Chapter 68

As the topic reached the point, the brown-haired girl's gaze also became sharp:

"In any case, avoid those mentors who specialize in curses. Those lords... only treat the students in their hands as consumables. Over so many years, only one person, Oliver, has survived choosing this type of mentor for five years."

Luo En nodded; this was consistent with his previous judgment.

"One more thing." Princess Yi Fu hesitated for a moment, seemingly considering whether she should say it:

"I'm not sure to what extent your relationship with Lady Ailan has reached, but if she is willing to introduce a mentor to you... that might be the most ideal choice."

Luo En pretended not to notice and looked at Princess Yi Fu, probing: "Lady Ailan? Isn't she just the owner of a herb shop?"

A mysterious smile appeared on Princess Yi Fu's face, but she revealed no key information:

"Do you really think an ordinary herb shop owner could survive independently in the Black Fog Jungle for so many years? And be able to master various unique potion formulas, and perhaps even possess quite a bit of extraordinary knowledge of higher value?"

She stood up and straightened her robe:

"In any case, the choice is in your hands; I'm just providing some reference information. Regarding the potion commission, if you have time to accept the next batch of orders recently, you can contact me at any time."

Before leaving, Princess Yi Fu looked back at him:

"By the way, the one-year probationary apprentice assessment period is almost over, about a month or so left. Do you want to... never mind, the fate of those 'defective products' has nothing to do with us anyway."

Defective products, huh... After sending off the visitor, Luo En touched the increasingly thick fuzz on his chin.

A month ago, he seemed to be such a "defective product" himself, even feeling so anxious every night that he couldn't sleep well.

At that time, he might never have imagined the brilliant prospects of today:

"Progress in all aspects is steadily advancing. Although I have indeed been a bit tired recently, this kind of effort with a visible goal at least gives me something to strive for..."

When his potion master and knight professions complete their advancement and come to a pause, perhaps he could consider buying books like "Alchemy Basics" or "Enchanting Basics" to see if he can open up a few more career paths.

However, for now... Luo En picked up the pocket watch and continued to invest himself in the next round of the cultivation cycle.

Grind hard, grind out a Wizard King... no, a Demon God!

………………

A month passed, the seasons in the Black Fog Jungle changed quietly, the color of the trees became deeper, and the magic fluctuations in the air also became active.

The fog at dawn became thicker, and when sunlight penetrated the canopy, those tiny magic particles flickered in the beams like stars, forming a strange scene.

During this period, Luo En lived a life of near-harsh self-discipline.

Every day before dawn, when most apprentices were still sleeping, he was already up, starting his day's cultivation.

When the first ray of sunlight in the morning spilled into the window, he would sit cross-legged in the center of the room, with a candle for illumination placed in front of him.

The candlelight was not bright, but the dancing flame presented a strange rhythm under Luo En's gaze, as if forming some kind of resonance with his breathing.

"Inhale for seven breaths, hold for three breaths, exhale for five breaths."

This was the basic rhythm of the "Sun Crown Breathing Method." With every breath, Luo En could feel subtle changes occurring in the meridians within his body, as if being stroked by gentle sunlight, gradually becoming more open and resilient.

Every time he inhaled, he felt as if he could absorb the faint essence of sunlight in the air;

Every time he held his breath, that energy would circulate through the meridians in his body;

Every time he exhaled, turbid air and impurities would be cleared out of his body.

The Qi and blood potion refined from materials bought from Lizard Alley, as well as the potion that increased the efficiency of the breathing method, further promoted the efficiency of body tempering through the breathing method.

【Breathing Body Tempering Experience +1】

【Breathing Body Tempering Experience +1】

【Breathing Body Tempering Experience +1】

……

A month of continuous body tempering through the breathing method allowed his physique attribute to grow to a certain extent, and breathing body tempering was also about to break through to the proficient level:

【Physique 1.5 → 1.7】

【Current Progress: Breathing Body Tempering (Entry-level 90/100)】

And after the daily unwavering breathing method cultivation ended, it was the most difficult part—meditation on "The Whisper of the Star Eater."

Lady Ailan's warning about this gem-level meditation method still rang in his ears:

"Spiritual pollution is cumulative. Every meditation brings a certain degree of pollution. If not purified in time, long-term accumulation may cause irreversible damage."

Every time Luo En meditated, he would first construct a complex protective structure composed of dozens of basic runes in his spiritual space, using it as the first line of defense against spiritual pollution.

Only then would he begin the true meditation of "The Whisper of the Star Eater."

In the initial stage of meditation, every time he saw that vast starry sky, with countless living stars flickering in the darkness, an indescribable sense of horror would grow from the bottom of his heart.

The first few times, he always terminated the meditation when he felt intense discomfort, using the "reset" function of the pocket watch to restore his spiritual state.

But as experience accumulated, he gradually learned to persist for longer periods through his own willpower without using external objects.

Every time he resisted the spiritual erosion of those living stars, his spiritual power would improve slightly.

From the initial 2.4, to 2.5, to 2.6... step by step, moving forward steadily.

By the third weekend, his spiritual power had reached 2.8, only one step away from the threshold of a medium apprentice.

At the same time, he did not relax his research on potion-making.

Every afternoon at Lady Ailan's shop, he not only completed his daily tasks but also spent extra time researching more complex formulas.

The special order he helped Princess Yi Fu complete gave him a deeper understanding of the properties of certain rare materials.

Although the progress in potion-making was not as obvious as spiritual power, it was more solid.

His potion refining skill went from being raw at the beginning to now being able to basically master the production process of some advanced potions;

His ability to identify medicinal materials had also greatly improved, and even for some materials mixed with impurities, he could quickly judge their true composition and quality.

"Basic Potion-making," as his core skill, was also almost reaching the mastery stage.

Luo En had a premonition that once this skill broke through to the mastery level, his overall potion-making level would have a qualitative leap.

At night, when most apprentices had finished their day's study, Luo En began his practice of "Sun Crown Sword Art."

Although the room was small, it was enough for him to perform basic sword art practice. For every movement, he strove for precision, perfectly matching the rhythm of the breathing method.

The only regret was that as "Basic Sword Art" got closer and closer to the critical point of the mastery level, the accumulation of experience points became increasingly difficult.

So much so that after practicing diligently for a month, he was still a bit short of breaking through, but he was also about to reach the critical point.

At that time, by quickly improving his physique attribute through potions, he would have the opportunity to choose either 【Bloodline Knight (Two-star)】 or 【Magic Swordsman (Two-and-a-half-star)】 to advance in any direction.

Incidentally, he would verify the conjecture he had always held in his heart—whether different advancement routes could be obtained simultaneously.

………………

Daily cultivation often lasted until late at night, and when he finally lay on the bed, all the muscles in his body were in a state of extreme fatigue.

But the next morning, with the "reset" of the Time Guardian pocket watch, he could start a new round of cultivation in his prime state.

Hard work pays off; this near-crazy cultivation rhythm allowed Luo En's strength to improve tremendously in a short period of time.

On the last day of this month, his spiritual power had reached 2.9, only a sliver away from breaking through to the standard of a medium apprentice.

And the cultivation progress of "The Whisper of the Star Eater" had also increased from less than ten percent initially to nearly half.

Today, he had just finished his breathing method cultivation, and the sweat on his forehead had not yet dried.

After a short rest, he quickly entered the meditation session, and suddenly, the consciousness image before him was torn apart by darkness again:

【Inspiration currently triggered, please maintain high caution!】

(End of chapter)