Translator: AnubisTL
After a moment's contemplation, Jieming made his decision.
"Mentor," Jieming said, his voice firm and clear, "I've decided. I choose a demon plane."
Mentor Clark nodded silently, seemingly unsurprised by this choice.
"An excellent choice. I'll immediately contact the Elosia Plane's administrator to arrange the necessary procedures. The detailed coordinates and information about the plane will be sent to you shortly. Remember, regardless of which plane you choose, you must explore and master it yourself. This is the true path of a wizard."
"Yes, Mentor," Jieming replied, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
He then recalled the information Amy and Victor had shared earlier. "Mentor, does this administrator you mentioned refer to the future dean of the Elosia Plane?"
"I see you've already heard the news," Clark said calmly, nodding. "Yes, he's a newly promoted seventh-tier wizard who recently retired from the battlefield. With a mandatory rotation period of several thousand years, he's almost certainly the future overall administrator of the Elosia Plane."
Jieming, however, had another question on his mind. "So... after the rest period ends, what's next for us? Will we be going to the Star Ring Federation?"
He vividly remembered that the Noren Workshop had initiated this trial because of some major developments within the Star Ring Federation.
Yet, after the trial concluded, everyone seemed to have forgotten about it. The entire event now felt more like a recruitment drive for faculty at the new academy.
"Ah, that..." Clark chuckled. "Don't worry about it for now. Given the federation's old-timers' penchant for preemptive planning, they probably started spreading rumors centuries in advance. You won't be needed anytime soon."
"The workshop's decision to establish a new Noren Academy on the Elosia Plane is likely just a way to 'recycle' you 'waste products.'"
Jieming's expression turned wry. "We haven't exactly been relegated to the ranks of 'waste products' yet, have we?"
"Just grasp the underlying meaning," Clark replied.
Clark studied Jieming through the communication screen, a smile tugging at his lips. "Besides, even if something urgent did arise, your current strength wouldn't qualify you for involvement. Instead of dwelling on such matters, you'd be better off focusing on improving your abilities."
Jieming scratched his head, knowing Clark was right.
Given the sheer scale of the Star Ring Federation, a first-tier novice wizard like himself simply wouldn't qualify for any significant roles.
Clark, however, remained unfazed. He had been through this phase himself.
Young, ambitious wizards often overestimate their abilities, eager to prove themselves and make a name for themselves.
Compared to some newcomers who had grown arrogant after a single trial, Jieming, who had been diligently focused on his studies, was practically the "model child" of the workshop.
"Also, according to the workshop's decision, even after your rest period ends, there's no need to rush to the frontline."
"Huh?" Jieming blinked in surprise. "What about the contract...?"
"The workshop's contracts aren't as rigid as you think," Clark said casually. "Participating in the Planar War on the Elosia Plane can offset part of your military service."
"And according to workshop regulations, wizards who have completed a war are entitled to a rest period ranging from six months to five years. So after these initial six months, you can choose to extend your rest period for another six months to five years."
"You can do that?" Jieming was dumbfounded.
Clark's lips curled into a smirk. "The workshop trains you to become stronger wizards. The so-called military service is just to put some pressure on you and push you to advance faster. As long as you can apply what you learn and aren't just bookish fools, you'll be fine. Besides..."
"Besides?"
"Besides, a low-level wizard like you doesn't even qualify to be exploited."
Jieming had no retort. Though the words stung, they seemed to ring true.
After all, aside from the brutes in the Combat Department, most proper wizards excelled at crafting various products. High-rank wizards, in particular, were like humanoid production lines, each capable of outputting vast quantities of goods.
Moreover, the wizard civilization was in a period of rapid expansion, with resources pouring in from external sources.
When it came to production, even thousands of low-rank wizards combined couldn't match the output of a single high-rank wizard.
After Clark hung up, Jieming pondered for a moment before temporarily pushing these chaotic thoughts aside.
Leaving aside the new academy that was still just a vague concept, even his application to descend to a plane couldn't be processed quickly.
"For now... I'll just continue my research."
A bronze mirror, its surface shimmering with a faint rainbow glow, floated silently before Jieming.
Its design was ancient and simple, yet the mirror's surface possessed an uncanny, chaotic quality, as if veiled by a thin mist. The reflections it cast always carried a hazy, indistinct aura.
