Leilin's gaze was distant, a glint of wisdom emanating from his eyes.
"For those high-ranking Wizards, when there's no more hope of advancing further, the only thing that truly matters to them is how to preserve the longevity of their families and organizations!"
"To that end, they've monopolized the advanced knowledge required for
This kind of knowledge blockade was something Leilin had long since seen through, thanks to his perspective from another world.
But for those in power, Leilin right now was nothing more than an ant. Even if he could see through their schemes, there was absolutely no way to resist.
After all, Leilin was merely a Third-rank Apprentice—not even a formal Wizard!
"The Black Bone Forest Academy definitely holds the methods and experience for advancing to First-level Wizard, but I'm afraid it's not something I can obtain easily. Unfortunately, this is the most plausible plan I can think of…"
Leilin gazed into the distance at the curtain of rain, gradually sinking into deep thought.
After the ordeal of his recent promotion to Third-rank Apprentice, Leilin had grown somewhat fearful. Without thorough preparation and sufficient information, he absolutely would not dare attempt to advance to formal Wizard.
For Wizards, the leap from Apprentice to formal First-level Wizard was the most critical step—one that permitted absolutely no mistakes.
But Leilin had been completely unable to find any information on this matter in the outside world. Beyond that, the only way to obtain such information was through formal Wizards themselves.
However, formal Wizards possessed strength far beyond what any Third-rank Apprentice could match. Setting aside everything else, even the defensive field that the Chip had observed constantly enveloping every formal Wizard was something Leilin currently had no way of breaking through. Obtaining advancement information from the hands of a formal Wizard was a difficulty that completely exceeded Leilin's limits. He would have to be insane to attempt it.
Given everything Leilin knew, acquiring the knowledge and resources needed to advance to formal Wizard through the Academy was the most reliable approach.
"Based on what Mentor Guofate just revealed, although it's somewhat dangerous, this is also the best opportunity to obtain that knowledge and resources!"
Leilin watched the violent storm outside and suddenly made his resolve.
Though he was a person who cherished his own life, when the road ahead offered no hope, he could muster the courage to stake everything on one desperate gamble!!!
He was currently at the ideal age to advance to formal Wizard. If he missed this opportunity, even if he later managed to obtain the knowledge and resources for advancement, his aging body would likely no longer be capable of supporting the push to First-level Wizard.
Moreover, he was not entirely without confidence. At the very least, based on his own reasoning and the Chip's calculations, there was over a ninety percent chance that the Black Bone Forest Academy simply wanted him to complete some dangerous task—not send him to his death!!! That was enough for him to take the bet!!!
"I'll stake everything on this!!! If I cannot ascend to the summit to witness the brilliance of the morning light, then let me rot away completely into the mud on the ground!!!"
Leilin stared into the storm, his eyes blazing with intense light.
…
Three days later. The outskirts of the Black Forest.
The forest surrounding the Black Bone Forest Academy had been largely devastated. The ground was pockmarked with craters everywhere, and a few patches of bare white earth lay not far off, blanketed with charred remains. Just looking at this, one could imagine the brutal battle the Black Bone Forest Academy had endured!
"It actually ended up like this…" Leilin rode swiftly past on horseback, feeling grateful for his decision to leave without hesitation.
After such a tremendous battle, even the terrain around Black Bone Forest had been largely destroyed. If Leilin had stayed here all along, he would have had absolutely no confidence in preserving his own life.
After following the road for another ten-odd minutes, a massive graveyard appeared before Leilin's eyes.
This was the Black Bone Forest Academy's surface entrance—a colossal rock cemetery. But the cemetery was now in ruins. More than half the tombstones had toppled, many graves had been dug open to reveal dark passages beneath. The surrounding stone walls and earth bore the marks of rampant magical destruction. Before Leilin's eyes, the Chip's warning signals sounded continuously, indicating dangerously high radiation levels around these remnants.
"Every one of these small tombs was actually a private entrance for a Black Bone Forest Academy mentor… destroyed like this…"
Though he had known beforehand that the Black Bone Forest Academy would suffer greatly, this wretched sight still made Leilin catch his breath.
Crack!!!
Leilin casually kicked aside a boulder blocking his path and arrived before the enormous castle-like mega-tomb at the center.
This was the main gate of the Black Bone Forest Academy—the public passage for all Apprentices.
The castle surface was covered in cracks, and the very top had even partially collapsed, with the rest looking like it could crumble at any moment. Leilin felt worried just looking at it, as if a single finger's push would bring the entire castle-tomb crashing down.
"Halt! Outsider, if you cannot produce a token, I'll show you the price of blood!!!"
