Chapter 96: An Introduction to Secret Arts (Please Recommend, Please Bookmark)

Did Nether’s spellcasters go into trade?

They did, but very few of them—only the clumsy among spellcasters, or wild mages, would stoop to it.

You could hire an agent, but you could not do it yourself.

It was considered a way of lowering one’s own worth, and the spellcasting community would look down on it.

Reiman, after all, was a student of Gilles Academy. No matter how destitute he became, he could walk into almost any public office in Nether with ease, or even find some idle post; he could spend his days researching magic and live quite comfortably.

Yet Reiman had chosen to become Borne’s agent, and that of course had something to do with Count Iolem.

On the other hand, it was also because of a promise.

Borne had promised to help him become an arcanist.

There were so many spellcasters in the academy, yet in the end fewer than one in a hundred truly became arcanists.

Outsiders might not understand the difference between a mage and an arcanist, but everyone at the academy learned it eventually. It became especially clear in the annual ranking contests, where the top positions were forever held by arcanists.

A mage versus an arcanist.

One was a spellcaster bound by limited spell slots; the other was an arcanist with nearly boundless firepower. How was that even a fight?

“The Golden Codex, The Treatise on the Arcane, consists of thirty volumes. Two of them have already been lost. Even I have only read nine. This magical tome records, almost in full, the knowledge I gleaned from those nine scrolls, as well as my own insight into spellcraft.”

Borne patted Reiman on the shoulder and said, “It may not be as miraculous as the original scrolls, which could let you grasp your own arcane power on the spot, but it makes up for that in sheer quantity, and it has no side effects. With your talent, once you finish reading it, you should have no trouble comprehending your own path to the arcane. However...”

He paused, then looked at Reiman with great seriousness.

“An arcanist who ascends through Nether scrolls is still a useless arcanist. A cantrip or a first-circle arcane is basically worthless. Remember this: try to understand the spell structure itself, then innovate and advance it again.”

“Yes! I understand!”

Reiman nodded hard.

The Golden Codex, The Treatise on the Arcane.

It recorded the basic principles of spellcasting, including cantrips, spell formation, and a great deal of magical theory. Together, these formed the three major schools of Nether’s current magical thought: Creation, Mind, and Transmutation. The establishment of these three schools later laid the foundation for the eight great schools of magic.

“As for you...”

Borne turned to look at the ranger, who was full of expectation, and after scanning him from head to toe, asked, “How many spells do you know? What circles are they?”

“Huh?”

Habbwick was stunned. “Aren’t you an alchemy master? What does that have to do with spells?”

Borne’s lips curved slightly as he said dismissively, “Monster alchemy? I’d teach it if I could. The question is, would you dare to learn it?”

“Isn’t it just making magical items? That’s great... this...”

The ranger felt something increasingly off as he spoke. Only then did he remember that alchemy for magical items cost life force. Though he was still in his prime, he might not even finish a single magical item before being completely drained dry.

At that thought, the ranger hurriedly shook his head. “Forget it, forget it. I’d rather learn how to make spell potions!”

Borne sighed with some regret. “What a shame. With your talent, you should have been able to craft a powerful magical item. Since you don’t want that, then study with Blake and Lilith.”

“Mm. Then let’s start with the fundamentals of magic.”

At Borne’s gaze, the ranger instantly became much more obedient.

Then Borne took out three more books. At a glance, it was obvious he had prepared them in advance.

“Remember, these books are not to be shown to anyone outside this room.”

“Yes, understood!”

Everyone answered at once.

“All right. Now that you have your books, we’ll begin the first required course for becoming a spellcaster.”

With that, Borne turned and walked straight out.

What?

They had spent the last few days practicing potion-making, and no one had expected the transition to happen so quickly. They were going to start studying the basics of magic right away.

After Borne left, Reiman found a place to sit and began reading the magical texts in earnest.

“What is this? Didn’t we come here to study magical theory? Why did he just leave?”

Only Blake, Lilith, and Habbwick were left standing there in utter confusion.

In the end, Lilith quietly came over and asked Reiman, “Mister Reiman, what is the first required course?”

Reiman looked up at her, patted her head, and softly said two words.

Self-study.

Boom...

In an instant, the three of them felt something in their hearts collapse.

How could that be?

Just as Habbwick was about to voice his objection, Reiman’s voice sounded again.

“Every year, when new students enter Gilles Academy, their very first lesson is self-study. It is meant to train the students to acquire knowledge through their own effort.”

“You think it’s like alchemy, where you first learn a pile of theory and then do the practical work?”

“Alchemy follows fixed procedures. As long as you have the proper methods, you can complete the process. Magic is not like that. Even if a spell is built and formed differently in each person, even if the instructor gives you the incantation, the gestures, and even the method they themselves used to construct it, you still may not be able to cast it. Spellcasters must conduct their own spell experiments and try to simulate the construction themselves. That requires independent thinking, and the purpose of self-study is to teach you that independence first.”

After saying this, he no longer paid the three of them any mind and buried himself in his reading.

Blake and Lilith only half understood, but Habbwick got it. He slowly explained it to the two children, and with the ranger’s explanation, they finally understood.

Meanwhile, Borne, who had stood outside the door for a long time, smiled and headed toward the Arcane Garden.

Even after several days of intense training, Borne did not look weary. On the contrary, he seemed more and more full of energy.

That was because after his martial monk path broke through to the intermediate stage, his physique had become even stronger, and his recovery was astonishing.

Especially after repelling the creatures from the Shadow Netherworld, his breathing technique had undergone a mysterious change, and the “qi” within Borne’s body had altered in kind.

If before it had truly been only a current of “qi,” then now that current seemed almost liquid. As the breathing technique flowed, it moved slowly through the “veins” in his body.

Meridians? Channels?

If the earlier breathing method had used a special rhythm of breathing to “train” the internal organs in an unconventional way, then the current transformation of the technique had become almost entirely a form of internal cultivation.

Like the inner force in a novel, it could not only travel through the body’s “channels,” but also heal and restore injuries.

Borne even tried coating his skin with that “qi.” So long as it had not yet been exhausted, ordinary sword strikes could no longer leave a mark.

This was the drawback of having no inheritance at all: there was not even a single reference point. Fortunately, Borne had still stumbled his way forward, and things were gradually improving.

And the newly advanced breathing technique could even restore his spirit and magic power, though not as quickly as meditation. Even so, that was more than enough for Borne, since it saved him the time spent meditating altogether.

So long as he was not conducting a large-scale magical experiment, Borne could even go a full month without sleep and still remain brimming with energy.

Truly terrifying.

By day, he instructed Reiman and the others; by night, he revised and repaired the runes they had previously engraved.

Borne glanced at their progress and estimated that tonight would be enough to finish the job. By tomorrow morning, once he brought over the magical storage device from the mage tower, the Arcane Garden would finally be ready to enter the production stage.