A faint, dense CRACKLE filled the air.
Like an ice field freezing over in the dead of winter.
The first pale-gold crystal quietly materialized amidst the stardust.
It was the size of a grain of rice, its surface as smooth as a mirror, with liquid starlight flowing within.
Then came a second, a third...
Ten, a hundred, a thousand...
Countless crystals sprang up like mushrooms after a rain, attracting, approaching, and joining with one another!
CRACKLE, CRACKLE, CRACKLE...
The sound of crystallization was as dense as a downpour on a jade plate.
The entire Sea of Spirit was trembling violently!
「Outside.」
Across the surface of Ian’s body, a jade-like radiance and silvery-white star patterns intertwined and flowed.
The muscles beneath his skin rippled like waves, reorganizing and strengthening!
His bones emitted a series of sharp CRACKLES, as if undergoing a second growth spurt.
Dark gray impurities mixed with blood seeped from his pores, emitting a pungent, foul stench.
But he was completely unaware.
His consciousness was entirely submerged in the transformation of his Sea of Spirit.
Time ticked by, second by second.
The moment the very last speck of stardust solidified into a crystal!
HUMMM!!!
In the center of the Sea of Spirit, all the crystals simultaneously erupted with a blinding, pale-gold brilliance!
As if summoned, they converged frantically toward the Seed of the Stars.
Joining, inlaying, fusing...
Finally, they condensed into a regular tetrahedron-shaped crystal the size of a fist!
The crystal was a uniform pale gold, its surface covered in flowing, liquid silvery starlight.
Its four corners were as sharp as knife blades, and within, one could faintly see countless tiny, illusory stars drifting about.
As for the Seed of the Stars...
It was embedded right in the center of the crystal.
Like the core of a star system, it emanated a stable and vast fluctuation.
’So this is... the Crystalized Core of my Spiritual Power...’
Ian’s consciousness gazed at the crystal, his dark eyes reflecting its brilliant light.
He could feel it clearly...
The total amount of his Spiritual Power had surged by at least five times!
The precision of his control, brought about by this qualitative change, had increased by more than tenfold!
Witchcraft Models that previously required meticulous construction could now be formed with a single thought.
Tier One Witchcraft that once needed Spells to activate could now be cast instantly at will.
More importantly...
The moment the crystal formed, all the illusory stars in the sky above his Sea of Spirit began to revolve around it!
Orderly and in resonance with one another.
Like a true star system that had found its gravitational center.
The second layer of the Starry Sky Festival was completely solidified.
But the transformation wasn’t over yet.
Just as the crystal stabilized,
a vast, ancient Will, carrying the aura of the World Origin, descended without any warning!
It was clearer, more enduring, and... more intimate than when he had broken through to Level One.
The Will of the Wizard World!
Ian felt his comprehension skyrocket the instant the Will descended upon him!
Difficulties with Rules that he couldn’t figure out before were now crystal clear.
Witchcraft Models he previously couldn’t optimize could now be modified with ease.
’An opportunity...’
A sharp glint flashed in his eyes.
Almost at the same time the Will descended, his Spiritual Power delved deep into the Crystal Core.
The time to condense his Tier Two Talent Witchcraft was now!
He had already chosen his Talent Witchcraft long before the breakthrough.
The model for [Gravity Collapse Ball] flashed wildly in his consciousness, being optimized and reconstructed!
The crude structure from Level One was completely shattered.
He integrated a deeper understanding of the Gravity Rule.
He integrated the Star Resonance from the Seed of the Stars.
He integrated the ultimate control from his Crystalized Spiritual Power...
Parts of the model’s structure evolved from two-dimensional planes to three-dimensional forms.
The Energy Nodes increased explosively from seventeen to three hundred and sixty.
The compression ratio leaped from ten times to fifty times!
Range, power, control precision...
A comprehensive, quantum leap in improvement!
The instant the last node was constructed,
HUMMM!!!
a complex, pale-gold pattern quietly appeared on the surface of the Crystal Core.
The pattern was as profound as a Star Map, radiating terrifying gravitational fluctuations.
