A Hospital in Another World?

Chapter 904: Advancing to a Priest in Front of the Lord of Thunder?

Advancing now?

The Lord of Thunder gazed deeply at his youngest disciple. Garrett's shoulders were slightly hunched, his neck stiff, his whole body seemed as if it was trying to curl up into a ball, ready to spring up at any moment.

Why so nervous?

Do you think I'd lose face from a simple comment and get angry at you?

The Lord of Thunder was both amused and slightly annoyed. He lowered his eyelids slightly, hiding the fleeting thoughts, and said calmly:

"Oh, advancing? Let's do it here then—no, let's move a bit. There was a battle here recently, and the elements are a bit chaotic."

Before he finished speaking, the flying carpet had already risen and drifted away. It passed over one hill, then another, never stopping, as if the teacher was not satisfied with the elemental environment below.

Garrett sat stiffly on the flying carpet, trying to expand his senses to find a place where the elements were more balanced and stable, suitable for his advancement. Meanwhile, Cirilla whispered from the side:

"Don't we need to go to the Mage Tower?"

"Mage Tower? No need." The Lord of Thunder's voice softened slightly with a bit more patience when addressing Cirilla:"The advancement from level eight to level nine requires facing the world directly, resonating with it as much as possible. Staying in the Mage Tower would mean resonating with the tower first, absorbing filtered and integrated elements, which would limit his path."

"Oh..." The Silver Dragon girl peeked at Garrett's expression, slightly delighted:

"I thought it was farther away!"

"Far?"

The Lord of Thunder smiled. The distance to the capital was only one or two hundred miles, and with him accelerating their flight, it wouldn't take long. If necessary, he could put Garrett in his demi-plane and use a teleportation spell to cross the distance in an instant.

If even that wasn't enough, Garrett could advance in his demi-plane, and there would be no lack of absorbable power. Cirilla herself had used her true form to help Garrett absorb elements, acting as a Mage Tower element pool...

"You don't need to help him this time." The Lord of Thunder added an extra instruction:

"Taking more time is fine. Resonating with the world is best without interference or obstacles. Don't worry, I'll be watching, nothing will go wrong."

Cirilla nodded obediently. Garrett suddenly said:

"I think this place is good."

Hmm?

The flying carpet stopped. The Lord of Thunder glanced at Garrett in surprise, expanded his senses, and slightly turned. In his perception, the elements on this hill were neither too abundant nor too active... Of course, in terms of balance, it was just average.

But if Garrett thought it was good, then it was good.

The flying carpet stopped, and Garrett jumped off without his teacher's help. He activated the Feather-Fall Spell and floated down to an open space on the hill. Without thinking, he found a rock and sat on it...

Surrounding him were dozens of rocks of varying sizes, forming a stone ring around the open space.

The Lord of Thunder had been observing Garrett's actions. Seeing the stone ring, he couldn't help but take a deep breath and exhale deeply:

So, Garrett chose this place because of the influence of the Cult of the God of Nature?

Was he drawn to the place because of its natural aura?

After all this time, was he advancing not as a mage, but as a priest?

For a moment, it was both amusing and a bit distressing. The Lord of Thunder shook his head, retreated the flying carpet further, and further. He landed, set up a table and chairs, and used his mental power to monitor from a distance.

In the center of the stone ring, a soft but clear fluctuation spread out. Like seeds sprouting, like buds turning green, like spring winds blowing through the mountains and forests, covering them with a layer of spring.

It felt like not just Garrett, but the entire forest was resonating and growing with him.

"Teacher... this..."

Grand Mage Byerbo couldn't help but speak. The Lord of Thunder lightly shook his head:

"It's fine. Just wait and see."

He reviewed the research, papers, and actions Garrett had taken over the past year, pondering silently. To be honest, Garrett had been stuck at level eight for quite a long time, over a year...

Of course, this "quite long" was in comparison to Garrett himself. Generally, most mages stayed at this level for seven to eight years, or even ten years. Many got stuck here for life.

His personal disciples were chosen based on their potential to advance to legendary status. Even so, advancing from level eight to nine often took five to six years.

Naturally, what Garrett achieved in over a year would take others several years. With enough accumulation, it's not surprising for some commotion to occur during advancement.

Just watch!

The Lord of Thunder slowly poured himself half a cup of coffee, drew out a ball of milk with a flick of his hand, and began to whip it into foam. The milk spun quickly, frothing up with dense bubbles. Just as he was about to pour it into the coffee, a green leaf floated into the cup.

