Wizard: Start with Biological Transformation to Grind Experience novel Chapter 5

Chapter 5: 005: Meditation

The Wizard World operates with a strict hierarchy, and the Shadow Tower follows suit.

According to the Tower's classification, newly joined apprentices are collectively referred to as ordinary apprentices. They can only reside in the Outer Ring of the Shadow Land, where they must find their own ways to handle everything from basic food and lodging to cultivation resources. Even the knowledge acquisition channels only include occasional public lectures every few months. Other than an additional layer of protection, there's little difference between them and wild apprentices wandering outside.

Above ordinary apprentices are the Inner Ring apprentices. Once obtaining this status, they can move to reside within the Inner Ring area surrounding the Tower. Food and lodging are free, and they receive a certain amount of Magic Stone subsidies. More importantly, public lectures are much more frequent, and they can freely access the Tower's library.

Except for a handful of lucky individuals, the vast majority of apprentices joining the Tower transition step-by-step from ordinary apprentices to Inner Ring apprentices.

"That's great!"

"What's great about it? Are you ready for this?"

"No, I'm not prepared at all..."

For a moment, everyone was filled with mixed feelings.

Joy came from the fact that becoming an Inner Ring apprentice was the dream of every ordinary apprentice; everyone longed for this day.

Worry, however, stemmed from how unexpectedly sudden the assessment had arrived, catching everyone off guard.

The assessment date for becoming an Inner Ring apprentice was not fixed. Sometimes it would take two to three years, other times five to six years, depending on the current population of ordinary apprentices within the Tower.

The last Inner Ring assessment was held less than two years ago. Judging by past patterns, the next one was anticipated to be at least one to two years away. Yet now, the date announced by Horn Wizard was far earlier than expected.

Most of them had only just passed the apprentice assessment. They hadn't even begun formal meditation and were utterly unprepared.

After announcing the news, Horn Wizard flew away with his apprentices, and the rest dispersed one by one.

"Silly boy!"

Before Lynch could leave, Carl and Subaru came over to him.

Subaru, the chubby one, patted Lynch on the shoulder and said with a look of disbelief, "You really shocked us—first place!"

Carl was equally astonished, saying, "I never imagined you'd pull off a dragon. Can I touch it?"

As he spoke, Carl reached out, trying to stroke the modified Fire Dragon Lizard perched on Lynch's shoulder. But the little creature was clearly wary of strangers, continuously pulling its head back, baring its teeth, and letting out low growls, its eyes fixed fiercely on Carl's approaching hand.

Lynch stroked its spine and said, "Relax, Parker. These are my friends."

Parker was the name Lynch had given to the modified Fire Dragon Lizard, derived from a phonetic translation of the Rune Language, meaning "Fire Dragon."

Under Lynch's soothing touch, Parker quickly calmed down, allowing Carl to finally feel its scales.

Scratching his head, Lynch spoke candidly, "I've been preparing for this assessment for a long time. These past few days, I've been burying myself in hard work."

Looking at Lynch's naive and clueless demeanor, Subaru was utterly speechless. Proud of their intelligence, they couldn't comprehend how someone like him had easily surpassed them, achieving a feat they could never hope to match.

After holding back for a long while, Subaru finally blurted out, "Anyway, you have to treat us to dinner!"

...

Having promised the two of them an evening gathering, Lynch returned to his residence.

He first studied the Space Pocket—a fascinating item. Despite being just palm-sized, the bag had an enormous capacity. Now, many materials and books could be packed inside and carried around conveniently, making future trips much easier.

After familiarizing himself with the Space Pocket's usage, Lynch retrieved a Sheepskin Scroll from inside.

The thick sheepskin still showed remnants of blood vessels and nerves. Twisting, tadpole-shaped symbols spread haphazardly across the surface. Though these runes were stationary, they appeared to be subtly crawling, and staring at them for too long induced strange sensations, as if one's spirit were being consumed.

This was the Rune Language, the specialized medium Wizards used to communicate with the world.