In the afternoon, after the Elemental Studies class ended, students left the classroom in groups of two or three.

  "Pei Ze, do you want to go grab something to drink?" Ye Bin suggested, "I heard the Shining Star Restaurant has a drink called Green Apricot Juice. It tastes great, and it enhances your mental power."

  Pei Ze was tempted, but when he checked his wallet, he gave up the idea. "No, I need to go back to practice."

  "Why work so hard?" Ye Bin shrugged. "I've realized that I just don't have the talent to become a wizard. After the academy reassigns us in half a month, I'm going to apply to transfer to the Knight Academy. If I can't be a wizard, being a knight isn't bad either."

  A "knight" referred to a warrior who had condensed a Life Seed, possessed physical qualities far beyond ordinary people, and mastered powerful combat techniques.

  While knights didn't have the same status as wizards, they were still a privileged class above ordinary people. The vast majority of students who had no hope of becoming wizard apprentices eventually chose to become knights.

  Pei Ze was about to respond when he heard a commotion ahead.

  "It's Shao Hong and the others!" someone whispered.

  Following the gazes of the crowd, Pei Ze saw a group of teenagers in gray apprentice robes walking by from about thirty meters away. They exuded an air of confidence and vitality in every gesture and movement.

  The onlookers couldn't hide their jealousy when they watched them.

  This included Ye Bin, who had just been talking about transferring to the Knight Academy.

  Both Shao Hong and the others and Pei Ze's class were in the same Year One class. While Pei Ze's class was still struggling to advance to wizard apprentices, Shao Hong and his group had already begun to learn real magic. It was hard not to envy or be jealous of their achievements.

  Pei Ze glanced at them for a moment, then calmly retracted his gaze, nodded to Ye Bin, and turned away.

  As he left the academy, the sky was getting dimmer. The gray stone street lamps on both sides of the street were all lit up.

  The yellowed light cast a series of giant yellow spots on the ground. Occasionally, when pedestrians passed by, it would stretch long shadows.

  Pei Ze squinted at those street lamps, lost in thought.

  As the name implied, gray stone lamps used gray stone as an energy source for illumination. Gray stone was a special mineral that contained a small amount of energy, and it was a byproduct of magic stones, hence the nickname "sub-magic stone."

  Magic stones are expensive, and only wizards can afford them. Therefore, secondary magic stones are more widely used among the common people and have become the universal energy source of civilized society, akin to petroleum in the previous world of Peize. Whether it's street lamps on the roadside or machines running in factories, they all rely on gray stones as the driving energy source.

  It's worth mentioning that this world resembles Europe during the Industrial Revolution in many ways, but with some notable differences. For example, there are no automobiles or airplanes. The most common mode of transportation here is horse-drawn carriages or various riding beasts. There are no mass destruction weapons. While there are firearms, they are still at the level of muskets. After all, this world lacks the space and conditions for the development of firearms, whether it's the spells of wizards or the fighting spirit of knights, they surpass ordinary firearms and cannons.

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  In this world, wizards are the most powerful mass destruction weapons. Peize once saw a scene on a recording crystal where a high-level wizard cast a ninth-circle spell, "Meteor Burst," which directly razed an area of five kilometers in radius to the ground, with destructive power comparable to a concentrated bombardment by more than ten ax-type missiles. Anyone who can withstand this spell could withstand a widespread attack by surface-to-surface missiles from the previous world. This scene solidified Peize's determination to become a wizard. The fact of his crossing was irreversible, and complaining would not change anything. Therefore, he chose to accept reality and work hard to reach the pinnacle of this world, witnessing more magnificent scenery!

  With the All-Knowing Eye, Peize believed that he would achieve his goals sooner or later! Even taking a step back, just for a better life, he must become a wizard! Peize looked up into the distance, through the undulating rooftops of buildings, and could vaguely see the towering white walls in the far distance. That was the Ring of Truth! A massive circular wall that divided Dawn City into two major areas. Despite just being separated by a wall, the living environment and prosperity levels were worlds apart.

  In the inner city, even the driving energy source for street lamps is the precious magic stone. In the hearts of many, the inner city is like a paradise on Earth, and countless people dream of living there. However, very few can realize this dream. There are only three types of people who can live in the inner city.

  The first type is the wizards who claim to have mastered the truth.

  The second type is the relatives, followers, and servants of wizards.

  The third type is those who provide services to the first two categories.

  "No matter in which world, in any era, there are always social classes," Peize murmured. There was a time when his previous self was also a resident of the inner city. However, two years ago, his parents had a tragic accident, and his inheritance was unjustly taken away by relatives, leading to his loss of eligibility to live in the inner city, which resulted in his being banished to the outer city.

  Even after two years, Peize could still vividly feel the strong resentment and unwillingness from his previous self's memories. "Since I've taken over your body, I'll bear your karma. Someday, I will make those people pay," he silently vowed.

  Ten minutes later, Peize returned to his place of residence. What greeted him was a run-down building. The facade was covered in white rectangular tiles, many of which had cracks, displaying the signs of aging.

  Pushing the door open, Peize made his way inside and fumbled for the switch, turning on the only gray stone lamp in the room. The dim light instantly illuminated the entire building.

  It was a small apartment with one bedroom, one living room, one bathroom, and one kitchen, with an area not exceeding forty square meters—cramped and narrow. However, having experienced renting a room as a corporate slave in his previous life, Peize found this environment quite decent. At least, the living room and bedroom were separate, and the kitchen and bathroom were distinct.

  After tossing a piece of honeycomb coal into the stove, Peize lit it and casually cooked some noodles. After a quick dinner, he settled down in the living room.

  "Omniscience."

  He silently recited in his mind.

  The light curtain slowly unfolded like flowing water.

  {Mental 2.45} {Physical 1.45} {Task: Analysis of Rune of Will No. 1 in progress, estimated time remaining: 4 minutes}

  Peize pressed down his anticipation and patiently waited.

  Four minutes passed quickly, and his mind finally received a notification.

  {Analysis of Rune of Will No. 1 completed!}

  In an instant, a large amount of information surged into Peize's mind, causing his head to feel swollen, and his temples throbbed as if they were pulsating.

  It took quite some time for Peize to digest the information in his mind. When he finally opened his eyes, they gleamed brightly.

  {Mental 3.45} {Physical 1.75}

  Every successful construction of a Rune of Will would significantly increase his mental strength. This time, his mental strength had increased by a whole point! In the past, it would have taken him at least seven or eight days of meditation to achieve such results. In addition to that, his physical strength had also increased by 0.3.

  Mental power influenced the physical, and the meditation techniques of wizards had a physical conditioning effect, though not as efficient as the improvement of mental strength.

  Returning to his senses, Peize's lips curled up into a pleased smile. According to the wizarding world's classification of apprentice levels, a first-level wizard apprentice was defined as someone who could successfully construct their first Rune of Will and had a mental strength of 3. In other words, he was now a genuine first-level wizard apprentice!