Wizard: Surviving in the Steam Age with Points for Demon Hunter

Chapter 86 Anomaly ID 337

As the last bell tolls before nightfall, the lights along the golden avenue are lit.

The lamplighter, dressed in black, still fervently sang: "Praise be to the dawn."

Unlike before, the golden avenue was now brightly lit, and the guardians of the Kremlin Cathedral had blocked off both sides of the road.

No one is allowed to watch, not even believers of Dawn.

At number 45, midway down Golden Avenue, a group of clergymen dressed in silver-white armor with gold trim knelt on one knee, facing the Morris Clinic.

Melbell, standing at the front of the procession, respectfully said, "Your Majesty, please follow me to the church."

Across from them stood a bewildered Carly. "Melbel, I'll go to the celebration, but please let me stay here."

"You represent the majesty of dawn, so please take this seriously."

"I..." Carly looked at Euan beside her and hesitated before saying, "Wait a moment, I need to say a few words to my father."

"Yes, ma'am."

Melbell stood up, her eyes beneath the mask sweeping calmly around the group before she waved her hand dismissively, signaling the team to step back.

[You are in a place bathed in the light of dawn. Because your spirit level exceeds 80, you have successfully resisted the erosion of the power of the dawn's faith. Evaluation: Dawn is everywhere! Special Reward: Survival Points +3, Spirit Level +1.]

Why have the sarcastic comments on the panel turned into Claire's style?

At this moment, Wei En, who was hiding behind the attic window, looked at the information on the panel with frustration.

Oh shit,

He just wanted to be a quiet teenager, so why are so many people bothering him?

Although he knew the reason for this scene outside was probably that Melbell and the others wanted Carly to prepare for tomorrow's welcoming ceremony in advance.

But was it necessary to make such a big fuss?

Just like tomorrow's welcoming ceremony and gala celebration, she is only a candidate for sainthood, not a real sainthood yet. Is it really necessary to publicize her so grandly?

Fortunately for Wern, Claire left before the Dawn Clerics blocked Golden Street.

Otherwise, given Melbell's domineering and forceful style, once he sensed her presence—he didn't know if Claire was alright, but he was definitely dead.

Not long after, Carly's gentle voice came from outside the window: "Let's go."

"Welcome, Your Majesty."

The clergy of the Church of Dawn spoke in unison, but not loudly; instead, they possessed a solemn and weighty quality, as if they were chanting hymns, a mixture of joy and praise…

Wayne glanced over discreetly and saw Carly already walking out, surrounded by Melbell and the others.

Only Yu'an stood there watching their retreating figures, his expression a mix of bitterness, confusion, bewilderment, and anger...

For a moment, he noticed that Yuan's face looked much older, with only his blond hair, the same as Carly's, stubbornly swaying under the rising red moon.

dawn……

It's a troublesome and domineering entity.

With that in mind, Wayne opened the panel, checked the current attributes, and prepared to plan an improvement strategy.

Name: Wayne Loft

Bloodline: Salut people

Occupation: Wizard Apprentice (Intermediate)

Toughness rating: 53

Spiritual Level: 97.5

Origin: 19 (20) (1 point of Origin sealed)

Talent: None

Specialty: Ballistics Control – The ability to modify or control the trajectory of firearms.

Partner Contract: Increases wound healing speed and physical recovery rate. Strong feelings of longing for your partner will instantly bring you to their side. (Calamity Species)

技能：幽魂冥想法2级（0/100），贡萨雷斯语熟练（0/100），枪术专家（72/1000），噬灵法术2级（0/50），亡灵召唤法术2级（0/50），机械之匣符文（死神）2级（0/500）

Runeology Knowledge Tree: Runeology Introduction (5/10 runes), Soul Eater Rune max level, Necromancer Spell Rune max level, Death God Olane's Rune max level, Chest of Machines Rune (Death God) max level.

Potions Knowledge Tree: Introduction to Potions (3/10), Enlightenment Potions (max level), Healing Potions (max level), Mental Defense Potions (max level)

Survival Point: 485

Your mental level is 97.5?

Wayne was the first to notice this.

If he remembers correctly, one of the requirements for advancing to a higher wizard apprenticeship is having a mental level of 100.

Another condition is to construct the prototype of the spell system, that is, to imprint runes on the original sub-body.

"Still 2.5 spirit levels away..."

