Sorcerer’s Handbook

Sonya asked curiously, “What is your Silver blessing?”

Ashe paused for a moment, looking at the newly acquired blessing.

“Silver Blessing   Observer’s Visage: Your appearance is deceptive, causing others to subconsciously overlook your presence unless you perform unusual actions. In the Virtual Realm, this blessing is enhanced, and unless there is a close Bond, others cannot see your face clearly.”

“Can you see my face clearly?”

Sonya was taken aback, “I can now.”

Ashe blinked and explained simply, “My blessing makes others ignore me when they see me… but I am not an infiltrator, and I don’t plan to rob the rich to aid my own poverty in the future, so why bestow such a blessing on me? The Virtual Realm is really targeting me.”

Sonya giggled, “Or perhaps the Virtual Realm has seen through your true nature…”

“Stop laughing, you must feel it too, right? We have another Secret Poison now.”

When they saw the Golden Fish Scale, a stream of hidden knowledge flowed into their minds.

“Number of Secret Poison Infected: 14”

“Intensification Degree of Secret Poison: 14%”

“Current Effects of Secret Poison: You can convert Silver Arcane Energy into Golden Arcane Energy, with a conversion ratio of 64:36. (When the Intensification Degree decreases to 10%, you receive a significant benefit; reaching 51% turns it into a negative effect).”

It was only natural that the Golden Fish Secret Poison wasn’t widely known, as even Ashe and his companions had to deduce the truth—it was necessary to see the Golden Fish Scale with their own eyes to be infected by the Secret Poison.

However, the fact that there were 14 infected individuals surprised Ashe. It meant that besides them, there were six other pairs who had smuggled themselves from the Sea of Knowledge to the Time Continent in the same manner—But while Ashe’s team cheated their way through, those people had truly met by fate!

“Such a powerful Secret Poison,” Sonya marveled. “I’ve never heard of a Miracle that can Convert Arcane Energy, not even at a 10:1 ratio, let alone 2:1!”

Typically, Silver Arcane Energy is just Silver Arcane Energy, and Gold Arcane Energy is Gold Arcane Energy. Low-rank Arcane Energy doesn’t upgrade just because a Sorcerer climbs to higher levels in the Virtual Realm, as arcane energy is essentially the condensation of knowledge. Just like arithmetic learned in the first grade doesn’t automatically turn into algebra when you reach the second grade.

Although Low-rank Arcane Energy can activate High-rank Spirits, and High-rank Arcane Energy can activate Low-rank Spirits, the former is highly inefficient and the latter is overly wasteful. Therefore, Sorcerers often use the corresponding rank of arcane energy to power their spirits to maximize resource use.

However, as Sorcerers acquire more High-rank Spirits, there’s no longer any need to use outdated Low-rank Spirits, and consequently, Low-rank Arcane Energy becomes undesirable.

Currently, Ashe and Sonya don’t have much need for this Secret Poison, as they don’t have many Two Wings spirits, and Silver Arcane Energy is completely sufficient. But once they upgrade their spirits to the Two Wings Version, they will appreciate the value of this Secret Poison — even facing Two Wings Sorcerers with the same progress in the Virtual Realm, with Gold Arcane Energy converted from Silver, they naturally have an edge!

“After drinking with Senior Sister, smuggling ourselves to the Time Continent, receiving a Silver blessing, getting infected by the Golden Fish Secret Poison, and…” Sonya’s gaze quickly swept over Ashe’s face: “Tonight has truly been a lucky night.”

“The night isn’t over yet; while we still have time, let’s explore the Time Continent. Maybe we can find some Wild Two Wings spirits—”

“We’re out of time,” Sonya said. “We’re going to die.”

Ashe froze, opened the “Virtual Realm Map,” and found the same message in all 25 grid spaces:

“Prepare to die; there’s no escape.”

“Didn’t you notice the change in me?” Sonya curled a strand of hair near her ear. “My hair turned black.”

It wasn’t just Sonya’s hair; Ashe looked around and noticed that the forest, which had a hint of green before, had completely turned gray. Sonya had lost all her color, resembling a character from a black-and-white movie.

He looked down at his own hands, shockingly white, devoid of any natural skin tone.

“Sorcerers pursue the White Bull not only to bask in the Golden Rain but also because the areas beyond the River of Flowing Gold are devoid of time,” Sonya explained. “The River of Flowing Gold moves with the White Bull, so once you fail to keep up with the White Bull, you’ll fall into the ‘Static Domain’ where there is no time. The immediate effect is the loss of all color, leaving only black and white around you.”

“If we had just—”

“I woke up to see the vegetation and soil around us turning gray, which means the River of Flowing Gold nearby had dried up. By then, we were as good as dead,” Sonya shrugged. “Even if we caught up, it would be no use; one cannot outrun time.”

Ashe asked, “What if we exit the Virtual Realm now?”

Sonya laughed, “The Static Domain has a significant time difference from the outside world. It may seem like we’ve been talking for a while, but for the outside world, it might not even be a few seconds. It takes us 20 seconds to exit the Virtual Realm from the outside; in the Static Domain, it could take several hours.”

“Being frozen in time in the Static Domain is the second most common cause of death for Sorcerers. The most common is drowning in the Sea of Knowledge.”

“How long do we have before we freeze?”

“The textbook says that if you don’t run and just wait in place, there’s about a 10-minute delay. So, it won’t be long now.”

Ashe looked up at the sky and noticed that the Golden Rain was too far away to see, and the whole world had turned into a silent black and white.

“Will we end up here again the next time we enter the Virtual Realm?”

“Yes, we will. There’s no turning back in the Virtual Realm, and Sorcerers aren’t allowed to retrace their steps. Even if I open the Gate of Truth with the power of One Wing spirit, it will only lead to the Time Continent.”

“That’s good to hear.”

Ashe stretched out lazily and lay down on the grass, plucking a blade and chewing on it, surprised to find it slightly sweet.

A question suddenly occurred to him, “Does dying in the Virtual Realm harm the soul…?”

Sonya nodded, “Yes, but since we weren’t defeated by a Sorcerer Projection or killed by a Knowledge Creature, the damage will be minimal, and we won’t lose our spirit. Until our souls are fully restored, we’ll feel a bit lethargic, unable to concentrate, sleepy, and our learning efficiency will be reduced.”

“Sounds like being half asleep… But not being able to enter the Virtual Realm is a serious issue…”

“Anyway, you won’t be able to enter the Virtual Realm for the next few days, and without you there, I have no interest in exploring the Time Continent alone. It’s a good opportunity for me to practice intensively, to digest the knowledge I’ve acquired and master the new Miracles I’ve obtained. After working hard for half a month, it’s time for a break.”

“Rest… Now that you mention it, it’s been a while since I’ve slept. I’m actually starting to feel sleepy…”

Ashe yawned and rubbed his eyes. Suddenly, he felt the back of his head gently lifted and placed on something soft and elastic.

A gentle and melodious voice, like the chime of windbells, began to sing softly.

It was like a lover’s whisper in his ear or the refreshing clink of ice cubes in a summer drink, innocent yet seductive, demure yet enticing, lulling him deeper into drowsiness, his body relaxed, nearly dreaming.

When the angelic voice paused, Ashe was still in a half-sleep state.

“This is a lullaby my mother used to sing to me when I was a child. You’re the first person to hear me sing.”

Ashe opened his eyes to see the Swordswoman looking down at him, her eyes brimming with smiles, as if they could paint the black-and-white world with color.

“I’ll wait for you in the Virtual Realm.”

The next second, they were frozen in time, becoming a tableau.

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