Sally set down her quill and said, "Go on."
Leo scratched his head and said, "Actually, back on the wizard ship, I saw something happen..."
Leo described the fight between Lane and that Prossian aboard the wizard ship.
Leo said, "I was very curious about how that was done at the time. But after encountering Arcane Hand, I realized it was just a basic application of spell models."
"Wizard Lane covered his hands with shapeshifted spiritual energy, making it impossible for that Prossian to touch him or exert any force."
Sally said, "You're very perceptive. Just as you said, Wizard Lane only used spiritual energy at the time, not a spell."
Leo suddenly understood, while also deeply realizing how terrifying Wizards were.
Against a brave and battle-hardened Prossian, they did not even need to use a spell. Simply covering their hands with spiritual energy was enough to easily kill a Prossian.
Sally said, "But you missed one point. Arcane Hand is merely a spell that materializes and shapes spiritual energy."
"Then why did that Prossian's entire body rot away until he died?"
Leo's eyes immediately filled with curiosity.
But Sally stopped there and said, "Although I could tell you the answer directly, I believe that learning and researching it yourself will help you grow more. In the wizard world, knowledge is power. When you understand the principles behind power, your own power will naturally improve as well."
"In confrontations between Wizards, the one with more unknown methods holds the greater advantage."
Leo said, "Thank you for your guidance, Wizard Sally."
The advantage in a Wizard's confrontation was related to one's accumulation of knowledge.
And compared to hearing certain knowledge from others, discovering it for oneself brought greater rewards.
"Do you have any other questions?" Sally asked gently.
Leo asked, "Wizard Sally, after becoming a Wizard, does physical ability become unimportant?"
"In most cases, that is true. But there are also some special exceptions." Sally pondered briefly before saying, "Some Wizards combine the body with spells, forming the style of Battle Mages."
"However, the Tower of Dawn does not have many research programs on Battle Mages."
"If you're interested, I'll have the lizard servant assigned to you bring you an introductory book on Battle Mages later."
"After reading the introductory book, if you decide that you are interested in Battle Mages as a discipline, then after fourteen days of Potionology instruction, you may choose to study it as a secondary discipline."
Sally could tell that Leo was interested in this area, so she said this.
Things one was interested in were always easier to learn.
Sally did not greedily want Leo to learn too many things. Geniuses were always well-rounded, and dabbling in Battle Mages could broaden his horizons.
Let alone one discipline—some genius Wizards dabbled in more than ten disciplines, yet their research in every single one was even more refined and in-depth than that of Wizards who specialized in only one discipline.
Leo said, "Thank you for your guidance, Wizard Sally. I truly am very interested in Battle Mages."
Sally asked, "Anything else?"
"No, Wizard Sally. I'll go back and cultivate first."
"Mm. You may go."
A voice rang out. "Wait."
Leo stopped and looked toward another table.
Tesla had been the one to call out.
Leo asked calmly, "Wizard Tesla, may I ask what it is?"
"Danville, take this." Tesla pointed at a bottle of wine-red potion on the table.
Leo hesitantly looked at Sally.
Sally said, "Danville, you may accept it."
"This is a Dawn Arcane Potion. You can drink it when condensing your Spiritual Seed. It will greatly increase your chances of successfully condensing a Spiritual Seed, and it has no side effects. A bottle like this would normally cost one hundred Magic Stones."
Leo was astonished. He stepped forward, picked up the potion, and said, "Wizard Tesla, thank you for your gift."
Tesla nodded faintly and said, "If you encounter anything you do not understand later, you can come to me as well. I believe I'm no worse than Wizard Sally."
"Yes, Wizard Tesla."
Sally pursed her lips in a smile and said, "Danville, Wizard Tesla is someone who dislikes trouble. Since he has said this, it means he recognizes you."
Tesla did not refute her.
Leo's spiritual energy had been improving faster and faster over the past two weeks, which meant there was little chance that he had taken any potions.
Of course, if Leo had merely possessed ordinary level-three spiritual aptitude, Tesla would not have given him this Dawn Arcane Potion.
His spiritual energy improvement speed ranked seventh among this class. That was the most important reason Tesla had taken out this potion for Leo.
When it came to geniuses, the Wizards of these Gatherings were never stingy with their help.
Because the help given today would someday be returned to them under the Wizard principle of equivalent exchange.
Leo was also happy to accept Tesla's goodwill.
After all, he and Tesla had no irreconcilable conflict, and Tesla was an assistant instructor of the Esmond Gathering. Building a good relationship with him could only bring benefits.
Tesla suddenly tapped the table lightly and said, "Danville, among the Wizard Gatherings of our Tower of Dawn, one month after the wizard ship arrives each year, some Gatherings join together for an exchange."
"Our Esmond Gathering is no exception."
"In previous years, our performance rankings in the Gathering exchanges were always in the top three."
"This year, I don't expect you to get into the top three, but at least bring me a reasonably respectable ranking."
"In short, Danville, you must perform well at the exchange."
Leo said, "Yes. I'll do my best when the time comes."
It seems Assistant Instructor Tesla wasn't as calm as he appeared.
Tesla continued, "If you want a good ranking at the exchange, your spiritual aptitude and talent for Arcane Hand already give you the most basic qualifications. What remains is your disciplines."
"For new students like you, the disciplines have a Nova Title specially available to you. To obtain the Nova Title, you need to score no lower than thirty-five in the comprehensive assessment of a B-grade research room."
"Danville, if you can obtain the Nova Title, I'll give you an additional one hundred Magic Stones."
Sally frowned and said, "Wizard Tesla, the Nova Title is extremely difficult to obtain. Your condition is too demanding."
Tesla emphasized, "This is not a condition. It is a transaction."
Hearing that, Sally could not say much more. She said, "Danville, the requirements for this title are very high. You do not need to take it to heart."
Leo said, "Wizard Sally, Wizard Tesla, I will do my best."
Sally shook her head slightly.
Tesla nodded slightly.
Their reactions showed that their expectations of Leo were different.
After Tesla finished giving his instructions, Leo left the office.
Outside the office, Leo found Chris and Molly waiting there.
"Leo, you finally came out," Chris said. "Molly and I are planning to go to the wizard market together to buy things needed for our disciplines. Want to come with us?"
Leo thought for a moment, then nodded slightly. "Sure. I'll go with you."
Leo returned to his room and first took out the Dawn Arcane Potion.
"Discovered inferior-quality codex: Dawn Arcane Potion. Record it?"
[Dawn Arcane Potion] Quality: Inferior Effect: Increases the probability of condensing a Spiritual Seed Cost: 100 Refinement Points Superior Codex: Advanced Potionology
Leo tried to study the Dawn Arcane Potion, but after a while, he withdrew.
With Leo's current spiritual energy, it was still difficult for him to study the Dawn Arcane Potion.
"Mr. Danville, there are books sent over by Wizard Sally."
Before you continue