In the reading room, Patrick found a book titled On the Synergy of Spell Empowerment and Simplified Metamagic, bearing Thas'wether's name. Its surface also bore arcane runes for authentication, location tracking, and protection against wear.
[If you want to learn metamagic techniques, I recommend starting with Fatigue Immunity and Arcane Empowerment. Using the School of Transmutation's ability to alter the properties of matter, supplemented by enchanting techniques, to understand and master the rules governing arcane energy will be very helpful to you at your current stage.]
[And I have memories of practicing metamagic techniques that I can transfer to you. After receiving them, you will need to put them into practice yourself to master them flexibly.]
Ellen's voice sounded. The arcane training methods she proposed were conventional, yet incorporated the accumulated experience of predecessors.
Memories slowly flowed into Patrick's brain, and concrete manifestations of arcane application gradually unfolded. Guided by Ellen's memories, Patrick's mental world began to activate, and the arcane energy in the reading room stirred.
A protective membrane began forming in Patrick's mental world, shielding his thoughts. Arcane energy came alive, changing freely under his mental guidance. As his mind moved, so did the arcane energy, merging completely with his consciousness. Mental modeling began within his mind, and the arcane energy grew increasingly active. Blue roses appeared in his mind, flowers made entirely of arcane energy, and began projecting outward one after another.
Everyone in the mage tower's reading room felt it. The arcane energy within the room changed, and they saw the phantom image of a rose emerge, only to vanish moments later. The scattering arcane energy left all the elves feeling refreshed and at ease.
Patrick could do nothing about it. With his current fourth-circle arcane reserves, fully activating the surrounding arcane energy was simply impossible. Afterward, his mind continued to activate, and he began tracing arcane runes according to the method in his memories.
Within the range of his mental perception, Patrick discovered that the mage tower was covered in engraved runes, with abundant magical energy flowing through them. Various magical effects operated inside and outside the tower, with isolation, constant temperature, and enhancement effects covering the walls. The levitation propulsion system, however, was enclosed in an isolating barrier, preventing anyone outside from perceiving its structure.
"Can you explain the structural principles behind the mage tower's levitation?" Patrick asked.
[There are only three principles behind levitation. In terms of the physics concepts in your memories, levitation technology can be divided into three broad categories: spatial deconstruction and reconstruction, altering the gravitational constant, and doing work against gravity. Spatial deconstruction and reconstruction places very high demands on the caster's skill and on spatial stability. It also requires protection against nearby spell collisions, spatial fluctuations caused by spells, and similar circumstances. Its practical effectiveness is poor.]
[The second is to alter the gravitational constant of the floating tower or floating city, eliminating its gravity. This approach is the most viable, because the conditions for levitation are relatively simple, and as long as the core propulsion system remains unaffected, the floating tower's safety is generally not compromised. The third is doing work against gravity, applying an upward force to the entire floating structure to counteract its weight. It consumes enormous amounts of energy and is highly uneconomical.] Ellen's voice came through.
In that case, if I wanted to create a gravitational field and use gravity to forcibly attract the surrounding objects, or directly create a gravitational field to counter Azeroth's own gravity, that should also be achievable.
According to the physics formula F = G × m1 × m2/r², if this formula held true on Azeroth, satisfying G × m1 × m2/r² > m2g would suffice, yielding m1 = 2.7 × 10^24 kilograms. By that calculation, the mass of the Astral Star that needed to be created was astronomical, and the amount of arcane energy it would consume could not even be estimated. It was impossible with Patrick's current abilities.
[Controlling gravity is possible on Azeroth. You could consider starting with compression magic, using Spiritual Power to compress the gravitational sphere's volume and having arcane energy mimic the form of earth elements to increase its mass. In magical terms, evocation manipulates magical energy and refines elemental control, while the Transmutation School changes its physical properties and creates energy fields. Master these aspects of magic,
and you can achieve control over gravity.] Between thinking of something and obtaining it lay the task of actually doing it.
He immediately got to work practicing magic.
