Cultivating in the Wizard World-Chapter 321 - 287: The First Student

In the square of the apprentice recruitment fair, the crowd was indeed a bit larger compared to decades ago, but it was merely from "extremely sparse" to "slightly sparse." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

This cohort barely broke the four hundred mark in terms of new students, which, for a large academy, is still a case of too many monks and too little porridge.

Just like every time over the decades, Jeming sat steadily behind the admissions table of the Alchemy School, holding a heavy tome in his hands.

Seemingly engrossed in reading, his mind had already drifted far away, pondering the details of a certain energy circuit optimization plan.

He no longer harbored any expectations for this event, merely treating it as a routine affair he needed to attend.

However, fate always seems to like playing a little joke inadvertently.

A small figure, slightly timid and hesitating at the same spot for a long time, finally shuffled to the front of his desk.

Jeming’s thoughts were pulled back to reality by this tiny stir. He raised his eyes with some curiosity, examining the little girl who appeared to be only eleven or twelve years old.

She was wearing a clean but not luxurious cotton dress, her brown curly hair looking a bit frizzy, her hands nervously twisting in front of her, her gaze evasive, not daring to meet his eyes.

When she noticed Jeming looking at her, the little girl shrank a bit like a startled fawn, but eventually mustered the courage to take a small step forward and said in a voice as tiny as a mosquito:

"Hel... Hello... Mentor Jeming." She quickly glanced at the badge engraved with Jeming’s name on his chest to confirm his identity, "I... I want to join the Alchemy School."

Jeming looked at her calmly, his powerful spiritual power instantly recalling the fragments of information faintly transmitted from the distant testing hall just now.

Despite the long distance, capturing those announcements about talent levels and the corresponding soul aura waves was not difficult for an official wizard.

"Fourth Level Talent, Anita Chuck. Is that correct?" Jeming’s voice was steady and calm, directly pointing out her name and talent.

Anita seemed startled by this precise "recognition," nodding her little head like a chick pecking at rice: "Yes... indeed, Mentor."

There is a surname, Chuck... Jeming understood instantly in his heart.

This usually means she comes from a family with at least a wizard heritage.

Such children choosing the Logistics Element are more likely following the guidance of family elders, rather than out of personal love for knowledge or insight into long-term benefits.

Realizing this, the slight ripple that had just arisen in Jeming’s heart quickly subsided, replaced by a barely noticeable disappointment.

But his face still remained as calm as an ancient well, trying to recall and mimic the demeanor of Professor Clark when he recruited him back then. He nodded slightly and said in a tone that carried a hint of the vicissitudes and calmness:

"A wise choice. The path of the wizard is long and dangerous. Only by ensuring you stay alive first can you talk about the future. Persist, and even if your aptitude is average, you will one day glimpse a scenery that belongs to you."

These words, full of wisdom and profound meaning when he first heard them back then, now carried a formal tone when he said them himself.

"Yes, thank you for your guidance." Anita carefully answered, her tone respectful, yet lacking a kind of heartfelt impact.

Jeming said no more, taking out a rather ancient-looking, even somewhat rough beast skin scroll from under the desk and handed it to Anita.

"This is the Nolun Workshop’s standard apprentice contract," he explained in a businesslike manner, "Read each clause carefully. If there are no objections, leave your blood and spiritual imprint on it. Remember, once the contract takes effect, any breach of the terms will result in consequences you cannot bear."

This scroll appeared simple, but in reality, it was quite a sophisticated witchcraft artifact.

The supposedly rough "beast skin" was actually leather from a magical beast of official wizard level, usually used to make high-powered disposable witchcraft artifacts.

This time, using it to make a contract was considered quite a luxurious act.

The scroll’s surface was also cleverly enchanted with light and shadow magic, turning it into a "display."

It only showed half of the contract’s content. To view the entire text, one had to slide their finger upwards on the scroll’s surface.

This was a second hidden test that Nolun Academy had always set when recruiting apprentices, mainly targeting those without a wizard background and relying entirely on themselves.

If one could discover and operate it on their own, it proved their extraordinary observation, exploration spirit, and understanding.

However, for an apprentice like Anita, who had a family background, this was already an open secret.

Jeming watched her expertly swipe her finger upwards on the scroll’s surface, and the light and shadow shifted, revealing the complete contract text.

She merely gave it a cursory glance, evidently having had the key details explained to her by her family elders long before.

Jeming shook his head inwardly, and the last trace of expectation also dissipated.

Anita quickly followed the instructions, pricked her fingertip, and dropped a droplet of blood.

At the same time, Jeming guided her, separating a sliver from her still weak Spiritual Power, merging it into the Scroll.

