The Wizard of Truth: Starting with Analyzing All Things

Elder Anderson's ruling was like a cold shackle, firmly binding Lowe. Level Two supervision meant he was almost completely exposed to the watchful eyes of the Discipline Tower, every move potentially recorded and analyzed. Twice-monthly reports, doubled doses of "Heart Scar Potion," strict restrictions on his movements, and mandatory reporting of research findings—all of this was like an invisible net, tightly binding him.

Life seemed to shrink abruptly. He could no longer freely venture into the sensitive areas on the third floor of the library, spending most of his time confined to Master Field's laboratory, the designated introductory course classroom, and his own residence. Even meetings with Barton, Lilith, and Lena became difficult due to their "stay-at-home" punishment. Even when they occasionally met in public areas, it felt as if invisible eyes were watching them, forcing their conversations to become polite and cautious.

A suffocating sense of isolation enveloped Rowe. But he knew that despair and anger wouldn't solve anything. The Discipline Tower wanted a "controllable" tool to be used, not a useless person or an enemy. In this perilous situation, there was a tiny sliver of hope—if he showed "obedience" and "value," he might be able to gain some breathing room, or even... the possibility of operating in secret.

His first challenge was dealing with a double dose of the "Heart-Scarring Potion." The "attachment" and monitoring pressure on his soul were much stronger. After each dose, he felt as if his soul was covered by a transparent, cold film, making his thoughts seem sluggish. Lilith's secretly improved "Heart-Cleansing and Soul-Protecting Fragrance" had limited effects, only barely alleviating the discomfort for a short time after use, but not eradicating it completely.

However, pressure can sometimes be transformed into motivation. Under this continuous and powerful external pressure, Luo Wei found that his control over the newly formed mental power within him, which was fused with spatial energy, was forced to move towards a more subtle level. Unable to practice information weaving or spatial manipulation on a large scale, he turned to extreme training in "introversion" and "disguise".

During his reports to the Discipline Tower and while taking the potion, he would fully activate the intentions of "Keystone Rune - Stability" and "Keystone Rune - Flow," attempting to construct a deeper, more subtle energy illusion beneath the surface of his soul—a simulation of "calm," "obedience," and even "slight progress." He was like an actor dancing on a knife's edge, carefully adjusting the frequency and intensity of his energy fluctuations, trying to show the monitors of the Discipline Tower the data they "expected" to see—an apprentice whose strength was slowly, steadily, and "compliantly" improving under strict supervision.

This process was extremely dangerous and consumed a great deal of mental energy; if it were discovered, the consequences would be unimaginable. However, after several reports, Elder Anderson or the rotating deacon did not show any abnormality, seemingly acquiescing to his "stable" state. This allowed Luo Wei to breathe a slight sigh of relief, knowing that his initial disguise strategy might be effective, but it was far from time to let his guard down.

Current status: Rowe (Late-stage Intermediate Apprentice)

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Strength assessment: The realm is stable, the precision of energy manipulation is forced to improve due to external pressure, the ability to conceal and disguise is enhanced, and the actual combat power is suppressed by supervision.

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Situation: Under Level 2 supervision, activities are restricted and closely monitored.

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Psychological state: Highly vigilant, forced to endure, actively seeking a way out of the predicament.

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Development priorities: Consolidate the foundation under supervision, deepen control over internal forces, cautiously explore the mysteries of the slate, and maintain the fragile connections within the team.

The restrictions on his activities made systematic learning difficult. The area on the third floor of the library related to Carlson's notes had become off-limits. He had to shift his reading focus to more fundamental areas permitted by the academy: "An Introduction to Basic Elemental Particles," "Analysis of Seventeen Common Misconceptions in Meditation," and "A Complete Illustrated Guide to Low-Level Magical Plants," among others. This knowledge seemed simple, but with his "Analytical Heart," Rowe often gleaned new insights from the most basic principles, which corroborated the "Foundation Runes" on the gray stone slab that represented the underlying rules of the world, solidifying a theoretical foundation that no one could take away.

The real breakthrough and hope still came from the gray stone slab that accompanied his soul. After the external space was greatly compressed, he devoted more energy to communicating deeply with the stone slab. Every night, after confirming that the surrounding monitoring arrays were operating at their lowest power, he would set up a simple isolation barrier in his residence (daring not to use advanced methods for fear of triggering an alarm), and then immerse himself in the task of communicating with the stone slab.

Initially, this communication remained slow and difficult, with the information obtained mostly consisting of more profound and difficult-to-apply fragmented rules. However, perhaps the continuous pressure from the "Heart-Scar Potion" had tempered his mental strength to some extent, or perhaps his extreme "introversion" resonated with a certain frequency of the stone slab. On a peaceful night, an anomaly occurred.

As he focused his mind on the stone slab as usual, the information flow was no longer fragmented; his "eyes" suddenly lit up! He seemed to be in an immense ocean of three-dimensional runes, composed of countless flowing, luminous lines and geometric symbols! These symbols were the "foundation runes" he had been dealing with all along, but now they were no longer isolated. Instead, they were slowly operating, being born and dying, and intertwining in a way that was incredibly complex yet contained profound laws!

The Book of Truth is operating at full speed, recording this unprecedented scene:

[High-level information resonance detected... Synchronization rate significantly improved: 40%... 45%... 50%!]

[Preliminary establishment of a visual model for the basic rules architecture...]

