The cold wind howled.
After nightfall, Neustadt City began to experience snowfall once again.
Before the snow intensified, Colin strode through the gate and into his own courtyard.
In utter darkness, only the warm yellow light shining through the windows of the mansion was visible, like two lanterns, illuminating the flurry of goose feather-like snow.
Colin exhaled gently and felt some relaxation wash over him.
As he moved towards the house, he contemplated in silence.
The words of Mentor Atbolde did hold some truth.
When one's personal ability couldn't contend with the entire wizardry establishment, adaptation was indeed the better choice.
Perhaps it was worth considering joining a faction?
Arriving in the bathroom, and submerging his body in the hot water Renee had just drawn, Colin shook his head inwardly again.
For him, the problem wasn't about joining a faction or not.
It was whether a faction was worth joining.
What were the benefits of joining? And the drawbacks?
...To weigh whether it was worth it or not, one would probably have to wait for the factions to recruit and state their specific terms before deciding.
It was no use thinking too much about it now.
Putting the matter aside for the moment, Colin closed his eyes and then remembered another issue—
That was the matter of advancing to Second Rank.
With his experiences in the Elf Kingdom and the performances of some predecessors who were geniuses as a guide,
his rapid advancement from First Rank Junior Wizard to First Rank Advanced Wizard in just a few months, though conspicuous, wasn't abnormal.
However, if he were to advance to Second Rank soon thereafter... that would indeed be shocking and defy common norms.
While there were Second Rank Wizards at the age of twenty, and even younger ones existed,
these prodigies were not only once-in-a-century occurrences, but almost all of them came from large pureblood families or had the support of powerful High Rank Wizards as relatives, with clear and visible growth trajectories.
The only exception was one kind—wizards who were extremely lucky to encounter rare adventures.
Since Wizard Levels were difficult to augment with external aid, such cases were extremely rare, but that precisely highlighted their preciousness.
Adventures capture the heart...
Besides, surpassing others by a step is the mark of genius, bringing far greater benefits than drawbacks.
But if one were to take yet another step forward, the accompanying drawbacks and dangers would rise exponentially...
Slowly opening his eyes amidst the swirling steam, Colin stood up, revealing a well-defined physique.
After advancing to First Rank Knight, his build could be described as perfect, with every inch sculpted to perfection.
The origin of Green Gold Fighting Aura was the sublimation of Blood Energy, free from any interference of Alien Bloodlines, his physique was less a transformation, and more an elevation of the human form.
Even those wizards who used Bloodline Transformation with Elf Bloodline, which most closely matched human aesthetics, were slightly inferior.
Clasping his fist, the surging strength emerged as ever, giving Colin a profound sense of reassurance.
Waving his hand, he used his spiritual power to dry himself off, and donned a soft grey bathrobe, determined.
Advancing was inevitable, one must not forsake eating for fear of choking.
He could not, however, disregard the risks entirely—he needed some concealment.
Perhaps... acquiring some witchcraft that could disguise his own level was a good choice?
With Golden Paper at hand, witchcraft was obviously his first option.
And the Golden Feather Token just happened to bestow upon him the right to select witchcraft suited to his power twice a year.
'It seems I will have to visit the School tomorrow.' Colin mused to himself.
He had intended to wait until his breakthrough to Second Rank before choosing two Second Rank witchcrafts, but now it appeared that making use of it in advance was the better choice.
The wind whistled—
The cold wind outside was still howling incessantly, as if the winter's night was deeper than in any other season. Many had already laid down early to rest.
However, for Colin, tonight was yet another sleepless one.
He stepped into the Meditation Room and sat cross-legged on the warm cushion, slowly closing his eyes.
It was not for meditation that he concentrated his spiritual power at the center of his brows.
In an instant, the contents of the Second Rank Stage of the Tin Saint Meditation Method gushed forth like a tide.
Before visiting Mentor Atbolde, he had already skimmed through it at the door.
Now, combining the mentor's answers from the afternoon, he could read fluently; he had also formed a clear concept of the Second Rank Wizard in his mind.
If becoming a First Rank Wizard was like a Talent Seed breaking through the soil to sprout, opening up a Spirit Sea, and acquiring a True Talent,
then the Second Rank was about expanding the Spirit Sea on this foundation to gain a second True Talent.
At the same time, the spirit would undergo a strengthening.
This enhancement would cause the originally diffuse spirit to consolidate and firm up, making the soul's form clear and visible.
If it were an ordinary person without training, their soul would be more like a thin mist, shapeless, and relying on the body to stabilize and endure.
"The essence of a wizard's advancement is the continuous growth and sublimation of the spirit..." Colin suddenly thought.
This was what the instructor from the Lap School had said during a lesson when he had just arrived in this world.
Any wizard who had received orthodox basic education was aware of this phrase.
Colin chewed over it carefully; it was a widely circulated phrase that also pointed directly to the essence.
The so-called spirit is, in fact, the soul, and spiritual power is the soul's strength.
Looking back now,
the essence of True Talent should actually be the strange change that naturally occurs when the soul is strengthened to a certain extent.
Wizards use Talent Seeds to make this change more controllable and powerful, while also enhancing the soul by opening up the Spirit Sea.
At this thought, Colin suddenly developed an interest in the Meditation Method—
How did the wizards of the past come up with the idea to use Talent Seeds to open up the Spirit Sea and furthermore enhance the soul?
Without Talent Seeds, could one still advance to a First Rank Wizard by continuously strengthening meditation?
Previously, at the Lap School, even though he received orthodox School Wizard education, it was evidently still lacking compared to Neustadt City.
The history of wizards, the origins of Meditation Methods, and so forth, all of these were unfamiliar to him.
However... the pressing matter at hand was still to prepare for advancing to the Second Rank; these curiosities could be satisfied later.
Colin reined in his thoughts and continued to familiarize himself with the Second Rank Stage of the Tin Saint Meditation Method, preparing for his upcoming breakthrough.
In his view, advancing to the Second Rank actually seemed simpler than breaking through to be a First Rank Wizard.
The First Rank was the official beginning of a wizard's journey; the entire process was like planting a seed in the ground and successfully allowing it to break through the soil and grow into a sapling.
The Second Rank, on the other hand, was about nurturing the sapling to flourish with branching leaves.
By comparison, the former appeared to be more challenging.
However, this did not mean that breaking through to the Second Rank was an easy task.
Generally speaking, the probability of a First Rank Wizard with ordinary talents successfully breaking through to the Second Rank was only about thirty to forty percent.
The main difficulty lay in expanding the Spirit Sea.
The so-called Spirit Sea was, in fact, an extraordinary fictitious structure deep within the soul.
At this thought, Colin unconsciously touched his lower abdomen.
There, too, resided an extraordinary organ that carried the Green Gold Fighting Aura.
"The unknown frightens people... but it also inspires curiosity, even fascination," he murmured to himself while caressing his abdomen, illuminated by the Bright Crystal.
Removing his hand, once more he familiarized himself with the Second Rank Stage of the Tin Saint Meditation Method. Colin then rose to practice his witchcraft.
Mainly, he practiced witchcraft like the Steel Temperature Resistance Field and the Deep Red Marking Technique, which were quieter in nature.
Speaking of which, he hadn't even gotten the chance to examine the Black Mist Net Witchcraft that Atbolde had given him two days earlier, let alone learn it.
Time... was currently the scarcest and most precious thing.