"So...so powerful!"
Lynch involuntarily opened his mouth. Although he had already known about the effects of the Soul Crystal, experiencing this wonderful moment firsthand still filled him with astonishment.
One of the valuable functions of the Soul Crystal was that Wizards could directly absorb the soul energy within it to enhance their soul power and spiritual power.
Ordinary soul materials certainly did not possess this ability, but the Soul Crystal was quite special. Its crystalline exterior had a unique filtering effect, able to filter out soul impurities, leaving only the pure soul energy. That's why Wizards could absorb it directly, making the Soul Crystal so precious.
"Isn't this increase too much?"
In just a moment, Lynch's Spirit Coefficient increased by 0.1. To know that adding such a Spirit Coefficient under normal circumstances would take Lynch several weeks of cultivation. Looking at his Spirit Coefficient, even after two and a half years in the Tower, it barely exceeded 2.
And what he had absorbed was only a small portion of the energy from the Soul Crystal. Who knows how much his Spirit would improve once he absorbed it entirely.
"Is this the allure of resources?"
At this moment, Lynch finally understood why the apprentices from Wizard Families seemed to have extraordinary talent, able to reach levels in a few years or decades that other apprentices couldn't achieve in a lifetime. Truly...
Just as he thought of this, suddenly, a sharp pain surged in Lynch's head.
The pain was abrupt and extremely intense, as if someone had stabbed a Magic Wand into his head and stirred his brain to pieces.
Immediately, some fragmented, unfamiliar scenes inexplicably appeared in Lynch's mind. In these scenes, he was at times a gardener, at times a beggar, at times a knight, and at times a lovelorn girl.
Meanwhile, a variety of voices echoed next to Lynch's ear.
"Will Knight Edward really come tonight? Will he...will he like me? I...I can't wait any longer."
"Please, spare some kindness for this old beggar with a limp."
"For the family, charge!"
These chaotic images and voices filled Lynch's entire head, seemingly about to explode his brain. Shyness, sorrow, passion—various emotions quickly shifted. For a moment, Lynch couldn't tell who he really was.
This condition lasted for several minutes before gradually calming down.
"Huff, huff!" Heavy breathing echoed.
At this moment, Lynch was curled up entirely on the ground, drenched in sweat, his face pale, as if he had just endured a deadly illness.
Parker stopped playing, patting his cheek worriedly with its paw nearby.
After lying there for several more minutes, Lynch finally regained control over his body and slowly got up from the ground.
"I'm fine..." He hoarsely reassured Parker.
Then, he looked at the Soul Crystal in his hand again, his eyes no longer filled with the previous delight and envy but only with intense fear.
"This...this thing..."
He really hadn't expected the side effects of this thing to be so severe. If he had to endure that kind of experience every time he absorbed its energy…then he'd rather skip it. He would prefer to cultivate slowly and live to old age.
"Are the apprentices from Wizard Families monsters?"
In his terror, Lynch also couldn't help but wonder if he was using it the wrong way. Otherwise, Lynch didn't believe that the scene he just experienced was something an ordinary apprentice could withstand. Several more times, and he might mentally collapse.
The fact was that soul energy was an extremely mysterious substance. Even though the soul energy in Soul Crystals had impurities removed, making it absorbable, the absorption method shouldn't be as crude and direct as Lynch's.
The correct method was to absorb it bit by bit, and immediately enter a meditation state to refine it after each absorption. It was strange that Lynch approached it in huge gulps without issues.
Soul Crystals were never meant to directly increase strength but to assist in cultivation.
Even so, excessive use of Soul Crystals and similar substances could still lead to soul fragmentation and mental distortion. Throughout history, there had been many apprentices and Wizards who collapsed mentally due to this.
There's no gain without effort in the Wizard World. It's just that some efforts were visible, while others were not...
"Too reckless." Lynch felt very remorseful.
In fact, it wasn't entirely his fault. After all, materials like the Soul Crystal belonged to Wizard-level resources, and he hadn't had access to detailed information before, with very limited understanding.
"I'll thoroughly research the materials once I get back."
He had already gathered 10 Soul Sparks, making it certain that he would pass the assessment. As an Inner Ring Apprentice, he would have wider access to knowledge. Needless to say, the library alone would offer many insights.
