Steadfastness of will is an absolutely essential trait for any powerful Arcanist. On the arduous path to seeking truth and knowledge, one must be unyielding and persevering. Furthermore, when facing a formidable enemy, an Arcanist must maintain absolute, crystalline calm.

  After all, combat between casters relies heavily on Spiritual Strength. An emotionally unstable apprentice would be incapable of even constructing the most basic spell model in their mind palace. In such a chaotic state, no matter how much raw Spirit they possessed, they would be no better than a panicked commoner wielding a stick.

  Perhaps due to the accumulated experiences of his two lives, Pierce felt very little panic despite facing such a terrifying, mutated monster for the first time. Instead, he remained unnervingly composed, his mind a cold, calculating machine.

  The invisible, spectral palm struck the horned monster with a heavy, muffled howl, sending it reeling backward. Seizing the momentary opening, Pierce retreated swiftly, maintaining a crucial safety distance of over 10 meters.

  "ROAR!"

  The monster counterattacked with a violent punch, its raw kinetic power shattering the spectral hand into a burst of rushing wind. With the annoying distraction cleared, the monster charged at Pierce once more, the ground shaking with each step.

  However, the youth had already prepared his next incantation. He pointed a finger, and a spark of verdant white light shot out, hitting a seed he had casually dropped at the monster’s feet moments ago.

  Hiss!

  Countless vines erupted from beneath the monster’s feet, thickening and lengthening at a visible speed. They spiraled up its ankles and enveloped it in seconds, binding it tightly like a green cocoon, leaving only its horned head exposed.

  Strangling Vine! Verdant Radiance!

  The creature struggled frantically, snapping the tough vines with sharp twang sounds like breaking harp strings. Under the stimulation of Verdant Radiance, the vines—which could easily crush a Squire—had limited effect on this monster's monstrous physique. It would break free in mere seconds.

  Fortunately, Pierce never expected the vines to hold it for long; they were merely a distraction to buy precious seconds for his next incantation. As the most powerful offensive spell in a Rank 0 arsenal, Acid Splash required a significantly longer casting time and complex hand seals than the optimized Mage Hand.

  Sizzle!

  As Pierce pointed his finger, a ball of concentrated acid the size of a basketball shot forth, accurately striking the immobilized monster square in the face.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Tzzz!

  Pungent white smoke billowed from the creature’s face as it let out an earth-shaking howl of agony. The corrosiveness of Acid Splash was more terrifying than aqua regia. Even with its formidable physique, a direct hit to a sensory organ was devastating. Its face became a mangled mess of melting flesh and blood, its eyes forced shut by the searing pain. It swung its fists wildly in a desperate, blind attempt to catch its unseen tormentor.

  Having succeeded with the first strike, Pierce remained impassive and dropped another seed. Thanks to his work in Garden No. 8, he carried a pouch with a dozen Strangling Vine seeds—more than enough for a single battle of attrition.

  His optimized Verdant Radiance consumed only 0.4 units of Spirit per cast, while Acid Splash required 1 unit. With his Spirit level currently at 16.23, he could repeat this deadly combo ten times without straining his mental reserves.

  Bind, splash, bind again, splash again... Pierce repeated the cycle with mechanical precision, patiently grinding down the monster’s vitality like a butcher dismantling a carcass.

  By the tenth Acid Splash, the creature finally reached its limit. It crashed to the ground, convulsing briefly before falling silent. Its once-fearsome face was gone, replaced by a scorched, black cavity that had even begun to corrode the bone beneath.

  Pierce let out a long, weary sigh of relief. His Spirit was now below 1 unit—he was, quite literally, drained of every drop. If the monster hadn't died now, he would have been the one running for his life.

  As he wiped the cold sweat from his brow, he noticed two figures standing nearby in the shadows. He tensed immediately, ready to cast his last desperate cantrip, only relaxing when he saw they wore pristine white robes—the attire of Official Arcanists of the Spire Academy. They were likely the sentinels guarding the Garden District.

  The man on the left was middle-aged and radiated an air of calm wisdom. On the right was a stout man whose right hand was covered in fine, black scales, resembling the limb of some reptilian beast.

  "Not bad, little one. A Rank 1 Apprentice taking down a Corrupted solo... commendable," the stout Arcanist chuckled with a look of genuine approval.

  The middle-aged Arcanist, Master Mowen, stepped forward and asked, "Little one, who optimized the Verdant Radiance spell you just used?"

  Pierce realized they had been watching for some time, likely just observing the "show" to gauge the students' capabilities. He dared not refuse an answer and quickly fabricated a lie, claiming he had found the optimization technique in an old, tattered book in the library.

  "I am quite interested in this spell model. Would you care to trade? I can offer three bottles of Spirit Spring Potion in exchange," Master Mowen said, his eyes gleaming with scholarly interest.

  Pierce was overjoyed. Three bottles were worth 600 Credits. This was an incredibly lucrative deal for him, far exceeding the value of a simple optimization trick. He agreed instantly.

  Master Mowen flicked his hand, and three vials shimmering with blue liquid along with a Memory Crystal Orb floated toward Pierce. Pierce tucked the potions away safely and closed his eyes to transfer the spell model into the crystal via mental projection.

  Once the transfer was complete, he turned to look at Kian.

  Kian was lying motionless on the cobblestones, his chest deeply caved in where the monster's fist had connected. Blood and flecks of internal organs leaked from his mouth with every shallow breath. He stared at Pierce with wide eyes filled with shock, disbelief, and a burning, desperate resentment.