Chapter 90: Promotion to Level 3 Wizard Apprentice
While the war in the Golden Rock Province intensified, Sunan remained alone in the meditation room of the base, completely detached from the outside world.
Under the soft glow of the lights, he sat cross-legged on the floor, eyes closed, breathing steadily.
After two months of meditation, his mental power had grown to 29.99.
Now he was just a step away from a breakthrough.
The meditation room was peaceful.
Only the sound of Sunan's gentle breathing filled the air.
Time passed slowly, and soon the energy particles in the room began to surge violently, as if drawn by an invisible force, racing toward Sunan and swiftly entering his body.
In an instant, the rich energy particles he had gathered with the energy concentration array were completely absorbed.
More energy particles from outside the meditation room flooded in.
Around Sunan, a vortex of energy particles formed, with him at its center.
Before long, a wave of energy that seemed to emanate from the depths of his soul erupted from Sunan.
He slowly opened his eyes, a faint glow flashing within them.
A familiar clarity and sense of elevation surged through his mind.
This sensation was reminiscent of his promotion to level 2 wizard apprentice, but this time it felt even more pronounced.
His perception sharpened significantly.
The entire world seemed to come alive in an instant, as countless pieces of information flooded into his mind.
Although he could not see beyond the room, Sunan could distinctly sense that Amy was perched on a tree about fifty to sixty meters away, happily munching on ice mint.
Not far off, two newcomers were hiding around a corner, their faces filled with curiosity as they secretly observed Amy, hesitating about whether to approach her.
Further away, he could faintly hear the lively songs of the flower spirits and Gritti's melodious violin playing.
This state of seemingly controlling everything around him was intoxicating.
However, it lasted only a short while.
Before long, Sunan snapped back to reality.
Letting out a long breath, he focused his mind and summoned his status panel.
**Sunan Ayanest, Human Male**
**Mental Power: 30.00 / Constitution: 22.21**
**Skills:**
- Star Ring Meditation Method Lv10 (228429/300000)
- Potion Making Lv4 (2012/10000)
- Biological Modification Lv2 (2338/3000)
- Puppet Crafting Lv3 (4528/6000)
- Magic Item Manufacturing Lv2 (2140/3000)
A genuine smile of joy spread across Sunan's face as he looked at the panel.
After nearly four years since his arrival in this world, he had finally been promoted to level 3 wizard apprentice!
Calculating the time, he would still be two months shy of turning twenty.
Being a twenty-year-old level 3 wizard apprentice would have made him a remarkable talent even during the wizarding golden age a thousand years ago.
After basking in his joy for a moment, Sunan regained his composure and turned his attention back to the panel.
On the surface, his abilities didn't appear to have significantly increased compared to before his promotion.
However, compared to a level 2 wizard apprentice, the combat power of a level 3 wizard apprentice was a tremendous leap forward.
First, his control over energy particles had dramatically improved.
Sunan extended his palm, and with a flicker of thought, a mysterious yellow rune materialized above his open hand.
The next second, the yellow rune shattered violently, enveloping him in a faint yellow glow.
"Now, even without rune gemstones, I can easily summon energy runes."
Sunan smiled slightly.
Going forward, when facing enemies like great knights, he wouldn't need to rely solely on rune gemstones.
He could easily take them down using energy runes, and perhaps just a spell or two.
The second change was a significant increase in casting speed.
As a level 3 wizard apprentice, he could now attempt to master segmented casting.
Just like Heb had demonstrated earlier, he could now cast spells by simply reciting one or two syllables, allowing for rapid casting.
One of the main inconveniences of spells in combat was their lengthy casting time, which easily allowed enemies to interrupt the caster.
However, with segmented casting mastered, this weakness was greatly mitigated.
This was the primary reason for the substantial increase in combat power among level 3 wizard apprentices.
As segmented casting progressed, the next step would be spell silence.
Spell silence, as the name suggests, allows spells to be cast without verbal incantations, relying only on mental recitation (the length of incantation being equivalent to segmented casting).
Although spell silence wouldn't shorten the preparation time for casting spells, it would allow the caster to prepare the next spell simultaneously, significantly enhancing casting efficiency—an exceedingly practical skill.
Beyond spell silence, there was spell instant casting.
A wizard apprentice who mastered spell instant casting could complete the casting of a spell in the blink of an eye, requiring no preparation whatsoever, making them akin to a walking artillery.
