022 Human-shaped Ice Maker_1

Lin Ge and Lanya emerged from Alison's Magic Artifact Shop, with Lanya cradling a new Magic Wand in her arms unlike any other.

The wand, nearly as tall as she was, boasted a lustrous, ebony shaft crowned with a dark blue gemstone that exuded an aura of mysterious elegance.

Clutching the wand, Lanya rubbed her delicate cheeks against its shaft, with her eyes brimming with joy.

It had cost a steep 2,888 Gold Coins—equipment she'd never even dared dream of owning before. She had decided that from now on, she would even sleep while holding onto the wand.

As for her old wand, which resembled a mere tree branch, she had sold it to Alison at a bargain price of just 10 Gold Coins.

Over Lin Ge's shoulder hung a new, black, short cloak.

This was a strongly recommended item by the shop owner Alison upon learning that Lin Ge had just registered as a Magic apprentice yesterday.

Also a member of the Mage Guild and a certified Mage who had passed the primary examination, Alison claimed that the cloak had the effect of enhancing the circulation of Magic Power, making it particularly suitable for neophyte Mages to accumulate Magic Power. It also promised to speed up spellcasting, so Lin Ge had purchased it.

In addition, his right index finger now sported a silver ring, a Storage Ring which held a near cubic meter of space.

For himself, he also bought a Magic Wand, which he kept inside the silver Storage Ring.

Within the ring, besides a black Magic Wand, there was also a Yellow-Skinned Tome that Alison had pitched to him—a blank Magic book capable of reproducing content from other books.

Though the book appeared to be only as thick as a brick, it actually contained a staggering hundred thousand pages. Alison suggested to him that he should copy down any introductory Magic books from the Mage's Guild library that piqued his interest. That way, even when he was on the road, he would be able to study Magic at his leisure.

Initially, Lin Ge had wanted to buy some Magic Scrolls as well, but after purchasing these items, the remaining few hundred Gold Coins were insufficient to acquire even a single scroll.

According to Alison, that was the courtesy eight-percent discount she offered because Lin Ge was a newcomer to the Mage Guild. She had made a loss-making sale, or else Lin Ge wouldn't have had a single Gold Coin left on him.

As a senior member, she also recommended a book suitable for beginner Mages titled "Introduction to Magic Theory and Practical Guide," available in the Mage Guild's library.

Having left Alison's little shop, Lin Ge returned to the Mage Guild for the library's collection of books.

He first found the "Introduction to Magic Theory and Practical Guide" and copied its content into his blank Magic book, then wandered among the stacks of shelves, copying down the content of any book title that interested him.

After copying close to a hundred books, he finally stopped; the copied material would keep him busy for quite a while.

Upon leaving the Mage's Guild, he used the remaining Gold Coins to buy a bed and a set of velvet bedding. He stored them in his Storage Ring and returned to the pub's rest room, placing the bed and bedding in the corner of the room.

He had decided to stay at the pub for the time being, planning to rent a single apartment nearby after receiving his salary next month.

Lanya followed him, intent on snagging a free place to stay. The sofa in the hall was quite soft and, although small, was more than enough for her petite size. It made for a perfect bed; she just needed to prepare a blanket to comfortably sleep on the couch.

At night, Lin Ge lay in the bed in the rest room, studying "Introduction to Magic Theory and Practical Guide," thus deepening his understanding of the Magic in this world.

There are three sources of Magic Power for a Mage when casting spells. The first is the Magic Power accumulated within oneself, which is the quickest to mobilize and offers the advantage of speed in spellcasting. However, its storage capacity is limited and varies from person to person, which may lead to difficulties in casting larger spells due to insufficient "mana."

The second source is Magic Power stored in other carriers, such as magic stones, Mana Replenishing Potions, Magic Wands, and the like. Depending on the carrier, the difficulty of harnessing this energy varies, and the speed of spellcasting is generally slower than the first type.

The sapphire he had acquired yesterday belonged to this category.

The third type involves invoking the magic power within the natural environment; high-level magic and large-scale spells often fall into this category, requiring a certain amount of time for guidance, but the effects and power are generally very strong.

Following the method described in the book, Lin Ge began to meditate and, with his superior talent, quickly entered the right state of mind.

He felt the dilute magic power in the air and the sapphire in his embrace that shone like a tiny sun, containing an astonishing amount of magic power.

In his meditative state, he could clearly sense his own capacity for magic power; he was like an empty bucket, and the sapphire in his embrace was like a reservoir. Drawing but a trivial strand from it, he filled himself to the brim.

The filled magic power didn't cause any changes to his body, only making him feel somewhat more alert.

Anxious to prove this was no illusion, he eagerly turned to the page detailing specific spells. The page described a basic spell training called "Water Creation," which, after a quick glance, he arrogantly dismissed as "Is that it? Too easy."

He opened his palm and started to manipulate the magic power within him according to the method described.

The next moment, his palm acted like a fountain, suddenly spraying out water.

"Oh! A success on the first try, does this mean my intelligence is also quite high?"

There are two fundamental attributes for a mage, intelligence and the body's capacity to hold magic power. Lin Ge's physical talent was already top-notch, but he wondered what level of intelligence was required to learn a basic spell at first glance.

Outside the resting area was a senior magic apprentice—perhaps he should ask her.

Lin Ge came to the bar's main hall, only to find Lanya had fallen asleep on the sofa, her petite frame covered with a purple blanket. She had a smile on her peacefully sleeping face, tranquil and lovely.

She was still holding the brand-new magic wand Lin Ge had bought her, clutching it like a pillow. The gem-studded end stuck out from her embrace and even in sleep, she occasionally rubbed her cheek against it.

Seeing this, Lin Ge didn't wake her.

As he passed by the bar, he noticed the ice maker on the counter and an idea struck him.

What about making ice with magic?

He immediately returned to the rest room, flipped through the magic book, searching for spells related to ice.

"Ah, found it, Freezing Magic."

Holding the book in his left hand and spreading his right hand open, he once again conjured a small spray of water from his palm, which he controlled to form a small cube of water. He then applied the technique from the book to transform the nature of the magic power in his body and expelled it from his palm.

A bone-chilling cold emanated from his palm, rapidly freezing the cube of water floating above it into ice, forming a completely transparent ice cube, free from any impurities—exceedingly beautiful.

The ice cube landed in his palm, and Lin Ge stared at it, a smile spreading across his face at the sight of the pure ice.

This would make adding ice to drinks when bartending much more convenient in the future.

Ice maker?

He could probably throw that away.

He would try out the magic-made ice cubes when the bar opened tomorrow.