Chapter 1: The Mage

The frail mage appeared indistinct amidst the pale mist, his slender frame entirely concealed by a long, hooded cloak that even shrouded his face. In his pale hand, he tightly gripped a lengthy wooden staff that looked slightly ancient. Measuring approximately 1.2 meters in length and as thick as a baby's arm, the staff was carved with dozens of strange symbols, from which faint silvery-white light flickered intermittently. At its tip was embedded a thumb-sized red gem, within which dozens of tiny, restless streams of light could vaguely be seen swirling about, creating a rather splendid sight.

With one hand holding the staff and the other forming one intricate hand seal after another, the mage in the murmurred strange incantations under his breath. The low, continuous chanting drifted in such an environment, evoking a sense of eerie mystery and fear of the unknown.

As the peculiar incantation concluded, a faint halo suddenly enveloped the mage's body. Unless one had keen eyesight, it would not be easy to notice this additional layer of light around him. After a brief pause, the mage resumed chanting the strange syllables, this time more rapidly, uttering dry, unfamiliar words.

Suddenly, a fiery red sphere formed in the mage's hand as he continued to weave seals. It expanded swiftly from a slow start, beginning to rotate gently. In no time, the entire fireball grew to the size of an adult's head, its spinning speed increasing continuously. The fireball hovered above the mage's hand, rotating steadily. With a sudden motion, the mage swung his hand toward his predetermined target. The fireball, trailing a long streak of flame and emitting a low, hoarse whistle, tore through the thin white mist and crashed heavily onto the snowy ground a hundred meters away.

With a "thud," it blasted a half-meter-deep crater into the entire frozen, ice-hard snow, instantly melting a large patch of accumulated snow. Clumps of soil, enveloped in flames, were sent flying in all directions, only to be gradually extinguished by the surrounding snow upon landing.

Gazing from afar at the destruction he had wrought, the mage stood quietly for a moment, recovering from the fatigue of spellcasting. He let out a soft sigh, shook his head slightly, brushed off his cloak, and tightened his grip on the staff, dissatisfied with his spellcasting performance. He then departed from the spot, heading slowly deeper into the mist until his frail figure was completely obscured by the fog.

After completing his spell, the mage walked unhurriedly into a small grove where the mist grew noticeably thicker. The thick trunks of trees just six or seven meters away were instantly obscured, creating an illusion of disorientation for anyone within.

However, our mage navigated the dense fog with practiced ease, moving slowly and winding his way through as if unaffected by the mist, as though this place were his home—and indeed, this small grove was the mage's dwelling.

After a short journey, the mist in his field of vision thinned considerably, at least no longer obstructing one's sight as severely. Proceeding a bit farther, about half a kilometer away, a small, open clearing abruptly appeared. At its center stood a cabin built from birch wood. The edges of the clearing were not lined with the shorter trees commonly found in forests, but rather with tall, straight trees that completely blocked out the already limited sky. In the cold north, even if there was sunlight, it rarely reached this place. The mage's residence in such an environment appeared somewhat eerie.

The mage gently pushed open the wooden door and returned to his home in this world. This small cabin had been left to him by the previous generation of mages. The furnishings inside were relatively simple, yet the not-so-large room was filled with many items. Against the left inner wall stood a large wooden bed covered with a thick layer of animal hide, occupying nearly half of the limited space. In front of the bed were several wooden chairs, also padded with animal hides to ward off the severe cold.

The walls were lined with dozens of niches of varying sizes, containing books, bags, boxes, scrolls, wooden tablets, and even a few stone slabs carved with text, some thin, some thick, some large, some small. Some niches were covered with small wooden shutters, concealing their contents from view.

Not only was there a thick animal hide cushion, but a small, uneven-legged table was also placed at the head of the bed. On the table lay dozens of paper sheets and several open books. In the upper left corner of the table stood a small bronze incense burner, atop which rested a segment of tightly rolled incense about the thickness of a quill pen. Not far to the right of the incense burner was a silver candlestick holding a large piece of beeswax, awaiting its master's ignition.

