Free Web NovelChapter 19: Chapter 19: Newcomers Nowadays Are Too Formidable
Deep within the Black Tower.
Inside the Observation Room.
"Zzzz~"
The Sharp-eared Female Apprentice, Nasha, stared at the soundly sleeping figure, a hint of unconcealable shock flashing through her emerald eyes.
The scene that had unfolded over the last few minutes had given her quite a jolt.
When Mo Ning stood before the full-length mirror and opened the secure locker—
Nasha had merely raised an eyebrow, muttering with a touch of envy, ’This kid’s a real spendthrift, isn’t he?’
Back when she had first enrolled, she had to pinch every single Black Tower Point.
But this kid? He had casually spent 10 Black Tower Points just like that.
What a waste!
Nasha pouted. An uncomfortable feeling welled up inside her—a subtle imbalance born from the thought, ’I had it so tough back then, so what gives you the right to be so carefree?’
When Mo Ning opened the locker and took out the small black jar—
Nasha was taken aback.
Her first reaction was, ’This kid’s spending is completely out of control!’
He hadn’t even cultivated the Basic Meditation Technique or condensed a Spirit Ring, yet he was already rushing to buy Calming Ointment. In all her years, she had never seen anything like it.
’You haven’t even learned the Basic Meditation Technique. What are you going to do with that stuff?’
Nasha didn’t know it was a mission reward.
As an Inspector, she could observe the newcomers’ every move in real-time, but mission rewards were confidential information beyond her clearance level.
However, she did have another privilege: checking purchase histories.
Nasha immediately reached out and pressed her hand on the Crystal Stele standing in the center of the Observation Room.
She was eager to see just how many things this profligate kid had bought and how much money he had wasted.
However, the information displayed on the Crystal Stele made the Sharp-eared Female Apprentice freeze.
[Serial Number 7-118-256, Mo Ning. Purchase History: None.]
Nothing at all!
There were no transaction records related to Dawa’s Grocery List.
That raised the question: where did the Calming Ointment come from?
Nasha pondered for a few seconds, an incredible thought flashing through her mind. ’Could it be... a bonus reward?’
Logically, it was the only possibility.
It took her several seconds to accept this shocking fact.
The Academy’s assessments were extremely difficult. Just passing was hard enough; obtaining a bonus reward was even harder.
Countless Apprentices spent the better part of their lives at the Academy without ever receiving a single bonus reward.
Yet this kid had managed to get one on his very first assessment.
Nasha’s lips tightened. That feeling of "imbalance" inside her grew even stronger.
When Mo Ning, wanting to experience the Magic Potion’s effect, smeared the ointment on his glabella and temples—
Nasha couldn’t help but shake her head. ’I’ve never seen anyone more wasteful than this kid.’
Damn it!
’You haven’t even learned the Basic Meditation Technique, and you’re already smearing a Magic Potion on your face—are you using it for a beauty treatment?!’
Nasha was unwilling to admit it, but at that moment, she was truly jealous.
She wasn’t just jealous of the Magic Potion, but of his ability to spend so lavishly without a second thought.
Soon, when Mo Ning began to circulate the High Mountain Breathing Technique, his face full of joy despite his Spiritual Power being severely overdrawn—
The Sharp-eared Female Apprentice watched with a puzzled expression. ’What’s this kid so happy about?’
’His breathing is ragged, his forehead is beaded with sweat, and he looks dead tired—what is he smiling about?’
When Mo Ning, utterly exhausted, struggled onto his bed and fell asleep in an instant—
Nasha’s curiosity peaked.
She stared at his sleeping face, listening to the steady rhythm of his snores, her heart itching with curiosity as if a cat were scratching at it.
’What in the world happened?’
She hesitated for a moment before finally making up her mind.
As an Inspector, she possessed a special privilege: the ability to use the Black Tower Academy’s surveillance Witchcraft to remotely inspect a newcomer’s physical condition.
This was because moles sent by Dark Wizards often hid terrible things within their bodies.
This was an effective way to root out such infiltrators.
Because this function consumed significantly more Magic Power than normal surveillance, its use was restricted and could not be abused.
Nasha muttered to herself, "Mo Ning’s condition is very strange..."
She narrowed her emerald eyes, her gaze sweeping back and forth across his exhausted face.
The sunken eye sockets, the slightly pale lips, the brows that couldn’t fully relax even in sleep—it all reminded her of a familiar sight.
"Hmm... It’s as if he’s been tortured by a Joy Priest from the Joyful Sect with a life-draining ritual. I should probably conduct a thorough inspection."
As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt the association was a bit absurd.
But the resemblance was uncanny.
The Joyful Sect—a Dark Wizard Organization lurking on the fringes of the Academy’s sphere of influence.
For the past decade or so, the Academy had designated it as a primary target for elimination.
She recalled that about ten years ago, the Academy had destroyed a secret altar of the Joyful Sect in the Morning Star Kingdom.
At the time, she had just been promoted to a Third Level Apprentice and had the honor of participating in the operation under her mentor, Yi Lin.
One scene from that operation still made her frown whenever she thought about it.
Over thirty nobles—men and women, old and young—lay naked in a lavishly decorated underground hall. Every one of them had sunken eyes and sallow complexions, and an unbearable stench filled the air.
She later learned that those shameless Joy Priests loved to organize such utterly debauched gatherings.
They would use Incense laced with Magic Potions to befuddle the mind and bizarre rituals to amplify desire, luring hedonistic nobles step by step into the abyss.
The victims believed they had found paradise on earth, unaware that their Life Energy was being secretly drained with every moment of "joy."
