Chapter 258: The Choice of Innate Sorcery

Chapter 258: The Choice of Innate Sorcery



"Metal Transformation Technique!" Ren gently uttered the name of the new sorcery.

After carefully examining it several times, Ren quickly realized that the difficulty of visualizing the sorcery model for this new spell, 'Metal Transformation Technique,' was far beyond the other spells he had learned, such as 'Scorching Touch,' 'High Temperature Field,' and 'Blazing Light.'

It was even several times more challenging than the metal-based 'Sharpening Spell.'

Ren had anticipated this, as it was a Level 1 Sorcery.

According to the hierarchy, both 'Sharpening Spell' and 'Blazing Light' that he had previously learned were merely apprentice-level spells.

So, even with Ren's current mental power of 39 points, learning this Metal Transformation Technique was not easy.

Waving the small iron hammer in his hand, Ren's face showed satisfaction.

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The walls of the room were white and lacked lighting fixtures like wall lamps. Instead, the paint on the walls emitted a faint white glow.

"I'll do a test for the elemental affinity."

After a few seconds, Ren's expression turned grim.

"Okay, thank you."

At the top of the prism crystal, there was a silver mist, with a red mist in the middle. The silver mist was noticeably longer than the red one. At the bottom of the crystal, there were some miscellaneous colors that could be ignored.

Even if each level reduced the casting time by two-tenths, it was still a challenge.

Could it be that the formidable Ren was considering venturing into the path of a sorcerer? It wasn't that there were few Swordsmen who also trained in knight and sorcery skills within the Swordsman Branch.

As Ren infused his mental power into the crystal, it quickly emitted a soft white light, and the originally transparent prism began to swirl with colorful lights.

For example, small class sizes.

The aura was similar to the one he had when casting the Sharpening Spell, like mercury flowing over his body, before it receded and became invisible.

This meant that even if Ren increased it to level 10, it was still a magnitude lower.

"No!"

"Sir, regarding the study of metal-based sorcery, our branch doesn't have an instructor specializing in it. However, we do have two instructors who teach fire-based sorcery."

Ren clearly remembered that when Naya tested him earlier, his metal elemental affinity was only 72. Now, it had reached 84.2, which explained why his sorcery power had increased significantly!

The speed of transformation was proportional to the level of control, which he had expected.

"And a massage room?" Ren couldn't help but be surprised.

Additionally, some individual sorcerer schools also had metal-based sorcery.

The simplest way to enhance sorcery power was to increase mental power.

Indeed.

His mental power consumption decreased significantly, and his casting speed increased dramatically! But how was that possible? Metal Transformation Technique wasn't a defensive spell! Ren thought for a moment, took a deep breath, and calmed himself.

As Ren entered the room, a girl quickly approached him and asked in a crisp voice, "Sir, is there anything I can help you with?"

"Could it be because my mental power has increased?"

Upon entering, Ren saw a prism crystal that was taller than the one in the Usman family, reaching two meters in height with equilateral triangular facets.

"Sir, this is the room for testing elemental affinity. There will be someone inside to assist you. I'll leave you here." The girl smiled and said.

[You have learned a new skill - Metal Transformation Technique]



When Ren entered the first-floor training hall, he saw the same girl who had guided him before standing not far ahead.

He had overlooked this during his test! Soon, he took the two iron ingots he had prepared and began testing the Metal Transformation Technique again.

Not bad.

Without hesitation, Ren grasped the crystal pillar, which was almost as tall as him, closed his eyes, and concentrated.

"My mental power has reached 39 points for quite some time now."

Increasing the level of sorcery control only enhances casting speed, not sorcery power.

"Hmm?"

".lv8 two seconds"

"Next time!" Ren waved his hand and left the third floor.

Below the icon, there was a small line of text: Metal Transformation Technique lv1 (1/100)



"Hmm, next time. I have something to do." Ren didn't think much of it.

Ren's heart skipped a beat! He realized an even bigger problem!

He could clearly sense this change, and the power had increased by at least one or two-tenths!

Researching this field without metal elemental affinity was impossible.

The icon's pattern showed a twisted, deformed metal column with a handprint beside it, connected by short arcs.

Soon, the light gradually stabilized.

"Whoosh."

Ren's right palm, which held a rectangular iron ingot, began to deform at a surprisingly fast speed. After a few seconds, it transformed into a dagger.

Setting the small hammer aside, Ren crossed his arms and paced back and forth in the room, deep in thought.

The higher the affinity for a particular element, the stronger the sorcery power under the same conditions.

Unless, of course, Metal Transformation Technique became an innate sorcery!

"Yes, sir."

"I haven't learned 'Resist Fire Ring' yet, how..." Ren wondered.

Different instructors taught different supernatural techniques.

With the help of the Sharpening Spell, this process wasn't difficult.

Seeing the beautiful fog condensation agent, Ren couldn't help but pick it up and examine it closely.

"But we should confirm this."

One's Elemental Affinity is innate and unchanging throughout their life unless influenced by divine powers. Naturally, there's no need to test it frequently.

"Yes, Lord Rayn." The welcoming maiden felt slightly discouraged, but when she thought that Lord Rayn didn't outright refuse, her spirits lifted.

Lord Rayn noticed the wooden box containing the fog condensing agent on the table.

As for the third floor, it should be prepared for the Swordsmen on the path of the Wizardry, so Lord Rayn followed the maiden to the third floor.

Suddenly, a flash of insight crossed Lord Rayn's mind.

