Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 528 "Suspension Period"

With the enhanced realism, the battlefield of the uprising on Stoker Star became an alien space with almost physical reality.

The sweet, metallic stench of blood, the acrid smell of burning metal, the agonizing cries of the dying…

Every sensory stimulus was so vivid that the apprentices almost forgot they were in a virtual historical reenactment.

Garen wielded his modified warhammer and clashed fiercely with a "Steelheart Guardian".

The collision of the metal and the steel produced dazzling sparks, and each block caused his hand to split open, with blood flowing down his metal arm.

Lila's third eye began to bleed from overuse, but she gritted her teeth and persevered in providing tactical warnings to her comrades.

While West Germany guided the moss to radiate light, it also suffered the backlash from the plants' fear of war.

Just then, Bruno, a fourteen-year-old apprentice with the blood of the Stoker Star, unfortunately got separated from the group.

In the chaos, he strayed into the deepest part of the mine, alone with a nightmarish figure approaching him.

The leader of the "All-Gold Warriors" slowly coalesced into form, his liquid metal-like body shimmering with a deathly luster in the dim light.

"A lost little mouse?"

The leader's voice, like the scraping of metal, echoed eerily in the empty mine.

"Let me see... you have impure blood in you. Bastard, do you think you're worthy of using the power of metal?"

Bruno's face turned ashen instantly.

The form of the All-Gold Warrior began to disintegrate, turning into millions of sharp metal fragments that swept in like a silver storm of death.

Each fragment carries absolute malice, aiming not only to destroy the body but also to shatter the soul's perception of its own worth.

"You bastards..."

Quan Jinshi's voice came from all directions, echoing like a judgment:

"They don't deserve to exist in this world!"

These words struck Bruno's deepest fears like a curse.

That was a nightmare that every mixed-race apprentice had experienced.

Abandoned by their native tribes and rejected by human society, they cannot find a true sense of belonging.

Under the impact of extreme fear, Bruno's mental defenses completely collapsed.

He let out a desperate scream.

The sound carried pure fear and despair, like the wailing of a vengeful spirit crawling out of the abyss.

At this moment, Silas's carefully laid trap was completely triggered.

The fault tolerance threshold, which had already been lowered to a critical level, spiraled out of control under the impact of this fear-induced entropy.

The core resonant crystal of the Meditation Dome began to vibrate violently, emitting a sharp sound like shattering glass.

The blue protective light flickered, and the stability of the entire energy field crumbled in the blink of an eye.

Even more frightening, Bruno's fear spread like a virus.

Within the resonant network of historical projections, other apprentices also began to be infected by this sense of despair.

Garen suddenly sensed the disappointment in his father's eyes.

It wasn't Kadrac's genuine disappointment; it was a deeper, more primal rejection stemming from his very bloodline.

"My son, why did you choose to betray your own birth? Do you really think those humans would accept you?"

West Germany experienced the despair of being rejected by two races simultaneously.

The Danasus disliked him for not being pure enough, while humans feared his heterogeneity:
"You are neither a real plant nor a real person; you are just a failed experiment."

Lila's third eye saw the cruelest truth.

In other people's eyes, she will always be just a monster:

"With three eyes, a deformed face, how can one expect to be loved and accepted?"

The other apprentices also fell into their own deep-seated identity crisis.

Everyone faces the most terrifying doubts, the most painful denials, and the most desperate loneliness.

The entire historical projection space began to distort and deform, and the original background of the Stoker Star mine was covered by a concrete image of fear.

The sky turned blood red, the ground cracked open to reveal a bottomless abyss, and countless voices of accusation and ridicule echoed in the air.

This is no longer a replay of history, but a material manifestation of the collective nightmare of the twelve apprentices.

The piercing alarm sounded throughout the Meditation Dome.

The red warning lights began flashing wildly, and the pointers on various monitoring devices exceeded the safe range.

"Mental overload! Energy field instability!"

"The core frequency deviates from the standard value by 3.7 percentage points!"

"High-intensity emotional entropy diffusion detected!"

The technicians' reports came one after another, and the entire observation room was in a state of emergency.

But at this crucial moment, Silas's performance was nothing short of perfect.

He showed no panic or hesitation, as if he had anticipated this situation.

"Activate Emergency Plan B-7!"

Silas loudly issued commands through the communication device, his voice filled with the calmness and decisiveness characteristic of a professional technician:
"Stabilize the core resonant frequency! Instructor Ron's experiment has exceeded the safe limit. I am activating an external mental damping field to suppress it!"

As he spoke, he quickly walked to the pre-hidden emergency equipment.