But the Joyful Sect successfully exploited humanity’s most hidden desires, so their ranks of followers grew with frightening speed.
Those who had a taste found it nearly impossible to escape the temptation.
Once ensnared, they were like flies caught in a spider’s web—the more they struggled, the tighter the trap became, until they were completely drained dry.
This was also why the Academy had never been able to completely eradicate them.
The Sharp-eared Female Apprentice nodded firmly and repeated, "Yes, it’s absolutely necessary."
She extended her right hand, fingers spread, and aimed it at Mo Ning within the sphere of light.
"HUM~"
The Crystal Stele vibrated slightly.
An invisible link instantly formed between Nasha and the Crystal Stele.
The next second, specks of light began to emerge from her fingertips.
The light drifted, gathered, and coalesced in the empty air, finally forming two concentric rings of light before the Female Apprentice’s eyes.
The rings of light slowly rotated, and countless intricate runes appeared between the inner and outer rings, resembling some kind of ancient measuring device.
Mo Ning’s physical data was precisely detected by the Witchcraft.
Nasha’s gaze fell upon the rings of light. With just a single glance, she shot upright.
Her lazy posture vanished instantly, replaced by sheer disbelief.
In the center of the rings, a line of data was clearly displayed:
[Spiritual Strength: 0.53.]
The Female Apprentice clearly remembered that Mo Ning’s Spiritual Strength upon entering the Academy was 0.52. Now, it was 0.53.
An increase of 0.01.
’What in the world did this kid do?!’
Increasing one’s Spiritual Strength had always been a slow and arduous process.
From what she knew, many Apprentices who diligently practiced their Meditation Technique, even with the aid of Calming Ointment, might not see a 0.01 increase in their Spiritual Strength even after half a month.
But this kid had done it in less than ten minutes.
Nasha couldn’t figure it out, nor could she comprehend it.
She stared fixedly at Mo Ning, who was snoring away in the sphere of light, her voice tinged with a complex, inscrutable emotion.
"Newcomers these days... they’re truly incredible."
On his first day at the Academy, he successfully applied for a Witchcraft research project and even received a hefty grant.
On his second day, he achieved an outstanding result in his assessment.
Not only did he get a bonus reward, but he also permanently increased his Spiritual Strength by 0.01 by cultivating a Secret Technique.
*****
「When he woke up again.」
The scene outside the floor-to-ceiling window made Mo Ning pause for a moment.
"Is that fog?"
He muttered to himself.
The continuous range of snowy mountains had vanished at some point.
Outside the window, there was only a vast expanse of white vapor, surging between heaven and earth, swallowing the entire world.
The vapor touched the windowpane, condensing into droplets that slowly slid down the glass, leaving winding trails of water in their wake.
He could faintly hear a low rumbling sound from outside, penetrating the glass and seeping into the apartment.
These small details left Mo Ning somewhat dazed.
’It’s too real!’
’Is this really a beautiful view "transported" here by Witchcraft?’
And the change of scenery meant one thing—a new day had arrived.
Mo Ning assessed his condition, finding it a bit hard to believe. ’Did overdrawing my Spiritual Power with the High Mountain Breathing Technique really make me sleep for a whole day?’
Despite this, he didn’t feel hungry. In fact, his mental state was the best it had ever been in his life.
He understood this was the effect of the Magic Potion—it had not only fully restored his mind but also replenished his body’s energy.
According to the information he’d gathered from books, Calming Ointment contained a special spiritual component imbued with faint Life Energy.
Besides promoting the slow recovery of injuries, this energy had another, more basic but life-saving function—staving off hunger.
He had once read a story in a book of anecdotes:
An unlucky Apprentice was trapped in a desperate situation. His food had long run out, and rescue was nowhere in sight.
Everyone thought he was sure to die, but the Apprentice miraculously held on for a full three months, eventually surviving long enough for the Wizard sent to investigate the matter to arrive.
What had kept him alive was less than half a jar of Calming Ointment.
Whenever the Apprentice was frantic with hunger, he would use his fingernail to scoop out a rice-grain-sized bit of the ointment to sustain himself.
At that moment, Mo Ning felt extremely thirsty. He walked over to the washstand by the floor-to-ceiling window, picked up a glass, and placed it under a uniquely shaped brass faucet.
The faucet was shaped like a small wolf’s head.
The wolf’s head was palm-sized and sculpted with lifelike detail, its slightly open mouth revealing two rows of sharp teeth.
However, the sculpture lacked the ferocity typical of wolves, instead exuding a certain ancient and elegant charm.
The strangest part was that the wolf’s head had no switch or any part that could be turned; it just sat quietly on the countertop.
Just as Mo Ning set the glass down, the wolf’s head moved.
Its brass-cast eyes seemed to come alive, turning slightly. Then, its mouth opened automatically, and a clear stream of water flowed from between its teeth into the glass.
The stream carried a little heat, splashing into tiny droplets at the bottom of the glass as a faint, warm vapor wafted toward his face.
This was the Academy’s running water.
Mo Ning had tested it yesterday when he first moved in. Not only did this thing dispense water, but it could also precisely control the temperature.
Yesterday, he had tried saying "zero degrees," and the water that came out was bone-chillingly cold, instantly forming a layer of frost on the glass.
When he said "boiling water," the water came out scalding hot, steam billowing up, nearly burning his hand.
Mo Ning took a sip. It was sweet, like water from a mountain spring, and the quality was surprisingly good.
Aside from the room being a bit small, the living comfort at the Academy was actually quite high.
