Wizard: My skills can be upgraded indefinitely.

Chapter 160 Tracking the "Probe"

"Abyss—Shadow—"

As Ian looked at the crystals and thought about the prying shadow energies, a thought gradually became clear.

He carefully used specially made tweezers to pick up the smallest fragment and placed it on the insulated tray in the center of the alchemy table.

Then, he began taking several items out of the materials cabinet.

A small bottle of extract from the cold, damp blood of the Shadow Viper. He had used this when he practiced the Bloodline Purification Technique years ago; it has a great affinity for and recording properties of shadow energy.

A few grams of "silent dust" is an inert powder that can absorb and temporarily store specific energy fluctuations.

Finally, there was a small amount of his own extremely viscous, almost solid "spiritual inert adhesive" that he had mixed with blood essence and some scraps.

He wasn't trying to concoct offensive potions, nor was he making protective items.

He wanted to be a "bait".

A special bait for shadow energy, especially shadow energy with a "spying" intent.

The entire concept originated from his initial analysis of the "Abyss Pollution Neutralizer" project, as well as the fragments of knowledge brought by the [Abyss Soul Contract].

The rules of the abyss possess extremely strong "corrosion" and "contract" characteristics.

Shadow energy, to some extent, is also a form of erosion and concealment of "light" and "existence."

He plans to obtain extremely small amounts of abyssal crystal powder through physical grinding and energy vibration.

This process may be extremely dangerous, but with the panel's filtering and perception guidance, there shouldn't be any unexpected incidents.

Next, they mixed shadow-sensitive materials in an attempt to create a stealthy marker that could attach to the detected energy and "retract" along with it.

The marker itself is extremely faint and harmless, and is almost impossible to detect by conventional means.

However, once the attachment is successful, Ian can use the panel's special sensing ability to detect the abyss to vaguely perceive the location of the marked person within a certain range.

It might even be possible to "smell" some characteristics of the other party's spiritual power.

This is an extremely risky and opportunistic attempt, with an unknown success rate and a considerable risk of backlash.

But Ian thought it was worth a try.

"Hehe, keep watch around for me, especially around windows and door cracks. If you see any unusual fluctuations in shadow energy, tell me immediately."

Ian gave the order, while holding his breath and concentrating his mental energy.

They began by handling the abyssal crystal fragment extremely slowly and with utmost care.

Instead of using conventional alchemy methods, he performed a delicate surgical procedure, guiding a weak cutting energy with his mental power to carefully peel off particles finer than dust from the edges of the fragments.

Gaga immediately got into character, silently blending into the shadows of the room.

His heterochromatic eyes glowed faintly, taking in all the shadows of the entire residence.

As a future shadow messenger, its reconnaissance capabilities far surpass those of its peers in this environment.

"Got it, Ian. There are bugs." Again, they won't escape my eyes—and nose! Caw!

Time passed by, second by second, amidst tension and focus.

Fine beads of sweat gradually appeared on Ian's forehead.

Dealing with even the smallest amount of abyssal crystal caused him a slight stinging sensation and a whispering echo in his mind.

Fortunately, the panel's purification capabilities remained stable, minimizing the negative impact.

Finally, a small amount of powder shimmering with a dark purple glow was prepared and carefully mixed into the matrix.

A tiny crystal "needle," only an inch long and containing a dark fluid inside, slowly takes shape with the help of alchemy tools.

It has no sharp edge and a rounded top, making it look more like a miniature seal.

Ian picked it up and held it towards the window.

There, the traces that had been previously detected were most obvious.

"Using shadows as a guide, and the abyss as a seal—"

He chanted a hastily conceived trigger incantation in a low voice, his mental energy wrapping around the "needle" like silk threads.

"Buzz—"

After a faint, almost imperceptible tremor, the "needle" quietly disappeared.

It transformed into an invisible force field, carrying subtle abyssal fluctuations, covering an extremely limited area around the window.

It's like a thin, sticky spider web, quietly waiting for the next reckless "shadow fly" to crash into it.

After doing all this, Ian let out a long sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"The bait has been laid."

He looked out the window at the deep night, his eyes calm yet cold.

"Now, let's see which bug can't resist taking another bite."

After dealing with the abyssal crystal powder, Ian put away his things, calmed his mind, and continued meditating.

The panel's filtering remained stable, and the faint connection between the spiritual sea and the abyss continued with the [Starry Sky Festival].

It continues to operate.

Each time I meditate, the pure essence of the abyss spirit flows in intermittently, and is completely absorbed and refined by myself.

"The channels for exploiting loopholes have stabilized."

Ian knew that this would be an important accelerator in his cultivation, but it wasn't enough.

On the panel, the proficiency of [Concentration Potion] is still a little short of breaking the limit, but it doesn't matter.

If the improvement is successful, the proficiency will increase significantly, just like when the [Rock Bear Potion] was improved.

However, when it comes to Tier 1 potions, it is no longer a simple matter of piling up materials, especially when Tier 1 modifications are involved.

His design concept had already taken root in his mind when he first saw the first-tier bloodline potion formula.

In particular, the combination of "the earth's energy accumulated over a century" and "the vitality of dawn dew" to temper the wildness of nature greatly inspired him.

Now, he is applying this idea to the improvement of psychotropic drugs.

The core of the zero-level [Concentration Potion] lies in "organizing" and "refining" the spirit.

It acts like a gentle comb, helping wizards smooth out the rough edges of their spiritual power, making it easier to control and grow.

But at the first level, a wizard's spiritual power has transformed from nothingness into mist, liquefaction, and even the pursuit of a higher level of solidification.

Simply "organizing" and "refining" is no longer enough; we need to introduce more active "activity" or "resilience."

Ian's goal is to add the property of "gently stimulating mental activity" to the potion while retaining its original function of "stabilizing the mind and aiding in the refinement of spirit".

This requires the introduction of new materials that can accommodate these properties.

Ian searched through the catalog of available Tier 1 materials and finally narrowed it down to two likely alternative auxiliary materials.

One type is the sap of the "Living Vine" plant, which is known for its mild stimulating effect on mental vitality, but its drawback is that it can easily cause mental restlessness.

Another type is "Starlight Sand," which contains a faint amount of star power and can passively nourish spiritual power, but its grade is too low.

He did not choose any of them as a direct alternative.

He remembered what Alyvia had said in class.

"The potion master's task is not to mechanically reproduce the recipe, but to understand the resonance of the materials' frequencies, the possibilities of conflict and transformation, and to guide them to merge in the desired direction —"

He also recalled the epiphany he had when he improved the [Rock Bear Potion].

It contains agility within its weight, and resilience within its hardness.

The key is to find a "guiding medium" to harmonize seemingly conflicting energies.

"So, regarding the [Concentration Potion], what is the key to achieving both 'concentration' and 'activity'?"

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