After returning to the Mage Tower, Li Wei holed up in his room to cultivate.
He was making up for the time he had lost that morning.
When he opened his eyes, it was already dusk.
The day had passed in the blink of an eye. Famished, Li Wei headed outside, planning to treat himself to a nice meal.
Just as he reached the main entrance of the Mage Tower, a young man wearing Knight Armor saw him and walked over.
He smiled and asked, "Excuse me, do you know where Mage Li Wei lives?"
Li Wei glanced at him, his expression unreadable. "What do you want with him?" he asked.
The young man said, "I am Philu, Miss Reina's Knight's Attendant. Miss Reina asked me to deliver an item to Mage Li Wei."
Li Wei replied, "I am Li Wei."
A look of surprise crossed Philu's face. He hadn't expected the Mage Reina spoke of to be so much younger than him.
"How can you prove you're Li Wei?"
Philu looked at Li Wei, his expression serious as he asked the question.
Just then, with classes for the day over, Land, Neil, and Delis were walking out of the Mage Tower.
Delis spotted Li Wei by the entrance right away and called out in pleasant surprise, "Li Wei, are you free tonight? We should get dinner together."
Hearing her, Land and Neil greeted Li Wei as well.
Li Wei turned and waved back at the three of them.
He turned back to Philu. "Still need proof?" he asked.
Philu glanced at Delis, Land, and Neil, then shook his head. "That won't be necessary."
He recognized them.
"Mage Li Wei, I offer you my sincerest apologies. Please forgive my impertinence."
As he spoke, he bowed deeply to Li Wei in apology.
Li Wei was stunned for a moment, not expecting such a formal apology.
He was somewhat taken aback.
He quickly said, "Alright, you don't have to be so serious. It's not a big deal."
Hearing this, Philu straightened up and took out a mahogany box, handing it to Li Wei.
"This is the item Miss Reina entrusted me to give you. She also asked me to relay a message."
"'This is your payment. This matter no longer concerns you.'"
Standing nearby, Delis and the other two overheard this. They subconsciously glanced at Li Wei, their imaginations running wild.
'What kind of secret do Li Wei and Reina have between them?'
Li Wei just smiled, accepted the box, and said, "Thank you."
"Think nothing of it. I am only doing my duty," Philu said.
"Now that the item has been delivered into Mage Li Wei's hands, I shall take my leave."
With that, Philu turned and left.
Delis, Land, and Neil all stared curiously at the mahogany box in Li Wei's hands.
Li Wei put the box away, clearly having no intention of opening it in front of them.
Seeing this, Delis quickly piped up, "Li Wei, were you going out to eat? We'll join you."
Li Wei looked at the three of them and smiled. "Sure. Where are we going?"
Delis's face lit up with joy.
Neil quickly suggested, "How about we go to Lafei Restaurant? It's my treat, so don't hold back."
Land laughed. "Neil, if you're offering, I certainly won't hold back."
"I heard Lafei Restaurant's specialty is Demon Beast Roasted Meat. I could never afford it before, so I'm definitely going to take you for all you're worth this time!"
Delis added, "The Demon Beast Roasted Meat at that restaurant really is delicious. It's even better than what the chefs at the City Lord's Mansion make."
Chatting and laughing, the group headed for Lafei Restaurant.
Li Wei had been hoping the Demon Beast Meat would have some special effect, like strengthening his physique or accelerating his Cultivation.
Unfortunately, even after finishing the meal and returning to the Mage Tower, he felt no unusual effects whatsoever.
After dinner, Delis tried to invite Li Wei to visit the City Lord's Mansion that evening.
Li Wei declined her kind offer.
Back in his room, he took out the payment from Reina.
Li Wei was curious about what exactly Reina had sent him.
He opened the box. Inside lay a bottle of pale red liquid.
Flecks of starlight were mixed into the liquid, sparkling endlessly under the glow of the Magic Fluorite.
