When he woke from his sleep and rubbed his eyes to look out the window, he realized the sun was already close to setting.
Luo Nan's first reaction was to quickly make dinner, otherwise, it would be too uncomfortable to cook by candlelight after dark.
And he was indeed famished at the moment.
Washing his hands with water from the cistern, Luo Nan took out the grain left by his predecessor—a mixed grain cereal containing quinoa, corn, black beans, and various other ingredients he couldn't identify.
This stuff would probably only be worth a few copper coins outside, but in Hordam Wizard Land, a pound of it cost one magic stone particle.
One low-grade magic stone could be broken down into one hundred magic stone particles, meaning one magic stone could only buy a mere hundred pounds of this coarse grain.
It had to be said that the prices in Wizard Land were outrageously high.
Luo Nan scooped two spoons of the mixed grains into a small pot, then added some water.
While the rice was cooking, he used wild mushrooms his predecessor had gathered in the forest and a few pine pigeon eggs to make himself a bowl of soup.
Mixed grain rice paired with mushroom and egg drop soup—a simple dinner was ready.
When one is truly starving, they don't care about taste or texture; as long as it fills the stomach, that's all that matters.
By the time Luo Nan had eaten his fill, his belly distended, and he slowly walked out of the Treehouse, the sky outside was completely dark.
The night sky above had turned a deep, ethereal blue, while the surrounding forest gradually emitted twinkling specks of light, not appearing dim.
Numerous small creatures, resembling fireflies, flew up from the ground in swarms, like dandelions scattered by the wind, painting the tranquil night with a beauty akin to a fairy tale dream.
Unfortunately—
“Smack!”
Luo Nan slapped his arm hard, killing a mosquito.
“This damned place has so many mosquitoes at night.”
His robe couldn't protect him from mosquito bites at all; Luo Nan had only stood by the door for a short while before he was covered in bites.
He grimaced and hurried back into the small house.
A moment later, he walked out again.
Luo Nan, reappearing, had sprinkled a large amount of insect repellent powder on his robe and now held a small net bag and a translucent white gauze pouch.
Luo Nan climbed onto a branch of the old oak tree, using the net bag to scoop up the glowing lights dancing around in the night.
These small creatures, similar to fireflies, were actually not difficult to catch; in a short while, the gauze pouch in Luo Nan's hand was bulging.
“Forty? Is it forty? That should be enough, right?”
Luo Nan was hesitating whether to continue when suddenly, he heard rustling and voices from nearby.
Luo Nan immediately became alert, instinctively wanting to hide back in the Treehouse.
Unfortunately, he was a step too slow.
Two figures, one tall and one short, emerged from the woods.
By the moonlight and the faint glow of the fireflies, he could see a man and a woman dressed in robes, walking shoulder to shoulder and talking, seemingly enjoying an evening stroll.
Luo Nan's body stiffened on the tree branch, clutching the net bag and gauze pouch, not daring to move, sweat beading on his forehead as his mind raced.
Fortunately, the other party merely glanced at him indifferently before averting their gaze, disappearing into the woods in a blink.
“Hoo—”
Once the two figures were completely out of sight, Luo Nan let out a long breath, his tense muscles slowly relaxing.
Then he felt incredibly depressed.
“I’m almost a startled bird…”
“It’s still because I’m too weak.”
Luo Nan sighed, no longer in the mood to catch bugs, and quickly returned to the Treehouse with his things.
Blowing out the candle lit inside the house, he hung the gauze pouch full of fireflies from the ceiling beam, creating a simple “light bulb.”
Unfortunately, its lifespan was only one night.
As soon as dawn broke, all the bugs in the bag would die.
Luo Nan stared at his self-made gauze pouch for a while, seeing the soft, yellowish glow of the fireflies spread across the entire small house like water; both its illumination and aesthetic appeal far surpassed a candle, and only then did he withdraw his gaze with satisfaction, sitting down at the oak round table in front of him.
The table was now covered with books, all left by his predecessor.
Luo Nan primarily focused on four of them—
“Basic Meditation Technique”
“Compendium of Zero-Order Spells”
“Runology: Collection of Ten Commonly Used Zero-Order Runes”
“Magical Potion Studies Basics”
These four books were currently his most valuable possessions.
His predecessor had almost spent all the magic stones brought from home to acquire these four books from Hordam Wizard Academy.
These four books represented knowledge, Inheritance, and were also the keys to opening the door to becoming a Wizard.
A significant portion of the Wizards gathered in Hordam Wizard Land were students of Hordam Wizard Academy.
Hordam Wizard Academy's admission standards were not strict; essentially, as long as you had the money to pay tuition, they would admit you.
However, studying, choosing courses, attending lectures, eating, and lodging within the Academy all required money.
Once your magic stones ran out, they would “invite” you out just as easily as you came in.
Therefore, there were many students from Hordam Wizard Academy, but very few truly gained the recognition of Hordam Academy; once one possessed this honor, it was synonymous with power and genius.
“This doesn’t seem like going to school; it’s more like a business,”
Luo Nan muttered, then casually opened the black-covered “Basic Meditation Technique” in front of him.
Mind Power was the foundation and core of the Wizard power system, and meditation was the primary way to enhance Mind Power; its importance was self-evident.
Luo Nan had tried “meditation” several times in the past two days, but none were successful; each time, he felt he was just a little bit short.
He seemed to have integrated none of his predecessor's experience and insights in this area, so he could only start from scratch as a pure novice.
“…Empty the mind, discard distracting thoughts, focus the spirit on one point…”
Luo Nan recited the steps described in the book.
After reading, he closed the book, shut his eyes, and silently reviewed it several times in his mind, while also relaxing his spirit.
When Luo Nan felt he was ready, he got up, drank some water, washed his hands, and then washed his face.
Then he took off his shoes and sat cross-legged on his small bed where he slept.
Actually, there were no specific posture requirements for Wizard meditation; one could lie down or even lie on their stomach.
But Luo Nan had tried it, and it was very easy to fall asleep that way.
As he got onto the bed, a corner of the thin blanket underneath was accidentally pulled back, revealing a line of small characters.
“The soul is the ultimate destination of immortality.”
Luo Nan read it aloud softly, his expression slightly unusual.
This sentence was the opening line of “Basic Meditation Technique” and a widely circulated famous maxim in the Wizard World.
Its meaning was to admonish everyone who embarked on the path of a Wizard that Mind Power was the focus of cultivation, and the pursuit of the soul's immortality was true immortality.
Now, it was carved on the bed board, used to warn oneself.
It was clearly not carved by his predecessor, as the handwriting looked quite old.
Perhaps it was the previous owner of this small wooden house, or even the one before that.
Luo Nan's mind began to wander; in a time long ago, in the same small wooden house, under the same dim light, on the same bed board.
A young man, about his age, sat in the same spot, alone, silently meditating and cultivating, dreaming of one day being able to leave the Treehouse Area and enter the Academy.
Thinking this way, Luo Nan inexplicably felt a surge of courage and motivation.
He gained an inexplicable encouragement and drew strength from this unexpectedly discovered handwriting; the after-effects of being startled twice during the day and night gradually faded, and his mind completely settled down.