Both spell silence and instant casting were considered advanced magical techniques.
Other advanced magical techniques included spell distance enhancement, spell duration extension, area of effect expansion, simultaneous casting of multiple spells, and improving spell control to maximize each spell's effect.
Once promoted to level 3 wizard apprentice, one could start training to master these advanced techniques.
Every single advanced magical technique could significantly enhance one's combat power.
Thus, mastering both spell silence and instant casting was a priority for every level 3 wizard apprentice.
However, these advanced techniques were exceptionally challenging to acquire. Without sufficient talent, most wizard apprentices would find it nearly impossible to even brush against the surface of these skills.
Most would spend their entire lives without mastering a single advanced technique.
Just like Heb, who had only managed to grasp basic segmented casting.
"Fortunately, I have the player panel. As long as I initiate the training progress for advanced magical techniques, I can certainly grind my way to mastery!"
Sunan mused for a moment, then parted his lips and quickly uttered a syllable.
The energy particles around him vibrated violently, but the next second, the room returned to calm.
His attempt at segmented casting had failed.
But Sunan was unfazed.
The informational prompt he sought had already appeared.
**[Completed a practice session for segmented casting, 'Segmented Casting' training progress +0.05%]**
Sunan nodded in satisfaction.
As long as he continued to practice, he would eventually master segmented casting.
Once that was achieved, he could begin training in spell silence.
Afterward, he would tackle spell instant casting.
Both spell silence and instant casting were essential advanced techniques Sunan aimed to master first.
The other advanced techniques could be learned gradually later.
"Now, against a first-circle legendary knight, I already have the strength to hold my own."
"Once I master enough second-circle spells, it would be a piece of cake to defeat a first-circle legendary knight."
"With the magical items I possess, I wouldn't have to fear a second-circle legendary knight either."
A smile crept onto Sunan's face.
And he still had the high-level rune gems as his trump card.
As long as he was willing to spend money, even a second-circle legendary knight could be taken down with ease.
The strength range of level 3 wizard apprentices was vast.
Weaker level 3 wizard apprentices could pick on first-circle legendary knights.
However, more powerful level 3 wizard apprentices could easily crush third-circle legendary knights.
Shaking his head, Sunan gathered his thoughts and began to consider his upcoming plans.
The first priority was to learn second-circle spells.
He currently possessed over a dozen second-circle spell books, and considering the difficulty of second-circle spells was far greater than that of first-circle spells, he wouldn't lack for spells to learn over the next two or three years.
"Additionally, I can start preparing for the magic rune core."
The two major requirements for integrating a magic rune core were the mental power of a level 3 wizard apprentice and the physical constitution of a junior knight. Sunan had already met one of those conditions.
A level 3 wizard apprentice could begin to store a small amount of energy particles within their body, enhancing their resistance to spells and physical attacks, while also increasing the rate at which their constitution strengthened.
If he combined this with the Dragon Blood Fruit, Sunan estimated he wouldn't need much time to elevate his constitution to that of a junior knight.
"Of course, finding the necessary materials will be a challenge."
"So far, I've only gathered forty-eight of the eighty-nine required metals, with twelve more in sight. The remaining ones will likely require research into suitable substitutes."
Sunan sighed, recognizing that this would be a lengthy endeavor.
In addition, there was the matter of his **Magic Item Manufacturing** skill level.
Sunan estimated that in order to craft the magic rune core, his **Magic Item Manufacturing** would need to reach at least level 4.
Currently, he was still halfway away from level 3.
"It looks like I'll have to manufacture more magical items to level up my skills."
Fortunately, with the arrival of over a dozen newcomers, he could prepare additional alchemical-grade magical items for the warehouse, allowing them to exchange them in the future.
Moreover, he needed to synthesize more micro-glow level magical items.
In the previous battle, Sunan was able to defeat Heb, who was of a higher tier, thanks to his high-level rune gems, the Extreme Protection Ring, and the Ice Burst Necklace—all micro-glow level magical items.
The enhancement provided by micro-glow level magical items was significant and didn't require further proof.
To bolster his strength further and ensure he had the means to protect himself against even stronger adversaries, it was imperative to manufacture more micro-glow level magical items.
One thing to keep in mind was that even though he could carry multiple magical items, only one of the same type could be activated at a time.
