With a mouth full of grease, he patted his belly contentedly. He had eaten over a dozen skewers, and his stomach was noticeably distended.
He placed the remaining deer meat over the campfire to smoke and dry, turning it into jerky.
As for selling fresh meat, that was out of the question; without preservation methods, it would spoil quickly. While selling it himself in the Town would fetch a much higher price, it would hinder his progress in cultivation.
He could only make jerky to sell to the Town's butcher shops and deer hides to the Town's leather shops. His future life would likely involve selling dried meat, smoked overnight, and processed deer hides in the Town early in the morning.
The afternoon would be hunting time, which also served as Dago's practical training for Air Bullet. As for after sunset, that would definitely be entirely dedicated to cultivating and improving his skills.
Perfect, a win-win-win.
........
The following days proceeded according to Dago's self-planned daily routine.
Unconsciously, half a month passed.
In the large open space outside the Shelter, air currents surged, and a fist-sized Air Bullet flew rapidly towards a tree too thick for one person to embrace.
"Bang!"
A violent explosion rang out, sending a large shower of wood chips flying from the thick tree, leaving a hand-deep indentation embedded in the trunk's surface.
In the distance, Dago, who had just released an Air Bullet, looked thoughtful, lowering his head as if pondering something.
"Is this the limit of Air Bullet? It gets harder and harder to compress further..."
While thinking, Dago brought up the system panel.
【"Wizard Universal Meditation Method" (Beginner 78/1000); "Air Bullet" (Beginner 56/1000)】
"Since Air Bullet reached the Beginner stage, the speed of air compression and flight has greatly increased, and its power has also improved significantly."
He felt his understanding of Air Bullet had deepened.
The essence of Air Bullet's release was actually the manipulation of energy particles by mental power to compress air.
However, as he progressed, the difficulty of compressing air increased exponentially, making it almost impossible to compress beyond fist-size.
Currently, he could condense an Air Bullet anywhere within a meter around him, and with his current mental power, he could cast four Air Bullets in a short time.
This greatly increased his hunting speed; Chi Deer in the Emerald Forest were generally taken down instantly upon appearing. As for magical beasts, he hadn't encountered any yet, perhaps needing to venture deeper into the forest.
During this time, his physical training and improved diet had significantly boosted his physique, and the color in his face had gradually improved.
He fumbled through the deer hide pouch he kept close to him.
"One, two, three... nine. I've accumulated nine low-level magic stones."
This was the result of Dago's hard work over the past half-month, with the main income coming from deer hides.
With the progress of Air Bullet and the improvement of his skinning technique, the deer hides he produced were complete and beautiful, greatly increasing their selling price at the Town's leather shop.
As for the venison, much of it had actually gone into Dago's own stomach. After all, he was still at an age of growth, so his appetite was naturally a bit larger.
Dago pulled out his brass pocket watch and checked the time; it was 4:30 PM.
He planned to visit his neighbor, a new friend he had made a few days ago.
The two had met by a small lake previously, and the atmosphere at the time was quite tense. However, after they both revealed their Apprentice badges, they shook hands and engaged in friendly conversation.
In the Wizard Alliance, killing someone with an official badge was a serious crime; once discovered, it would lead to a continent-wide manhunt and countless bounty Wizards pursuing them.
This was one of the few protective regulations the Wizard Alliance offered to lower-level Wizards. Either you were 100% sure you wouldn't be discovered after killing a Wizard, or you coexisted peacefully.
Dago finished his cultivation for the day, returned to the Shelter, and, carrying a bag of freshly hunted venison, set off into the forest.
Heading west, after about thirty minutes, a small wooden house built on a large tree appeared in Dago's sight. It wasn't tall but was exceptionally secluded.
He slowly walked over to a small clearing beneath the treehouse.
"Is Wizard Marico there? It's Dago."
Dago shouted loudly from beneath the treehouse.
"You're here, my friend! Wait for me, I'm coming down now."
A brown-haired Old Marico, wearing a gray, worn-out robe, poked his head out of the treehouse and replied, then nimbly climbed down the vines from the treehouse.
Old Marico was stronger than Dago; he was a Level 3 Apprentice Wizard. He had an optimistic personality, with few desires or ambitions.
According to him, he had completely given up hope of advancing to a Formal Wizard and, after accepting reality, still loved the Wizard life.
Old Marico was an old resident of this forest and had good relationships with the Apprentice Wizards there. Not only that, but Old Marico also had excellent cooking skills, and Dago had been coming to his dwelling for meals these past few days since they met.
After Old Marico came down, he warmly embraced Dago. Seeing the bag of meat in Dago's hand, he immediately understood Dago's intention, laughed heartily, and started a bonfire in the clearing.
Soon, tender venison was placed on the grill, sizzling with oil as it was roasted over the orange-red charcoal.
Old Marico skillfully controlled the grilling heat. He pulled out a large handful of special seasonings from his waist pouch and sprinkled them on, and a rich aroma instantly filled the entire small clearing.
The two sat on a bare, fallen tree trunk in the clearing. Dago used the dagger on his waist to cut the roasted venison.
"Drink? I made this berry wine myself."
