That was nearly half of my own maximum speed. Currently, my burst speed relied on Gap Flash for movement, so the upgrades to my other three Professional Levels hadn’t significantly increased my fastest burst speed.

The speed continued to climb. The current acceleration was ten kilometers per second. ’The physics formulas from my past life don’t fully apply here. At least, F≠ma.’

kilometers per second.

Through his Perception, Lu Cang saw that at the rear of the Flying Airship, nine thrusters were blasting out long trails of light...

Moreover, his Spirituality also sensed that the Space in front of and behind the Flying Airship seemed to be changing.

’Is this the masterpiece of a Level 7 Mechanician?’

Lu Cang probed the interior of the Flying Airship with his Perception. ’Not a single trace of magical fluctuation. It relies solely on its precise mechanical structure to create such a marvel.’

’It seems that even in a world where Magic is so advanced, the power of technology is not to be underestimated.’

An operator called out, "We’re topped out! Reached maximum speed."

Lu Cang and Kumironi exchanged a look.

’Who else could possibly advance a full 16 Levels in less than a year?’

’Right, there’s Saint One.’

’I wonder what path he plans to take in this life.’

’Still, having memories from a past life certainly makes everything convenient.’

’At the very least, upgrading as a Mage should be a breeze. All the required thinking is already in my head, so I don’t need to waste any more time on it. Upgrading should be as easy as drinking water.’

Lu Cang nodded slightly.

Kumironi raised her hand, and the light of the advancement Ritual flared to life!

Lu Cang saw countless rifts tear open in the sky!

WHOOSH!

But in the blink of an eye, those dense clusters of rifts were left far behind!

Looking back, he could see countless black, filthy things chasing after them!

’Did we shake them off?’

HUMMM!

Kumironi kept her hand raised as a green light rose around Lu Cang!

"Lu Cang, did we miss any?"

Lu Cang shook his head.

Kumironi could also see the Filthy Worms, but her perception of them was not as substantial as Lu Cang’s. For instance, Lu Cang could see writhing, maggot-like black worms.

Kumironi, however, only saw faint, illusory shadows, like water vapor.

"We shook them all off."

FWOOSH!

The light of the Ritual shot into the sky, where a massive void appeared!

It was the font of a Mage, symbolizing the very end of the Root Source.

This font of power moved along with the Ritual.

Meanwhile, outside this font, the rifts continued to appear, tearing through the surrounding Space.

This meant that the locations where the Filthy Worms appeared had not synchronized with their speed.

Lu Cang raised both his hands.

At the same time, his form became both illusory and radiant.

「Tier Three Root Magic: Source·All Laws」

「Tier Four Root Magic: Source·Body is Law」

「Tier Four Root Magic: Core of All Things」

A dazzling, multicolored light soared into the sky!

It enveloped the entire Flying Airship, emanating a majestic and profound aura!

At this moment, the land below had given way to a vast sea.

The Flying Airship had left the Ruelun Continent.

It was now speeding over the Secret Sea!

Lu Cang gazed out at the seemingly boundless expanse of sea.

’This is my first time leaving Ruelun, my first time seeing the so-called Secret Sea.’

’It’s truly vast.’

’On Earth, you could see the planet’s curvature from an altitude of about 100 kilometers.’

’I’ve heard that from the International Space Station, 400 kilometers above the ground, you’re already far enough away to see a huge portion of Earth’s surface.’

Now, over the Secret Sea, his vision was no longer obstructed by the mountain ranges of the Ruelun Continent.

His gaze stretched into the distance, where the sea resembled the cosmos, extending out to infinity!

He could vaguely make out a few extremely scattered specks.

’Perhaps those are continents dotting the Secret Sea.’

’This... is the world.’

Lu Cang raised his hand slightly!

BOOM!

A Core plummeted toward the sea!

BOOOOM—

Instantly, a vast swath of the sea became a void!

Magic erupted from Lu Cang, blasting out across the surrounding sea! Their flight path was now accompanied by a trail of countless brilliant fireworks!

Lu Cang looked directly at the font of power in the sky.

A Core flew out toward it!

Over the past few days, Lu Cang had been continuously developing his Cores and had become quite proficient with them.

’After all, this Core can be used to trigger more than just Magic and Combat Skills.’

’It can also trigger Talents.’

’A Core is the sum of one’s being; naturally, that should include Talents.’

’It’s just that Divine Talents are unique. They are themselves manifestations of distorted Rules.’

’The thinking behind Root Magic, on the other hand, is an interpretation of the Rules of the Root Source.’

’It took a great deal of thought to figure out how to isolate both the distorted and normal Rules, forming them into a separate layer that I can control freely.’

’Arranging the Cores is no simple matter. For some of the more complex Rules, I have to conceptualize their form of expression. If even I can’t think it through, then the Rule can’t be extracted or expressed.’

The Core made contact with the font of power in the sky!

VMMMM—

He felt the Core shudder violently!

It immediately disintegrated!

But at the same time, a flood of information was transmitted back into Lu Cang’s mind.

「Divine Level Hidden Origin」

’I got it. The information!’

「Creator: None」

「The Origin of Magic, one of the world’s First Origins, the end of the Root Source—Hidden Knowledge: Neither unique nor indestructible.」

「Source of the Original Forbidden Magic」

「Basic Rules of Magic」

「Location: The end of the Root Source」

Lu Cang sensed a location being indicated, but it was completely different from the one he had obtained before. It didn’t exist in reality.

Instead, it was an extremely distorted vector.

It was as if it pointed toward a thought, an answer, an indescribable location.

After receiving this information, Lu Cang felt a powerful resonance from his Decryption Scholar Profession.

In Lu Cang’s palm, a new Core gradually took shape.

Lu Cang structured it with himself as the innermost core. The next layer held all his knowledge and thoughts, stored in an encrypted format. Further out was a layer containing most of his Magic and all his Combat Skills, and the outermost layer was enveloped in Defense Magic.

This formed a basic defensive Core.

As for his offensive Cores, they contained Magic and Combat Skills in their outer layers.

If a Core was destroyed, it could be re-formed.

And...

Lu Cang had another idea.

Reincarnation.

’If I could leave these Cores behind permanently, then even if I undergo Reincarnation in the future, as long as I find the Cores I left behind, I can reclaim—everything about myself.’

’This is my "Core of All Things."’

’But now there’s another problem. As long as these Cores exist, I cannot be truly destroyed.’

’Only when all the Cores are annihilated will I truly die and enter the cycle of Reincarnation.’

’Under these conditions... it’s difficult to imagine a scenario where I could enter Reincarnation and still leave a Core behind.’

’If the Core itself could remain, I could just achieve Rebirth through it once I’m safe. What would be the point of Reincarnation then?’

He had presented his answer regarding the Mage Profession.

Lu Cang casually presented a pincer—the remains of a Tier Six Submerged Land Level Demon.

It was his submission for the combat experience portion of the trial.

The Mage Profession didn’t have high combat requirements; this was just an extra credit item, icing on the cake.

A faint light descended from the void in the sky.

In that moment, Lu Cang felt...

his Mage Level rise to Level 4.