Spiritshade City was transported from the Material Realm to the Shadow Realm, and theoretically, it should also be able to return to the Material Realm. The reason it stayed in the Shadow Realm for over a thousand years was reportedly due to an "insurmountable" obstacle.
As for what that insurmountable obstacle was, Lion didn't know, and no one had explained it to him. But now, it seemed that this "insurmountable obstacle" had been overcome.
After spending fifteen years in the eerie Shadow Realm, Lion finally saw blue skies, white clouds, mountains, and lakes. Even the desert, which originally didn't inspire any fondness, now seemed familiar and comforting to him.
And there was the real sun in the sky.
Floating two hundred feet above the ground, overlooking the land, his heart swelled with emotion, almost to the point of tears. It was as if he were a wandering son who had finally returned to his familiar hometown.
Although this was not Earth.
He greedily looked around, as if trying to etch every scene into his mind. But time was not on his side; the levitation spell attached to his magical robe couldn't last long. If he didn't land soon, once the spell wore off, he risked falling to his death.
Lion landed and ran into the dormitory, making so much noise that he woke Freya up. "What's going on?" the little girl rubbed her eyes. "Why are you doing this?"
"Get up!" Lion pulled her up without waiting for a reply and put the robe on her. Before Freya could figure out what was happening, she was being dragged out of the dormitory in a daze.
"Yikes!" The little girl squeezed her eyes shut. "Why is the sun so blinding today? Is it already noon?"
"It's not noon," Lion said excitedly. "We're back in the Material Realm!"
"What?"
Freya reluctantly opened her eyes just a slit, shielding her face from the intense light. Through her fingers, she saw the azure sky, white clouds, birds flying overhead, and everything bathed in warm, bright sunlight.
"It's true," she said, excitement creeping into her voice. Unlike Lion, who was familiar with the Material Realm, Freya was born in the Shadow Realm and had no memories of the Material Realm; everything she knew came from books. For Lion, the Material Realm was "familiar," but for Freya, it was "novel."
More people in the school noticed the change and ran out of their dormitories, shielding their eyes from the blinding sunlight while gazing at the sky. Many of the older students, like Lion, instinctively activated the levitation spell on their robes and rose into the air.
"Take me up there to see," Freya pleaded. She was only in her third year and hadn't mastered the levitation spell yet.
"I haven't prepared a spell yet," Lion said. His own robe could provide one levitation spell, but it could only be activated once every twenty-four hours, and he had already used it in his eagerness.
Freya was disappointed, but it wasn't a big deal. Since Spiritshade City had returned, it presumably wouldn't go back to the Shadow Realm. They had plenty of time in the future. However, both of them were currently in the school and weren't allowed to leave without permission, so they could only look longingly at the outside world.
Not only the wizard school students, but soon Lion and Freya also heard a piece of news. The lord of Spiritshade City had issued an edict prohibiting any Spiritshade City residents from leaving the city without government approval.
As for how to obtain approval, the edict stated that the government would further formulate implementation details.
This was as good as saying nothing, and Lion was disappointed. He was in his fifth year and had three months left until graduation. He had hoped to become a full-fledged wizard after graduation and roam freely outside Spiritshade City. Now, that seemed unlikely.
However, things in the world were often unexpected. Just when Lion was feeling dejected, the school professor brought some good news.
"This graduation exam will be held in the desert below our city."
"The... desert?" The students were startled. We're wizards, not special forces, so we don't need wilderness survival training, do we? Wizards generally have poor physical constitutions and grew up in the cold Shadow Realm. Suddenly placed in the desert, they would likely suffer from thirst or heatstroke.
"Yes, in this desert... It's not about trekking across the desert; it's about exploration."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Exploration was a relatively suitable exam format. Purely theoretical exams couldn't reflect practical abilities, and a tournament would be unfair. For example, wizards specializing in prophecy are best at strategic planning and reconnaissance but are at a disadvantage in face-to-face combat. Exploration usually comprehensively assesses abilities, often involving setting a goal, such as finding a certain item to bring back or reaching a specific location.
"So... Oh right, Professor, what's the name of this desert?"
The professor raised his eyes slightly and looked at the students. "The Enoch Desert," he said, his voice carrying an inexplicable tone. "This is where the empire once stood."
Everyone fell silent. They knew that after the fall of the Netheril Empire, its ruins became a vast desert. But they hadn't expected it to be right beneath their feet.
This endless sea of sand buried the once magnificent magical empire.
Time passed extremely quickly, and before they knew it, the date of the graduation exam was approaching.
