In the third-floor corridor of the academy castle, Locke walked in.

The time displayed on the alchemy clock in the corridor indicated it was already close to one o'clock. As this was his own defense meeting, he needed to quickly enter the venue.

At the same time, Locke was holding his materials and about to walk in when he discovered the dispirited Daniel wizard walking out of the conference room.

Daniel wizard was stunned when he saw Locke. "Locke?" 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Locke immediately realized that Daniel had also recently applied for project completion, so he smiled, "Daniel, how did it go? Did you pass the Tier 2 funding project completion? By the way, did you apply for a Tier 1 funding project this time?"

Daniel fell silent, his face looking terrible, his eyes gloomy, completely different from his past cheerful appearance.

Locke immediately realized something was wrong. He put away the smile on his face and noticed that this time, there were no shop alliance representatives following Daniel wizard.

"What happened?"

Daniel didn't answer Locke's question, just kept his head down. Only then did Locke notice his haggard expression and that his wizard robes weren't very clean.

There was even a wound on his face.

Daniel subconsciously tried to dodge and turn away.

Locke frowned.

But Daniel stopped halfway, turned to look at Locke, and said in a low voice, "Cloud Marsh Wetland is more treacherous than I thought. All my money has been swindled away."

"Two million magic stones, and they made me take out a loan of three million magic stones."

Daniel said bitterly, "My defense today didn't pass at all. Because of lack of funds and being psychologically devastated, I didn't do it seriously at all."

"Today, I was severely criticized by a Third Circle weather mage from Bonifacius University. He told me that Golden Crown Mountain... Cloud Marsh Wetland has plenty of geniuses, and I shouldn't be so conceited."

"I'm not special!"

A bitter smile appeared on Daniel's face. "Locke, you were right. That Lena witch... I don't even know if that's really her name. She really is a fraud."

"She deliberately set up a scheme to make me invest all my savings and borrowed money, putting all my funds into a problematic shop. Now that shop has filed for bankruptcy, but I can't get my money back either."

"And she's disappeared without a trace."

"You actually went and used leverage, using other people's money for venture capital!" Locke frowned. "Didn't I send you the chat records she gave me?"

"How could you believe what someone like that says? Even if you really wanted to use leverage, you should have found a proper diviner who graduated from Quinn Jol University, right? Group prediction is what they're best at. Quinn Jol University has rich academic development in prophecy within chaotic systems."

Daniel gave a bitter smile. "I was blinded by love, and also blinded by the one million magic stones she helped me earn in the early stage. In Fission Mausoleum Plains, I had never been in contact with so much money. So..."

"In short, I got lost in the money." A trace of fear even appeared in Daniel's eyes. "Money is such a terrifying thing. When I didn't have it, I felt I lacked it desperately, but when I got it, I became even worse off."

Daniel said bitterly, "Is it because I don't have the ability to hold onto so much money?"

Daniel's eyes were full of confusion. "Anyway, my colleagues in the laboratory, after learning I owe so much money, all pretend I don't exist. They don't talk to me normally anymore unless I take the initiative to find them."

"Everyone avoids me like the plague, but when I carefully inquire about their attitude, they say I'm overthinking it. But I know what those people are thinking. They're afraid I'll swindle away their money. Locke..."

Locke didn't know how to comfort him. "At least now you've seen through that witch's true face."

Daniel wizard shook his head. "Five million magic stones. How can I ever pay that back? And without funding, I can't complete my research. I estimate I might be eliminated from the academy next year."

A bitter smile appeared on Daniel wizard's face. "One wrong thought, and I fell from heaven into hell. A great situation completely ruined by me. Locke, I really regret it... If I had known, I should have listened to you back then."

"Then perhaps I would have passed the Tier 2 funding project together with you now."

"Cloud Marsh Wetland really is too dangerous." Daniel wizard said, "Right now, I've destroyed my own future with my own hands."

Daniel was about to leave when Locke suddenly called out to him, then after thinking for a moment, said to him, "Daniel, I know a capable contract lawyer named Hussein. If you need it, I can recommend him to you."

"No matter when or where, never give up hope."

