Chapter 83 – Spells and Mana (Patreon)

I was very excited to show everybody my stone ball; they were impressed and thoroughly examined it.

“Excellent, let’s try teaching spells,” said Lis excitedly, rubbing his hands.

We went outside, and Lis said, “Show me the parts of your personal information that have spells.”

I streamed mana into my profile, and it popped into visibility.

“Did I mention how envious I am of your mana?” Lis asked.

I laughed and said, “Many times.”

He laughed, too, and continued, “You must practice showing only parts of your personal information. Avoid showing the whole thing to anybody.”

“I trust you.”

“Thank you, but you still should practice.”

“I will.”

He looked over my profile and asked, “In the General Spells, I see Absorb Mana, but I never saw it in the purchase list; how come you have it?”

“I learned it from a barrel.”

“A barrel?”

“Yes, it purified water, and I examined it.”

He laughed, shook his head, and said, “A barrel, who would have thought of that? Anyway, I’m interested in Healing Touch, Neutralize Poison, Regrow Flesh, Fortify Life Force, Neutralize Curse, Restore, Adaptable Light Ball, and Absorb Mana.”

“Do you know how Lyura’s Mother took control of her mana to teach her the spells?”

“I don’t know the exact sequence, but from my understanding, she put her hands on Lyura’s back, took control of her mana, and guided it to cast the spell repeatedly until Lyura could cast it.”

“Okay, let’s try that.”

I placed my hands on Lis's back and attempted to focus my awareness into him, similar to what I did with the water or the stone, but it was impossible. He was too complex, and I also felt as if there was some protective field that prevented me from "entering." No matter what I tried, it didn't work.

I tried to think of a solution and thought about what Lis said, that she “took control of her mana.” I decided to try a different approach: I poured mana into him, not as a spell, just mana, and tried to direct it to reach his channels. That didn't work either; the mana spread through his body and then dissipated into the air.

Lis said, “My power center is the Mind orb; maybe try controlling my mana from there? When my wizard friend built my spirals, he placed both hands on my head.”

I did, and it worked a little better – I could "insert" my awareness into his power center; I even saw the orb, which was much bigger than any of the orbs I had in my body. But other than seeing the orb, I couldn't do anything. I tried to "grab" his mana with no success; I tried to flow my mana into his power center, mix it with his mana, and then take control, but it didn't work either.

Both of us were stumped and sat down to think of a solution. After a few minutes, Lis said, “I might have an idea.”

“What is it?”

"If I flow mana down my arms like when I carve runes or charge a ritual, you think you can take control of the mana that comes out of my palms?"

"Let's try. If we don't try, we won't know."

I placed my palms on the backs of his palms, and he began to flow mana. It was easier for me to feel his mana there, as if the protective field of his body was thinner or sparser in the hand area. At first, I could not connect to his mana, but slowly, as I allowed my awareness to sink into the mana that flowed from his hands, I began to feel "oneness." I sank deeper and deeper into his mana and began to feel its "flavor." It was like reading him; I could taste his thirst for knowledge, his desire to find things that made him smile or laugh, his care for people, his impatience when something didn't go the way he wanted, and his enthusiasm for discovering new things. It was like a direct line to his fundamental essence as a person, and I saw that he was even more impressive than I thought.

The flow of mana stopped and "threw" me out of where I was.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Out of mana."

"Oh, I must have gone a little too deep. I need to find a way to feel the mana but not let it take me over until I lose my self-awareness and what I want to do."

“I have to regenerate, so maybe practice that while I do it?”

“Yeah, good idea.”

I went back to training with stones. It was easier for me to connect with water, but because water is constantly in motion, it wasn’t a good subject for my training; I needed something static.

I trained for two days but didn't make much progress. I had a collection of three stone balls that I placed in the fruit bowl on the kitchen counter, but I always got to the point where I started directing the mana only after I had been immersed in it for a long time. If I wanted to teach Lis spells, I couldn't afford to sink into his mana for hours before I started directing it.

On the evening of the second day, we were in the middle of dinner, this time food we bought in Sichuan – I was too frustrated to cook – when it suddenly dawned on me, and I facepalmed.

"What happened?" Lis asked.

