Chapter 79 - 78: Second-Class Mage Apprentice

Chapter 79: Chapter 78: Second-Class Mage Apprentice

Gaode left the house early in the morning. By the time he returned home and took out his pocket watch to check the time, it was already approaching twelve o’clock.

He cooked a simple lunch. After enjoying it, he first opened the four Magic Formulas he had just purchased and began "doing his homework."

Taking less than a quarter of an hour, Gaode decomposed all four Magic Models into coordinate groups that only he could understand. Subsequently, he put away the Magic Formulas and took out the medicine box containing the Basic Magic Potions from the cabinet in his room.

On the 22nd of the Green Leaf Moon, Gaode had purchased six sets (18 small bottles) of Basic Magic Potions at the Rose Magic Pharmacy. Aside from the five days from the 25th to the 29th of the Flame Flower Moon when he couldn’t practice the Cultivation Guiding Technique due to traveling, he had persistently drunk the Basic Magic Potions to assist his cultivation at all other times.

It had been 35 days so far, and only the very last small bottle remained of those six sets of Basic Magic Potions. At this current stage, if he persistently drank the Basic Magic Potions, according to his initial rough estimate, it would only take 43.2 days for his Guiding Technique cultivation to break through a minor level. The last breakthrough of his Guiding Technique was on the 13th of the Green Leaf Moon. Calculating this way, today was exactly the time for the Guiding Technique to break through again.

At the thought of this, Gaode instantly felt invigorated. Without hesitation, he raised the medicine bottle in his hand and downed the liquid, which contained abundant Magic Power, in one gulp. Following that, he calmed his mind, focused his Spirit, and entered a state of cultivation.

About an hour later.

BOOM!

A soft tremor came from within Gaode’s body. The Mana inside him suddenly grew restless and active, forming a much longer and continuous circulation route. He suppressed his excitement and slowly calmed the restless Mana through regulated breathing.

In the next moment, Gaode opened his eyes.

"Another step forward!" he said with a joyful expression.

Now, his Mana could support him in casting seven Tricks in one breath. Gaode’s Magic had actually been sufficient for a long time. The reason he had delayed going out to hunt Earth Vein Creatures to acquire Origin was always because his Mana was holding him back. According to his expectations, his Mana needed to support him in casting at least ten Tricks in one breath before he could even consider hunting Earth Vein Creatures.

The simplest example was that even when the Earthworm was flipped to the ground, Gaode still had to cast [Flaming Arrow+] three consecutive times to kill it. Therefore, before his "Mana Bar" could allow him to cast ten Tricks, "grinding monsters" would be an extremely dangerous endeavor. After all, this wasn’t a game; dead was dead, and there was no chance to revive by loading a save file. Moreover, Gaode’s current savings were enough to support his cultivation for a very long period, so there was no need to rush.

After his mood gradually calmed down, Gaode began cultivating once again. Only this time, what he cultivated was the Meditation Technique.

After the tempering of his bumpy journey, entering a state of Meditation was now as easy as eating or drinking for him. In just a moment, his mind was already clear and quiet, with all external noise falling completely silent. In this quiet state of Meditation, Gaode’s Heart and Spirit entered the vast Magic Star Sea.

The Wind Spirit Moon Shadow emitted a bright white light, and fifteen Magic Models were fixed in the vast Star Sea like constellations. In addition, there was a sixteen-petaled lotus, its outline sketched by dashed lines, slowly rotating.

Gaode’s Heart and Spirit were focused on that lotus. As his Heart and Spirit gathered, the dashed lines of the lotus gradually solidified. This was a very strange feeling—fatigue accompanied by a sense of being full of Spirit, and at every moment, Gaode could feel his Spiritual Power growing. Although the amount of growth was minuscule, it was still improving after all.

Good things come in pairs.

