Dark Wizard: Rise! My undead army!

Now that we've achieved our goal, let's get the second-level apprentice certification done first.

Stepping into the apprentice stairwell hall again, Lynn verified his identity and walked into the detection array with practiced ease.

"Mental strength 20, met the requirement! Cast any apprentice-level spell." It was the same deacon as last time, his voice still icy.

Lynn's mouth opened and closed rapidly, and two seconds later he successfully conjured a solid bone shield that floated and rotated around his body.

"Passed. Promoted to second-class apprentice. Go and change your nameplate."

The deacon glanced at Lynn, seemingly surprised by his rapid promotion.

Lynn handed back his black ironwood nameplate at window number three. He took the new nameplate with its dark silver luster. It was a little cold to the touch and the texture was much better than the original black ironwood.

The thorn pattern on the nameplate is more intricate, and when held in the hand, one can feel its calming effect.

The Dark Silver Badge can activate a minor [Secondary Negative Energy Shield] trick daily, which can save your life in critical moments.

Previously, when killing Holm, the negative energy shield he instantly activated at the last moment was the Dark Silver Badge.

With a second-class apprentice badge, one can borrow "prohibited" knowledge from the first floor of the library.

But Lynn didn't intend to waste her contribution points.

Those paid knowledge resources aren't cheap, so it's better to just get them for free once the restriction analysis is complete.

Since it was still early, Lynn went straight to the mission hall to earn resources.

The hall remained noisy, with some apprentices attacking and hurling insults at each other over a particular task.

If fighting weren't prohibited in the mission hall, several people would die here every day.

But when Lynn appeared near the "Knowledge Consultation" area, some seasoned apprentices who frequented the area noticed the dark silver nameplate on his chest.

"Hiss...wasn't that kid a genius who just enrolled recently? He's already a second-class apprentice so quickly?"

A tall, thin apprentice leaning against a corner whispered to his companion, his expression full of envy.

"It's only been a month, right? From first-class to second-class... that's a bit alarming."

"No wonder those guys who caused him trouble have all 'disappeared'... This kid is definitely not simple!"

Whispers rippled through the crowd, and many eyes turned toward Lynn with a hint of apprehension.

Although the shackles of the apprentice level are not difficult to overcome, they have trapped countless apprentices.

Many of the new students in Lynn's cohort have not yet successfully completed their first meditation, let alone condensed their spiritual core.

Lynn surprisingly stepped into the second-class apprenticeship in a very short time, reaching the same stage as many seasoned veterans who had been enrolled for many years.

This is enough to prove Lynn's talent.

If this continues, it probably won't be long before they have to address Lynn as "Sir"!

Lynn ignored the stares; he had seen far too many strange looks from them in recent days.

Just as he was about to check today's task board, a figure staggered up in front of him. It was Eileen, who was also from Blackswamp City.

She looked even more haggard than before, her dusty apprentice robes stained with dried, dark dirt.

His usually cool and aloof face was now slightly pale, with dark circles under his eyes, and several unhealed wounds were faintly visible on his arms and neck.

"Lynn... Your Excellency."

Eileen had just opened her mouth when she saw the dark silver nameplate hanging on Lynn's body, and her pupils suddenly contracted.

What was originally meant to be "Lynn, classmate" was changed to "Your Excellency".

This is... a second-class apprentice?

How is that possible!

Eileen still wears the bone nameplate she received when she enrolled, clearly indicating that she has not yet become a first-class apprentice.

For her, the black ironwood nameplate was already extremely valuable, but now Lynn is actually wearing the dark silver nameplate!

Is the difference in talent really that big?

Could it be that... someone like me is destined to be nothing more than a "supporting role," destined to waste my entire life?

Eileen shook her head, suppressing the chaotic thoughts surging in her mind, and spoke again.

Her voice was a little hoarse and clearly tired.

"I heard... you're here optimizing witchcraft models for people, so I've been waiting for you for a while."

Somewhat hesitantly, she pulled a magic stone from her bosom, clutching it tightly in her hand until her knuckles turned white.

"I...I know this compensation might be a bit low, but it's all I can offer."

"Oh, right, I have three contribution points left that I can give you all!"

"I haven't been able to meditate successfully yet, and I can only get small tasks like cleaning sewers and moving experimental waste... The pay is low and it's dangerous."

"My progress in the Basic Meditation Method has been slow, my mental strength is growing slowly, and I feel like I'm about to give up."

She looked up, a pleading look in her eyes, "Could you...take a look at me? If this continues...I'm afraid I won't be able to hold on much longer..."

After saying that, Eileen handed the last magic stone she was holding to Lynn, her palm covered in scars.

Lynn looked into her eyes and saw a mixture of exhaustion, fear, and the last glimmer of hope.

Then she looked at the magic stone in her hand, which was stained with some dirt and even had a slight stench.

He sighed slightly, casually took the magic stone, and did not accept her contribution points.

Tell me about the problems you encountered.

Eileen quickly described several specific problems she encountered during meditation, such as difficulty in activating energy particles and instability in building her mental core.

He then took out a bone plate he had prepared for research, on which were engraved several points that were prone to collapse when he was building his spiritual core.

Her talent was poor, and it was extremely difficult for her to even activate energy particles. The few magic stones she had brought from Black Swamp City were also used up during her cultivation, which was why she barely managed to meditate.

However, building a spiritual core was an insurmountable obstacle for her, and no matter how many times she tried, she always failed.

The backlash from the collapse of her mental core was significant, causing her mental state to deteriorate further.

The magic stone I gave to Lynn today was something I found by chance a couple of days ago while doing a sewer cleaning quest.

She originally intended to use it for cultivation, but upon hearing that Lynn could help people optimize witchcraft models, she was intrigued.

My biggest problem right now is to condense my spiritual core; otherwise, even if I use this magic stone, it will be useless. I might as well exchange it for Lynn's guidance.

So she waited in the mission hall for Lynn to appear, and today her wish finally came true.

As Lynn listened, she mentally analyzed the situation she described and the model on the bone plate through the panel.

A moment later, he used his fingertips to attach negative energy and quickly inscribed several simplified energy loop nodes and several mental energy guiding techniques on the bone plate.

"You have two main problems."

Lynn pointed to the pattern on the bone fragment, his tone calm and convincing.

"First, when activating particles, mental energy is too 'scattered'. Try to concentrate your perception and imagine it as a needle 'piercing' the inert shell of the energy particles."

"Secondly, when constructing the core, the third and seventh stabilizing runes were in the wrong order. If they were switched, the energy flow would be smoother."

After saying that, he added two more tips on adjusting the rhythm of mental energy output.

Eileen was overjoyed, holding the bone fragment and thanking him repeatedly:

"Thank you! Thank you so much, Mr. Lynn! I...I'll go back and try it right away! If it works, I...I'll definitely come back to you if I need anything in the future!"

She carefully put away the bone fragments, bowed deeply to Lynn, turned and quickly left the mission hall. Although her back was still slender, she seemed to have gained some strength.

Lynn watched Eileen's retreating figure and sighed inwardly.

This is the plight of apprentices at the bottom.

Eileen still possessed a certain pride at heart and was unwilling to depend on anyone, which is why she had such a difficult time surviving.

Both Lillian and Mary were from Blackswamp City, but one became a third-class apprentice and the other became a "boss lady," and their lives were much better than hers.

Only Eileen, in order to gain a foothold in this academy, desperately took on missions and diligently cultivated her skills...

But sometimes, effort seems exceptionally cheap in the face of talent and resources.

She still couldn't understand the "survival rules" of this dark wizarding academy...