Time flew by in the silence of meditation, and in the blink of an eye, it was the seventh day of the trial.

  The outside world was in turmoil, with countless initiates searching for Pierce’s trail. Yet, the person in question was hidden away in a cave halfway up the mountain, turning a deaf ear to the chaos outside, wholly immersed in his meditation.

  Over the past three days, Pierce had consumed the Myriad-Bloom Nectar four more times.

  Each time, the increase in spiritual power was less than 1 point.

  The last time, it only increased by a meager 0.18 points.

  Clearly, his resistance to the nectar was nearing its limit.

  "Spirit attribute at 49.95... just a little bit more!"

  Pierce looked at the Myriad-Bloom Nectar in the cup.

  "This should be the last time the nectar has any effect. I hope it’s enough."

  Taking a deep breath, Pierce drank the nectar in one go.

  A familiar sense of clarity and sublimation instantly flooded his mind.

  Only this time, unlike before, the sensation was exceptionally distinct. It was as if the frosted glass separating him from the world had been shattered.

  The entire world suddenly became vivid, with countless pieces of information scrambling to enter his brain.

  Even with his eyes closed, he could clearly sense the Myriad Flower Fey a few meters away, lying on her stomach atop a book, kicking her little legs as she read intently.

  It was the Compendium of Rare Botany Pierce had given her.

  The little guy had taken a liking to the book immediately and had been flipping through it often these past few days. As a fey who loved to shapeshift and play pranks, she apparently felt the need to enhance her professional knowledge.

  At the cave entrance, Mistfeather was preening its feathers. Its movements were elegant and gentle, showing none of the fierce lethality it displayed in battle.

  Further away, the faint roars of beasts and the sound of human footsteps could be heard.

  Judging from the footsteps, quite a few people were heading up the mountain.

  This state of seeming to have everything in the surroundings under control was intoxicating.

  Unfortunately, it lasted only a short time.

  In the next moment, Pierce snapped out of it and opened his eyes.

  He immediately checked his status.

  【Spirit: 50.03】

  【Physique: 24.52】

  A heartfelt smile of joy appeared on Pierce's face.

  Finally... a Rank 3 Wizard Apprentice!

  Compared to a Rank 2 apprentice, the combat power of a Rank 3 apprentice was a qualitative leap.

  Aside from the increased spell power brought by enhanced spiritual force, there was also a significant increase in casting speed.

  The reason was that Rank 3 apprentices could master "Segmented Casting."

  This was a casting technique similar to using enchanted items, capable of releasing prepared spells in a short, rapid manner by chanting only a fragment of the incantation.

  This naturally made casting extremely swift.

  Pierce’s lips parted slightly, and he spat out a rapid syllable. He pointed his finger, and a ball of acid appeared out of thin air, shooting out like a cannonball and slamming into a rock outside the cave.

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  Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle!

  The rock, the size of a millstone, instantly emitted a large amount of white smoke. It melted away like snow under the sun, leaving only a puddle of grayish-white liquid in the blink of an eye.

  The sudden noise startled the Myriad Flower Fey.

  The little guy looked up and saw this scene, her eyes widening instantly. When she turned to look at Pierce again, her eyes were filled with the light of worship.

  The Great Demon King is getting scarier!

  "Omniscient Eye, analyze the power."

  【Category: Acid Corrosion】

  【Power Output: 12.3 degrees】

  Pierce nodded in satisfaction.

  This power was enough to kill a high-level Grand Knight in one hit.

  What satisfied him even more was the casting time.

  Originally, the modified Acid Splash had its casting time shortened by more than half. Now, with the Segmented Casting technique, the preparation time was less than half a second, greatly enhancing its combat practicality.

  Of course, it was still a bit short of "Silent Casting" and "Instant Casting."

  Or rather, Segmented Casting was actually a prerequisite technique for Silent Casting.

  "Speaking of which, I can start practicing Silent Casting now." Pierce had a sudden thought.

  Silent Casting was a metamagic technique usually mastered only by official Wizards.

  Due to insufficient spiritual power and knowledge accumulation, apprentices often found it hard to master.