The exam question was finally determined: tomb raiding.
Of course, saying "tomb raiding" seemed a bit inelegant; the official term was exploration. In the Enoch Desert below Spiritshade City, there was an ancient tomb that had been transformed into a maze for the exam.
There was a preliminary exam first, eliminating most students and retaining only the top four. These four students would then enter the maze from four different entrances, with the goal of reaching the center, where the prize—a rainbow-colored ring—awaited.
The ring had a teleportation spell attached to it, and putting it on would trigger the magic, returning the wearer directly to the podium in Spiritshade City. As for the other three losers, they would naturally be picked up.
"A maze? Doesn't that mean those who specialize in prophecy have an advantage?"
The prophecy school isn't good at attacking or defending but has plenty of detection and reconnaissance spells, making it ideal for navigating a maze. But things wouldn't be that simple; if it were just a simple maze, it wouldn't be much of a graduation exam.
"The maze corridors are filled with various monsters. Which ones you encounter will depend on your luck."
"So, which monsters are included?" A student asked.
"Nothing much," the professor said casually. "Just some zombies, skeleton archers, goblins, minotaurs, and the like."
The students' faces grew paler as they listened. Zombies and goblins could indeed be considered "nothing much." Zombies were terrifying in appearance but clumsy in movement, while goblins were somewhat annoying but cowardly. The problem was skeleton archers and minotaurs.
Skeletons are one thing; as aspiring wizards, even if they don't specialize in necromancy, they've seen plenty of skeletons. But skeleton archers are troublesome. The biggest weakness of wizards is their inability to wear armor and wield shields on the battlefield; they can only wear robes, making their defense extremely weak. They fear both enemies rushing up to them and enemies shooting from a distance.
As for minotaurs, they are even harder to deal with. Minotaurs in the Material Realm are different from their cowardly counterparts in the Shadow Realm. They are not only equally strong and sturdy but also fierce, bloodthirsty, and temperamental—and generally don't understand human language, so you can't communicate with them.
Even for fifth-year graduates, facing a minotaur is quite challenging, especially when there might be more than one.
"Can we bring magical potions?"
"No."
"Can we bring magical scrolls?"
"No."
With a final glimmer of hope, someone asked, "Can we bring magical items?"
The professor nodded, "Yes."
Just as everyone was about to cheer, the professor added, "Only the items issued to you by the school."
For fifth-year students, the school-issued equipment included a staff, a wizard's robe, a ring, and a necklace. Although these were indeed relatively decent magical items, they were still too limited.
"The graduation exam is not a suicide mission," the professor said. "The school will, of course, consider everything for you. Each of the four students entering the maze will be issued a golem."
"An iron golem?" Someone asked hopefully.
The professor looked at him and said, "A clay golem."
The strength and abilities of Golems can be judged just by their names. Earth Golems, naturally, can't compare to Iron Golems in any way, but they're better than nothing. Golems are somewhat similar to robots on Earth—clumsy and slow-moving, but durable, making them perfect as shields for wizards. They follow wizards' commands to the letter, but nothing too complex; otherwise, they won't understand.
With an Earth Golem as his shield, even a fragile wizard feels like he's holding up a large defensive wall, offering him a sense of security.
"Besides Golems," the professor said, "you're also allowed to choose an assistant."
This was good news. Wizards should never fight alone; they should be surrounded by teammates for protection. But where to find an assistant?
"The final exams for third-year students will be held before your graduation exams," the professor announced. "The four students who enter the maze can select anyone from the top ten of the third-year finals as their assistant."
Third-year students?
Everyone felt a bit deflated. Even the top ten from the third-year finals can only barely touch the first layer of the Magic Web and perform some very basic spells. They wouldn't be much help. Fourth-year students would be much better. With plenty of practical training, their skills improve rapidly. Among the top ten from the fourth-year finals, if you're really lucky, you might stumble upon a brilliant genius who has reached the second layer of the Magic Web. That would be a huge boost.
Lion also found this rule a bit odd, sensing there might be something fishy going on...
Couldn't it be specifically targeted at him?
The thought flashed through his mind, but he shook his head with a smile. He didn't think he was important enough for such specific attention. Well, regardless, he needed to pick a third-year student as his assistant...
"Freya," he gently stroked the girl's hair in their dorm room, enjoying the warmth of her moist mouth, "do me a favor."
"Hmm?" Freya's mouth was full, preventing her from speaking clearly, so she could only utter a muffled nasal sound.
"Come in tenth place in the finals this time," he said.