The next day, while teaching his students, Kaelan completes the Gold Wizard cultivation method—the final piece connecting the life origin and the spirit world through the magic circuit.
With it, he finishes the three stages of the official Wizard: Bronze, Silver, and Gold.
After the students' session ends, they leave one by one, their footsteps fading beyond the chamber doors.
Kaelan sits cross-legged on the floor, closes his eyes, and sinks into his inner world.
He senses the pulse of his life origin and extends his built magic circuit toward it.
Then, with careful precision, he stretches the circuit further, linking it to his spirit acupoint, which leads to his spirit world.
Mana hums softly through him as he tweaks and refines the flow.
Slowly, he merges the pathways—dantian, life origin, and spirit world—into a seamless closed loop.
When he begins to circulate mana through the circuit, he feels no refinement in its quality, for the Gold Wizard stage still corresponds to the late to peak levels of the first stage of transcendence.
Yet something subtle shifts.
The moment the loop completes, his entire body resonates, and an unseen field unfurls around him.
Though invisible to the eye, it is far from meaningless.
Spiritual energy entering the field changes into his mana and is absorbed effortlessly by his body whenever he consumes it, forming a perfect cycle—an endless flow, a perpetual machine of mana.
In battle, a Golden Wizard has an advantage; when fighting a martial artist or qi refiner of the same cultivation stage, he can sustain the fight far longer, his mana replenishing faster than it's spent, ensuring eventual victory through endurance alone.
Satisfied, Kaelan stops advancing the Wizard cultivation path for the second stage of transcendence.
Instead, he turns his focus toward crafting spells for his students—simple but powerful techniques aligned with the four elements.
Days pass quietly as he observes them train, guiding their visualisations and correcting their posture and focus.
A week later, while watching them meditate beneath the morning light filtering through the hall windows, he suddenly feels a shift.
A ripple of wind spiritual energy gathers, faint yet distinct, and begins flowing into one of the boys. Kaelan's eyes open slightly, locking onto the child.
The air hums around him, threads of unseen breeze converging toward his small frame—a clear sign of spirit awakening.
He recalls the boy's name—Lu Chen, grandson of the Lu Family's patriarch.
With a single clap, Kaelan stops their visualisation. The children, startled, lower their hands and turn from their elemental maps.
Normally, after each session, they meditate to recover from the strain the visualisations place on their spirits, but this time, Kaelan interrupts the routine.
He wants to share the good news, to stir joy—and urgency—among them.
"Stop, everyone," he says.
Dozens of eyes open, confusion flickering across young faces. Some glance at one another in question.
Lu Chen, however, stares ahead, his expression caught between excitement and restraint, the faint tremor of spirit power still leaking from his spirit acupuncture point.
Kaelan's lips curve into a smile. "Lu Chen," he says, his tone carrying quiet pride, "are you not going to share your happy news?"
All heads turn toward Lu Chen. His cheeks flush crimson as the weight of attention falls on him. Before he can speak, He Shoumei blurts out, "Lu Chen, you succeeded! You visualised the Wind Elemental Map!"
Lu Chen's blush deepens, but he nods, shy and glowing with barely contained joy.
Around him, the other children react in a mix of envy and relief—envy for not being the first, relief because his success proves the Wizard path is real.
"Lu Chen," Kaelan says gently, "come forward."
The boy hesitates for a heartbeat, then rises and walks shyly toward his teacher, head slightly lowered, his faint spirit aura rippling like a breeze through the chamber.
From the group, a boy speaks up. "Teacher, is Lu Chen now a Wizard Apprentice?"
Kaelan turns his gaze toward the voice.
It belongs to Gu Yun, the boy who often takes the lead among the others, confident in his position as the legitimate grandson of the Gu Family's patriarch, while most of the rest are born of concubines.
Gu Yun had once watched Kaelan's duel against Ke Xi at the arena and had admired him ever since.
Kaelan smiles faintly. "No," he says, "awakening your spirit doesn't make you a Wizard Apprentice. It's only the first step toward becoming one."
Gu Yun's eyes gleam with curiosity. "Then what's the next step, Teacher?"
Kaelan nods toward the group. "You can all listen as I teach Lu Chen the next step."
He turns back to Lu Chen. "Can you feel your spirit power?"
Lu Chen nods, voice soft and nervous. "Yes, Teacher."
"Good. Now close your eyes," Kaelan says. "Spread your spirit power through your body."
Lu Chen obeys, his breathing steadying as his consciousness sinks inward.
"Can you feel it moving?" Kaelan asks.
Lu Chen nods again, eyes still closed, anticipation brightening his young face.
