The Burning Hand

Matthew arrived at the school's trading area.

This area is similar to a small market at the Winter Realm School's headquarters, and is one of the main trading locations among apprentices.

Compared to the deserted Winter Realm Market, the School's trading area was much more lively.

Matthew observed along the way and arrived at the potions shop he used to frequent, only to find that the shop had long been abandoned.

The old door was tightly shut, and the shop windows were covered in dust.

Having no other option, Matthew had to look for other places that sold potions.

Soon, he arrived at a grocery store.

Matthew pushed open the door and went inside. He found the decor of the grocery store somewhat familiar.

The young man sitting behind the counter simply stretched as Matthew entered, without saying anything more.

Matthew approached the counter and handed over a list from his pocket.

"Do you have the potion mentioned above?"

The young man had a long face, which, combined with his lifeless eyes, made him look particularly listless.

He slowly took the list and looked at it. "You want to make healing potions, right?"

"That's right."

"Wait a minute."

Although the young man looked lazy, he was very efficient at packing his things.

He quickly collected all the potions on the list and pushed them in front of Matthew.

"Here's what you wanted: six magic stone fragments in total."

Matthew didn't rush to pay the bill. "Do you have any molten horn lizard blood?"

Although the blood of the molten lizard is not of much help to Matthew now, he still wants to collect some to see if there are any new discoveries.

"You're too late. I just sent a batch of Molten Horned Dragon Lizard blood to the Winter Realm a while ago."

The Realm of Winter? Could it be Old John's General Store?

Matthew remembered that old John had once mentioned to him that his family also owned a grocery store in the School, run by his nephew Tom.

"Are you old John's nephew?"

The young man was somewhat surprised. "You know my uncle?"

"I think I'm the one who bought the blood of the molten horned dragon..."

Tom paused for a moment, then immediately realized what was happening.

"You're Matthew? I've heard Uncle John mention you; he said you have a great talent for pharmacology."

After chatting for a while, Matthew asked, "Do you have any fire-based offensive magic?"

After thinking for a moment, Tom began rummaging under the counter.

While the young man went to retrieve something, Matthew opened the system to check his information.

[Insufficient mental energy; item cannot be detected.]

"They couldn't detect it?"

Then Tom found two magic crystal balls.

"I have two beginner-level fire-based spells here."

This sorcery is called "Burning Hand," and it consists of thirty-six runes.

When released, it can condense a large fiery hand with an attack range of six meters in front of the user.

The damage is affected by the caster's elemental affinity and magical power, ranging from approximately 120 to 160 degrees.

Then Tom picked up another magic crystal ball.

"This sorcery is called 'Burning Fire Wall,' and it consists of forty-eight runes. It's much more difficult to learn than 'Burning Hand.'"

"When released, it creates a wall of fire two meters in front of you, and can also be used as a defensive spell."

"The damage is around 140 to 180 degrees."

Tom was very experienced; he held the two crystal balls in his hands, making it clear that he wouldn't give them the goods without the magic stones, leaving Matthew no chance to touch them.

Looking at the two crystal balls in his hands, Matthew asked, "Any other fire magic?"

"This is the best witchcraft in the shop," Tom shook his head, then added, "You know, most witchcraft is controlled by schools of thought; only these basic spells can be found outside."

Matthew remained silent.

After some thought, he rejected the [Burning Fire Wall] spell. The reason was simple: the attack range of this spell was too short, and learning forty-eight runes would take a much longer time, so it was not cost-effective.

Although 【Burning Hand】is only an introductory sorcery, Matthew's affinity for fire elements has greatly increased after fusing with the bloodline of the Flame Devouring Dragon, so its power will definitely skyrocket when used.

"First, we need to quickly increase our own strength to prepare for the mandatory mission three months from now."

Matthew made up his mind, "I want the Burning Hand."

After paying with the magic stones, he put the items into his spatial bracelet and left the general store.

……

Matthew followed the path he remembered and soon arrived at the library.

The library within the school has six floors.

The first floor is a public reading room where apprentices can freely borrow any of the books.

However, apart from the first level, the other five levels are only open to apprentices after passing the subject assessment.

Therefore, he had never entered the other floors before.

Matthew didn't linger on the first floor and went straight to the second floor.

In the past, the original owner of this body had frequented the library to complete his research project assessments, and the books on the first floor were already worn out from reading them so much.

He found the spell "Vine Growth" in a free journal called "Practical Journal of Plant Science".

The second floor has several times more bookshelves than the first floor. Matthew scanned the shelves for a moment and came to a bookshelf.

A book titled "An Introduction to the Structure of Basic Fire Magic" caught his attention.

【Burning Hand】is the first fire-based sorcery Matthew needs to learn, so he wants to understand the relevant knowledge about fire elemental sorcery.

Just as he raised his hand, intending to touch the book to extract its contents, a familiar prompt popped up from the system.

[Note: Refining is not possible outside the specified range. Please move closer to the item before refining!]

He felt his hands being blocked by an invisible shield.

Previously, the books on the first-floor bookshelves were freely accessible, so Ma Xiushu naturally assumed that the second floor would be the same.

"There's actually an isolation barrier on the bookshelves on the second floor!"

Having no other choice, he had to pay with magic stones to borrow the book.

Borrowing a book from the second floor costs a magic stone fragment for seven days.

The library was quite crowded. After borrowing some books, he found a corner to sit down.

Opposite Matthew was an ordinary-looking young man who had his hair tied up in a ponytail.

The young man was engrossed in reading the books on the table and had no idea that there was an extra person sitting in the seat opposite him.

Matthew sat down and quickly opened "An Introduction to the Basic Structure of Fire Magic" to take a look.

"System, extract the book's content."

Instantly, Matthew's mind was filled with some basic knowledge about fire elemental magic.

Although he had already memorized the knowledge, there were still many parts he didn't understand, so he stayed in his seat to study them. About three hours later, the sky gradually darkened.

At this moment, the apprentices in the library closed their books and hurriedly left the library.

"Oh, right." Seeing this, Matthew suddenly remembered that there was a strange tale in the library.

You must leave the library before it gets completely dark, and especially do not go up to the sixth floor, or something terrible will happen.

Matthew hurriedly packed up and prepared to leave the library, taking "An Introduction to the Structure of Basic Fire Magic" with him as well.

After all, it's bound to attract attention if a book is exchanged for a magic stone fragment and then returned after only three hours of reading.

Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly felt someone staring at him from behind.

He turned around and saw that it was the ponytail-wearing youth who had been sitting opposite him who was staring at him.

He gave Matthew a gentle smile, his eyes crinkling into crescent moons, and then the young man began packing his things. Matthew glanced at the nearly dark sky, then without a second thought, headed straight for the library exit.