Wizard: Starts with Advanced Meditation

After leaving the potion shop, Hughes chose a magical artifact shop called Nebula Workshop, which was recommended by Bohr. From the outside, the shop looked relatively new.

Upon entering the store, the lighting is soft and mysterious, with light provided by magic chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and magic wall lamps embedded in the walls.

The lights flickered with pale blue and purple hues, and the shelves were filled with a dazzling array of magical artifacts. However, Hughes currently had a limited supply of magic stones, so he only bought a storage bag here.

This storage bag is a full 7 cubic meters in size and worth 350 magic stones. Hughes had to use some extra potions to buy it.

After leaving the Nebula Workshop, Hughes had only a dozen or so magic stones left, and he carried two bottles of mental energy potions. Even though the black market had regulations, Hughes dared not linger.

When Hughes returned to the plaza where he had descended, the dark element left him with a small, black sphere.

The ball was thrown to the ground, and it immediately turned into a pool of black liquid. The liquid enveloped Hughes and carried him upwards.

Hughes opened the door and walked into the dark alley, only to find that it wasn't the one he had entered from before. It seemed to be random. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, Hughes changed his clothes and walked quickly towards the dormitory.

Back in his dorm, Hughes took out one of the boxes, opened the package, and there it was—the mental potion he had been longing for.

Ouroboros is one of the more well-known and cost-effective mental potions among apprentices. It can increase an apprentice's meditation efficiency by 1.5 times, but the side effect is that the user's teeth will mutate into venomous fangs that can release toxins.

Therefore, the apprentices could not eat for the next three days. If the fangs bit into food, the food would become highly poisonous. During these three days, the apprentices could only take nutritional supplements or have their own teeth pulled out.

However, these side effects are almost negligible for Hughes, who has plenty of nutrients. Hughes often conducts experiments for a long time now, relying on nutrients to solve his three meals a day.

Only formal wizards can go for long periods without eating; formal wizards conduct experiments that take years.

The Ouroboros potion has two colors, purple and green, which swirl and churn like mist. Hughes composed himself, pulled out the stopper, and slowly poured the potion into his mouth.

The potion tasted slightly bitter. After taking a sip, a surge of intense energy rushed to the top of his head. Hughes felt a tremendous energy coursing through his brain.

Xiu Si immediately began to meditate, and the originally complicated runes became clear. Runes that could only be barely drawn in one stroke before could now be drawn in their entirety with ease.

……

After a long period of meditation, Hughes opened his eyes. He felt a significant increase in his mental strength, and there was also residual energy in his brain.

After resting for a while, Hughes continued meditating. This energy would dissipate on its own soon, and Hughes certainly didn't want to waste it, so he planned to make full use of it.

……

Frostbeard Cave is a man-made cave with an extremely spacious interior and a maze-like network of passages. Dwarves in armor and battle robes guard the cave closely.

Their equipment was excellent, though the cold wind blowing into the cave caused fine white frost to form on the dwarves' beards.

But the plate armor, forged from specially made metal, remained unaffected by the wind and snow, its surface smooth and gleaming with a cold luster.

Their large hands wielded uniformly styled staffs, which not only enhanced magical artifacts but also transformed the specially crafted metal crystallized on them into giant axes and greatswords to strike enemies.

The cave's passageways are interconnected and serve various purposes, but all of them lead to a single gate.

This gate was forged from twelve pieces of Dragonfrost Steel, each piece of which was fused and polished. Each piece of Dragonfrost Steel was forged into the shape of dragon scales, with layers upon layers of scales resembling the spine of an ancient dragon.

Dragons are the overlords at the top of the food chain, the objects of every bloodline wizard's dream of obtaining their bloodline. Having their bloodline is equivalent to having extremely vigorous vitality and powerful magical talent.

Upon reaching adulthood, they possess the strength of a formal wizard, being proficient in dragon language magic and also having powerful breath organs.

If it weren't for their scarcity and the disharmony between the various races, even wizards wouldn't want to provoke them.

What is most astonishing is that at the center of this gate is a huge adult frost dragon head forged from metal, the metal dragon head sculpted with lifelike detail.

The entire gate is magnificent and grand, showcasing the craftsmanship of the dwarves, while the top of the gate is inscribed with "Fortress of the Heart of Eternal Freeze" in ancient dwarven language.

Behind the gate was a long staircase, and below the staircase was a giant underground fortress.

The fortress was riddled with mine shafts, with rune-driven iron minecarts running on the tracks, laden with ore. Countless hoists and elevators were firmly anchored to the stone walls for the dwarves to pass through.

The buildings below are mostly made of rock, and ordinary-looking dwarf residents live here. There are all kinds of shops and taverns.

Its liveliness was in no way inferior to that of human society, with dwarf soldiers in light armor patrolling the wide and bright streets in an orderly manner, maintaining the harmony of this dwarf society.

Inside a palace, the towering Frostskin Dwarf King Dulink sat on a throne crafted from wrought gold. The throne was exquisitely decorated and magnificent, and even the largest dwarf throne was just large enough for Dulink to sit on.

His stature was tall and imposing, much taller than that of ordinary humans, leading one to wonder if his ancestors had intermarried with giants.

His breathing seemed to vibrate with thunder, his broad, thick chest rising and falling slightly with each breath, his icy blue skin making him sit like a small iceberg, his large hands gripping a two-handed giant axe.

Next to the throne stood a huge crystal ball, with pale purple runes engraved around it.

The dwarf priest Glenn stood before the giant crystal ball, his eyes glowing with an eerie blue light, as if he were observing something through the crystal ball.

The light in Glenn's eyes vanished the next moment, revealing his aged, icy blue pupils.

"How's that thing?" (in dwarven language) Dulink asked expectantly.

"I'm...I'm sorry, Your Highness, it's still not moving," Glenn said in a panic.

As soon as he finished speaking, a powerful pressure descended, and all the dwarves in the palace knelt down and could not get up.

"Hmph, Everfrost Spire... I'll let you live a few more months," a fierce glint appeared in Dulink's eyes.

……

After an unknown amount of time, when Hughes broke free from his meditation, the sky outside the window was already turning white. Hughes subconsciously licked his teeth, and a sharp sensation came from the tip of his tongue.

"Phew, I'll use the other bottle in a few days."

Hughes shook his head, but he was very energetic at the moment. The effect of using it for the first time was good, and he felt that even the 8th mental power rune was coming soon.