His Level Two Talent Witchcraft was complete!
At the same time, the model for his Level One Talent Witchcraft, [Frost Ash Beam], began to evolve spontaneously under the infusion of Crystalized Spiritual Power!
The fusion ratio of its Ice and Fire Energy was optimized.
Its firing speed tripled.
Its Penetration Power increased fivefold.
Its overall power... increased once again!
After the breakthrough, it too evolved into a Level Two Talent Witchcraft.
The range of Rule interference for [Entropy Change Domain] expanded.
’Still not enough...’
Ian took advantage of the Will’s presence, his consciousness sweeping like lightning over his other Witchcraft.
The Jade-like Radiance of his [Furnace Body Tempering Skill] grew more substantial.
The Concealment effect of [Mimicry] was enhanced.
Even the Earth Resonance characteristic from the [Rock Bear Potion] underwent a subtle evolution, steeped in the Star Rule.
Time ticked by, second by second.
As the World Will slowly receded,
Ian slowly opened his eyes.
Deep within his black pupils, a speck of pale-gold starlight slowly spun before disappearing.
He looked down at his own hands.
His skin was as fair as jade, with faint, silvery-white star patterns flowing across its surface.
He clenched his fist.
His knuckles let out a crisp crack.
Power, speed, reflexes, endurance...
A comprehensive improvement.
More important was his lifespan.
He could clearly feel that his body’s aging process had slowed by several dozen times.
As if someone had hit the pause button.
"Level Two Wizard... a thousand-year lifespan!"
Ian whispered these three words, a slow smile spreading across his lips.
It was the exhilarating feeling of controlling power, controlling fate, controlling... freedom.
Gaga landed on his shoulder, its small eyes sparkling.
"Ian, you... you’ve changed so much, gaga."
"How have I changed?"
"Your eyes," Gaga said, tilting its head and trying its best to describe it.
"It’s like... like they hold an entire starry sky. They’re so deep, so bright, it’s a little scary to look at them."
Ian smiled and rubbed its little head.
The touch was warm.
A real touch.
He stood up, his long robe fluttering without a breeze.
His gaze swept toward the center of the hall.
The Flame of Civilization was now emitting a final, gentle, silvery-white glow.
As if saying farewell.
The High Priest’s phantom image had faded until it was almost invisible.
"Thank you..."
Ian bowed slowly to the phantom.
Not in thanks for the gift,
but in thanks for a civilization’s final... trust.
The phantom nodded slightly, a faint smile seeming to appear on its blurry face.
"You should go now."
The High Priest’s voice echoed in the depths of his consciousness.
"The people outside have been waiting for a long time."
Ian was taken aback.
"Outside... How long has it been?"
"In the Fire Hall, the flow of time is almost stagnant."
The High Priest explained calmly.
"If not for this, the souls of the Star Spirit Race would have long since dissipated."
"But for you, the time from entering the hall to completing the upload was but an instant."
Ian breathed a sigh of relief.
’That’s a relief.’
He had been worried that several years had passed in the outside world and something might have gone wrong in the Shadow Moon Tower’s Otherworld.
"One last question."
He looked at the phantom.
"The Star Spirit Race... can they still return?"
The High Priest was silent for a long time.
So long that Ian thought he wasn’t going to answer.
Then, he slowly raised his right hand, his palm facing Ian.
HUMMM!
A silvery-white pillar of light descended from above, enveloping Ian completely.
"Go."
The High Priest’s voice became ethereal and distant within the pillar of light.
The pillar of light contracted abruptly.
Ian felt his body being pulled by an invisible force as his vision began to spin.
In his last glimpse,
he saw the High Priest’s phantom dissipate completely, turning into a sky full of light motes that merged into the Flame of Civilization.
The glow on the surface of the Flame of Civilization also slowly extinguished.
Like a star that had finally burned out.
The hall fell into an eternal silence.
Only the High Priest’s final words echoed in the depths of his consciousness.
It was the calm sorrow of a civilization that had reached its end.
"The last hope... is with you."
The next moment, the pillar of light exploded.
Ian’s figure vanished from the Fire Hall.