An unknown amount of time passed.
Matthew tried to draw in, absorb, and convert elemental particles of every color.
After careful comparison and experience, he discovered a somewhat disappointing fact:
Except for the colorless particles, the conversion process for all other colored particles was not smooth and was highly inefficient. Blue and yellow particles were even exceptionally laborious to convert, and their nourishing effect on his spiritual core after conversion was far less stable and efficient than that of the white particles.
“How can this be...” Matthew felt a slight chill in his heart.
He had originally thought that at least one or two elemental affinities would stand out and assist in his meditation practice, but he had never expected such a result.
This was somewhat disheartening.
After all, according to the description in the 【Elemental Meditation Method】, those with a high affinity for a certain element would often achieve twice the result with half the effort when practicing the corresponding attribute's meditation method or spells.
However, this slight chill only rippled across the lake of his mind for a moment before settling down.
“Having poor talent... is acceptable.”
Matthew quickly adjusted his mindset. After all, he was no genius in his previous life either.
“I have the panel. As long as I'm willing to put in the effort, I can always slowly build up my proficiency. It's nothing more than spending a bit more time and investing a bit more energy than others.”
“So what if I'm a bit slower? Step by step, I will eventually reach the top,” Matthew muttered to himself, the slight disappointment that had just arisen completely dispelled by his firm resolve.
Once his mind stabilized, Matthew resumed his meditation. This time, his goal was to specifically absorb the white elemental particles around him.
However, there was something Matthew did not know.
This phenomenon of seemingly having “poor affinity” for all colored elemental particles did not mean he had poor talent. Instead, it indicated that Matthew possessed a “non-attributed affinity constitution.”
A “non-attributed affinity constitution” was not a sign of low talent, but rather a specific type of elemental affinity.
People with this constitution possessed a natural adaptability to white particles. Their efficiency in converting these non-attributed particles was comparable to that of those with a “specific attribute affinity constitution” converting their aligned elements, with no inherent superiority or inferiority between them.
The core difference between the two lay in their talent—namely, the level of their affinity strength—rather than the quality of the affinity type itself.
Furthermore, those with a “non-attributed affinity constitution” could also learn and cast spells of specific attributes, such as the Fireball spell or Frostbolt...
Although their progress and efficiency in learning and casting spells of non-aligned attributes might not match those with the corresponding elemental affinity, they could focus on learning and casting non-attributed spells, such as the Energy Missile or Void Arrow... and achieve excellent results with them.
Therefore, this merely reflected a difference in developmental paths and early skill choices, rather than a fundamental gap in potential.
However, such knowledge could only be acquired by joining a professional wizard organization.
...
Time flew like a runaway horse, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
On a morning five days later, the morning mist had not yet completely dispersed over the familiar open ground on the east side of Stone Mill Village.
A young man stood in front of an old tree, his lips moving slightly as he silently repeated a tongue-twisting combination of syllables.
“Lamo lamo, liesuo liesuo...”
Though every syllable was incomprehensible and tongue-twisting, Matthew's voice was low and continuous. He enunciated every single syllable with precision, as if it had already been integrated into his instincts.
As the syllables were gradually uttered, at a certain moment, he finally completed the construction of the spell structure for the first time!
Although it was still incredibly fragile!
But Matthew would not let this opportunity slip away!
After all, as long as he succeeded once and reached the Mastered rank, he would no longer have to worry.
Matthew steeled his resolve.
As the final syllable of the incantation fell, his output of Spirit reached a stable peak.
At the same time, he had already quietly activated the 【Elemental Meditation Method】. His Spirit extended outward like invisible tentacles, rapidly capturing the free-floating, non-attributed elemental particles in the air.
“Now!”
Guided by his thoughts, several pure energy particles wrapped in his Spirit were rapidly drawn in, channeling along the path constructed by the incantation into the spell model condensing at his fingertips.
In an instant, a fist-sized, slightly trembling, translucent sphere of energy emerged in front of his palm, its surface enveloped by chaotic and weak air currents.
A sharp light flashed in Matthew's eyes as he locked onto the trunk of the old tree ahead!
“Go!”
His Spirit snapped like a drawn bowstring, and the newly formed 【Energy Missile】 shot out, slicing through the morning mist and leaving a blurry white afterimage in its wake.
Bang!
A quiet but exceptionally dull impact echoed.
The missile exploded against the tree trunk, sending wood shavings flying. It left behind a crescent-shaped gouge with blackened inner walls and faint tearing marks along the edges.
Matthew slowly withdrew his hand, feeling the noticeable depletion of Spirit within his body and the slight emptiness emanating from his spiritual core after casting the spell.
“I finally did it!”
He stared at the mark on the tree and murmured to himself, “I didn't expect that even with such a fragile spell structure, the power would be this terrifying!”
One had to realize that this was merely his first successful cast, yet its destructive power already far exceeded that of a Black Iron Rank Class holder!
If a kobold were to take a direct hit, it would probably be pierced straight through by the missile!
“A full five days!”
Gazing at the crescent gouge on the tree, Matthew felt not only the joy of success but also a sense of relief mixed with exhaustion.
Over these five days, apart from practicing 【Melting Slash】, he had poured almost all of his remaining energy into practicing 【Energy Missile】. The process had been far more difficult than he had anticipated.
“This incantation... is just too tongue-twisting.”
He could not help but mutter to himself, recalling his embarrassment during the first few days.
For those tongue-twisting combinations of syllables, the connection between each syllable, the pitch of his voice, and the subtle fluctuations of his Spirit had to align perfectly.
When he first started practicing, he would either mispronounce a syllable and cause his Spirit to disperse, or his Spirit output would fall out of sync with the rhythm of the syllables—not to mention building the spell framework!
He had repeated it hundreds and thousands of times to finally train his tongue and lip muscles to develop a memory close to instinct, allowing him to recite it so fluidly this morning.
Even more troublesome than the incantation was the construction of the spell structure.
Initially, his control over his Spirit was still quite crude. The outlined framework would either twist and deform, or the structure would instantly collapse the moment he injected the elemental particles, rendering all his efforts in vain.
Although his control over his Spirit had improved slightly through continuous meditation practice, the requirement to construct and maintain a complex spell model with such meticulous precision still felt incredibly demanding.
It was on this very morning, during yet another near-mechanical repetition of his practice.
Perhaps his accumulation had reached a critical threshold, or perhaps his focus had reached its absolute peak at that exact moment, but he felt the invisible barrier between the incantation and his Spirit suddenly grow thin.
When the final syllable fell, the spell structure that had always been on the verge of collapsing finally presented itself clearly and completely within his spiritual core!
And Matthew seized this opportunity!
At the same time.
A line of black text popped up before his eyes, bringing him a pleasant surprise!
Rate on N.U.
