Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 21 The Terrible Neighbor Hidden Danger
Ron was having a meal in the public cafeteria when he heard the idle chatter of several apprentice candidates at the next table:

"I heard that Darend bought that kind of medicine?" a tall and thin man with medium-length hair asked mysteriously.

"What medicine? The kind that develops the brain?" His companion widened his eyes in surprise.

"Yes, he said he wanted to complete the concept of that sonic spell..." The long-haired man nodded, his expression both surprised and somewhat disdainful.

"Are you crazy? So many people have tried that thing and failed..."

The third person sneered and shook his head:

"With his limited mental strength, using that kind of drug will only turn him into a monster."

Ron was chewing on some disgusting black bread while thinking about the Potions material he was going to review.

But when he heard them mention his neighbor Darend, he frowned and put down the plate in his hand.

In the past few days, the noise from Darend's experiments had become less and less frequent. He had thought that the crazy researcher had finally reached a bottleneck and had chosen to take a break.

Now it appears that may not be the case.

"The dormitory area has been a bit too quiet lately. I hope it's not what I thought..."

He muttered to himself, glanced at the half-eaten piece of black bread in his hand, and lost his appetite.

Speaking of which, when he first came to the Black Mist Jungle, he was quite familiar with his neighbor named Darend.

The first meal he had here was at the same table with Darend.

"My home is in Cedar City, north of the Black Mist Jungle."

Back then, his temper wasn't as strange and irritable as it is now. The chubby boy stirred the beetroot soup in his bowl while quietly introducing himself:

"My family has been musicians for generations, performing and composing music for the nobles in the city."

His eyes became unusually bright when he mentioned music:
"Can you imagine, Ron? Music is more than just sound, it's a wave of energy, a resonance of the soul. Since I was a child, I've been able to sense the connection between different notes, their rhythm, their power..."

Ron remembered nodding politely, not quite understanding Darende's enthusiasm.

"My spiritual power aptitude is not high, not even a fifth-level star. I almost despaired on the way here."

Darend stirred the bowl of soup in a low voice, seemingly unaware that the food in the bowl was gradually cooling down:

“But on my first day, I saw an opportunity on the bulletin board.”

He lowered his voice mysteriously:
"In addition to the regular mental strength test, the school also offers another path to advancement—perfecting the rewarded spell concept. If you can develop a semi-finished spell to a practical stage, you will also be eligible to stay."

"And I found a topic that perfectly suits my expertise..."

Darende's eyes sparkled. "Sonic wave conduction mental force field. The moment I saw the name, I knew it was prepared for me."

In the following months, Dallender really threw himself into this research.

Occasionally, as he passed by, Ron would catch a glimpse of his room cluttered with equipment and notes, and the walls covered with strange symbols and musical diagrams.

For the first two months, Darende would regularly bang on various metal objects every day, sometimes making strange noises, and then curse and start over.

At that time, Ron often complained to Andre that the noise from his neighbor affected his meditation.

But about a month ago, Dallender started to grow depressed.

The research seemed to have hit a bottleneck. No matter how he tried, he couldn't make the sound waves truly affect the mental force field.

"The problem is that my mental strength is too weak," he once complained to Ron gloomily, "If I were a little stronger, I could break through this obstacle."

In recent days, these voices have become less and less frequent.

At first Ron thought Darende had finally given up, but when he ran into him by chance in the public bathroom yesterday, he noticed that there was an almost crazy light in Darende's eyes, his face was sallow, and his originally plump body was so thin that it was almost shapeless.

"Are you okay?" he asked casually at the time.

Darend looked at him and smiled, that smile revealing a strangeness: "Okay? Of course... I will succeed soon, Ron." After that, he no longer paid attention to him and left without looking back.

Looking back now, Darende had already shown signs of abnormality at that time...

Thinking of this, Ron wiped the last bit of sauce from the plate with bread, forced it into his mouth, and then walked towards the bathroom.

Maybe... I should be more careful about this neighbor, he thought as he washed the dishes.

Back in the room, Ron opened the book "Basic Meditation Method" and continued to meditate. He should be able to meditate for a while longer today.

Although he had consumed a considerable amount of energy, the effect of the stimulating potion had kept his mental state at a fairly high level in the past few days.

【Basic Meditation Begins】

This time, he tried to incorporate what he learned from Mrs. Allen into his meditation.

It is no longer just a matter of simply outlining the runes, but of feeling the natural flow of spiritual power.

Whenever the flow of spiritual power encountered resistance, he would gently guide it and let it move along the most natural path, like an experienced helmsman, using the power of the water flow rather than fighting against it.

In the space of consciousness, the rune composed of three arcs began to flicker with a faint light.

Unlike the rigid form in the past, the runes now seemed to have life, vibrating slightly with the fluctuations of mental power.

[Trigger special effect: Rhythmic resonance - the effect of this meditation is slightly increased]

[Basic Meditation Experience + 1]

[Basic Meditation Experience + 1]

[Basic Meditation Experience + 1]

……

[Today's practice time has reached the limit, it is recommended to rest]

Ron opened his eyes. Although his energy level was a little lower than when he was meditating with the stimulating potion alone, it was still much higher than at the beginning.

"It seems that 'rhythm' is indeed the key."

Ron muttered to himself as he wrote down his thoughts today in his notebook.

His notes have become quite complete, from the initial scattered observations to a relatively systematic theory.

After finishing his notes, Ron picked up the wooden training sword and began to practice the basic moves of the Corona Swordsmanship.

Although there was no professional coach to guide him, he could refer to the notes given by Andre and learn step by step.

Every sword swing is in sync with the rhythm of the Coronal Breathing Technique, achieving a delicate balance between movement and breathing.

As he practiced more, he found that the coordination became smoother and his movements became more fluent.

[Basic Swordsmanship Experience + 1]

[Basic Swordsmanship Experience + 1]

[Basic Swordsmanship Experience + 1]

……

It was getting dark. Ron tidied up the room, put down his wooden sword, took off his clothes and lay on the bed to rest for a while.

Just as he was about to fall asleep, a strange feeling suddenly came over him.

It was an indescribable hazy feeling, as if someone or something was spying on him.

Suddenly, a very strange sound came from the next room, sometimes high-pitched, sometimes low, as if someone, or something - was struggling in pain.

(End of this chapter)