Wizard: My skills can be upgraded indefinitely.

Ian stood there, breathing heavily.

His gray robe was torn in many places, and there was a wound on his left shoulder where a tentacle had grazed him, the flesh was rolled up and oozing black blood, which was caused by corrosive slime.

My right shinbone is throbbing, probably from being fractured during the block.

His internal mental energy was less than 30% remaining, and his completely vaporized mental sea seemed somewhat empty.

"Gah..."

The quack flew back and landed on his shoulder, nuzzling his cheek with its little head, its voice filled with weariness and worry.

"I'm fine." Ian patted it, took out a [Secondary Healing Potion] and drank it, then fed Gaga another one.

The cooling medicinal properties dissipated, and the injury began to heal slowly.

But a warning bell rang in his heart.

"My physical body... is too weak."

He looked at the wound on his left shoulder and felt the faint pain in his leg bone.

If his body were twice as strong, he wouldn't have been scratched by the tentacles, nor would his leg bones have cracked.

If the reaction speed had been just a fraction faster, perhaps the leeches' several counterattacks could have been completely avoided.

His magical abilities, through multiple breakthroughs and complete atomization of his spiritual power, have already reached the threshold of a first-level wizard.

However, his physical body... is still at the level of an advanced apprentice, and even weaker than other apprentices of the same level in terms of physical body due to his long-term focus on spiritual cultivation.

"[Rock Bear Potion]...I must break through the limit as soon as possible, and then use [Dream Potion] for a deep body tempering."

Ian's eyes were resolute.

With the war against demons imminent, the underground environment is harsh and the monsters are ferocious. Without a strong body, one cannot go far relying solely on witchcraft.

He walked to the spot where the blood leech's corpse had sunk, probed the mud with his spiritual power, and quickly found several items.

A gray dimensional bag with ten cubic meters of space.

A metal token engraved with a complex pattern of blood-sucking leeches, and several crystals exuding a strong bloody aura.

Without time to examine it closely, Ian packed everything up and used ice and fire rays to clean up the traces of the battlefield before quickly leaving with Gaga.

As the sun completely sank below the horizon, the swamp returned to its deathly silence.

Only the lingering smells of burnt food, frost, and blood remain in the air; no one knows that a life-or-death battle that transcended social classes once took place here.

Leaving the battlefield, Ian, with Gaga in tow, hurried through the night towards Misty Creek.

The wound on his shoulder was still bleeding, and his leg bone throbbed with pain, but his deep gray eyes shone brightly in the darkness.

"A certified wizard! I killed a certified wizard!"

Although it wasn't his complete form, the excitement and exhilaration in his heart lingered for a long time.

A day later, Ian brought Gaga back to the tent by the Misty Creek.

As soon as he put down the isolation barrier, he took out the first-tier blood essence of the Flowing Wind Shadow Crow from his dimensional ring.

Inside the crystal-clear blood essence, the complete phantom of the shadow raven slowly moved, radiating rich life energy and extraordinary fluctuations.

"Gah—!"

The little dog, which had been huddled listlessly in the pocket, suddenly poked its head out, its tiny, beady eyes wide open, staring intently at the blood essence.

Its feathers were slightly ruffled, a primal desire emanating from the depths of its bloodline.

"Ian, what's this good stuff? Give it to me! Gah!"

The creaking sounds echoed urgently inside the tent, and it even flapped its injured wings, trying to fly out.

Ian reached out and pressed it down: "Don't rush, your injury hasn't healed yet."

"This little injury is nothing, it'll definitely be fine after eating this, haha!"

Gaga stared longingly at the blood essence, his mouth practically watering.

"No way," Ian said firmly.

"Although supernatural beings consume blood essence more directly than humans, it will still cause a violent conflict in the bloodline. Your current condition is unstable, and forcing yourself to consume it is too risky."

He paused, looking at Gaga's disappointed little eyes, and softened his tone.

"Seven days later, when Amos delivers the rock bear blood essence, your injuries should have healed. At that time, I will protect you and allow you to fully absorb this blood essence."

"Seven days... Gaga..." Gaga hung her head dejectedly, but didn't make a fuss anymore.

It knew Ian was doing it for its own good.

"Although I can't give you this one, I have other good things."

Ian picked out a few blood essences from his dimensional ring and handed them to Gaga.

"Wow! How come you have so much delicious food?"

With its small eyes shining, Gaga picked up a blood essence the size of a broad bean, swallowed it in one gulp, and then squinted its eyes to slowly digest it.

"Ian, you're so good to me!"

In the days that followed, Ian recuperated from his injuries while sorting through the spoils he had obtained from the blood leeches.

Inside the dark red dimensional bag, besides more than two hundred high-level magic stones and some blood-type materials, there were three things that Ian cared about the most.

A tattered notebook titled "The Secret Record of Blood Molting" records the evil methods by which blood leeches ascend to higher realms.

A bronze token engraved with the words "Eastern Seventh War Zone," and a small bottle of the original "Heart-Corroding Curse" liquid, which is extremely toxic.

"Seventh War Zone... It seems Blood Leech was one of the personnel who participated in the war."

Ian pondered, "Dying before the war saves us from all the trouble later."

He put away the useful items and planned to get rid of the rest when the opportunity arose.

Seven days later, Amos arrived as scheduled.

The merchant's smile was wider than ever before; clearly, the recent trade in war supplies had made him a fortune.

"Ian, it took me a lot of effort to gather the Rock Armor Demon Bear's essence blood you requested."

Amos shook his hand, revealing four eye-catching dimensional rings on his fingers.

"Almost a whole ring's worth of fresh essence blood, one hundred milliliters per serving. Also, here's a new batch of 'Starlight Sand' and materials for the Concentration Potion. Take a look."

Ian scanned the area with his mental energy and confirmed that the quality was correct; the Rock Armor Demon Bear's essence blood was well preserved and its vitality was vigorous.

"Price?" he asked, looking up.

Amos held up two fingers: "Same as always, one unit of essence blood plus materials for thirty magic stones or equivalent materials."

Ian quickly calculated the total number of magic stones in his mind. He couldn't care less about Amos's price at the moment; instead, he was grateful for the timely delivery of the materials.

He nodded: "Okay. I'll use blood essence to offset part of the magic stones."

As he spoke, he took out a wooden box containing over 100 top-grade blood essences, along with 300 high-grade magic stones.

Amos's eyes lit up. He took the blood essence and examined it carefully. As his fingertips brushed across the surface of the blood essence, a barely perceptible look of surprise flashed in his eyes.

"The 'awakening' properties of this batch of blood essence... seem to be stronger than before."

He gave Ian a deep look. "Your refining skills have improved again."

Ian remained noncommittal: "Is it enough to settle the debt?"

"That's enough." Amos readily handed over the rock bear blood essence and medicinal herbs.

"In addition, consider this batch of stardust a bonus. With the Demon Hunting War imminent, more strength means more chances of survival."

He paused, then lowered his voice: "Mira told you about the Demon Hunter War, right? No matter where you are, the summons will be issued. Get ready."

After saying this, Amos put away the blood essence, turned and left, his gray robe quickly disappearing into the forest mist.

Ian carried the materials into the tent, feeling somewhat relieved.

With this batch of Rock Bear essence blood, the plan to break through the limits of the [Rock Bear Potion] can be fully advanced.

However, time is a bit tight, so we need to find another way.