It was a bulky, mental damping force field generator, its surface covered with dense heat dissipation grilles and energy adjustment knobs.

"All observers, retreat!"

While adjusting the equipment parameters, Silas warned the others present:

"The damping field will generate a strong mental shockwave when activated. Please maintain a safe distance!"

Vinard frowned, quickly scanning the various monitoring data.

He certainly understands the danger of the current situation.

If mental overload is not controlled in time, it will not only cause permanent mental trauma to the apprentices who participate in the projection, but may even trigger a wider range of energy out-of-control.

However, he also noticed some subtle abnormalities.

"Silas reacted too quickly..."

Vinard analyzed to himself:

"This level of emergency preparedness and equipment configuration doesn't seem like a temporary response; it's more like a pre-planned response."

Alistair also noticed a similar problem.

As the technical lead for the Meditation Dome, he is intimately familiar with every detail of the equipment.

"When was Plan B-7 formulated? I don't remember having that number?"

He strode to the console and began reviewing the system logs:
"Moreover, I've never seen this damping force field generator before..."

But at that point, there was no time for a thorough investigation.

The apprentices' painful groans echoed through the dome, each sound piercing the hearts of everyone present like a sharp blade.

Ella gripped the notebook tightly, her knuckles turning white from the force.
"We can't wait any longer! We must rescue the children first, no matter what!"

With tacit authorization, Silas immediately activated the mental damping field.

An invisible wave of suppression emanated from the device, attempting to restrain the out-of-control mental energy like a cold iron clamp.

This is a simple, direct, but effective approach.

It directly suppresses all abnormal mental fluctuations, forcibly reducing them to a safe range.

It's like plugging your ears with cotton wool to block out noise.

However, inside the dome, Ron remained completely unmoved by the "rescue" efforts from the outside world.

He stood quietly in the center of the distorted nightmare scene, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

From his perspective, Silas's damping field not only fails to fundamentally solve the problem, but may also cause secondary harm to the apprentices.

Forcibly suppressing fear is like using painkillers to treat a broken bone.

While it may temporarily alleviate the pain, the underlying problem remains, and the dulled perception may even lead to more serious damage.

"Fear itself is not the enemy..."

Ron muttered to himself:

"It is simply a form of energy that has gone out of control."

He recalled the classic theory about "dissonant intervals" in "The Complete Explanation of the Extraordinary".

Fear is like an augmented fourth in the mental world—the most dissonant yet most potentially dynamic interval.

If handled properly, it can be transformed into the most beautiful harmony.

Ron began to construct an invisible "concert hall" deep within his consciousness.

In this space composed of pure spiritual energy, the apprentices' fears are transformed into musical notes—sharp, piercing, and full of conflict, yet containing the possibility of resolution.

He set Bruno's despair as the "dissonant root note" of the main melody.

Then begin searching for other voices that can form a "resolution tendency" with it.

Garen's anger was modulated to "a little seven degrees".

In stark contrast to fear, yet at the same time yearning for the warmth of the "Greater Sixth Degree".

Lila's self-doubt became "minus five degrees".

Although it is unstable, it is precisely this instability that provides the driving force for the entire harmonic structure to move forward.

The sense of loneliness in West Germany was given a "big two" flavor.

While slightly provocative, it provided the necessary tension for the eventual resolution.

This was no longer a simple suppression of emotions; the entire process was gradually transformed by Ron into a kind of spiritual "musical creation."

What he had to do was to guide these chaotic disharmonyes into a magnificent symphony.

As the Symphony of Souls unfolded, the apprentices began to feel a strange sense of being torn apart.

On the one hand, they could feel the guidance from Ron.

It was a celestial resonance that gradually transformed their inner fears into an epic pathos, and then sublimated into ultimate tranquility.

It's like a symphony that begins with a fierce storm and ends in a tranquil harbor.

Their fears were not denied or suppressed, but understood, accepted, and given meaning.

Bruno's despair is guided by Ron into a yearning for true identity;
Garrenne's anger was transformed into a pursuit of justice and dignity;
Lila's self-doubt became the driving force for her exploration of truth and wisdom.

Every negative emotion, guided by the "Symphony of the Soul," found its place in a greater harmony.

However, on the other hand, Silas's damping field is also at work at the same time.

It was a cold, rigid, and monotonous force that tried to forcibly "silence" all emotional fluctuations.

It makes no distinction between fear and courage, despair and hope; it simply mechanically suppresses everything to a "safe range."

This brutal intervention left the apprentices' brains feeling stinging and numb.

It's like two different doctors treating the same patient at the same time.

