Level six is the second hurdle on the lifelong path of a magician's cultivation. After passing level six, there is another realm to attain. Transitioning from a lower realm to a higher one requires a certain level of comprehension. Some may grasp it in a day, while others may struggle with it throughout their lives. That's why Billy said what he did.
Billy continued with a smile, "Moransiu, has your recent practice been going smoothly?"
Moransiu glanced at Billy, unsure why he was asking. Moransiu had been at Mulan Academy for almost four years now, and apart from the time he conversed with Billy many times when they went to the Western Sang Tomb in the Lulishan Mountains, he hadn't seen much of him since. He wondered why Billy had called him to Clearwater Residence today.
Moransiu stood up and replied, "Magic practice is proceeding as usual."
It had only been a month since Moransiu reached the level of a sixth-level magician, and there was still a long way to go before reaching the bottleneck. From now until then, everything would surely proceed as usual. Practice simply involved absorbing magical elements. Moransiu found it much easier to absorb magical elements than the average person, which explained why his progress was so rapid.
If he didn't have to train his hunting skills and strengthen his body every day, Moransiu might have already reached the late stage of level six by now.
"That's good. How do you feel about the exchange meeting a month from now?" Billy suddenly asked.
Moransiu's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that Billy wanted him to participate in the exchange meeting?
The journey from Sophi City to the Royal City passed through more than a dozen towns and cities, taking about half a month. Of course, it was also an opportunity for an adventure.
Moransiu paused for a moment before replying, "If possible, I would like to participate."
"What?" Lila exclaimed.
She had found Billy's previous question strange. Why would he discuss the exchange meeting with Moransiu? Now she understood that Billy intended for Moransiu to participate in the exchange meeting.
But how could Moransiu compete in the meeting without magical skills?
"Just as I was about to ask my question," another voice chimed in.
Following the direction of the voice, Moransiu saw an elderly man wearing a black mage robe slowly approaching. He had never seen this person before. He was much taller than Billy, with bright eyes that made him look at least a hundred years old.
"Headmaster Slode!" Billy nodded slightly.
"Headmaster," Lila greeted respectfully.
So this was Slode, whom Moransiu had never seen before. He had been at the academy for almost four years and had never seen the academy's headmaster. Most students were probably the same, Moransiu thought.
"This is our academy's genius, Moransiu, right?" Slode smiled slightly and said.
Moransiu nodded, "I am Moransiu."
Slode, the headmaster, seemed quite amiable.
"Hehe, Moransiu, I guess you haven't met Headmaster Slode before, have you? He's a busy man. Not only is he the headmaster of our academy, but he's also the president of the Sophi City Magician Guild. So, it's rare for ordinary people to see him," Billy laughed.
"What?" Moransiu was astonished.
The Magician Guild? President?
Although he was only the president of the Sophi City Magician Guild, such a position was still surprising. It should be noted that there were only ten major cities like Sophi City in the entire kingdom, and out of these ten cities, only eight had branches of the Magician Guild, while the other two cities did not have Magician Guild branches.
Slode looked at Moransiu sharply, "No need to be so surprised. Actually, it's nothing special. Moransiu, the reason I called you and Instructor Lila here today is because of something."
The expressions of Billy and Slode suddenly became serious.
Lila and Moransiu remained silent, waiting for Slode to continue speaking.
"As you know, in the past hundred years or so, in more than ten sessions of the Four Great Magic Academy Exchange Meetings, our Mulan Academy has never won first place. This has led to His Majesty the King having an increasingly poor impression of our Mulan Academy. Consequently, our academy's research funding has been decreasing. Of course, there are many other issues involved, but it's very serious overall," Slode said calmly.
Moransiu and Lila nodded. In truth, Moransiu didn't quite understand all of this. But since the headmaster said so, he had to nod in agreement.
"This time, I want us to win first place. So, Moransiu, it's up to you for everything," Slode suddenly turned his gaze to Moransiu, and Moransiu felt as if an electric current had shot through him.
"But, Headmaster, although Moransiu's magical power is not weak, he cannot learn magic skills," Lila interjected anxiously.
"Hehe, Lila, you don't know yet? Moransiu doesn't need to use magic stones to release magic," Slode looked at Billy. This piece of information was conveyed to him by Billy, and he hadn't seen Moransiu release magic himself. Naturally, he believed what Billy said.
Billy nodded, "Moransiu, can you use the Earth Shield now?"
The Earth Shield was a defensive magic that generally required a magician to reach level six to use. An ordinary level six magician could only release up to three Earth Shields at most. Of course, the defensive ability of the Earth Shield was ten times stronger than that of a level three Water Shield.
A light incantation was recited from Moransiu's mouth, and after a moment, a layer of earthy yellow light enveloped Moransiu's body, covering his entire body.
"Oh my god!" Lila exclaimed.
"Genius!" Slode smiled mysteriously.
"Indeed worthy of being chosen by Emperor Xisan," Billy thought to himself.
Even Slode couldn't help but admire inwardly upon seeing Moransiu use magic for the first time.
"How did you do that, Moransiu? The incantation was so fast! Even I, a great magician, couldn't chant an incantation as quickly as you did," Lila grabbed Moransiu's arm with her fair fingers, carefully examining him as if he were a monster.
It was inevitable to be shocked the first time one saw Moransiu use magic. Even Slode couldn't help but admire him internally.
"Perhaps, this is the advantage of not needing to use magic stones," Slode thought to himself.
What he didn't know was that the reason Moransiu could chant incantations so quickly was due to a very important reason. Ordinary magicians could only mobilize their magical power through two specific meridians in their bodies, transferring it to their hands and then integrating it with the outside world to trigger magic. However, Moransiu was not restricted; he could transfer magical power through all the meridians in his body, circulating it from any pore in his body. It would have been strange if he couldn't use magic quickly.
"For this exchange meeting, Billy and Instructor Lila will lead five
students from the academy to the Royal City. Moransiu, you will be responsible for selecting which students will participate in the competition, and you will also be involved in the selection process," Slode said satisfactorily.
With Moransiu joining in this time, first place would undoubtedly belong to Mulan Academy. Slode thought to himself.
"All right, Headmaster," Moransiu replied.
For Moransiu, this was a good opportunity for an adventure. Although he progressed quickly in his training, the lack of experience in combat and refinement was not good for him. Real battles were key to improving his strength. Since he started practicing magic, apart from occasional use of magic, Moransiu had hardly ever engaged in magical combat.
This time, on the journey to the Royal City, if there was an opportunity, he could use magic more often. Now that he was only one step away from the realm of a Grand Magician, he didn't care if other students knew about his ability to use magic skills.
Moransiu left Clearwater Residence and quickly headed towards the dormitory.