Chapter 3: Understanding

"Only when one truly possesses mana, understands it, and wields it does one realize its power." "The growth of spirit, even infinite growth, cannot make the structure of spells simpler or clearer. Purity and refinement are your true destination."

According to imperial regulations, the small town where Shaoke was stationed had a company-sized military unit, divided into three squads of one hundred soldiers each. Additionally, three mages, six alchemists, and two blacksmiths were assigned to support the border defense mission.

Shaoke's primary duty here was to take turns patrolling with one of the squads. Each patrol included one mage and two alchemists, while the blacksmiths remained in the town to repair weapons as their main task. The patrol's objective was to head north, pass the barbarian tribes about a hundred li away, and continue further north to survey the forest terrain, the general distribution of magical beasts, and the locations of mineral deposits. However, over time, their focus had shifted mainly to observing the distribution of magical beasts and hunting them as much as possible to minimize the risk of beast hordes caused by overpopulation. Nowadays, the patrols rarely ventured that far. Laziness was a common phenomenon everywhere.

Each patrol took the squad over a month, sometimes even two months. Upon their return, another squad would set out to continue the mission. There were thousands of such small towns along the border of the Misty Forest. Combined with the efforts of mercenaries hunting beasts, the region generally maintained a degree of stability. For millennia, there had been no large-scale attacks by magical beasts from the Misty Forest on human settlements.

For Mage Xueye, each patrol was always an unwelcome task, as it consumed most of the time he could have spent on magical studies. However, upon returning, there was always loot to distribute: numerous magic cores, precious medicinal herbs, a small number of crystals, valuable magical materials, high-quality furs, and a few ores... During the distribution, mages typically had priority in selecting the spoils. The best magic cores and magical materials were always chosen by the mages first. Then, the medicinal herbs were allocated to the two alchemists. The remaining items were distributed among the soldiers. Of course, the blacksmiths' share of the ores was untouchable; even the mages had to purchase them with money if needed.

The result of such distribution was that the soldiers ended up with things that weren't very good. To prevent their morale from deteriorating, the mages and alchemists would often take some coins from their own purses to treat the soldiers to a round of ale at the tavern.

Of course, even without such compensation, nothing major would happen, as the soldiers relied on the care of the mages and alchemists. After all, no one wanted their treatment delayed by an alchemist after getting injured. Moreover, in their eyes, it was an honor for the noble and mysterious mages to give them some money. However, these customs had been passed down through generations, and Shaoke had no intention of breaking them.

Years of magical study had made the already taciturn mage even more reticent. Unless discussing spell-related issues, Shaoke never initiated conversations with his companions. After arriving in this small town, he became even more withdrawn. Using his first month's salary, he purchased an ordinary hooded cloak from the merchants and wore it all day, only removing the hood when seeking magical knowledge from the other two mages.

The townsfolk consistently referred to him behind his back as the "Shadow Mage," but his two mage companions always addressed him with the formal etiquette used among mages, calling him Mage Xueye. This was not only because mages were a traditionally rigid profession, but also because they considered themselves noble and looked down upon those who lacked proper manners. Fortunately, Shaoke had not yet become overly rigid himself.

Shaoke never neglected his patrol duties. Unlike the mages who had arrived over two years earlier and spent most of their time in their residence-laboratory huts, conducting various experiments and research, Shaoke only engaged in studies related to spells, materials, and magical structures after completing his patrols. However, most of his time was devoted to foundational work such as meditation, spell practice, and studying texts.

This was because Shaoke always felt that this world was incredibly unsafe: hordes of magical beasts, wars involving millions from various nations, conflicts between races... each more brutal than the last. He had no desire to be casually eliminated if a war broke out or if he encountered a powerful magical beast. After all, since arriving in this world, he hadn't even had the chance to properly enjoy life here!

Two years of border service, like most mages, allowed Shaoke to advance from a Novice Mage to the rank of Primary Mage around the age of twenty. He successfully cast the benchmark first-tier spell, "Fireball." However, this didn't mean Shaoke was as ordinary as most in terms of talent. After all, he came from a world filled with various fantasy novels. Having read so many stories and, after arriving in this world, combining his academy studies with his own insights, he understood the fundamental requirements for spellcasters earlier than others. Namely: "Only when one truly possesses mana, understands it, and wields it does one realize its power." and "The growth of spirit, even infinite growth, cannot make the structure of spells simpler or clearer. Purity and refinement are your true destination."

Most mages only truly comprehend this when they reach the rank of Advanced Mage. When casting high-tier spells, if both spirit and mana are pure and sufficient, the spell can be cast relatively easily. However, those with impure spirit will expend an additional significant portion of spirit, and those with impure mana will consume more mana.

Since mages know that in combat, every extra bit of spirit or mana adds a layer of security to their victory, most begin to refine and purify their previously accumulated spirit and mana after reaching the Advanced Mage level. However, refining one's spirit and mana at this stage is very difficult. It not only consumes the limited time mages have but also severely drains their mental energy. Restoring mental energy isn't as simple as meditation; it requires genuine sleep. Therefore, these mages often spend decades without achieving significant purity in their spirit or mana. In the end, only a few become spellcasters at the Great Mage level.

Although mage instructors tirelessly and repeatedly admonish young spellcasters to constantly purify their spirit and mana from the very beginning of their magical studies—to increase their chances of becoming a Great Mage later and avoid being overwhelmed by vast but impure spirit and mana at the Advanced Mage level—young mages, when casting spells, either fail to notice or haven't yet experienced the additional costs caused by impure spirit and mana. Thus, they unconsciously ignore their instructors' teachings, focusing solely on increasing their spirit or mana to advance to higher ranks as quickly as possible.

A powerful spellcaster requires not only strong and pure spirit and mana but also proficiency in various languages. Different languages have varying effects when casting different spells: some can enhance power, while others may reduce it. Many languages neither increase nor decrease power, resulting in average effects. Of course, the measure of power is based on the standard magical language used for spellcasting.

For example, when using Abyssal to cast curse-type spells, the power increases by one-fifth. However, using Elvish for curse-type spells reduces the effect to about three-fifths of the original.

This leads mages to generally prioritize languages that can enhance the spell they intend to cast. Then, they might choose obscure languages that don't reduce the original spell's power, to confuse their enemies and prevent them from effectively defending against the unknown magic.

As a qualified mage, one must not only be able to read, speak, and chant in multiple languages but also understand various gestures used during spellcasting to accelerate the formation and stabilize the structure of magic.

Similarly, knowledge of various materials, geographical environments, and history is essential for mages. It can be said that mages study more broadly than any other profession. After all, a linguist wouldn't bother memorizing and reciting those convoluted incantations.

Although Shaoke tried his best to learn, he still lagged significantly behind his two companions. He needed to continue studying and researching diligently to advance quickly and become a true spellcaster: a Mage-level mage. Of course, this required Shaoke's persistent efforts. As for whether he could one day become an Archmage, even a primary one, that was not something Shaoke could consider now. It was too distant and unrealistic for him. In this chaotic continent, no matter how noble a mage's status, there was no guarantee against being killed by a magical beast or one's own kind.

Shaoke's shallow meditation ended quickly, mainly because he had only cast two first-tier spells today: "Fireball" and "Elemental Guard." With his careful control, he consumed slightly less mana and spirit than usual. Although, for a Primary Mage, the saved spirit and mana weren't enough to cast even the least costly Zero-level Spell, this result still excited Shaoke. His thought was: save a little today, save a little tomorrow, and gradually, he could save up enough for an extra Zero-level Spell slot. Who knows? That saved Zero-level Spell might one day save his life! Alas, the poor mage!