A slip of paper lay in the box.
"Basic Level Magic Potion. Instructions: Before each Cultivation session, place 1-3 drops in the mouth. Warning: Overdose is dangerous."
Li Wei picked up the Magic Potion, feeling pleasantly surprised.
He never expected to obtain his first bottle of Magic Potion this way.
He gently swirled the bottle. The pale red liquid inside barely moved; it was highly viscous.
After observing it for a moment, he lit some Calming Incense, uncorked the bottle, and prepared to try cultivating with the Magic Potion.
For his first attempt, Li Wei was very cautious, placing only a single drop of the Magic Potion in his mouth.
The drop landed on the tip of his tongue and dissolved instantly.
The next second, he felt a continuous stream of Magic Elements welling up in his mouth.
Li Wei quickly closed his mouth and sealed the bottle.
He closed his eyes to meditate, quickly entering a state of Cultivation.
He had to hurry and absorb the Magic Elements pouring forth from the potion, lest they leak out and waste its effects.
Half an hour later, the potion's effects began to fade.
An hour later, the effects had vanished completely.
Li Wei stopped his Cultivation and opened his eyes.
Motes of dust drifting in the air coalesced into several lines of text.
[Basic Meditation Method (Small Success)] 1700/2000
[Small Fireball Technique (Tier Zero Mastery)] 345/2000
[Invisible Armor Skill (Tier Zero Mastery)] 8/2000
Using the Magic Potion, one hour of Cultivation was equivalent to three hours of his usual practice.
It was even faster than cultivating by absorbing Elemental Crystal Stones.
He glanced at the bottle of Basic Level Magic Potion beside him. There was enough left for at least thirty or forty more uses.
'No wonder Magic Potions are so expensive. This gift from Reina is far too valuable!'
Li Wei now had a rough idea of how many drops of the potion to use per session.
One drop could sustain an hour of Cultivation.
With his Spiritual Power at its peak, he could cultivate for nearly four hours straight.
Therefore, he could safely use three drops at a time.
For the next few days, Li Wei remained in the Mage Tower, cultivating diligently.
He heard nothing further from Reina.
He didn't know if Orn had managed to convince Reina to give up her search for Susan.
The matter no longer had anything to do with him.
Li Wei didn't bother to follow up on it.
He focused wholeheartedly on cultivating his Mana and practicing his Magic.
On the seventh day, Li Wei felt a jolt run through his mind. He sensed a mysterious connection forming between the Mana in his body and the Magic Elements of the world.
It allowed him to gather Magic Elements much faster when Casting.
His perception of the Elements transformed from a blurry wash of color into something resembling a distant, starry sky.
He could now perceive most of the specific Magic Elements.
Water Element, Earth Element, Light Element, Air Element, Natural Elements…
But even though these Magic Elements were right beside him, they felt as distant as the stars in the night sky.
Elemental Affinity determined the distance between a person and the Magic Elements.
This wasn't a physical distance, but a perceptual one.
When two hearts are connected, they can communicate across any distance.
When two hearts are cold, they cannot connect even when face to face.
As long as he could perceive them, he would be able to touch them sooner or later.
Li Wei was not in a hurry.
He focused his mind, and the surrounding Magic Elements coalesced into three lines of text.
[Basic Meditation Method (Great Success)] 0/4000
[Small Fireball Technique (Tier Zero Mastery)] 666/2000
[Invisible Armor Skill (Tier Zero Mastery)] 56/2000
After several days of grinding without rest, his Basic Meditation Method had finally leveled up.
Li Wei tried Casting a spell, and his Mana resonated with the surrounding Fire Element.
In just five seconds, the Small Fireball Technique was fully cast.
Constructing the Magic Model took three seconds, while filling it with the Fire Element took only two.
His Casting speed had increased dramatically.
Looking at the Small Fireball in his hand, Li Wei broke into a smile.
'Instant Casting is just around the corner!'