Ancient Wizards: A Little Progress Every Day

In an instant, Dago's pupils trembled.

He lowered his head, staring blankly at what was in his hand, his mind racing with a series of thoughts.

Melville! Dago had seen his name in this Forest Library! He was the legendary wizard Melville, renowned throughout the era of global exploration!

This was left behind by Melville? He was the owner of that secret garden!

Just as Dago was in utter shock, suddenly, a series of huge and persistent energy fluctuations came from outside. These fluctuations were so abnormal that they seemed to wash over Dago like waves, pulling him out of the dreamlike scene of the Illusionary Dream Sphere.

Everything that had previously been far removed from reality returned to him, and he quickly put away the Illusionary Dream Orb in his hand.

Dago looked at the window of the room, which was now filled with various flashing lights. He walked quickly to the window, pushed it open, and was stunned by the sight outside the window, standing there in a daze once again.

On the silver tower belonging to the Thorn Ring, complex and enormous runes were now lighting up, radiating a dazzling light.

The floating islands surrounding the tower also activated their rune arrays, their lights flickering on and off, just as they echoed the sudden brightness of the silver-white tower.

Powerful waves of mental energy, belonging to first-ring and second-ring wizards, surged into the sky and were released to their fullest extent. These waves mixed with the light of countless lit runes and magic circles, as if an ancient and grand wizarding ritual was underway, or as if welcoming the awakening and descent of some exalted being.

That's not all! Dago also saw similar changes occurring in three other towers further away in the city, releasing wave after wave of enormous energy fluctuations.

At this moment, the sun's radiance in the sky was completely invisible, and the entire city of Claytam was submerged in countless energy fluctuations and the light of runic arrays.

Dago stared at the scene before him with a mixture of emotion and incomprehension. Suddenly, he felt something making a slight noise in his storage ring and reached out to take it out.

It was that small, silver brick with the ring symbol printed on it. Dago infused it with his mental energy and read the new information conveyed within this identity document.

After a breath, Dago slowly put down the silver brick in his hand.

He gazed at the vast and magnificent scene outside the window, his eyes glazed over as he murmured to himself, "The four tower masters of Cletam City have awakened. Two months from now, all official members of the Thorn Ring must participate in a selection competition held by their respective tower factions. This is a mandatory trial mission."

...........

.....

Inside the Kroger family's secret realm.

Two figures were casually sitting on the sofa; they were none other than Dago and Bernal, and they were talking.

"It's an old tradition of the French Ring Road."

With his dashing and imposing presence, exuding the air of a seasoned and handsome older man, Bernal held a silver cup in his hand and said calmly, "Every time there is a large-scale secret realm exploration operation jointly conducted by several wizarding forces, the Magic Ring will conduct similar trials and selections."

"The purpose of the trial selection is to select the youngest, most outstanding, and most capable genius wizards who can represent the Magic Ring in the war, and to help the Magic Ring win fame and resources in the secret realm."

"The awakening of all four tower masters this time is unprecedented in its grandeur. Without a doubt, it is for the upcoming opening of the core area of ​​the Mirror Forest ruins, which has not yet been explored by anyone."

He gave Dago a deep look and continued, "This is an opportunity for you. Exploring the large secret realm 'Virgin Land' has always been synonymous with opportunity and benefits. As long as you can go in and come out alive, the resources you get will be at least equivalent to ten years of your own accumulation."

"Of course, that's on the premise that you can squeeze in and qualify to participate in this exploration mission."

Dago couldn't help but ask, "What are the selection criteria?"

"It depends on the level of danger of the secret realm and the number of people allowed to enter."

Bernal shook his head and said, "The number of people varies each time. The larger the secret realm, the higher the requirements. Just try to squeeze to the front. As long as you are strong enough, you will eventually get a spot that allows you to enter."

Dago nodded, then saw Bernal frown. "Two months is indeed a bit short for you. Although the opponents in the selection process are randomly assigned, it's not difficult to rig it. You will inevitably run into Jareden's group. I just don't know in which round you will lose."

"What do you mean?"

Dago frowned, his tone slightly defiant, and said, "Didn't you want me to challenge them in the first place?"

Bernal glanced at him indifferently. "I was just saying. How else can I ignite your fighting spirit?"

Dago's expression changed slightly.

"You don't really think I'm expecting you to reach the second-circle wizard level within two months? Or to achieve the feat of defeating a second-circle wizard of the third-tier genius rank Jaredon, a level above your own?"

Bernal said calmly, "With your current strength, even if you comprehend the power of a domain, you are no match for Jareden. Since he was able to become a Three-Knot Realm expert, he most likely also possesses the power of a domain. Coupled with the overwhelming power of a higher level of strength, you have no chance of winning. However..."

Bernal changed the subject and said in a low voice, "Losing to Jaredon doesn't mean you have no hope of exploring the Mirror Forest."

"The selection process is watched even by the Tower Master. It has always been the best opportunity for magic ring wizards to show their talents. As a rising star in the magic ring in recent years, Jareden is sure to receive a lot of attention."

"When the time comes, even if you can't beat him despite your best efforts, as long as you lose brilliantly enough and become famous overnight, your final ranking will still be high, and you may still be able to get the qualification to enter the core secret realm of the Mirror Forest in the first batch."

"Furthermore, with the Flower of Solomon now in your possession, your chances are even greater. To be honest, I really didn't expect that you would be able to successfully bring the Flower of Solomon back even with Jareden sending second-circle wizards to hunt you down."

"To have achieved this much by the middle of the first stage is already quite remarkable."

Faced with Bernal's rare affirmation and praise, Dago remained silent, simply sitting quietly as if deep in thought.

After a moment, he gave a knowing look, nodded at Bernal, and said softly, "As long as the defeat is spectacular enough, that's fine, right?"

Dago stood up and slowly walked towards the base's potions garden, saying as he went, "So your plan for me was the same? To have me challenge Jaredon, unleash my full potential in a do-or-die situation, and then suffer a brilliant defeat. That way, I could earn the respect of some people and solve a lot of trouble without even realizing it!"

"No, there's more to it, Dago. This way you'll attract even more attention from Chaplin and the others, putting you under greater pressure and giving you more motivation."

Bernal downed the liquid in his silver cup in one gulp, and said softly with a sigh, "Dargo, believe me, you will gain far more than you lose in this process. Aren't you growing up much faster than usual now?"

"You're right, Bernal."