[Analysis revealed the correlation between rune groups such as 'Concealment,' 'Isolation,' 'Mirror,' and 'Energy Deflection'...]

[Deduced a simplified (incomplete) model of an "information camouflage layer"...]

This wasn't a direct infusion of immense power into him, but rather a presentation of the world's "underlying code" in a more intuitive way! He saw how the "Concealment" rune interacted with light and energy fluctuations; he saw how the "Isolation" rune defined boundaries and blocked detection; he saw how the "Mirror" rune copied and distorted information; he saw how the "Energy Deflection" rune guided and deflected force...

More importantly, he saw that these runes were not isolated; they could be combined! For example, by combining "Concealment," "Mirror Image," and "Energy Deflection" in a specific way, an extremely rudimentary information disguise layer could be formed that could distort its own energy signature and create false images! Although this model was incomplete and he couldn't maintain it for long with his current mental strength, it undoubtedly pointed to a possible path to counter surveillance based on rules!

This profound resonance was incredibly taxing; Luo Wei was nearly exhausted after exiting the state, yet his eyes gleamed with excitement. The stone tablet, in his most difficult moment, had given him a key—a key belonging to the realm of rules, capable of unlocking the shackles binding him!

He dared not delay and immediately began to try to understand and practice the incomplete "information camouflage layer" model. This was a hundred times more difficult than the previous information weaving method, involving extremely precise micro-manipulation of his own energy and mental fluctuations. He could only conduct countless simulations in the mental world, and only occasionally dared to stimulate a trace of extremely weak camouflage fluctuations on his body surface at the weakest moment of monitoring to test the effect.

Progress was frustratingly slow, but he persevered. It was the most genuine ray of light he had seen in the darkness.

Just as Lowe was struggling through his confinement, Barton, Lilith, and Lina's confinement finally ended. The month-long lockdown did not diminish their fighting spirit; on the contrary, it made them more composed.

When they met again, the four of them tacitly chose to "bump into" each other in the bustling college cafeteria. Under the cover of the noisy environment, they exchanged information as quickly as possible and in the lowest possible voice.

Barton's near-wizardship level was now completely stable, and his battle aura was even more refined. He had even privately consulted Master Walter about methods to conceal his aura, making him appear even more unassuming. Lilith, using her confinement time, not only further analyzed the "Heart-Scar Potion" but also improved the "Silent Heart." The new version of the beacon had a weaker activation fluctuation and a longer duration. She quietly handed three improved beacons to Rowe. Lina, on the other hand, stated that her natural senses seemed to be more sensitive to the "order" fluctuations unique to the power of the Discipline Tower's laws; she could vaguely perceive their existence but couldn't pinpoint their exact location.

"We can't just sit here and wait to die." Barton lowered his voice, his eyes sharp. "The Discipline Tower is treating us like prisoners; they're definitely up to something. Rowe, what have you discovered?"

Lowe couldn't reveal the details of the stone slab resonance, only vaguely indicating that he was researching a possible "trick" to counter detection, but it would take time. He emphasized that the Discipline Tower's surveillance was all-pervasive, and every action had to be taken with extreme caution. He also agreed that unless absolutely necessary, they should try to transmit the simplest information (such as: safety, vigilance, rendezvous point code) through the specific vibration frequency of the "Silent Heart".

This brief meeting, though unable to change the predicament, reconnected the team and let Luo Wei know that he was not fighting alone.

However, the tree may wish to remain still, but the wind will not cease. Just when Luo Wei thought that this stalemate under high pressure would continue for quite some time, an unexpected "opportunity," accompanied by enormous risks, quietly arrived.

That day, he went to the Discipline Tower for his routine bi-weekly report. He was greeted by a stern-faced, unfamiliar deacon (a prospective wizard). The report was as oppressive as ever, and towards the end, the deacon casually remarked:

"Apprentice Lowe, according to monitoring, your recent energy fluctuations have stabilized, meeting regulatory expectations. The Discipline Tower, considering your unique spatial affinity, deems prolonged confinement detrimental to your ability development. There is now a low-level cleanup mission assigned by the Academy. The target area is the ruins of the 'Abandoned Ancient Observatory,' seventy miles southeast of the Academy. The spatial structure of this area is relatively stable, with a small number of low-level void worms present. The mission requires clearing the worm nests and retrieving ancient star map fragments (replicas) from the ruins. This mission is within permitted activity areas and is remotely monitored by a formal wizard. Do you accept?"

An abandoned ancient observatory? Fragments of an ancient star map?

Lowe's heart skipped a beat! He instantly recalled what Carlson's notes had vaguely mentioned: that some ancient observatories might be related to "astronomical beacons" and "information reception"! And "star maps" might even have some connection to the "index" of the "Source Library"!

Is this a coincidence? Or... a test from the Tower of Discipline? Or perhaps, a mysterious guidance brought about by the resonance of the stone slabs?

Acceptance means temporarily leaving the academy, this exquisite cage, and having the opportunity to access ancient relics that may be related to the secrets of the stone tablet. However, it also means being completely exposed to the "monitors" assigned by the Discipline Tower, which is extremely risky.

Refusing would ensure safety, but would mean missing out on a potentially crucial clue and continuing to crawl slowly through confinement.

Luo Wei raised his head and met the deacon's emotionless gaze. His mind raced as he weighed the pros and cons.

He knew that his answer would likely lead to a completely different path.