Is It Weird for a Guy to Apply to a Witch School?

Chapter 773: Intentions and Plans for Advancing to Transcendent

The Witch Academy’s Main Training Ground.

Perhaps this was the first time this training ground had gathered so many people.

In just a few days, the massive field had completed its division into competition zones, and tiered seating was arranged directly along the edges and in the intersecting areas.

For the coming period of time, this training ground would gather the students of an entire newcomer grade!

The noisy field and enthusiastic students—this was the first time the newcomers had seen such a massive scene.

From the perspective of the mentors, perhaps this Newcomer Competition appeared somewhat shabby.

However, for the newcomers, this was the first competition where they would fight using transcendent power!

As ordinary people who had just come into contact with transcendent power, how could they not be excited?

When the newcomers attended their first practical combat class and personally felt the shock brought to them by the power network, the bellicose factors hidden beneath the concept of the Witchification race were triggered.

In this Newcomer Competition, they finally had a practical combat stage of their own!

Of course, not everyone in a class was the type interested in fighting.

The Witch Academy naturally did not wish to cultivate a group of spell turrets who only knew how to hurl power around; the witches simply used this method to stimulate everyone’s curiosity about the transcendent.

Though… not everyone’s curiosity about the transcendent was used for fighting.

But combat was often the most direct manifestation of transcendent power.

Peace maintained without strength was nothing more than a moon in the water, collapsing upon the slightest touch.

This competition, which included the entire newcomer group, was massive in scale.

Therefore, the initial matches were essentially class warm-up matches, screening matches conducted with the class as a unit.

In such matches, you could see those who surrendered without a fight, those who met comical defeats, frequent accidents, and also practical combat with back-and-forth action.

Along the edges of the competition fields divided within the training ground, there were basic solidified protective spells to avoid harming the spectating students.

Those who were injured or defeated on the field were given on-site medical treatment by their respective class counselors.

After all, no matter how weak the power network was, those skills were still genuine extraordinary powers.

However, precisely because it was the Newcomer Competition, the power network’s permission settings for this training ground were at a low-energy output level, greatly reducing the occurrences of deaths during the matches.

While the class warm-up matches of the Newcomer Competition were in full swing, many senior students also gathered on the elevated walkways above this training ground to watch the matches.

Although this Newcomer Competition had fallen on hard times and was being held here compared to the last batch, the seniors who were used to watching the newcomers’ antics every year would not miss a good opportunity to be there in person.

Furthermore, this area was not blocked off by mentors; or rather, they were looking forward to more students coming to watch the matches on-site.

“I didn't expect this batch of the Newcomer Competition to have fallen to the point of holding matches here,” Tan Han sighed as she leaned against the edge of the training ground’s high walkway, looking at the field below.

“There’s no helping it. The Myriad Connection Arena is still holding the first new season of the power network competitive ladder rankings, and nobody is backing down.”

At the time the Newcomer Competition started, our laboratory happened to go on another break.

As the saying goes, life isn't just about doing experiments; there are also competitions and fun.

The craze for the arena’s ladder rankings was spreading like wildfire at the Witch Academy.

Headlines of frequent clashes between the strong and popular upsets constantly flooded the Academy Network, to the point that the heat of the Newcomer Competition had been suppressed by a large margin.

The Academy Network was currently full of discussions everywhere about whose combat power was like what, and who was lording it over others by relying on super consumption spellbooks only to be exposed as soon as they stepped onto the power network competitive matches.

It felt as if those seniors who once shone brilliantly on the arena were suddenly all being roasted over a fire.

This was a brand new tournament, and it was also an opportunity for those who were truly capable to completely turn the tables after crossing obstacles like magic power sources and spellbooks.

While many people were turning their eyes toward the arena, I went against the grain and came to the training ground to watch the Newcomer Competition.

This massive training ground was a place I had never been to.

Passing by from the side, this training ground looked like a sunken field.

Looking down, the depth was nearly as high as a dozen floors.

The overall cut-away frame was like an inverted trapezoid, with the edge walls tapering downward at a certain angle.

A training ground extending downward like this was mainly to facilitate the depth requirements during combat, as well as three-dimensional mobility, so that one wouldn't accidentally fly out of the training ground while fighting due to a lack of a sense of boundaries.

