Wizard Lord:I can Extract Anything

Anna's proposal left Richard momentarily bewildered.

I came to submit a task, and now you're recruiting me?

"Join the Alchemy School. You have a remarkable talent in alchemy. The purity of this red mercury is something even my mentor struggles to achieve. You're undoubtedly an alchemical prodigy," Anna said with conviction, making Richard almost believe her.

"But, Senior, I'm still a novice apprentice, and Master Jolord's apprentices must be at least low-level apprentices," Richard replied.

"A novice apprentice?" Anna looked at Richard with a frown, and a powerful mental force swept over him instantly.

"Impossible, you've reached the standard of a low-level apprentice."

"Huh?"

Richard was taken aback by Anna's words. He had only recently reached 16 mental strength, four points shy of the low-level apprentice requirement. How could he have advanced overnight?

Seeing Richard's confusion, Anna shook her head. "You must have done something to stimulate your mental growth."

"Done something?" Richard pondered, recalling the only unique thing he'd done recently was the Bloodline Alchemy.

Could Bloodline Alchemy also boost mental strength?

As Richard mused, Chaxes, who was standing nearby, spoke up.

"It's probably the feedback effect. Richard, have you recently undergone Bloodline Alchemy?"

Hearing Chaxes' words, Anna also noticed the inconsistency in Richard. Despite his rapid physical development, some minor details still seemed off due to the short adaptation period.

"Indeed, I have."

"Then it makes sense," Chaxes nodded knowingly.

"Senior Chaxes, what's this feedback effect?" Richard inquired.

"Seems you haven't attended any Soul School lectures," Chaxes chuckled, a glint of wisdom shining on his polished forehead.

"According to the Soul School's research, our soul and body aren't entirely separate; there's a hidden link between them.

This link maintains a balance between body and spirit.

When a creature's physique increases drastically, mental strength also rises, allowing the soul to utilize the body. Conversely, if mental strength surges, the body will also strengthen to accommodate the enhanced soul."

Chaxes, usually appearing like a greasy middle-aged man, transformed into a figure of reliability and wisdom when discussing theory.

"In simple terms, if one aspect—mental or physical—grows too strong, it will boost the other. After your Bloodline Alchemy, your body reached the level of a low-level apprentice, causing your mental strength to catch up."

Richard realized, "So, if a knight's physique is strong enough, it could also enhance mental strength?"

"In theory, yes," Chaxes affirmed, "but the human body's limits are too low. Even at its peak, a senior knight's constitution barely reaches twenty-nine.

Compared to wizard meditation, this method of enhancing strength is inefficient.

How long did your Bloodline Alchemy take? An hour or two? Yet you achieved what some knights take decades to reach.

Plus, mental strength must be linked to the sea of souls to fully unleash its potential. Without reaching a senior level, the mental strength gained from feedback is merely potential."

Richard considered this, acknowledging the truth in Chaxes' words.

"Don't rely on physique to boost mental strength," Chaxes advised. "The feedback effect requires a significant disparity, like your current situation—mental strength at a low apprentice level, physique at an intermediate level. Only then does the effect manifest. Once you're a wizard, it becomes a matter of progressing from one-ring to two-ring wizard."

Chaxes approached Richard, patting his shoulder.

"Our mentor, being well-connected among alchemy wizards, can help you replace your current bloodline with a more refined one if you become his formal disciple."

Clearly, Chaxes assumed Richard was an apprentice experimenting haphazardly with Bloodline Alchemy.

Richard forced a smile, silently vowing to add impurities the next time he used the Miracle Furnace for extraction.

"Enough, Chaxes. Whether or not Richard joins the Alchemy School is his decision," Anna interjected, pulling Chaxes aside to let Richard think.

Choosing a mentor was a serious matter. The academy had strict rules about switching mentors; a rash decision could lead to no mentor accepting the apprentice.

After a few minutes of contemplation, Richard exhaled deeply, meeting Anna's gaze with determination.

"I'm ready."

"I want to join the Alchemy School and become a student under Master Jolord."

"Great, I'll take you to meet the mentor," Anna said, clapping her hands before guiding Richard upwards in the Black Tower.

On the ninety-ninth floor of the Central Black Tower, Alchemy Wizard Jolord was engrossed in his synthetic beast experiments.

As the wizard with the highest alchemical prowess in the Black Tower Wizard Academy, Jolord possessed the tower's most secure laboratory.

In this lab, he was impervious to distractions unless the tower collapsed.

"Roar! Roar!"

Watching another synthetic beast's body disintegrate, Jolord, who had faced a month of continuous failures, rubbed his temples and summoned a flame to incinerate the remnants.

"Where's the issue? What's missing from the notes my teacher gave me?" Jolord pondered, staring at his experimental notes with frustration.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Enter."

The door opened, and Anna entered with Richard.

Upon entering the lab, Richard immediately felt a formidable restraint, as if something suppressed his magic.

Surveying the room, he noticed it was constructed entirely of rune-etched black bricks. Despite a few magical lamps on the ceiling, the lab remained dimly lit.

At the center stood a black stone altar, dividing the lab into left and right sections. The right side housed shelves filled with glass containers of varying shapes, each holding yellow liquid and diverse organs and glands.

On the left, anatomical charts adorned the walls, and a massive bookshelf filled with books, notes, and papers stood in the center, exuding chaos.

At a desk in front of the bookshelf, a white-haired old man stood, deep in thought.

"Mentor, I've found an alchemical genius," Anna declared, placing the red mercury bottle on the table.

Jolord, the renowned alchemy wizard, appeared like an ordinary old man—gray hair, a big white beard, and a face full of wrinkles.

But appearances were deceiving.

Richard noticed something peculiar in Jolord's eyes, something deep within—tiny compound eyes!

Jolord opened the bottle, drawing out a drop of red mercury with a magical thread.

"Hmm? This purity... impressive."

He casually triggered the red mercury, assessing its potency, then fixed his gaze on Richard.

In an instant, Richard felt exposed, as if Jolord's eyes penetrated his clothes, skin, muscles, bones, and even his soul.

"Bloodline Alchemy, just became a low-level apprentice. Achieving such purity in red mercury indeed marks you as a genius," Jolord remarked calmly.

"Anna, you want him as your junior. I trust your judgment, but formalities must be observed."

With that, Jolord opened a drawer, pulling out a crystal ball without looking.

"Produce this, and you're qualified."