The Lord of Thunder stared at the tender new leaf for a long time without speaking. Beside him, Grand Mage Filby burst out laughing:

"It seems little Garrett's advancement is going quite smoothly!"

Garrett had already entered meditation the moment he sat down, or rather, he had begun a dialogue with the world. The wind rustled around him, the tall oaks, beeches, and hollies shook their deep green leaves, welcoming him;

Below the trees, half-human-high shrubs and the withering or withdrawing grasses readying for winter lowered their heads in vague respect;

Birds spread their wings, squirrels jumped, and field mice hurriedly gathered grain, diving into their burrows. Centipedes and snakes under the fallen leaves scurried away...

The entire forest, the whole world, surrounded and echoed the child of nature.

Garrett took a deep breath. He looked around, found an extra wide and smooth boulder, and lay flat on it. Spreading his limbs, he closed his eyes in contentment:

No thoughts, no memories, no ideas. Not considering elements, nature, or his identity as a traveler, just following his intuition, expanding his senses, and merging with the world.

Like when he was in Aeolan, fully stimulating the vegetation of the Heritage Land, but with less anger;

Like when he fought Old Morgan and the two enemies just now, blending into nature, listening to its voice, but with less vigilance;

Like a baby sleeping in its mother's arms, like a fish drifting with the waves. Originally, he himself was part of the world!

...In the dark, deep, or rather, primitive perception, a light appeared.

A tiny bit of light. Like dawn breaking the night, or a seed sprouting. Soft, tender, yet tenacious and strong. Budding, leafing, pushing through the soil, pushing through the stones...

Upward, spreading leaves to receive sunlight; downward, extending roots to absorb rain and minerals. Circulating within, building a solid body, inch by inch, foot by foot growing taller.

Animals, plants, insects; soil, water, sunlight...

Still not enough!

Garrett thought to himself.

Sunlight on the ground brought energy, warmth, and atmospheric and oceanic currents; atmospheric and oceanic currents connected places thousands of miles apart.

Just like this year's year without a summer, clearly caused by a volcanic eruption thousands of miles away, affecting Kent Kingdom, the Old Continent, and at least the northern hemisphere of the New Continent...

As this thought arose, the entire world expanded. Up to the clouds, down to the crust, pushing outwards, spreading far. In the sky, clouds rolled, the sun rose and set; underground, everything grew, the ocean currents were deep.

The maps seen in the council, the lands traveled over the years, the world map revised under the guidance of the Gold Dragon Diamond, all quietly emerged in the meditative world.

Reflecting, connecting—

Breaking!

Too far!

Even with the enhancement and support of world consciousness, my mental power can't cover such a distant place!

Garrett promptly severed the distant connection. He retracted his thoughts and began to immerse himself in the surrounding world. Every stone's shape, every stream's ripple, every blade of grass, every tree, through many springs, summers, autumns, and winters...

The forest swayed with the wind. The natural breath circulated silently, those already withdrawing their strength and preparing for winter oaks quietly sprouted a new green leaf.

And Garrett, immersed in the vast natural breath, let it permeate his limbs and bones, enter his meditative world.

From the oak staff, from the Heritage Land, from the forest he now stood in, the knowledge, experiences, and perceptions of predecessors resonated with him endlessly. Finally, they merged into a supreme, distant, like a great bronze bell question:

"What do you think this world is like? And what should it be like?"

"As it is in my current understanding. Of course, my understanding of this world is incomplete and requires more exploration and research." In the ethereal realm, Garrett answered in his heart:

"It should be a cyclical, balanced, and healthy world. It should be progressive. Only through progress can more problems be solved, and progress depends on people's understanding and research..."

The vast mountains, the silent world. Only more natural breath silently, imperceptibly merged into Garrett. From a distance, the entire mountain was shrouded in a faint green hue.

"Good heavens, which brother from the cult is advancing here?"

A loud voice suddenly echoed in the sky. A huge eagle spread its wings, circling back and forth high above,

with a wingspan of at least two meters.

Suddenly, it folded its wings, plummeting down like a meteor, landing beside the Lord of Thunder and transforming into a rosy-cheeked old man:

"Is it your disciple? Little Garrett? Such a big commotion?"

The Lord of Thunder silently turned his head away, not wanting to answer a single word.