  Those who could master this technique during the apprenticeship stage were rare.

  However, with the Omniscient Eye, it shouldn't be hard for him to master it.

  "Omniscient Eye, analyze the Silent Casting technique."

  【Task created. Analyzing Silent Casting technique. Estimated time: 178 days.】

  Pierce nodded secretly. Not bad; the analysis time wasn't too long.

  If he waited until he advanced to an official Wizard to analyze it, ten days or so would probably suffice.

  It was worth mentioning that with the breakthrough, the analysis time for creating the new meditation technique had also decreased significantly.

  【Task 1: Create New Meditation Technique. Estimated time: 289 days, 4 hours, 12 minutes.】

  Pierce estimated that after the trial ended, if he accelerated with full force for ten days or so, he should be able to complete the new meditation technique. Then he could continue analyzing the Will Runes.

  Composing himself, Pierce continued to check the changes after advancement.

  A Rank 3 Wizard Apprentice could already start storing a small amount of energy particles in the body, and the body's resistance to magic and physical attacks also became stronger.

  Pierce estimated that with his current physique attributes, combined with energy particle manipulation, he could suppress a beginner Grand Knight in close combat.

  Even against an intermediate Grand Knight, he wouldn't be without the power to fight.

  Caw!

  Mistfeather flew over, landed on Pierce's shoulder, and gently pecked his cheek.

  Pierce's mind suddenly went into a daze, and in the next second, his vision split into two.

  One was his original vision.

  The other vision showed a familiar face—his own, but magnified many times.

  "He" looked down, and what entered his eyes was a pitch-black body and shiny black feathers.

  Vision Sharing!

  A special ability awakened by Mistfeather after Pierce advanced to Rank 3.

  This was not a spell-like ability but an ability that would awaken after a familiar was nurtured to a certain degree.

  However, depending on aptitude, the awakening time could be early or late.

  In addition, from the thoughts transmitted by Mistfeather, he learned that its two spell-like abilities also had new changes.

  First was "Mist Form."

  At Pierce's command, Mistfeather's body suddenly disintegrated into swirling mist, which then surged toward his body, quickly forming a black robe that wrapped him from head to toe.

  Previously, although Mistfeather could transform into simple objects like a black bracelet, it didn't actually have a solid form; it was still mist, just a change in appearance.

  But this time was different. Pierce pressed his finger on the black robe, and his fingertip clearly felt a tough, slightly elastic texture, somewhat like rubber.

  Pierce was curious and took out his fine steel longsword to test a slash. He found that the black robe's defense was unexpectedly high.

  The sharp blade slashing on it felt like hitting a layer of thick, tough leather.

  Moreover, this layer of leather had the effect of dispersing damage.

  The blade seemed to hit one point, but in reality, the force of the slash was instantly distributed across the entire robe.

  "Excellent physical defense!"

  Pierce clicked his tongue in wonder.

  If used in a battle against a Knight, it would be no less than wearing a layer of heavy steel armor, yet one that felt almost weightless.

  "I wonder how the magic resistance is?"

  Pierce tested it with a few spells, and the results were gratifying.

  The black robe's defense against spells was no inferior to a Ring of Protection.

  Pierce was delighted.

  The enhancement of the Mist Form ability meant that Mistfeather's help to him would no longer be limited to offense but could also be used for defense.

  With an extra layer of defense, his survivability increased by a notch.

  "And 'Crow Swarm Summoning'."

  With a thought from Pierce, the black robe on his body instantly disintegrated and reformed into Mistfeather.

  In the next second, black energy surged around Mistfeather. Its body expanded rapidly as if inflated, transforming from a small familiar of thirty or forty centimeters to a behemoth nearly two meters long in the blink of an eye.

  Caw—!

  Mistfeather stretched its body, its head almost touching the top of the cave, exuding a cold, heavy oppression from all over.

  Beside them, the Myriad Flower Fey, hearing the commotion, looked up. Seeing the giant Mistfeather, she was dumbfounded, her small mouth opening into an "O" shape.