Chapter 58: Three Stages, Madness

He carefully put away the pocket watch and placed it within reach on the bedside.

Lying on the bed, Luo En recalled the harvest of the day, and a smile unconsciously appeared at the corners of his mouth.

Intuition told him that this "Time Guardian's Pocket Watch" was far from as simple as it looked on the surface.

"Time Guardian..." he whispered in his heart, slowly closing his eyes and entering a dream.

The first ray of morning sunlight pierced through the mist of the Black Fog Forest, slanting onto the wooden sign of the herb shop.

Luo En got up early and carefully placed those hard-won precious materials into specially made containers.

He felt the special feeling brought by the pocket watch—despite the high-intensity practice the previous night, his body was still as relaxed as usual, without any fatigue.

When heading to the herb shop, he chose a path with few people, cautiously observing the surrounding environment along the way, alert to any possible danger.

Ever since the conflict with the half-orc mercenaries in Lizard Alley last time, Luo En felt that he still needed to be more careful now.

Pushing open the door of the herb shop, the wind chime made a crisp sound.

The light inside the shop was still dim, and the air was filled with the peculiar fragrance of mixed herbs.

Luo En was surprised to find that Lady Ailan was already working behind the counter; she was leaning over a wooden cabinet, organizing something, her long pale hair swaying gently with her movements.

"Come in, I've been waiting for you for a while." Lady Ailan said without raising her head, her voice carrying her consistent hoarseness.

"Sorry, Madam, I didn't mean to be late." Luo En apologized subconsciously, although he was certain he had arrived earlier than the agreed time.

"Late?" Lady Ailan then raised her head, a flash of surprise crossing her dark green eyes, then returning to that sharp gaze that saw through everything:

"You came earlier than usual today; I just arrived earlier, isn't it normal for an old person to get up early? You stinky brat, don't always rush to admit mistakes; this will make others feel you are easy to bully."

She straightened her waist, her spine making a few slight creaking sounds, and walked to the counter with her cane, looking at Luo En with interest:

"So, how was the harvest? Let me see what you brought back."

Luo En took out those carefully packaged containers from his bosom and placed them on the counter one by one.

Each container had been specially treated to ensure the materials inside wouldn't be damaged or contaminated due to movement.

"Moonshadow Bat heart ash, Crystalline Moss, Thirst-Dying Tongue Moss; I have already bought these." He reported simply, his voice calm and confident, without any intention of asking for credit.

Lady Ailan's eyebrows raised slightly, a flash of rare surprise crossing her eyes.

Her fingertips stretched out like an eagle's claw, picking up the crystal bottle containing the Moonshadow Bat heart ash, observing it carefully under the light, her posture like a senior jewelry appraiser examining a suspicious gemstone.

"Quality is good, even quite excellent."

The old witch sniffed it lightly and evaluated, her tone carrying a bit of approval, which was rare for her, who was stingy with praise on weekdays:

"Where did you get these? How much did it cost?"

Luo En simply described his experiences in the Sunset Tavern and Lizard Alley, naturally omitting the conflict with the half-orc mercenaries at the end.

"Bought this quality heart ash for five fragments?"

Lady Ailan said in surprise, an expression of disbelief appearing on her aged face; her fingers covered in wrinkles tapped the counter excitedly:

"That gray dwarf Otto actually gave such a price? He is known for being shrewd; it is said that he even calculates his own deceased mother three times."

"I helped him identify some herbs in exchange."

Luo En explained modestly, trying to downplay his achievements, but a hint of pride couldn't be hidden in his eyes.

"Oh?" Lady Ailan's gaze became sharper, like a sharp knife dissecting fruit, pointing directly to the core:

"Your herb identification ability has reached the level where Otto recognizes it? That old slippery head doesn't look up to just anyone."

Her dark green eyes stared tightly at Luo En, just like an alchemist examining an experimental subject that didn't react according to common sense:

"In just a few months, from a candidate apprentice to possessing this level of herb identification ability... Luo En, your progress speed is surprising, even a bit... unusual."

The old witch said while re-checking the three materials, her movements professional and precise, only putting them into the drawer after confirming they were correct.

"To be honest, I didn't expect you to find these materials so quickly."

Lady Ailan looked directly into Luo En's eyes, her voice serious and earnest, changing from her usual slightly mean tone:

"When I gave you this list, I originally thought you would need at least three months, or even longer, to find one material. My plan was to let you collect them in stages, first teaching you meditation methods that could cultivate to the level of a high-level apprentice, and then continuing to go deeper after you had enough strength."

She paused, her dark green eyes becoming deeper, as if she could see through the mist of time:

"But since you have already reached this step, I won't be stingy. I will teach you all two stages of 'Whispers of the Star Eater'—the part from junior to high-level apprentice, and the part from high-level apprentice breaking through to formal wizard."

Luo En's heartbeat almost missed a beat, and all the blood in his body seemed to accelerate.

This was far more generous than he expected; originally he thought the other party would hold back according to convention, but he didn't expect Lady Ailan to be willing to teach the content of breaking through to a formal wizard.

This level of extraordinary knowledge was strictly confidential within the school and was usually only obtained after signing a contract to serve the school for decades or even a lifetime.

"Thank you very much for your generosity, Madam."

Luo En said sincerely; he could perceive that the help Lady Ailan gave him had far exceeded the ordinary teacher-student relationship, and he could also clearly perceive the deep meaning behind this move.

In the Black Fog Forest, no one would be generous for no reason.

Lady Ailan's cultivation of him was clearly valuing his potential, just like the previous Holt, all investing in his future.

The more she gave, the greater the return she would get from him in the future.

But this relationship purely established on the basis of interest exchange made Luo En feel particularly at ease.

Compared to those hypocritical cares, naked interest relationships were more reliable, because both sides were clear about each other's bottom line and expectations.

"Don't rush to thank me." Lady Ailan's voice interrupted his thoughts, her expression unprecedentedly serious:

"'Whispers of the Star Eater' is not an ordinary meditation method; I said before that it originated from the crazy inspiration of a traveling wizard, and it contains many truths that shouldn't be known and are enough to lead people into madness."

Her expression became abnormally serious, a flash of worry that Luo En had never seen before crossing her eyes:

"This meditation method is divided into three stages. The first stage can let you reach the level of a high-level apprentice, the second stage can help you break through the bottleneck of a formal wizard, as for the third stage..."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 59 =====