128: Chapter 0128 New Witchcraft

The communication ended.

Li Size slowly put down the communicator engraved with miniature runes, his palm gliding over its surface as his gaze gradually sharpened.

He looked out at the sky over Gray Mist Mountain, shrouded in mist, within which thunderheads churned, looking as if a torrential downpour was imminent. He thought to himself:

This so-called 'mole investigation'... is it a genuine loophole review, or just a drama orchestrated by Jier behind the scenes?

Regardless, he clenched his cuff, already prepared to face whatever came.

After ending the call, Li Size calmly returned to the Gray Mist Mountain Academy, immersing himself once more in the daily grind of sorcery Cultivate and skill honing.

Recently, good news kept arriving...

The Ice Arrow Spell and Firebolt Spell, initially obtained for him by Felina, after days of exceptionally strenuous study and ceaseless casting, finally reached the Peak of Great Master proficiency that day: 100/100.

Everything was perfectly timed; it was the optimal moment for deduction and optimization.

As his understanding of sorcery deepened, Li Size realized that the most basic Flame Arrow was actually a necessary prerequisite for the First Ring sorcery, 'Fireball Spell'.

To master the more powerful Fireball Spell, one must first thoroughly understand the Flame Arrow.

This is because the Rune Array for the Fireball Spell is an expansion and reconstruction based on the original rune model of the Flame Arrow.

Behind every powerful sorcery lies a strict system of knowledge; they are not simple skills that can be cast casually.

Ordinary sorcerers often spend a long time and expend great mental effort to Cultivate sorcery.

But for Li Size, with the help of the Pay-to-Win Ability's Analysis function, all of this was merely a problem solvable with gold coins.

These thoughts flashed through his mind, and Li Size immediately activated Pay-to-Win Analysis without hesitation.

After so many deductions, he could even think about other things while performing the Analysis. Perhaps one day, he could achieve Divided Soul multitasking.

[Consuming 10,000 Energy Points, deducing and optimizing Zero-Ring Sorcery 'Flame Arrow']

[Generated 'Unnamed' Zero-Ring Sorcery Model]

When the Analysis completed, a brand new sorcery model's information flooded his memory.

The original Flame Arrow only had thirty sets of runes, with a simple structure. Its principle was the aggregation, shaping, and explosion of fire-attribute energy particles.

The optimized model's runes increased to eighty-two sets, incorporating complex runes mastered recently. The principle newly added high-temperature control, combustion efficiency improvement, and air compression propulsion modules.

Li Size focused his mind to construct the new model and attempted to cast it.

The originally thick Firebolt suddenly contracted, transforming into a twenty-centimeter-long incandescent ray—actually a highly condensed stream of excited fire element particles carrying terrifying high temperatures.

Unlike potion recipes constrained by Materials, sorcery evolution relies on the superposition of runes and knowledge.

Theoretically, as long as new runes are continuously added and the model is adjusted, sorcery deduction can proceed infinitely.

The prerequisite is mastering the sorcery to the Great Master level or higher.

This is easy to understand: how can you modify something you haven't mastered well?

Typically, a sorcerer must Cultivate the original sorcery to its extreme:

Not only must they be able to precisely construct the rune sequence and energy flow, achieving a casting error rate below one in a thousand.

They must also engrave the core logic of the sorcery into their subconscious through deep meditation.

Simultaneously, they must strengthen their Mental Energy threshold to bear the energy fluctuations during modification.

On this foundation, they combine professional knowledge such as elemental affinity theory and rune combination logic—

Selecting suitable new runes (such as replacing fire element runes with lightning element runes to boost explosive power), and attempting to adjust and optimize the structure of the original sorcery.

Conventional sorcery modification requires going through four core steps:

The first step is dismantling the core cycle of the original sorcery: analyzing the sorcery's core rune matrix, marking the immutable fundamental nodes (like the energy input port) and the adjustable elastic areas (like the effect magnification module).

The second step is embedding new runes, requiring verification of compatibility through rune compatibility tests to avoid chaotic energy resonance caused by rune conflict.

The third step is small-scale experimentation: driving the modified sorcery with Mental Energy, observing whether the energy output is stable. If anomalies like halo distortion or Mental Energy stinging occur, the process must cease immediately.

