Dormitory
Inside one of the dormitory rooms, a young man standing on top of a glowing magic circle could be seen. His eyes were closed as he attempt to communicate with the heavens
The magic circle he was standing on only serves one purpose and that is to communicate with the heavens and convey his wish to advance. If he succeeded, he would become stronger than ever but if he failed, advancing any further would be far harder than before and in most extreme cases he might even die
However, Rezen is confident that he could succeed and reach the next rank. He is already a Deviant Mage with both of his paths at the first cycle of the Junior Rank. He is now attempting to advance his Body Mage path by another cycle
With resources that affect the physical bodies more common than those that could affect the soul, it was easier for most to make progress when they are a Body Mage. Rezen was no different
Swirling blue energies was released by Rezen. Some came from his physical body but most came from his elixir field. He was fully surrounded by his own mana and at first, they were calm and gentle but with his control they became the opposite of that
The calm mana started to attack Rezen. It rampages on his body as he trembled. He gritted his teeth while blood leaked out from his lips
He felt like thousands of hammers were striking every cell of his body. His physique was being tampered like steel and it was definitely a painful process
"Aahkk!!"
The damage on Rezen's physical body accumulates and soon, he was covered with his own blood from head to toe. He looks like a man that just got out of a swimming pool filled with fresh blood
However, the damage he is inflicting on himself was not for nothing. When he succeeded in advancing, his body would heal and would become stronger than ever
With all the resources he consumed, advancing by a single cycle is no problem for him, especially considering that this is just the advancement from the 1st cycle to the 2nd cycle
A mage really needs both talent and resources. No wonder that resources have always been a source of conflict between mages
At this point, Rezen could swiftly advance already but he didn't. He lifted his trembling bloody hand and using his telekinetic ability, he controlled the bottle of potion that he prepared beforehand
This potion was not something Rezen created by himself as he doesn't have the ability yet. Instead, using the money he earned as a forager and an alchemist, he bought the potion
With telekinesis, Rezen uncapped the potion bottle and he poured its content into his mouth. At a rate visible to the eyes, his physical body healed and even his mana recovered swiftly
The aura of mana around him already dimmed since he used the mana to tamper his physical body but now, his aura is recovering at a rapid rate
It didn't take that long before his aura returned to its peak all thanks to the potion
The potion was called the Limitless Potion and is something that Body Mages only use when advancing to the next cycle
It has the effect of rapidly healing one's body and recovering their mana but the effect wouldn't last long. If one is on the brink of death, they could use the potion to prolong their life but perhaps they would only last for another minute. It is not a potion that people that don't want to die would use
However, it is a famous advancement supplement for Body Mages and Rezen showed why
He already tampered with his body once earlier but after he recovered his mana and his injuries, he once again started attacking his own body
Just like before, his mana started rampaging. The fresh blood on his body still hasn't dried off when he shed even more blood
With the potion and the way he is attacking his own body, Rezen wouldn't last longer than a minute. Even if he stopped his advancement now, he would still die
However, there is one way to mitigate the side effect of the potion and that is to succeed in advancement! That is why only those that are confident would consume the Limitless Potion
Rezen's fresh blood died the magic circle below his feet and after he used everything he has once more, the heavens acknowledge his effort and the blessing of mana dawned upon him
As if he was a dry sponge, Rezen's body started sucking the mana from his surroundings. With the blessing of mana, his physical body was enhanced and it also slightly affects his soul
Just like that, Rezen succeeded in his advancement and he's even stronger than most Body Mages since he tampered with his body twice during his advancement
Using the Limitless Potion might be risky but it comes with its own benefit. Any mediocre 2nd cycle Body Mages could be defeated by Rezen by only using his Body Mage cultivation path
After the advancement, Rezen opened his eyes and he stared at his body. He clenches his fist as he sensed the power coursing through his body. It was definitely much more powerful than before but he knew that in this world, he is still no different than an ant
"I'm still far from having my desired power but this is still another step for me" Rezen muttered to himself while clenching his fist
——-
"For a month we, your instructors focused on helping you develop your survival skills. That is because we are well aware that some of you would be thrown into the battlefield. In hopes that you will return alive, that is the kind of teaching that we offer. But starting now, our classes would be divided into two types"
"The first one is the theoretical part. We will continue imparting the basics of cultivation to help you progress on your rank and aside from that, we will teach you ways to make your magic more effective and powerful"
"The second part would be used to develop your fighting skills. Although you are to stay here for a longer time, if the situation becomes dire more of you might be needed on the battlefield. We are always under the threat of magic beasts as such, there is a great need for us mages to be good at fighting"
"Of course, we also understand that not all mages are suitable for fighting. Some of you might be suitable for support magic or some might excel in studying and if that is the case, you could become scholars that could help the city develop its magic. Some might also be suitable to be alchemists that create potions or artifacts like magic wands and magic canons. We will assess you and after two months, we could recommend you to further your studies on the path that you excel the most. As such, we expect that all of you will continue working hard for the sake of everyone's future inside the city"
As the tribal people already suffered from the militaristic way of training, none of them dared not to listen to Philome's speech. At the very least, they should pretend to listen. If they are found to be slacking, everyone would be punished and the collective anger of the tribal people would fall on them
It could be said that although this method was a bit barbaric, it was also quite effective. It forces the tribal people to completely listen to their instructors in order to avoid being ostracized by everyone
The representative of the tribes was already sent to the battlefield causing the usual people in this training room to lessen considerably
It was almost a guarantee that soldiers on the frontlines would advance fast since the city poured most of the resources on them with the premise that they survive. As such, if these people that are left in the safety of the city don't want to be left behind, they must work even harder
They are safe but they also wouldn't have the experience and resources of the soldiers. They must compensate for that with their hard work
"For now, we will start with the lesson. We already explained the basics of cultivation before and with your current low rank, it should be enough for now. As such, we will tackle the ways to increase the might of our magic whether that be simple magic or a magic spell"
The lesson started without any delay. There was not much formality as Philome went straight to the point which is the usual way of the city
They don't have the time for much formalities since every second that passed is a second that was lost. In a city that is in constant danger, the progress of its mages is extremely important and they must focus on strengthening themselves rather than delving into formality bullshits
The sourc𝗲 of this content is fre(e)webnovel