Simon had been experiencing frequent auditory hallucinations lately, as if a music player was constantly looping simple tunes in his mind.
Of course, this shouldn't be happening.
At his current state of mind, even without restraining his wild thoughts, there shouldn't be any significant distractions.
He suspected it was the sound of arcane energy, but he had personally heard its tune before—chaotic, deep, reminiscent of waist-deep black lake water.
The tunes manifested as piano, guitar, bass, and strings, sometimes as solos, sometimes as chords, and were quite acceptable as music.
Simon quickly realized that he had only heard a part of the tune.
What he truly heard was the overlap of a part of the tune with a part of his own thoughts.
So, who was the performer?
He didn't know; perhaps it was also a part of himself.
Simon would slowly adapt to his increasingly abnormal self.
Continuing to flip through the two remaining spellbooks, there was a reason why these books were so expensive: chanting spells while looking at them could enhance the resonance experience, facilitate learning, and sometimes even serve as a casting tool. However, they would lose their effectiveness after a few uses. If a beginner could independently learn magic without the aid of a spellbook, they must be truly gifted.
One book was about Barrier Spell, which shaped arcane energy into a transparent, flowing barrier to block magical damage, continuously consuming arcane energy during casting. Simon couldn't do it; his arcane energy nexus was just for show and simply couldn't reach the required output. Moreover, this spell didn't really demand much resonance; it mainly tested the shaping and sustained output of arcane energy, which was essentially a test of mental power.
Simon helplessly turned to Healing Spell and found a great deal of insight.
Arcane energy transformed into a soothing golden restorative magic, bathing his entire body. The Wolf Pack gathered around, wanting to receive some nourishment, but due to the spell's structure, it seemed only the caster could be healed. Simon simply stopped shaping it, instead trying his best to convert the raw arcane energy into healing light, spreading it over a large area. Not only did the Wolf Pack howl in comfort, but even the plants in the cracks of the flagstones sprouted.
This gave Simon a glimmer of hope.
A hope for integrating arcane energy and inner qi.
Meridians exist in every living creature, as pathways for qi circulation; without the operation of qi, there would be no vitality. However, they are not actual anatomical internal conduits, but rather a conceptual product leaning more towards metaphysics.
Simon also discovered the meridians of the Troll's body, which were channels for the spirit's interference with the flesh, distinct from the nervous system and blood vessels.
Although both could be called meridians, there were significant differences within the Taiwu World.
In the former qi-based world, the physical body's expression was richer than the spiritual, while in this current arcane energy world, the opposite was true.
Differences in the nature of material energy also led to distinctions in the attributes and forms of meridians. In the Taiwu World, meridians were more closely linked to bloodlines, while in the ancient world, they were more closely linked to the nervous system, which also depended on how the differing nature of the energy permeating heaven and earth influenced the evolution of living organisms.
It could even be said that qi and arcane energy are the same thing, merely projected at different angles in the present world, causing variations, much like a cube's shadow can be a rectangle or a quadrilateral.
Simon's desire to unify the two naturally stemmed from his realization of some essential connection between arcane energy and inner strength, leading to such a fantastic idea.
Restorative magic is a form of life force manipulation. Although the magic system introduction literature provided by Jonas rather dismisses this school, not even recognizing it as a major one, it is indeed a sufficiently profound direction for research.
Golden life arcane energy could represent the integration of essence and qi, and combined with mental focus, it might be possible to transform it into inner strength.
Simon, of course, immediately tried it. He permeated the light cluster formed by the life arcane energy with his mental power. When his thoughts were on the surface of the light cluster, he felt a sense of compression, then as he delved deeper, it instantly became empty, as if in the air.
It failed.
Was the theory wrong?
Simon updated the spell notes entry in his quest log.
[Spell Experiment]
Magic-version Inner Strength Creation Project.
Description: I miss the days of being a martial arts master. I must try to cultivate inner strength again. The extraordinary properties of Healing Spell might be a breakthrough.
Step One: Combine mental power with life arcane energy (Failed)
Step Two: Begin to summarize the reasons for failure
Firstly, the transformation of arcane energy itself involves mental power, so when casting Healing Spell, it already achieves the so-called state of spirit, qi, and essence unity…
The Troll stared at the light orb before him, shimmering and dazzling, like a small sun. This was the product of arcane energy resonance. If it were to be considered a martial artist's cultivation, it was actually the entire world performing the technique.
Leveraging the world's great power with a single-minded obsession, the potential of magic is simply unfathomable.
Almost every mage has their own research topic, even apprentices often focus on cultivating a spirit of inquiry. Simon decided to start his own project, thoroughly researching the effects of life arcane energy on the physical body.
He wanted not only inner strength, but also truth!
…
It was the 4th Era 183, First Seed, the third month of the year. Agricultural activities had gradually begun in the southern provinces of Skyrim, while the north remained freezing enough to scare ghosts.
Simon's auditory hallucinations grew more severe, and like those with mental illness, he sometimes couldn't distinguish whether what he heard was a distraction or reality.
His research into life arcane energy was progressing well; he could now not only replenish the life force of living beings but also strip away their vitality.
However, his research into arcana-modified inner strength remained at a standstill.
He had just met Jonas yesterday, who had prepared many spellbooks for Simon. He bought some from the three destruction schools—fire, frost, and lightning—as well as spells from the conjuration, alteration, restoration, and illusion schools. In addition, there was knowledge related to alchemy and enchanting.
Although the levels weren't high, the variety was comprehensive.
The conjuration school included Summon Daedric Weapon, Summon Fire Elemental, Summon Soul Trap, and even Raise Zombie.
The alteration school included Oakflesh and Waterbreathing.
The restoration school was disappointing, merely a variation of the Healing Spell's structure, allowing him to cast healing magic on others, with no real novelty.
The illusion spells—Fury, Calm, and Muffle—were somewhat useful.
Alchemy was mainly about recipes and practice, with no real difficulty.
The surprise came with the enchanting knowledge.
Solidifying magic onto items in the form of runes, powered by souls, revealed the essence of magic to some extent and opened up a whole new world.
All actions and information can cause arcane energy resonance—text, sound, gestures, and so on. Enchanting is a creative process, and its products are not just magical items, but an entire system of spells.
Perhaps the key to unifying inner strength and arcane energy lies in enchanting.
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 40 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[patreon.com/Greyhounds]
Thank you so much for your support!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"