Chapter 5: Chapter 5 [Energy Missile]
"Such a rare find, to discover a water source here..."
Ronan soaked his feet, uttering a contented sigh.
"Let's mark this location, might as well run here in the future."
He usually fetched water from the lake, filling his two large storage tanks, which
lasted him for three to five days.
Suddenly, a noise reached his ears.
Ronan quickly turned his head to see a slightly trembling bush.
Probably a little animal startled into running away.
Ronan didn't pay it much attention.
But then, feeling somewhat uneasy, he dried his feet, put on his shoes, and walked slowly toward the direction of the quivering bushes.
Pushing through some low shrubs laden with red berries, he walked a dozen meters forward, and a dark-green tree house appeared in Ronan's view.
"Someone lives here?!"
Ronan was startled, quickly stopped, and then slowly retraced his steps back the way he had come.
In the Tree House District, encountering other wizards was a common occurrence. Ronan, having previously seen traces of someone living along his path, had kept his distance, but he had not expected to find someone living in such a secluded place.
"I can't come here next time.... the route has to be slightly altered..."
Ronan decided and quickly left.
Sweating profusely, he returned to his own place and took a short break, though it was still not even nine in the morning.
Ronan's studies continued.
"Meditation is the only way I can improve my strength at this stage, and the books tell us that each time after you exhaust your spiritual power, meditation will significantly increase its effectiveness..."
Ronan sat under the oak tree of his own home, munching on wild fruits picked from the woods while studying the Meditation Skill book in his hands.
The book mentioned that the soul is like a container, where spiritual power is the water it holds.
Emptying the container and refilling it can markedly increase the volume of the container.
How to quickly deplete the spiritual power.
"All wizard activities require the use of spiritual power.
Common ones are alchemy, enchantment, forging, and rune engraving...
The most consuming, naturally, is spell casting."
Ronan put down his Meditation Skill book and picked up another with a black
leather cover-Zero Rank Magic Complete Collection.
This book was also obtained from Hoddam Academy.
Although called a complete collection, it only recorded five types of Zero Rank Magic for casting.
They included-Fireball Technique, Ice Ball Skill, Energy Missile, Charging Weapon, and Detection Skill.
Ronan looked at the descriptions for the five Zero Rank Magics, revitalized himself.
His biggest problem right now is his weak combat power, oh no, to be exact, a complete lack of it.
Learning a combat spell was a pressing need.
After carefully reading through the descriptions of the five spells, and weighing his choices, Ronan ultimately chose Energy Missile as his main focus for current studies.
Being of No Attribute Affinity, he naturally avoided the more energy-centric spells like Fireball Technique and Ice Ball Skill.
Charging Weapon required a weapon to cast, and Detection Skill was a supportive spell, so the attribute-less ranged spell Energy Missile became his best choice.
The principle of casting Energy Missile is simple, it involves using a spell and gestures to resonate spiritual power with free energy particles from nature.
But in practice, it wasn't so easy.
"Wuru.. Baba.. Qi..."
A not-so-long chanting spell stuttered out of Ronan, with each syllable needing to match a specific gesture; he often managed the chant but missed the gestures, and as he got the gestures right, he'd forget the spell.
After hours of jumbled practice, Ronan was exhausted and soaked in sweat, his mouth dry, yet he was still unable to successfully cast Energy Missile even once.
"Damn, this is way too hard!"
Ronan eyed the thick spellbook, seriously doubting whether he had been practicing it wrong or had not yet grasped the real knack.
Actually, in this kind of situation, it's best to have someone guide you.
Hoddam Academy provides this kind of service.
If you choose to enroll in the "Energy Missile" Spell class, an experienced wizard
will fully explain the casting techniques, helping you avoid many detours.
But Ronan doesn't have money.
Ten low-level magic stones... that's practically asking for his life.
"Guess I'll just practice on my own... sigh.."
Ronan sighed deeply and continued to practice diligently.
He skipped lunch and meditated whenever he felt exhausted.
He practiced until late in the afternoon, around four o'clock...
A series of strange and complex syllables accurately left Ronan's mouth, and his chubby ten fingers synchronized with the rhythm of the syllables to rapidly form various gestures without any mistake.
The moment the spell and gestures were successfully completed, Ronan felt a buzzing vibration near his ear.
Immediately afterward, a significant portion of the lively and transparent spiritual power in his mind was drained.
A second later, the air in front of him twisted, and a ping-pong ball-sized colored
light ball appeared out of nowhere; with just a thought, it shot out swiftly.
It hit an unfortunate oak tree ahead, exploding a large clump of wood splinters
"Did... did it work?!"
Ronan was a bit slow to react to the sudden success.
A few seconds later, great joy and a sense of achievement enveloped him like a
Ronan rushed excitedly to check the impact site of the "Energy Missile."
A deep, flake-shaped crater was left on the thick oak tree.
"This power... it's even greater than a shotgun!"
Ronan looked and marveled again, complex feelings arose in his heart when he
At this moment, he truly considered himself a real wizard.
Possessing extraordinary power beyond the reach of ordinary humans.
Gradually, a sense of confidence began to build in his heart.
Exhaling a breath of turbid air, Ronan felt unexpectedly calm.
Instead of indulging in the joy of success, he continued practicing.
With the spiritual power that Ronan, as a Level 1 Wizard Apprentice, now possessed, he could barely cast "Energy Missile" twice before running out. And casting the "Energy Missile" twice took just over two minutes.
The goal of rapidly depleting spiritual power was successfully achieved, and everything seemed to be getting on the right track.
After hastily eating something for dinner within the glow of the forest fireflies,
Ronan continued to practice the spells.
For some reason, ever since the first successful casting of the "Energy Missile,"
subsequent practices had gone unusually smoothly.
Ronan's chanting became faster, and the accompanying gestures grew
There was hardly a failed casting, only once, due to spiritual exhaustion, his spiritual power fluctuated violently, causing the casting to be incomplete.
Late at night, Ronan dragged his tired body into the tree house, went straight to
his small bed, and opened his character panel.
"Talent: No Attribute Affinity"
"Strength: Level 1 Wizard Apprentice (88%)"
"Skills: Basic Meditation Technique (entry-level 11/100)
Energy Missile (entry-level 14/100)"