After a moment's thought, Wayne took out a quill and wrote the first item on the parchment: Advance to Senior Wizard Apprentice.

The second item is that Ghost Meditation and Soul Devouring Spells are upgraded to level 3.

Article 3: Progressing from beginner to expert levels in runic arts and potion-making...

These all add up to a total of 270 points.

"215 survival points remaining..."

In addition to the rewards gained from upgrading various abilities, you should have around 250 survival points to use for upgrading spell levels.

After considering all this, Wayne opened the panel and clicked on the Ghostly Meditation Technique.

Ghostly Meditation Method 1/100, 2/100...

[Ghostly Meditation Technique Level 2 (100/100), upgrade?]

【Yes. 】

[Congratulations! Your skill, Ghostly Meditation, has been upgraded to level 3. Effect: 0.04 Spirit Levels/1 hour.]

0.04?

It doubled??

That means...

Before Wayne could react, the familiar whispers rang in his ears again, "Apu, Runo, Reese, Os, Sjun, Texie..."

Chaos, despair, death, darkness, destruction, abyss...

Then, his eyes glazed over, his head slowly drooped, and a strange smile appeared on his face. "One head, two heads, three heads, four heads..."

……

……

In the endless darkness, a massive, thick tree burst through the void and soared into the sky, its countless twisted and withered branches spreading outwards and taking root throughout the world.

An ugly face appeared on the tree trunk, as if it had undergone countless evolutions. The face had only one closed eye and a huge, gaping maw with sharp teeth.

Countless tiny twigs emerged from its mouth, as soft as silk threads, exploring forward.

Gradually, the face became clearer and detached from the tree trunk.

It had a head with only eyes and a mouth, and grew hands made of countless branches, as well as two unusually thick, beast-like legs.

The monster's form became increasingly clear, outlining a twisted beauty.

Its skin was pale, cracked like a rotten tree trunk, with countless tentacles hanging down naturally, and its body covered with densely packed, tightly closed eyes.

Meanwhile, on his chest and abdomen, Wayne was draped around the waist by a long tongue, sleeping peacefully.

He felt his body enveloped in warmth, which was very comfortable and satisfying...

After an unknown amount of time, the entire dark space slowly turned into nothingness, the eerie monster merged into the tree trunk, and the huge tree shrank into a ball, turning into a point and merging into Wayne's body.

[You have successfully withstood the erosion of the unknown entity's essence, and your essential characteristics have mutated. Special rewards: Essence +3, Spirit Level +3, Resilience Level +3.]

[Congratulations! Your profession: Wizard, level upgraded to Advanced Apprentice! Special rewards: Survival Points +3, Spirit Level +5.]

Wei En slowly opened his eyes, took in the scene around him, and murmured, "Little Axi has become four..."

Ghost: "Baba."

Driver: "Baba."

The newborn little Asi: "Si Jun'en".

The newborn little Asi: "Texi".

Four heads, floating in pairs facing each other in the air.

Wayne easily distinguished between the ghost and the driver; the runic branding on their foreheads was clearly visible.

The two newborn little Asi could only open their mouths blankly and recite meditation incantations.

"I didn't expect that when the meditation technique was upgraded to level 3, four primordial sub-bodies would appear instead of three..."

Wei En shook his somewhat dazed head, got up from the ground, and glanced at the clock—8 p.m.

He was unconscious for two hours?

Wei En frowned. This time it took longer than before.

He then opened the panel and started looking through it.

"They've already been promoted to advanced level? That's good news..."

He thought he would be able to advance after improving his Soul Devouring Spell, but he didn't expect the Meditation Spell to give him so many points as a reward.

Meditation...Erosion of fundamental characteristics...

The image of falling into a deep sleep flashed through Wei En's mind; the dreamlike scene had become his memory.

A withered, towering tree, a twisted monster, and him bound by a tongue...

What kind of unknown existence is it?

Previously, his face had only appeared on his abdomen, but this time he was being suspended by a tongue formed from the branch.

What about next time?

You can't exactly put his whole body in your mouth...

Just thinking about that scene sent chills down Wei En's spine; he always felt that the Ghost's Soul Devouring Technique was far too abnormal.

While it's unclear what other schools of meditation are like, the Ghost's meditation is definitely one of the most bizarre.

I wonder if other wizards in the Ghost School also do this when improving their meditation skills.

Thinking this, Wayne shifted his gaze to the metal card on the table. It seemed that Claire had mentioned that there would be school wizards in the Nightmare Realm.