The fourth step is iterative optimization: fine-tuning the rune spacing or sequence order based on experimental results, repeatedly deducing and experimenting until the effect meets expectations.

However, the risk during this process is extremely high:

Rune conflicts can cause energy backflow, resulting in body burns at best, and collapse of the Mental Sea at worst; excessively pursuing effect enhancement might also break the Mental Energy limit, causing permanent coma.

And most sorcerers need to spend over 8 hours daily practicing basic sorcery, collecting magic Materials, or completing commissions, plus modification requires consuming large amounts of resources like rare rune paper and magic crystal powder.

Where would they find the time to modify sorcery?

Therefore, very few people venture into this area.

The sorcerers who can step into the field of sorcery modification are truly rare.

Li Size pondered for a moment, naming the new spell 'Once Modified Firebolt Spell'.

It hadn't completely shed the form of an arrow, and this modification wasn't the end; there would be second and third upgrades in the future.

The nutrients driving the upgrades would be new runes and knowledge from newly learned fire-element sorceries.

It turned out this was also why most sorcerers delved deeply into a single field: without external assistance, deep focus on one area maximized efficiency.

▌ Once Modified Firebolt Spell (Cannot be upgraded, can be modified)

Notes:

Your knowledge in the fire sorcery field far surpasses your peers, relying on profound knowledge reserves and rune mastery.

You have successfully optimized and reconstructed the model of the basic Firebolt Spell, creating this entirely new sorcery.

Energy Level: 4.8 Energy Level; Additional: 1400°C High Temperature;

Range 150 meters, Flight Speed: 300 meters/second

The base Energy Level is as high as 4.8. Combined with Li Size's own Mental Energy enhancement and equivalent bonuses, daily casting can stably reach Level 11. If the 'Grand Display' effect is activated, the power of this Zero-Ring Sorcery can even surge to Level 13.8—which is almost touching the threshold of the weakest First Ring Sorcery at Level 15!

Li Size felt a surge of excitement internally but maintained restraint.

He still had surplus Energy Points, so he unhesitatingly performed deduction and optimization on the Ice Arrow Spell as well:

▌ Once Modified Ice Arrow Spell (Cannot be upgraded, can be modified)

Notes: This sorcery has achieved a significant Breakthrough in the path of freezing effects.

Energy Level: 2.4 Energy Level; Additional: Minus 100°C Low Temperature, capable of instantly freezing a relatively small area.

Range 150 meters, Flight Speed: 300 meters/second

Through his actual testing, the so-called 'relatively small area' refers to a circular range with a diameter of about thirty centimeters centered at the impact point.

Upon impact, the target would instantly freeze stiff, its internal structure completely destroyed by the sorcery energy.

It is worth mentioning that these two Zero Ring Sorceries, after their first modification, have completely shed the previous restriction of being 'unshareable' because their models have been thoroughly reconstructed.

As their creator and owner, Li Size could now freely use them for trade, teaching, or exchange for other knowledge.

Their enhanced value far surpassed that of the vast majority of Zero Ring Sorceries.

He would no longer face awkward situations like before at the Vesselin Wizard Market, where he lacked suitable exchange items.

The new semester arrived, and spring also came to Gray Mist Mountain.

The distant mountains had shed their winter barrenness for green, and the efficiency of the factory workers had slightly improved.

The smoke billowing from the factory chimneys carried the scent of rune purification, and the workers' uniforms were sewn with miniature warming runes.

The wild cherry blossoms at the foot of the mountain burst forth with pinkish-white buds, with faint bees hovering around the edges of the blossoms, scattering fine petals when the wind blew.

The gray sparrows on the branches pecked at the newly sprouted tender buds; their feathers carried light brown protective runes, occasionally emitting crisp chirps.

The air was filled with the moist scent of thawing earth, mixed with the faint mint fragrance drifting from the distant medicinal herb garden, a fragrance carrying a hint of magical energy.

Several colorful butterflies danced around the wildflowers near the factory entrance...

One of them even landed on Li Size's shoulder, flapping its rune-adorned wings, causing passersby apprentices to turn their heads to look.