My monster cards can evolve infinitely.

Xiuqi's fingertips traced the yellowed pages, his heart pounding with unexpected joy.

Zero-ring trick!

No intellectual requirements!

It can also deflect arcane force field impacts—

Isn't this a protective spell tailor-made for him?

He suppressed his overwhelming joy and quickly flipped through the subsequent content.

The book details the construction process of arcane fields, with each line being simple and clear, far less complex than a first-circle spell.

In short, with his current intelligence of 8, he can also analyze and construct this spell very well.

What excited him even more was the handwritten notes by Master Midas in the margins of the book:

"The core of the deflection field lies in guiding rather than blocking. It uses one's own arcane affinity as a guide, requiring a high degree of arcane affinity from the caster's own protective school, and generally not requiring spellcasting talent."

If even I, with 98 points of affinity for the Protection School, can't learn it, then no one in this academy can.

Xiu Qi pondered silently.

However... there's a 25 gold copying fee and a 2 silver coin royalty fee for each spell cast—

That's an astronomical price.

The usual fee for copying a zero-ring magic trick is 10 gold coins, and there is no royalty to pay.

This spellbook not only costs more to copy than a regular first-level spell, but also incurs an additional cost each time it is used.

However, magic, like knowledge, is priceless.

Xiuqi held the old books and then walked quickly to the counter.

"Master Brian, I have made my choice."

Xiuqi gently placed a dusty book on the defensive school on the counter.

A smile played at the corners of the old mage's lips as his fingertips continued to caress the ancient elven rune tome:

"You have a good eye!"

His thin fingers brushed across the cover of "Elementary Deflection Fields," gently flicking away the dust.

"A masterpiece by Alfonso Midas, an unparalleled and exquisite magic trick."

"It even surpasses many first-level spells."

"This is a privately owned copyrighted work, so it's not cheap."

The old master emphasized the price, then looked at Xiuqi with a leisurely air.

This was unlike the stingy apprentice; he had thought that Xiuqi would stick to one magic trick to get through to the second year.

"I understand, Master Brian."

25 gold coins...

Yesterday's Xiuqi might have been terrified.

But today he is completely unmoved.

He just swiped his card for a total of 72 gold coins at that store, and still has a credit limit of 928 gold coins on his Magic Card.

A black obsidian magic crystal card emitting a dark luster was handed over;

"Please process the transcription; swipe your card directly."

"A wise choice."

Another familiar golden light flashed, followed by the mournful sound of gold coins bidding farewell.

The old mage produced a parchment contract that shimmered with magical light; it was a spell royalties agreement.

Each successful performance of this magic trick will incur a royalty payment of 2 silver coins.

One silver coin belongs to the copyright holder, and the other silver coin will be given to the lady who controls the magic network.

All privately owned spells require a royalty agreement, and this agreement will be of interest to that lady.

"Alright, the contract is now in effect."

Wizard Brian pushed the spellbook and magic cards back to Xiuqi and waved his hand.

"Go on, hurry up."

"Good luck, wise apprentice."

Xiuqi bowed slightly to the old mage, then picked up the spellbook and walked into a quiet copying room.

I eagerly turned the pages of the book.

The descriptions are meticulous, accompanied by detailed illustrations of the spellcasting steps and handwritten annotations from a master.

Awesome!

Xiuqi had never experienced such an easy and simple learning process before.

There's a reason why Xiuqi, a low-IQ apprentice with only 8 points of intelligence, only knows one magic trick.

Intellectual deficiency is the prejudice that arrogant monks hold against all people in the world.

Xiu Qi happens to belong to this type of group.

Surging strength, agile limbs, and exceptional physique... but low intelligence—all of this is completely out of step with the style of the Arcane Academy.

Without his explosive affinity for the Protection school, he probably wouldn't be able to learn even one spell based solely on his spellcasting talent.

Why do other people find this magic trick difficult?

A big question mark appeared above Xiuqi's head.

