Advancement II

Peering into his mana heart, he caught sight of his mana core, always a sight to behold. It shimmered like a galaxy, swirling in the shape of infinity. Sometimes he pondered if its form was just a random twist of fate or a natural consequence of having an "infinite" mana well.

But then, glancing at his second mana core, also shaped like infinity, he figured that as long as the core kept growing, it'd end up looking like infinity. And since his mana heart was infinite, it made sense that his cores would be huge too, given he could stock up on mana endlessly.

As for how Zack scored that infinite mana well, the big question loomed: Was it just dumb luck, or was there some cosmic force at play? And if there was, what was the reason behind it? Meh, he wasn't one to dwell on deep thoughts. He stuck to his principle: if it worked for him and he couldn't figure it out in a jiffy, just shove it out of mind.

Now, back to the main mana core, the old one. The level 1 magic circle was barely hanging on, holding together the intersecting "pillars" of the infinity symbol. Swiftly, he whipped up a level 2 magic circle around those pillars, right in front of the level 1.

The magic circle was a beast to draw, no doubt about it. Even with all the mental calming tricks and fancy materials in the advancement room, Zack still had to dedicate a solid day to get it done. He couldn't tackle it bit by bit over several days. Nope, it had to be an all-in-one-shot deal. 

He also gotta mention, his level 2 magic circle was way bigger than the norm in those magic circle books. Had to match it up with the massive size of his level 1 circle, you know? Like, his level 1 circle was the size of a skyscraper, while the regular ones were more like small buildings.

But hey, that size advantage was pretty sweet. More room for extra modules and common level 2 symbols, beefing up his circle's computing power big time and making it more complete in the common level 2 symbols collection.

As he eyeballed the finished circle, nerves started doing the jitterbug in his gut. Man, he really hoped this thing would work out. Looking back, he realized he used to be cocky during that level 1 upgrade, no nerves at all. Now? Whole different story. Probably 'cause there's way more on the line. He wasn't keen on spending years building up that massive mana core all over again.

Taking a deep breath, he hooked up the circle to the mana core. Cue the sound of gears clicking and whirring, and bam! The circle lit up, golden lights flickering majestically. Symbols and patterns started spinning, slow at first, then ramping up like crazy. Their movements sent ripples dancing across the circle.

Next up, threads of golden light stretched out to the level 1 magic circle behind it. That sluggish thing suddenly perked up, patterns and symbols buzzing with life. Then, out of the blue, both circles synced up, forming this massive golden ring around the electric blue infinity magic core.

The magic core's circulation speed went into overdrive. With each pass through the golden ring, the mana inside got purer and denser. It was like a turbo boost for magic. In just a few minutes, that massive core shrank down to a third of its original size.

Once it hit that mark, the giant golden ring could wrap around the entire core. The level 1 and level 2 magic circles split apart, with the level 1 shrinking just enough to fit snugly inside the level 2. The level 1 circle did this cool 90-degree twist, forming a ball from the two intersecting circles. Picture it like this: x-axis goes left to right, and z-axis goes front to back. Then, the level 1 circle started a slow spin on the x-axis, while the level 2 did its thing on the z-axis.

Those spins picked up speed, blurrier and blurrier until Zack couldn't even see the magic circles anymore. All he saw was this golden forcefield wrapping around the mana core. Suddenly, whoosh! A massive suction force yanked mana from all around him. The golden barrier filtered it down to just lightning particles, and compressing them tight. Then, as the mana zipped into the core, it got compressed again, like a double whammy of squeezing power.

Outside, as the magic circles hit warp speed and formed this shimmering golden barrier, Ding! A bell chimed from deep within Zack's body, sending ripples of mana swirling around him. Next thing he knew, he was floating, surrounded by a swirling whirlpool of mana that tousled his silver locks and robe, all thanks to the crazy absorption from his magic core.

Days rolled by, and the absorption sped up big time. That mana whirlpool grew and grew, filling the room with way more mana than normal, like 60 times the usual concentration. Inside the mana heart world, Zack's nerves were on edge as he watched his core inside that golden barrier get dangerously close to bursting out.