Gaode tried to manifest the Eight-Petaled Lotus through Meditation as usual. The result today was unexpectedly smooth; without any obstacles, he unknowingly broke through the bottleneck and effortlessly manifested the Eight-Petaled Lotus.

In that instant, his Spiritual Power seemed to undergo a metamorphosis. His perception and Control Power both improved significantly. This breakthrough was not merely a minor layer in the Meditation Technique, but a fundamental elevation in his realm.

The requirements for a Second-class Apprentice were: manifesting the Eight-Petaled Lotus or above with the Meditation Technique, and having Mana that could support casting five Tricks in one breath. And Gaode’s current status was: manifesting the Eight-Petaled Lotus with the Meditation Technique, and having Mana that supported casting seven Tricks in one breath. He had already met both requirements for a Second-class Apprentice.

Therefore, today, Gaode was a bona fide Second-Class Mage Apprentice! At his age and this Same Tier, what else was there to be dissatisfied with for a "Wild Mage"?

Gaode carefully experienced the feeling of advancing. First, his perception of external Magic Power became clearer, and Guiding it became much handier. He then attempted the cultivation of the Guiding Technique again, discovering that the efficiency of converting Mana had also noticeably increased. No wonder Pierre had originally said that a Second-Class Mage Apprentice would consume a set of Basic Magic Potions in just three days.

"As long as I have the money, with the help of Basic Magic Potions, my cultivation speed won’t be slow—at least during the Mage Apprentice stage. I can keep advancing quickly like this," Gaode thought to himself.

However, looking at it this way, 300 Sean Gold Coins sounded like a lot, but once truly invested into cultivation, it wasn’t nearly enough. After his expenses in Bremen over the past two days, his savings had already plummeted to 275 Gold Coins and 4 silver coins. Money really slipped through his fingers too easily.

Furthermore, Gaode still needed to set aside a portion of the money for travel expenses from Bremen to Saint Sean City. Although he hadn’t yet verified the reliability of the "recommendation letter" and had no concrete plan on how to get to Saint Sean City, this sum of money definitely had to be reserved. In addition, the price levels in Saint Sean City were undoubtedly higher, which would mean greater expenditures.

...

The "advertisement" had only just been posted on the bulletin board at the entrance of the Artisan Guild, so it would still take some time to gain traction. Therefore, for the entire afternoon, Gaode spent his time cultivating and attempting to construct Magic Models; he did not welcome his first customer.

By a little after four in the afternoon, he got up and left the house.

Not far diagonally across from Mrs. Misu’s residence at 267 Camond, there was a modest two-story restaurant. The restaurant’s environment was humble and unpretentious, with extremely simple decor. The dishes offered were also relatively basic, mainly consisting of rye bread, boiled beans, vegetable soup, salted fish, and cured meat. They also served home-brewed cider.

However, its winning point was its affordable prices and a rare "take what you need" system, where each customer took food according to their own needs and paid based on the type and weight of the food consumed. Hence, it was extremely popular among the workers from the nearby workshops. During meal times, people frequently even had to queue and share tables.

Of course, a little past four o’clock wasn’t a traditional mealtime yet. So, naturally, Gaode was able to enjoy his dinner alone at a good window seat on the second floor.

While intently enjoying the salted fish cured by the restaurant owner and the sweet, refreshing cider, he looked out the window toward Mrs. Misu’s house at number 267. Looking down from a high vantage point with a good view, Gaode’s eyes constantly drifted back and forth, not staring fixedly at any single point. He simply looked like a distracted diner. At this moment, Gaode’s goal was not to observe Mrs. Misu, but to confirm whether there were still any hidden spies watching her in secret.

According to the information revealed in the letter, before Mage Seda left Bremen, he had noticed some malicious spies appearing near his home. Although over a decade had passed since Mage Seda left Bremen, who could guarantee that all those spies had truly given up? At the very least, the mastermind who orchestrated all this back then might still be waiting for Mage Seda’s return.

A profound lesson learned from experience:

Never take anything for granted.