The Balance School

"Sir, do you need a guide?"

Seeing Chen Xu standing there blankly, the boy thought he hadn't heard and repeated himself.

In truth, Chen Xu was just surprised. Wearing mage robes and being a mage at such a young age, did he still need to come out and earn money as a guide? Was the competition here in the Akhan capital that brutal?

"A mage acting as a guide?" Chen Xu voiced his question directly.

"I am still only a mage apprentice. This is the apprentice uniform issued by the Enlightenment Temple. It is safer to wear this when coming out."

"Enlightenment Temple? Tell me more."

"Uh, well... do you need a guide then?"

Looking at the boy's fearful yet determined expression, Chen Xu shook his head. In public, he didn't want word to spread that a Necromancer from Daxia was bullying an Akhan child.

He took out a gold coin given to him by Morini from his storage space. "Is this enough? Can you tell me more about the Enlightenment Temple?"

"Sir, I... I only charge five copper coins." The boy, startled by the gold coin Chen Xu produced, quickly explained.

Offering a gold coin right away while wearing strange clothes—he was probably some noble with eccentric hobbies.

In an instant, the boy's face turned a bit pale.

Seeing the boy grow even more frightened, Chen Xu could only say helplessly, "Do you know the Balance School? Help me find an inn near the Balance School. Once I get some change, I will pay you in copper, how about that?"

"No problem! I know where the Tower of Balance of the Balance School is!" Hearing that the deal could still be made, the boy's excitement overcame his fear, and he answered immediately.

"Then from now on, you are my guide."

"Yes!" The boy nodded earnestly.

"Then, Mr. Guide, please lead the way."

"Sir, you can just call me Little Leo."

"Alright, Little Leo, can you continue telling me about the Enlightenment Temple? It's my first time in the capital, and I'm curious about everything here."

"Yes!" Little Leo led the way while recounting the story of the Akhan capital to Chen Xu.

The so-called Enlightenment Temple was established by the Akhan Dynasty to ensure that talented individuals weren't overlooked due to poverty or other reasons. It was funded by the royal family, with various schools providing teachers to recruit all children aged six to ten within the dynasty for magic and mental strength enlightenment.

While it was said to be for all children, those from noble families or mage lineages had better options. Thus, the students of the Enlightenment Temple were mostly commoner children.

Though they were commoners, the Enlightenment Temple was a joint creation of the royal family and the major schools, representing the prestige of the dynasty's top powers.

As long as they were within the age range, studying at the temple, and wearing the Enlightenment Robes, no minor faction would dare cause trouble for them. Therefore, the Enlightenment Robes became a protective talisman for these children. As long as they wore them, they could safely look for work on the streets to help their families without worrying about being cheated or bullied.

"The teachers at the temple are also very kind. Besides teaching us spells, they bring us lots of delicious food!" Mentioning the Enlightenment Temple, Little Leo's mood naturally brightened, and his pace quickened.

"What happens after age ten?"

"Talented classmates are scouted early by the schools. Once they graduate from the Enlightenment Temple, they can join a school." Little Leo paused. "Those who aren't scouted... it means they have no talent and cannot become mages."

Seeing Little Leo's dejected look, Chen Xu guessed that he likely belonged to the latter group.

In Chen Xu's estimation, the Akhan Dynasty's purpose for the Enlightenment Temple was simply that the great disaster had cost them too many mages. From top-tier archmages to ordinary middle-tier mages, there was a massive gap in their ranks.

To restore their strength and maintain the dynasty's prestige, they founded the Enlightenment Temple to screen every talented child.

After walking for a while, Chen Xu and Little Leo arrived near the Tower of Balance. Chen Xu found the nearest inn and booked a room for three days. After getting change, he gave Little Leo eight copper coins.

"Sir, this is too much. I only need five."

"Take it. I liked your stories. In my hometown, eight is a lucky number. I hope you will be favored by luck as well."

"Then... thank you, Sir." Little Leo finally accepted the coins.

After carefully tucking the copper coins into the lining of his robes, he gave Chen Xu a bow before leaving the inn.

...

The first floor of the Tower of Balance was a public hall. Chen Xu walked straight in and found a mage dozing behind the central counter. "Hello, where is the international student assessment held?"

The awakened mage was somewhat annoyed. Being assigned to this time-wasting counter duty by drawing lots was already frustrating enough, and now someone was disturbing his rest.

But looking up, a scroll bearing the insignia of the Balance School was placed before him.

Chen Xu pointed at the recommendation letter, indicating he wasn't there to cause trouble.

Realizing the person before him had a token from the school, the mage immediately became serious. He took the scroll and read it, occasionally looking up to study Chen Xu.

"Go to the third floor of the Tower of Balance and find Professor Cyntia. She will conduct your assessment."

After returning the scroll to Chen Xu, he signaled for Chen Xu to follow him.

They went to a corner of the hall where there was a recessed area. The mage motioned for Chen Xu to step inside, then used his school credentials to activate a magic circle, teleporting Chen Xu to the third floor.

Stepping out of the teleportation array, Chen Xu saw a continuous stretch of low bushes and a small wooden cabin in the distance. Seeing such a drastically different environment, Chen Xu understood that each floor of the Tower of Balance was likely composed of a different space.

He looked around, but aside from the cabin, there seemed to be no one else.

While Chen Xu was still looking around, a soul message arrived.

'Come to the cabin, child.'

'Another powerhouse like Teacher Zhang.' Chen Xu muttered to himself. This professor, like Zhang Jingping, had completely ignored his protection rune.

He walked to the cabin and pushed open the door. Inside was a middle-aged woman in elegant clothing sitting at a wooden table. Her long red hair fell loosely over her shoulders. One hand supported her chin as she studied Chen Xu, while the other poured water into a teacup on the table.

"Sit, child. Let me see what makes the disciple of Archmage Zhang Jingping so unique!"

It seemed Professor Cyntia knew Zhang Jingping. Chen Xu sat directly across from her.

Just as he sat down and was about to take a sip from the teacup, he felt as if he had been pulled into a violent forest. The trees here were entirely red—red trunks, red leaves, even the ground was red.

Suddenly, the ground cracked open, and many tree roots dripping with red liquid shot out. They rushed toward Chen Xu, wrapping him tightly and dragging him to the center of the forest.

The roots stopped, and Chen Xu saw a colossal tree before him, its color even more vibrant than the others in the forest.

A ripple moved across the trunk of the massive tree, and a face appeared on it—it was Professor Cyntia's face. The roots suddenly tightened, pulling Chen Xu toward Cyntia's mouth. Throughout the process, Chen Xu was powerless to resist, only faintly hearing a phrase: "Playing the fool?"

After an unknown amount of time, Chen Xu shuddered violently and found himself back in the cabin. However, the look in Cyntia's eyes was very strange.

"Are you truly Zhang Jingping's disciple? Aside from having sufficiently massive mental strength, your mental strength techniques are worse than a child who has studied for three years in the Enlightenment Temple." Cyntia took a sip of tea and looked at Chen Xu with an odd expression.