For example, when it came to protective magical items, a wizard apprentice could activate only one at a time.
Activating multiple protective magical items simultaneously would lead to conflicting energy flows, causing all protections to fail.
Even when it came to the same type of magical item, their protective effects could not be stacked.
Despite this limitation, having multiple magical items was still advantageous.
"I suppose the consumption of materials will also be a concern."
Sunan mused, dismissing the issue for the time being.
If necessary, he could always take advantage of the resources in the Golden Rock Province once Key conquered it.
Although the second-circle spells and the magic rune core were important, the most crucial task remained meditation.
Once he advanced to become a formal wizard, it would open up a world of possibilities.
To become a formal wizard, the first prerequisite was to construct eighteen star rings.
Yes, a total of eighteen!
In other words, he needed to elevate the Star Ring Meditation Method to level 19!
Calculating the experience required, reaching level 10 in the Star Ring Meditation Method demanded 300,000 experience points. Sunan estimated that the combined experience needed for the next nine levels would easily reach thirty to forty million.
At a rate of 1,000 experience points per day, it would take him eight to nine decades, or even over a hundred years.
And that was with the aid of the Blood of the Divine and Super Potion to enhance his meditation.
For other wizard apprentices lacking resources, it would be nearly impossible to meet these conditions before their lifespans expired.
Secondly, his mental power needed to reach 60 points.
This requirement was not to be taken lightly; achieving it was even more challenging than constructing eighteen star rings.
Once both conditions were met, a wizard apprentice could begin to attempt constructing their innate model (crystallization).
This was also an exceedingly difficult step.
Only by successfully constructing their own innate model (crystallization) could a wizard apprentice truly break through the boundaries and advance to become a formal wizard.
"Eighteen star rings, 60 points of mental power, and the innate model—all of these are not achievable in the short term."
"The road ahead is long."
Sunan couldn't help but sigh.
While successfully advancing to level 3 wizard apprentice had marked a significant step forward on the road to becoming a wizard, the journey ahead remained arduous, and he would need to continue working hard.
"Advanced magical techniques and second-circle spells will be a slow grind, but I can approach them methodically."
"But I should find ways to enhance my meditation efficiency."
"It's time to synthesize higher-tier potions."
Sunan estimated that in about half a month, the next batch of Silver Moon Flowers would mature, allowing him to attempt synthesizing higher-tier potions then.
"Now, let's select the spells to study."
Sunan pulled out all the second-circle spell books from his spatial ring and laid them out on the floor.
There were a total of seventeen second-circle spells.
Among them, most were auxiliary spells like **Mirror Image** and **Levitate**, or enhancement spells like **Lightness** and **Strength**, with relatively few offensive spells.
However, given his current arsenal of high-level rune gems, the Calamity Ring, and the Ice Burst Necklace, Sunan didn't feel an urgent need for offensive spells.
After a moment of consideration, Sunan decided to first master **Elemental Shield**, followed by **Levitate** and **Mirror Image**.
**Levitate**, as the name suggested, granted the caster temporary flight abilities.
**Mirror Image** created exact duplicates of the caster.
The number of duplicates created depended on the caster's mental power, with a maximum of eight.
The duplicates had no spell-casting capabilities or combat abilities but could mimic the caster's actions and movements, making it difficult for enemies to discern the real caster's location.
The duplicates would only disappear upon being hit or if the caster chose to cancel the spell.
This was undoubtedly an extremely practical spell.
Especially for spellcasters.
If used well in combat, it could provide the caster with valuable time to cast more spells.
Notably, among the second-circle spells was **Summon Monster II**.
As the name implied, this was an advanced version of **Summon Monster I**.
However, in truth, **Summon Monster II** held a lower priority in Sunan's mind.
After all, he summoned beings from other worlds primarily to find helpers for the base, and he valued their suitability and abilities above their strength.
Thus, the ability of **Summon Monster II** to call forth more powerful beings from other realms was not necessarily an advantage, especially since it required more mental energy to cast.
**[Reading the "Elemental Shield Spell Model," 'Elemental Shield' learning progress +0.08%]**
Seeing the prompt appear before him, Sunan let out a sigh of resignation.
"It looks like there's more work ahead of me."
As the night deepened, Sunan continued to focus on his studies and preparations, aware that the path to greatness was paved with diligence and perseverance.
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