Chapter 54: Chapter 54: Advancement to Level 3 Wizard Apprentice

Time flew.

In the blink of an eye, it was the seventh day of the trial.

The outside world was in an uproar, with many apprentices searching for Pei Ze’s whereabouts. The man himself, however, remained hidden in a cave, oblivious to worldly affairs and completely absorbed in his Meditation.

Over the past three days, Pei Ze had taken Ten Thousand Flowers Honey four more times.

Each dose increased his Spiritual Power by less than one point.

The final dose had only granted him an increase of 0.18.

Clearly, his tolerance for the Ten Thousand Flowers Honey was reaching its absolute limit.

’Spirit: 49.95... I’m so close!’

Pei Ze glanced at the Ten Thousand Flowers Honey in his cup.

’This should be the last effective dose. I hope it packs a punch.’

Taking a deep breath, Pei Ze downed the Ten Thousand Flowers Honey in a single gulp.

A familiar sense of clarity and transcendence instantly flooded his mind.

But unlike before, the sensation was particularly intense this time.

Pei Ze felt his perception suddenly sharpen.

The entire world seemed to burst with life in an instant, and countless streams of information scrambled to pour into his brain.

Though his eyes were closed, he could clearly sense the Ten Thousand Flowers Fairy several meters away, sprawled on a book with her little legs kicked up, reading with intense focus.

It was a copy of *A Study of Rare Plants* that Pei Ze had given her.

The little one had taken an immediate liking to the book and had been poring over it for the past few days.

As a fairy who loved to shapeshift and play pranks, she, too, needed to bolster her professional knowledge.

At the mouth of the cave, Wuyu was preening its feathers. Its movements were elegant and gentle, showing none of the sharp ruthlessness it displayed in battle.

Farther in the distance, he could faintly hear the roars of fierce beasts and the sound of human footsteps.

Judging from the footsteps, a number of people were heading up the mountain.

This sensation of having his entire surroundings under his control was utterly intoxicating.

Unfortunately, it was fleeting.

The next moment, Pei Ze snapped back to reality and opened his eyes.

The first thing he did was check his stats.

[Spirit: 50.03]

[Physique: 24.52]

A genuine, joyous smile spread across Pei Ze’s face.

’I’ve finally become a Third-level Wizard Apprentice!’

Compared to a Second-level Wizard Apprentice, the combat prowess of a Third-level Wizard Apprentice was a monumental leap forward.

In addition to increased Magic Power from his enhanced Spiritual Power, his casting speed was now also significantly faster.

This was because a Third-level Wizard Apprentice could master fragmented casting.

It was a casting technique, similar to using an enchanted item, that allowed one to unleash a prepared spell with just a short fragment of the full incantation.

This naturally made casting incredibly swift.

Pei Ze’s lips parted slightly. He uttered a single, rapid syllable, and with a point of his finger, a ball of acid materialized from thin air. It shot out like a cannonball, slamming into a rock outside the cave.

SIZZLE!

The millstone-sized rock instantly billowed with white smoke. It dissolved in the blink of an eye, melting away like snow, leaving behind only a puddle of grayish-white liquid.

The sudden noise startled the Ten Thousand Flowers Fairy.

The little one looked up at the scene, her eyes widening. When she turned back to look at Pei Ze, her eyes were shining with adoration.

’The Great Demon King is getting stronger and stronger!’

"Omniscience, analyze its power."

[Category: Corrosive]

[Power: 12.3]

Pei Ze nodded in satisfaction.

’This much power is enough to obliterate a Senior Grand Knight.’

What pleased him even more was the casting time.

The casting time for his improved acid splash spell had already been more than halved. Now, with the addition of the fragmented casting technique, the preparation time was less than half a second, which vastly increased its combat utility.

Of course, it still fell short of silent casting and instant casting.

In fact, one could say fragmented casting was a prerequisite for silent casting.

’Speaking of which, I could start practicing silent casting now,’ Pei Ze thought suddenly.

Silent casting was a metamagic technique, one that typically only Official Wizards could master.

Wizard Apprentices, with their insufficient Spiritual Power and accumulated knowledge, usually found it incredibly difficult to grasp.

