Sopea’s breakthrough was faster than anyone had imagined.

Including himself.

He had gone into seclusion on the third floor of the Hall of Truth’s library before the Day of Abstinence, and it had been just over a week. That was faster than it took most people to read a good, dynamic Magic Book.

The library had a rule against checking books out for too long, so many Wizards chose to read them there. As long as you didn’t log off and no one else was vying for the book, you could keep reading it indefinitely.

These books were all from the Era of Polymath, and many were written in the Ancient Language, making them difficult to understand. It was perfectly normal to spend a month or two just to finish and fully comprehend a single book.

When Sopea had gone up to the third floor after chatting with Sean and the others, many people had been doing just that. Upon learning that Sopea was going to attempt to reach Tier Six, they had a little competition in mind—who would finish their book first, and who would reach Tier Six first? They obviously couldn’t compete with him on Tier level, so they had to find a different way to measure up.

Reading a book was difficult, but it was far simpler than achieving a breakthrough through Meditation.

But who could have known things would turn out so differently than they expected?

They hadn’t even gotten a quarter of the way through their books, and Sopea was already out of seclusion.

And he had actually broken through to Tier Six!

When Sopea descended from the third floor, those around him could clearly sense that his aura was different than before.

If he was arrogant and cold before, then now he was...

Doubly arrogant and doubly cold!

Initially, few people knew Sopea had emerged, as not many Wizards could even access the second floor. But Sopea couldn’t help himself and went down to the first floor. As he had walked from the third floor to the second, his expression had been nonchalant and his steps light. He was a man who disliked being high-profile; the fewer people who knew he had successfully broken through to Tier Six in just one week, the better.

But when he arrived, he found the second floor of the library was practically empty. Many of the familiar faces were gone, and he had no idea where they had run off to.

So, Sopea frowned and headed down to the first floor.

The first floor was as crowded with Wizards as ever.

The atmosphere was also just as quiet.

But then, someone suddenly exclaimed, "Isn’t that Mr. Sopea, the Dream Builder?"

"I think it is..."

The Wizards looked up, their eyes wide with surprise.

"I thought Mr. Sopea was in seclusion on the third floor?"

"Why is he down here?"

"Don’t tell me he’s already broken through to Tier Six?!"

*Gasp*... "It’s only been a few days..."

Many of the Wizards gasped in astonishment.

Hearing the crowd’s hushed but unmistakably shocked whispers, Sopea’s brow suddenly smoothed out.

’Now this is more like it.’

He might not have liked being high-profile, but that didn’t mean he didn’t *want* to be high-profile.

Now that he was one step closer to becoming a Grand Mage, it was only right that someone offer a few words of praise. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Sopea gave a slight nod to the Wizards who were gazing at him with admiration and awe, a silent acknowledgment. Without a word, he passed quietly through the crowd, maintaining his customary arrogance. He came and went with an air of indifference, leaving only the sight of his ramrod-straight back.

Sopea usually spent all his time on the second floor of the library and rarely showed his face in public. It had been a long time since he’d been the center of attention. After this brief experience, he suddenly decided it wasn’t so bad. So, after leaving the Hall of Truth, he took a stroll around the plaza.

By sheer coincidence, he bumped into Elise, who was buying High-Tier Alchemy Materials.

He walked over in feigned surprise and greeted her, "How did you know I’d reached Tier Six?"

Elise: "...?"

’So I already knew, did I?’

Sopea then added consolingly, "But you needn’t be discouraged. If you work hard on your Cultivation, one day you’ll also be able to reach Tier Six and enter the 3rd Floor of the Holy Hall."

"Out of all the Wizards, I have the highest hopes for you."

Elise: "..."

’And I suppose I should thank you for that?’

’Old geezer!’

If she weren’t so mindful of her etiquette and manners, she would have loved to give Sopea a massive eye-roll.

’So what if he’s Tier Six?’

’What’s the big deal?’

’...Okay, it’s actually pretty impressive.’

In any case, Elise understood the true meaning behind Sopea’s actions—

"I have reached Tier Six. For your information."

He’d gotten his moment to flex.

Although he wasn’t the only Tier Six Wizard—Adelf, for instance—Sopea was indeed the only one she knew of who had completed their seclusion so quickly, breaking through from Tier Five to Tier Six.

The old geezer had earned the right to be arrogant.

Elise knew that continuing this conversation would only make Sopea even more smug. After all, her "status" was low—she was only Tier Four and couldn’t even enter the 3rd Floor of the Holy Hall. She had no way to put him in his place. So, she simply changed the subject. "Any news about the Book Thief?"

Sopea shook his head, but he didn’t consider his plan a failure. "It’s not time yet," he answered.

That person had taken quite a few books, including the Ancient Language Skill from the display case. Even a genius would need several months to read and master all of it. Unless the thief was insatiably greedy and overambitious, or they were just stealing for the sake of stealing, he wouldn’t be seeing them for a long time.

Lying in wait was, by its very nature, a long process. There was no need to rush.

Besides, there was another matter that needed to be put on the agenda sooner rather than later.

"Pass a message to Sean for me. Tell him I’ll be looking for him soon," Sopea said, his voice full of meaning.

Now that he had successfully broken through to Tier Six, it was time to settle some scores.

He had promised to help Sean with his Dream Builder abilities to find memories of his past life, and that wouldn’t change.

But Sean had made Koni cry, and he had to get even for that.

His student—the student of Sopea, the Dream Builder, master of the 3rd Floor of the Holy Hall, who completed his seclusion in a single week—was not someone to be trifled with.