Versatile Mage (Subtle Changes)

Chapter 8: REALLY CAN’T STOP

ORIGINAL Author: Chaos

SPINOFF Author: Vester

On the first class of the first day, the homeroom teacher, Xue Musheng, gave all the magic students one very important lesson: the activation of Magic!

The activation of Magic consisted of only three very simple steps:

Step 1- Meditation

Step 2- Control

Step 3- Activation

Step 4-Cultivation

Meditation, just as the name implied, required one to use their fullest attention to concentrate and focus on the Stardust.

When a person closed their eyes, their mind constantly wandered into different scenes.

However, if one were to empty one’s mind and remain in an undisturbed state, one’s mind would become an empty space!

After their magic awakening, a star cluster corresponding to the Element would emerge within that empty world.

For any magic students who had awakened, as long as they could cause the star cluster to appear within the empty space, and see the bright, child-like stars within the cluster, then they would have completed the first step of Meditation. It basically increases their Magic Stamina (Mana) for further cultivation process.

Control was the Second step of Magic Activation… It meant they had to use their own thoughts to control these stars, making them stop, and Align them into a designated spot to form a Star Orbit.

Once they had successfully formed the Star Orbit, the Magic Power would be conducted through the Star Orbit into the Mage’s body, thus becoming genuine Magic as they activate it!

The fourth step was Cultivation (Aka Second step of Meditation) was to focus the Magic Stamina (Aka mana of the mage) on the Star Dust and continuously nourish it with Mana and Increase the Star Dust’s level. This was basically the step after they have controlled all 7stars and reached the 1st level of Basic Magic. But this step can also be used by people who have not released their magic yet but it was extremely difficult and nigh impossible for them as they don’t have enough Mana. 

That’s why Meditation is necessary for further cultivation.

One could even say that the first step was unexpectedly simple. But the fourth step was difficult, because mages who have just begun cultivating have very low amount of Magic Stamina (mana). So the homework assigned to the students for the first two months was to only meditate till the first step Meditation and get familiar with the stars and they can only practice Control once their Star Dust becomes double the current size.

.......

The first day of school was over and Mo Fan arrived at his allocated room inside dorms. 

He threw the backpack and jumped on the bed the moment he closed the door and started to do the first step of Meditation.

He closed his eyes and cleared his mind while slowly entering a dark, Cosmos like space, then the Star cluster of Lightning and Fire elements emerged within the empty space. He focused on his Lightning Element first and tried to accomplish the first step of Meditation. He went near the purple star cluster which looked just like Cosmic Dust in universe. While the Fire Element’s Star Cluster looked Imposing and Majestic, the Lightning Element’s Star Cluster was Awe-inspiring to look at and was also aesthetically pleasing.

“I still can’t believe I have something like magic elements inside me” Mo Fan was feeling excited as his heart was pounding loudly. 

He quickly calmed himself and focused on the Star Cluster. He was also able to see seven beautiful stars recklessly orbiting around it, just like seven mischievous children, energetically running around.

For the rest of the afternoon and evening Mo Fan sat and focused on the Star Cluster & Meditation diligently. 

It was a unique process where you can literally feel the Elements gathering towards you and penetrating your skin and going inside your Spiritual World towards your Stardust.

It was quite a wonderful feeling, but after sometime the elements begin to pressure your mind and start consuming Mental Energy and it drains a lot faster than normal.

......

After three hours he finally opened his eyes, he was tired and his eyes were sleepy, his mind was also fatigued.

Mo Fan tried to stand up but suddenly plopped down on his butt.

“This is no joke... I’m freaking tired in only three hours.” Mo Fan was exhausted overall.

Just as he was about to close his eyes and sleep, a small Faint blue light emitted from his chest encapsulated his whole body. Surprisingly Mo Fan was able to notice this unusual Phenomenon as a chill pierced his body simultaneously.

He was surprised, but suddenly he noticed that the Black Glossy pendant was the one behind this unusual Phenomenon. 

He felt his tiredness being washed away and by a warm fuzzy feeling all over his body soon after. He felt his mind clearing up and his stamina Restoring at an abnormal rate. He was flabbergasted at this sudden change of his body. 