"Today's despair might just be a laughing matter to your future self. But if you give up hope yourself, then you won't even have that hope."

Daniel wizard's body shook. He turned to look at Locke, opened his mouth, then shook his head, "A contract lawyer won't be necessary. Right now, I don't even have the money to hire a contract lawyer."

"Locke, on the path to pursuing truth, there are countless temptations. I couldn't resist those temptations for a moment and allowed the weaknesses in my character to erode my heart, causing me to make mistakes and fall into the abyss."

"The current result is what I deserve. You must never trust others easily like I did."

Daniel turned to leave, while saying softly, "Locke, thank you. You're the only wizard who has encouraged me since this happened."

"Just when I thought no one in the whole world would acknowledge me anymore."

Locke watched Daniel's figure disappear at the end of the corridor and let out a slight sigh. There was nothing he could do. This was Daniel's own choice.

The wizard's world was so cruel. The road ahead had so much competition, so many temptations and deceptions. Those whose will wasn't firm, even if talented enough, would be forcibly dragged down from this path of pursuing truth.

Locke began to think, saying in a low voice, "What determines whether I can move forward isn't just talent, but also my character. Daniel wizard's situation is a warning to me. If I make the wrong choice, one misstep and it's a ten-thousand-foot abyss. Because... this is Cloud Marsh Wetland!"

A place that had made countless wizards successful and also buried countless wizards.

For every wizard who established achievements and pursued truth here, there was another who failed and gave up their dreams, stopping here.

The path to pursuing truth was so difficult that fellow travelers would become fewer and fewer, which made each fellow traveler all the more precious.

Wizard Kelt walked out of the conference room, ran into the corridor, and asked in a low voice, "Locke? What are you standing here for? You're the protagonist today. This is your defense meeting."

"The Third Circle wizard and the sun ring wizards are all waiting for you, the protagonist, to appear."

Kelt came over, inviting Locke to accompany him, while saying to him in a low voice, "The Third Circle wizard presiding over your defense today is Master Milady from Cassiloce Art University, one of the seven top wizard organizations in Cloud Marsh Wetland."

Locke looked at Wizard Kelt with confusion. "Team leader, is there a problem?"

"Cassiloce Art University? Does that mean this Third Circle wizard is a master-level quick sketch artist?"

A flash of panic crossed Wizard Kelt's eyes as he said in a low voice, "Never mention quick sketch artists in front of wizards from Cassiloce Art University."

"In the visual magic sub-direction of the Illusion School, there are still many branches. Quick sketch artists aren't mainstream in Cloud Marsh Wetland. The mainstream here is ink wash painters, using water as the medium and ink as the brush."

"Anyway, mentioning quick sketch artists in front of Cassiloce Art University is easy to get targeted by that group of artists. It's like an old man eating arsenic. That bunch from Cassiloce think quick sketch artists are just a serious misunderstanding of aesthetics, a bunch of soulless... fast-track painters."

"Master Milady isn't an ink wash painter either. He's a master-level breeder and master-level bard."

Wizard Kelt asked strangely, "Haven't you heard of Cassiloce University's reputation? It's where Cloud Marsh Wetland's artists are born."

"Ink wash painters from Cassiloce University have the tradition of not dotting the eyes. Once they dot the eyes, what's in the painting can come alive and attack you."

"Bards from Cassiloce University are even more the trendsetters of Cloud Marsh Wetland, the big stars of Cloud Marsh Wetland. The key point isn't this, but Master Milady's other identity, breeder."

Seeing Locke's eyes become even more confused, Wizard Kelt said in a low voice, "Master Milady is also a major promoter of the Tyrant cultivation method. Now do you understand?"

Locke immediately understood what Wizard Kelt was worried about.

Master Milady was both a master of the Illusion School and the Life School. He was also an authority on Tyrant cultivation technology in Cloud Marsh Wetland.

At this moment, Locke's defense had fallen into his hands. It was like a fake meeting the real deal, or like showing off one's skills in front of an expert.

Generally encountering a situation where one's research direction happened to be a big shot in the same field was very troublesome.

Basically, one could only accept bad luck.

Wizard Kelt said, "Most troublesome is that there's also a Second Circle wizard among the judges this time who also does Tyrant breeding."

