Round and Round

Dago continued inspecting the room along the circular experimental bench when his gaze was suddenly drawn to a recess whose color and material clashed starkly with the surrounding benches.

As he slowly approached, the pungent rotten stench at his nose grew stronger. In truth, the smell was not that obvious; thanks to Resonance Art, Dago's sense of smell far surpassed that of an ordinary Second-Ring Wizard. He had caught the scent the moment he reached the second floor. So this was where it had been coming from.

The rough black recess embedded in the pure white, delicate experimental bench looked especially conspicuous and jarring.

Some dark green viscous liquid remained in the black basin, thinly covering one corner of it. Judging by the large green stains on the inner walls, the unidentified liquid had originally filled the entire basin, only to slowly drain away with time, leaving behind this little bit.

"A waste pool for processing experimental waste?"

Dago looked at the basin before him and reached his conclusion.

He had seen similar things beside Bernal's potion-making and alchemy benches. Waste pools usually contained specially formulated, highly corrosive energy potions capable of dissolving most experimental waste.

After hesitating briefly, Dago extended his hand. Several thin blue rods condensed from Animated Ice Crystal shot from his fingertips and dipped into the dark green liquid, stirring it carefully.

The blue rods made a sizzling sound as they touched the dark green liquid, and wisps of pale green smoke rose up.

Dago frowned. He could sense Animated Ice Crystal being rapidly consumed. In this brief moment alone, the amount expended was nearly equal to what he used when casting ice spells in a fierce battle.

This was an ice-element skill that had evolved once under the system's enhancement. The potion in this waste