Experimental Zone, Spell Laboratory.

  Pierce stood in the center of the chamber, feeling the turbulent power surging through his veins.

  The next instant, a violent and domineering aura erupted from his body. An invisible shockwave blasted outward from him as the epicenter, whipping up a fierce gale that whistled through the room.

  Observing closely, one could see a faint, translucent halo of light shimmering across Pierce’s skin.

  "Is this Externalized Aura?"

  A faint smile touched the corners of Pierce’s mouth.

  After consuming two bottles of Superior Dragon's Blood Potion and enduring ten days of grueling cultivation, his Azure-Wind Breathing Technique had finally broken through to the seventh layer.

  With this, he had successfully ascended to the rank of Grand Knight, mastering the twin techniques of Externalized Aura and Detached Aura Strike.

  Pierce slowly raised his longsword and slashed forward with explosive force. A sharp, piercing whistle tore through the air as a blade of invisible vacuum energy shot out like an arrow, striking a crystal target several meters away.

  Crack!

  A deep sword gouge instantly appeared on the target’s surface, sending stone dust cascading down.

  Category: Battle Aura

  Intensity: 7.3 Degrees

  "Not bad. This has reached the level of an Intermediate Grand Knight."

  Pierce nodded in satisfaction.

  The elevation of his Spirit had driven the advancement of his Physique. Combined with the fortification of the Dragon's Blood Potion and the breakthrough to Grand Knight, his Physique attribute had long since surpassed the 40 point threshold, reaching the standard of an Intermediate Grand Knight.

  Beyond this, he had also mastered the combat arts of Storm Slash and Flash Step.

  Pierce’s figure suddenly blurred. In an instant, he flickered across the room like a streak of flowing light. The longsword in his hand became a bolt of lightning, piercing the center of the target with blinding speed.

  Crack!

  The sharp tip of the blade buried itself deep into the crystal. The edges of the cut were perfectly smooth, without a single hairline fracture.

  Category: Battle Aura / Physical Strike

  Intensity: 13.8 Degrees

  Pierce’s eyes lit up. He hadn't expected the lethality to nearly double when utilizing a combat art.

  One had to consider that even with his current Spirit, the Acid Splash he cast had an intensity of only 15 Degrees.

  "As expected, combat arts are the true trump card of a wizard."

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  Pierce then tested the power of Storm Slash. Its intensity was slightly lower, at 10.5 Degrees. However, considering it was an area-of-effect attack, this level of power was quite remarkable.

  "Omniscience, status check."

  Spirit: 72.23

  Physique: 40.24

  Task 1: Analyzing Will Rune No. 18. Estimated time: 42 days.

  Task 2: Analyzing Silent Casting technique. Estimated time: 102 days.

  Task 3: Analyzing Magic Missile spell model. Estimated time: 9 days.

  Over the past few days, Pierce had successively constructed Will Runes No. 14 through No. 17. Thanks to this, his Spirit attribute had skyrocketed to 72.23.

  Furthermore, the optimization of Mage Armor was complete.

  Pierce had conducted tests: the improved armor's defensive effect was approximately 20\% higher than the original. Truthfully, this was not a staggering increase. However, the casting cost had been slashed from the original 2 points of Spirit to a mere 0.8—a reduction of more than half.

  Stacking 20 layers of Mage Armor now consumed only 16 points of Spirit. Yet, the defense provided by those 20 layers was so robust that even Mist Raven’s pecking could not breach it after ten minutes of continuous assault. One had to consider that with Pierce’s surging Spirit, the raven’s attacks now rivaled the strikes of a Beginner Grand Knight.

  "If I stack 50 layers, I could stand still and let a Rank 2 apprentice attack me; they’d likely exhaust their Spirit before scratching me."

  A smile played on Pierce’s face. He beckoned Ini back into the folds of his hood and left the laboratory.

  Today was the opening day of the Realm of Truth. He needed to report to the General Affairs Department. He could hardly wait to witness the mysterious realm that countless apprentices dreamed of.

  The General Affairs Department was located 500 meters from the laboratory building—a tower over ten stories high. The first floor was a bright, spacious circular hall with several counters arranged in a crescent facing the entrance.

  Pierce walked up to one of the counters. "Excuse me, is the Realm of Truth opening today?"

  The young man behind the desk looked up. He froze for a moment upon seeing Pierce, quickly recognizing him. He smiled. "Yes, it is today."

  Without waiting for Pierce to reply, he stood up.

  "I'll take you there."

  Pierce was slightly taken aback by the enthusiasm. His gaze drifted down to the apprentice badge on the young man's chest.

  A third-year student!

  "How should I address you, Senior?"

  "No need for that title. Just call me Vance," the young man said with a wave of his hand.

  In the world of wizards, strength reigned supreme, and The Spire Academy was no exception. Rumor had it that Pierce was already a Rank 3 Wizard Apprentice. In terms of power, he was not inferior to these third-years—and perhaps even stronger. Vance naturally dared not put on airs.

  Pierce smiled but said nothing. He had just used the Omniscient Eye to probe; analyzing Vance's data required 1.5 points of Spirit, meaning the other’s Spirit attribute was not far from his own.

  Among the third-years, Vance was nowhere near as strong as Yuna. Pierce had once secretly probed Yuna’s strength. Her Spirit was an astounding 116! He estimated she also practiced the Deep-Sea Meditation, which involved 24 Will Runes. Among all the third-year students he had seen, she was undoubtedly the strongest.

  "This way."

  Vance led Pierce into a door at the back of the hall. Beyond it lay a long, spiraling corridor lined with grey stone lamps every few meters. The floor slanted downward, leading deep underground.

  "When I ran into Yuna a few days ago, she mentioned she had a new 'little junior brother.' I didn't expect it to be the champion of this year’s freshman trial," Vance laughed.

  Pierce finally understood the source of Vance’s warmth. "Are you and Senior Yuna in the same society?"

  "No," Vance looked at him with surprise, as if the question itself was strange. "You don't know Yuna is a core member of Order of the Rose?"

  Pierce was slightly stunned.

  At The Spire Academy, three societies were the most prominent: Shadow Serpent, Wisdom Society, and Order of the Rose.

  The Shadow Serpent consisted exclusively of scions from wizarding families, practicing extreme elitism. Silas, who died in the trial, had been a member. The Wisdom Society was more inclusive, with no requirements regarding origin.

  And Order of the Rose was the most unique: it only recruited female Wizard Apprentices.

  "Yuna and I were in the same class once, so we still chat," Vance explained.

  As they talked, they crossed the corridor and entered a vast underground hall. It was circular and at least the size of a football field. Aside from the stone door they had entered through, there were three other massive stone gates. To the right of each gate stood a monolith engraved with bold text.

  Pierce’s gaze swept over them: Realm of Truth, Shadow World, and Well of Darkness.