The two stone sculptures flanking the gate had been completely destroyed—the winged lizard and the two-headed hound that once stood there were nowhere to be seen. Just as Leilin was about to enter, a voice like grinding metal rang out.
Along with the voice, a massive dark shadow scrambled rapidly down from the top of the grey stone castle. The figure was noticeably two heads taller than a normal person, with impossibly long arms that reached nearly to its feet. It climbed across the castle surface with remarkable speed.
Though the castle-tomb surface was riddled with cracks, the shadow's climbing did not cause the slightest tremor. Clearly, the Black Bone Forest Academy's construction was not as fragile as it appeared.
Boom!!! The shadow suddenly leaped, its enormous silhouette landing on the ground, its shadow engulfing Leilin entirely.
Thud!!! The shadow slammed into the earth, sending up a cloud of dust.
Leilin narrowed his eyes and finally saw the shadow's full form—a gigantic ape-like monster, its entire body covered in a layer of grey stone, its hands planted directly on the ground.
"Ding! High-energy organism detected. Cross-referencing database… identified as: Rock Ape!" The Chip's voice sounded at precisely the right moment.
The Rock Ape was a creature of the Wizard world, its combat power comparable to an average formal Wizard.
"I sense the fluctuations of a token on you. Show it!!!"
The Rock Ape glanced at Leilin, then sniffed him with its enormous nose. As the ape drew closer, a tremendously foul stench wafted over, and Leilin had to exert considerable effort to suppress the urge to frown.
"A token?"
Leilin thought for only a moment before quickly pulling the red iron plate he had received when accepting the task from his bundle.
"So it's this one!!!"
The Rock Ape took the iron plate and swallowed it whole in a single gulp. As though savoring something delicious, it even closed its eyes to relish the taste for a moment.
"You're a Black Bone Forest Academy Apprentice. You left on a task!"
After a dozen or so seconds, the Rock Ape opened its massive eyes and spoke to Leilin: "Kid, go on in!!!"
"Please accept my offering!" Leilin considered for a moment, then bowed to the Rock Ape first before placing a bunch of banana-like fruit on the ground.
"Trunk Bananas! Not bad, not bad!!!" The great ape nodded, gathered up all the fruit in its hands, and eagerly tore off one to stuff into its mouth.
"May I ask—what happened to the two previous guardians?"
Only when he saw the Rock Ape eating happily did Leilin carefully pose his question.
"Dead!" the great ape replied without even turning its head, making Leilin sigh inwardly.
This was a result he had long predicted. The two stone guardian sculptures had clearly been the Academy's frontline defensive forces—the most vulnerable positions during an attack.
After bowing once more, Leilin entered the gates of the Black Bone Forest Academy.
Dim lighting. A staircase spiraling downward. Everything was the same as when Leilin had left the Academy.
But for some reason—perhaps because his promotion to Third-rank Apprentice had significantly strengthened his Spiritual Power—Leilin could now perceive scratch marks on the walls and stone bricks, flecks of blood, and even, faintly at the edge of his hearing, the wailing of restless spirits.
For Leilin, who had conducted extensive spirit research in Polar Night City, these sounds were unmistakable.
The number of Apprentices he encountered along the way had clearly dwindled—Leilin estimated there were less than half of what the Academy once held. Even popular areas like the Trading District and the Task District had a desolate, deserted feel to them.
At the counter of the Task District, Leilin handed over his previous record crystal ball and a scale from a Manxter giant serpent.
"I'm here to turn in a task!!!"
"Very well, please wait a moment!" The counter staff at the Task District had changed again. This time it was a freckle-faced girl who appeared to be merely a Second-rank Apprentice.
While waiting, Leilin idly surveyed his surroundings.
Although the foot traffic in the Task District was far lower than before, the number of tasks posted on the walls had actually increased rather than decreased, and the rewards had surged dramatically. By Leilin's estimation, these tasks, while comparable in difficulty to the ones before, now offered nearly double the rewards!!!
This obviously abnormal situation made Leilin's eyes flash with a sharp gleam.
"Lei… Leilin!!!" A voice sounded behind him—low and hoarse.
Leilin turned around and saw a bulky figure entirely wrapped in black gauze, accompanied by a stench like a sewer that drifted straight toward him.
"You're… Nisse!!!" Leilin widened his eyes.
This appearance was etched in his memory, and the Chip had a record of it as well.
"You actually still remember me!" Nisse's voice carried a hint of excitement, and at the same time, a pulse of energy leaked outward. According to the Chip's scan, Nisse had already reached the rank of Second-rank Apprentice.