...
The remaining five days quickly passed.
During that time, Andy did not visit again, but Yulaya came twice more.
Each time she visited, it was mostly small talk, and though she did occasionally ask about some witchcraft knowledge, her inquiries were superficial at best.
At first, Colin had patiently explained once, but later he simply shook his head, claiming not to understand.
Yanan Calendar 3586, February 7th.
The morning was clear and sunny.
Colin was taking a stroll in the small garden of his courtyard, with the tiny elf Nasi sitting on his left shoulder.
Demi followed by his side.
Today was the last day of preparation before the task.
By tomorrow at the latest, Colin would have to leave Neustadt City.
Otherwise, if he failed to arrive at the task location within the specified time, it would also be considered a mission failure.
However, at this moment, Colin was not wasting time.
He was relaxing his body and mind—preparing for the upcoming advancement.
After this morning's meditation had ended, the Hodgia Meditation Method had successfully merged with the Limit Breaking Holy Ring Meditation Method.
The total consumption amounted to a whopping two hundred and fifty thousand Magic Stones.
But all of this was worth it. Although he had not yet advanced to be a Second Rank Wizard, the mere fusion of the two meditation methods had already brought Colin benefits that were immediate and apparent.
Simply put, after the Hodgia Meditation Method merged with the Holy Ring Meditation Method, he could now cast the Steel Temperature Resistance Field while summoning the Black Fog Armor.
It should be known that this was not a simple operation.
Perhaps previously, Colin could summon the Black Fog Armor within one second and then cast the Steel Temperature Resistance Field, but not at the same time.
This slight improvement might not seem significant at times, and its utility might not be considered great.
But for the other two witchcraft techniques Colin mastered, it was a qualitative change.
—— Four instances of the Limit Breaking Fireball Skill and one instance of Limit Breaking Summon Fire Element.
Summoning the Fire Element after one instance of Limit Breaking did not change its casting prerequisite—it still needed a fire source as a casting material.
The fire source influenced the strength of the summoned Fire Element, but not to a great extent, at most fluctuating by half a Rank up or down.
Previously, when Colin used the Summon Fire Element spell, he usually used the Fireball from the Fireball Technique as the casting material.
This led to an issue: the process of summoning the Fire Element included an extra step of creating a fire source, which slowed down the summoning time.
Based on previous situations, even though Colin had already engraved the models of both spells in his Spirit Sea, summoning a Fire Element still took at least just over 1 second.
However, after the fusion of meditation methods, Colin's trials found that if he simultaneously cast the Fireball Technique and Summon Fire Element, the final time to summon the Fire Element would be greatly reduced, nearly instantaneous.
At first, Colin thought it was the omission of creating a fire source that led to this result.
But after more careful consideration, the reasons might be more complex.
After all, the prerequisite for summoning the Fire Element is a fire source, meaning the Fireball Technique must create a Fireball for the Summon Fire Element to be cast.
But when casting both spells simultaneously, Colin noticed they inexplicably overlapped, and this led to the final casting speed even surpassing that of casting Summon Fire Element alone.
This made him think of the Combined Witchcraft spell Black Mist Net, within which there seemed to be similar overlaps.
However, with departure imminent and Limit Breaking at hand, he did not have spare time to research in the School or the True Knowledge Society, so he could only set the matter aside for the time being.
Around ten in the morning,
Colin finished his walk.
He left his residence and headed to the True Knowledge Society's laboratory.
According to the knowledge of Atbolde and meditation methods, the time needed for Second Rank Limit Breaking was unpredictable; it could be as short as two hours or as long as a day.
During this period, the Wizard attempting to advance must avoid any external disturbances.
So after much thought, Colin decided to come to the laboratory of the True Knowledge Society.
This time, however, he chose the Second Rank laboratory.
The True Knowledge Society's location was remote, and it was common to see no visitors for a fortnight.