Buzz!

The Scroll flashed with a barely noticeable light, then returned to calm, marking the official establishment of the contract.

Jeming retrieved two brick-thick books from the storage space: "Basic Alchemy Manual" and "Basic Meditation Method," as well as a rather heavy wooden box containing basic tools and a common material guide, placing them in front of Anita as he advised:

"This is what you need to get started. There are ten days until classes officially begin. During this period, you must grasp the ’Basic Meditation Method’ and successfully get started. If you fail to do so, your standard resource allocation for the first month will be deducted."

He pointed to the wooden box: "Inside are your basic tools and some common information. The academy has a public laboratory, but you need to book a time slot in advance to use it."

Then, Jeming’s expression turned serious, his gaze sharp as he looked at Anita: "Remember a few basic rules: First, safety above all, every operation must strictly follow the protocols, no taking chances whatsoever! Second, private fights are prohibited on campus, any disputes must be submitted to a mentor for judgment. Third, respect knowledge, all borrowed books and equipment used must be carefully maintained, not damaged. Fourth, Points are your only currency for exchanging resources and knowledge within the academy, strive to earn them through tasks and learning!"

After quickly finishing the instructions, Jeming told her the general location of the dormitory area, then sat back in the chair, picked up the book that he hadn’t turned a few pages of, and gestured that she could leave.

"Thank you, Professor, I will take my leave," Anita bowed respectfully, laboriously picking up the heavy books and wooden box, and left with some difficulty.

Watching the frail silhouette disappear at the edge of the crowd, Jeming blinked helplessly.

He began to feel a bit disappointed, but then after thinking about it, he felt that he seemed to have been judging by appearance just moments ago.

Judging her as "lacking wisdom" simply based on her background and proficient use of the Scroll might have been unfair.

"Alright, since I’ve accepted... I hope you can bring me some unexpected surprises in the future," he whispered in his heart.

Ten days later, Jeming stepped for the first time into the exclusive laboratory allocated to the Alchemy School by Nolun Academy, which he had seldom used.

In the vast and empty laboratory, only Anita was waiting there early, appearing exceptionally solitary.

To this, Jeming had no particular reaction; the little enthusiasm he had as a new teacher had long been worn down by decades of being ignored.

"Welcome to Alchemy, one of the most stable and foundational disciplines at Nolun Academy." Jeming didn’t bother with Anita’s reaction below, his tone flat and unhurried.

"Here, you will learn the core of Alchemy—understanding, disassembling, and reconstructing."

"Understanding is the cognition of the essence of matter, analyzing its elemental composition and energy properties. Disassembling is breaking down matter to its fundamental units. Reconstructing, then, is guiding energy and matter with your Spiritual Power, reshaping them into new forms or granting them new properties."

Jeming glanced at Anita, his tone becoming serious: "Alchemy places extremely high demands on Spiritual Power; your Spiritual Power is your strongest tool. The precision of your Spiritual Power control determines the upper limit of your Alchemy."

He walked to a small operating table next to the podium, on which lay a rather heavy, irregular gold block.

"You should have already prepared for basic alchemy, so let’s not waste time. Today’s first class is basic shaping." Jeming said calmly, "This is one of the most foundational practices in alchemy, controlling the shape of objects through Spiritual Power. You will practice using gold."

Jeming said no more, directly taking out a standard alchemy gold ingot, handing it to Anita.

"Watch closely."

Jeming was concise, beginning a demonstration of the most basic Golden Shaping Technique.

His fingertips flowed with gentle yet precise Spiritual Power, guiding the gold ingot to flow, stretch, and change form like a living thing.

Throughout, Jeming explained the key points of energy input rhythm and material structure stability.

After the demonstration, he guided Anita through her first alchemical practice.

The class concluded amidst a somewhat dull and mechanical atmosphere.

Anita followed the steps strictly, making no mistakes, but there was no Spiritual Qi to speak of; it felt more like completing an assigned task.

Returning to his core laboratory, Jeming recalled the scenes from the class, sighed helplessly once more.

This time, he wasn’t sighing at the potential lack of wisdom in the student, but at the attitude almost written on her face.

He could understand Anita’s lack of interest in alchemy, as it was indeed a choice arranged by her family.

However, expressing such a lack of interest so obviously during class, even affecting her focus and learning efficiency, was something Jeming found difficult to understand.

"If she continues with such an attitude..." Jeming murmured to himself, gazing out at the eternally burning sky of the Purgatory Sulfur Plane, "then she really might remain at the ’Logistics’ level for a lifetime, never being able to touch the true core of a Wizard."

This first student seemed not to bring surprise; instead, he more clearly saw the gap between ideal and reality.