stall owner claimed he had picked it up from the outskirts of an ancient ruin and had been unable to identify it.

Everyone else scoffed at the "charred wood," but Luo Lin applied the energy spectrum knowledge he had recently studied and vaguely sensed a deeply restrained, peaceful energy within the wood—one inclined toward life and nature.

That energy was completely at odds with its burnt-black exterior.

Luo Lin stepped forward without revealing anything and traded several Stamina Recovery Potions he had brewed himself, each with decent effects.

He obtained the "charred wood" from the undiscerning stall owner with remarkable ease.

Lina watched from the side. Though puzzled, she did not ask any questions.

After wandering around for a while longer and finding nothing else of value, the two left Gray Marsh separately.

Back in his stone house, Luo Lin carefully studied the charred wood.

He lightly scraped away a little of the blackened outer layer with a small knife, revealing dark golden wood beneath.

He tried injecting a thread of mana into it, but the charred wood did not react at all.

However, when he used his spiritual force to perceive it carefully, that restrained and peaceful energy became much clearer.

"Interesting."

Luo Lin carefully put it away.

For now, he could not see what it was useful for, but his intuition told him the trip to the trade fair had not been wasted.

In the days that followed, Luo Lin continued his research.

He sliced up the charred wood and placed the pieces in flowerpots growing several ordinary herbs.

A few days later, he was surprised to find that those herbs were clearly growing much better than the ones beside them. Their leaves were greener, and their stems thicker and sturdier.

"It really does contain life energy... Perhaps I can use it to cultivate magical plants with demanding growth requirements?"

A new line of research emerged in Luo Lin's mind.

It had nothing to do with increasing his strength. It was more like an extension of his exploration into the essence of life, and the enjoyment it brought captivated him.

He still tried to break through to the perfect level of the meditation method every day, and still failed.

But he was no longer anxious. Instead, he devoted more energy to cross-studying and verifying energy particle structures, formation principles, and magical potion energy spectra.

Luo Lin could feel his system of knowledge gradually taking shape.

It was somewhat slow, but exceptionally solid.

Although his total mana grew slowly, as his spiritual force became more refined and his understanding of energy particles deepened, he felt that the quality and plasticity of every unit of mana were improving.

Casting spells seemed to become smoother, and even the consumption appeared to be gradually decreasing.

Life at the academy continued at this calm pace, with the occasional small amusement.

Time moved steadily forward, and Luo Lin's life at the Shadow Crow Holy Tower Arcane Academy gradually settled into a routine.

The uproar caused by the assessment had long since died down, and everyone had accepted his status as a newly promoted Third-Rank Apprentice.

Though his astonishing advancement speed and his connection to Wizard Eric occasionally still attracted attention, he spent most of his time immersed in research and study.

The charred wood he had traded for at the Graymarsh Trade Fair became an interesting research subject for Luo Lin.

He named it Darkgold Wood.

After repeatedly slicing and testing it with great care, he confirmed that the wood truly contained a gentle yet enduring life energy.

He buried thin wood chips in the soil of several small flowerpots, planting common Calm Mind Flowers, Blue Tear Grass used to make Lesser Mana Recovery Potions, and a magical plant called Moonlight Orchid, which had somewhat higher environmental requirements.

The results were significant.

The plants grown in pots containing Darkgold Wood fragments were visibly healthier than the control group.

The Calm Mind Flowers were fuller, and their fragrance seemed slightly richer.

The Blue Tear Grass had taken on a deeper blue hue.

As for the Moonlight Orchid, which had been somewhat wilted and yellow when first planted, it unexpectedly came back to life. Its leaves unfurled, and it even showed faint signs of budding early.

This discovery delighted Luo Lin.

He began consulting relevant books to learn how to better utilize this life energy.

At the same time, he tried adding Darkgold Wood powder to his improved Stamina Recovery Potion, only to find that the effect was poor and that it occasionally even caused medicinal conflicts.

It seemed this energy was better suited for long-term nourishment and guidance rather than immediate replenishment.

Luo Lin was not discouraged and instead began researching how to use Darkgold Wood to optimize the cultivation environment for magical plants.

He designed a small Minor Nourishing Array based on basic formation principles, using Darkgold Wood fragments as the core of the formation and attempting to guide that life energy gently and continuously into the soil.

His first attempt at drawing the formation took most of a day, and he failed several times before successfully activating it.

When the formation operated, Luo Lin could clearly sense a weak yet soothing life energy flowing slowly through the field.

He moved a Moonlight Orchid that had been growing poorly into this simple Nourishing Formation.

Over the following days, he closely observed the Moonlight Orchid's changes.

Though the effect was not as immediate as burying wood chips directly in the soil, the Moonlight Orchid's condition did steadily improve.

Its leaves became more lustrous, and its roots also seemed to have grown more developed.

"Looks like the direction is right."

"The formation can use this energy more steadily and for longer. Only the efficiency and method still need optimization."

Luo Lin recorded the observation data and considered his next improvements.

This kind of practice, combining potion-making, materials science, and formation studies, gave him a deeper understanding of how to apply knowledge comprehensively.

Meanwhile, his work at the Insect School Laboratory was also getting on track.

The tasks Wizard Eric gave him gradually became more complicated. At first, he had only processed fixed materials, but later, he needed to handle samples with differing activity levels according to the progress of experiments. Occasionally, he even had to assist in recording experimental data.

Luo Lin always completed everything meticulously. His precise material-handling techniques and rigorous attitude earned him even more of Wizard Eric's trust.

On one occasion, while Wizard Eric was handling the venom gland of an extremely violent Molten Fire Beetle, the gland suddenly began to fluctuate violently out of control.

It was about to rupture, and Buck, who was standing nearby, was momentarily at a loss.

Luo Lin reacted extremely quickly. Almost instinctively, he cast Mage Hand, but rather than grabbing it, he used an exceptionally gentle vibrating force to instantly numb the nerve nodes surrounding the venom gland.

This temporarily stabilized it and bought Wizard Eric valuable time to handle the situation.

Afterward, Wizard Eric glanced at Luo Lin and said flatly, "Good reaction. Your control over your power is also very precise."

Though there was no further praise, Luo Lin could feel that his importance in the other man's eyes had increased again.

Besides that, Luo Lin also gained access through the laboratory to more information regarding the realm of Official Wizards.

He heard that the gap in strength between Official Wizards was enormous. The standard of distinction was not merely spiritual force and mana, but more importantly, one's understanding and application of rules.

They began constructing spells of their own. These were no longer fixed spell models, but personal systems of power derived from their understanding of energy particles and their perception of the world.