Mage's Armor

"Meditation Methods held an extremely important position on the Mage Plane in ancient times. As everyone knew, Mental Power was the power of the soul, and the soul was the foundation upon which most mages bore magical power. In that era, because mages fought among themselves so viciously, the study of knowledge made almost no progress, let alone innovation in magic. The power of magic often depended on the total amount of a mage's Mental Power, so Meditation Methods became every mage's most closely guarded secret."

James lowered his head to glance over the materials, then continued, "In ancient times, one Meditation Method was one mage School of Thought. Mages cautiously cultivated according to their Meditation Methods, and very few attempted innovation. This also made ancient mages extremely weak. If I were judged by the standards of that time, I would already be a Formal Mage."

"By the age of civilization, this situation underwent Earth-shattering changes. The backward Meditation Methods of old were completely overturned. Once mages began to innovate and became adept at innovation, Meditation Methods gradually shed the concept of Schools of Thought. Nearly everyone's Meditation Method was different."

After finishing his introduction, James brought out the substantive material. He lightly tapped the lectern, and a beam of light rose up. No Energy Fluctuation could be sensed from it; it was probably an Alchemy Product similar to a 3D projector.

Sure enough, a set of nine runes appeared within the light.

James stepped aside and pointed at the first rune in the Rune Array as he said to the apprentices, "Before coming to the academy, you should all have successfully constructed a Mental Power Solidification Rune. This one."

All the apprentices nodded.

"It, together with the other eight runes, formed the foundation of every Meditation Method currently used on the Mage Plane. This was the Meditation Method created by Prometheus True Spirit Grandmaster during his apprenticeship, the one with the greatest universality, which the First Element Holy Tower opened freely to all mages."

James manipulated the Light Screen. The nine runes combined in sequence, changing from a simple planar structure into a somewhat more complicated three-dimensional structure. It looked a little like a Scale Fragment.

"This Meditation Method was now called the Basic Meditation Method, but it once had another name—Prometheus's Mage's Armor. Its purpose was to construct a suit of armor around the soul. Each time you successfully construct a complete Rune Array, you can add one Scale Fragment. Once the Scale Fragments completely envelop the soul, this Meditation Method is initially complete. Further cultivation makes the Scale Fragments increasingly fine and seamless, until they become one with each other. This cultivation has no rank divisions and no limit. Even True Spirit Grand Mages continue it."

"The greatest benefit of the Basic Meditation Method is its compatibility. When your accumulation of knowledge grows and you possess your own unique Mental Power Solidification Rune Array, you can convert it without any adverse reaction."

"Due to its age, its primary purpose now is to familiarize apprentices with rune construction. But do not underestimate it. The reason mages can withstand the pressure of traveling through space-time and the rejection of an Other Plane's World Will to wage Plane Wars, the reason they no longer fear curses as they did in ancient times, is the invention of the Basic Meditation Method. No matter what kind of knowledge you use in the future to create your own Meditation Method, you must form a Mage's Armor according to its principles."

"It could be said that the Mage's Armor is the cornerstone of Mage Civilization."

Adam firmly committed the forms of the nine runes to memory. He could not help but admire the inventor of this Meditation Method, Prometheus True Spirit Grandmaster. To carve out a road to civilization amid hardship and primitive ignorance—what towering wisdom that was.

James paused briefly to let the apprentices digest the information. Ten minutes later, he spoke again. "The first year's rune knowledge course mainly guides you in constructing your own Meditation Methods. I will not provide you with a direction, nor will there be homework. If problems arise in the runes you construct yourselves, you may choose to consult me. Of course, at most I can offer some help regarding stability."

"Each of you has one opportunity each month to apply for guidance free of charge. In other words, repeated applications will incur a fee."

James concluded, "There is only one rune knowledge class per week, but the Optical Projection will remain here. Does anyone wish to apply for individual guidance?"

James had only asked out of routine. He did not think this group of Newbies, most of whom were encountering the Mage's Armor Meditation Method for the first time, would have any questions.

But Adam was not among them. During the lecture, he had already successfully and perfectly constructed several Scale Fragments. He was now very interested in another important piece of information in James's words, so he unhesitatingly used this month's sole free consultation opportunity.

"I would like to apply for individual guidance, Mr. James," Adam said as he stood.

"Are you sure?" James looked at Adam skeptically. He thought Adam was simply grandstanding. He had not even tested the most basic construction, so what question could he possibly have?

