How to Use the Thorn Whip

After packing them up, Su Ming weighed them in his hands. These crystal cores didn't look very big, but he estimated they weighed about twenty or thirty kilograms.

"Bennyfinn doesn't mind the weight either," Su Ming complained, adding that he was quite tired carrying all that stuff last night.

"He certainly didn't mind; the value of these stones was equivalent to most of the Whitaker Territory."

"Wouldn't that mean I'm robbing them of this year's tax revenue?" Su Ming said.

"Taxes?" Zijin smiled. "That's the money to buy most of the territory! Magic Crystal Core have an extremely low production rate!"

Whitaker Territory is not small; it ranks among the top territories in the Northern Lands. Su Ming looked surprised; he found it hard to believe that the package in his hand could be compared to such a vast territory.

There are indeed legends in other worlds about dragons liking valuable things. Previously, Su Ming saw Zijin looking down on gold coins.

I thought it was just a rumor. Now it seems that it's not that Zijin doesn't like it, but that she simply doesn't care about things like gold coins.

****

Considering the scholars' health, Su Ming locked up the raw stones. He then went to the library carriage and found several books on the Church of the God of Light to read. Most of these books were in Divine Language, but Zijin also collected some versions in common language.

The former saintess was clearly puzzled. "Are you going to convert to the God of Light?" she asked doubtfully. "You don't need to rely on these to build your spiritual system."

"I know absolutely nothing about the teachings of the God of Light, and I almost gave myself away in front of Yise last night," Su Ming explained.

"Then I suggest you read the Divine Language version directly; the Common Language has many unique connotations of Light that can't be translated," said Zijin. "I have a study notebook on Divine Language; it's not difficult to learn. Besides, it's a mechanical language, not dependent on intuition."

That complex language with no rules was actually described as not difficult by Zijin, leaving Su Ming to lament that he didn't understand the world of academic geniuses.

"No, no, I just want to get a general idea," he immediately declined, then continued studying the general popular version in his hand.

The God of Light, like the Goddess of the Moon worshipped by unicorns, is categorized as God of the Mind in this world.

The doctrine does not shy away from the fact that these things do not have a physical form. On the contrary, what they emphasize is the mind.

This is another world, where the mind is power, and there is no boundary between illusion and reality. Any consciousness and cognition can be integrated into spells and combat techniques, and play a real role. To take an extreme example, the "evil god" believer that Old Luo's family encountered, his self-deceptive evil god's descent could truly increase his power for a short period of time.

Different pantheons also have their own focuses. Followers of the Light pantheon excel in light magic and healing, while followers of the Moon Goddess are exceptionally strong in mental magic. The magic of the corresponding pantheon is often referred to as divine magic. In addition, there are special combat class paths, such as the Paladin and Watcher of the Light pantheon, and the Moon Prayer and Moon Dancer of the Moon Goddess pantheon.

In short, faith in another world is not an illusion, but a real and tangible force.

Su Ming continued reading, and it was precisely these realizations that led him to understand that no God of the Mind doctrine involved the giving of material things. His response to Yise at the time couldn't even be explained by ignorance; fortunately, he changed the subject and managed to get away with it.

"Is Yise will probably not hold it against me when he finds out later?" Su Ming pondered.

As he read, Su Ming a question. He asked the former saint, "The doctrine says that the Divine Favor Scepter is a gift of divine mercy—doesn't this contradict the concept of the God of the Mind?"

Instead, the unicorn interjected, answering the question, "The Divine Favor Weapon' refers to the Creator God, not the God of Light." She spoke with a mocking expression, looking at Zijin, "Their doctrine has been revised countless times over the past millennium, with version numbers reaching double digits—the Founding Version, the Contract Version, the General Version, and so on. The earliest record even states that the God of Light was the mount of the Creator God. Such minor retconning is utterly insignificant."

"The doctrine of the Goddess of the Moon remains consistent," Zijin replied sarcastically, "Except for the Moon Goddess's gender; it seems she was male from the beginning?"

Both of them stopped talking at the same time. Qiluo finished the soup in her bowl, and Zijin closed the book on the table.

Su Ming watched helplessly as the two of them pounced on each other, pulling each other's hair. The unicorn, relying on its weight and strength, and Zijin, relying on buff spells for assistance, fought back and forth in the workshop.

"Um, Ailisha, are you still a follower of the God of Light?" Su Ming asked doubtfully. She had demolished the Saint Lan Cathedral, and now the Heavenly Father of the Gospel was mounted on the front of the Youth Civilization train, working as a laborer.

