Chapter 115: The Tampered Nature
"The cap on magic has been locked…"
The Druid's answer hit Arthur hard, leaving him momentarily reeling.
Dude, who would have thought? This perfectly fine sword-and-sorcery world suddenly turned into a Dark Forest scenario!
He tried to find a flaw in the bleak picture Mousesack had painted: "But how do you know the difference in these magical particles is artificial? Couldn't the magical particles of this world naturally have different origins?"
Mousesack raised his right hand, answering Arthur's question with action: "Can you sense this cluster of magical particles in my palm?"
To the naked eye, there was nothing in the Druid's palm. But if probed with mental energy, one would discover an egg-sized cluster of dense light points. Unlike the water vein and Earth magical particles, these particles showed no reaction to the touch of Arthur's mental force, remaining quietly suspended there.
"These magical particles seem unresponsive to mental energy…"
Arthur tried several times, but the particles remained inert. Just as he was about to give up, he noticed the particles at the very edge seemed slightly 'loose.'
Is it because the edge particles can be reached by more mental force? If I increase the concentration of my mental force, can I increase my influence on these particles?
With this conjecture, Arthur focused his mental energy to the extreme and reached out again.
"Is this what you mean by fundamental magical particles? Why are they so difficult to use!"
Countless fine beads of sweat appeared on Arthur's forehead. He felt these magical particles were behaving exactly like his childhood self when forced by his parents to wake up early for exercise. No matter how much you urged or pushed, they just shuffled around stubbornly, refusing to move. If extraction was this difficult, the complexity of casting spells with them was something he dared not even contemplate.
"Ho ho ho ho! Initial magical particles are not extracted like that! You must first use solidified mental force to scatter them, and then disperse and envelop them before extraction." Mousesack laughed like a well-trained constable, tears practically welling up in his eyes: "What's the difference between your approach—relying on sheer mental bulk to tug and pull at the magical particles—and attempting to uproot a great tree whole from the soil?"
As a faint throbbing sensation emanated from his brow, Arthur pushed his own mental power to the limit. The sphere of Illumination Spell floating in the air went out with a soft sizzle. Under the firelight, a translucent tendril could vaguely be seen extending from Arthur's brow, completely enveloping the Druid's palm.
This time, the magical particles finally moved. Like cars in rush hour traffic, they reluctantly wiggled their way into Arthur's body.
Mousesack stopped laughing. Instead, the look in his eyes when he regarded Arthur was one of amazement. Arthur's previous approach might have been described as inefficient, yet the fact that such an inefficient method still worked meant: Just how strong is this kid's mental intensity?!
Arthur didn't notice the Druid's stare. Once the raw magical particles were dragged into his body, they quickly changed from their clustered state. Like white sugar dissolved in hot water, they rapidly dispersed and integrated into every corner of his body.
"More!" As the last cluster of magical particles dissolved, Arthur slowly opened his eyes, asking the Druid for more, clearly wanting more.
"Do you think this stuff is easy to refine?!" The Druid irritably batted Arthur's hand away with his staff: "To refine just that one cluster of primal magic, I need to meditate for an entire night!"
"Then tell me the method. I'll do it myself!"
Arthur smacked his lips. The process of the primal magical particles integrating into his body felt like a soul-level massage. Not only were all his fatigue and minor hidden injuries healed, but even his bodily functions seemed enhanced! Every muscle fiber, every blood vessel, even every cell felt as though it had just indulged in a feast, and now yelled hungrily at him, "More! I want more!"
"Take it!" Mousesack pulled something from his pouch and tossed it into Arthur's lap—a small booklet made of birch bark. It contained detailed instructions on how to use mental energy to break the seals on ambient magical particles during meditation.
This method required a high degree of mental focus, which was why the old Druid claimed it took meditating an entire night just to extract one egg-sized cluster.
Mousesack's face took on a look of recollection: "Initially, I only managed to unseal the Earth magic. It wasn't until a few years ago, when my affinity for nature grew higher, that I finally mastered the method to unseal the magic of the other three elements."
"It was then that I discovered that the magic, whether from water veins, Earth, Air, or Fire, was actually the same type of magical particle, only with an added layer of sealing. Moreover, even within the same type of magic, the method of sealing differs by region. Without making adjustments, casting a spell will result in slight deviations."
"Your magical attainment is truly astonishing. No wonder my mentor said Druids are the most profound spellcasters in the world." Koglgrim couldn't help but praise him.
Zoltan scratched his bald head and asked: "But I still don't understand. What does this have to do with whether Nature is natural?"
Mousesack pointed at Arthur: "Now, try to cast the Illumination Spell you used before, but with the primal magical particles."
"I can't. They're gone; they've melted into my body…" Arthur spread his hands. He couldn't exactly un-eat what he had consumed. Suddenly, he understood:
The primal magical particles were not only difficult to extract, but unless contained, they would spontaneously integrate into the caster's body. In contrast, the four sealed types of magical particles had a reduced affinity for the caster's physical body and had specific, unique properties added to them, making them easier to utilize.
This setup lowered the barrier for ordinary casters to practice magic, but simultaneously shackled true geniuses. If they wanted to study the properties of the primal magical particles, they had to laboriously unseal them, and then painstakingly use mental force to contain them just to take a small step forward.
"So, this is the truth behind the Conjunction of the Spheres... But who on earth could have commanded such a grand feat—sealing the magical particles of the entire world?" Arthur murmured to himself.
Deep wrinkles creased the Druid's face: "I have spent decades on the path to finding the answer, and perhaps I won't find it before the day I die."
"Young man, your affinity for nature is so high that you shouldn't be a bad person. That is why I shared the results of my many years of research with you. I hope that you…"
Arthur quickly interjected: "If I ever discover the answer, I will certainly tell you!"
Mousesack nodded with relief: "You don't necessarily have to tell me. When that day comes, simply go to any Druid stone circle and tell the first Druid you meet the truth, and I will know shortly thereafter. You see, this is the ultimate answer that all Druids are seeking."