One person is trying to clear the blood vessels gently, while the other is trying to "relieve the pain" by hitting the head with a blunt object.

The two drastically different treatment methods clashed violently, exacerbating the apprentices' suffering.

In the observation room, Vinard, as the most senior technical expert present, immediately noticed this fundamental difference. He nodded with some satisfaction and began to ponder deeply.

“Ron is doing ‘guidance and transformation’…”

"He did not try to eliminate fear, but rather guided these emotions to find appropriate ways to express them and find solutions."

"It's like a conductor facing an out-of-control orchestra, who doesn't simply shut everyone up, but quietly readjusts the rhythm and brings each part back to its right place."

Silas's method, however, seemed simple and crude to Vinard:
“The mental damping field can indeed quickly suppress abnormal fluctuations, but this suppression is only a temporary fix.”

"It's like tightening a rope around an ever-expanding balloon."

While deformation may appear to be controlled, internal pressure remains and could even become more dangerous due to external constraints.

Ella, who was standing next to her, put down her notebook and slowly exhaled:

“Ron’s ‘Symphony of Souls’…this ability has transcended mere teaching skills; it’s more like a healing art.”

In the struggle between the two forces, Ron's [Symphony of Souls] gradually gained the upper hand.

While Silas's damping field is more direct and effective at the technical level, it lacks the necessary "precision" and "human touch".

Ron's method, while more complex and requiring more time and effort, addresses the root cause of the problem rather than simply masking the symptoms.

As the last note of the Symphony of Souls faded, the Meditation Dome returned to tranquility.

All the alarms stopped, and the readings on the monitoring equipment returned to normal, even more stable than before the experiment began.

The apprentices slowly opened their eyes, all so exhausted they almost wanted to fall asleep on the spot.

In the observation room, Vinard shut down the backup security system that Alistair was about to activate.

"Convene an emergency council immediately."

His electronic voice carried an undeniable air of authority:
"All department heads, assemble in the main conference room within fifteen minutes."

Ella's expression showed both relief and worry.

As the actual administrator of the academy, she was naturally relieved that the apprentices were safe and sound.

However, the impact of this "major safety incident" cannot be erased simply by saying it has been "satisfactorily resolved."

“Alistair, you are in charge of collecting all the technical data.”

Vinard continued assigning tasks:

"Silas, prepare your accident analysis report."

"Ceremony, I need the complete record of events."

Silas nodded calmly, but in his mind he was quickly organizing his words.

He had prepared a perfect script for this moment long ago.

The atmosphere in the main conference hall was as heavy as solidified amber.

The colony's core management team sat around an oval crystal conference table, each with a serious expression.

Vinard sat in the chairman's seat, with the accident data report that Alistair had just compiled in front of him.

Those densely packed numbers and graphs, like a scalpel, precisely recorded everything that had just happened.

"First, let's clarify one fact."

Vinard's voice echoed in the conference room:
"There were no casualties in this incident, and the apprentices' mental state eventually fully recovered."

Judging from the results, this 'teaching experiment' was successful.

His words relieved Ella slightly, but Silas frowned almost imperceptibly.

This opening line was clearly not the direction he expected things to go.

“But,” Vinard changed the subject:
"The risk of loss of control during the process is also a serious problem that cannot be ignored."

If handled improperly, the consequences will be unimaginable.

He turned his gaze to Silas:
"Mentor Silas, please give a detailed report on the technical details of the incident and the emergency response process."

Silas calmly stood up, holding a beautifully bound technical report in his hand.

The cover, printed in gold lettering, reads "Analysis and Emergency Response Report on the Abnormal Energy Fluctuation Event at the Jing Si Dome".

"Dear Professor Vinard, colleagues."

His voice was clear and organized:

"Based on my prior assessment and real-time monitoring data, the occurrence of this incident was somewhat inevitable."

Silas opened the first page of the report, which contained a detailed risk warning table:
“I raised my concerns in a technical memo during the curriculum review phase.”

The cumulative effect of 'emotional entropy' created by combining historical projection with emotional guidance in this complex mystical manipulation may theoretically exceed the limits of the equipment's capacity.

He pointed to the data highlighted in red in the table:

"The standard load-bearing threshold of the Contemplation Dome is 15 kilomom, and the safety redundancy factor is 20%."

Based on the energy consumption projected in normal historical data, this redundancy is sufficient to handle the vast majority of abnormal situations.

“But,” Silas’s tone became more serious:
“Ron’s ‘Resonance Method’ has an extraordinary effect on amplifying emotions.”

When all twelve apprentices simultaneously fell into a state of deep fear, the resulting emotional entropy far exceeded our expectations.

