Alchemy and Talismans

Thanks to the material-sorting work in the lower-level storeroom, as well as his day-and-night comparative research into the "concept of refinement" and Wizard materials in the intermediate laboratory, Benjamin's accumulated knowledge of Alchemy material properties and energy structures had far surpassed that of Wizard Apprentices in his cohort. He could even rival some low-ranking formal Wizards specializing in Alchemy Studies.

This solid foundation of knowledge made his construction of an Alchemy Wizardry Model incomparably smooth.

His first Wizardry Model—Alchemy—took shape much faster than those of the Wizard Apprentices in his cohort.

Now, having just broken through to the third level of Qi Refining, with both his True Essence and mental power at their peak, Benjamin immersed all his focus into his Spirit Sea and made the final delicate adjustments to the nearly completed "Alchemy" Wizardry Model.

This was his own unique Wizardry Model, constructed from his understanding of materials in the Wizard World, his thorough mastery of the artifact-refining principles of the Great Dao Library, and his preliminary perception of the power of "concepts."

Since it had only recently been constructed, the core effects of this "Alchemy" Wizardry Model were roughly the same as the Alchemy Wizardry commonly used by ordinary Wizard Apprentices—it could analyze the composition of matter and exert a certain degree of control over and reconstruction of it.

The greatest advantage of constructing a Wizardry Model at this stage was that, unlike other Wizard Apprentices, he no longer had to rely on external objects such as an Alchemy Disk or a specific experimental table to assist him in casting Alchemy.

As long as he had enough mental power, his "Alchemy" Wizardry Model allowed him to cast it barehanded, just as Mentor Clark had demonstrated before.

Moreover, although Alchemy was classified as Logistics Department Wizardry, that did not mean it could not be used in battle.

After all, the essence of Alchemy was analyzing and controlling the composition of matter.

Theoretically, as long as his Alchemy reached a sufficiently high level, he could freely control and twist the physical structure of living creatures!

And if, in addition to Alchemy, he constructed the basic Runology Wizardry Model, Analysis Art—

Then, even if a lifeform's surface was covered in powerful protective energy, he could rely on Alchemy and Analysis Art to directly analyze, control, and manipulate that protective energy!

An enemy's energy shield and flesh would become mere playthings in his hands.

By then, whether it was elemental attacks, physical attacks, or other special attacks, once they entered the range of Alchemy's control, their composition and energy would be controlled by the Wizard, who would gain authority over them.

As long as the Wizard's own computational power and mental power could keep up, it would be almost impossible for any attack to pierce his defenses!

That would be true "impervious to all techniques"!

Of course, the composition of organic matter was far too complex. The amount of knowledge required grew geometrically, making it far too distant a prospect for his current Alchemy Model.

The "Alchemy" Wizardry Model he had just condensed could currently only control metals with relatively simple structures with ease.

When facing more complex inorganic substances, he would have to consume more mental power, and his control would be limited. As for organic matter, he should not even think about it.

Analysis Art from Runology was even further out of reach.

"Still... Alchemy at this level is enough for now."

For what Benjamin intended to do next, not only was the completion of the Alchemy Wizardry Model necessary, but raising his Cultivation to the third level of Qi Refining was also a prerequisite.

At the third level of Qi Refining, True Essence was abundant.

For Benjamin, this was not merely an increase in strength—it was also the sign that a new Cultivation technique had been unlocked.

The Great Dao Library recorded that only after reaching the third level of Qi Refining could one begin to attempt another important Cultivation technique—Talismans.

Talismans were actually divided into two parts. One part was the "register," representing proof of identity.

The other part, the "talisman," was a method of fixing spells onto a specific medium for rapid casting.

Its core consisted primarily of two parts: the medium and the Talisman Seal, also known as runes.

The medium was the substance that carried the Talisman Seal, usually specially made talisman paper, jade, or metal. The talisman Seals were specific words or patterns that formed the core of a spell, containing methods for drawing in and controlling the Spirit Energy of heaven and earth.

Following the guidance of the Great Dao Library, Benjamin began his first attempt at refining talismans.

First came the medium.

In the Cultivation World, the most commonly used medium was talisman paper made from specific spirit plants. It was light and easily carried Spirit Energy, but Benjamin had yet to find a suitable substitute plant in the Wizard World.

However, Alchemy gave him another option.

Benjamin took out some of the refined Adamantine and mixed it with several extraneous-plane metal essences he had found in the lower-level storeroom, metals with exceptional energy conductivity and malleability.

According to the knowledge in the Great Dao Library, this kind of metal medium was generally used to refine registers. There was no special reason for it; the main reason was that Adamantine was the most basic material for refining talismans, but as talismans were consumables, making them entirely from Adamantine was simply too expensive!

Even the simplest artifact-refining methods recorded in the Great Dao Library required late-stage Qi Refining to use. Therefore, if Benjamin wanted to refine and fuse these materials at his current stage, he had to rely on the power of Alchemy.

Fortunately, after Benjamin's deliberate training, his Alchemy was quite effective when handling metals. In the end, he refined a kind of metal talisman paper with a certain degree of toughness and carrying capacity.

Although it was heavier and far more costly than real talisman paper, it had at least solved the problem of the medium.

Next came the Talisman Seal.

At first, Benjamin had no intention of innovating. Referring to the Great Dao Library's records on the Flame Talisman, he used True Essence as his brush and meticulously inscribed those profound talisman Seals onto the metal talisman paper.

Every stroke contained a specific frequency and rhythm, while he also had to infuse his True Essence and mental power at differing frequencies.

Relying on the formidable mental power provided by the Meditation Method and Qi Refining Method, Benjamin's movements were flawless despite never having trained beforehand. With the precision of a printer, he completed a talisman.

Once the inscription was finished, a faint glow emerged from the metal talisman paper.

Unable to wait any longer, he went to the Testing Ground specially used to test Wizardry power in the laboratory. The intermediate laboratory's Testing Ground could withstand the bombardment of a three-ring Wizard, so Benjamin felt no psychological pressure testing it here.

Activating the Testing Ground's built-in recording function, Benjamin took out the talisman he had just made. Following the method, he poured a faint thread of True Essence into it and activated the Talisman Seal inscribed upon it.

"Edict!" he barked.

He had expected a roaring blaze, just as the texts described, one powerful enough to swallow a large wooden stake whole.

However, the metal talisman paper merely trembled slightly, and then...

With a "pfft," a tiny flame the size of a thumb weakly rose from the talisman paper, flickered twice, and went out.

Benjamin: "...?"

What the hell was that supposed to be?!

(Extra chapter, one more to come.)