Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 96: Apprenticeship Ladder, Study of the Origins of Knights

The dark foggy jungle was still shrouded in a light mist in the early morning, but Ron had already arrived at the school library in high spirits.

He came to the library again, which was completely different from the last time he came here. At that time, he had just become a junior apprentice, and even the most basic reading area inside required repeated review by the guards before entering.

As a newly minted professional potion master, he couldn't wait to use his new identity to gain a deeper understanding of extraordinary knowledge.

The library is located in an ancient stone tower. It looks plain and unpretentious, but every apprentice knows that this is the best place to improve themselves besides paid courses.

The person guarding the door was different from the last time. It was replaced by an old guard in a gray robe.

"Potion Master's Badge?" the old man said softly, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. "Young man, you look no more than sixteen or seventeen years old."

Ron smiled and nodded, "Ron Ralph, I just passed the Potions Master certification exam, which was personally administered by Master Magnus."

The old guard examined the badge carefully, then nodded slightly after a moment: "The mark cannot be forged. It seems you are indeed a genius."

He stepped aside to make way. "Professional potion masters possess 'Level 2 authority', which allows them to access most common tomes and some advanced materials."

"Thank you." Ron responded politely and then stepped into this palace of knowledge.

The library's interior was incredibly spacious, far exceeding its apparent size from the outside. Clearly, some kind of spatial expansion magic had been employed.

Layer upon layer of bookshelves wind up to the ceiling, forming a maze-like ocean of knowledge.

In the center of the huge hall, there is a half-human-high dark brown crystal column engraved with complex runes.

That is the "guide stone" of the library, which can guide the inquirer to the corresponding area according to his needs.

Ron walked to the crystal column and gently placed his palm on it, silently reciting the keywords he wanted to search for:

"Intermediate apprentice, spell mastery, advancement requirements."

The runes on the surface of the crystal pillar lit up with a gentle blue light, and then a path composed of light spots unfolded in the air, guiding him to a certain bookshelf area.

Following the light spot to the designated location, Ron discovered that this was an area dedicated to collecting apprentice advancement information.

His eyes were quickly drawn to a thick brown leather book with the words "The Apprentice's Ladder" written on its gold-stamped cover.

Taking the book down, Ron found a quiet oak table nearby and sat down, carefully turning the yellowed pages.

"Intermediate Apprenticeship - the second step on the apprenticeship road", the bold title catches the eye.

Ron read intently, occasionally jotting down key points in the notebook he carried with him:
"...Unlike the beginner apprentice stage, the core task of the intermediate apprentice is no longer simply to increase the spiritual power value, but to deepen the control of spiritual power, especially in the construction of spells..."

"...A qualified mid-level apprentice must master at least three zero-level spells, able to cast them at will. This requirement isn't arbitrary, but based on the scientific principles of brain development..."

Ron frowned slightly, paying special attention to this key point.

The book explains in detail:
"...The process of constructing a spell model actually involves creating a specific 'thought circuit' within the mind. Every time a spell is mastered, a corresponding neural connection pathway is formed in the brain."

"When you master three or more spells, these pathways will gradually interweave into a network, forming a unique 'mind network' that greatly enhances the flexibility and scalability of your mental power..."

"...More importantly, once this 'mind network' is formed, it will become the foundation for the caster to access higher-level spells."

"Without this foundation, even with powerful mental strength, it would be impossible to carry out the complex model construction required for high-level spells..."

Ron suddenly understood: "No wonder Eric and Leah both emphasize the mastery of magic. It turns out this is the basic law of brain development."

Continuing to read, he began to understand the requirements of the advanced apprenticeship stage:

"...The mark of a high-level apprentice is that their mental strength reaches a certain threshold, and they are able to develop at least one spell to a level of personal specialization."

"This 'specialization' not only refers to increasing the power, but more importantly, it incorporates the caster's personal understanding, making it unique..."

"…Specialized spells are the only way to become a formal wizard. Every formal wizard has at least one spell system that is completely unique to him or her. This is both a test of personal understanding and a requirement for creativity."

