Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 156 The Thirteenth Seat
As the sun began to set, Ron left the laboratory and went to the training ground in the workshop's backyard.

Dale was already waiting there, her long silver hair shimmering brilliantly in the setting sun.

These days, the little siren's growth rate is astonishing.

She now has the physique of a ten-year-old human child, and her control over the water element is becoming increasingly proficient.

"Master!" Seeing Ron, Dale waved happily, "Look at my new skill!"

She drew a graceful arc in the air with her hands, and the water element condensed into an exquisite crystal ball, shimmering with seven colors in the sunset.

“Not bad.” Ron nodded with a smile.

"It's under very stable control."

“There’s something even more amazing!” Dale announced proudly, then took a deep breath, a focused glint in her eyes.

The crystal ball suddenly split into dozens of smaller spheres, which spun around her like planets orbiting a star, forming a flowing protective barrier.

Each ball maintains a perfect trajectory, precisely following the preset path, showcasing the siren's exquisite control over the water element.

"I came up with this myself yesterday!" the little siren said proudly. "Sister Lily said it can be used to protect myself."

Ron walked around Dale, carefully observing the water sphere's trajectory and energy composition.

This skill may seem simple, but it actually involves sophisticated elemental control and spatial planning, far exceeding the abilities of ordinary sirens of the same age.

The extraordinary growth rate brought about by the "big eater" talent is gradually showing amazing effects.

“That’s really creative,” Ron praised, while taking out a small bottle:

"I brought you new 'food' today, which will make you stronger."

Dale looked curiously at the red-glowing liquid in the bottle, her eyes sparkling with anticipation.

Ever since discovering that she could grow by consuming substances containing extraordinary energy, Ron has been preparing various special "foods" for her.

Today's bottle contains a Crimson Blood Enhancement Liquid, which he meticulously prepared over three days, and contains a small amount of Crimson Blood Flying Dragon Bloodline Essence extracted from himself.

After multiple purification and stabilization processes, it is specially adapted to the unique physique of the siren.

"Drink it, but savor it slowly and feel the flow of energy."

Ron advised, "Try to understand each different feeling; this will help you better absorb and transform energy."

Dale took the bottle, carefully took a sip, and her eyes lit up.

"It's so warm!" she exclaimed in surprise. "It feels like little flames are dancing inside my belly!"

Ron smiled as he watched her savor the special "food" bite by bite, carefully observing her changes.

As the Crimson Blood Enhancement Fluid was absorbed, subtle changes began to appear on Dale's skin.

Some almost invisible scale patterns appeared faintly on her arms, then quickly disappeared, merging into her original siren form.

This was exactly the effect Ron had hoped for: to guide Dale's bloodline towards greater diversity by providing her with different kinds of extraordinary energy.

Of course, the strong aggressiveness of the dragon bloodline had already been removed during the extraction process.

This enhancement liquid is currently just a high-energy food, which might replenish Dale's fire element affinity, but that's all.

As for whether to consider incorporating dragon genes into the bloodline of the enemy siren later, that conclusion can only be drawn after careful experimentation.

"Dale, what do you think about participating in the gladiatorial games?"

Ron suddenly asked, "There will be many powerful opponents there, but also generous rewards."

The little siren's eyes lit up immediately, and she nodded excitedly, "I want to participate! I'll show everyone how amazing Master's Dale is!"

Ron chuckled and patted her head:

“I believe you will do very well. However, before that, we need to do more training so that you can fully master these new skills.”

………………

In the following period, Ron's research entered a more focused phase.

He decided to focus all his energy on Soul Steel for the time being, because only by truly mastering the properties of this mysterious metal could he determine the feasibility of his subsequent plans.

Soul steel is an extremely rare material with malleability and magic conductivity far exceeding that of conventional metals, making it an ideal choice for forging high-level magical items.

Ron spends several hours each day "talking" to the Soulsteel, gradually adapting the metal to his energy characteristics through continuous mental input.

This is a slow and labor-intensive process, but the results are remarkable:
Subtle changes gradually appeared on the surface of the Soul Steel. The metal became softer and smoother, and its response to Ron's mental commands became more acute.

"The core characteristic of Soul Steel lies in its unique internal crystal lattice structure."

Ron recorded in his notes:
"This structure can 'memorize' the user's mental energy fluctuation pattern and adjust its own energy flow accordingly. Theoretically, after a sufficiently long period of adaptation, Soul Steel can form a resonance state that perfectly matches the user's mental energy."

At this stage, Ron began to attempt to make the Soulsteel undergo preliminary shape changes.

He focused his mind and first tentatively imagined the shape of a very simple short sword, then slowly and firmly conveyed this image to the metal.

At first, the Soul Steel showed almost no reaction.

But as Ron continued to experiment, he adjusted the way and intensity of his mental energy input.

On the fourth day, the metal finally began to show a slight reaction—the edges became slightly sharper, and the overall outline began to develop into a sword shape.

Alchemy (Proficient) Experience +1

“Progress is slow but steady,” Ron noted in the Library of Consciousness.
“Soul Steel needs time to adapt to its new form. Forcibly accelerating this process may cause instability in its internal energy structure, affecting the quality of the final product.”