This was Jieming's lifebound magical treasure, the Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror.
Through years of refinement, the mirror's intricate patterns and embellishments on its reverse side had grown increasingly complex, a testament to its ever-growing power.
"The Elosia Plane is a good place," Jieming mused. "I've nearly gathered all the new 'Five Lights.' The first 're-refining' is within reach."
Magic artifacts in the Great Dao Library Pavilion were broadly classified into two types. The first possessed fixed forms and material compositions, making them relatively simple to refine and less demanding in terms of material requirements (at least by the standards of the immortal cultivation world).
The drawback was their limited potential for improvement after refinement. While occasional special circumstances might allow for enhancement, such progress was exceptionally slow.
The second type, exemplified by the Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror, lacked a fixed material form. This made material acquisition more challenging and the refinement process more arduous.
However, their advantage lay in their theoretically limitless potential for growth. By continuously replenishing materials and refining them, these artifacts could be enhanced almost without bound.
However, each refinement cycle of such magic artifacts required materials of increasingly higher quantity and quality, making true advancement quite challenging.
Fortunately for Jieming, it was merely a matter of time.
"Still, now might be a good time to try a different refinement method."
Jieming's expression turned serious.
He extended a finger, drawing a barely perceptible wisp of mist from his inner space. The mist gently brushed across the surface of the Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror.
This was Mortal Dust Qi, a complex essence of emotions condensed from the joys, sorrows, loves, hates, and grudges of countless living beings.
Infused with the most intense worldly fire, it served as a potent crucible for refining spirituality.
Jieming employed his meticulously practiced qi control technique, using his precise control to slowly infuse the mirror's surface with the purest and gentlest strands of the Mortal Dust Qi.
Initially, the mirror's surface merely deepened into a chaotic haze, as if veiled by invisible silt.
This chaos wasn't a flaw, but rather an inherent "obscurity" present in newly forged magic artifacts—a fundamental "misunderstanding" of the mortal world.
The Mortal Dust Qi, with its essence of worldly existence, served to "purify" this obscurity, allowing the artifact to truly comprehend and reflect the mortal realm.
As the Mortal Dust Qi continued to permeate the mirror, the chaotic sensation slowly but steadily began to dissipate.
The thin mist gradually dispersed, the mirror's surface became increasingly clear, and the reflected light grew purer.
This transformation was exceedingly slow, requiring Jieming's patient control.
He could sense that as the Mortal Dust Qi was absorbed, the faint spirituality deep within the magic artifact was being activated.
It was no longer merely a tool but more like a nascent life form with rudimentary "thought," beginning to comprehend everything it reflected.
When the last wisp of Mortal Dust Qi was completely absorbed, the entire Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror underwent a complete transformation.
The mirror's surface became as clear as water, reflecting Jieming's slightly weary yet delighted face with perfect clarity.
Its rainbow light became more restrained and profound, as if capable of encompassing all phenomena in the world.
The obscure runes on the mirror's surface seemed to come alive, as if they were breathing.
Most importantly, Jieming sensed that the magic artifact's spirituality had grown stronger.
Due to the deep connection between the artifact and himself, Jieming also felt his own consciousness becoming clearer and more lucid.
"The effect is remarkable," Jieming murmured in admiration, retracting his magic artifact.
But immediately afterward, his brow furrowed slightly.
Through the artifact's feedback, he clearly sensed a faint "fatigue."
This refinement method seemed to be a form of "aggressive enhancement" for the artifact's spirituality. Repeated use within a short period could damage its spirituality, even risking its collapse.
"It seems the principle of 'extremes beget their opposites' applies equally to the path of cultivation," Jieming mused, storing the Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror within his body to allow it to slowly recover.
After a brief rest, Jieming wasted no time. He prepared for a second, even bolder attempt: directly infusing a wisp of Mortal Dust Qi into his soul.
He sat cross-legged, his mental power withdrawn, guiding the vast reservoir of Mortal Dust Qi within his inner space.
This time, he extracted an even fainter wisp, as thin as a strand of hair, and carefully guided it toward the depths of his soul.
The moment the wisp of Mortal Dust Qi touched his soul, Jieming's mental world erupted as if a bomb had detonated within it!
It wasn't pain, nor was it a shock, but rather an all-encompassing experience!