The way to enter the training ground here mainly relied on the massive lifting platforms at the corners of the field.

Of course, this was only the case for lower-grade students.

Seniors who had passed their flying license and mastered flight spells chose to fly down directly.

This training ground was extremely massive.

The indoor training fields including the underground levels were even larger than the arena combined with its viewing area.

Therefore, there was no problem at all accommodating over ten thousand newcomers spectating and competing here.

In fact, because this place attracted many seniors to watch, they rode their flying brooms in the air, showing off and performing various flying stunts, drawing cheers from the lower-grade students.

This also brought some new fun to this unique Newcomer Competition.

Of course, for this trip, I was naturally not the only person who came.

I came here accompanied by Big Sis Bai, and we also ran into Tan Han.

In addition, several seniors from the Bakery Club said they were coming to watch the Newcomer Competition.

Actually, it was mainly because Senior Ying Shiqian, who was responsible for grabbing tickets to watch at the arena, was slow and failed to get seats, so they had no choice but to come here.

If we were lucky, we might run into each other here.

The ones in the dorm wanted to take advantage of the academy’s grand event to relax properly since they had course exemptions, and incidentally see what level their first-year girls were at.

Back then in the group chat, Hong Chenyi was even clamoring to hear those first-year girls call her "Senior."

After all, with this batch passing, she could be considered a senior when facing the girls a grade lower than her.

And the kind of senior with course exemptions, at that.

“Why don't we go down and take a look?”

I suggested.

The area below was very large.

Although the vast majority of the zones were planned as competition fields, there were still many empty seats in the temporary spectator stands on the periphery.

“Sure”

Big Sis Bai followed my lead and readily agreed.

To the side, Tan Han also nodded, though she was also thinking about whether to find an excuse to leave first and not be a third wheel.

“By the way, I have an appointment with a friend over there, so… please excuse me for now.”

“Is that so? Then I hope you have a good time too.”

After bidding farewell to Tan Han, who left for her "special reason," I rode my broom with Big Sis Bai down to the competition field below.

The voices of volunteers maintaining order echoed continuously across the field.

“Um… please maintain order… don't run around like that…”

“Those who haven't participated in the class warm-up matches yet, stand further forward, go in order… otherwise it will be treated as a forfeit…”

“Make a walkway for the wounded! Her arm is hurt, someone give her a hand!”

Of course, in such a lively scene, these volunteers were people who had voluntarily forfeited to help maintain order at the training ground.

But under the passion of so many people… what was the order?

Sorry, there was only hot blood and passion here!

And the injuries, blood, and tears hidden beneath this passion also served as another lesson for those newcomers.

In the transcendent world, getting hurt was inevitable.

Perhaps for many ordinary people, combat seemed far away, to the point that their cognition of combat always assumed their own safety as a prerequisite.

But injuries were mere common occurrences for transcendent-level combat.

The academy was also cultivating this mindset; when the newcomers attended their first practical combat class, the mentors were instilling this concept.

And the simplest way to cultivate this awareness was to let them clearly realize that so-called injuries were not worth mentioning in the face of spells.

Whether it was pain, wounds, poisoning, or infection, spells could eliminate all those concerns.

Breaking through these cognitive obstacles was the way a real battle truly opened.

“I have to say, the combat of these newcomers is still a bit green.”

I held Big Sis Bai’s forearm and casually expressed my opinion—without any malice, of course.

“At this time last year, Xiao Han was probably about the same as them, right? At that time, Xiao Han, what kind of mindset did you have when you went into battle?”

“Mhm… I fought with the mindset that I wouldn't lose too embarrassingly, I suppose…”

I recalled my past self.

Under the "instigation" of Teacher Ji Niang, I was forced into fame and forced onto a path of self-rise.

Of course, at that time, it was also the moment when I was most confident and at my peak regarding spellbook modding, under Teacher Ji Niang’s guidance and my own exploration.

And that was also the only time I was suppressed by destiny to the point of being unable to lift my head.

Naturally, that was also the opportunity for me to come into contact with the truth of the world.

