Doubts

Lin Tian's thoughts churned, but he tried hard to suppress the turmoil within. Wearing a puzzled expression, he asked, "It's only changing the appearance, isn't that easy enough? Spells like Fire Arrow and Fire Dragon are also just fire elements formed into different shapes, aren't they?"

Porter shook his head slightly, his gaze earnest and solemn. He slowly said, "That is not the case, Lin Tian. The reason magic can take on different outward forms is that the elements of heaven and earth are bound into fixed shapes through magical power and spiritual force, according to the principles contained within the incantation. This involves extremely complex energy guidance and control. It is far more than a simple change in shape."

Lin Tian blinked and continued to ask with feigned confusion, "Then did everyone who created magical incantations comprehend the Laws?"

After pondering for a moment, Porter patiently explained, "Not necessarily. Basic magical incantations do indeed contain the power of various Laws. However, most of the many incantations that appeared later were improvements made upon existing foundations. Creating such magic does not necessarily require a magus to comprehend the Laws. A certain degree of research into and understanding of magical principles is enough."

This time, Lin Tian was genuinely confused. He could not help asking, "Then wasn't what I did also an improvement to a basic magical incantation? Why do you and Teacher Laun believe that I comprehended the Laws? What is different between this and other cases of creating magical incantations?"

Porter looked at Lin Tian, his eyes filled with appreciation and gratification. He slowly said, "Lin Tian, improving a magical incantation and creating a new one means combining and dismantling the original incantation at its root, reconstructing its structure during the initial stage of magic formation. But the way you cast magic is different—you modify it after the spell has already been cast. That is equivalent to directly changing the fundamental principles of the magical incantation, touching upon the essence of magic itself. What is more, you are only a Third-rank Magus, yet you can make such deep modifications to first- and second-rank magical incantations, and you even successfully modified a third-rank incantation. Although your strength limited you from fully casting it, this ability has already surpassed the foundational principles of magical incantations. Furthermore, the spell you modified was Fireball, one of the basic spells. Therefore, we concluded that you must have comprehended the Laws."

Lin Tian grew even more puzzled. According to the setting of the Coiling Dragon World, for magi to comprehend the Laws and for warriors to comprehend Heaven-Earth Momentum were both signs of attaining the Saint Domain. He could not help asking, "Since Saint Domain experts attain the Saint Domain by cultivating the Laws, and I have also comprehended the Laws, why have I not become a Saint Domain expert?"

Porter gently patted Lin Tian's shoulder. "Indeed, in theory, comprehending the Laws means entering the Saint Domain. However, the foundation of that is possessing sufficient energy. Without enough energy to support you, you cannot truly wield the power of the Laws. You can only borrow the Laws through the casting of magical incantations. Moreover, due to your lack of energy, you have not truly touched the core of the Laws. Given your current condition, the degree to which you have touched the Laws is less than one percent."

Lin Tian silently nodded and thought to himself, That's true. According to the original Coiling Dragon novel, Saint Domain experts who comprehend the Profound Mysteries of the Laws have a chance to become gods, but it never described ordinary people suddenly attaining enlightenment and becoming gods overnight. It seems that possessing Saint Domain-level strength truly is a prerequisite for cultivating the Profound Mysteries of the Laws.

Laun looked at Lin Tian with great gratification and earnestly reminded him, "Lin Tian, remember this: during your future cultivation, you must not devote too much time to comprehending the Laws. You have already successfully crossed the most difficult threshold to becoming a Saint Domain expert. For you now, the most important thing is to accelerate your cultivation and accumulate spiritual force as quickly as possible. With your exceptionally high affinity for the fire element, the time you spend refining the elements of heaven and earth is practically negligible. Therefore, your spiritual force rank is nearly equivalent to your magic rank. As long as your spiritual force rises, your magical strength will naturally rise with it."

Porter hurriedly interrupted, "Hey, do not be impatient! Lin Tian, at your current cultivation speed, you can already be called the number one genius of the Maya Continent. But cultivation cannot be rushed. You must not harm your body in your haste for quick success, or it will affect your progress toward the Saint Domain."

Those words instantly shattered Lin Tian's joy at being almost in the Saint Domain already and on the verge of attaining immortality.

Then Laun and Porter exchanged a glance and solemnly instructed, "Lin Tian, you must never cast your self-created Mutated Fireball Spell in front of others. And when casting other magic, you must also control its power and try to display only the normal power that magic of that rank should possess. If someone accidentally notices something unusual, say that Saint-level Magus Laun improved the magical incantation, which is why its power is greater than that of ordinary magic. Do you understand?"

Lin Tian hurriedly nodded to show that he understood.

Afterward, Teacher Laun answered Lin Tian's questions about meditation. By then, the sky had darkened, and the two of them told Lin Tian to return to the imperial palace. Before he left, they repeatedly warned him not to tell anyone that he had comprehended the Laws, not even his parents.

After Lin Tian left, Laun turned to Porter and sighed. "This child's talent far exceeds anything either of us imagined. Your family will soon produce another Saint Domain Mage."

Porter's lips curled slightly as he teased, "Lin Tian is your disciple now as well. How does it feel to have a disciple with such extraordinary talent, one who may become a Saint Domain Mage in the future?"

Laun laughed and scolded, "You bastard, stop making fun of me. I am only stating the truth. This child's potential is indeed astonishing."

The two smiled at each other. Then Laun's expression became somewhat worried as he said, "I am afraid that with my abilities, I may not be able to teach him anything deeper later on. How about asking one of your family's Deity-level Experts to guide Lin Tian? His talent is so outstanding that it should not be wasted."

Porter frowned slightly. After thinking for a moment, he said, "The family's Deity-level Experts are all in seclusion, comprehending the Profound Mysteries of the Laws. They will not emerge easily. Besides, in the eyes of Deity-level Experts, only those who have become Saint Domain experts can truly be called geniuses. Anyone below the Saint Domain does not count as a genius. In my opinion, we should wait until Lin Tian becomes a Saint Domain expert. With his talent, it should not take long."

Laun raised his head to gaze at the sky, his eyes full of yearning. He sighed, "Godhood! What a realm to dream of."

Elsewhere, Lin Tian sat in the carriage returning to the imperial palace, his heart filled with doubts. He secretly mused, Something is wrong. Very wrong. Why would Saint Domain experts of a Material Plane know so much about the Profound Mysteries of the Laws? Could it really be because of their Deity-level ancestor? But the more I think about it, the less sense it makes. Natives of a Material Plane who can cultivate to godhood are generally one-in-ten-thousand geniuses. Logically speaking, they should not possess such a deep understanding of the Profound Mysteries of the Laws. The more Lin Tian thought about it, the more confused he became. His brows furrowed tightly as he sank into deep contemplation...