Chinese professors at the Wizarding Academy

"Who is this person? Why haven't they made a move yet? Why are they asking my name?"

Gu Chen's heart was pounding! Countless questions arose in his mind.

The wizard opposite him looked incredibly powerful; he hadn't felt such immense pressure even when facing the Bound Spirit Beast.

Asking about one's own name... perhaps it's because he's of some use to the other person?

That's not right. My low-level wizard, who's only at the first level, is stronger because his spells have been enhanced. How could the other party even see that?

Gu Chen remained silent, unsure of what to say. The opponent's strength was clearly unfathomable. Just by standing still, Gu Chen could feel the somewhat volatile natural magic surrounding him like a docile pet.

This mysterious person appears to be a nature-based wizard, possessing exceptional control over natural magic.

"……Who are you?"

Gu Chen struggled to open his lips, and his lips moved up and down as he uttered a question, his voice weak.

His body was tense, and his left hand was hidden behind his back.

Just kidding, of course I don't want to fight the other side.

Even though I only have one arm left, it's enough to cast spells. When the time comes, I'll activate a shield and run with all my might!

Jump back into the stream!

Thanks to the star trails that have been enhanced by the star-gazing method, my mental and magical power are recovering at an extremely fast speed, and it will be fully recovered in just over ten seconds!

The reason we were so short-handed in the river just now was because everything happened so fast.

But the mysterious man in front of him seemed unfazed by his wariness; his emerald green eyes seemed to pierce through flesh and blood and gaze directly into the soul.

Under the gaze of those eyes, Gu Chen felt as if he had no secrets left. Those eyes held a peaceful light, and when he looked into them, he felt completely calm.

The mysterious man did not answer Gu Chen's question. Instead, he walked forward slowly, his steps light and silent as he stepped on the gravel.

"Death Mist Blade..."

"You're still alive? Ah, I see."

"It's because you stayed in the Black Forest Stream, where the water and ice magic slowed down its corrosive effects on you."

The mysterious man chuckled and said,

His gaze fell again on Gu Chen's right shoulder wound, and he continued speaking.

"The power of soul-corroding has penetrated deep into your bones and is slowly transforming your life force. Have you noticed those white-gray edges? That's one of the characteristics. Ordinary healing spells, even high-level healing incantations, can only repair flesh and blood, but cannot remove this death rooted in the core of your life. If it is delayed, you will gradually stiffen and eventually become a living corpse with consciousness."

"Hmm... your mental strength seems to be only 101 points. Oh, then you can't be a zombie. You'll probably die right away."

His words were like icicles, each one piercing Gu Chen's heart.

Gu Chen then understood why he always felt a numb, peeling sensation at the wound site, in addition to the pain.

"...After saying all that, it seems you don't intend to kill me."

"If you intended to kill me, to take my prey, or even to use me as material, you would have done so long ago."

"Do you have a cure? What do I have to pay for it?"

The person in front of him didn't seem to have any intention of taking his life, or rather, not in the short term. Gu Chen calmed himself down and slowly spoke.

He grasped the implicit information in that statement: the mysterious person recognized this power and might know a solution.

"Just call me Ysera."

"Gu Chen".

Since the mysterious person on the other end had directly stated his name, Gu Chen didn't hide anything and just said it out loud.

If he were in the academy, he would most likely conceal his identity, for example, by making up a pseudonym, such as Faker or Gerard.

But now that my life depends entirely on the other party's attitude, there's no need to do anything to hide it. It's completely unnecessary. Maybe the other party has some way to find out. If I upset them, they might chop me up.

After they introduced themselves, they fell silent.

The atmosphere was a little awkward, with both sides waiting for the other to speak first.

Gu Chen was the first to speak, after all, the other party seemed to be far stronger than him.

Why be cautious? The other side has the ability to kill you directly, so being cautious is useless. You might as well maintain a friendly attitude and try to improve their favorability.

"Greetings, senior. Do you have any way to treat my injuries?"