In the upper right corner was a pen holder, from which hung or were inserted various quills, brushes, and even a few carving knives. In front of the pen holder stood a row of short glass bottles engraved with magic script, containing special inks prepared from the blood of various magical beasts, magic powder, crystal dust, medicinal herbs, and other materials for writing purposes.

The mage walked straight to the bed, removed his long animal hide boots, and sat behind the table. After tidying up the slightly messy desk, he began his post-spellcasting routine: shallow meditation.

The shallow meditation the mage engaged in at this moment was neither for increasing magical power nor enhancing mental strength. It was solely for slowly recovering the mental and magical energy consumed by the spellcaster after using magic, while maximizing the ability to remain aware of the external environment.

Meditation is broadly divided into two categories based on depth: one is shallow meditation, which allows the practitioner to maintain maximum awareness of the external environment and can be forcibly terminated without harming the meditator's mind or body. The drawback is its relatively low effectiveness. The second is deep meditation. During deep meditation, the spellcaster loses awareness of the external environment and cannot end the meditation at will. Only when the time subconsciously set by the meditator elapses can they regain awareness of the outside world. If forcibly awakened by others, the damage to the meditator is immense, often resulting in permanent loss of half their mental strength or magical power, or even death in severe cases. However, the effectiveness of deep meditation is three to five times that of the former.

In terms of effects, meditation is divided into three categories, each with several subdivisions: one focuses on mental effects, such as recovering, enhancing, or strengthening mental strength; the second focuses on magical effects, emphasizing recovery, increase, or purification of magical power; the third is a balance of the first two, simultaneously cultivating mental strength and magical power during meditation, or emphasizing the enhancement of mental strength alongside the refinement of magical power, or vice versa.

This primarily depends on what type of meditation method the mages choose, as different methods yield different results. Most mages generally opt for more balanced meditation methods, though some choose to enhance either mental strength or magical power in the early stages, gradually compensating for deficiencies in the other aspect later on. Our mage is currently practicing a relatively balanced meditation method that allows for faster recovery of both mental and magical energy. Of course, regardless of category, the meditation methods of ordinary mages are generally low-level and not very effective. Advanced meditation methods are held by prestigious academies, nobility, the military, and the royal family, rarely circulating among common mages.

The meditating mage is the orphan of a soldier from the Blue Feather Empire. His name is Shaoke, with the surname Xueye. Originally, he was an ordinary office worker in another world, but during a trip, he inexplicably became a new member of this world.

Since his family in this world had served as soldiers for seven generations, after his father's sacrifice, he was taken in and raised by the state's orphanage for soldiers' children until he turned eighteen and reached adulthood, when the empire issued him a conscription notice. Due to harboring an adult soul within his body from a young age, his mental strength was notably high, leading to his enrollment in a magic academy for magical studies. Our time-traveler began learning magic at the age of five and continued until he turned eighteen, when the orphanage was no longer obligated to provide him with free education. To survive, he responded to the empire's conscription and officially became a border garrison mage.

After becoming a military mage, he began his service at the northernmost border of the empire, near the Misty Forest. He would remain there until completing five years of service or advancing to the rank of a full-fledged mage, after which he could leave the cold northern border and return inland to continue his magical studies or remain in military service. Of course, this was not a concern for the mage at present.

As a time-traveler, the mage initially aspired to achieve great deeds in this different world. However, he soon discovered that commerce, housing, cuisine, and culture here were highly developed, and the knowledge he possessed was insufficient to make a significant impact. Left with no choice, he seized the opportunity to diligently study magic. Although he once fantasized about becoming a deity-level mage upon practicing magic, harsh reality thoroughly crushed his fragile soul. He finally realized how harmful it was to read novels without learning practical skills like steelmaking or machine tool upgrading...

The mage has spent twenty years in this world and has been serving at the border for over two years. His long-term magical studies have allowed him access to much knowledge unknown to commoners. Through thirteen years of learning and research, he gained a general understanding of this world's circumstances. Upon discovering this, he once felt that this world was far better than his previous one—of course, only if his life wasn't threatened could he appreciate those advantages. However, as he began his border service, he gradually came to recognize the differences between this world and his previous one anew.