He turned to the second page of the report, which contained a series of dizzying mathematical formulas:
"According to real-time monitoring data, the peak emotional entropy reached 18.7 kilomoms, exceeding the safety threshold by 24.7%."

Under such a massive impact, any protective system would experience a brief period of instability.

Alistair frowned:
"But I remember that the actual load-bearing capacity of the dome should be 25 moms..."

“That’s the theoretical limit,” Silas replied calmly.
"In actual operation, we must take into account factors such as equipment aging and energy coupling losses."

Maintaining a 20% safety redundancy is standard engineering practice.

This explanation was technically flawless, leaving Alistair with no immediate reason to refute it.

“Besides that,” Silas continued:

"I activated Emergency Plan No. 7 immediately after the incident occurred."

The timely intervention of the mental damping field effectively prevented the further spread of uncontrolled energy.

His finger slid across the report:

"From anomaly detection to force field activation, the entire response process took only 47 seconds."

This bought valuable time for Ron's mentor to handle the situation.

Silas's statement is logically clear and supported by sufficient evidence.

It sounds like a heroic act of a dedicated technician stepping forward in a crisis.

He acknowledged Ron's ability to ultimately solve the problem, while cleverly attributing the blame to "technical limitations" and "unexpected circumstances."

More importantly, he portrayed himself as a key rescuer in the crisis.

“I must admit that Ron’s ‘Symphony of Souls’ demonstrates an amazing level of technical skill.”

Silas even made sure to express his respect for his "opponent":

"But as I worried in my advance report, the risk threshold of this innovative approach does indeed exceed the safety limits of existing equipment."

I recommend that such high-risk experiments should be conducted using a more cautious, phased approach before developing more advanced protection systems.

The subtext of these words is very clear:
Ron's method was effective, but too dangerous to be widely adopted.

In contrast, traditional standardized teaching methods are more stable and reliable.

Vinard listened quietly to Silas's entire report.

"Your analysis is very professional, and your emergency response was indeed appropriate."

He nodded in approval to Silas:
"But I'd like to hear what Ron's mentor has to say about this incident."

Ron slowly stood up, his expression showing no sign of tension or anxiety.

“Professor Vinard, I admit that this teaching experiment did indeed encounter risks that exceeded expectations.”

His opening remarks were surprisingly candid:
"As the organizer of the teaching activities, I take full responsibility for this."

This direct admission of error surprised everyone present.

Silas was slightly taken aback, and the many rebuttals he had prepared suddenly seemed to have nowhere to launch.

"But at the same time, I also hope that you can understand the deeper value of this 'accident'."

Ron continued:

"The twelve apprentices not only successfully completed the historical experience, but they also achieved a true inner breakthrough under extreme pressure."

This kind of growth cannot be provided by any standardized teaching.

Ella nodded in agreement:

"Indeed, the children are in better condition than ever before."

“But,” tactical expert Gregory interjected coldly:

"If irreparable psychological trauma occurs during the process, the price of this kind of 'growth' is too high."

His words made the atmosphere in the meeting room even more tense.

"Education is not war, and success or failure cannot be measured by 'casualties within acceptable limits'."

Gregory continued:

"What we need is a stable, reliable, and replicable talent development system, and the one thing we don't need is a gambling-style extreme challenge."

These words were echoed by several conservative managers.

They all nodded in agreement, expressing their concerns about "risk-taking teaching."

Vinard tapped the table, signaling for everyone to be quiet.

"After careful consideration, I have made the following decision."

His voice echoed in the conference hall:
“Ron’s teaching results are remarkable, and the technical value of ‘Symphony of the Soul’ cannot be denied.”

However, given the high-risk nature of its teaching methods, a two-week in-depth evaluation is required.

“During the evaluation, Ron’s mentor suspended all high-risk teaching activities and switched to basic theoretical courses and personal guidance.”

“Mentor Silas was commended by the college for his proper handling of the emergency and was appointed as the head of the evaluation team.”

This ruling secretly pleased Silas.

Although the goal of getting Ralph "off the hook" was not achieved.

But for at least half a month, the other party was effectively restrained.

Ron accepted the decision expressionlessly, as if he had expected it.

"I will obey the academy's arrangements," he said calmly.

"In two weeks, I will prove my worth with facts."

Two weeks later, it was also the end of my first quarter's final evaluation.

Vinard deliberately chose this particular time.

The meeting concluded, and Ron had a clear understanding of what he needed to do next.

"The Hanged Man's Test..."

He recalled the prophecy in the divination:

"Perhaps this 'suspension period' is an opportunity for me to gain deeper wisdom."

(End of this chapter)