Gu Chen bowed his head and slightly bent over, one hand behind his back and the other on his abdomen, performing a very standard wizard's salute.

"You're welcome."

Isera approached Gu Chen, squatted down, and looked him in the eye.

This gesture reduced the sense of oppression somewhat, and even made Gu Chen feel a little bit of warmth.

But that calm demeanor, stemming from absolute strength, is still breathtaking.

"Of course there is a solution."

Isera spoke in a flat tone, as if discussing the weather, while the whitish-gray discoloration on her right arm was spreading toward her chest.

"But the process will be very painful, even more so than when you lost your arm. And I need to know if you're worth my time."

"Of course, even if you're not worth it, I can help you temporarily block it, giving you a chance to return to Gray Tower Academy."

worth?

The other party seemed willing to help him, but was clearly not a philanthropist... However, to be fair, this actually put Gu Chen at ease, after all, there's an old saying that what's free is the most expensive.

If the other party really says they'll help him heal for free and don't want anything in return, based on his experience at Gray Tower Academy over the past month, they're most likely planning to use some strange secret technique. He needs to make sure he doesn't have any ulterior motives, or they're just equals and want to trick him into thinking he's a naive fool.

Gu Chen's mind raced, as he retrieved all sorts of information and placed it in his field of vision.

What do I possess that this mysterious expert would find appealing?

Magic stone fragments? Don't be ridiculous. Even if you don't receive a salary from Grey Tower Academy, as long as you reach the second ring, wizards often use complete magic stones as currency or even materials, or even directly absorb magic power.

Gu Chen has yet to see what a complete magic stone looks like.

Knowledge? Don't be ridiculous. Ysera laughed. If wizards want to exchange knowledge and learn from each other, they usually only need to be at the same level or only slightly different. The other party has obviously surpassed him. If you want to compare knowledge, Gu Chen's knowledge is probably like an elementary school student meeting a university professor.

Then... it can only be potential!

Or rather, it was the ruthlessness and unique methods he displayed in dire straits?

When the idea popped into his head, Gu Chen even found it somewhat ridiculous.

There are so many talented people, but I am clearly not one of them.

There are so many people with perseverance, one more won't make a difference.

As for his ruthlessness... he just wanted to survive.

Did he realize that I had mastered the art of star observation?

No...it shouldn't be that bad.

Seeing that the other party remained silent with a gentle smile, Gu Chen had no choice but to speak first:

"My name is Gu Chen, a low-level Blood Wizard of the first ring at Gray Tower Academy."

Gu Chen chose limited honesty.

"In order to avoid being killed by the Gray Tower Academy's assessment, I used the secret techniques of the Blood Wizard to forcibly improve my realm during my apprenticeship. As a result, my talent dropped to the low level of the sixth star, and I couldn't even meditate."

"The new assessment for Gray Tower Academy is in a month. In order to pass the assessment, I risked entering the Black Forest to perform a blood transfusion to try to improve my talent."

"The Blood Transfusion Technique is in the library of Gray Tower Academy. Even the lowest-ranking apprentices can borrow and see it. It's not a secret."

Gu Chen certainly couldn't tell the whole story. He knew exactly how to make the other party believe his lies: tell nine truths followed by one lie.

Of course, there is an even better way: tell nine truths and then leave one sentence unsaid.

Gu Chen concealed the secrets of his star-gazing technique and the blood absorption enhanced by analysis points.

This is something that truly cannot be known to others. Both of these were obtained through the talent of my "mentor," and they concern my own character panel. If others were to find out, they might seize me instantly and refine me!

"Grey Tower Academy..."

Upon hearing the words "Grey Tower Academy," Ysera frowned slightly. After Gu Chen finished speaking, she gently shook her head, a half-smile still playing on her lips.

His tone remained calm and composed, but the sarcasm in his words was impossible to hide.

"Those parasites hiding in the gray tower, only good at grabbing and plundering," Ysera said bluntly.

What Ysera might have just been an expression of dissatisfaction was, in Gu Chen's eyes, a death knell!