He picked up the pendant and started intently at it. He was happy and was on cloud nine that such a wonderful treasure was on him.

“Is this a so called Cultivation tool or something? I can feel my stamina returning to me, and its returning so quickly!! Woohoo!! Yeah! At this rate I can cultivate all the time with this pendant’s help.” Mo Fan was absolutely ecstatic.

In just five Minutes all his Mental Stamina and Energy was restored. He literally couldn’t believe it that his three hours of Stamina was restored in just five minutes. If it was like this he could meditate forever and continuously without any loss of Stamina.

......

This time when he opened his eyes again it was already 8am in the morning. 

*Yawn* 

He stretched himself and was not looking tired even a bit.

“hehe~~ hehehehehe~~~~ I’m fucking invincible at this rate!!”

He closed his eyes and noticed that his Star Dust has grown a little bigger (0.4%) than before in size and his Magic Stamina (Mana) also increased a little. 

He picked up the Pendant and gave it a smooch! He was quite happy with this development.

_That’s right! A main character like me should have more than 1 benefit_ He nodded his head as he thought to himself.

“You were a huge help to me Little guy, thank you very much!! From today onwards I’ll name you Little Loach~” Mo Fan Happily gave his Black Glossy pendant a name fitting for it.

Brr~~~ 

Little Loach started Vibrating as if It didn’t like it’s new name!

“Haha you liked it that much huh!” Mo Fan misunderstood the reaction of the little guy, but he didn’t give it any more thought and quickly got ready for school.

“Oh Well, I’ll stop here and get ready to go to school” 

Just when Mo Fan was going to leave the room, Little Loach encapsulated Mo Fan’s Lightning Stardust in its blue glow and kept it in Passive 24hr Meditation state.

Mo Fan was surprised again and quickly entered his spiritual world to see that a blue glow encapsulated his Lightning Stardust and it was meditating on it’s own.

“You can Fucking do that?! Holy Crap!! At this rate I’ll be fucking immortal HAHAHA” Mo Fan exclaimed & laughed like a madman.

The dorm mates outside his room even thought he had gone mad. 

......

Meditation… The students started meditating after dinner, all the way until they were completely exhausted, and then they went to sleep.

The second day, after classes had finished, they continued meditating in the same manner. All the way until they were exhausted, and then went straight to bed.

......

One Month Passed~

The summer was in the process of becoming autumn. The leaves of Trees which were green had turned red and were falling slowly. The dead leaves whirled along with the wind, as they finally landed on the school grounds. 

On the side of the school grounds was a dense shade of trees. The afternoon sunlight shone through a gap of in the leaves, turning into threads of light, like a particular autumn stage. 

For Mo Fan, the time passed by very quickly. It had already been a month since his awakening.

Within this one month a lot of things have happened with Mo Fan. He was able to Complete two months of Meditation training in just five days, His Lightning Stardust was already two times bigger than before but now it’s twelve times bigger than its base size after meditating for straight up twenty-five days more. The Magic Stamina (Mana) had also increased a lot and it was basically not advancing any further. 

It was like he had hit a roadblock, sitting underneath a tree in a park near his dorm. 

_What if I go ahead and try ‘Control’?_ Mo Fan basically hit a roadblock in meditation so he couldn’t do anything about it, so he casually gave a thought and tried to focus on the stars this time.

One could see the star cluster after entering Meditation. Within the star cluster was seven lively and energetic stars that were orbiting around frantically.

“They sure run fast. Let this daddy touch you,” Mo Fan began attempting to connect the stars.

He used his own thoughts to control the stars. At the moment, Mo Fan was locked on an energetic star, trying to make it obediently halt in its place.

“Whooosh~~~”

That Star was extremely cold; it didn’t give Mo Fan any attention. It was like a little Loli quickly escaping from a strange Uncle.

“Shit, they’re being tsundere. Forget it, let’s try a different one,” Mo Fan attempted to connect the other Lightning Element star.