If possible, you could try asking a Ghost School wizard inside.

It's worth it no matter how much money it costs!

……

……

Meanwhile, somewhere on the northern continent, far from the city-state of Caster, a fairytale-like castle stands atop a snowy mountain.

The castle's outer walls are made entirely of crystal-clear ice blocks, each emitting a faint blue glow.

Under the glow of the red moon, the ice blocks shimmered like rubies, casting a faint red light that illuminated the surrounding snow and ice.

The majestic castle tower stands in the center of the castle, overlooking the magnificent scenery of the entire glacier mountain range, with its snow-capped peaks and alternating peaks, resembling a fairyland.

"The 113759431st Red Moon Contamination Experiment: The contamination directly penetrated the body, and after being briefly resisted by the soul, it descended upon the very essence..."

"Conclusion: Flesh and blood are utterly incapable of resisting the corruption of the Crimson Moon; the soul's self-protection can partially weaken the corruption's effects; only primal power can withstand it..."

At the top of the tower, in a laboratory filled with sophisticated instruments, two wizards dressed in black robes were looking at the contents of a parchment.

Their exposed skeletal arms and heads show that they had abandoned their bodies and permanently become undead creatures.

"Should we still vigorously promote the Soul Devouring Spell, relying on the power of origin?"

"It seems like this is the only way at the moment."

"Then... let's proceed with this conclusion and revise the school's teaching guidelines accordingly, Bolas?"

"Sure, but..."

Bolas raised his gleaming skull head, pointed a bone finger at a spot on the parchment, and said, "Annep, have you noticed this?"

"Um?"

Annep glanced at it, a few red glints flashing in his dark eyes. "The extracted Red Moon pollution increased by one percentage point?"

Bolas slowly said, "Hmm, I think this isn't because Red Moon has set its sights on the Northern Continent, but rather..."

"So you mean its power has increased?"

"Um."

Annep had considered this possibility as well. "It seems that the research direction arranged by the school a long time ago was correct; the Red Moon is more dangerous than Dawn. So, what do you plan to do?"

"Let's change our research direction next..."

Clang, clang clang...

"Huh? What's going on? Who tolled the death knell?" Bolas's voice was icy cold, as if he was annoyed that someone had interrupted his thoughts.

Annep listened intently for a moment, then said, "Alright, let's call it a day. We'll gather them tomorrow to report on our research findings and then make a decision."

"That's the only way..."

While the two skeleton wizards were worrying about the results of their research on the Red Moon's pollution, somewhere at the bottom of the Ice and Snow Castle, chaos had already broken out.

"Anomaly ID 337, Wizard ID 10038234, Wayne Loft,"

"His identity is an intelligence officer for the Caster City-State of the Kingdom of Chartran in the Eastern Continent..."

"Abnormality Description: Advancement from Elementary Apprentice to Advanced Apprentice within one week, number of Primal Sub-bodies greater than two, Meditation Technique level greater than 1, suspected to be a secret magic system..."

Khedir Khan Harrison, the administrator of the Ghost School's apprenticeship administration, sweated profusely as he reported, "Grand Wizard Sheldon, this is the reason why the death knell tolled."

"Advanced to advanced apprenticeship within a week...?"

Sheldon had a handsome face, and it was hard to believe he was 163 years old. He was wearing a faded robe. "Interesting."

Kadir Khan thought to himself, "Of course it's interesting."

Since the Fifth Age, I have never seen an apprentice advance to a higher level within six months...

"Sir, what should we do now?"

Sheldon glanced at him. "Send someone to check on his condition first. I remember Olivia is in Chalta, right?"

"Yes, because of the experimental accident last time... she has been transferred to Crand for two whole years."

"Has it been two years already?"

Sheldon chuckled, "Then let her go to Caster to check on that person's unusual condition. And tell her that she's allowed to return to the snowfield after the mission is complete."

"clear,"

Kadir Khan hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Well, according to the school's rules, intelligence officers who advance to the rank of advanced apprentice receive a reward..."

"Distribute them as normal. We'll decide on the rest after Olivia confirms that he hasn't been corrupted by other forces."

Sheldon glanced out the window. "In the Fifth Forbidden Era, the emergence of such a genius—I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing. I can only hope that he..."

P.S.: There will be more tonight, thank you all for your support.

(End of this chapter)