Patrick continually gathered arcane energy, shaping it in his palm and striving to control the arcane sphere's volume, keeping it stable. He slowly began changing the magic's elemental form while also using his Spiritual Power to constrain the arcane sphere's volume and make it contract. The prolonged mental strain left Patrick feeling utterly exhausted. Training his Spiritual Power could only proceed gradually.
After several weeks of practice, Patrick's face was covered in stubble, and he looked exhausted. The entire laboratory and study were a mess, as though no one had tidied them, but Patrick himself knew that his Spiritual Power and control had made a tremendous leap during this time.
Thas'wether's Tower, office
"The speed and efficiency of this delivery of logistical supplies were indeed impressive. We have ample time to process the materials and send them to the front. Unlike the Council's usual logistics troops, they didn't arrive just before the deadline. It was truly a pleasant surprise." Lorathelis handed the materials report to Thas'wether.
"The young elf from the Cabrolon Family did very well in that regard. How are his studies in the floating tower going?" Thas'wether asked.
"He is diligent in his studies, so diligent that he hardly seems like one of our people. The elves of Silvermoon City all make pleasure their goal in life. That quality is very rare in him."
"Rather than diligence, I would call it focus, a focus on arcane knowledge. Perhaps I could write him a letter of recommendation, recommending him to the Royal Academy of Arcane Arts as an assistant to Archmage Sailervor." Thas'wether raised his head and looked at Lorathelis.
"Have him enter the Royal Academy of Arcane Arts directly? Even with your recommendation, Master, he is only an arcanist who has just reached the fourth circle. His chances of studying at the Royal Academy of Arcane Arts aren't very good."
"I will give him the recommendation letter and let him choose when to use it."
Quel'Thalas was governed by mages, and its political system was a parliamentary monarchy. Political power within the country was shared among the high-ranking clans through the Council, while the royal Sunstrider family represented the nation but "reigned without governing" domestically. In Quel'Thalas, the royal family was regarded as the representative of the people's interests and spirit, as well as the central force maintaining national unity and solidarity among the high elves.
In Quel'Thalas, the Cabrolon family was merely a middling clan affiliated with the Silvermoon Council. Its main industries were alchemy and herbalism, and its primary income depended on the nation's annual procurement and trade. The family head, Phil-Cabrolon, was a Fifth Ring arcanist. His older brother, Patterson-Cabrolon, was only a fourth-circle mage, while the latter's wife, the herbalist Nasalan Cabrolon, was not a spellcaster and had studied under the senior botanist Frewen.
For the Cabrolon family, the emergence of a high-ranking spellcaster among its members would mean that he might enter the Silvermoon Council, the highest center of power in Quel'Thalas. This was also the simplest and most direct route to the pinnacle of power in Quel'Thalas.
For thousands of years, the royal family had held exclusive control only over the Sunwell, while the Silvermoon Council administered all the kingdom's affairs. For more than six thousand years, both the Council and the royal family had kept strictly to their respective roles without overstepping them, and Quel'Thalas had consequently remained stable.
But the royal family had to consolidate its position, recruit sufficient talent to serve it, ensure the people's prosperity, and maintain internal stability.
Thas'wether believed that young Cabrolon would probably not pass up this opportunity. High elves lived long lives, and after entering the Royal Academy of Arcane Arts for further study, he might need only a few centuries to take office in the Silvermoon Council or become the king's right-hand man, then slowly come to understand and grasp the core power of Quel'Thalas.
For King Anasterian, winning over high-ranking arcane talent would greatly benefit Sunstrider royal authority, solidifying the royal family's influence, strengthening its control over every aspect of Quel'Thalassian society, and ensuring that Sunstrider royal power never fell into other hands.
Thus, once Patrick entered the Royal Academy of Arcane Arts, barring unforeseen circumstances, he would naturally be labeled a royalist. Even if he accumulated enough seniority to hold public office, he would inevitably face exclusion from the Council. The Council would not allow royalists to come and share its power; likewise, the royalists would not allow the Council to encroach upon the Sunwell temple.
Thas'wether considered Patrick's arcane talent outstanding, so he intended to have him enter the academy early and become one of the Royalists.
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