In addition to the Magic Stone allowance, the improvement in living conditions, the change in status, and so on, one could say that the entire apprenticeship would ascend to a new level.
Thinking about it, it's really something to look forward to...
While envisioning a beautiful future, Lynch slowly adjusted his state of mind before putting away the Soul Crystal and beginning to prepare dinner for himself and Parker.
Calling it dinner was really just some dry rations, a pack of jerky, two potatoes, and a flatbread.
The potatoes were roasted on the fire with their skins on, the flatbread was slightly boiled with a bit of water in a small crucible, and the jerky was soaked in the boiled noodle water. For an apprentice like him out in the field, there was no expectation of enjoying any delicious meals.
Chewing on jerky like a candle and hard flatbread, Lynch couldn't help but envy those noble apprentices. Being wealthy, they had some Witchcraft with preservation effects, allowing them to prepare all sorts of delicacies in advance, so even in this wilderness, they could eat tasty snacks.
The powerful wizards were even more extravagant. Lynch had heard of wizards who installed legs on their houses so they could take their homes anywhere they wanted.
With chefs and servants readily available inside the house, they could eat fresh delicacies at any time. Unlike him, who had to eat outdoors in the wilderness, staying in a tent barely sufficient to block the wind, surviving on hard jerky.
The best meal during this outing was those few days when he met Yuri. Yuri's excellent martial arts allowed him to hunt various game in the forest. Fresh ingredients didn't require exquisite cooking skills, just roasting over the fire made for a rare delicacy.
"Gulp～"
Remembering the golden oil trickling down, Lynch couldn't help but swallow his saliva.
"Swoosh!～"
Just then, a night breeze blew by, causing a bush a dozen meters away to suddenly sway.
The Parker on the ground, biting on jerky, seemed to sense something, abruptly raised his head, his round eyes fixating sharply in that direction, baring his teeth.
Lynch froze, was there something?
He had scattered feces from high-level magical beasts, from a Wizard-level Forest Inhabitant, around the clearing. In theory, nothing should dare to approach in this forest, which was at most home to some low-level apprentice-level monsters.
What could it be?
"Swoosh..."
The bush shook even more violently; footsteps could faintly be heard, as if something was gradually approaching. As it got closer, a shadow slowly emerged into a silhouette; it seemed to be... a person?
"Rustle!"
At this moment, a figure walked out from the bushes.
The scant moonlight penetrated the dense canopy, casting directly onto the person's face, revealing big eyes, a pretty face, and a pure appearance—it was Miss Alice, the green tea girl who had traveled with Lynch a few days earlier.
She must have completed her task by now.
The vigilance in Lynch's heart suddenly eased, and he quickly stood up politely, smiled, and greeted: "What a coincidence, Miss Alice."
As he spoke, he glanced around, looking for Yuri's trace, thinking he could mooch another meal today. However, he looked left and right but couldn't see Yuri's figure. Strange, as a conscientious admirer, shouldn't he always attend to her?
So Lynch curiously asked Alice: "Why don't I see Yuri, Miss Alice?"
No response.
Lynch peculiarly found that Alice hadn't spoken a word. Strange, given her personality, so concerned about her image, she should have enthusiastically bounced over, yet from just now until now, she hadn't said a word, her face expressionless...
Face?
It was then that Lynch noticed the expression on Alice's face was quite strange; the face was entirely cold, not a posed expression, just purely cold and stiff, like the hard jerky in his hand.
Her eyes were completely hollow, the pupils entirely dispersed. Lynch didn't know what kind of person could make such an expression because, as far as he knew, only——
The dead!
"Tap tap tap!" Meanwhile, Alice finally walked out from under the canopy to the clearing, her body fully exposed to the moonlight, and Lynch could see her current state clearly.
He saw her cloak was tattered, covered in bloodstains everywhere, her left breast completely missing, a large hole torn in her chest, with her heart organ long shattered.
"Parker!"
Lynch's scalp went numb, and he quickly grabbed his Magic Wand.
"Creak creak creak!"
At the same time, a gnawing creaking sound arose as Alice's body flipped backward, her limbs twisted on the ground, her head hanging down, resembling a human spider, scrambling towards Lynch.