Domain!

The thirty students in this group entered the Wild Goose Pagoda together, walking in pairs and small groups.

Zhou Sining had no friends, so he trailed behind the others alone.

Too bad Mu Bai hadn't come. At least Zhou Sining would have had company.

Yes, Mu Bai had also made it into Ancient Capital No. 3 High School's top ten.

No wonder he was the original story's third male lead, an acknowledged top student from the start. He might have been a bit of a show-off, but he really knew his stuff.

Only after stepping into the Wild Goose Pagoda did Zhou Sining realize how much more spacious it was inside than it looked from outside.

Then again, it made sense. According to the Chief Guard, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda worked on the same principles as the Three-Step Tower.

And that Tiance General had been a renowned Space Element master in history. There was no way the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, built under his direction, lacked a Space Element foundation.

Once inside, all thirty students fell quiet without being told. Each found a place to sit and began cultivating.

Zhou Sining went farther in. He found a little corner beside the stairs, set down his things, sat cross-legged, and began meditating.

The moment he entered the Wild Goose Pagoda, he had felt a rich wave of fire-element energy wash over him. It felt remarkably welcoming, constantly gathering around him and flowing into his Spiritual World of its own accord.

His Fire Element Nebula shimmered, and Gangsha danced at its center. It seemed quite pleased with the surroundings.

Zhou Sining wasted no time. He activated his Spirit Level Nebula Magic Tool and Soul-Consolidating Heart Chain, then redeemed a Flame Seed to feed Gangsha.

[Fire Element Spirit Seed: Blazing Flame]

[Effect: Doubles Fire Element power. Its flames possess some elemental penetration, allowing them to partially bypass elemental magic defenses.]

"Why is it Blazing Flame again? Oh well. I didn't get its trait when I absorbed it last time. Hopefully I will this time."

With that thought, he put all distractions aside and devoted himself entirely to meditation.

The first floor of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda offered nearly twenty times the normal cultivation speed. An hour and a half of meditation here equaled a full day of hard cultivation outside.

Even under normal circumstances, Zhou Sining cultivated about one and a half times as fast as an ordinary person. With the Nebula Magic Tool and Soul-Consolidating Heart Chain, his speed more than doubled again, reaching three and a half times the norm.

One hour of cultivation for him was worth three and a half hours for someone else.

With the Wild Goose Pagoda's help, that speed reached a staggering seventy times the norm!

This felt amazing!

One day cultivating here was worth two months of grinding away outside!

The Wild Goose Pagoda really lived up to its name. Its cultivation boost blew the system out of the water.

The sudden windfall drew Zhou Sining in completely. He didn't dare waste a single second.

In the hazy expanse of his Spiritual World, the white Fire Element Nebula spun rapidly, forming a swollen tornado.

The white Flame Seed, Gangsha, stood at the eye of the storm. A closer look revealed a crimson mass floating beside it.

That was Blazing Flame, the Spirit Seed that gave Fire Element magic a degree of penetration.

Both Zhou Sining and Gangsha focused entirely on absorbing the Spirit Seed.

As a result, refining Blazing Flame went quickly and smoothly this time.

In just one day, Zhou Sining successfully refined it.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"

Gangsha danced with delight. The Flame Seed, once only the size of a fist, grew a little larger, and a crimson halo appeared around its outermost edge.

Gangsha had successfully gained Blazing Flame's trait. From now on, its flames could penetrate defenses too!

The Spirit Seed gained power and fed it back into the Nebula.

The Nebula grew denser, its glow brighter.

Zhou Sining opened his eyes, looking a little worn out.

A full day of intense cultivation had taken its toll. Even with the Soul-Consolidating Heart Chain, he could barely keep it up.

He got up to use the bathroom. When he returned, most of the students were already resting in their sleeping bags.

That made sense. People had only so much energy.

Fortunately, Magic Energy was so abundant inside the Wild Goose Pagoda that even when a mage wasn't meditating, it still rushed into their Star Dust or Nebula.

Back in his little corner, Zhou Sining ate a few bites to settle his stomach.

He looked up at the wooden stairs nearby. There were still two days before he had to leave the Wild Goose Pagoda. Should he give them a try?

The Chief Guard had said the higher one climbed, the greater the mental pressure.

And in the Three-Step Tower, climbing higher also meant risking the depletion of one's Magic Energy. Zhou Sining didn't know whether the same held true here.

Whatever. I'll try it. I can always come back down.

If he spent his life afraid to lose, he would never get ahead. If he always played it safe, he would never rise far.

Besides, things could hardly get worse than they were now.

Zhou Sining steeled himself, packed up his things, and stepped onto the wooden stairs.

Like the stairs between floors of an ordinary school building, they had two flights, twelve steps in all.

The first six steps weren't bad. Each one made his body feel a little heavier, but it was nowhere near as severe as he had imagined.

He didn't even need to give it his full attention.

Had the guard exaggerated to keep the students from wandering around?

Zhou Sining stepped onto the seventh stair without thinking.

Boom!

The next instant, a crushing weight slammed into his mind. The pain his Spiritual World had to endure doubled!

"Shit! I got careless!"

He hurried back down, gasping for breath.

Only after he had steadied himself did he step onto the seventh stair again.

Pain exploded through his mind once more, but this time it didn't drive him back.

Gritting his teeth, he climbed. Now he understood what it meant for the pain to double with every step!

The Soul-Consolidating Heart Chain and Mana-Recovery Magical Artifact ran at full power, helping Zhou Sining withstand the terrifying mental pressure.

Almost there!

Zhou Sining shouted inwardly.

Half-dead on his feet, he finally reached the second floor.

All the mental pressure vanished in an instant. In its place was an elemental concentration forty times the norm. It felt like bathing in an ocean of elements, free to absorb as much as he could to expand his Nebula.

His Fire Element Nebula stirred again. Zhou Sining didn't dare delay and immediately sat cross-legged to cultivate.

This time, though, Gangsha refused to behave. It darted wildly around the Nebula as if possessed.

Fortunately, it didn't interfere with his cultivation, so Zhou Sining let it be.

After about half an hour of wild dancing, Gangsha finally settled at the center of the Nebula.

The next instant, countless streams of starlight surged toward it like rivers. The Nebula collapsed inward until only the Flame Seed remained.

"Crack, crack!"

Cracks spread across the Flame Seed's surface as though it were made of glass. As they multiplied, Zhou Sining sensed a terrifying fire power contained within.

At last, the Flame Seed shattered!

Boom!

A ring of white Nebula burst outward from its center, spread, then swiftly drew back together to form a dense white Nebula once more.

And Gangsha at its center was bigger.

Yes, simply bigger.

Before it shattered, it had been only a few times the size of Zhou Sining's fist. Now it was as big as his head!

Gangsha stirred, and Zhou Sining understood what had changed.

Gangsha had just undergone its first transformation.

From now on, Zhou Sining could successfully manifest a small Fire Domain!

A domain! Zhou Sining was ecstatic.

This was incredible news!

Even among Advanced Mages, having a domain or not made a world of difference.

And an Intermediate Mage with a domain? He could practically call himself invincible among his peers!