Spring Passes, Autumn Comes (Part 2)

“Linley, can you sense them?” Doehring Cowart’s voice sounded softly in Linley’s mind.

“Grandpa Doehring, I can. There are so many earthen-yellow motes—far too many. They are packed together by the thousands and tens of thousands. More than a hundred are floating over the back of my hand alone.” Linley was overjoyed as he sensed the countless motes around him.

Doehring Cowart was instantly ecstatic upon hearing this.

“Very good. Now follow my instructions. Do not think about anything. Stay calm...” Doehring Cowart spoke almost hypnotically, and before long Linley emerged from meditation. At the same time, Doehring Cowart released his restraint over the Earth-element essence, and the concentration around them returned to normal.

After leaving meditation, Linley felt refreshed and entirely unlike his former self. Even while awake, he could sense faint fluctuations of Earth-element essence around him, though not as clearly as he could in meditation.

“Grandpa Doehring, I can still sense the fluctuations of those earthen-yellow motes now. Really. It is not clear, but I can vaguely feel them.” Linley was extremely excited.

He had taken his first step into the world of magi, and his heart was overflowing with excitement.

“What did you say? You can sense them even now?” Doehring Cowart was deeply shocked. The concentration of Earth-element essence had already returned to normal, and Linley was no longer meditating. If he could sense it while awake, then Linley’s elemental affinity...

“Grandpa Doehring, why are you not speaking? How is my elemental affinity?” Linley asked anxiously.

He did not know whether his performance was good or bad.

“Very good. Extremely good. Your elemental affinity is exceptionally high.” Doehring Cowart’s face was full of smiles. “As far as I know, it would be difficult to find even one magus in a thousand with elemental affinity comparable to yours. Truly.”

Linley felt his heart leap. He was so excited that he did not know what to say.

“Of course, elemental affinity is only one part. Spiritual Force is more important. Given enough time, Mana can continually improve. The limits of Spiritual Force are the greatest obstacle to a magus’s advancement,” Doehring Cowart said seriously.

Linley drew a deep breath and nodded.

“Now we will test the second item: the strength of your Spiritual Force.” Doehring Cowart looked at him solemnly.

Linley knew how important Spiritual Force was.

“Grandpa Doehring, what do I need to do?” He looked at Doehring Cowart, ready.

“Nothing at all.” Doehring Cowart smiled.

“Uh...” Linley blinked.

“I am the spirit within the Coiling Dragon Ring, and you are its master. I can completely sense the strength of your Spiritual Force. There is no need for a test. I can tell you right now.”

“M-My Spiritual Force... how is it?” Linley held his breath.

The strength of his Spiritual Force would determine his fate.

“Your Spiritual Force is about ten times that of an ordinary child your age,” Doehring Cowart said with a smile.

Joy welled up in Linley’s heart. Ten times was no small amount.

But Doehring Cowart continued, “Only one person in ten thousand can generally become a magus, mainly because the requirements for Spiritual Force are high. The minimum is five times that of an ordinary peer. At ten times, you can only be considered average among magi.”

Linley’s excitement immediately faded.

“If an ordinary person taught you, the most you could achieve in the future would be the level of a fifth-rank or sixth-rank magus. But if the one teaching you is me, things are different.” Doehring Cowart raised his white brows, confidence flashing in his eyes.

Linley suddenly came to his senses.

That was right. Doehring Cowart was a Saint-level Grand Magus.

“As long as you are willing to work hard, Linley, I am absolutely confident that you can become an eighth-rank magus. As for whether you can become a ninth-rank magus, or even a Saint-level magus, that will depend on your own comprehension and opportunities.” Doehring Cowart said sternly, “If you do not work hard, you may not even reach sixth-rank. You will have no one else to blame then.”

Having a good teacher was one thing.

What mattered most was oneself.

“Grandpa Doehring, do not worry. I will not disappoint you, nor will I disappoint my father or the Baruch Clan.” In that moment, Linley saw in his mind the many ancestral tablets in the clan hall, and the great deeds behind every one of them.

Restore the glory of the Baruch Clan!

Linley’s chest burned.

