After leaving Sonya's room, Lynn walked through the entire Furnace, only to find it empty there wasn't a single person in sight.
Gazing at the silent Furnace, his eyes instinctively turned toward the Emerald Island Great Forest, and in an instant, he understood.
The emptiness of the Furnace was a clear indication that today's operation was on a considerable scale.
Perhaps, this time, the Master of the Furnace truly had a chance to rescue the Black Dragon Witch, Aestry, who was trapped deep within the Fallen Forest…
"There's just no comparison," Lynn shook his head mockingly and sighed internally. "Aestry is trapped in the Fallen Forest, and the Master of the Furnace personally sets out to save her. But Sonya? After today, perhaps I'll be the only one who still remembers her… to personally witness a third-level apprentice attempt to break through to a full-fledged wizard, only to fail and perish in the end."
A trace of melancholy flickered across Lynn's face as he shook his head, pulling his thoughts back to himself and beginning to plan his next move.
To be honest, he didn't want to leave the Furnace so easily.
After all, the Furnace was an excellent place to stay.
If he needed extraordinary knowledge, he could simply visit the library; if he required magical materials, they were available for purchase; and all the connections he had made in the wizarding world were here.
This was especially important for a natural wizard apprentice like him, as his combat ability was severely limited by his Life Seed, making him ill-suited for wandering the outside world.
If there were no external threats, he would have gladly remained in the Furnace, waiting until he became a full-fledged wizard before making any further plans.
Unfortunately, external threats were ever-present.
Lynn was well aware that if his identity were to be exposed, he would face a nightmare-like fate he could practically see Aestry tying him to an operating table with a scalpel and scissors in hand, ready to dissect him for research.
Seven days ago, after leaving his mentor Rosalind's residence, Lynn didn't go straight to find Sonya. Instead, he first visited the Furnace's stronghold to exchange his excess resources for contributions.
Thanks to the Furnace's mandatory missions, items like enchanted tools and magical potions were in high demand, causing prices to soar.
Lynn took the opportunity to sell off his surplus enchanted tools, keeping only the Heart of Floral Language and a dagger.
This maneuver caused his contribution points to skyrocket to 120!
Without hesitation, he spent 110 points to redeem a long-coveted formal wizardry template.
It was worth mentioning that full-fledged wizard spells were incredibly complex and difficult to master.
For a third-level apprentice, fully learning a complete formal spell in one go was nearly impossible.
Thus, the wizarding world gradually developed a more flexible approach to modular formal spell templates.
Powerful wizards deconstructed complete formal spells into several high-tier zero-ring spells and provided a final synthesis blueprint.
Third-level apprentices could study these zero-ring spells step by step, and once the conditions were met, they could use the synthesis blueprint to combine them into a full-fledged first-tier spell.
Sonya had used this very strategy.
Before attempting her breakthrough, she carefully selected her desired formal spell template and, before the war broke out, exchanged a large number of points for the high-tier zero-ring spells within the template.
Once the war began, she risked her life repeatedly to complete her advanced meditation technique and supportive magical potions, ultimately gathering all the necessary conditions to break through.
When it came to choosing formal spell templates, most wizards had a highly consistent preference they prioritized defensive spells.
The reason was simple: upon becoming a full-fledged wizard, the chosen formal spell template would become a permanent magical imprint, always protecting them.
The advantages of defensive spells were obvious.
With the protection of a first-tier defensive spell, a full-fledged wizard was practically immune to all attacks below the first tier.
Whether it was a mortal's poison, a great knight's blade, or the magical assaults of a third-level apprentice, none of it could pose a real threat.
Furthermore, formal spell template choices were usually tied to an apprentice's field of study.
For example, a third-level apprentice specializing in fire elements would often select a fire-related first-tier defensive spell.
And someone like Sonya, who focused on water elements, would naturally choose a water-based first-tier defensive spell.
As a natural wizard apprentice, Lynn's mentor Rosalind had specifically advised him to select a formal spell template based on his elemental affinity.
This way, not only would his cultivation efficiency improve, but his combat potential would also be maximized.
However, Lynn ultimately made his own decision he did not follow Rosalind's advice to choose an element-based defensive spell.
He didn't want any elemental-based defensive magic.
All elemental defensive spells had inherent weaknesses due to their interactions.
For example, Sonya's water-elemental defense spell would be significantly weakened when facing magic that countered water.
Ordinary apprentices had no choice but to rely on their elemental affinity for faster cultivation, selecting a corresponding elemental defensive spell.
But Lynn was different his talent allowed him to cultivate at a rapid pace without being confined to elemental spells.
Bloodline wizards didn't need to choose traditional spell templates at all by unlocking the supernatural knowledge buried within their bloodlines, they would naturally acquire unique formal spells.
These spells often didn't belong to any elemental category and had unpredictable properties.
Moreover, the greatest wizards had long surpassed the boundaries of this world, extending their explorations into the vast unknown.
During their interdimensional travels, they discovered countless non-elemental spells.
Lynn had read about such spells in the library.
Beyond the traditional elemental categories, there were mystical spells, dimensional magic, abyssal sorcery, chaos techniques, space manipulation, and more.
Although these spells were generally high-tier, far beyond Lynn's current reach, their mere existence had broadened his horizons.
Ultimately, he chose a non-elemental spell.
As the name implied, non-elemental spells were immune to elemental weaknesses though they didn't counter any element, they also weren't countered by anything.
It seemed ordinary, but it was stable and reliable, without fatal vulnerabilities.
His choice was the first-tier non-elemental defensive spell "Void Tranquility."
"It consists of three high-tier zero-ring spells: Laws of the Void, Unwavering Command, and Yao's Metamorphosis."
Lynn had never practiced high-tier zero-ring spells before, for a simple reason each casting required about ten points of mental power, which he didn't yet have.
Even now, he still didn't meet the requirements; he would likely need to reach 40 points of mental power before he could barely activate it.
"The Nightmare Rift… it's a powerful neutral faction. I can reach it by following the border between the Black Wizards and the White Wizards."
Lynn muttered to himself.
He had long developed a habit of preparing ahead ever since his failure at the Nightshadow Fortress had forced him into the mortal world, he had learned the importance of planning.
His spatial storage was already filled with enough gold and silver for emergencies.
Not only that, but he had also converted all his Furnace contribution points into magic stones.
Additionally, he had fully repaid his magical contract with the Potion Garden.
"If I wanted to, I could leave the Furnace right now, completely unbound."
Lynn gathered his belongings, stood up, and took one last, complex glance at the Furnace before whispering:
"Goodbye, Furnace…"
But just as he took his first step, an abrupt sense of foreboding struck him his body and mind trembled involuntarily.
A strange itchiness spread across his chest.
Lifting his robe, he looked down, and his eyes froze.
A faint, blurry mark was emerging on his chest.
Though indistinct, it exuded a mysterious aura from the depths of the Emerald Island Great Forest.
"What… is this?!"
Lynn's heart sank.
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