Fireball's Flight of Fancy

Under Laun's meticulous guidance, Lin Tian threw himself wholeheartedly into practicing Fireball. Laun stood to the side, his gaze fixed intently on Lin Tian, occasionally offering pointers.

Lin Tian took a deep breath, focused his mind, and cast Fireball again and again as Laun had taught him. With a wave of his magic staff, fireballs shot out like meteors, racing toward the distant target. At first, their speed and accuracy left something to be desired, but as he kept practicing, the fireballs grew noticeably faster, each one striking the target unerringly. Their power also steadily increased—the sparks kicked up on impact grew larger, and the scorch marks on the target deepened.

And so Lin Tian practiced without pause, until Laun finally showed a satisfied smile. "Mm, Lin Tian, your grasp of Fireball is already quite good." Next, Laun introduced him to the incantations for other first- to third-rank spells: Firebolt, Chain Fireball, Fire Arrow, and so on.

As he explained, Laun demonstrated the casting methods for each spell.

"As for instant-cast magic, the trick lies in a high degree of control over mana and mental energy. You have to complete the mana mobilization and mental guidance in an extremely short time—this requires extensive practice and a deep understanding of magic." After that, Laun explained the techniques behind instant casting.

Lin Tian listened earnestly, a gleam of excitement shining in his eyes. Then, he couldn't wait to start trying out these new spells, practicing until the sky grew dark and the last rays of sunset spilled over the estate, forcing him to return to the palace.

As he left, Laun advised him, "Lin Tian, I'll be going out for a while soon. During this time, cultivate diligently in the palace. Don't rush—steady and solid progress is the true path of cultivation."

Lin Tian nodded in agreement. "Rest assured, Teacher. I will train hard."

Back at the palace, Lin Tian hurried through dinner and immediately plunged into meditation. He sat cross-legged on his bed, eyes closed, the air around him seeming to fall still, leaving only the steady rhythm of his breathing echoing in the room. As his meditation deepened, he felt his mental energy slowly increase. Only when his mind grew weary did he finally sink into a deep sleep.

The next morning, Lin Tian rose early as usual and completed his warrior training. After breakfast, he began studying etiquette, culture, and other subjects. He said to the instructor, "Teacher, I hope to accelerate my learning pace and finish these lessons as soon as possible, so I can have more time for cultivation."

The instructor looked at Lin Tian and gave a helpless smile. "Your Highness, though these subjects are numerous, each one is crucial and must be learned step by step. However, since Your Highness is so determined, I will try to adjust the pace of the lessons."

By the end of the morning, even Lin Tian, whose mental energy far exceeded that of ordinary people, found himself overwhelmed. The tedious rules of etiquette, the profound literary knowledge, and the complex theories of art surged in like a tide, forcing his brain to operate at full speed.

After lunch, Lin Tian rested for a while until his energy recovered, then immediately began practicing magic incantations. Holding to the idea that "a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush," he decided not to rush into other spells but to continue consolidating Fireball.

Staff in hand, Lin Tian cast Fireball once more. A fireball quickly condensed at the tip of the staff, hovering in the air. Lin Tian gazed at it, feeling the fire elements leaping within, and fell into thought. He recalled Laun's words: most spells involve the mage supplying a portion of mana, using mental energy to attract external elements, and fusing the two to enhance the spell's power. So, what would happen if he cut off the mana and mental energy sustaining the spell?

Lin Tian thought to himself: It's only a first-rank spell, and with my second-rank peak physique, it shouldn't cause too much trouble. So, he decisively severed the mana and mental energy maintaining the fireball. The instant he did, the fireball exploded with a roar, scorching flames splattering in all directions. Lin Tian reacted swiftly, dodging to the side with his agile body.

Watching the fireball's explosion—relatively weak and harmless to him—Lin Tian began a series of experiments. He repeatedly controlled the speed at which he withdrew his mana and mental energy, sometimes trying to withdraw only mana, sometimes only mental energy. Each attempt caused the fireball to burst in a different way, and the training ground echoed with sporadic "bang" sounds of explosions.

After many attempts, Lin Tian was a complete mess, looking like he'd crawled out of a coal pile, his clothes riddled with burn holes. This was because he'd failed to dodge in time while trying to observe the fireball's explosion process in detail. But these experiments gave him a much deeper understanding of the roles mana and mental energy played in Fireball.

Through repeated trial and error, Lin Tian waved his staff, and a fireball shot out instantly. In speed, accuracy, and power, it was no different from when he cast it with an incantation—yet it consumed only a third of the mana and mental energy. This was the minimum ratio he'd deduced from observing countless explosions, the least amount needed to form a fireball.

Next, Lin Tian cast Fireball again, keeping it suspended. At the same time, he recalled the principles of Firebolt that Laun had explained the day before, and tried to infuse the already-formed fireball with mana and mental energy based on those principles.

"Boom!" Another explosion. After several adjustments, Lin Tian finally succeeded in casting a fireball that possessed the speed and power of Firebolt, while consuming the same mana and mental energy as the original Fireball. This meant that a third-rank magus like Lin Tian could instantly cast a second-rank spell, with the mana and mental energy cost of a first-rank spell, and the spell's appearance was indistinguishable from an ordinary Fireball.

Lin Tian imagined himself in a future battle, instantly casting a Fireball while the enemy, expecting a first-rank spell, defended accordingly—only to be killed by this Fireball that was actually a Firebolt in disguise. He couldn't help but let out a sinister chuckle. The guards standing nearby heard the eerie laugh and felt a chill wind blow past, making them shiver involuntarily.

In his excitement, Lin Tian thought further: Since Fireball can have the power of Firebolt, could it also take on the traits of other spells? So, he immediately began new experiments.

At first, when trying second-rank spells, the process was a bit bumpy, but thanks to his deep understanding of Fireball and his strong mental energy, he barely managed. However, when he attempted third-rank spells, after many days of practice, he still couldn't succeed.

Lin Tian felt deeply frustrated, but he didn't give up. After careful thought, he realized that many third-rank spells involved fire elements forming different shapes. Could the problem lie there?

So, Lin Tian started controlling the fireball to change shape. He concentrated, carefully guiding his mana and mental energy, trying to transform the fireball into the shape of a Fire Arrow. At first, the fireball always lost control and exploded during the transformation, but Lin Tian didn't lose heart—he tried again and again.

Finally, after countless failures, the fireball successfully took the shape of an arrow. Sensing his mana and mental energy consumption, Lin Tian smiled with relief. "Now, let's test the power."

He launched the transformed "Fire Arrow," which streaked with a trail of flame toward the distant target. However, its power was only slightly higher than a second-rank Firebolt, falling short of what a third-rank spell should achieve.

In the following days, Lin Tian continued experimenting, constantly adjusting the output of mana and mental energy and controlling the aggregation of elements, but he could never make the "Fire Arrow" reach third-rank power. Still, through this period of practice, Lin Tian could now manipulate the fireball to change into any shape he desired—whether weapons or the magical beasts he'd seen—as long as he imagined it in his mind, he could transform the fireball through his control of mana and mental energy.