Chapter 324 Conference

Several days later, Noren Academy No. 13.

A few days prior, Jie Ming had received a communication from Mentor Clark—concise and to the point, instructing him to arrive at a designated location in the academy district at the specified time.

Thus, after wrapping up his experiments, he crossed through the teleportation array today and returned to this academy after a long absence.

Along the way, a familiar figure caught his eye.

“Jie Ming!” Senior Viola maintained her usual elegant demeanor.

But upon spotting Jie Ming, her composure instantly shattered. She bounded over in a few steps, eyebrows arching slightly. “You got the old man’s message too?”

Jie Ming’s eyelid twitched. “You’re bold enough now to call our mentor that?”

“Ha! I’m a fully qualified sixth-level wizard now. Even the old geezer can’t just scold me whenever he wants!” Viola gracefully flicked her silver-gray hair, though her words were anything but refined.

“Our mentor’s just a bit bald at the top—he’s hardly old…” Jie Ming couldn’t help but retort.

“Your focus is on that? Looks like you’re harboring rebellious thoughts too! How about it? Want to form an alliance with me and start an Anti-Old-Man Coalition?”

“Uh, no! I’ll have to decline!”

Jie Ming silently dodged Viola’s hand as she reached to sling an arm around his shoulders.

Viola immediately struck a pose of a heartbroken beauty. “Are you planning to betray me too?”

“…”

Jie Ming quietly shuffled a couple more steps sideways, wary of any metaphorical blood splattering onto him.

After some mutual banter, the two finally turned their attention to the matter at hand.

Jie Ming answered Viola’s initial question. “Mentor Clark did summon me here, but he didn’t elaborate in the message.”

Mentor Clark had sent a text communication, not a video call.

Moreover, the specified location wasn’t his usual office but an unfamiliar numbered conference room—an unusual detail in itself.

“Strange.” Viola rubbed her chin, her expression intrigued. “Since when did the old man learn to be mysterious? Not a single extra word in the message—that’s not his style.”

Jie Ming was about to nod in agreement when a spark of insight flashed in his mind.

He recalled the Wizard Noren who had descended like a deity during the crisis in the Giant Spirit Realm not long ago.

From what he knew, as a powerful eighth-level existence, the Wizard Noren should have been at the side of that ninth-level wizard, locked in fierce combat with the enemy’s main forces on the front lines.

Even if they sent a distress signal, standard reinforcements would come from eighth-level wizards on rotation.

Conversely, the Wizard Noren’s personal arrival meant he had already disengaged from the battlefield.

If it were a rotation, the timing seemed a bit early.

An eighth-level wizard would never leave the core battlefield without reason.

The Wizard Noren’s return in person implied that the front-line situation might have undergone some change.

Or… there was a new task of extremely high priority requiring a powerhouse of his caliber to handle personally.

“Hm?” Viola keenly caught Jie Ming’s momentary pause and thoughtful gaze, her interest immediately piqued. She lightly elbowed him. “Little junior, with that look… do you know some insider info? Come on, share with your senior!”

Jie Ming pondered briefly, deciding there was no need for secrecy, and quietly recounted his chance encounter with the Wizard Noren in the Giant Spirit Realm.

“The Wizard Noren? That legendary lord has returned?” Viola’s eyes lit up instantly, curiosity burning like twin flames.

Without waiting for Jie Ming to finish, she grabbed his collar and dragged him forward. “What are we dawdling for? Hurry, hurry! We might get to see him in person up close!”

“With over a hundred and forty academies in the Noren Workshop, how could we possibly see him in person…”

Jie Ming, towed along like a kite in the wind, sighed helplessly and let her have her way.

This senior’s action-oriented nature was always so “outstanding.”

Following the communication’s directions, they arrived at the designated conference room.

Pushing open the heavy doors, Jie Ming swept his gaze across the interior and felt a slight stir in his heart.

The conference room had clearly been enhanced with advanced spatial expansion techniques, its interior vast enough to accommodate tens of thousands without feeling crowded.

Moreover, a fair number of wizards were already seated.

Glancing around, while some faces were familiar, most were strangers to Jie Ming.

The attendees were mostly second- and third-level low-tier wizards, their expressions a mix of confusion and anticipation.

There were also some higher-level wizards, though their spiritual force fluctuations seemed unstable—likely recent promotions.

As for those seated in the front row, Jie Ming couldn’t have been more familiar—they were the mentors who had taught them back at Noren Academy.

There, still slightly balding and stern-faced, was Mentor Clark, engaged in quiet conversation with another mentor beside him.

“It seems a major conference is about to begin.” Jie Ming understood inwardly.

