<h4>Chapter 84: Senior Initiate</h4>


    Being part of a powerful civilization indeed came with a tremendous advantage.


    Relying on the reputation of the Magus World, Sein, who was not even close to being a Rank One creature, had surprisingly establishedmunication with a Rank Four creature.


    The only reason the Sandworm King extended respect to Sein was solely due to the Magus World’s influence.


    As Sein left the sand valley, he nced back and recalled the task from the Sandworm King.


    “Establish contact with a tower master so that he could vouch for it, huh? It appears that colossal wormcks a clear understanding of the internal dynamics within the Magus World and remains oblivious to the contentious rtionship between ck mages and regr mages from the Divine Tower.”


    “Even if I were capable of this, it would involve contacting the ck mages within the academy. I wonder what Master Morsidor and the vice deans would think of this creature,” Sein wondered.


    <i> </i> ***


    After leaving the Sand Valley, Sein followed the instructions provided by the Sandworm King. Using the three suns in the sky as directional markers, he set off in a specific direction across the seemingly endless expanse of sand.


    It seemed that the sandstorm more than a year ago had really carried Sein far away, or perhaps it was the effect of the geological shifts of the quicksand environment.


    Even with the approximate direction provided by Sandworm King, Sein estimated that it would take two months to reach the coordinate point andmunicate with the Magus World.


    In reality, Sein took longer than expected.


    It was not until half a yearter that Sein, who was constantly traveling in the yellow sand, finally got a reaction from the ck key in his hand.


    The image disyed by the crystal ball in Sein’s hand was a t desert that did not appear significantly different from thendscapes in other parts of the Sand World.


    Over a year ago, there had been many tents standing here, and several alchemy magic artifacts that Sein could not figure out the exact purpose of.


    Now, everythingy buried beneath the yellow sands.


    If it was not for the reaction of the ck key in his hand, Sein would not believe that this was the same area where the spatial passage was located back then.


    “It seems that the spatial passageway has beenpletely destroyed. I wonder why Master Morsidor and the vice deans haven’t attempted to reconstruct it in the past year or so. Could something have gone wrong? There were indeed many mages from the Divine Towers on the other side of the passageway back then...” Sein wondered aloud as he held the crystal ball in his hand.


    The surface of the crystal ball bore a noticeable crack.


    In fact, it had been broken a year ago. It was only about three months ago that Sein managed to repair it through a stroke of luck.


    Many other pieces of equipment in his possession had suffered simr fates, including the geo elemental shield ring and the invisibility cloak.


    In the two years spent in the Sand World, nearly all of Sein''s magical equipment had sustained varying degrees of damage.


    The only item that remained unscathed was Leena’s ck crystal bracelet.


    Sein had figured out the general purpose of the ck crystal bracelet in thest year. In addition to enhancing the recovery of the umbra elemental mana by 30%, this ck crystal bracelet also came with a “Dark Light” spell.


    It was both an offensive and defensive spell.


    In its offensive form, it could unleash a powerful beam of umbra energy, powerful enough to threaten a senior initiate.


    In its defensive form, it could transform into an umbra energy barrier.


    Together with the geo elemental shield, this barrier had helped Sein to survive the sandstorm.


    After counting all the items in his possession to ensure that he had left nothing behind in the Sand World, Sein activated the elemental beads in his hand and channeled his mana into the ck key.


    The familiar effect of magic pulling force appeared once again, though it felt rougher than thest time.


    Sein could not fathom the significance of this change, but there was nothing he could do at this point.


    When the magic pulling force enveloped himpletely, a thought suddenly crossed in his mind:


    <i>What will happen if this doesn’t work out? Will I die?</i>


    Strangely, Sein did not experience fear when the thought of potential death entered his mind.


    Instead, he felt oddly relieved.


    Perhaps Sein had already harbored a death wish for a long time.


    From the time he could not find his way back to Magus World in the Sand World and decided to venture deeper into the underground sand cave to explore, he was already prepared to die.


    The tremendous pulling force caused Sein’s consciousness to fade.


    In an instant, the ck figure on the sea of yellow sand vanished from the Sand World, along with the key in his grip.


    <i> </i> ***


    When Sein’s consciousness returned, he found himself surrounded by endless darkness.


    The darkness did not instill fear in Sein’s heart. Instead, it enveloped him with a profound sense offort and warmth.


    He knew he had returned to Gloomhaven. The Magus World. His homene.


    Anyone who had been away from their homene for an extended period would invariably notice the difference upon their return.


    Sein felt akin to a toddler reuniting with his mother, or a traveler returning to his homnd.


    It was a distinct andforting feeling that he could not find in any other ne.


    Typically, only mages of Rank One or higher would have the opportunity to experience the distinctions between different nes.


    This was because only mages at Rank One or above met the recruitment criteria for various Divine Towers and Knight Orders during internar wars.


    Only a full-fledged mage could travel to the many enved nes under the Magus Civilization’s rule, as well as those allied with the Magus Alliance.


    Exploring other nes as an initiate was an exceedingly rare urrence.


    Sein had gathered experiences shared by less than one percent of the initiates in the Magus World.


    Due to his extended stay in the foreign ne, Sein had been significantly influenced by the environment and atmosphere of that world.


    When he became aware of the disparity between his homene and the other nes, the sensations and subtle changes he experienced far surpassed those of Zorro, and the others.


    The cracked crystal ball quietly materialized in Sein’s hand.


    In the dim surroundings, the faint radiance of the crystal ball allowed him to discern the values disyed in it.


    <i>Focus: 52 points</i>


    <i>Mana: 47 points</i>


    <i>Constitution: 16 points</i>


    Throughout his three years of study in Master Morsidor’s faction, Sein’s focus had only increased by 8 points.


    In just two years within the Sand World, his focus had soared by 14 points in a single leap.


    He not only met the minimum focus requirement of a senior initiate but even surpassed it.


    Once Sein acquired and mastered the spell model of an advanced magic, he would officially be promoted to a senior initiate!


    “When Ist tested myself with this crystal ball before leaving the Sand World, both my focus and mana levels were only around 45 points. What could have caused such a significant increase? Could it be connected to my return to the Magus World?” Sein mused, stroking his bearded chin as he contemted the reasons behind this sudden surge of power.