“Very good. Starting tomorrow, I will formally teach you.” Doehring Cowart’s gaze was bright. The confidence of a Saint-level Grand Magus had returned to him once more.

...

From the next day onward, Linley began a life of arduous cultivation.

Because he could not tell his father about Doehring Cowart, Linley continued his warrior training every morning and evening. In the mornings, he still studied politics, religion, etiquette, military strategy, geography, art, and many other subjects before his father.

Only in the afternoons, during what had once been his free time, would he run to Mount Wushan northeast of town, hide in a quiet place, and absorb magical knowledge under Doehring Cowart’s instruction. He studied magic diligently and meditated to refine Mana.

Every night after dinner, Linley also spent a great deal of time meditating.

He slept only six hours each day. The rest of his time went to warrior training, study, magical training, and meditation. Do not think six hours was enough. Daily meditation to train Spiritual Force was exhausting—far more exhausting than ordinary work—and every day Linley slept exceptionally deeply during those six hours.

His life was full. Completely full.

As the days passed in this way, Linley’s progress was obvious. It could even be called a transformation.

There was the delight of absorbing Earth-element essence into his body for the first time and refining it into Mana.

There was the time he nearly fainted after over-meditating and exhausting too much Spiritual Force.

There was also the excitement of truly casting Earth-element magic for the first time, even though that first spell merely made a tiny Earth Spike, only twenty centimeters long, grow from the ground.

...

Effort, again and again...

Linley’s perseverance and rate of improvement filled Doehring Cowart, the Saint-level Grand Magus of the Pouant Empire from five thousand years ago, with admiration.

Because Linley never stopped his daily warrior training, his body grew sturdier and sturdier. Because he absorbed Earth-element essence to refine Mana and meditated often, his temperament became tranquil and steady. His changes greatly surprised and delighted his father Hogg, Hillman, and the others.

******

Spring passed, and autumn came. In the blink of an eye, it was already autumn.

There was less than a month left until the magic aptitude testing and recruitment.

Inside the clan hall in the rear courtyard of the Baruch Clan estate.

“Whew. Everything is cleaned and put in order. Time to practice magic. I successfully cast Tremor yesterday. That is wonderful.” In high spirits, Linley walked out of the clan hall and closed its doors behind him.

He walked lightly and steadily over the moss-covered flagstones, making scarcely a sound.

Nearly all Earth-element magi possessed this ability. Since the earth was the source of their strength, they could make their footsteps utterly silent.

“Hm?” Linley frowned.

His ears twitched, and he turned toward an old courtyard in the distance. “There is a sound?” He immediately moved quietly in that direction. His normal steps already made almost no noise; now that he was being deliberate, they made none at all.

Step by step, he drew closer.

When Linley reached the entrance and looked inside—

“What is that?” His eyes widened at once.

He saw a black rat nearly twenty centimeters long gnawing on a piece of rubble. Then it blurred and appeared by a bluestone more than ten meters away, where it gnawed a few more times. Its fur was soft, its eyes bright and lively, and its fluffy tail was utterly adorable.

It even stood upright on its two hind legs and hopped about playfully.

“What a cute little rat. And what astonishing speed.” Hidden at the courtyard entrance, Linley was shocked.

Ordinary rats could not possibly be so large, and they were usually unpleasant. Yet this one was adorable, especially with its spirited, almost speaking eyes. More importantly... it was incredibly fast.

“At that speed, even Uncle Hillman, a sixth-rank warrior, probably could not catch it. How can it be so fast?” Linley watched the cute black rat flash more than ten meters at a time and was stunned.

Doehring Cowart flew out from the Coiling Dragon Ring and stood beside Linley. He looked at the black rat in surprise. “A Shadow Rat. It is actually a Magical Beast known as a Shadow Rat. Judging by its size, it should only be an infant among Shadow Rats.”

“A Shadow Rat? A Magical Beast Shadow Rat? It is this big and it is only an infant?” Linley stared at Doehring Cowart in amazement.

Other than the Bloodthirsty Iron Bull, Griffin, Raptor, Black Dragon, and a few other Magical Beasts he had seen some time ago, this was the first different Magical Beast Linley had encountered. This adorable rat was a Magical Beast? A beast capable of casting magic?