Just then, as the Soul Steel underwent a crucial change, the class panel suddenly provided a key piece of information:
The new career advancement method has been confirmed:
Special talents: "Dual Soul" + "Activated" Magic Sword + Thousand Transformations (Glorious Legacy) + Substitute Puppet (Rare Antique)

→Black Wizard (3 stars)
Effect: After implementation, the magic sword will possess the corrosive properties of a dark wizard, while the sword itself will remain unaffected by the contamination. This information caught Ron's eye.

The confirmation of the panel also means that his research direction is basically correct, and he only needs to continue to improve the details.

To his even greater surprise, the panel continued to display more information:
[Additional idea: Using a substitute puppet to become a demon hunter and perform organ stitching on monsters]
This Stand shares the power boosts with the original user, but not the negative effects.

Effect: After implementation, the user will gain the abilities of a Witcher.

This additional idea perfectly matches my own concept!

He has indeed been considering how to acquire its powerful abilities without the potential distortion risks that the Witcher route might bring.

A stand-in puppet is clearly the perfect solution to this problem: let the stand-in take the risks, while the original enjoys the benefits.

Ron took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement.

These confirmations gave him great confidence, but he remained vigilant.

“Every step requires precise control, and no negligence is allowed.”

The key point is:
1. Safe division and transfer of soul fragments
2. Advanced version of the Shapeshifter's Skin
3. Obtaining and correctly activating the substitute puppet
4. The perfect forging of the activated magic sword

This time, he returned to the school's library and, using his privileges as a candidate wizard, consulted a large number of ancient texts on the theory of the soul.

From ancient theories of the soul to modern research on spiritual power, from theories of soul divination to explorations of the essence of life, Ron carefully studied almost all the relevant materials he could find.

These studies helped him build a more complete theoretical framework:
The soul is divisible to a certain extent, but the division must follow specific rules and restrictions.

Excessive fragmentation can lead to insufficient energy in the soul fragments, making it unable to maintain its own stability;
An improper method of segmentation may damage the overall structure of the soul, affecting the caster's mind and personality.

"A safe separation of the soul requires three conditions to be met."

"First, the division must be done along the 'natural texture' of the soul, just as cutting a diamond must follow the crystal structure;

Secondly, the fragments must be placed in a suitable carrier immediately to prevent energy dissipation;

Finally, a stable connection must be established between the Primarch and the Fragment, while maintaining sufficient isolation to prevent mutual interference.

This is why the advancement of the Shapeshifter's Skin is so important; only the isolation ability at the "Glorious Legacy" level can ensure the safe separation between the soul fragments and the original body.

A substitute puppet is the perfect solution to the problem of the medium.

According to legend, this mysterious item from the Great Abyss can replicate the user's consciousness and abilities, creating a near-perfect "copy".

If the separated soul fragments can be placed in a substitute puppet, the risk of energy dissipation and structural collapse can theoretically be avoided.

In a long-forgotten ancient book, "The Path of the Apostles: The Awakening and Transcendence of the Dark Wizards," Ron found records of success stories.

This book was heavily restricted and sealed; even with his privileges, he could only read a small portion of it.

"Thirteen Supreme Apostles, Masters of Corruption"

Ancient books describe it this way:
"The most powerful among them is 'Void Spider' Magus, who was once just an ordinary Morning Star wizard with the talent of 'Soul Weaving'. After using a unique soul splitting method, he successfully placed fragments of his soul into countless specially made crystal balls, each of which maintains a wondrous connection with him."

The book briefly describes how Magnus used this division to deal with mental pollution, channeling it into a crystal ball and then transforming it into pure power through a special ritual.

Because of this power, even before he became an apostle, he instantly killed three Moon-level wizards in a battle, and was even able to return a full-force attack from a Dark Sun-level wizard.

Another example is Isabella, the "woman of transformation," who possesses the gift of "empathy," allowing her to perceive and mimic the emotional states of others.

She used a special mask as a vessel to successfully separate fragments of her soul while retaining complete control over her consciousness.

This allows her to exist in multiple different locations simultaneously, and even be reborn through the mask after her original body is "killed".

However, ancient texts also explicitly warn of the dangers of attempting this technique without special talent:

"Nine out of ten test subjects without the corresponding talent will die during the ritual."

The collapse of the soul's structure is more painful than physical death, and those who are lucky enough to survive often fall into a state of permanent madness due to the shattering of their souls.

During the darkest period of the Second Age, when many sects in the Abyss were at their most rampant, more than twenty ancient wizards attempted to emulate the methods of the 'Void Spider'.

But in the end, only two survived, and both of them became mindless, living corpses, forced into permanent imprisonment in the 'Garden'.

Ron closed the book and fell into deep thought.

The risks of soul splitting are obvious, but the potential rewards are equally enticing.

Those successful cases almost all possessed some kind of special talent, which made him wonder if his "dual soul" could provide some kind of guarantee in this process.

"There is still more I need to know."

He muttered to himself, his gaze drifting deeper into the bookshelf:

"But the starting point of all this is still the bloody gladiatorial games."

He must obtain that "substitute puppet," which is one of the key elements of the entire plan.

At the same time, he also needs to find more specific operational methods for soul splitting, as well as possible risk prevention measures.

Ron turned to look out the window, watching the ever-changing clouds above the Black Mist Forest.

The bloody gladiatorial combat may be postponed, but it will still take place.

Before that, he still had a lot of preparations to do.

"Be cautious and proceed step by step," he reminded himself.

"Since we are pursuing the path to eternity, we cannot rush it. Further steps can be attempted when I reach the critical point before becoming a formal wizard."

(End of this chapter)