'What a powerful Magic Enhancement Technique.'
[Magic Tide (Level: 30) — Passive, permanently active. The tide converts more Elements into Magic Power, with a greatly increased conversion ratio. Ebb and flow occur simultaneously, and the intersection of tides restores additional lost Magic Power.]
Lu Cang now had a rough understanding of the effect of his "Divine Level Skill Evolution."
Simply put, every time he used a Skill, its Skill Proficiency would increase once.
Moreover...
It was a ten-thousand-fold increase.
Although he didn't know what this ten-thousand-fold increase was in relation to.
But from what Lu Cang could tell, each use of a Skill raised its Skill Proficiency by nearly one full Level.
However, for [Magic Tide] to go from Level 30 to Level 31, the number of uses required changed from one to two.
But after reaching Level 31, another use sent it jumping straight to Level 33.
'It seems the Experience Points required for a single Upgrade are still far below 10,000 Skill Proficiency points.'
Lu Cang couldn't see the specific Experience Points needed for each Skill Proficiency Level; he could only make a rough estimate based on the Speed of the Upgrades.
Lu Cang also had a general idea of the benefits of increasing a Skill's Proficiency Level.
Roughly every 5 to 10 Skill Proficiency Levels, the Skill would either gain a new, useful Effect or an existing Effect would undergo a qualitative leap.
In the span of just a few dozen breaths, the Effect of Magic Tide had already become astonishingly powerful.
As for Lu Cang's total Magic Power, it had already increased to more than three times its original amount.
'This Magic Enhancement Technique... it raises my Magic Power really fast.'
Moreover, Lu Cang hadn't felt the rate of increase slow down at all as his Magic Power grew.
In fact... he faintly felt it was getting even faster.
A single ebb and flow of the tide brought an increase of nearly 9% to his total Magic Power.
This 9% wasn't relative to his initial total, either.
It was 9% of his *current* total.
As his total Magic Power increased, the rising tide could come into contact with more external Elements.
As a result, the ebbing tide brought back even more Magic Power.
The amount of Magic Power that regenerated on its own also grew in proportion to his total.
"Master, this Magic Tide... it's really amazing."
Iz smiled proudly. "Of course. It's a work I'm quite proud of."
"It's a pity so few people can learn it."
Lu Cang nodded and continued flipping through the book.
He discovered that the next several pages were mostly dedicated to explaining the principles behind Magic Tide. They detailed the sensations one should feel, the step-by-step implementation, and how to use supporting Rituals and other Magic to perceive its formation.
Hmm...
'So it's not quite "not a single wasted word," huh?'
However, the text didn't feel tedious. Izparut had clearly written it to explain profound concepts in simple terms.
'Looks like he really is a genius at teaching.'
Moreover, as he read, Lu Cang made another discovery.
He found that just by reading about its principles, his [Magic Tide] was gaining additional Skill Proficiency.
After reading these few pages, he had gained about 200,000 Skill Proficiency.
'If I calculate it without the ten-thousand-fold multiplier, that would be 20 Skill Proficiency points, right?'
'Just reading the book is equivalent to practicing it 20 times?'
'Skill Proficiency... it really is *proficiency*.'
Lu Cang gained a new understanding of Skill Proficiency. It seemed it didn't just represent using the Skill.
Studying and understanding it were also part of the process.
'Theoretically, then, anything that increases the proficiency of a Skill should be affected by [Divine Level Skill Evolution] and receive the ten-thousand-fold boost.'
He flipped forward about eighty pages.
The theory section for [Magic Tide] finally came to an end.
"That's a lot."
'Eighty pages for a single Enhancement Technique, and it's all substance, no fluff.'
'No wonder this book is so thick.'
Just as Lu Cang excitedly flipped to the next page, eager to see what new Magic was recorded there, he saw...
[Magic Tide - Simplified Version]
[If attempting to use the preceding theory yields no results and you are unable to learn Magic Tide, you may attempt this simplified version.]
Uh...
'Is it really that difficult?'
'Didn't the first three sentences explain how to do it?'
Iz noticed Lu Cang's subtle expression from the side.
He felt that little expression held a hidden meaning and couldn't help but sigh internally.
He was actually standing there with the intention of answering any questions Lu Cang might have.
With his help, the success rate of practicing Magic Tide could be increased significantly.
At the very least, the two students who had managed to learn Magic Tide had both done so with his assistance.
As for those who learned it on their own just from the theory... there wasn't a single one.
"Further in the book, you'll find optimized versions of Magic Tide."
As Iz was speaking, Lu Cang had already learned [Magic Tide - Simplified].
But the moment he learned it, the Enhancement Technique naturally became [Magic Tide].
The only effect was an increase of 100,000 Skill Proficiency, equivalent to the Magic Tide having ebbed and flowed inside his body ten times.
[Skill Proficiency Level Increased — Magic Tide (Level: 74)]
"Master, I've already learned this."
Iz sighed.
He already knew. Through his Perception of the surrounding Elements, he could tell that Lu Cang had already trained Magic Tide to a terrifying degree.
The surrounding Elements were in constant turmoil, being sucked into Lu Cang's body in wave after wave and converted into Magic Power.
What should have been an ebbing and flowing tide had, in Lu Cang's hands, seemingly become a black hole that devoured Elements.
"After Magic Tide, the book moves on to Tier Two Magic Enhancement Techniques."
"That's enough for now."
Lu Cang asked in confusion, "Can't I learn the Tier Two ones?"
Izparut shook his head. "No. You have to wait until you're at least a Level 2 Mage."
"Otherwise, it will certainly cause you irreversible damage."
"Learning Magic Tide is more than enough for you right now."
"It shouldn't take long for you to hit the bottleneck of your Magic Limit. When that happens, I'll teach you how to break through it."
'So there's a bottleneck?'
The tide surged.
But this time, the Magic Power Lu Cang's tide brought back didn't remain in his body. Instead, it dispersed and dissipated into the outside world.
The Magic Power that should have been growing naturally stopped increasing.
'It's like... it really isn't increasing anymore.'
Lu Cang looked up at Izparut.
His young voice piped up, "Master Iz."
"I think... I've already hit the bottleneck."