Lynn did not hesitate to drink the Amber Heart in one gulp. The powerful medicinal effect instantly erupted within his body.
At that moment, his entire body radiated dazzling amber-colored light, as if every inch of his skin was filled with medicinal energy.
At the same time, his mental domain rapidly expanded, and his mental power surged wildly.
Under the potent effects of the Amber Heart, Lynn's mental power swelled like a raging flood, instantly surpassing the limits of a third-level apprentice.
However, the growth only accelerated, as if there were no obstacles at all.
As his mental power surged uncontrollably, his mental domain became increasingly narrow, struggling to contain the overwhelming force.
Suddenly, a cracking sound echoed then a second, a third...
Cracks appeared in his mental domain as if a taut bowstring was on the verge of snapping.
A sharp pain erupted from within, akin to thousands of needles piercing into his mind simultaneously, an agony nearly impossible to endure.
Lynn's face contorted in pain, but he gritted his teeth and endured.
He knew that this was the inevitable torment of breaking through a process of rapid expansion that could not be avoided.
Advancing from a third-level apprentice to a full-fledged wizard was an immense leap, a step akin to defying fate itself!
Once he broke through, he would officially step onto the path of wizardry, pursuing the eternal truth!
Although this was Lynn's first time attempting such a breakthrough, he was not unfamiliar with the process.
He had heard Rosalind describe it before and had even witnessed Sonya's breakthrough firsthand.
Moreover, he possessed the memories of the Maple Tree within the Azure Sky Spirit.
Within that mysterious equilibrium, the Maple Tree had once traded its knowledge as an apprentice, first-level wizard, and second-level wizard in exchange for a contract with Lynn, imparting its experience and knowledge about the path of breakthrough.
The power of that balance was extraordinary it could even manifest memories into tangible knowledge. When the transaction was completed, Lynn acquired countless insights into the process of advancing as a wizard.
Among these insights was the key to breaking through from a third-level apprentice to a full-fledged wizard!
Though the Maple Tree had used a more advanced potion instead of the Amber Heart, allowing its mental domain to expand and strengthen without such intense agony,
Lynn did not have access to such high-level potions. He could only endure the searing pain of his mental domain tearing apart, forcing his mental power to break through.
To the outside world, only a few minutes had passed, but to Lynn, it felt like a decade of torment.
His face was ashen, his lips pale, and his body drenched in cold sweat yet his eyes gleamed with unyielding determination. He was holding on!
At that moment, the excruciating pain in his mental domain suddenly halted.
In its place, a refreshing sensation surged into his mind, cool like mint, bringing a moment of clarity.
This sensation was like a lifeline, easing the near-collapse of his mental world.
With this newfound clarity, Lynn sensed the cracks in his mental domain beginning to mend.
Immediately, he followed the guidance of the Azure Sky Meditation Technique and began reshaping his mental domain.
Destruction and rebirth are the breaking of limits, much like a caterpillar emerging from its cocoon!
For a third-level apprentice, this was the crucial moment. Only by completely breaking through could a new beginning emerge.
The synergy between the Azure Sky Meditation Technique and the Amber Heart allowed his mental domain to endure destruction while remaining alive.
Now, the Amber Heart's power surged once more, enabling him to reconstruct and solidify his mental domain.
The newly reformed mental domain was no longer fragile it was stronger and more expansive than before!
According to the Maple Tree's transmitted knowledge, this was the second stage of the breakthrough process.
At this moment, his mental domain was like a swirling mass of chaos, forming gradually as he followed the meditative techniques.
However, despite its apparent stability and vastness, this was merely an illusion of stability.
His immense mental power still depended on the medicinal effects of the Amber Heart.
Once the potion's effects wore off, his mental strength would weaken, and his mental domain would collapse.
And if that happened without the Amber Heart to protect him his mental domain would shatter completely, and Lynn would die!
Thus, this moment was the most critical step the moment where the first-level wizard spell template came into play!
Lynn understood that he had to carve a first-level wizard spell template into his mental domain before the potion's effects faded.
This process was akin to laying a foundation before constructing a grand building.
The first-level wizard spell template would serve as the bedrock of his mental domain.
Once the template was inscribed, even when the potion's effects dissipated, his mental domain would remain intact instead of collapsing!
This step would determine the success or failure of his breakthrough his very survival hinged on it!
Lynn had to etch the first-level wizard spell template deep within his mental domain before the Amber Heart's power faded.
This template would become a permanent spell imprint within his mind.
For most wizards, their first formal spell and permanent imprint were typically defensive spells.
This was because a spell engraved in the mental domain could be instantly activated and provide continuous protection.
Even if not actively cast, the spell would still offer passive defensive effects.
Though these effects would be weaker than a fully activated spell, they were still enough to create an unbridgeable gap between a full-fledged wizard and an apprentice.
A first-level defensive spell, even at half strength, could still withstand most attacks.
Breaking through such defenses would require a full-powered first-level offensive spell!
This defensive advantage ensured that formal wizards had little to fear from apprentices. They could simply ignore an apprentice's attacks while effortlessly retaliating with their magic.
"First-level defensive spell Void Tranquility!"
Lynn silently recited the incantation in his mind, recalling his two months of meditation and understanding of Void Tranquility.
Lynn focused his mental power, gradually constructing this wizardry into his increasingly stable mental domain.
The wizarding language is a form of expression based on runes and characters.
For a First-Level apprentice, learning and comprehending these twenty-four rune symbols is the starting point of wizardry construction.
Each symbol contains extraordinary power. Through these symbols, wizards can form various words, and then combine them according to specific grammar rules to create sentences, ultimately forming the wizarding language.
