This overnight period also gave Lu Cang time to make some extra preparations.

「The Library」

That night, Lu Cang paid another visit to the Library.

Pari was in the Library.

"Pari."

Pari glanced up at Lu Cang.

Although she said nothing, Lu Cang got the feeling that she was eyeing his property.

"If you have a question, just ask..."

"I wanted to ask about these two Magic spells."

Meiser had given him a total of three Magic spells. One was Primordial Origin, and the other two were Minor Magic.

But to be safe, Lu Cang hadn’t learned any of them.

Remembering it now, he had come specifically to ask.

"Oh, those two... They’re just a couple of ordinary Magic spells, that’s all."

Pari didn’t charge him for answering this question.

...

Early the next morning, Kumironi, dressed in a green hooded robe, brought Lu Cang to the Promotion Hall.

Kumironi raised the back of her hand, and a green Talisman imprinted there lit up.

At the sight of this mark, the promotion officer immediately bowed his head, his voice trembling slightly. "Lady Kumironi."

Kumironi glanced behind her. "Shh."

"Prepare a secret Promotion Hall..."

The officer seemed a little flustered.

But he still nodded and said, "Yes, ma’am!"

A hidden door in a dark corner opened, and Lu Cang and Kumironi walked through.

Kumironi really didn’t want to be recognized.

It was fine in small towns, but in the big cities, too many people begged her to help them awaken, and refusing them was a hassle.

Kumironi was kind-hearted, but not to the point of helping every single person she met.

Kumironi would only step in to help those who were truly in need, and only if she could actually make a difference.

Take, for instance, a child like Lu Cang—randomly teleported, utterly alone, and with nowhere to turn.

She had discussed it with Iz back then; they agreed they could bring Lu Cang along for this leg of their journey.

With Iz’s guidance, even if Lu Cang’s aptitude was poor, he could still scrape by and reach the level of a Level 3 Mage.

Afterward, even if Lu Cang could never Upgrade again before turning sixteen, he would have still reached a height achieved by most of the world’s mediocre Mages.

’But if it were anyone else... Kumironi can’t just awaken someone and take them along, can she?’

’That would be like running a kindergarten.’

As for the rumor that she would only help a true genius awaken... that was mostly just hearsay.

Frankly, when she helped them awaken, Kumironi wasn’t thinking about their aptitude at all.

It was simply that those who awakened early already had high Spirituality. Add to that the fact that the children themselves were diligent, and as early awakeners, they naturally garnered a great deal of attention.

Ultimately, this morphed into the rumor that Kumironi only helps the most talented Reincarnators awaken.

There was no point in explaining, so she just let the rumor spread.

The rumor even saved Kumironi a lot of trouble; otherwise, even more people would be seeking her out now.

「The Secret Promotion Hall」

The area was sealed on all sides. Once the door closed, it became a veritable sealed chamber.

"This place is used for secret awakenings."

"Certain illicit Profession changes are performed here."

Although Kumironi didn’t say it outright, Lu Cang had already figured it out.

’Indeed, how could a vast Kingdom not have its dark side?’

’Those Professions that are publicly forbidden probably exist in secret, and perhaps those Reincarnators are even directly subordinate to the Kingdom.’

’Otherwise, it would be a terrible waste to just burn the Secret Scrolls.’

’Someone has to do the dirty work, after all.’

Kumironi took off her hood, and its presence-concealing effect vanished with it.

Her two pointed ears popped out as she pulled the hood down.

"In any case, let’s begin the promotion."

"You also have the Death Priest Profession, so the difficulty of this promotion might be somewhat higher."

VMMMM—

A Magic Array lit up on the ground.

Seeing the Array on the ground, Lu Cang became even more certain about his understanding of the Root Source.

The Root Source is the Source of All Laws, which underpins all things.

"To be promoted from a Level 2 Mage to a Level 3 Mage, the assessment will test the number of Magic spells you’ve mastered, your Skill Proficiency, whether you have any Self-created Magic, and if you possess any unique insights into Magic."

"It will also assess the battles you’ve fought using Magic. You’ll need to submit a piece of the remains from a Demon you killed with Magic as proof."

"Beyond that, your control and application of Magic, as well as the finer details of your Magic Power usage, will also be part of the evaluation criteria."

"All in all, it’s similar to the promotion to Level 2. The main thing is to demonstrate your own understanding."

In the distance, an iridescent puppet rose up.

"Show me your Magic. Attack the puppet."

Lu Cang raised his hand.

At the same time, the puppet charged toward Lu Cang.

’Looks like this puppet isn’t just going to stand there and take a beating.’

BOOM!

[Source·Rejection Wind Roar]

The first thing Lu Cang did was unleash his Root Magic!

The moment he unleashed the Root Magic, he felt as if something had opened its eyes to watch him.

Its gaze was fixed on him!

At the same moment, Kumironi raised her hand. A gentle radiance spilled down, enveloping her.

He could see black particles evaporating from her body with his naked eye.

[Source·Sharp Ice Impact Pillar]

The instant the Rejection Wind Roar erupted, a massive ice pillar simultaneously shot out from the far wall!

BOOM!

The puppet was blasted onto the jutting ice pillar!

It let out a tremendous crunching sound.

’But it wasn’t impaled... This material looks pretty sturdy...’

SWOOSH!

However, the Wind Roar instantly transformed, becoming a Spirit Burst that appeared right in front of the puppet.

[Sacrifice—1,000 souls]

[Source·Spirit Burst]

The Spirit Burst detonated!

But the Spirit Burst, which should have had a massive blast Range, was instead compressed into a tiny area, exploding only against the puppet’s chest!