Wizards begin by accessing the Inspiration panel.

Chapter 127 Norman Secret Realm

Because at any time, you can quickly obtain first-hand information from the market.

Richard did not choose to enter the official shops, but instead chose to find the stall of a bored second-level wizard apprentice at a roadside stall.

The stall had a sign that read: "Buying all kinds of herbs!"

A second-level wizard apprentice is just right—neither too sharp-eyed to see through Richard's blatant lies and subtle hints, nor too weak to be poorly informed.

Richard, by selling small quantities of precious herbs from the Underdark, quickly learned of the recent major events.

Most importantly, two months ago, the three major necromancer academies discovered a hidden small secret realm of the five matriarchal families of the Underdark during their battle with the other two major necromancer academies.

This secret realm is called the Norman Secret Realm, and it is mainly filled with rare herbs that are native to the Darklands and are cultivated by the Night Elves.

In particular, there is a type of graveyard moss, which is the main raw material for limit-breaking potions. Limit-breaking potions, as the name suggests, are a type of potion used by third-level wizard apprentices to break through to the level of formal wizards.

It is said that without taking the limit-breaking potion, the probability of a third-level wizard apprentice being promoted to a full wizard is less than 1%.

After taking the limit-breaking potion, there is at least a 30% chance of successfully advancing to the next level.

However, all the raw materials for the Limit Breaking Potion are extremely rare, the refining process is complicated, and the formula is a top secret, kept hidden from public knowledge and controlled by powerful forces, which shows how precious it is.

Many third-level wizard apprentices, in order to obtain a bottle of limit-breaking potion, often sign long-term unequal treaties with various colleges or large wizarding families, in exchange for a chance to take the potion and break through their bottleneck.

If the academy offers a bottle as a reward for an important mission, third-level wizard apprentices will often fight tooth and nail for it, even with other harsh conditions attached.

The herb called grave moss is extremely rare on the ground, growing only near numerous graves, hence its name.

Because of the important strategic value of graveyard moss and other rare herbs, and also because the Norman Secret Realm was originally designed to restrict entry to only those with energy fluctuations below the level of a formal wizard.

Therefore, after the three necromancer academies seized an entrance to the Norman Secret Realm in a surprise attack, they once again jointly issued a wartime mission, along with various rare rewards, to encourage their third- and second-level wizard apprentices to enter the secret realm to collect herbs.

However, because the other entrance was firmly guarded by the Night Elves, there were many of their elites in Norman's Secret Realm. Collecting herbs inside was extremely risky, and wizard apprentices died almost every day.

Another point is that wizard apprentices teleported into the Norman Secret Realm from the entrance will be automatically dispersed by the power of the realm, so forming a team is not very meaningful, which greatly increases the risk of entering the realm to collect herbs.

This, however, caught Richard's eye, and he thought to himself, "Is it possible that each of the three major necromancer academies is contributing an advanced meditation technique as one of the exchange items?"

So, Richard, still puzzled, went to another stall, bought a herb, and inquired about it.

But when Richard found out what the rewards were, he immediately lost interest.

In addition to the Crimson Shock Potion that left a deep impression on Richard last time, three Limit-Breaking Potions were also provided. It seems the three major academies have gone all out this time. Of course, the Limit-Breaking Potions also come with additional terms and conditions.

In addition, there are many other rare potions and top-tier witchcraft items, but there is no complete advanced meditation method.

At this point, Richard moved to another stall, where the owner was a level two wizard apprentice from the North Ring. He inquired about the cleanup mission that had taken place six months prior.

"You mean that cleanup mission six months ago?" The second-level wizard apprentice who was buying raw materials looked at the bone club on Richard's chest with suspicion and said, "Such a sensational event, and you didn't know? But you don't look like a freshman?"

Richard was taken aback, then suddenly remembered that a few days ago, the annual enrollment season for the Ignis School should have begun, and now several hundred new students had enrolled.

Indeed, her appearance and the things she sells clearly indicate that she is not a newcomer.

"Hehe, my mentor assigned me a errand-running mission related to his family, you know what I mean! I just missed the cleanup mission." Richard laughed, a hint of regret on his face.

"Hehe, you're really unlucky. Basically, all the trainees who survived that cleanup mission gained a lot and improved quite a bit. I also got promoted to a level two wizard apprentice three months ago thanks to that opportunity."

The second-level wizard apprentice from the North Ring puffed out his chest with a hint of pride, showing off the two plague worm patterns on his lower chest. He then looked at Richard's chest and said with considerable sympathy.

He had also encountered situations where his supervisor assigned him tasks, and he had no choice but to bite the bullet and get them done.

