“Hello! New Alchemy Element apprentice, right? Me too!”Rayn frowned briefly before returning to a calm expression. He looked up to find a young girl beside his desk. She had curly brown hair, a bright smile, and lively eyes.“Hello.” Rayn responded, while discreetly assessing her.Her clothes were simple but clean and neat. She looked a little tired, probably because she had also failed the Basic Meditation Method several times, yet her face still carried plenty of energy. Rayn examined the fluctuations of her Spiritual Power. Fifth Level Talent. That was above average among the apprentices he had assessed.“Judging by your badge, it’s the cauldron symbol of the Alchemy Element! Great, finally met someone from the same batch!” The girl dropped into the empty seat across from him.Her tray was piled high with food, showing that she had quite an appetite.“My name is Lily! Lily Ashford!” She Introduced herself, then blinked and extended her hand, “What’s your name? Sitting here alone l

Ten days passed quickly, and the day Professor Clark had mentioned for their first class finally arrived.Rayn woke up earlier than usual that morning. After breakfast, he followed the directions in the enrollment handbook and made his way toward the Alchemy Workshop.The Nolun Academy's Alchemy Workshop stood in a relatively secluded corner of the campus. Unlike the academy's towers, it had no particularly striking appearance. The building was low and massive, resembling a sturdy fortress that had been planted firmly into the ground. Its exterior walls were built from dark-colored stone, with basic runes engraved across their surfaces.As soon as Rayn stepped through the workshop entrance, he found himself in a spacious interior filled with unfamiliar scents. Metals, minerals, plants, and the results of various chemical reactions all mixed together in the air. The smell was unusual, but fortunately, it was not strong enough to become unpleasant.There was still some time before class

Everyone's attention was immediately drawn toward the commotion. An apprentice was sprawled on the floor beside a workbench that had been thrown into complete disorder, with pieces of metal scattered across the ground around him.From the appearance of the material, he had not been practicing with gold. He seemed to have chosen some kind of hard and unstable metal instead. Under his poorly controlled Spiritual Power, the material had twisted into a terrible shape before suddenly exploding.What happened next was even more frightening.Several fragments had embedded themselves directly into the apprentice's arm and face. They had not simply lodged in his skin. The pieces seemed to have come alive, slowly burrowing deeper as they "grew" and "fused" with his flesh.The apprentice screamed in agony.From the looks of it, he had accidentally given the metal some kind of flesh-corroding property during his alchemy attempt.Professor Clark's expression darkened immediately. He hurried over,

The so-called laboratory was a small room measuring roughly a dozen square meters. Its walls were made from rough rock rather than metal, and the floor was covered with simple tiles engraved with basic runes. In the center stood a plain workbench with a magic energy lamp hanging above it, while the corner held several pieces of commonly used equipment, including small crucibles, bellows, and sinks.More importantly, basic runes had been carved into the corners of the room and around the door frame."Is this the simple Isolation Detection Array?"After locking the door, Rayn could feel the faint energy fluctuation produced by the array's activation. An array of this level probably could not withstand a powerful detection spell from a High Tier Wizard, but anyone attempting to force their way through its protective field would trigger a disturbance. That alone made it useful enough as a warning system.At first glance, everything inside the laboratory looked crude and basic. Aside from

After submitting the sales review for Refined Gold, Rayn couldn't help feeling proud of himself for quite some time. He had already started imagining how much wealth Refined Gold could bring him, how he would convert the Points into resources, strengthen himself, establish a perfect cycle of earning and cultivation, and eventually become a supreme powerhouse. Whenever he saw other Apprentices rushing around the academy, working tirelessly for Points, he would keep his expression neutral, but inwardly, he couldn't help feeling a little pleased with himself."Indeed, without unique skills and production resources, you'll just be exploited by others. This kind of heavy work with low Points, even a dog wouldn't..."......"...do! If a dog wouldn't do it, I will! I fucking love doing tasks!"Inside Area of Distillation Tower No. 3, Rayn's expression was somewhat twisted.The air was filled with an awful mixture of smells, something between rotting plants and spoiled Magic Potions. Rayn wo