"Of course it counts. The God of Light is the God of Light, and the Church is the Church. It doesn't matter," Zijin said breathlessly. She grabbed one of the unicorn's hooves, clamped it with her legs, and pulled with both hands. The unicorn immediately let out a loud cry and pounded the floor.

"Where did you learn the armbar?" Su Ming felt a chill run down his spine; the scholar hadn't used it on him during training.

Thanks to my buddy Unicorn for stepping in the foot for him!

"There's a folder called 'Unzipped Videos' on the new computer you gave me," Zijin explained, glancing at the hoof in her arms. "There are a lot of interesting videos in there, like cleaning carpets, wrestling, poking at slime, and stuff like that."

"Is there also a method to cut horse hooves?" Su Ming asked urgently.

"Don't you dare touch my beautiful fingernails!" the unicorn cried out in alarm.

"Will you still speak ill of the God of Light next time?" Zijin conjured a sharp scimitar with Magic Power in her hand and threatened.

"I was just stating a fact... Ah no... Waaah, I know!"

The devout followers of the God of Light released the Children of the Moon with satisfaction, and the latter ran off to find Hansite, sobbing.

****

Zijin stretched her arms and looked at Su Ming, "It's our turn?"

Su Ming assessed his condition; his Magic Power had recovered to about half, enough for combat training. "Alright."

This time, the scholar didn't go for the high-intensity build; the two of them dissected the strategies they had recently come up with. There were melee and long-range combination spells.

"Zijin, what methods do you have when facing enemies with exceptionally good equipment and extremely strong defenses?" Su Ming asked.

He created some distance, cast a few spells, then charged forward, switching his Thorn Staff into longsword form and unleashing an enchanted slash that he wasn't yet very familiar with.

Zijin used her shield to take the hit and felt the power, then shook her head at him.

"You want to deal with Yise?" She was somewhat surprised by Su Ming's question. "That girl has top-tier equipment; she's very difficult to obtain."

"Not entirely." Su Ming briefly described last night's battle, "Things like that thief's leather armor and old man Bennyfinn's protective robe could both cause me trouble."

"That's what armor is for. Yexiya wore armor the second time she fought us, didn't she?" The scholar used a combination of minor spells to bait out Su Ming's movement and defensive skills, then closed in and placed her hand on his shoulder. Then the girl released him and raised her hand to indicate that she needed to rest.

Zijin picked up a towel and wiped the light sweat from her body. Although as a spellcaster she didn't need to rely on physical skills to kill, she had to understand how she would be beaten by physical combatants, especially in terms of close-range reaction training.

You may not be able to utilize your strengths, but your weaknesses will certainly be exploited by your enemies.

"You've only been practicing for a little over three months. With their level of defense, you'll be able to crush them in a while." She picked up her water glass and took a sip. "Study more regularly, increase your understanding of the characteristics of different defensive spells or items, and choose targeted strategies when fighting." As she spoke, she finished her glass in one gulp. "That burrito this morning was really salty."

It seems it takes time to build up a foundation. Su Ming nodded, though he was clearly a bit impatient. "It's a bit salty. I'll make you something lighter for lunch."

"It's been a while since I've had any of your cooking." Zijin suddenly remembered something and clapped her hands. She looked at Su Ming happily, "I want to eat clear soup with meatballs."

Su Ming had thought she had come up with a tactic that suited him, but his initial excitement was short-lived. "Alright, I'll go check the refrigerator."

The girl suddenly grabbed his clothes and pulled him back to where he was. "Now let's get down to business. I've thought of a shortcut that might work for you."

"A shortcut?" Su Ming immediately perked up his ears.

"Yes, didn't you use ' Elemental Fade ' before?" The scholar, who had come up with a clever solution, was in a good mood. "The Deathly Word can directly dismantle all kinds of shields, barriers, and armor. Your magic has special penetrating power, making this dismantling style perfect for you!"

In addition to "Elemental Fade" which removes magical shields, the Deathly Word skill set also includes "Arcane Collapse" which dismantles barriers.

And "Wondrous Item Disjunction," which destroys armor.

"No, all the spells in this series must be cast at close range," Su Ming shook his head. "The limitations in actual combat are too great. Either I'm not agile enough, or I can't keep up with the speed, or if I get close, I'll die first."

Therefore, he only studied "Elemental Fade" to dispel magical effects.

"That's what makes it so special." The girl took the thorny longsword from his hand and folded it into the shape of a whip. "This Saint Rank weapon in your hand is one of the very few that can transmit spells, and it's the best among them."