"Those apprentices who lack creativity, no matter how high their spiritual power is, will ultimately be unable to break through the boundaries of advanced apprentices..."

To become a true wizard, one needs not only sufficient mental strength, but also unique insights and creativity, which is in line with his imagination of wizards. Just as Ron wanted to continue exploring the details of the formal wizard promotion, he turned to a page that was obviously processed.

There were only a few lines of text on the page, and the rest was completely blacked out with ink, leaving only the title "Official Wizard Promotion Rules" and a striking note:

"Only members of the candidate wizard sequence can view it."

Ron tried to detect it with his mental power, but felt a strong resistance that pushed him away.

Obviously, these obscured contents are specially protected and cannot be viewed by unauthorized persons.

"It seems that higher authority is needed." He whispered to himself, feeling a little disappointed but not discouraged.

Putting the book back in its place, Ron came to the crystal column again. This time he wanted to find information about the origin of the knight profession.

The crystal pillar lit up again, guiding him to another area.

The books on the shelves in this area look even older, with many covers faded and corners badly worn.

Here, Ron found a thick ancient book called "The Origin of Knights".

The paper of this book has become yellowed and fragile, and needs to be turned with extreme care.

The book's record of Bloodline Knights and Demon Hunters was extremely detailed, which opened Ron's eyes:

"...The origins of demon hunters can be traced back to the end of the Second Age, just after the Great Sundering. Many wizards xxxxx began to experiment with transplanting parts of demonic beasts into humans, hoping to gain the corresponding bloodline abilities..."

Ron frowned and the line was crossed out.

He continued reading below:

"...Early demon hunter experiments often ended in failure, with most transplant recipients dying or becoming deformed due to severe rejection reactions. It wasn't until Adrian Morel of the Black Crow School created a special 'stabilizer' that the success rate improved..."

Ron paid special attention to this historical record - it turned out that the witcher was indeed the product of an experiment!

Continuing to read, he came across the content about the origin of the Blood Knights:

"...As demon hunters' experiments continued to improve, wizards gradually realized that while directly transplanting magical beast organs could quickly gain powerful strength, the risks of rejection and distortion could never be completely eliminated."

"So, Elvin Oswald of the Academy of Offa proposed the 'Bloodline Activation' theory..."

"...Elvin believes that humans already carry fragments of the bloodlines of ancient creatures within their bodies. By awakening these dormant genes through a specific ritual, they can gain corresponding power. Furthermore, because these bloodlines already exist within the body, the rejection reaction will be greatly reduced..."

"...This theory was quickly verified and popularized, becoming the foundation of the current 'Bloodline Knight' system."

"Compared to the Demon Hunter, the Bloodline Knight's power boost is somewhat inferior, but its stability and safety are greatly improved, and the distortion rate is reduced by nearly 70%..."

Ron suddenly realized:

"No wonder Andre said that most of the Farouk royal family have awakened the bloodline of the fire lizard. These should be the bloodline characteristics left by their ancestors."

Turning to the section on advancement potential, Ron saw some discouraging content:

"...As a product of wizard research, the Knight class's advancement path is essentially a 'limited development' model."

"Whether it's a demon hunter or a bloodline knight, after completing the ritual, their physical fitness will see a significant leap forward, but then their growth curve will decline sharply..."

“…The reason is that this approach to strength development stimulates existing potential rather than creating new growth paths.”

"When the genetic potential in the body is fully activated, simple physical exercise will lose its effect."

"If we want to continue improving, we can only do so by continuously tapping into the potential of our bloodline or transplanting more powerful organs. However, this will also exponentially increase the risk of uncontrolled distortion..."

What this means is that the so-called [Bloodline Knight] path has reached its peak for the official knight, and there is no further path above?

I had a cold today and couldn't sleep. I got up early and worked on another chapter. Please bear with me. I will continue to work on 20,000 chapters at midnight tonight.
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(End of this chapter)