The pocket watch is not truly "charged" in the conventional sense, but rather displays an "energy quota."
Once these quotas are exhausted, he doesn’t need to deliberately replenish them; they will automatically refresh to the maximum value at midnight.
Its energy mechanism is more akin to a "quota" system.
The role of the Sands of Time, however, is to expand the maximum energy quota of the pocket watch, rather than simply charge it.
This very trait makes the pocket watch the most stable and reliable among all his rare antiques.
"It seems the Sands of Time truly hold the key here..."
Ron thoughtfully caressed the surface of the pocket watch:
"If I can obtain more Sands of Time, increasing the maximum quota to a higher level, the potential of this glory legacy will be even more astounding."
He carefully put away the pocket watch, calmed his mind, and began to keenly feel the various changes after becoming an Advanced Apprentice.
Unlike the obscure sensation during the elementary apprentice stage and the faint perception during the middle apprentice stage, now he can perceive the surrounding magic flow with unprecedented clarity.
This feeling was like someone who could previously only observe the outside world through a murky window suddenly gaining a pair of glasses that could see every detail of the world.
Every energy fluctuation in the room, the faint magic remnants contained in the walls.
Even the fine magic particles floating in the air, clearly presented within his perception.
These details, which in the past required full concentration to barely perceive, can now be captured with just a thought.
The most significant change, however, occurred in his casting ability.
Ron could clearly feel that his mastery over the three skilled spells:
Sound Wave Vibration, Slime Splash, and Ring of Brilliance had already formed stable "thought circuits" in his spiritual sea.
This is just as described in The Apprentice’s Ladder:
"When an apprentice masters more than three spells and reaches a level of proficiency, these independent thought circuits begin to interweave, forming an organic whole. This is not just a numerical addition, but a qualitative leap."
Ron attempted to construct the magic model for "Sound Wave Vibration," and was surprised to find that the process, which originally took more than ten seconds, now required only a few seconds.
His spiritual power naturally flowed along the already formed thought circuits, like water rushing down a pre-dug channel, easily and efficiently.
In the past, constructing a magic model required repeatedly checking the precise position of each node and energy flow, with even a slight negligence possibly leading to the collapse of the entire model.
But now, this process has become almost instinctual, as natural as muscle memory.
"Is this the ’thought network’ mentioned in The Apprentice’s Ladder?"
Ron’s eyes sparkled with surprise and curiosity.
The Apprentice’s Ladder once described:
"Apprentices who meet the conditions to advance to Advanced Apprentices will form a complex ’thought network’ in their spiritual sea, with various magic models acting as nodes, interconnected and mutually supportive.
Once this network is formed, casting efficiency and success rate will greatly increase, while also laying the groundwork for mastering more advanced combined magic in the future.
The denser and more complete this network is, the higher the wizard’s talent is deemed to be.
Many great wizards formed exceptionally complex thought networks during their Advanced Apprentice stages, which laid a solid foundation for their future achievements."
This change is not only reflected in casting speed but also in the precision of magic control.
Ron discovered that he could more precisely control the amount and direction of magic output, like evolving from a brute who only knows how to swing with all his might to a sword master proficient in controlling force.
Besides these standard changes, Ron noticed a unique phenomenon—even after only hearing a few instances of the "ravings," these syllables left an indelible mark in his mind.
During that consciousness battle, to counter the raving attacks of the sea urchin monster, he had to meticulously analyze and record those peculiar syllables.
This process made him realize that the ravings were not meaningless sounds, but had a specific structure and intrinsic logic as spiritual waves.
"’Zi... Klu... Niag... Rotip...’ These syllables seem to contain some grammatical structure..."
Whenever Ron slightly recalled, he could accurately recall the arrangement patterns of those syllables:
Whenever the sea urchin monster uttered the syllable "Zi", he felt a specific frequency of stinging in his spiritual defenses;
While "Klu" brought a sense of distortion, as if his spiritual power was forcibly stretched;
"Niag" induced a kind of dizziness, as if being swept into a whirlpool;
As for "Rotip", it produced an illusion, allowing him to briefly see some nonexistent scenes.
These effects were not mere spiritual interference but were unique rules of spiritual power manipulation techniques.
Especially when the Thousand Transformations recorded and reflected the ravings, causing marked interference to the sea urchin monster, it further convinced him that these ravings were indeed a substantive energy transmission method.
"If I could integrate the traits of the ravings into the Sound Wave Vibration..."
Ron internally mused, a trace of excitement flashing in his eyes:
"Perhaps a brand new, more penetrating attack method could be created."
The conventional Sound Wave Vibration mainly relies on physical vibrations to damage the target, like an invisible hammer fiercely striking the target’s physical structure, causing damage externally.
However, the ravings seemingly could act directly on the opponent’s spiritual level, bypassing physical defenses, and directly disturbing the core.