The next morning, thick mist drifted through the sky.
Weather like this was especially common, even on the outskirts of London.
Gerald got up early and made breakfast for Grandpa Henry. After they ate together, he tucked his wand and A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration into his clothes and headed out.
After driving the sheep to their usual hillside, Gerald began his daily cultivation.
The Mountain-Holding Fist, a foundational fist technique recorded in the Divine Firmament Five-Elements Heavenly Thunder Art, was something Gerald had practiced for nearly ten years.
Although it was called a fist technique, it was actually more like a complete body-refinement method.
Through specific movements and breathing exercises, he absorbed spiritual energy from his surroundings to temper his muscles, bones, skin, and flesh.
By now, he could shatter a three-foot-tall boulder with a single punch.
Gerald was confident that even without magic, he could throw his weight around among the first-years at Hogwarts.
After all, in the original Harry Potter books, wizards were only so much stronger physically than ordinary people.
Hand-to-hand combat? Not a chance.
Some wizarding spells certainly had terrifying destructive power.
But their physical fitness...
"Glass cannons."
Gerald delivered a precise verdict.
"Someone who can dish it out and take a beating like me should be a rare breed at Hogwarts, right?"
Gerald finished the final movement of the Mountain-Holding Fist and settled into a standing position.
[Cultivation] Eighth Layer of Chain-Form Refining Essence (975/1600)
He could feel the warm current within him growing a little stronger, slowly permeating his muscles, bones, skin, and flesh.
The corners of Gerald's mouth lifted slightly.
Still, he did not let it go to his head.
Chain-Form Essence Refinement was only the starting point on the path to immortality. It did not even count as truly entering that path.
Only after breaking through to Refining Essence into Qi and gaining a basic ability to use mystical arts and talismans would he truly transcend the ordinary.
Of course, Gerald would not abandon his magic practice either. Each had its own strengths.
Besides, the Ancient Magic from the Legacy game might exist here too, and its power was nothing to scoff at.
With that thought, Gerald drew his wand and began practicing.
Gradually, however, he noticed a problem: although he had mastered some spells, he could not make them particularly powerful.
Take the simplest example, the Levitation Charm. At present, he could only lift a seven- or eight-pound stone about ten feet into the air.
Anything heavier was beyond him.
One more try.
"Wingardium Leviosa."
Gerald took a deep breath and tried again.
This time, he chose a larger stone, weighing somewhere in the teens of pounds.
The stone floated up, but it began shaking violently once it reached about six feet.
Gerald lowered his wand and let the stone fall.
"Just as I thought."
He stared thoughtfully at the wand in his hand.
He had vaguely noticed this problem while practicing at home the night before.
The wand has already accepted me as its master. Could I be short on magical power?
Gerald could not help frowning.
From what he knew of the original books in his previous life, magical talent was what mattered most for a wizard, and every wizard's talents were different.
Some excelled at Potions, others at Transfiguration, and still others at Dark Magic.
Without the necessary talent, significant achievement was unlikely.
Beyond that, the original books were rather vague about magical power. The strength of a wizard's spells depended more on intense emotions and unwavering conviction.
For example, Mrs. Weasley, who might ordinarily have been slightly weaker than the Death Eater Bellatrix, displayed staggering combat prowess when protecting Ginny.
He had also found confirmation in the first-year textbook Magical Theory. Its nearly two hundred pages essentially explained a single statement: magic was a manifestation of a wizard's will.
However, there was indeed a phenomenon where a spell grew relatively stronger the more often a wizard used it.
This was similar to proficiency.
Take the famous master of Obliviate, Gilderoy Lockhart, and our master of disarming, Harry Potter.
Could every wizard's magical power and talent be fixed from birth, while how much they can actually wield depends on developing it afterward?
That development could come through constant practice or a sudden burst of emotion.
The more Gerald thought about it, the more he felt this conjecture might be extremely close to the truth.
It also explained why a spell became relatively more powerful as someone grew proficient in using it.
In other words...
Want to get stronger? Just grind!
At that thought, Gerald relaxed a little.
He was not afraid of grinding.
He had survived working nine to nine, six days a week in his previous life. Practicing magic was far easier than slaving away at a job.
Even if it was tiring, at least it was fun!
Imagining a future where he wielded both magic and mystical arts sent excitement surging through him.
Gerald soon turned his attention back to practicing magic.
He sat on the grass, wand in his right hand, and opened A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration to the first chapter.
Transfiguration was one of the most complex and dangerous branches of magic.
Dumbledore was one of its most accomplished masters.
Gerald settled down and read for nearly an hour.
The first-year textbook contained only the simplest transformations, such as turning a match into a needle or a mouse into a teacup.
Let's give it a try.
Gerald picked up a twig from the ground, laid it in his left palm, and raised his wand with his right hand.
Performing Transfiguration was somewhat different from casting ordinary spells.
Besides requiring extremely fine control of magical power, it also demanded a very clear intent.
He stared at the twig in his palm and pictured a needle in his mind.
Slender, sharp, silvery white, with a tiny eye at the top.
He gently touched his wand to the twig.
"Vertus."
The twig trembled, then began to change.
One end grew sharp and the other rounded, while its color changed from brown to a dull silver.
Gerald picked up the transformed "twig" and examined it.
It was shaped like a needle, but it was still made of wood.
"Not quite a needle. Still a long way off."
He tried several more times. Each attempt brought the twig closer to looking like a needle, but he could never fully turn it into metal.
Transfiguration really isn't easy to master. Still, I've got more than a month left. I'll get the hang of it sooner or later.
Gerald had never
imagined that one day he would be so eager to learn.
Interest really was the best teacher.
When people were interested in something, they naturally began pushing themselves harder.
Gerald made up his mind: he would excel in both Daoist arts and magic.
He kept practicing the Transfiguration Spell until he began to feel dizzy and weak.
Looks like I'm almost at my limit. This is all the magical power I have at this stage, and it's nearly depleted.
But Gerald had no intention of resting.
When magic practice wore him out, he could switch to cultivating immortality and give his mind a change of pace.
He pulled several Ironwire Vines from inside his clothes.
Ironwire Vine was a low-grade Spirit Herb containing a faint trace of spiritual energy. It could be consumed directly or used as a supplementary ingredient in low-grade medicinal pills.
Gerald put the Ironwire Vines into his mouth and chewed.
A cool liquid seeped out of the leaves and slid down his throat into his belly, then turned into a warm current that circulated slowly through his body.
He closed his eyes and began practicing the body-refinement method of the Divine Firmament Five-Elements Heavenly Thunder Art.
The warm current was guided through his meridians, gradually merging into every part of his body.
The number on the panel began to climb.
[Cultivation] Eighth Layer of Chain-Form Refining Essence (984/1600)
It had increased by fewer than ten points.
That was somewhat more efficient than practicing the fist technique alone, but only by a little.
Gerald opened his eyes and muttered helplessly.
"The Spirit Herbs are getting less and less effective."
Ironwire Vine was the lowest-grade Spirit Herb, so its medicinal potency had always been limited.
Moreover, he had consumed so much of it over the past few years that his body had developed some resistance. The same Spirit Herb now supplied less and less spiritual energy.
Looks like I'll have to find some better Spirit Herbs. But I've already searched everywhere around town. I'll have to try my luck somewhere else in the future.
As he considered this, a certain place suddenly came to Gerald's mind.
"Maybe I'll find plenty of things I need there. But I'll have to wait until school starts to go."
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