What's the meaning of this guy Ysera's attitude? He's so dissatisfied with Grey Tower Academy, but he's from Grey Tower Academy himself! If the guy in front of him was once persecuted and bullied by Grey Tower Academy, and now he's just angry, and there happens to be a wizard from Grey Tower Academy in front of him, and a notorious blood wizard with a terrible reputation at that!

Gu Chen regretted saying he was from Gray Tower Academy, but he didn't have any other reason.

A low-level Blood Wizard who dares to venture into the Black Forest, he can't possibly be some kind of wild wizard, right?

What's more, he also has the Gray Tower's Black Forest License!

Gu Chen felt the flow of magic power within his body... Now that his magic power had been fully restored, if he wanted, he could replicate his battle with Alyssa and Ken, directly unleashing all his magic power to activate Blood Absorption. If a perfect-level spell successfully hit, it would probably be enough for him to jump back into the river...

As for what to do after jumping in, that's not within the scope of consideration.

Fortunately, things didn't turn out the worst.

Ysera changed the subject: "But you're different. I smell something different about you... not just the bloody sweetness of a blood sorcerer, but also a... a sharp edge in the struggle for survival, a kind of unwillingness that comes from the very source of life, especially the way you bit the Shadow Serpent to death at the end, it was very interesting, definitely not the orthodox way of Grey Tower."

"Haha, if a real Grey Tower wizard dared to enter the Black Forest, they would at least go in a group and bring a lot of defensive equipment, and even bring several teleportation scrolls."

Isela smiled gently, and Gu Chen was stunned when he saw her. She was so beautiful that words could hardly describe her. It was as if nature had created a masterpiece, where sunlight and gentleness were perfectly blended together. She was so beautiful that one glance would make you fall in love with her beauty.

But Gu Chen was only stunned for a moment. Otherwise, he wouldn't have controlled the big head with the small head. Now his life and death depended on the other party's thoughts.

Ysera stood up, pointed to the golden oak forest not far away that emanated a strong life force, and then said:

"You're lucky, or rather, you made the right choice. In the heart of this oak forest, there is an ancient 'mother tree,' whose sap contains a vast amount of life essence and is the only cure to expel the deathly aura from your wound and mouth."

Gu Chen's heart sank slightly upon hearing these words. The thing that could save him wasn't some wild plant lying unclaimed in the wilderness, but something in the other party's hands.

"What are the conditions?"

He asked directly, "There is no such thing as kindness without a reason in this world, especially in a place like the Black Forest."

Upon hearing this, Isera looked at Gu Chen with an appreciative gaze and nodded slightly, saying:

"It's so much easier to talk to smart people. You're very interesting. I don't mind taking you in so you can have the chance to absorb the essence of the mother tree and heal your injuries."

"But in the process, you need to answer some questions for me, and you need to be able to withstand the pain of the life essence and death energy clashing in your body. I can't help you with this; you have to do it yourself. If you faint or... collapse halfway through, I will take away everything of value from you."

"Hmm... Ah, I've discovered that. Your mental strength is terrifyingly strong... Although it's not as good as mine, the fact that a low-level first ring has the detection range of a high-level first ring, is there some kind of inheritance?"

Isera's tone remained calm, but her words sent chills down Gu Chen's spine!

How did he know?

No, it's probably normal that they knew... I was using my mental energy to probe them while I was in the stream, so maybe they were detected and saw me in person. It's not surprising that they could draw this conclusion by comparing the two...

My star-gazing method shouldn't have been exposed yet...

Sweat was already dripping from Gu Chen's ears, while Isera simply smiling.

"Don't worry, I have no interest in your methods or lineage."

"We're not on the same path as Gray Tower, don't worry."

"..."

Gu Chen was silent for a moment, then looked up at Isera and agreed.

He had already escaped death, so what's wrong with taking another gamble?

Moreover, if the other party wanted to kill me, they wouldn't need to go to such great lengths!

Let's go then!