As Lynn began constructing Void Tranquility within his mental domain, he felt the symbols come to life, one after another being engraved deep into his mental space.
Although engraving a permanent wizardry imprint is a process that requires a limited amount of time and intense concentration where even the slightest mistake would require starting over Lynn showed no signs of impatience.
For most people, the complexity of First-Level formal wizardry is dizzying, making it extremely difficult to carve it perfectly into the mental domain.
But Lynn was different. He had the protection of Yfgríd, and his body contained the Echo of Vitality, which made First-Level wizardry feel completely familiar to him as if he had already mastered it long ago.
Thus, as he engraved Void Tranquility, Lynn remained calm and composed, unshaken and confident.
Finally, as he completed the last stroke, a faint glow flickered within his mental domain.
At the core of his mental space, a silver symbol seemed to float this was the permanent wizardry imprint of Void Tranquility that he had successfully inscribed!
However, completing the engraving did not mean the process was over.
Lynn still needed to absorb the "general" energy factors from the world around him, channel them into his mental domain, and infuse them into the permanent wizardry imprint like chambering a bullet.
As the "general" energy factors were drawn into his mental domain, they gradually merged into the silver symbol.
As the energy factors continued to gather, a faint glow flickered through Lynn's mental domain.
Immediately afterward, his entire mental space began to emit a unique fluctuation, enveloping the surrounding extraordinary field.
At that moment, Void Tranquility was successfully activated. Although its effect was only half of its full potential when triggered passively, it was still incredibly powerful.
Void Tranquility not only protected the mental domain but also shielded the physical body.
At this moment, Lynn's mental space seemed to be veiled by a layer of gray mist.
Any force attempting to attack his mental domain would first have to break through this thin, veil-like barrier before truly reaching his inner consciousness.
Additionally, Void Tranquility extended its protection to his physical body.
As the effects of the wizardry spread from his mental domain to his body, the general energy factors began to seep into him as well.
Then, his body underwent a dramatic transformation.
When a wizard apprentice advances from First-Level to Second-Level, they experience a bodily transformation.
At that stage, a Second-Level apprentice can harness the world's energy factors to cast spells.
At that moment, energy factors from the world naturally enter the body, triggering a radiation-like transformation that enhances the physical constitution.
However, whether at Second-Level or Third-Level, when using wizardry, only a limited amount of energy factors enter the body.
This is why, when advancing from a Second-Level to a Third-Level apprentice, the body does not undergo another significant transformation.
Only a permanent wizardry imprint can store a large amount of energy factors inside the body for an extended period!
In other words, when breaking through from a Third-Level apprentice to a formal wizard, another physical transformation occurs!
The fundamental reason is that the permanent wizardry imprint activates, allowing the energy factors within the mental domain to flow into the body!
This time, however, the amount of energy factors was far greater than what a First-Level apprentice absorbed when advancing to Second-Level.
After all, the energy required to activate a First-Level formal wizardry was immense!
Crack!
Crack!
Lynn could feel his body, organs, flesh, and cells ravenously devouring the energy factors flooding into him. Under their influence, he became stronger.
A metamorphosis!
Not only did his mental domain transform, but so did his physical body just like a cocoon breaking open to reveal a butterfly!
For about half an hour, Lynn's body hungrily absorbed the energy factors, continuously enhancing itself.
During this period, there were no visible changes in his appearance his physique did not grow larger, nor did his muscles become more pronounced.
However, his weight surged, and the density of his body increased dramatically. Every cell underwent a fundamental transformation!
"No wonder formal wizards look down on knights. Few wizards are willing to rigorously train along the knight's path at most, they treat it as a secondary discipline for early-stage practice..."
Inside the laboratory, under Yfgríd's protection, Lynn, who was enveloped in a green glow, suddenly opened his eyes.
"So this is why, when a Third-Level apprentice advances to a formal wizard, their body naturally transforms. The endpoint of this transformation… is the pinnacle of a Grand Knight!"
Lynn let out a deep breath and stood up. As he moved, faint crack sounds echoed from his body.
He had never spent a single moment training in the knight's path, yet now, he possessed the physique of a Grand Knight at its peak!
For someone to cultivate the knight's path step by step and reach the pinnacle of a Grand Knight, even among ten thousand talented individuals, it would take decades of training!
Hoo…
Haa…
Lynn inhaled and exhaled, drawing in not only air but also the general energy factors necessary to sustain Void Tranquility.
After about ten minutes, he stopped and calculated the reserves within his mental domain's permanent wizardry imprint.
Outside his body, a faint layer of silver-white light flickered it was formed from countless energy factors woven together!
This was the passive activation of Void Tranquility, the protective effect granted by the permanent wizardry imprint to a formal wizard!
"It should allow me to actively trigger it about ten times. Theoretically, for passive activation, that would be twenty times… but in reality, it's not calculated so simply…"
Lynn narrowed his eyes. This so-called passive activation wasn't referring to his current passive state.
Right now, it is akin to a smartphone in standby mode, consuming only minimal energy.
Whenever an attack landed on him, the permanent wizardry imprint outside his body would block it this was when large amounts of energy factors would be depleted.
Once the energy stored within the permanent wizardry imprint was exhausted, he would need to replenish it by absorbing more, allowing him to use the wizardry again.
However, under normal circumstances, unless one was waging war in another realm…
Most formal wizards simply replenished their energy as they used it, since energy factors were abundant in the world and easy to absorb.
"I've reached the level of a formal wizard. No, to be precise, a First-Level wizard!"
Lynn's eyes shone with depth, and a faint smile appeared at the corners of his lips.
Now, he had truly set foot on the path of wizardry!
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