Moreover, the laboratory was built strictly to the highest standards, and although some of the precision instruments inside were severely damaged,
the defensive Witch Array and the walls built with special materials had largely retained their complete form.
He opened the door to the Second Rank laboratory.
At a glance, the overall area was a bigger circle than the First Rank laboratory and had some additional equipment.
However, since Colin had rented the cheapest and most damaged laboratory, most of the equipment inside seemed no longer usable.
Without delay, Colin took out a cushion from his Storage Ring, sat down cross-legged on the open space beside the experiment table, and prepared to begin Limit Breaking.
The key to advancing to a First Rank Wizard lay in planting the Talent Seed and allowing it to break through the soil, sprout, and simultaneously open the Spirit Sea, while also yielding a precious fruit—the True Talent.
And the key to advancing to a Second Rank, was to encourage this sapling, which bore only a single fruit, to grow stronger, expanding the Spirit Sea and acquiring a second True Talent.
At the same time, the spirit would undergo a strengthening.
This enhancement would condense the once loose spirit and make the soul's form clear and visible.
'I wonder what my second True Talent will be...'
Colin gathered his thoughts and slowly closed his eyes.
Magic Power was as calm as a quiet chasm, yet his spirit was churning like a tsunami.
The essence of a Wizard's advancement lay in the continual sublimation of the spirit, which essentially did not require the involvement of Magic Power.
Once the spirit was successfully strengthened, the capacity for Magic Power would naturally rise along with it.
Beside him, the incense of concentration diffused heat in misty spirals, and in the well-insulated laboratory, only Colin's faint but prolonged breathing could be heard.
Time passed, unknown how long, when a faint white halo gradually appeared on Colin's brow.
Enveloping, flickering, it seemed mysterious and extraordinary.
But this was just the beginning; the entire advancement process was likely to continue for a while.
Time ticked away second by second, and the halo on Colin's brow grew increasingly bright.
Again, time passed, unknown how long.
Then, in a moment, the white light on his brow abruptly contracted into a very bright pinpoint before quickly plunging into the Spirit Sea, heading straight for the Talent Tree and finally merging with it.
Swoosh!
It was as if a button had been pressed to speed up time; the Talent Tree in Colin's Spirit Sea stretched out branches and sprouted rapidly, robustly growing.
Then, it pressed against the outer wall of the Spirit Sea.
Crack.
What began as a slight crack,
but in the blink of an eye, like dominos falling, tiny fissures instantly spread across the entire outer wall of the Spirit Sea.
In the laboratory, Colin remained calm, without sorrow or joy, merely pushing a bit more silently.
Crack. The entire outer wall of the Spirit Sea completely shattered, and the now larger Talent Tree finally stretched out.
Misty halos radiated from the Talent Tree, and between those fragments, many semi-transparent strands emerged as if connected by delicate threads.
Then, those strands rapidly wove and expanded to form a new outer wall for the Spirit Sea.
The entire process was smooth and swift.
The moment the outer wall was completely formed, an odd fruit also appeared on the tip of the Talent Tree's branches, officially announcing Colin's successful breakthrough to a Second Rank Wizard!
...
Meanwhile, Yulaya had returned to the middle-aged Wizard's office.
"Has Colin not left yet today?" the middle-aged Wizard asked.
"I visited him this morning, his maid said he wasn't there, but people outside the True Knowledge Society mentioned they saw Colin's figure," Yulaya answered respectfully.
"Good, it's good that he hasn't left," the middle-aged Wizard stroked his chin, nodding in satisfaction.
"Master Brey..." Yulaya couldn't suppress her curiosity and hesitated before asking, "Why do you need to monitor Colin's movements?"
"Do you know he's taken on a compulsory mission?" Brey chuckled, then suddenly countered.
Yulaya shook her head, looking at Brey with puzzled eyes.
She didn't understand why Brey had suddenly brought this up.
Yet Brey just smiled and didn't solve Yulaya's confusion, simply saying,
"You'll find out later."