Seeing the panel, Ronan's mind was slightly invigorated.
The effects of high-intensity meditation were still significant.
His Mind Power had increased by two percent, bringing him closer to the Second-level Apprentice Wizard realm.
The skill bar now displayed "Energy Missile," with its proficiency already at (Beginner 14/100).
"It feels great to see concrete returns from hard work."
Ronan couldn't help but exclaim.
Lying in bed now, clearing his mind, and reviewing his day of arduous practice, Ronan slowly noticed something unusual.
He felt that his process of cultivating Energy Missile had been too smooth.
According to his predecessor's memories, it was normal for many novice Wizards to spend several weeks, or even a month, to successfully grasp their first zero-level spell.
Yet he had accomplished it in just one day.
This was even without guidance, relying entirely on his own exploration.
"Could I be a once-in-a-million cultivation genius?!"
Ronan shook his head, thinking it over, and felt that the reason might still be attributed to the panel.
This character panel seemed to possess some magical ability to "solidify" every bit of his progress.
During the cultivation of Energy Missile, he almost truly achieved the feat of never repeating a mistake he had made once.
This became even more apparent after Energy Missile reached the beginner stage.
After each casting, some fragmented insights would naturally emerge from his heart, becoming nourishment for his next, better casting.
Basic Meditation Technique was the same.
The time it took for Ronan to enter a meditative state became shorter and shorter, and the effectiveness of his meditation also significantly improved.
"If it's really as I think... then I'm incredibly awesome!"
Ronan murmured while lying in bed.
The lamp wasn't lit; moonlight streamed in from outside the window.
He gazed at the dark ceiling, feeling sleepiness surge like a tide, and unknowingly drifted into slumber.
Ronan was too tired; after all, he still couldn't completely replace sleep with meditation.
In the following days, Ronan became completely self-disciplined.
Every day, he would wake up early for morning exercise, then practice spells and meditation, and in the afternoon, he would train for two hours, continuing this until late at night.
His natural sleep time each day was less than four hours.
Unconsciously, half a month passed.
"Ulu, Bazidam!"
In the quiet oak forest, a low incantation sounded.
The airflow in the forest suddenly changed, and a mottled small light sphere the size of a ping-pong ball abruptly appeared, swiftly plunging into a thicket.
"Bang!"
A violent explosion sounded, and something seemed to let out a mournful cry.
Accompanied by countless scattered leaves, grass, and flying soil, that thicket was immediately cleared, leaving only a mess on the ground.
"Hmm?!"
In the distance, Ronan, who had just released an Energy Missile, had a strange expression, lowering his head as if contemplating something.
"I just shortened two incantation syllables and made a few fewer hand gestures when casting... yet it still succeeded."
Ronan opened his character panel.
Sure enough, on the skill bar of the panel, after the skill icon for Energy Missile, the original "Beginner" had changed to (Proficient 1/200).
"The skill proficiency level has increased?!"
Ronan was delighted but not surprised.
The proficiency of Energy Missile had been stuck at (Beginner 99/100) for a day or two, so this increase was a natural progression.
"After the proficiency increased, the incantation syllables and hand gestures were simplified, and the casting time was shortened by several seconds."
After Energy Missile reached proficiency, Ronan felt that his understanding of this spell had deepened considerably.
The essence of spell casting was actually Mind Power driving energy particles to resonate; both incantations and hand gestures were merely ways to help the resonance be achieved better.
If Ronan could one day completely master the rhythm of this resonance, skipping the lengthy incantations and cumbersome hand gestures to cast instantly would not be impossible.
"The casting time of the improved skill has been shortened to less than seven or eight seconds, which is much faster than when I started, but the casting time is still long.
If it's a fight with a melee profession, this window is enough for others to launch several attacks."
Ronan shook his head and walked towards the impact point of that Energy Missile.
There was a large pit, two meters wide and half a meter deep, where the Energy Missile had struck.
Inside the pit lay a bloody, mangled wild elk, its body no longer in one piece.
Ronan squatted down, drew the dagger he carried from his waist, and began to cut off some edible parts from the dead elk.
After successfully mastering an offensive method, he could finally engage in some simple hunting activities in the small surrounding area, and meat dishes finally appeared on his daily menu.
Compared to the Energy Missile he first cast, the Energy Missile Ronan now unleashed was significantly greater in both speed and power.
One reason was the increased skill level of Energy Missile.
Another reason was that a few days ago, Ronan had successfully advanced to the realm of a Second-level Apprentice Wizard!
Name: Ronan Damien
Age: 16
Talent: No Elemental Affinity
Strength: Second-level Apprentice Wizard (3%)
Skills: Basic Meditation Technique (Beginner 87/100), Energy Missile (Proficient 1/200)
After advancing to Second-Level, Ronan's Mind Power noticeably increased by a large margin; his total Mind Power was now enough for him to cast Energy Missile four times consecutively with some to spare.
Following this trend, the speed at which his Energy Missile proficiency increased would become faster and faster, and the number of times his Mind Power was depleted, requiring meditation, would also increase. Like a snowball, he had unknowingly embarked on his own fast track of cultivation.
"It's just that the speed of energy particle erosion on the body has also accelerated."
Ronan frowned, instinctively reaching out to touch his chest.
During this period of physical training and dietary improvement, his physical fitness had greatly improved, and his complexion had gradually gotten better, but the dull pain in his chest every morning had not disappeared; instead, it felt like it was worsening.
Ronan felt that his lungs might have suffered damage from the erosion.
"I need to find a way to stop it. The gains from my current training are too low. If I could get a Knight training method, that would be great; it would be better than me blindly practicing like this."
Ronan recalled that when his predecessor was in his family's countdom, he had many Knights under him.
The most common characteristic of these Knights was their powerful physiques, far exceeding ordinary people.
Unfortunately, at that time, his predecessor hadn't trained with them.
Thinking this, Ronan put away his dagger.
He stood up, carrying the freshly cut venison, and walked towards home.
After a few steps, the bushes and leaves ahead rustled, and faint footsteps approached him.
Ronan narrowed his eyes, quietly stopped, and curled his tongue, ready to chant a spell at any moment.
A few seconds later, a figure appeared in his line of sight.
It was a Middle-Aged Wizard wearing a dark green robe, carrying a black kettle.
Seeing Ronan, he was clearly startled.
But very quickly, his expression calmed down.
His gaze swept over Ronan, lingered briefly on the blood-dripping venison in Ronan's hand, then he stepped aside slightly and walked past quickly with an expressionless face.
Until the two brushed past each other, neither Ronan nor the Middle-Aged Wizard spoke a word.
"Hoo—"
Watching the Middle-Aged Wizard's disappearing back, Ronan exhaled softly, quite satisfied with his performance just now.
Compared to half a month ago, he would no longer immediately bolt like a startled rabbit at the slightest rustle.
He had gained courage.
It was given by his strength as a Second-level Apprentice Wizard and the zero-level spell Energy Missile.
In fact, Ronan had also discovered that the "real" Treehouse Area was not as terrifying as he had imagined.
Although the Treehouse Area was in an unregulated wilderness, most Wizards who chose to live there were like him: low in strength and unable to afford the magic stones required for living in the Town, thus being low-level Wizard Apprentices.
He was afraid.
Others might be even more afraid than him.
Most Wizards cherished their lives and would actively avoid conflict, except for some crazy desperadoes.
In the past half-month, as his range of activity expanded during morning exercises, Ronan gradually got to know several "neighbors" living near his home.
He had even met a few of them, and the Middle-Aged Wizard he had just encountered was one of them.