The Wizard's Pursuit of Truth

Inside the Wizard Mansion.

Fine, blue specks of light glittered in Wang Ya’s pupils as he absorbed and digested all the information from the freshman handbook, which resembled some kind of tree bark.

Two hundred Dark Points was indeed a terrifying sum. For Wizard Freshmen like him, it would likely take over a year to accumulate that much.

Dark Points were the internal currency of the Dark Land. Backed by the main headquarters, their value far surpassed that of Magic Stones or even other Extraordinary Resources, making them extremely difficult to obtain.

If Wang Ya wanted to earn them, his only option was the Dark Library.

The first floor of the Library was a task assignment center where Wizards could accept various Wizard Tasks. They could also connect their consciousness to their Dark Wizard Mark, enter a virtual platform, and select tasks directly from there.

Upon completing tasks, they could receive numerous rewards, including Dark Points. Generally, tasks issued by the headquarters offered more Dark Points.

Other Wizard Tasks were more often settled with Magic Stones or other Extraordinary Resources.

Almost all Dark Land Wizards were short on Dark Points. They could be used to exchange for unique Extraordinary Resources from the Dark Land, or even to access the second floor of the Upper House Library to redeem various Wizard legacies.

[Notice: Analysis of the unknown book, suspected to be a diary, will be complete in: 6 hours.]

Wang Ya lamented how quickly time passed. The unknown book was about to reveal its mysterious face, yet he felt little joy—at most, it would satisfy his curiosity.

Instead, his mind was captivated by everything around him in the Dark Wizard Academy.

The Darkness handbook listed the twenty-one basic disciplines available in the teaching building.

In addition to popular Extraordinary Disciplines like Extraordinary Anatomy, Magic Potion Science, Alchemy, Energy Science, Elemental Particle Science, and Biological Cultivation Science, there were also more niche or esoteric disciplines from other branches of the Wizard System. These included Extraordinary Materials Science, Spirit Dream Study, Divination, Oceanography, Historical Studies, and more.

It all came down to a Wizard’s choice. They could pick whichever discipline they wanted, or even all of them if they wished. As long as one could afford the Magic Stones, the Teaching Wizard for each discipline would greet them with a friendly smile.

Knowledge was expensive. To acquire it, one had to pay the price.

And these were only the most basic Extraordinary Disciplines. To learn anything at a deeper level, one would have to purchase Advanced and High-tier courses.

As for getting private tutoring from a Teaching Wizard—a personalized ”small stove” lesson—Wang Ya didn’t even dare to entertain the thought.

If a freshman from a Wizard Clan dared to choose that option, the Old Wizards in their clan would probably get so angry they’d leap out of their cultivation pods.

Expensive! Unprecedentedly expensive, and it could only be paid for with Dark Points.

This was essentially the first step in choosing one’s Wizard Path.

One had to allocate their resources wisely to the Extraordinary Disciplines they intended to study.

Wang Ya was thankful that he had chosen to master a great deal of Extraordinary Foundation knowledge back in Ancient Forest Mountain. It gave him a preliminary understanding of these Extraordinary Disciplines.

The dozen or so Witch Books in his Silver Bracelet were an even rarer treasure.

Wang Ya even used his Eye of Truth to help deduce which Extraordinary Disciplines were most suitable for him and what kind of Wizard Path he should ultimately follow.

Unfortunately, it couldn’t produce an answer. Perhaps there was too little data, or perhaps Wang Ya himself had not yet reached the point where such a decision was necessary.

Relying on his gut feeling, Wang Ya ultimately made a conventional choice, selecting Energy Science and Elemental Particle Science, which were related to Elemental Wizards. He also chose Biological Cultivation Science and Extraordinary Anatomy, considering Harak’s Cultivation and the needs of his own Wizard Experiments.

But one problem stood before Wang Ya, leaving him in a state of conflict.

Magic Stones!!

Moving and renting a Wizard’s Residence required Magic Stones.

Choosing Extraordinary Disciplines required purchasing them with Magic Stones. Even daily Extraordinary research and living expenses all depended on Magic Stones.

He currently had only ’20’ Magic Stones left.

’What can I even do with this?’

It was a pitifully small amount, not even enough to buy a single Extraordinary Basic Course, let alone rent a place on the Commercial Street.

The next two and a half years were crucial for every Wizard Freshman. They had to increase their Power as much as possible.

The competition in the Small Secret Realm involved massive amounts of Extraordinary Resources, Dark Points, and even the potential attention of powerful Wizards from the headquarters.

Many Wizard Freshmen were rubbing their hands in anticipation, preparing to achieve a good ranking in the freshman Secret Realm competition. They hoped to gain the favor of these powerful Wizards, perhaps even signing a Wizard Contract and securing an investment in their future.

It was a viable strategy that could be a huge help for their future Wizard Path. They might even receive an olive branch from some of the Extraordinary Schools.

Wang Ya was just as determined to succeed. Never mind anything else, the Extraordinary Resources alone were enough to make him green with envy.

’You never know how poor you truly are until you’ve faced real hardship.’

Wang Ya had no immediate ideas on how to obtain more Magic Stones. Freshmen from Wizard Clans, on the other hand, had their families’ backing and didn’t have to worry about this at all.

Among his possessions, the most valuable were his Witchcraft Scrolls, followed by some Witchcraft Artifacts and Extraordinary Potions.

These items were all still useful to Wang Ya, so selling them was out of the question.

Wang Ya was in a difficult position. He needed to acquire a batch of Magic Stones to purchase the Extraordinary Courses first.

A solid foundation was a prerequisite for future Wizard Experiments, not to mention improving and creating his own Witchcraft. He couldn’t afford to fall too far behind.

Fortunately, when it came to Witchcraft, Wang Ya had a complete legacy. Even in an ordinary Wizard Clan, High-tier Witchcraft was considered a most precious treasure.

It would be enough to support him until he became a Level 3 Wizard Apprentice. By then, he should have a strong enough foundation and the Ability to acquire better Witchcraft or simply create and improve his own.

Wang Ya thought of the Nightmare Flower. He could sell it for Magic Stones, then use the golden pocket watch to reverse time and get it back... He crushed this tempting idea with absolute rationality.

’It seems tempting, but it’s a poisoned piece of candy. It would be fatal.’

Suddenly, Wang Ya thought of the ’Aquis Secret Record,’ which had been sitting in his storage Witchcraft Artifact, unstudied. It was the legendary training manual of the War Body Wizards, said to be capable of forging the Thunder Emperor Combat Body.

Having filled in some gaps in his knowledge here in the Dark Land, he now had a clearer understanding of the Wizard System and the Extraordinary Courses.

Just as the analysis from his Eye of Truth had indicated, the path of the War Body Wizard had been lost to time. Even in the Dark Land, there was not much knowledge or legacy of it left.

Rarity begets value. If he were to trade this secret manual of the War Body Wizards for the resources he needed... The more Wang Ya considered this idea, the more feasible it seemed.

The choice of a Wizard Path needed to be clear, and there was no turning back.

The future of a War Body Wizard was too uncertain; it was a path with almost no future. Perhaps only a few Wizards would find such unknown Wizard knowledge novel.

’Or... I could also find a way to get rid of the red metal ring.’

’Its Grade is quite high. It should fall into the category of a High-tier Witchcraft Artifact and could be exchanged for a good amount of resources.’

...