"I'm an idiot."

"What made you reach this enlightenment?" Mahia asked.

"Very funny,” I told her with a glare, “I forgot my most basic ability as a Wizard, the first ability I developed that gave me this class."

"Which is?"

"Mind Split. Instead of trying to get to the point where I'm immersed in the mana but also have control over it, I can split my mind; one part is immersed in the mana, and another directs it."

"Let's try it. Like you said, if we don't try, we won't know."

We went outside again. I put my hands on the backs of Lis's hands, and he started to flow mana. I split my mind and let one part sink into his mana. This time, it also went much faster. Probably, from all my training with the stones, I learned to submerge faster. Once I was completely immersed in his mana, with the other part of my mind, I started not exactly taking control of it but more of a management position, telling it what to do without pressure or using force.

I quickly realized that two splits were not enough. One part was immersed in the mana, and the other part was the one that directed the flow, but I still needed another part to determine the flow to direct it into. I split my mind into the third part – this part was always more difficult, and I felt my mind start to "sweat" – I cast the spell Healing Touch over and over again, and with the second part, I directed Lis's mana to flow through the same patterns as the spell.

I told him through gritted teeth, "Try to learn the pattern as quickly as possible; the third split is very difficult for me."

Little by little, I felt him taking control of the mana, and the more he took control, the more I let go but continued to direct the mana to the correct patterns, but this time half nudging the mana along and half nudging him.

After over forty casts, I was able to release my control entirely. I maintained my connection with his mana to monitor that he was doing it right, but I didn’t have to direct it anymore and could let go of the third split. That was such a relief that I almost sagged. I was breathing heavily and felt like I had run a marathon, and my mind felt like it was having a muscle spasm. It wasn't exactly a physical feeling; it was more mental, but a muscle spasm was the closest feeling to what I felt in my mind.

“Cast the spell again,” I said.

He did, and I felt that his casting of the spell was flawless.

“Cast it another couple of times to ensure you got it.”

“No need, I have the spell in my General Spells list, I checked.”

“Phew! That was difficult; the third split is a killer.”

“If I recall correctly, when we met, I told you to practice this ability, or am I mistaken?”

“No, you’re not. I remember you telling me.”

“So why didn’t you?”

I rubbed my neck sheepishly and said, “Too many other things to do, and I forgot.”

“You forgot.”

“Yeah …”

He started roaring with laughter, and after a minute, he said, “I think you are the most talented Wizard I have ever met but also the most scatterbrained.”

“I’m not scatterbrained. There are so many things to learn and discover that I keep skipping from one thing to another. Not because of lack of focus, but because of the enormous selection and the specific things you tell me to learn.”

“I think you should make a list of all the things you need to learn, perfect, and practice, and stick to it until you master those things, at least partially, before moving to the next thing.”

“Yeah, good idea.”

“What is your vitality number?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Humor me.”

“fifty-one.”

“And what is the average life span on Earth.”

“Seventy or eighty years.”

"So, with your vitality, even without considering that your father was probably from one of the long-lived races, your life expectancy is around 400 years. If we add that you matured at about half the speed of the inhabitants of Earth, then even if your mother's genetics shorten your life span, you still have at least 750 years to live.

“Take your time to perfect everything you do. If you do everything quickly, you won't have anything new to learn or discover later. Slow down, take your time, and enjoy the experience."

I stared at him in shock. 750 years? Seriously? I knew that our life expectancy increased as the Vitality stat increased. Lis told me he was over 400, but I had never done the math. 750 years? I dropped to the ground and sat there, processing this information.

750 years? I’m going to live at least 750 years? Oh my god! I'm going to live over 750 years!!

I started laughing uncontrollably and intentionally let go of any sense of urgency. I have no reason to rush. I felt how the future unfolded before me like an endless road full of amazing adventures and experiences, different worlds, different people, different varied knowledge, things to learn, achieve, and perfect. I also felt myself growing and expanding. I took a deep breath and felt the spiritual expansion with the physical sense of release I had already learned to recognize. I checked my mana: 510/9300.

My mana went up another 400 points. I checked my mana system to locate the progress, and for the first time, it was in my Mind's power center.