Chapter 173: Inspiration
Ace smiled upon hearing the apprentice’s suggestion.
He had to admit, this approach was worth a try; connecting within a dreamscape might yield unexpected results. While pondering this, Ace verbally encouraged the apprentice.
Ace then called upon a few more apprentices. Seeing Warren eagerly waving his hand, Ace smiled and said to him, “Let us hear what our inquisitive Warren has to say.”
Hearing Ace’s teasing, the freckles on Warren’s face turned even brighter. He scratched his red hair, stood up, bowed to Ace, and said, “I believe the principle behind the mental link is an extremely profound issue that may require a long time for us to research.”
Hearing this, the surrounding apprentices shook their heads, whispering comments like “Isn’t that nonsense?” and “That’s too obvious.”
Ace looked at Warren with patience, gesturing for him to continue.
Seeing the apprentices whispering amongst themselves, Warren’s freckles grew even redder. Blushing slightly, he spoke earnestly:
“Here is my thought process. You asked if similar phenomena exist in nature.
“I believe that, based on the basic principles of Logic, we Wizards are part of humanity. Can we hypothesize that humans also possess phenomena similar to the ‘Grand Dream’ effect? Or, limiting it to supernatural intelligent existences based on the attributes of Wizards, do Divine Descendants, Devils, Demons, or even Deities potentially possess similar phenomena as a collective?
“We can research and explore from this aspect, and perhaps answer the question regarding the principles behind the link.”
Ace looked at Warren, who sat down blushing after speaking, a glint of approval in his eyes. Regardless of whether his proposition was correct, at least he was on the path of diligent thinking and rational hypothesis. This was immense progress.
Ace surveyed the other apprentices and spoke gently:
“Warren’s idea is very inspiring. Although his mode of thinking is immature, the basic framework is correct.
“When we explore an unknown problem, we must first understand its attributes through various forms, then summarize the individualities and commonalities within. Then, we continuously conduct comparative experiments targeting these attributes. Through constant comparison and elimination, we eventually find the correct method.
“This is a process of spiraling upward. Through this method, we can continuously discover problems, summarize approximations of truth within a certain range, then discover new problems, researching in an upward spiral.
“Now, form groups of five and discuss freely for one hour.”
The apprentices all fell into a state of deep contemplation—except for Arno, whose eyes had turned into swirls. He felt dizzy and disoriented, as if floating in the clouds.
Ace did not continue speaking; he left time for the apprentices to think. To truly inspire them and turn them into important aides on his future path, cultivating good thinking habits and correct paradigms was essential.
And all of this was best combined with the collision of sparks of thought. Reaching a consistent train of thought through continuous group discussion was also an indispensable process.
The road these Wizard Apprentices had to walk was still long. Using five years to solidify their basic knowledge and establish their thinking models was indeed a considerable challenge.
An hour passed quickly. Ace spoke seriously to the apprentices:
“Due to time constraints, we will stop the discussion for today. You may continue to discuss and think with your group members after you return.
“I am now announcing a matter. Following yesterday’s mental link experiment, I have decided to perform an upgrade and improvement on everyone’s Grimoire. Please hand your Grimoires to Bayen. Do not worry about them getting mixed up.
“The second page of every Grimoire contains a unique mental imprint that you nourish with one-fifth of your time and Mana during every meditation session. This is a unique identifier, which can be called the fingerprint of the soul.”
Hearing Ace’s words, the apprentices obediently handed over their Grimoires to Bayen.
They all appeared reluctant to part with them. The Grimoire was the only Magic Item for the vast majority of them, and it was extremely important.
This book recorded the various Lesser Runes, Spell Models, and Rune Arrays they had discovered and exchanged for. The Magic Diary contained a vast amount of personal insights into the path of Magic, experimental records, and important information.
Coupled with the mental imprint that grew under the nourishment of day and night meditation, every Grimoire was the most important tool in an apprentice’s magical journey.
Especially now, as they hadn’t advanced to Advanced Wizard Apprentices and hadn’t opened their Soul Sanctuary, they relied almost entirely on the Spell Models recorded in the Grimoires to cast spells. Without this book, casting would be much more troublesome, and some unmemorized Spell Models would be impossible to cast directly.
Ace watched as Bayen collected all the Grimoires, then ordered him to deliver them to the largest mud hut in the village where Ace lived. The rational mirror image had already transformed into the appearance of Sharp, waiting to receive this batch of Grimoires.
The mirror image was one of Ace’s few trump cards. Even for a long time in the future, he did not plan to teach this to any apprentice. On one hand, this ritual was unstable and had hidden dangers; on the other hand, it was an exploration of life promotion, and some secrets needed to be kept exclusive.
Only by maintaining a certain technological gap and timely absorbing the knowledge and even wisdom of others could he always stand at the apex of all Wizards.
After the Grimoires were collected, the sun slowly climbed to the center of the sky. The winter sun was warm, and combined with the cool sea breeze from the eastern coast, the settlement filled with primitive tribal charm appeared very beautiful.
Ace ordered the families and friends of the Wizard Apprentices to be summoned. There were fewer than three hundred people in total. This was the manpower he could use to rule the territory in the future.
After Bayen returned, Ace faced the crowd in the square, activated his Soul Spell Suggestion, and began to speak to everyone:
“I once told you all that we would establish a Wizard Academy and a magical society in this virgin land. Now, we have arrived in this desolate, primitive valley.
“It is desolate, but the environment is habitable and the location is safe. To our east is the surging Pontos Sea, and we are embraced by the Larr Mountains on three sides.
“A nameless river flows from the Larr Mountains, emptying into the Pontos Sea here, nourishing this land. It has been confirmed that the northern mountains contain a large composite polymetallic mine.
“We also have nearly five thousand barbarian natives as manpower, and all of you present who are skilled in various crafts. The world is vast, and there is much to be done!”
Under Ace’s verbal encouragement and the inducement of the Suggestion spell, the apprentices’ families and friends, who had been anxious upon arriving at the new place, began to feel at ease. Their inner passion for success was ignited, and they began to discuss in low voices.
The more than four hundred people in the clearing began to look forward to building a beautiful life in the future.
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