His consciousness was instantly torn apart and then reassembled.
He was no longer Jieming, but one among countless mortals.
He saw a poor farmer toiling under the scorching sun, sweat soaking his clothes, all for a bowl of hot soup for his family.
His heart overflowed with longing for a bountiful harvest and fear of natural disasters, that simple, primal tenacity for survival surging into Jieming's heart like a warm current.
He felt the young lovers confessing their hearts under the moonlight, their souls intertwined, that pure love and the sweetness of first romance making Jieming's heart tremble.
He became a soldier on the battlefield, amidst flashing blades and flying flesh, the screams of comrades and the sneers of enemies ringing in his ears.
The despair of impending death, the longing for home, and the desperate will to survive that erupted in his final moments left Jieming gasping for breath, nearly suffocating.
He experienced the mother who had lost her child, weeping silently in the cold rain, that heart-wrenching grief and helplessness forcing tears to stream uncontrollably down Jieming's face.
He transformed into a noble of the royal capital, mingling at lavish banquets where goblets clinked amidst false smiles concealing endless schemes and greed. The insatiable hunger for power, the relentless pursuit of pleasure, and the bottomless emptiness within their souls weighed heavily on Jieming, suffocating him with oppressive intensity.
Scenes of human existence flashed before him like a revolving lantern: joy and sorrow, anger and hatred, love and resentment—a tapestry of emotions played out with visceral realism deep within his soul.
He wasn't merely an observer; he was a participant, experiencing firsthand every emotion and sensation these mortals had endured.
This was the collective life experience of hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of mortals, distilled into its rawest form.
The overwhelming torrent of information and the chaotic flood of emotions surged through Jieming's soul like a volcanic eruption.
His mental power was instantly drained, and his entire body began to tremble uncontrollably.
Sweat soaked his robes, and his face turned as pale as paper.
Clenching his jaw, Jieming desperately clung to the last sliver of clarity within his soul, barely managing to avoid being completely lost in this endless illusion of mortal existence.
After an eternity, when the Mortal Dust Qi had fully integrated into his soul, transforming into a faint, almost imperceptible red glow, Jieming abruptly tore himself free from that terrifying experience.
He gasped for breath, his chest heaving violently as if he had just narrowly escaped death.
He opened his eyes, his gaze carrying a hint of confusion and the relief of a survivor.
It took several minutes for his consciousness to fully return to his body.
Jieming exhaled deeply, collapsing onto the ground, his expression revealing an exhaustion he couldn't conceal.
This fatigue wasn't physical exertion, but the weakness that followed the extreme depletion of his spirit and soul.
Yet, after the exhaustion came an indescribable clarity and elevation.
His thoughts seemed to flow faster, and his perception of the surrounding elements sharpened.
It was as if his once-turbid mind had been cleansed by the Mortal Dust Qi, becoming crystal clear.
If the "Eastern Purple Qi" he absorbed daily enhanced his soul's aptitude, then the Mortal Dust Qi refined the "purity" of his mental power!
It seemed to gradually strip away impurities, stagnation, and redundancies from his soul, purifying it bit by bit.
This enhanced "purity" allowed Jieming to control his mental power with unprecedented precision.
In terms of practical application for a wizard, Jieming could clearly sense that his threshold for manipulating elemental activity had lowered once again.
This meant he now required less mental power to cast spells, making the process easier and more effortless, as if the elements were more obedient to his will.
Even in planes with slightly lower elemental activity, Jieming would be largely unaffected.
Simultaneously, his precision in manipulating mental power had dramatically improved, allowing for more microscopic and refined control over energy.
This precise control over energy and spirit directly fueled a rapid advancement in his alchemy skills.
Many intricate alchemical procedures that had previously remained theoretical or required repeated attempts now flowed effortlessly from his hands, with a significantly increased success rate.
Unfortunately, like refining a magic artifact, this technique couldn't be used repeatedly in short intervals.
Jieming could sense the faint crimson glow deep within his soul, now saturated and requiring time to settle and digest. Forcing another immersion would risk irreversible damage to his soul.
"Red Dust Heart Refinement... truly worthy of recommendation by the Great Dao Library Pavilion," Jieming murmured, his eyes brimming with the joy of his gains.
(End of the Chapter)
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