The golden barrier was growing too, but nowhere near as fast as the core. Zack had made a call a few days back. Sure, he could've just directed all that absorbed mana to fill up some empty space in his infinite mana heart. But where was the fun in that? Plus, it wouldn't be much use in a fight, just a boost during meditation. So, he cooked up another level 2 magic circle. Yep, he was gonna level up his second mana core! Okay, so it wasn't as massive as the first one since it hadn't had as much time to grow, but it was still bigger than your average circle, like twice as big.

When Zack realized the old core was maxed out, he kicked into gear and activated that second level 2 magic circle. Same drill as before, just on a smaller scale since the second core was still playing catch-up. But just as he was about to feel bummed out, something wild happened.

The second core and the first one started buzzing on the same wavelength, despite being crazy far apart. As Zack brought the second core closer to the first, the vibrations kicked up a notch. And when they were practically nose-to-nose, the cores glowed even brighter. Next thing Zack knew, the first core shot out streams of mana to the second.

He watched in awe as the second core swelled up to match the first, filling in every empty space with the same symbols and patterns. It was like witnessing magic on steroids!

"Holy shit, what's going on?" Zack cursed under his breath, equal parts thrilled and baffled. And then, he watched the small infinity core inside the second one grow to match the first. It was like witnessing a double dose of cosmic chaos.

Outside Zack's mana heart, the world mirrored the chaos within. In the observation room adjacent to the advancement chamber, the trio of level 2 powerhouses observed as the swirling vortex expanded to engulf the entire space. The mana concentration soared to unprecedented levels, reaching a staggering 100 times its usual potency.

Evangeline's gaze remained fixed on the young boy suspended in the heart of the tumultuous whirlpool. Initially bearing a complex expression, her eyes hardened with resolve as she issued a command to Malcolm, her voice cutting through the tension, "Shut down all other practice rooms in the hall. Channel all the mana-gathering power of the entire tower into this room."

Cedric and Archibald offered no protest, their silence affirming their acquiescence. Even if they harbored objections, they knew Evangeline's authority as the tower head was absolute. Without hesitation, Malcolm hastened to the control room to execute Evangeline's directive.

Returning their focus to the boy undergoing the advancement, the three powerhouses observed the whirlpool growing larger and more intense, nearly engulfing the boy entirely. Despite the ferocity of the tempest, their enhanced vision allowed them to maintain a clear view of the scene.

Cedric broke the silence, his voice tinged with astonishment, "I've only heard of such phenomena occurring when a former tower head advanced to level 3."

As the room began to vibrate and an overwhelming surge of mana poured in from the entire tower, Cedric continued, "Even then, the former head didn't require the entirety of the tower's mana gathering power to advance."

He could feel a massive amount of mana had been absorbed into the boy's body but he was puzzled as to why couldn't he feel the boy's mana increasing? He was pretty sure that Lady Evangeline and Sir Archibald are as puzzled as him.

As the pressure within the room escalated to the point of straining the walls, Cedric swiftly intervened, conjuring a formation with rapid gestures to reinforce and stabilize the advancement room.

Then, just like that, the mana tsunami stopped. After a month, Zack nailed that level 2 upgrade. He was still hovering in mid-air, legs crossed, when he slowly cracked open his eyes, revealing this striking sky blue gaze.

He flexed his fingers, sensing that ocean of mana roiling inside his mana heart. With a graceful descent, he touched down on the ground. Level 2 wizards like him had this neat floating ability, thanks to the magic circles acting like gyroscopes. It meant they could float and even fly with just a smidge of mana.

As Zack touched down, the door to the advancement room swung open, and in strutted the three level 2 big shots.

The first to break the silence was Sir Cedric, the old geezer from the library. With a unique salute characteristic of wizards, he addressed the boy, "Congratulations on advancing to level 2." Then, his tone shifted to one of puzzlement. "But if I may ask, why does your mana remain unchanged after the advancement?"

Oh snap! Zack realized he'd forgotten to tweak his [Hidden Strength]. With a quick mental adjustment, he bumped his mana up to 3600, letting off that level 2 wizard pressure. 