Could it be considered a blessing in disguise?

Looking at things from a later perspective, it felt as if many things were arranged.

However, I no longer wanted to split hairs over this.

Because I had already thrown the blame onto the head of another existence—the so-called world consciousness.

I would use my own way to remodel this Main World, turning it into my shape!

But for now there was no rush.

I would talk about it after I had enough power.

For example… planning an advancement to transcendent?

After I figured out the operating mechanism for the deep-level advancement to Transcendent Witch, my subsequent arrangements and life planning also gradually became clear.

After the Self-generating Magic Power project ended, I would have a deeper cognition and foundation regarding Self-generating Magic Power.

The byproduct after this project ended—the "technique for birthing the Self-generating Magic Power physical talent"—could also help me reorganize the atmosphere of the Witch Academy and create a stable environment for me within the academy.

And I would leave this heavy responsibility for Millian to do.

Afterward, I should also start preparing for the advancement to transcendent, just as Big Sis Bai expected.

The reason why advancing to Transcendent Witch required a project was because the Witch Project was the foundation for the development of transcendent power.

It was the path practiced after the life essence touched the transcendent.

The advancement of the power level relied on specific transcendent systems and transcendent paths.

Take the project for the fire element specialization in the elemental classification of the foundation evocation spell system as an example; the path this witch would walk thereafter would be fire.

As for the refinement, specialization, difficulty, goal, and inclination selected for the project, all of these were matters that required all-around consideration.

Every witch might make trade-offs due to personal bias, individual comprehension ability, and learning ability.

It wasn't that an all-element specialization in the evocation system was necessarily stronger than a single fire element specialization.

This could also result in strength being far inferior to a single specialization project due to the dispersion of research energy.

As the saying goes, what fits oneself best is the best.

What kind of ability matches what kind of project; overestimating oneself is merely being irresponsible to oneself.

Therefore, I also needed to make my own trade-offs and define the positioning of my future project.

And my preliminary positioning for myself was the Great Project of the Soul, and then opening my own sub-project upon it, using the Great Tree of Knowledge as the core of my own abilities to construct my own power system.

The two Grand Spellbooks, the body cultivation power system, and the many spellbooks I currently possessed were truly too "bloated."

But after distinguishing the weight of each, I would find that all these things were just means for me to achieve a concept I desired.

Including the Great Tree of Knowledge, which I always considered the core system, its original intention was also an existence born to help me remember things.

The things I was chasing now were too broad, to the point that the concept of the "Myriad Spell Witch" was not enough to encompass my ambitions.

So the problem still had to return to the essence.

How did the original me view the transcendent?

When I first came into contact with it, the transcendent was a brand new concept.

Back then, I arrogantly denied the concept of spellbooks, believing that the transcendent should not be in such a fixed form, but rather a freer form.

Although thinking back on it now, this idea was too naive and very wrong, this was only limited by the problem with my cognition.

However, the core idea expressed by this view was very meaningful for reflection.

Back then, before I had even come into contact with the transcendent, I had already given it my own definition.

According to what Teacher Ji Niang said, the concept of the transcendent—from whatever angle a person seeks it, it will respond to the seeker in that way.

Any definition given to the concept of the transcendent itself is a kind of prejudice toward it, yet everyone is getting to know the transcendent through their own prejudices.

This was what I had previously envisioned.

Thinking too much about many things leads to no perfect choice, because I linked the project to my perfect ideal.

However, the Witch Project was essentially just a pillar that allowed a witch to continue exploring forward after advancing to transcendent.

Therefore, it could also be seen by me as… a tool for exploring the transcendent, rather than a framework that defined my lifelong pursuit.

So my project would still take the Great Tree of Knowledge as its core framework to eventually advance to Transcendent Witch, and then use that to build a platform that perfectly met my expectations.

The problems that troubled me before, the problems regarding the Witch Project, were eventually solved in this way.

It truly was… unexpected.

Sure enough, only when one’s vision and level become higher can one see through the essence of a thing.

It was so for death, and it was so for the project.

“Xiao Han, did you think of something happy? You’re smiling so happily.”

“Of course I figured some things out. From now on… some witches are going to enjoy a blessing.”