"I see. The magic power cannot be evenly distributed. Instead, it first forms tiny vortex structures at the points of force application, and then dissipates the force through rotation and deflection..."

"Brilliant!"

"The key is to guide the evacuation, not to confront them head-on..."

"Brilliant!"

"The focus of magic should be here..."

"That's brilliant!"

Xiuqi was completely immersed in the ocean of knowledge.

At this moment, the 98-point affinity of the Protection School plays a huge role. Many things that are difficult for others to understand appear natural and smooth to him, without any obstruction.

Xiuqi took out specially made copying paper and magical ink, and began to concentrate on drawing the spell model and recording the key points.

His copying movements gradually became more fluent and confident, rather than cautious.

Time passed by, second by second.

After several hourglasses had run out of sand, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, put down his quill pen, and stretched his aching arms.

Before him lay a completed spellbook, upon which was drawn a complex three-dimensional model of a spell, surrounded by dense annotations and personal interpretations.

He succeeded.

He not only completed the transcription, but also felt that he had gained a preliminary understanding of the essence of this spell!

When Xiuqi handed the heavy spellbook back to the counter, the mage Brian merely raised his eyelids, glanced at the book, and let out a barely audible "hmm" from his nose, which was enough for him to know.

He bowed respectfully, then turned and left the library.

Watching Xiuqi's retreating figure, a deep sense of astonishment appeared on the old mage's face.

"Too fast..."

"How could the transcription be completed so quickly?"

"The last copyist was a level 2 professional, and this kid is three times faster than him..."

"If all the students in Class C of the first year are this good, tsk tsk..."

Is this kid playing the lead role in one of those outdated, cheesy scripts?

The old monk's lips twitched almost imperceptibly.

It's been almost a whole year; this young man has quite the patience.

Even if they are about to be expelled, they will deliberately lower their ranking.

I was almost fooled by that honest-looking face of the kid.

"Xiu Qi, Class C, Grade 1, ranked 90th in the grade..."

"This year-end evaluation is really something to look forward to. There seems to be another kid in Class C who's just as patient as him..."

"Class C of the first year, everyone is truly talented..."

......

......

The setting sun had painted the horizon a vibrant orange-red, and the towering Merlin Tower was gilded with a warm golden edge.

At this moment, Xiuqi had no time to appreciate the beautiful twilight scenery; his heart was filled with a mixture of urgency and thirst for knowledge.

On his way back to the dormitory, he was still repeatedly pondering the key points of the newly learned magic trick.

Xiuqi had a strong intuition that he might master this spell faster than anyone could imagine.

Thanks to his exceptionally high affinity with different schools of thought, he learned the magic trick "Blade Protection" with only 7 points of intelligence upon entering the school.

It took a month in total.

After nearly a year of study and meditation, his intelligence and understanding of arcane arts have improved to a new level.

"Three days..."

"No, I can learn this magic trick tonight!"

A surge of unprecedented confidence welled up inside me.

However, the next moment, the real economic pressures also spread.

Every successful spellcasting will mean a royalty expense of 2 silver!

This is simply burning money.

He instinctively reached into his pocket, where a blue card box containing two hundred magic cards lay.

"Let's go to the Gray Forest tomorrow!"

"I want to become stronger, and the 'Princess' needs to become stronger too!"

He pondered to himself, and quickened his pace.

The duel three days later is a must-win situation; failure is not an option.

He had no way out.

Just as he had said to Professor Kyle of the Knights Academy that morning;

As long as you keep winning, you won't lose!

He still had 903 gold in credit on the card, and his next plan to increase it was already taking shape in his mind—

Purchase a knight's longsword powerful enough to carry you into the sky.

As a clumsy apprentice who couldn't learn the powerful offensive spells of the Evocation and Conjuration schools,

It's time to pick up the sword again.

Returning to his most comfortable place, Xiu Qi's resolve began to surge.

"My swordsmanship is far superior to that of those arrogant knights..."