Zijin swung her long whip, wrapping it around the door handle at the other end of the carriage.

Touch of Frost!

This is also a contact-type spell, requiring the caster to touch the target. However, in Zijin's hands, blue runes flowed along the long whip, instantly covering the carriage door.

Frost formed on the door, spreading from the handle outwards, accompanied by Qiluo's shriek from outside, "Waaaaah, my hands, my hands, they're frozen!"

The girl put away the whip and returned it to Su Ming. "That's why this weapon is also known as the Dark Tentacle. Back when it was in the hands of the Holy Mage Russell, it struck fear into the hearts of enemies."

Su Ming was somewhat dumbfounded, "So the whip is actually the strongest form of the thorn weapon?"

Zijin was somewhat puzzled. "Yes, its original form is naturally the strongest. The sword and staff forms are only for dealing with emergencies—is there anything you don't understand?"

Su Ming shook his head. He had always thought this Saint Rank weapon wasn't very powerful, and spinning it around wasn't very satisfying. Only its sword form was quite easy to use for slashing. Now he realized it was simply because he, the user, was too incompetent.

This is a weapon capable of changing the rules of the battlefield; it truly deserves the title of Saint Rank!

Next came the instruction. Su Ming had only ever attached dark energy to his whip to erode enemies; now, he was to deliver the complete technique, a world of difference in difficulty.

He studied diligently all morning and memorized the method, but his success rate was abysmal. However, this kind of thing requires a gradual approach and cannot be accomplished overnight.

****

It was almost time, so Su Ming stopped practicing and went to make lunch. He chopped the meat, mixed it with egg whites and water, and beat it until smooth.

Hansite also came to help.

"Did you take me back to my room last night?" Su Ming asked him.

"It wasn't me. Before you returned last night, Lord Li contacted us to preheat the boilers, and you set off immediately upon your return," Hansite replied. "Younier and I were in the locomotive cab the whole time."

Su Ming was somewhat surprised to hear this; he had assumed that the glass of water was prepared by Hansite or Younier.

"Understood." He nodded, but couldn't help but smile slightly.

Because it was traveling on a river, the train was very smooth and moved forward without incident. After lunch, Su Ming unfolded the map.

Calibrate the gyroscope and correct the current position.

After that, he spent his time learning the "Wondrous Item Disjunction" and "Arcane Collapse" spells. Su Ming was quite quick at disassembling and memorizing the runes, after all, his years of school training on Earth were really helpful.

Su Ming was in a good mood and quickly began to build his spellcasting system. However, he encountered a major obstacle at this step. The spells would collapse as soon as he started, and he could not get the hang of it no matter how many times he tried.

When asked for help, Zijin said she couldn't help either. The "Deathly Word" series is somewhat niche, and she herself doesn't know how to do it.

"Many spells have inexplicable affinity and some hidden elements," Zijin explained to Su Ming. "How did you learn ' Elemental Fade ' in the first place?"

Su Ming thought back carefully, "The Deathly Word - Elemental Fade" can be traced back to the night when Zijin first got drunk. After he put the calmed-down Zijin back in her room, he saw that it was still early, so he went to his workshop alone and flipped through spellbooks, and grasped the basics in one night.

After much thought, Su Ming still couldn't find anything special. He had no choice but to continue trying, while diligently taking notes and observing.

Zijin also studied Natural Rhythm diligently, and by evening, neither of them wanted to touch a book anymore.

The scholar turned on her computer and opened a decompression video; this time it was a compilation of hydraulic press videos.

Su Ming thought for a moment, "Zijin, how about we play a game?"

"Okay!" Zijin quickly agreed, "But not the Tetris from last time."

Unable to find a suitable one in his notebook, Su Ming turned his attention back to Earth.

It was daytime there, Miao Xin had just received a delivery and was riding her electric scooter down the street.

"Good morning," Su Ming said casually, since he hadn't paid attention to what time it was on Earth. A day in the other world was about two hours longer than on Earth, so Su Ming had to check his watch to know the time there.

"Good morning," Miao Xin replied. She stopped in front of a trash can, unpacked the item she had just received, and found many tiny chips and a small memory card inside. "My dad gave it to me. He said his friend helped him set up the drone firmware and open-source flight controller. You can use it normally after you install it; it integrates common hardware types."

"Your dad has impressive connections," Su Ming said.

Things happened too fast and too smoothly. He didn't know much about drones and was a little unsure.