Transcendent Magic

"We found Izpalut's Level 1 promotion report!"

The Promotion Hall recorded the promotion process for every profession.

The data from the tests was archived.

Izpalut had been promoted just a few years ago, so it was easy to find the records.

And it wasn't a secret.

Not only were there records in the Promotion Hall, but all kinds of books and records among the public also documented it.

"Magic measurement... Magic value."

"10,000."

"Elemental affinity... 100% for all elements."

Everyone looked at Izpalut's old results, then at Lu Cang, who stood proudly on the promotion platform before them.

They were exactly the same.

They were practically cut from the same mold!

But there was one difference. This child...

He was only eight.

Izpalut had awakened as a mage at fifteen, a year earlier than normal.

And he had gone from a Level 1 Mage to a Level 2 Mage.

It had taken him only a week.

But this child...

He was seven years younger than Iz.

And he'd come to be promoted to Level 2 Mage after just three short days.

By comparison...

This child's talent seemed even more terrifying than Iz's.

And yet...

Lu Cang heard what they were saying, too.

Huh.

Had Iz's magic value also been 10,000 when he broke through?

Didn't that mean he'd already surpassed the magic limit and learned Void Magic back when he was a Level 1 Mage?

Wait...

Wasn't Void Magic something he'd created?

He'd been promoted to Level 2 Mage just seven days after changing classes?

Didn't that mean he'd created the Magic Tide enhancement technique from scratch in just seven days, then pushed it further into Void Magic?

Impressive...

Iz's strength had risen another notch in Lu Cang's estimation.

"Don't rush to judgment..."

"We can't draw a conclusion yet."

"There's still one last part of the test. He may not surpass Iz."

"You mean his mastery of spells?"

"Right."

"He's only been a mage for three days."

"The day before yesterday, he drank with us and slept until morning. When would he have had time to practice spells?"

"Chances are, his spellwork will fall short."

"Even getting a spell to the point where it can be cast without incantations takes years of practice."

"And reaching the legendary limit of a spell requires devoting your whole life to practicing a single one."

"Probably no mage could ever repeat Iz's feat of mastering eight spells."

"Even Iz took seven days."

In their eyes, three days was far too rushed.

Far too rushed, no matter how you looked at it.

Besides, the kid had spent the whole night drinking with them... Wasting even more time he could have spent practicing.

Lu Cang's mouth twitched.

I can hear you, you know. And whose fault do you think that night of drinking was...?

"The final test measures your mastery of spells."

"The candidate may choose any eight spells they have learned and cast them."

"We'll use the testing array to determine how well you've mastered them."

As Kumiloni read out the procedure,

the walls of the Promotion Hall gradually lowered, revealing a wide-open area in the distance.

At the same time, a complex magic array lit up on the ground.

Iz had mentioned it before.

He'd taken a commission in Rhein Town to optimize the Promotion Hall's testing array.

It was an A-rank adventurer commission.

Adventurer commissions weren't limited to exploring dungeons.

It all depended on what the client wanted.

Commissions involving dungeons usually came from the Adventurers' Association, since monsters could escape and endanger ordinary people if a dungeon was left unattended for too long.

Besides those, there were commissions to harvest crops, find lost cats, escort people, and even, occasionally, deliver meals...

Meal delivery commissions were going too far. Were adventurers delivery drivers?

Lu Cang felt the magic stirring around him.

A magic array for testing?

The systems of magic he'd encountered so far hadn't mentioned magic arrays at all.

In Lu Cang's eyes, magic was cool when a complicated array flashed into existence with a whoosh as you cast a spell.

"Now, please cast your spells at the practice dummies in the distance."

Several dummies in the open area were dressed in clothes.

They weren't wooden posts, but silver dummies made from a special material, with a faint shimmer of iridescent color across their surfaces.

Just looking at them gave the impression that they were expensive—and breaking one would cost a lot.

I can't afford to pay for it if I break one.

With that in mind, Lu Cang raised his hand toward the dummies.

Whoosh—

Cold gathered around him!

Seven shards of ice formed beside Lu Cang, but they weren't shaped like Ice Spikes.

They were spindle-shaped.

"Ice Spindle (LV: 101)"

Spinning ice spindles.

Smaller than Ice Spikes, but spinning much faster.

The maximum level of spell proficiency was LV: 100.

That was the limit of a skill. No matter how much you practiced, once you reached it, the skill itself couldn't grow any stronger.

That applied to both combat techniques and spells.

At most, precise control could help you get the most out of a skill.

But the skill itself wouldn't undergo any further qualitative change.

Yet the spell Lu Cang had just cast...

Buzz—

The array ahead lit up with a deep blue glow.

Almost at the same instant, all seven Ice Spindles struck the distant dummy!

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

But this time, the Ice Spikes didn't stop after hitting their target.

A thick layer of frost coated the dummy where it had been struck. Then the Ice Spindles bounced back up!

They ricocheted like pinballs, then shot out again!

Bang!

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

The seven Ice Spindles repeatedly hammered the dummy's body!

This was no longer a one-off attack like an Ice Spike.

"Ice Spike evolution path—Control"

"Ice Spindle (LV: 101): Forms a persistent spindle that can attack continuously until destroyed. Retains all of Ice Spike Technique's additional properties."

The Ice Spindles moved so fast they were hard to follow with the naked eye.

In just a few breaths, the seven Ice Spindles crisscrossed through the air and struck the dummy hundreds of times.

Crack!

At the sound of a sharp snap,

the Ice Spindles vanished, and Lu Cang canceled the spell.

Not because he couldn't maintain it any longer, but because he'd chosen to cancel it.

Kumiloni looked at the test results. "Spell mastery."

Kumiloni's voice paused briefly.

The testing light didn't form a number. Instead, it glowed red.

"Transcendent."

Transcendent?

What level was that?

Spell proficiency was divided into levels 1 through 100.

You couldn't normally see the level, but specialized tests could measure it.

A Promotion Ritual was one such specialized test.

Level 1 was Level 1. Level 100 was Level 100.

"What does 'Transcendent' mean?"

Iz said, "It means above Level 100."

"This testing ritual is a version I improved."

"On top of the original scale of Levels 1 through 100, I hypothesized that another possibility might exist."

"Transcendent Magic."

"Once a spell has been practiced to its limit, it might break past its original ceiling and have the potential to evolve further."

"The testing ritual I modified is not only more precise than the old one."

"It can also detect an undiscovered type of magic I'd hypothesized... Transcendent Magic."

"And this child has pushed the limit of ordinary magic... one small step further."