Simply put, if you encounter difficulties, you must find a way to solve them yourself. Otherwise, your mentor will definitely not give you a good outcome. At least that was the case in the North Ring, and it seems that the Ignis School is roughly the same now.

However, this also shows that the first-level wizard apprentice of the Ignis school is not valued by his mentor. If his mentor valued him, he would not have sent him out, thus wasting such a rare opportunity.

After a heart-to-heart conversation, Richard sold another herb. The two immediately struck up a lively discussion, and with Richard's deliberate encouragement, the second-level wizard apprentice stall owner spilled everything he knew to Richard.

This made Richard realize that the previous incident involving the Dark Fishman had also caused quite a stir.

It is said that the disciples of the three major necromancer academies present at the time suffered heavy casualties, with the Ignis School suffering the most severe losses, apparently including a promising young talent.

Before the official wizards arrived, the support teams of third-level wizard apprentices from the three major necromancer academies were also repeatedly defeated. In the end, it was only thanks to a second-level wizard apprentice from the Gurus Academy who brought out a low-level wizarding artifact that they were able to hold off the official wizards until they arrived.

"A rising star... Could it be that third-level wizard apprentice I encountered? He's very strong; he certainly deserves the title of a rising star!" Richard thought to himself.

After gaining a basic understanding of the situation, Richard decided to return to his dormitory, put his things down, and then visit his mentor, Serales.

Richard arrived at room 861 with practiced ease. He took out his key, opened the door, and went inside, but the next second, he froze.

Richard looked closely and saw a rather innocent-looking young girl in the room, staring at him in disbelief.

Richard was instantly paralyzed!

The two stared at each other for a while, then Richard hurriedly said, "Excuse me, wrong room!"

"Bang!" Richard immediately closed the door and left.

The girl paused for a moment, then muttered to herself, "Wrong room my foot! I locked the door. I clearly heard someone unlocking the door before you came in. How could someone who came to the wrong room have a key?"

"Has the security of dormitories in the Ignis School really gotten this bad?"

The girl was completely baffled!

Richard stood outside the door, carefully examining the three numbers 861 on the doorplate, and for a long time, he couldn't believe that this was his room.

Could it be that the school of thought believes I died in the last cleanup mission? No way! That's too simplistic.

Shouldn't we either see the person alive or dead?

That's true. In this world, there are countless ways to make sure you never see your body again after you've died.

Instantly, Richard recalled what the second-level wizard apprentice from the North Ring had said: "The Ignis School has lost a promising new star!"

"Could it be... that potential rising star of the Ignis School that guy was talking about who died, that's me?" Richard was momentarily stunned.

But that's not important. The problem right now is that I don't even have anywhere to stay.

Should I go directly to the school of thought and tell them I'm not dead?

Richard thought for a moment, then shook his head. It wasn't appropriate; he should at least visit his mentor, Seres, first.

However, before formally visiting his mentor, Richard thought of something else.

So, I went to the trading area and sold a rare herb that was a specialty of the Dark Region, and I made a point of learning about it.

Richard quickly found out what had happened:

The fastest time for a student from the Ignis School to advance to a third-level wizard apprentice is approximately two years and three months.

The fastest record for the North Ring is two years.

The highest record at Gurus Academy is said to be one year and seven months.

But I've only been enrolled for a year now!

Moreover, he wasn't even at the initial stage of a Level 3 Wizard Apprentice; he was already close to the peak of a Level 3 Wizard Apprentice, which was a bit exaggerated!

"Ha! I never thought that one day I would be the one so terrifying." Richard shook his head and sighed.

Fortunately, my Rodrigo Meditation Technique, when upgraded to its limit, also gained an additional effect: breath concealment.

In general, it means that one can consciously control one's aura and reveal the strength one wants others to see. For example, Richard just now demonstrated the aura of a first-level wizard apprentice.

Of course, if concealing one's breath doesn't allow Richard to demonstrate the strength of a formal wizard, then it wouldn't be called concealing one's breath.

Concealing one's strength means avoiding letting others discover one's true power; it's about playing the weak card!

Because the higher one's spiritual power, the stronger the aura or force field they emit, and the perception of wizards or wizard apprentices is far beyond that of ordinary people.

Therefore, although other wizard apprentices may not be able to specifically perceive how strong Richard is, it is still very easy to determine roughly where Richard is at, such as whether he is a level two or level three wizard apprentice.

It is conceivable that a formal wizard's perception ability far surpasses that of a wizard apprentice, being exceptionally sharp.

Therefore, even with the breath-concealing effect that comes with the Rodriguez meditation method, Richard himself was not sure whether he could really hide it from his mentor.

(End of this chapter)