Those who managed to master this technique during their apprenticeship were exceedingly rare.

’But with the Eye of Omniscience, it shouldn’t be too difficult for me.’

"Omniscience, analyze the silent casting technique."

[Task created. Analyzing silent casting technique. Estimated time required: 178 days.]

Pei Ze nodded to himself. ’That’s not bad. The analysis time isn’t too long.’

’If I waited to analyze it after becoming a Wizard, it would probably only take ten days or so.’

It was also worth noting that his breakthrough had significantly reduced the analysis time for creating a new Meditation Technique.

[Task 1: Create a new Meditation Technique. Estimated time required: 289 days, 4 hours, and 12 minutes.]

Pei Ze estimated that once the trial was over, he could accelerate the process at full power for about ten days to complete the new Meditation Technique. Then, he could resume his analysis of the Will Rune.

After composing himself, Pei Ze continued to examine the changes from his advancement.

A Third-level Wizard Apprentice could begin storing small amounts of Energy Particles within their body, and their resistance to both Magic and physical attacks grew stronger.

Pei Ze estimated that with his current physique, coupled with his control over Energy Particles, he could overpower a Junior Grand Knight in close combat.

He could even hold his own against a Middle Grand Knight.

CAW!

Wuyu flew over, landed on Pei Ze’s shoulder, and gently pecked his cheek.

Pei Ze’s mind suddenly went blank, and in the next second, his vision split in two.

One perspective was his own.

In the other, a familiar face appeared.

It was his own face, but greatly magnified.

From this new perspective, he looked down and saw a pitch-black body and glossy, dark feathers.

’Vision sharing!’

It was a unique ability Wuyu had awakened after Pei Ze became a Third-level Wizard Apprentice.

This wasn’t a spell-like ability, but rather an innate one that all familiars awakened once they were nurtured to a certain degree.

The timing of the awakening simply varied depending on the familiar’s aptitude.

Furthermore, from the thoughts Wuyu telepathically conveyed, he learned that its two spell-like abilities had also changed.

The first was Fog Transformation.

At Pei Ze’s command, Wuyu’s body suddenly dissolved into a swirling mist that surged toward him, quickly forming a black robe that enveloped him completely.

Previously, while Wuyu could transform into simple objects like a black bracelet, those forms had no substance. They were still just mist, merely holding a different shape.

This time, however, was different. When Pei Ze reached out and pressed a finger against the black robe, he could distinctly feel a tough, slightly elastic texture, almost like rubber.

Greatly intrigued, Pei Ze took out his Fine Steel Longsword and slashed at the robe. He discovered its Defense Power was unexpectedly high.

The sharp blade felt as if it were striking a thick, tough piece of leather.

Moreover, this layer of "leather" also had a damage-dispersing effect.

While the blade appeared to strike a single point, the force of the blow was instantly distributed across the entire robe.

"Incredible physical Defense Power!"

Pei Ze muttered in amazement.

In a battle against a Knight, this was as good as wearing a suit of Fine Steel Armor—and a virtually weightless one at that.

’I wonder about its magic resistance?’

Pei Ze cast a few spells to test it, and the results were pleasing.

The black robe’s defense against Magic was on par with his Protective Ring.

Pei Ze was overjoyed.

The enhancement of the Fog Transformation ability meant Wuyu’s usefulness was no longer limited to offense; it could now aid in his defense as well.

Another layer of defense meant another boost to his survivability.

’And then there’s Summoning Fog Crow.’

At Pei Ze’s thought, the black robe on his body instantly disintegrated, re-coalescing into Wuyu’s form.

The next second, dark mist surged around Wuyu as its body swelled rapidly, as if being inflated. In the blink of an eye, it transformed from a small, thirty-to-forty-centimeter-long familiar into a behemoth nearly two meters in length.

CAW!

Wuyu stretched its body, its head nearly touching the cave ceiling, and exuded a cold, heavy, and oppressive aura.

To the side, the Ten Thousand Flowers Fairy heard the commotion and looked up. Seeing the gigantic Wuyu, she was left completely dumbfounded, her tiny mouth forming a perfect "O".