Chapter 64: We Can't Hold On Much Longer

Returning to the dormitory, Luo En carefully locked the doors and windows, checked the trap marks he set up last night, and confirmed that everything was fine before relaxing slightly.

He decided to try the meditation of [Star-Eater's Babble] again tonight, but was more cautious, trying to avoid triggering that kind of strong inspiration.

Luo En rearranged the protective runes in the four corners of the room, lit the special calming incense, and then took out the silver pocket watch and placed it by his side, just in case.

"Be steady, don't be eager for success." He reminded himself, then sat cross-legged and closed his eyes.

This time, he didn't immediately try to build a complete meditation rune, but started from basic meditation, letting spiritual power flow along the familiar path, forming a stable basic state.

When he felt that the state was good, he began to try to transition to the structure of [Star-Eater's Babble], every step cautious, for fear of triggering the strong inspiration like last night again.

As the rune structure gradually took shape, Luo En could feel that the quality of spiritual power was undergoing subtle changes.

Unlike the peaceful and gentle feeling in basic meditation, the spiritual power guided by [Star-Eater's Babble] was sharper and more active, as if turning calm lake water into a rushing torrent.

This change brought him a strange feeling—thinking became sharper, perception became more sensitive, and he could even capture the subtle magical power fluctuations in the air in the room.

At the same time, he also felt a trace of vague mental abnormality.

Unlike the intensity that almost drove him crazy last night, today's pollution was more like a background noise, faint, but always present.

[[Star-Eater's Babble] EXP +1]

"Sure enough, as long as I don't actively stimulate that kind of inspiration, although the meditation progress will be slower, the spiritual pollution will also be much weaker. The reason it was so dangerous last time should be that the [Spiritual Circulation] trait made the meditation method progress too fast, which triggered the inspiration."

Luo En whispered in his heart.

He focused his attention on the stable rune structure taught by Lady Ailan, not deliberately pursuing those deep fields that might bring inspiration.

However, despite the relatively light spiritual pollution, Luo En still decided to use the Time Guardian's Pocket Watch for purification.

He closed his eyes, focused on feeling the vague sense of pollution, and then guided them into the pocket watch.

[Successful reset of negative state: Mild spiritual pollution, Energy -2]

As the pocket watch absorbed the spiritual pollution, Luo En felt his mind become clearer and clearer.

The subtle discomfort during meditation just now disappeared completely, replaced by a relaxed and pleasant state.

"Not bad, even if it's steady cultivation, combined with the pocket watch, it can maintain a very considerable progress speed." Luo En nodded in satisfaction.

He looked out the window; the night was deep, but his spirit was abnormally clear.

This might be a side effect brought by [Star-Eater's Babble]; after spiritual power improved, the required sleep time also decreased accordingly.

Luo En immediately began a comprehensive inventory of his own situation, without blind optimism, facing possible dangers and difficulties:

[Luo En Ralph]

[Age: 15]

[Current Combat Job: Wizard Apprentice (One and a Half Stars), Knight Attendant (One Star)]

[Current Life Job: Potion Apprentice (One Star)]

[Attributes: Constitution 1.5, Spirit 2.6, Magic Power 0.7]

[Skills: Basic Potionology (Proficient), [Star-Eater's Babble] (Proficient), Zero-Ring Mucus Splash (Proficient max), Potion Refining (Novice), Herb Identification (Proficient), Basic Sword Art (Proficient), Breathing Body-Forging (Novice), Spell Construction (Novice), Spiritual Interference (Novice), Sonic Oscillation (Proficient)]

[Special Talent: Dual Soul, Sun-Day Protection (Residual)]

[Strength Level: Primary Apprentice]

Unknowingly, the progress of various skills was visible to the naked eye.

From Basic Potionology to [Star-Eater's Babble], from Herb Identification to Basic Sword Art, every item was steadily improving.

Especially Basic Sword Art, with the help of the Time Guardian's Pocket Watch, the progress had reached nearly half of the Proficient level, and it was not far from the next qualitative change.

"Even with the most conservative estimate, at this speed, I should become an intermediate apprentice within two months."

Luo En whispered to himself in his heart: "According to the estimate, reaching 3.0 in spiritual power should be enough to cross the threshold of

These achievements would be enough to make any apprentice proud and complacent, yet he became increasingly cautious.

Just as Lady Ellen had warned, the more gifted one is, the easier it is to fail due to arrogance.

"Stay vigilant, especially in monitoring your own mental state."

Having finished recording, he took out his silver pocket watch, preparing to begin tonight's cultivation cycle.

Although the day's work had consumed a great deal of energy, the pocket watch's ability allowed him to easily reset this negative state.

[Successfully absorbed negative state: Fatigue, Energy -1]

After the reset was complete, Luo En no longer felt a hint of exhaustion; instead, he was full of energy, as if he had just woken from a good sleep.

"The ability of this pocket watch is truly convenient."

He picked up his ironwood sword and began his nightly swordsmanship training, striving for precision and fluidity in every movement, perfectly integrating the Solar Corona Breathing Technique with his swordplay.

The sword light flickered in the dim room like a dark fish, graceful and lethal.

The training lasted for two hours, and once the soreness in his muscles reached a certain point, Luo En used the pocket watch to reset again.

The repetitive cycle of training-reset-training allowed his foundational swordsmanship experience to accumulate steadily.

Ending his cultivation, he dreamed in his sleep that he was wandering through a sea of stars; those murmurs lingered in his ears, and although their meaning remained vague, they were certainly no longer just unintelligible noise.

………………

Kingdom of Faruk, Earl Ralph's estate.

The winter sun was pale and weak, shining obliquely through the study's tall windows, yet it could not dispel the heavy atmosphere within the room.

Earl Ralph sat before his desk, his brows tightly furrowed; the ledger spread out before him was like an insurmountable mountain.

The fire in the fireplace crackled faintly, barely adding a touch of vitality to the solemn space.

"Father, we need to talk."

A tall, upright young man pushed the door open; this was Luo En's eldest brother, Edmond, the heir to the Ralph family and now the primary manager of family affairs.

The Earl looked up, his once-sharp eyes now bloodshot, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes marking the passage of time: "What is the problem now?"

Edmond sat in the chair opposite his father and took a deep breath:

"The wheat fields on the west side have had poor harvests for three consecutive years, and last year's plague took away a quarter of the serfs; the estate's expenses far exceed its income, especially..."

He paused, carefully weighing his words: "Especially the magic stone fragments sent to Luo En every month, which have pushed our finances to the brink of collapse."

The Earl's eyes flickered, but he quickly returned to a state of calm: "What are you trying to say?"

"Father, you mortgaged the eastern vineyard last month, and this month you sold off the silverware grandmother left behind, all to scrape together those ten magic stone fragments."