Old Marico pulled out a beautiful silver flask from his worn cloth robe and asked Dago.
"No, I need to go home later."
Dago, chewing a large piece of roasted venison, shook his head in refusal.
He didn't want to lose his life due to a momentary craving. In this forest, the roles of hunter and prey could change at any moment.
The two ate and chatted casually. Dago learned many things from Old Marico, about the Academy and about the Wizard Alliance.
When Old Marico was young, he had also traveled to many places but never left the territory of the Wizard Alliance.
This showed what a massive behemoth the Wizard Alliance was. The highest authority of the Wizard Alliance was the High Council, which had seven seats, each representing a giant Wizard organization from the seven major Wizard territories.
Based on the principle of majority rule, once more than four members of the High Council decided to pass a proposal, the other seats could not secretly obstruct it and had to fully support it.
The High Council Chairman was jointly elected by the seven seats for a ten-year term, responsible for maintaining the normal operation of the High Council.
The Emerald Forest was one such Wizard territory, and the giant organization residing there was the Wizard giant organization known as Emerald Life.
Most Wizards in Emerald Life were nature-based Wizards, who loved peace and revered nature.
They were proficient in life magic, potion making, and the modification and development of the body. They generally believed that the immortality of the physical body could lead to the immortality of the soul.
And Aynak Wizarding Academy was one of countless small Wizard organizations existing within the Emerald Forest.
"Have you heard? Those madmen from Dark Crystal Highlands' Dark Crystal Aria are coming to kill."
Old Marico looked at the small bonfire, saying worriedly.
Dark Crystal Aria was also one of the seven seats of the Wizard Alliance. Unlike the philosophy of the High Seat Emerald Life, they believed that only souls born from the baptism of death could achieve soul immortality.
Their favorite thing was to grind dark crystals into powder, mix them with bone meal, and inhale them. But in terms of individual strength, there was nothing to say; they were the type that got stronger the crazier they became.
As fellow seven seats of the High Council, it was impossible for them to directly engage in large-scale warfare; all they fought were proxy wars.
However, these matters were too distant. Dago shook his head and didn't respond. He just wanted to save up magic stones and go to the Academy to learn new spells.
"By the way, how far are you from being a Level 3 Apprentice?"
Old Marico asked again when he saw Dago didn't speak.
"Still far!"
Dago sighed, saying helplessly.
Old Marico patted his shoulder, comforting him: "You're still young, you have plenty of time, take it slow."
Dago nodded, and neither of them delved too deeply into this topic.
To advance from a Level 2 Apprentice Wizard to a Level 3 Apprentice Wizard, two conditions had to be met.
First, proficiently master three spell incantations. Second, undergo a transformation of mental power, moving from azure to deep blue.
In short, spells cost money, and mental power required practice, neither of which was simple. Look at Old Marico; he only managed to become a Level 3 Apprentice Wizard in his entire life, which shows how difficult it was.
After a satisfying meal and drinks, Old Marico's consciousness was a bit blurry, and he actually started to randomly dance a belly dance in the glow of the bonfire.
Seeing him drunk, Dago pulled him up to the small wooden house on the tree with a wry smile, supporting Old Marico's limp body and putting him to bed. After all that, he gently closed the door and climbed down from the wooden house, preparing to return to the Shelter.
Walking briskly and slowly back to the Shelter, Dago began to cultivate and improve in the clearing of the Shelter again.
Over the past half-month, the thick trees around the Shelter had suffered greatly, the surrounding clearing grew larger with practice, and the wood for the Shelter piled higher and higher.
With the system panel, he was like a changed person compared to his previous life. Now, he hardly let go of any time that could increase his progress value.
Watching the progress value on the system panel tick by little by little, even the most boring cultivation didn't feel tedious in the slightest.
He had to earn enough tuition for Aynak Wizarding Academy as soon as possible to learn new spell incantations.
Spell incantations were spells with incantations that Wizards had summarized after thousands of years of research on ancient extraordinary species, possessing greater power and more terrifying effects.
Spell incantations were basically monopolized by the seven seats of the High Council and could only be learned within their spheres of influence.
Therefore, Dago had no choice but to go to Aynak Wizarding Academy, because that was where he would find the spell incantations he needed.
Dago picked up his water skin, took a sip, and then continued to diligently cultivate, constantly refining his mental power and casting Air Bullet.........
He cultivated for a full four or five hours.
"I'm so tired, I could die..."
Dago returned to the Shelter and collapsed onto the small bed, completely relaxing. He thought of nothing, did nothing, and stared blankly at the ceiling.
【"Wizard Universal Meditation Method" (Beginner 88/1000); "Air Bullet" (Beginner 90/1000)】
The progress speed of Air Bullet surpassed Meditation, but this was quite normal.
Meditation cultivation had the hindrance of soul entropy, while Air Bullet only required mental power.
As Meditation progressed, the total amount of mental power also continuously increased, but soul entropy would always hinder the progress of Meditation.
"If Meditation continues to progress, perhaps it can eliminate the influence of soul entropy. In that case, the progress wouldn't be much slower than those who rely on drugs, and my sweat wouldn't be in vain."
Dago secretly anticipated this, and with this expectation, he would be able to sleep well tonight.