Chapter 36: Blind Guessing

Chapter 36: Blind Guessing

Ten minutes later, a "simple" blue-black magic array appeared on Niedern’s grimoile.

Within the circle, it was filled with dense lines and complex geometric patterns.

If one looked closely, they would see that every line was simple yet powerful, and each pattern was full of magical charm, giving the magic array a wondrous beauty.

It was just a bit dizzying.

Suye looked at Niedern, wondering if he had been joking earlier.

A Gold Mage spent ten minutes continuously drawing a magic array and called it simple?

"How long does the Gold Magic take?" Suye asked.

"If I’m lucky and don’t fail, two hours."

"What about the Legendary Magic array?"

"A month."

"I finally understand why art is a core subject," Suye said.

"It’s okay if you can’t draw well. My first successful magic array carved on a mana leaf was also crooked. Later, after constant meditation and practice, I improved to this level. Here, let me show you my first magic array, which I still keep."

As Niedern spoke, another magic array appeared in his grimoile.

Suye was stunned. This magic array wasn’t even close to being circular; it looked more like a deformed potato, with lines and patterns resembling a child’s scribbles.

Seeing this, Suye recalled his first attempt at drawing a cube after learning sketching—clumsy, rough, but earnest.

"I see joy in your magic array," Suye said.

"I forget if there was joy, but I remember the feeling of Teacher Thucydides’ spittle on my face," Niedern replied.

"My teacher is better than yours," Suye said seriously.

Niedern’s gaze softened, then he said, "When you see Teacher Thucydides next time, don’t forget to tell him that."

Suye looked up at the sky, saying nothing.

Thucydides was known as an irascible old man, completely different from Plato’s gentle demeanor. Whenever something happened at Plato’s Academy that required force, Thucydides handled it, earning him the nickname “the executioner of Plato’s Academy.”

For mages, it was better to offend Plato than Thucydides.

"Give it a try. You don’t need to finish it all at once; just take your time and get it roughly done," Niedern said.

"Can I make a draft?"

"No."

"Switch back to the previous one," Suye carefully hid his subtle disdain.

Niedern silently waved his fingers, and the perfect magic array reappeared on the page of his grimoile.

Suye placed the grimoile on the magic carpet and began drawing while looking at Niedern’s magic array.

Suye drew slowly but with great care and excitement.

This reminded Suye of when he first learned sketching. Although the cube looked like sticks haphazardly put together, rough and messy, everything was fine if one ignored the details.

Niedern watched quietly.

After half an hour, Suye stopped and exhaled.

Suye’s magic array was far from what Niedern had drawn, but it was much better than Niedern’s first attempt.

"This is below the standard of last year’s top art student," Niedern said.

Suye calmly replied, "If you spent half a summer practicing drawing on the beach, I believe you could reach my level. Besides, I’m good at drawing lines."

Practicing lines in sketching wasn’t easy.

"I can see you have a deep foundation in drawing lines. In some places, you even surpass me," Niedern stared at Suye.

"Shame makes one strive. If you were called the ‘three fools’ every day, you’d work hard too," Suye remained unperturbed.

"Very well, I’ll pretend to believe your nonsense."

"..."

"However, your lines have a flaw. Your start and end strokes are too light. Pay attention to that next time."

"Yes," Suye thought that this basic sketching technique was now a drawback for drawing magic arrays.

"Alright, now you can try carving the magic array onto your Mana Tree," Niedern said.

Suye asked in surprise, "Now?"

"How else will I teach you if I don’t let you taste failure now?" Niedern asked seriously.

Suye was speechless. Although he hadn’t finished the second chapter of Basic Magic Theory, he knew that even Luo Long, last year’s top art student, would need half a month to perfect this magic array.

Just as Suye was about to enter the Magic Tower, he suddenly asked, "Teacher, the Magic Tower looks like a fog to me, blurry and indistinct. How can I carve the magic array without finding the leaves of the Mana Tree?"

"Blind guessing."

Suye paused and asked, "How did you do it the first time?"

"Luck."

Suye fell silent.

"Teacher, may I offer a small suggestion? Can we focus on the lesson?" Suye asked.

"Back then, Teacher Thucydides said the same thing. He said Master Plato taught the same way."

Suye vaguely understood that it wasn't that the mages didn't teach well; the magic system was just too vast. Each person could only specialize in one direction and couldn't cover everything comprehensively.

"A lineage of poor teaching... But how do I record this magic array diagram?"

"Now that you are a magic apprentice, you can consume mana to replicate the magic array diagram and bring it into the Magic Tower, but it will only last for a day at most."

"Then please send me the diagram."

Niedern placed his finger on his page and slid his right hand. The magic array diagram disappeared from his page, but immediately appeared on Suye's page.

"The method is simple. Imagine the power of the Tree of Mana flowing into your mind, then stare at this magic array diagram. Once you feel the mana being consumed, it will be complete. This requires concentration, and you might fail a few times."

Suye nodded, picturing the Tree of Mana in his mind. Before he could proceed further, he felt a warm current appear between his brows, then it vanished.

At the same time, an image flashed through Suye's mind—a magic array diagram spontaneously formed and landed in the Magic Tower.

"Hmm, success." Niedern's tone carried a hint of something more.

"I felt it. Thank you, teacher."

Suye once again sat on the magic carpet and entered the Magic Tower through meditation.

Spiritual Suye gazed at the clear leaves of the Tree of Mana, their veins visible, and fell into deep thought.

"Should I continue to keep a low profile or make a grand entrance?"

Countless images flashed through Suye's mind.

"All out! I have no time to waste! Besides, compared to those geniuses, compared to Aristotle and the others, I am just ordinary." Suye's eyes sparkled with boundless light, brilliant like a galaxy.

While watching the floating magic array diagram on his left, Suye used his mind to slowly draw on the leaves of the Tree of Mana.

To his surprise, in the spiritual realm, his painting skills had improved tenfold. In terms of technique alone, he was no less skilled than Niedern.

Suye did not become arrogant because of this; instead, he suppressed his excitement and focused intently on his work.

Twenty minutes later, a magic array diagram appeared on the leaf of the Tree of Mana.

Though this magic array diagram still had imperfections, it far surpassed Suye's first attempt and even reached eighty percent of Niedern's level.

Looking at the magic array diagram on the leaf, Suye felt immense joy: "Thanks to my years of diligent meditation on Blue Star, I can now see the Magic Tower so clearly."

Suye left the Magic Tower, wearing a radiant smile.

"Teacher, I've finished drawing."