Chapter Eleven: True Wisdom

After uttering those words, Rocco felt a twinge of regret. He had intended to establish a good relationship with this future alchemist before the boy had a chance to rise. Yet, in his eagerness, he had slipped into lecturing, and the words had come out harsher than he’d meant. If he had inadvertently provoked the young man’s resentment, all his efforts over the past days would be wasted.

Fortunately, after observing Qi Xiao’s expression and tone carefully, Rocco realized that there was no trace of dissatisfaction. Relieved, he said, “I tend to speak directly, and that might come across as unpleasant. If I say anything that offends you, please let me know.”

Qi Xiao shook his head. “Not at all, sir. I know you have my best interests at heart.”

Rocco responded with a nod and said nothing more.

When they arrived at the dormitory, Rocco pointed to the nearby market. “Don’t wander off these next few days. You’ll probably start receiving invitations from the various wizards. Make your own decisions about whom to respond to, and if you have any questions, you can ask me. If you’re really bored, you can stroll around the market here. There’s a lot to see, but be careful not to get swindled or show off your wealth. You haven’t started your training yet, and if someone sets their sights on you, it could spell trouble.”

Qi Xiao looked at the market and asked, “Would anyone really dare make a move within the organization?”

Rocco sighed. “It’s better to be safe than sorry. Wizards—well, there are plenty of madmen among them.”

Qi Xiao took note of his words, bid Rocco goodbye, and returned to his dormitory.

By the time he came and went, dusk was already falling. Although he hadn’t been up for long, watching the meditation method had nearly exhausted him, so he simply went to his room and fell asleep.

He woke naturally, and when he glanced at the mushroom-shaped clock on the wall, it was just past four—still before dawn. Climbing out of bed and washing up quickly, Qi Xiao prepared to study the meditation method again.

He adjusted his state of mind and began to read the meditation method in his mind once more.

After a long time, Qi Xiao suddenly staggered, his eyes regaining clarity. He looked at the clock: it was already past six.

Again, just like before, two hours had vanished in a blur... but this time, Qi Xiao had managed to memorize a few things.

He was now almost certain that even though the meditation method was incomplete, as long as he constructed the model, it could be cultivated—and it would be more powerful than most complete meditation techniques. Qi Xiao was amazed. Whether from films or from talking with others since coming here, he had never heard of a meditation method like this—one where even a third of it could form a functional model, and later, the rest could be added on top. It was simply unbelievable.

He marveled at the genius who could conceive and create such a meditation method. He wondered where the system had found it and whether it had an original creator.

Without further hesitation, Qi Xiao decided to cultivate this meditation method. He could feel that even as a fragment, once constructed, it would rival most high-level methods, not to mention the possibility of completing it in the future.

Although each time he built the model he would lose track of time, after several sessions he found he actually didn’t mind. It was like coming home as a child, opening his backpack to do his homework, and losing consciousness the moment he took out his assignments—only to come to and find everything finished. That was exactly how Qi Xiao felt now.

He sensed many pigeons and nightjars delivering envelopes to the mailbox outside, but he wasn’t in a hurry to check them; he planned to retrieve them all at once in the evening.

In fact, he already had a preferred mentor in mind—he just didn’t know if the person would send an invitation.

After another interval lost to the meditation, Qi Xiao was thoroughly drained. It was already ten o’clock, so he dragged himself out to empty the mailbox.

He brought the stack of invitations back, dumped them on the bed, and collapsed beside them.

He estimated that in another two days he would finish constructing the model—he already sensed its vague outline.

He opened all the envelopes and read the invitations one by one, sprawled on the bed.

When he reached the fifth letter, his eyes lit up and his spirits soared.

The introduction was simple: Midiel—Level 2 Seeker of Truth, specializing in Spatial Mysticism.

Midiel was no minor figure in the film, though he appeared as an antagonist. The incident began when one of Midiel’s disciples insulted the heroine and was promptly killed by the protagonist. Then, in the classic fashion, the master arrived to avenge the disciple, leading to the protagonist being forced into a spatial rift and narrowly escaping to another plane.

Qi Xiao wasn’t interested in who was right or wrong; the important thing was that Midiel was fiercely protective of his disciples. By that point, he was already a Level 3 Seeker of Truth, standing at the very top of the food chain in the Northlands’ wizarding world, where legends were few and far between.

Moreover, as a rare space-affinity wizard, many organizations needed Midiel’s help to construct teleportation arrays, and those who wanted to travel to other planes also relied on him. His connections were extensive.

It was a happy coincidence that Qi Xiao had a strong talent for spatial magic himself. With Midiel being a master of the field, it would be easy for him to teach Qi Xiao. From the start, Qi Xiao’s first choice had been to study under Midiel.

In high spirits, Qi Xiao finished reading the dozen or so invitations, familiarizing himself with the upper echelons of the Allspirits Crypt organization, and resolved to reply with his thanks when he was in better shape tomorrow.

His mind was still a bit hazy—if he replied in this state and offended the wrong person, that would be unfortunate.

He set Midiel’s invitation aside with great care, and lay back on his bed, a smile on his lips, letting his thoughts wander.

“Seeker of Truth”—this was a special, somewhat abstract concept. Generally, it referred to a formal wizard who had fully confirmed their path and was determined to walk it unwaveringly.

This path had to be one the wizard was utterly convinced of and believed could be traversed. If, at this time, the wizard was in the wizarding world—or returned to it with this conviction—the world’s consciousness would bestow a gift.

This gift was determined by the path the wizard believed in—typically, a spell created by the world’s will in accordance with the wizard’s chosen way, which could serve as a reference.

Moreover, being a Seeker of Truth had nothing to do with strength or rank. Even a Level 1 wizard could become one, while a Level 3 might still be searching for their path.

If one could walk their path to the end, it meant they had succeeded in advancing to Legendary status; but the journey was fraught with hardships.

Still, finding one’s path and becoming a Seeker of Truth didn’t guarantee the road would be viable. There had been cases where two Seekers of Truth took diametrically opposed, even mutually exclusive, paths.

Such conflicts over personal paths usually ended in life-or-death struggles. They rarely had a happy outcome.

As drowsiness overtook him, Qi Xiao let his thoughts drift no further and soon fell into a deep sleep.