Chapter 158 Meditation Model Rune Release

In the following two or three days, Liszt’s schedule was packed.

In the morning, he practiced his Aura, trained Hiddleston, and supervised the construction of the workshop. In the afternoon, he studied magic, mainly focusing on the spells Glanny knew. This mage was proficient in Fire and Water magic, had some knowledge of Wind and Earth magic, but knew nothing about Lightning, Ice, or Dark magic.

"The difficulty of practicing magic is far greater than that of practicing Aura."

"The steps for casting a spell are: Meditation, Modeling, Runes, and Release."

"Meditation involves channeling mental strength to communicate with mana. Modeling involves using the communicated mana to build a bridge between internal and external mana. Runes involve using internal mana to refine the details of the bridge, solidifying the channels through which mana flows. Release occurs when the bridge is complete and the channels are solidified, allowing mental strength to guide the release of the spell."

"Each spell has a fixed model and runes, requiring time to master. For example, I can instantly cast Fireball and Water Arrow because I have released these spells hundreds of times, imprinting their details deeply into my body and mind, allowing me to cast them naturally."

"However, for Earth magic like Rock Flight and Wind magic like Wind Blade, I must spend time continuously refining the models and adding runes to successfully cast them."

"There are many spells I know that need to be kept secret. I can only demonstrate Fireball, Water Arrow, Rock Flight, and Wind Blade."

"Every mage is also a crafter of magical equipment. The principle is simple: crafting magical equipment involves carving a spell model. The core material itself can be considered a rough spell model, while auxiliary materials serve to supplement the runes of the model... By the way, materials from magical beasts are excellent sources of runes."

"Your earth dog, Hiddleston, is extraordinary. I bet if you killed it and added its essence to the Black Pearl, I could craft an excellent magical equipment piece comparable to a Sprite Soldier!"

Glanny’s eyes gleamed as he said this.

A Sprite Soldier is a more precious piece of equipment than gemstone weapons. As the name suggests, a Sprite Soldier is a weapon forged using sprites—sprite blood imbues the weapon with magical power. Despite laws prohibiting the slaughter of sprites in various kingdoms, the use of sprites in weapon forging continues unabated.

After all, some sprites are not particularly useful for agriculture.

"Never mention Sprite Soldiers again," Liszt said, deeply abhorring the idea. "Sprites are beautiful beings and should not be treated this way. Also, stop eyeing Hiddleston. Otherwise, I won’t mind letting Hiddleston get up close and personal with you."

Glanny glanced at Liszt with a look of disdain.

He probably thought Liszt was hypocritical, as many nobles who publicly condemn the killing of sprites secretly use useless ones to forge sprite weapons—not just Sprite Soldiers, but also Greater Sprite Soldiers and even Dragon Sprite Soldiers.

He licked his lips: "Are you saying you’re willing to let me study your earth dog, Hiddleston?"

"Glanny, I advise you not to think about it. Hiddleston is dangerous."

"All magical beasts are dangerous."

"It’s especially dangerous." Liszt gave a mild warning. If Glanny persisted after completing the work, he wouldn’t mind letting Hiddleston handle things. "Let’s talk about the Black Pearl. I want you to design a control mechanism so that it can be turned on and off freely."

If the Black Pearl constantly suppresses storms, clearly, relying solely on oars would not allow for long voyages.

During calm weather, the Black Pearl’s effect could be disabled, and then reactivated during storms.

Glanny thought for a moment: "No problem, this is simple. I already have a clear plan to create an excellent magical equipment piece. In fact, I can’t wait. If you give me another Hiddleston, the Black Pearl will be even better!" He circled back to the topic.

Liszt picked up the cold drink on the table and ignored him.

Glanny waited for a moment, seeing the awkward silence, and then said: "I saw a wall near the castle, with another earth dog inside. That one could be used too."

"Not possible."

"Then what about that noisy magical beast over there? Is it a Wind Falcon? It might work."

Xuan Fu?

Liszt was about to refuse but paused.

Xuan Fu hadn’t been trained properly. He had planned to train it by starving it, but since it was a bird, once released, it would fly away. Finding a falconer was impossible, so Xuan Fu remained in the castle, serving only as decoration or as meat before it learned Wind Blade.

"Do you know any falconers?"

"Do you want to tame it?"

"I found this Wind Falcon as an egg. It recognizes people but lacks training. It can’t even cast spells."

"Best to kill it. Materials from a Wind magical beast can better assist the Black Pearl in suppressing storms."

"I want to know if you know any falconers."

Glanny was silent for a moment before slowly nodding: "I know one, but I still suggest you kill it and use it as auxiliary material for the Black Pearl."

Under Liszt’s persistent questioning, he finally revealed the falconer’s name—Elkson Truth, another mage residing in Coral City.

Knowing the existence of a falconer, Liszt eagerly wanted to invite him. So he forced the reluctant Glanny to write an invitation letter. The two mages knew each other.

"Xuan Fu’s fate has changed."

He felt very good.

Now, it was just a matter of waiting for Elkson Truth to arrive.

...

As the letter was sent out,

Crystal craftsman Brad arrived in Flower Town to work with Glanny on crafting crystal lamps.

That same night, on the fourth day of building the workshop, Gort rode his horse to the castle to report to Liszt: "Sir, the workshop is completely finished!"

"Excellent, completing it in four days exceeds expectations! Advisor Gort, triple the wages for the serfs who worked on it, as per my instructions."

"As you wish. Do you want to personally inspect the workshop?"

"No need."

Liszt didn’t have time to inspect the situation; he had already begun calling for the smoke mission.

"Mission completed. Reward: Aura Necklace."

"No matter how many candles are lit, flickering flames can still hurt the eyes. Since I’ve grown accustomed to staying up late, I need to take care of myself and find a new stable light source. Please install ten crystal lamps in the castle. Reward: Mutated Thorn."

Upon completing the mission, a new one appeared, just as he had hoped—a chain mission.

"Another mutated thorn. It seems that not cutting down the fast-growing thorn was a very foresighted decision," Liszt’s lips curved into a smile.

Every time he completed a chain mission involving thorn bugs, it increased the probability of the thorn bugs evolving into fairies.

"Ten crystal lamps—purely a welfare mission. I need to urge Glanny and Brad to finish making them as soon as possible."

Then,

his attention shifted to himself: "Aura Necklace, when will it arrive? I don’t seem to have touched my neck yet, and the aura within me is still growing slowly."

After a moment of introspection,

he called out to the butler Carter: "Mr. Carter, please have Mrs. Abby fry some more demon beast meat chops for tonight’s midnight snack. I’m feeling a bit hungry."

He planned to have a big meal, get some sleep, and wait quietly for the Aura Necklace to arrive.