Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 63 We Can’t Hold On Any Longer
After returning to the dormitory, Ron carefully locked the doors and windows, checked the trap marks set last night, and relaxed a little after confirming that everything was fine.

He decided to try the "Whispers of the Star Eater" meditation again tonight, but he would be more cautious and try to avoid triggering that strong inspiration.

Ron rearranged the protective runes in the corners of the room, lit some special calming incense, then took out his silver pocket watch and kept it by his side in case of emergency.

"Be steady and don't rush for success." He reminded himself, then sat cross-legged and closed his eyes.

This time, he did not immediately try to construct a complete meditation rune, but started with basic meditation, allowing his mental power to flow along a familiar path and form a stable basic state.

Only when he felt in good condition did he begin to try to transition to the structure of "Murmurs of the Star Eater", taking every step carefully, for fear of triggering the strong inspiration like last night again.

As the rune structure gradually took shape, Ron could feel that the quality of his mental power was undergoing subtle changes.

Different from the peaceful and gentle feeling in basic meditation, the mental power guided by "Whispers of the Star Eater" is sharper and more active, just like turning a calm lake into a rushing torrent.

This change brought him a strange feeling—his thinking became sharper, his perception became more sensitive, and he could even detect the subtle fluctuations of magic in the air in the room.

At the same time, he also felt a vague sense of mental abnormality.

Unlike last night's intense, almost maddening pollution, today's pollution felt more like background noise, subtle but ever-present.

[Experience points for "The Whisper of the Star Eater" + 1]

"As expected, as long as I don't actively stimulate that kind of inspiration, my meditation progress will be slower, but the mental pollution will also be much weaker. The last time it was so dangerous, it must be because the 'Spiritual Flow' feature activated, which accelerated my meditation progress too much, triggering the inspiration all at once."

Ron muttered to himself.

He focused on the stable rune structure taught by Mrs. Allen, and did not deliberately pursue the deeper areas that might bring inspiration.

However, despite the relatively minor mental pollution, Ron decided to use the Time Guardian's pocket watch for purification.

He closed his eyes, concentrated on the vague sense of contamination, and then guided it into the pocket watch.

[Successfully reset negative status: Mild mental pollution, energy -2]

As the pocket watch absorbed the mental pollution, Ron felt his mind becoming clearer.

The subtle discomfort I felt during meditation just now completely disappeared, replaced by a state of relaxation and joy.

"Yes, even with steady training, I can maintain a very impressive rate of progress with a pocket watch." Ron nodded with satisfaction.

He looked out the window. It was late at night, but he was still very clear-headed.

This may be a side effect of "Murmurs of the Star Eater". After the mental strength is improved, the required sleep time is also reduced accordingly.

After returning to the dormitory, Ron immediately began to comprehensively review his situation, facing the possible dangers and difficulties without blind optimism:

Ron Ralph

【Age: 15】

[Current Combat Occupation: Wizard Apprentice (one and a half stars), Knight Squire (one star)]

[Current Occupation: Potions Apprentice (One Star)]

[Attributes: Constitution 1.5, Spirit 2.6, Magic 0.7]

Skills: Basic Alchemy (Proficient), "Star Eater's Whisper" (Proficient), Zero Ring Slime Splash (Proficient to Max), Potion Refining (Beginner), Herb Identification (Proficient), Basic Swordsmanship (Proficient), Breathing and Body Building (Beginner), Spell Construction (Beginner), Mind Interference (Beginner), Sonic Oscillation (Proficient)

[Special Talent: Dual Soul, Sun's Protection (Remaining)]

[Strength level: Elementary apprentice]

Before you know it, the improvement in various skills is visible to the naked eye.

From basic potion learning to "The Whisper of the Star Eater," from identifying medicinal herbs to basic swordsmanship, each skill was steadily improving. Especially with basic swordsmanship, with the help of the Time Guardian's pocket watch, his progress had already reached nearly halfway to the proficiency level, and the next qualitative change was not far away.

"Even with the most conservative estimate, at this rate, I should be able to become an intermediate apprentice within two months."

Ron muttered to himself, "According to estimates, reaching a mental strength of 3.0 should allow me to cross the threshold of an intermediate apprentice and enter the wizard candidate sequence. The goal is just around the corner."

These achievements would have been enough to make any apprentice proud and complacent, but he became increasingly cautious.

As Mrs. Allen warned, the greater the talent, the more likely it is to fail because of arrogance.

"We must remain vigilant, especially monitoring our mental state."

After finishing the record, he took out his silver pocket watch and prepared to start tonight's training cycle.

Although the day's work had consumed a lot of energy, the ability of the pocket watch allowed him to easily reset this negative state.

[Successfully absorbed negative status: fatigue, energy -1]

After the reset was completed, Ron no longer felt tired, but instead felt full of energy, as if he had just woken up.

"This pocket watch's capabilities are incredibly convenient."

He picked up the ironwood sword and began tonight's sword training. He strived for precision and smoothness in every movement, perfectly combining the "Corona Breathing Method" with swordsmanship.

The sword light flickered in the dim room, like a dark swimming fish, graceful and deadly.

The training lasted for two hours. When the muscle soreness reached a certain level, Ron used the pocket watch to reset it again.

The repeated training-reset-training cycle allowed him to continuously accumulate basic swordsmanship experience points.

After finishing his training, he dreamed that he was walking in the sea of ​​stars, and those whispers lingered in his ears. Although the meaning was still vague, it was no longer completely incomprehensible noise.

………………

Farouk Kingdom, Earl Ralph's residence.

The winter sun was pale and weak, slanting in through the tall windows of the study, but it could not dispel the solemn atmosphere in the room.

Earl Ralph sat at his desk with a frown on his face. The account book spread out in front of him was like an insurmountable mountain.

The flames in the fireplace crackled slightly, adding a touch of vitality to the solemn space.

"Father, we need to talk."

A tall young man pushed the door open and walked in. This was Ron's eldest brother Edmund, the heir to the Ralph family and now the main person in charge of family affairs.

The Earl raised his head. His once sharp eyes were now bloodshot, and the wrinkles at the corners showed the traces of time. "What's the problem?"

Edmund sat down in the chair opposite his father and took a deep breath.

"The wheat fields on the west side have had poor harvests for three consecutive years. Last year's plague killed a quarter of the serfs. The manor's expenses far exceed its income, especially..."

He paused, carefully choosing his words. "Especially the magic stone fragments we send to Ron every month. They have pushed our finances to the brink of collapse."

The Earl's eyes flickered for a moment, but he quickly regained his composure. "What do you want to say?"

"Father, you mortgaged the vineyard in the east last month, and sold the silverware left by my grandmother this month, all to collect the ten pieces of magic stone."

Edmund's voice was filled with pain. "I know our family's current situation better than anyone else. We can't hold on any longer."

(End of this chapter)