"Witch Yekaterina contacted the judges this time. The Throne probably has her own thoughts."

Wizard Kelt patted Locke's shoulder. "Good luck."

"Locke."

Locke nodded, then resolutely pushed open the conference room door and walked in. At that moment, the dozen or so wizards in the conference room all looked toward Locke.

Three defense judges, plus some wizards observing and learning, as well as wizard representatives from various shop alliances.

At the same time, Locke also saw Master Milady from Cassiloce Art University. He was wearing checkered wizard robes in red, white, black, and blue, had ten magic rings on both hands, two magic necklaces around his neck, several strings of magic bracelets on his arms, and a pile of other magical artifacts on his body.

The decorative function of these magical artifacts exceeded their practical function.

At the same time, he had magical tattoos on his right arm, and wore his hair long, though it was dyed.

Locke also noticed that Master Milady was wearing colored contact lenses.

His fashionability was off the charts!

Locke looked as usual toward Witch Yekaterina's position in this conference room, but unfortunately, for this Tier 2 funding project completion defense meeting, Witch Yekaterina still hadn't come to attend.

The position where his collaborative mentor should have been sitting was empty.

Nevertheless, the table in front of that position was still filled with Golden Crown Mountain's specialty fruits to show respect for the Throne wizard.

Master Milady snapped his fingers. "Very good, that young man came in. Hey hey... we can start now..."

Master Milady had a strange rhythm to his speech, as if he were rapping. Yet when he spoke this way, every word drilled so clearly into everyone's ears that they couldn't forget it.

He clearly wasn't using magic, but because his speech conformed to certain magical laws, even without using magic, his voice contained a magical charm.

Master Milady looked at Cis George, the Second Circle sun ring wizard from Golden Crown Mountain Group 2, beside him.

"I hope this researcher from your Golden Crown Mountain's defense will be more interesting. That Daniel wizard just now performed really poorly. Logic must be explosive, data must be hard. Young wizard up there, don't talk like you're chanting sutras."

Cis George beside him was one of Witch Yekaterina's most trusted confidants and was always habitually serious. Therefore, facing this Third Circle wizard speaking this way, he could only squeeze out a trace of a smile from his deadpan face to show he seemed compatible with this Third Circle wizard's style.

Wizard Cis George smiled stiffly, "Uh... I didn't personally mentor these two wizards, so I'm not very clear about their situation. I hope their performance won't disappoint us, especially you, Master Milady."

The third wizard was a Second Circle breeder from the Rose Council. At this moment, he smiled. "Augustine... I seem to have heard this name recently, but where?"

Master Milady smiled, then made a gun gesture at Locke on the stage with both index fingers pointed at Locke, saying,

"Don't be nervous, don't be casual. Scholarship is rigorous, not street tricks. If the argument's strong enough, I'll naturally nod... oh yeah..."

Cis beside him, with his serious face, had already started sweating profusely. He seemed completely unable to handle Master Milady's style, but didn't dare violate a Third Circle wizard's dignity. At this moment, the expression on his face was somewhat twisted.

On the stage, Locke remained composed and nodded to Master Milady, "Alright, thank you for Master Milady's guidance."

"I'll try not to be nervous."

Milady seemed to have discovered something and looked at Locke with delight. "You've got guts. I like your personality. Finally caught a living person at Golden Crown Mountain."

Wizard Cis seemed to have found an outlet. He coughed and frowned at Locke, reprimanding him, "This is a defense. You must pay attention to seriousness. In front of a Third Circle wizard, you must maintain respect."

Master Milady looked at him with displeasure. "Little Cis, relax. Data should be hard, but don't make your expression so hard like you owe tens of millions."

Wizard Cis completely fell into chaos.

He looked at Master Milady with confusion. All along, in his eyes, Witch Yekaterina had been an image of supreme dignity and mystery, and he completely couldn't see through her words and actions.

At this moment, his image of a Third Circle wizard was becoming shaky under Master Milady's impact.

The third judge from the Rose Council smiled. He had watched enough of the show, so he said to Locke, "Researcher, you may begin."

"I hope you can bring us a defense that isn't boring."