But instead of buying it, the level 2 bigwigs looked even more skeptical. They probably clocked onto his knack for tweaking mana levels on the fly. The realization hit Zack like a ton of bricks—they must've figured out he had some serious occlusion skills, able to manipulate his mana levels freely.

Watching their reactions, Zack cursed inwardly. Dang it! He'd messed up big time. But what could he do? The whole advancement process had been a whirlwind, and he'd forgotten to gradually adjust his mana levels along the way.

He sighed, knowing the mana he'd absorbed didn't quite match what he was letting out. But what could they do? His [Hidden Strength] kept his true mana levels under wraps, leaving them in the dark. All he could do was play dumb and hope they bought it

Evangeline and Archibald joined in with the congrats, then all four of them hopped on the magic elevator to plan out Zack's future as a level 2 wizard up on the 90th floor.

First up on the agenda was a snazzy new robe, matching the lightning tower's signature blue hue but jazzed up with fancy gold trimmings. And you better believe that bad boy wasn't just for show—it packed some serious spell-resistant punch, perfect for shrugging off level 2 magic.

Zack could customize the decorations on his robe just like his mask, but he had to keep those golden edges intact. They were like the level 2 wizard badge of honor. Evangeline's robe, on the other hand, sparkled like the starry night sky, a clear sign she was the top dog as tower head.

Next, they got down to brass tacks—resource distribution. Translation: dividing up the tower's external assets and businesses. Judging by the tense vibes from Evangeline and Archibald, Zack figured they'd be taking a hit. But Cedric seemed chill as ever.

When Zack asked about Cedric's stash, the dude shrugged it off, saying he didn't have much but would get a fat paycheck and points from the tower each month instead. Not wanting to have conflicts and thinking managing resources would be a hassle, Zack went with the same deal as Cedric. They tossed him a handful of stores to handle and promised a hefty monthly cash injection. 

As they delved into his tower role, they popped the big question: what was Zack's specialization? Even though they probably had a good idea from snooping his library record, they still wanted to hear it from the horse's mouth. Zack came clean, saying he was all about spell patterns and formations.

Like they were just waiting for that, Sir Cedric jumped in, proposing Zack take the reins as head of both the spell pattern and formation departments. Zack's alarm bells started ringing—this seemed a bit too convenient.

He flat-out refused, but Sir Cedric wouldn't take no for an answer. According to him, a level 2 wizard had to step up as department head to prevent any one person from hogging all the top spots.

Cedric claimed he was content running the library and wanted to pass on the spell pattern and formation gigs to a fresh face. But Zack could read between the lines—the dude just didn't want the hassle.

Sure, being head honcho of those departments could rake in some cash and influence, but Evangeline and Archibald weren't sold. They didn't think the profit was worth the headache, also, they have their own departments to manage.

After some back-and-forth with Sir Cedric, Zack finally caved and said yes to being the head of the spell pattern department. Once they hammered out all the nitty-gritty stuff, Zack bounced back to his room—or, well, his floor in the tower, somewhere between the 90th and 97th, a perk from being a level 2 wizard.

Flop! Zack crashed onto his bed, feeling more beat after chatting with the other level 2 big shots than he did during the whole advancement process. He figured he'd better catch some sleep before he tried out his upgraded abilities.

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Name: Zack

Age: 24/300 (2000)

Occupation: Official Wizard (Level 2)

Contract: [Lightning Magic Tower - Official Member]

Hidden Contract: -

Mana: 3600/3600 (100,440/100,440)

Overt Talent: [Low Mana Manipulation Correction], [Low Mana Sensory Correction]

Hidden Talent: [Limitless Mana Well], [Advanced Mana Manipulation Correction], [Advanced Mana Sensory Correction], [Advanced Intelligence Correction], NEW [Enhanced Computation Power] 

Hidden Boss Abilities: [Hidden Strength] [Thousand Faces]

HBP: 0

HB Progress Bar: 50/100% 

Expand Hidden Boss abilities Store? yes/no

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