Kaelan's voice softens. "Good. Now, can you feel the vital energy flowing through your body?"
Lu Chen nods.
"Then," Kaelan continues, "use your spirit to guide that energy toward your dantian."
Lu Chen's expression tightens as he tries. His small body trembles, and sweat beads on his forehead. After a few moments, he opens his eyes, tears glistening under the light. "I failed, Teacher."
Kaelan shakes his head gently. "Don't cry. I'll help you."
He decides to assist personally.
Lu Chen is his first true success—a living proof that his Wizard cultivation path works.
Before Lu Chen leaves and draws attention from powerful eyes, Kaelan intends to raise his foundation as much as possible.
If he can help Lu Chen become a Wizard Apprentice before leaving, it will serve as the perfect example of his teachings.
He places a hand on Lu Chen's back. "My spirit power will enter your body. Feel it carefully."
Kaelan's spirit power flows into Lu Chen, steady and precise, guiding the boy's scattered vital energy toward his dantian.
"Now," Kaelan says, "did you feel it move?"
Lu Chen nods, concentration returning to his face. After a few more tries under Kaelan's guidance, he succeeds on his own—the energy flows smoothly toward his core.
Kaelan smiles faintly. "Good. You've completed the second step toward becoming a Wizard Apprentice. Now, I'll teach you the final one."
Lu Chen's eyes sharpen with focus, and the other children lean forward, eager not to miss a word.
Kaelan gestures for calm. "For this, sit properly and steady your breath."
Lu Chen follows his instructions without hesitation.
"Now," Kaelan continues, "meditate and guide your vital energy toward your spirit acupoint."
A minute passes before Lu Chen nods faintly, signalling success.
"Good," Kaelan says. "Next, guide that same energy to the visualisation map formed within your spirit space."
Time flows quietly. Then Kaelan senses a change—Lu Chen's breathing deepens, his rhythm syncing with the invisible flow of the world. The Wind Elemental Spiritual Energy begins to gather, drawn toward him by the forming map within his spirit space.
It enters his body, merging with his vital energy and transforming into Wind Elemental Vital Energy.
The air around him stirs faintly, brushing against the children's faces. Lu Chen's vitality rises rapidly, his body lightening as his breath blends seamlessly with the wind itself.
Moments later, faint black dirt seeps from his pores, releasing a foul odour as the impurities within his body are expelled.
The children recoil, clutching their noses. "Why does he smell like a sewer?" one shouts, and the others echo with groans and laughter.
The sudden noise breaks Lu Chen's ethereal focus. He blinks awake, his face twisting in embarrassment as the stench hits him. "Teacher, why do I smell so bad?"
Kaelan chuckles softly. "Those are the impurities within your body being flushed out. It's the first cleansing—proof you've taken your first step toward transcendence."
He lifts his hand, water forming in midair from his mana, swirling into a clear basin.
With a flick, he washes the filth off Lu Chen's body, then tosses the murky water out the window.
A gentle, warm breeze follows—his wind mana dries Lu Chen and his clothes within minutes.
Once everyone settles, Kaelan ends the session.
As the children leave, he glances toward the tree outside where a crow perches silently.
His will flickers, and the bird caws softly—its unseen command to watch over Lu Chen given.
When the courtyard empties, Kaelan's gaze drifts inward.
His cultivation is stuck.
The Storm Visualisation Map he built has reached only the Gold Grade.
To progress, he must elevate it to the Spiritual Grade.
He walks to his chamber and sits cross-legged, mind delving deep into deduction.
Runes of wind and thunder swirl faintly in his spirit space, reshaping, refining, striving for perfection.
Minutes pass before familiar footsteps sound outside. The door opens, and Li Xueyao steps in.
She finds his eyes open, the faint shimmer of lightning still flickering within them. "I heard," she says, "the grandson of the Lu Family's patriarch has become a Wizard Apprentice."
Kaelan nods lightly. "Yes."
"I've sent Lin Zian to protect him," she adds.
Kaelan hides his surprise behind a calm smile. He already assigned a crow to watch the boy—his own eyes from afar—but he can't reveal that. "Thank you," he says, "you're thoughtful."
A soft smile blooms on her lips. "It's the least I could do."
Kaelan's tone turns steady. "When will you break through to the Official Wizard Stage and become a Bronze Wizard?"
Li Xueyao sighs. "When do I even have time for that?"
"You should make time," Kaelan replies. "If the nobles see your strength rise, their confidence in you will grow."
She nods slowly. "I'll think about it."
Kaelan gives a faint hum of acknowledgement, his eyes closing once more as his focus returns inward—back to the storm raging within his spirit world.