Chapter 8: Approaching

After reviewing the spell’s incantation and hand seals once more, Shaoke packed his belongings, donned his cloak, grasped his staff, and left his hut as usual. He ventured deeper into the forest for roughly a magic hour, arriving at the spot where he had long practiced his spells. After setting up an Alert Ward, he began preparing for spell practice.

According to Shaoke’s understanding, most mages chose to repeatedly practice a handful of low-level spells they intended to use frequently—aiming to cast them as swiftly and powerfully as possible in future combat. Currently, Shaoke had selected the first-level spell *Fireball*—the most potent, widely used, and fastest-casting spell among first-level spells—as his primary spell. It was arguably the most commonly employed first-level spell, and even Archmages still deployed it in certain combat scenarios.

For practicing his other spells, Shaoke adopted the approach favored by only a small minority: he practiced *all* the spells he knew, deliberately avoiding over-specialization in any single one, rotating through them systematically during each session.

He had adopted this method after consulting numerous mentors at the academy and heeding their advice. Most mentors told him: “Each spell places different demands on the caster—some require intricate meditation techniques, others emphasize mental control, while still others depend on rapid, precise hand gestures—or combinations thereof. Moreover, if you memorize many low-level spells yet rarely cast them, there remains a risk that, under pressure, your casting speed may falter with potentially dire consequences. Practicing a broad range of spells comprehensively strengthens a mage’s overall casting proficiency. This differs from those young mages who focus narrowly on just a few spells. Progress may be slower, but there are no serious drawbacks—and it may even facilitate advancement to the Mage rank!” Trusting their experience and deep familiarity with common pitfalls at lower ranks, Shaoke followed their guidance, determined to help the next generation of mages avoid such errors.

After only a few casts, Shaoke quickly exhausted his limited mental energy and mana. At present, he could cast spells only a handful of times per session; on a good day, he managed two *Fireballs* and about ten zero-level spells. This would improve significantly upon attaining the Mage rank, when both mental energy and mana typically increased two- to fourfold—though the exact increase varied depending on individual aptitude and comprehension, with differences generally minor.

Whenever meditation was required, Shaoke spread a prepared animal hide over a tree stump and sat upon it. Since his mental energy was stronger and purer than his mana, a small reserve remained even after mana depletion. As mental energy could somewhat accelerate mana recovery, his mana replenished relatively quickly—usually fully restored within half a magic hour, even during shallow meditation. Once his mana recovered, another round of spell practice commenced, undeterred by the cold.

Such spellcasting practice was profoundly monotonous. Shaoke recalled his earliest days learning zero-level spells: other mages trained for over half a day at a stretch, yet he—perhaps due to innate laziness—could endure the tedious, repetitive drills for only brief intervals. However, after repeated admonishments from mentors and witnessing peers’ diligence, he grew too embarrassed to fall behind or appear inferior. Initially, he dragged his feet during mental and mana recovery, but gradually, seeing others’ clear progress, he refused to lag and pushed himself forward with the iron will forged across two lifetimes. Eventually, he grew accustomed to it, practicing most of the day without deviation—except during missions, when repetitive spell practice was suspended.

By now, many mages had reduced their practice time for various reasons; fewer than half persisted. Occasionally, Shaoke wondered, “How did I stick with it long enough to make it habitual? Perhaps it’s envy—envy of those legendary mages who, with a single gesture, command legions of admirers. Yes—envy!”

Each time his mana and mental energy were depleted, Shaoke felt an overwhelming urge to collapse and sleep deeply. Yet glancing at the perpetually snow-covered ground, he dismissed the idea—he wouldn’t melt even a patch for planting snow grapes. Mentors had explained this exhaustion stemmed primarily from excessive mental strain during casting, which ordinary meditation couldn’t restore; only deep meditation sufficed. Thus, upon returning each time, he prioritized restoring his mental state before attending to anything else. Failure to recover promptly risked further weakening mages’ already fragile constitutions. For the sake of someday marrying a beautiful mage, Shaoke resolved there would be no lapses in this regard.

Time flowed quietly through the mages’ busy yet fulfilling lives. Our Shaoke—Mage Xueye—spent the month immersed in meditation, spellcasting, transcription, note-taking, and reading. During this period, he set aside two days to visit Mage Feiyi and Mage Loki, seeking their insights and experiences from advancing to the Mage rank, thereby preparing for his own path ahead.

Meanwhile, Shaoke continued to devote half a magic hour daily—carved from his tightly packed schedule—to tempering the zero-level magic array mentioned earlier. Since newly drawn magic diagrams applied to enchanted materials yielded only about half their normal spell effect, predecessors discovered that tempering through various methods could restore full efficacy. This involved continuously tracing the spell structure onto the diagram using mana and mental energy until the entire structure crystallized upon the paper. To enhance its power beyond baseline, one had to persist in tracing the structure until the crystallization fully transformed both the carrier paper and the inscribed magical script. The degree of enhancement depended chiefly on the carrier material, the post-drawing potion, the ink, and other auxiliary components. The optimal enhancement doubled the spell’s power—but no greater amplification had ever been achieved, underscoring its difficulty. Most mages considered success complete once the array reached standard effectiveness after embedding; however, superior materials were preferred whenever available.

Tempering time for a magic array depended primarily on the complexity of the spell structure and the quality of materials used. Through his reading, Shaoke learned that simpler structures required shorter tempering periods, while more complex ones demanded longer durations.

The diagram Shaoke created this time employed ordinary materials—the sole valuable component being the bottle of “lamb blood” used for drawing the array. Moreover, Shaoke devoted only half a magic hour daily to tempering, so the array had not yet fully succeeded. Crystallization, however, had begun to appear, suggesting completion in over a month. Shaoke had no intention of pursuing further power enhancement, as it would waste time and—given the base materials—yield negligible improvement. Due to production timelines, this diagram would not be ready for embedding into his cloak before the patrol mission scheduled for a month hence, but Shaoke remained unconcerned, as no major dangers were anticipated.

In the following days, Shaoke maintained his usual routine. Aside from occasional trips to town for daily necessities, he spent the rest of his time immersed in magical study within his own space. Shaoke plunged deeply into the ocean of magic; the more he learned, the more he marveled at its wonder and grandeur—so much so that he forgot he was still a serving mage, that companions would soon depart this place, and likely his two companions, too, were equally absorbed in magic, forgetting him entirely.

One day, just as dawn broke while reviewing magical incantations, Shaoke noticed the Alert Ward around his hut had been triggered. He immediately set down his spellbook, seized his staff, and slipped behind the door to listen quietly. Moments later, his two mage companions arrived at his dwelling—accompanied by the two newly arrived mages. After exchanging greetings, Shaoke, as host, invited all four mages into his hut. With limited space and no extra chairs for the unexpected guests, everyone sat cross-legged on Shaoke’s bed, gathering around the oak table to begin their conversation. Shaoke offered to pour everyone a cup of red wine, but Mage Feiyi politely declined and apologized.

“Mage Xueye, Loki and I will soon depart the border. I hope we meet again in the future. My two juniors here will rely on your guidance. Mage Yija is somewhat shy—I hope you won’t mind too much,” Mage Feiyi said, his voice tinged with barely contained joy and a hint of concern. “They’ve only just left the academy and still have much to learn. Over these past two months, Loki and I haven’t taken them deep into the forest—only taught them basic survival skills here. There may be gaps in their knowledge, so Mage Xueye, please guide them gradually.” Mage Loki nodded in agreement beside him.