It was not only James. Nearly everyone thought the same. They made undisguised sounds of disdain and looked at Adam with contempt.

Several People from Barren Island began whispering among themselves. Randy said to the others, "See? Life on the ship made him arrogant and foolish. Sooner or later, he'll pay the price for it."

Ophelia frowned. Though she and Adam did not share the same views, they had known each other for a long time and had come to the Mage Continent together. She did not want Adam to bury his future because of arrogance.

Perhaps the only person present who believed Adam truly had a question to ask was Krystal. She looked as though she wanted to say something to the companions sitting with her, but in the end, she said nothing.

"Yes, I'm sure," Adam said to James, ignoring all the discussion.

"Fine. Come with me, then." James had no reason to refuse. Teaching was a task he had accepted. After one year, he would receive a fairly generous reward, and the collision of ideas with so many apprentices while teaching and answering questions was also highly beneficial to his own path as a mage.

Of course, stupid questions were an exception, James thought. He had made up his mind that if Adam asked some foolish question, he would announce it publicly—not to humiliate Adam, but simply to keep the other apprentices from casually wasting his time.

After leaving the classroom, Adam followed James into another building. James had his own laboratory there. After they entered, James motioned for Adam to sit wherever he liked, then asked, "Now, tell me your question."

A mage's time was precious, and there was rarely any unnecessary small talk in their exchanges. That suited Adam's style as well, so without any pleasantries, he said directly, "What does it mean to construct a Meditation Method using one's own knowledge?"

James said with some surprise, "That question isn't foolish, but it isn't something you need to understand at your Current Stage. You haven't even successfully constructed the Basic Meditation Method."

Adam knew that no explanation was as intuitive as action, so he directly extended his Mental Power outside his body, completely constructed a Scale Fragment, and drew it back into himself.

James was stunned. Materializing Mental Power and constructing a Rune Array outside the body was not nearly as easy as Adam had made it seem. Even many Senior Apprentices without exceptional Mental Power talent could not do it, yet a Newbie had accomplished it right in front of him?

He sprang up from his seat and stared at Adam. "During the aptitude test, how long did it take you to fill the Crystal Ball? Did you display any soul inclination?"

Adam did not know why he was asking this, but he could sense the urgency in James's words. Still, it was not something worth concealing, and Adam had no intention of hiding it.

Before Adam could speak, James slapped his forehead and turned toward another room. He quickly returned holding a Crystal Ball. "Come, try this!"

Adam looked at him in confusion without speaking. James explained, "Don't worry. It won't harm you in any way; it may even be greatly beneficial. Try it, just as you did before."

Adam did not doubt James. Following the mages' generally open and fair principles, as well as their surprisingly steadfast spirit of contract, he believed James would not harm him.

Adam placed both hands on the Crystal Ball. Unlike during the aptitude test, this Crystal Ball did not require him to actively feed Mental Power into it. Instead, it generated a faint suction force that drew his Mental Power inside.

It still lit up instantly, its radiance even more dazzling than before. Adam noticed Numerical Values displayed on the surface of the Crystal Ball, continuously rising before finally stopping at 100+.

James's gaze flickered constantly between Adam and the Crystal Ball. He muttered excitedly, "All right, you can stop now. Incredible, absolutely incredible!"

Adam released it as instructed, then asked, "Mr. James, what is this?"

James came back to himself. He looked at Adam as though he were a priceless treasure, and said in a slightly shrill voice, "100+! Heavens, I can hardly believe it. Do you know what that represents?"

Adam remained calm. "Sir, clearly, I do not."

James picked up the Crystal Ball. "This is an advanced product of the Talent Tester. Its function is to precisely measure the total amount of Mental Power. Each unit of Numerical Value represents the initial total Mental Power of an apprentice with the most basic mage aptitude. Its detection limit is one hundred. Heavens, praise all the great True Spirit Mages, praise the Mage World—you actually possess initial Mental Power beyond its upper limit! This is unbelievable!"

After hearing James's explanation, Adam was not surprised. If Mental Power was the power of the soul, then he had previously destroyed a full ten billion souls. Even if the quality of each soul was far inferior to that of humans in the Mage World, even if only a trace too faint to calculate from each one had been absorbed by him, multiplied by ten billion, it would still accumulate into an astonishing total.