“Be a good boy… Daddy is here… Be an obedient boy, and come here…”

“Whoosh~~~”

The second Star acted as though it met a patient with a mental illness… Thus, it fled quickly, just like the one before it.

Mo Fan attempted the same thing on the other stars as well, but the results were the same. Not a single one cared about Mo Fan. There were even a few that started moving faster when they felt Mo Fan’s thoughts trying to control them.

You couldn’t conduct the Magic Power when the stars were quickly orbiting.

It’s just like an electrical wire. The electric energy is the interior part of the star cluster. If one wanted to use the electric energy, one would have to form a wire with the stars so it could guide the energy into the Mage’s body.

Unfortunately, there was not a single obedient one among the Lightning Element stars. If he didn’t touch them, then they were fine, but once he attempted to connect them with each other they would quickly run away. It was like eating five hundred pounds of Stride gum pieces… they just wouldn’t stop!

“How do I deal with this? How many months is it going to take before this daddy learns Lightning Strike?” Mo Fan felt a headache.

The Basic spell of Lightning Element was —— Lightning Strike.

This spell should be the most practical one among the Basic-rank magic. After learning it and becoming proficient in controlling it, one would basically have a preeminent combat prowess.

Unfortunately, learning skills wasn’t easy.

The Lightning Element stars were highly active. Trying to make them stop was not something one could accomplish in just a day or two.

“I can’t even control a single star at the moment. To control seven of the stars simultaneously… This road really isn’t short.”

Sure enough, studying and learning Magic was the same; it wasn’t something you could do in just a few days.

.......

The weather turned cold, the short skirts and stockings were replaced with thick leggings and pants. Unknowingly, the season where you turn into a dog if you don’t own a heater had finally come to the south.

“Achoo~~~” Shit, if I knew this was gonna happen, then I would’ve just cultivated the Fire Element first. At the very least, I’d be able to pass this winter in comfort,” in the early morning, Mo Fan cursed as he practiced ‘Control’ on the roof.

He had cultivated for yet another month. Mo Fan was now able to control up to 6 stars.

_The process of controlling the stars…_ _Well, how to put this?_ _It’s like an advanced domino set up._

In other words, if you were to carefully place six domino bricks down, and if there was not even the slightest wobbling, then it would count as completing a small step.

If a domino brick wasn’t placed properly, then it’d tip over and you’d have to start all over again!

The stars were just like that. Firstly, you would have to target a star and use your thoughts to make it stop. In the process of making them stop, you would have to concentrate all of your attention on it. Even if you experienced resistance from a star that lead to a great headache, you’d still have to grit your teeth and not let it distract your focus.

Only when grinding your teeth could you centralize your focus within your mind to control them, and make them stop; only then, could you make some of the violent stars obediently follow your control.

After you were in control of one star, then you would have to split your consciousness and do the same thing in order for you to firmly control the second one.

If one were to accidentally put too much attention on the second star, and not continue to put in the same focus on the first one, then the originally obedient star would immediately orbit away. Additionally, it would also take away the second star that was in the process of being controlled, and waste the entire effort.

The teacher had said once before: the step of controlling the stars was extremely difficult. On one hand, the difficulty of controlling them was exceedingly high, while on the other, the Mage needed to have enough Spiritual Power to spare.

If one were to practice ‘Control’ everyday, like Mo Fan, and every time they failed at it, they would feel their mind become somewhat tired. One could practice for at most, two hours in a single day, and by then one would be in a state where one was nearly mentally broken. One would have tinnitus, blurred vision, and a mind in chaos.

At this point, one should not meditate or attempt control again. 

But Mo Fan could Practice Control for Almost 24hrs a day. Because of little loach Mo Fan was going to completely align all seven stars in less than three months, but the last star was absolutely arrogant and was always attacking back whenever he tried to guide his thoughts towards it, breaking all the other six stars in the process. 

_To be frank, practicing ‘Control’ was like giving thief all your treasure and sometimes getting punched by him in the face as well, while not being able to retaliate… It was Hell, and nothing but waste of mana!_ Mo Fan was frustrated at the seventh star because he had been repeating this process for at least ten days now, because of him he had to align all the six stars from the start.