Jie Ming and Viola first approached the front row and respectfully saluted Mentor Clark.

Clark lifted his eyelids, glanced at them, and gave a slight nod, his voice steady and emotionless. “Mm, you’re here. Find a seat anywhere.”

Despite his words, the wizards in the venue instinctively seated themselves according to an unspoken rule—arranged roughly by wizard level from front to back.

Jie Ming was long accustomed to this. Such hierarchical reverence for knowledge and power was ingrained in the very marrow of the wizard world.

He quietly made his way to the area where second-level wizards gathered and sat in an inconspicuous spot.

After they left, Oswald, their former soul-path mentor seated beside Clark, leaned over.

Watching Jie Ming and Viola depart, his tone carried unabashed envy. “Clark, your two students are truly remarkable. It’s only been a few years, and Viola’s already reached sixth level. And that Jie Ming is even more exaggerated—a mere second-level wizard, yet I can sense a threat from him… Tsk, being their mentor must make you proud.”

Mentor Clark glanced at him, his expression unchanged, merely humming softly through his nose in response.

But the slight relaxation at the corners of his mouth seemed to betray a trace of subtle satisfaction.

Viola followed Jie Ming to his chosen seat but didn’t sit immediately.

She bent down with a grin, winking triumphantly at Jie Ming. “Little junior, you stay put here~ Your senior’s heading to the front!”

Jie Ming was well aware of his senior’s quirky sense of humor and remained unfazed, nodding calmly. “Please, Senior, go ahead.”

Seeing Jie Ming’s bland reaction, Viola instantly lost interest, deflating like a punctured balloon with a dramatic sigh.

Shoulders drooping, she headed to the front area reserved for high-level wizards and casually took an empty seat.

Soon, the conference room doors slowly closed, admitting no more wizards.

The murmurs in the venue gradually subsided, all eyes turning toward the stage at the front.

Buzz…

Amid a faint humming, a clear holographic projection illuminated above the stage.

A figure materialized from illusion to reality—the Wizard Noren, his countenance gentle, his gaze profound as the starry seas.

“I am Noren.” His voice was not loud, yet it reached every wizard’s ears clearly, carrying an unquestionable authority.

A suppressed ripple of excitement immediately swept through the room, especially among the low-level wizards, their faces alight with thrill and awe.

Many had grown up hearing tales of this Wizard Noren, and now, this legendary eighth-level wizard stood before them in the flesh (albeit as a projection).

Even the high-level wizards in the front row regarded him with reverence. The higher one’s level, the more one understood the vast chasm between tiers.

It was not merely a gap in strength but an abyss in wisdom and research capability!

The Wizard Noren paid no mind to the reactions below and cut straight to the point, his tone decisive. “My return this time is to execute the Star Ring Federation’s highest resolution.”

He paused, his gaze sweeping the entire venue as if piercing every soul. “To address the increasingly complex situation in the chaotic void, the Federation has decided to formally launch the ‘Elite Nurturing Plan.’ Effective immediately, with the cores of various wizard forces as primary members, the first batch of elite combat units will be formed.”

Jie Ming’s heart stirred. As expected!

“Over the years, the many academies of the Noren Workshop have, through elite trials, accumulated a wealth of outstanding talent. Now is the time to put them to true use.” The Wizard Noren’s voice carried no emotion.

“Before you fully mature, you will be deployed to second-line battlefields. The enemies there may not be as formidable as those faced by the front-line main legions, but they are often far more bizarre and difficult— the perfect whetstone to temper you.”

He then briefly mentioned adjustments to high-level wizard deployments and resource allocations, though these were clearly unrelated to Jie Ming’s current tier.

Jie Ming’s focus was entirely on the keywords “elite units” and “second-line battlefields.”

His mind raced, calmly analyzing.

Second-line battlefields were undoubtedly more controllable in risk compared to the front lines.

But “more difficult” implied high uncertainty, where conventional methods might prove ineffective.

“Still, in terms of safety, there should be assurances—perhaps even higher than on rear battlefields?”

After all, rear battlefields involved cleaning up remnants, and the commanding wizards wouldn’t be of particularly high level.

Second-line battlefields, however, would certainly have eighth-level wizards overseeing them.

Given wizard operational patterns, all obvious ninth-level enemies were dealt with on the front lines.

Thus, with an enemy level cap, the presence of eighth-level wizards could significantly enhance second-line battlefield safety.

“What’s more, the comrades there will all be screened elites—likely far stronger…”

As the Wizard Noren’s projection detailed specific selection criteria, resource allocations, and initial arrangements, Jie Ming was already calculating his upcoming research plans.