The ventilation window of the Detention Room was very small, only letting in a sliver of daylight.
But for Ron now, this was more than enough.
In this stone chamber of only about ten square meters, there was but a simple wooden bed, a bucket for waste, and a slanted wooden table missing a leg.
Yet this simple environment instead allowed him to focus more on cultivation.
"It's actually a good place for quiet cultivation." Ron smiled self-deprecatingly.
The management of detainees by the Law Enforcement Team was still relatively lenient. Who knows if it's because Holt exerted some influence behind the scenes.
Every day a somewhat adequate meal was delivered punctually to the Detention Room, and they were even allowed to keep some personal items—of course, these items had been strictly inspected to ensure they posed no safety hazards.
Ron took out Darrend's notebook from his pocket and studied it carefully in the dim light.
Now he had a deeper understanding of the conception of Sound Wave Magic.
Especially through this period's insight into "Rhythm," he noticed many details he hadn't before.
[Sound Wave Vibration (Prototype) Experience Points + 3]
[Current Progress: Sound Wave Vibration (Prototype 87/100)]
"The key is here..."
He finally understood why Darrend had hit a bottleneck in his research.
In fact, the initial approach of using musical notes to perfect the Sound Wave Magic was undoubtedly correct, but this process was clearly laborious.
After repeated setbacks, Darrend, pressed by time, attempted to use external force to enhance the output of Spiritual Power.
By abandoning the correct path at the beginning, he ended up taking it to extremes, resulting in tragedy.
Just like how the Crown Breathing Technique imitates the movement of the sun, this Sound Wave Magic should also find its own rhythm.
Setting aside the notebook, Ron began his daily meditation.
In this environment isolated from the outside world, his mind reached an unprecedented level of concentration.
[Basic Meditation Start]
[Trigger Special Effect: Intense Focus—This Meditation Effect Enhances]
[Basic Meditation Experience Points + 1]
[Basic Meditation Experience Points + 1]
[Basic Meditation Experience Points + 1]
...
[Current Progress: Basic Meditation (Beginner 93/100)]
In the Consciousness Space, the rune composed of three arcs became increasingly clear.
Unlike the previous rigidity, the current rune seemed to carry a certain lively rhythm.
Every flow of Spiritual Power became exceptionally smooth, as if finding the most suitable path.
Ron could feel that he was not far from a breakthrough.
......
On the penultimate day in the Detention Room, Ron completed his routine morning meditation.
Two weeks of isolation from the world had brought his Spiritual Power to an unprecedented new height.
This barren and confined environment instead allowed him to focus more on exploring his inner world.
As he immersed himself into the Consciousness Space, the basic rune composed of three arcs became exceptionally clear, almost tangible.
Every arc slightly trembled, and each node emitted a gentle glow.
Ron could sense that he stood on some critical point, needing only a slight push to break through that invisible barrier.
He took a deep breath, concentrating all his attention on the rune.
Unlike the mechanical control of the past, this time he tried to resonate with the rune, allowing his consciousness to fully integrate into it.
At that moment, Ron suddenly understood—the essence of the Basic Meditation Technique lay not in controlling the rune, but in becoming the rune.
With this insight, the rune in the Consciousness Space began to vibrate intensely, emitting unprecedented brilliance.
Spiritual Power, like a flood breaking through a dam, surged and roared as if having found the most suitable way of flowing.
[Basic Meditation Breakthrough!]
[Basic Meditation Experience Points + 1]
[Basic Meditation (Beginner 99/100) → Basic Meditation (Proficient-max)]
[Acquired Additional Traits:
Spiritual Flow (when changing to a higher tier Meditation Technique, you can directly retain experience points to proficient level)]
Reaching proficiency seemed to be the limit for Basic Meditation, a slight sense of regret crossed his mind.
But the breakthrough did not stop there; Ron felt his internal Spiritual Power undergoing an unprecedented qualitative transformation.
The originally disorderly Spiritual Power was now spontaneously reorganizing according to some mysterious order, forming a more stable and purer energy structure.
In the Consciousness Space, streams of light began to emerge from the rune, weaving into a network in his consciousness world, forming a brand-new Spiritual Force Field.
This change was not only happening internally; Ron's perception ability was also rapidly improving.
Every detail of the Detention Room, even the faint energy fluctuation outside the walls, vividly etched into his perception.
[Spiritual Power Qualitative Transformation Complete]
[Spirit: 1.6→2.0]
[Power Level Improvement: Knight's Squire→Elementary Apprentice]
The crossing of the 2.0 threshold by his Spiritual Power meant he had officially reached the standard of an Elementary Apprentice.
The change was not just an increase in numbers but a qualitative leap in strength.
His consciousness became exceptionally clear, the speed and breadth of thinking greatly improved, and even his perception of the outside world became unprecedentedly keen.
More surprisingly, Ron suddenly found himself able to perceive a novel ability
—Spiritual Power was no longer just energy circulating internally but could now extend outward as waves, exerting tangible effects on living beings.
Was this the Spiritual Interference ability Marcus used on him that day?
Ron tentatively released a small stream of Spiritual Power outward, feeling its flow through the air.
The feeling was both wondrous and unfamiliar, as natural as breathing from birth, yet full of novelty.
Under his control, the Spiritual Power easily formed a weak interference wave radiating outward.
"I see..."
Ron murmured, realizing that this ability did not require deliberate learning but was an instinctual mastery when one's Spiritual Power reached a certain level.
Just as a baby does not need to consciously learn how to swallow, a Wizard Apprentice would naturally learn how to release Spiritual Power outward.
The instinctual ability to interfere with spirits was very frightening to most Extraordinary Professionals who did not train in Spiritual Power, easily disrupting their thought processes.
But with opponents who are also apprentices, the specific effect depended on the disparity in Spiritual Power between the two.
In the space before him, a semi-transparent information panel automatically appeared:
[Spiritual Power Reached 2.0√]
[Basic Meditation Technique Reached Proficient√]
[Unlocked Combat Profession - Wizard Apprentice (One and a Half Stars) Transition Information]
[Wizard Apprentice (One and a Half Stars)]
[Transition Conditions:
1. Spiritual Power Reached 2.0√
2. Basic Meditation Technique Reached Proficient√
3. Mastered a Magic Skill to Proficiency]
[After Transition:
1. Attribute Growth
2. Unlock Basic Profession Skills—Magic Construction, Spiritual Interference
3. Special Additions:
Increase in Magic Skills Experience Points acquisition speed
Slight increase in speed of Spiritual Power enhancement
Slight increase in Magic Capacity and recovery speed]