He casually opened the wooden box, and a bottle emitting a deep blue glow with flecks of golden starlight appeared before him.

As expected, when transforming the iron ingots into a hammer, due to the increased number of ingots, the transformation time increased from the original three seconds to around four seconds.

"Of course, there might be some Wizardry schools that have Metal Spells, like the Bius Artifice Academy that provided this Metal Transformation Technique. They must have more than just this one Metal Transformation Technique!"

When 'Basic Steel Body' was upgraded to 'Intermediate Steel Body', his body surface emanated a silver-gray metal aura.

"If I combine it with the Sharpening Spell, the requirements for metal materials might not be as demanding. Tempered Steel Ingots or Bloodstained Steel should be more than sufficient."

Eleven books? Can I finish reading them all?

"That's not right. The Sharpening Spell is still at lv1 (90/100), and the level hasn't increased." Lord Rayn glanced at the Apprentice Wizard's job panel.

Immediately after, Lord Rayn recited another Metal Spell, 'Sharpening Spell'.

In the library.

"Hmm." Lord Rayn nodded.

This made Lord Rayn frown. He thought for a moment, then took several iron ingots, roughly the weight of a two-handed war hammer, and performed a transformation test.

Lord Rayn carefully recalled the details.

The key issue was that he might still have a chance to acquire Talent Points in the future and improve his 'Steel Body' Talent.

Before Lord Rayn could ask, the maiden proactively provided the data: "Lord Rayn, your Metal Elemental Affinity is 84.2, which is top-notch and very rare. The second highest is Fire Elemental Affinity, at 71.8, which is above average and also quite good."

Since Lord Rayn had planned to exchange for the Metal Transformation Technique, he had prepared numerous metal ingots, such as iron and copper, in the corner of the room beforehand.

Lord Rayn opened his eyes and saw the pile of thick imprint books.

Soon, Lord Rayn returned to the room with a stack of heavy imprint books and eagerly began reading.

He had originally planned to learn Fire Spells, using the Defensive Level 1 Spell 'Resist Fire Ring' with the fog condensing agent to advance to a full-fledged Wizard.

"I'll read all eleven books."

On the contrary, this situation wasn't uncommon.

The second floor was mainly for the Swordsmen on the path of Knighthood.

After a while, Lord Rayn recited the incantation again and cast the Metal Transformation Technique.

He had once discussed this issue with Naya Usman from the Sorcerer Clan.

In short, if Lord Rayn wanted to acquire Metal Spells through official channels, he needed to improve his own level or, in other words, his permissions."

Additionally, most Wizards of the same rank, like Level 1 Wizards, have very similar Mental Power, so the enhancement in spell power from Elemental Affinity becomes especially valuable."

Lord Rayn saw that the door to this room was wide open, and inside, he could see several small rooms, seemingly unoccupied.

Below the Apprentice Wizard's job panel, at the top of the icon, there was a new icon.

"Yes, Lord Rayn!" The maiden respectfully took the emblem with both hands and began searching swiftly.

The more Lord Rayn thought about it, the more feasible it seemed!

"Alright." Lord Rayn followed the maiden up the spiral staircase.

Even though this spell was extremely challenging, Lord Rayn was confident that he could master it in a short time.

It resembled a blacksmith's hammer.

Lord Rayn held an iron ingot in his left hand and began cutting it with a dagger in his right hand.

"No, nothing. Lord Rayn, the Elemental Affinity test is on the third floor. Let's go." The maiden quickly responded with a smile.

"What's wrong?"

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It was rare to see someone like Lord Rayn with exceptional Knight Talent who also studied Wizardry!

[Note: Metal Transformation Technique is a continuous guidance-type spell. The transformation speed is proportional to the level of Mental Power and inversely proportional to the total amount of metal being transformed and the type of metal.] Hmm? Lord Rayn read the text within the brackets several times.

"So, lv2 would be around eight seconds."

The time required to transform the Tempered Steel Ingot back into the original Pig Head Mace shape was almost twenty seconds. In other words, his previous idea of instant transformation during combat was almost impossible!

"Lord Rayn, the second floor has rooms where instructors teach small classes to guide Swordsmen in mastering various Supernatural Techniques. There's also a massage room and a combat power testing room."

First, the book 'Application of Metal Spells in Artifice' mentioned that the Empire had Level 1 Metal Spells like 'Mercury Sword' and 'Steel Ball Crush', as well as Level 2 Metal Spells like 'Spike Flood'.

"No, I need to go to the Training Hall myself! There are testing crystals there."

Two hours later, he quickly figured out the details.

"Help me find information about Metal Spells." Lord Rayn said as he handed his Golden Medallion to the maiden.

The fact that it was proportional to Mental Power wasn't unusual; the few Apprentice-level spells he had learned were also proportional to Mental Power.

Now that Ren has unlocked the Metal Transformation Technique, his metal-based spells will be significantly more powerful than before.

Suddenly, a system notification rings: 【Ding! Host has obtained Fog Condenser, triggering a Special Promotion—Wizard (Legendary)!】

"Um, Lord Ren, I'm also quite good at massages." Seeing Ren's expression, the hostess thought he was interested in a massage and blushed, offering her services.

"Oh, right, what was that about the attack power testing room?" Ren asked again.

"Oh, it's nothing."

The hostess led Ren to another compartment inside.

As Ren successfully cast Sharpening Spell, the dagger in his hand suddenly glowed with a dazzling, watery, silver light.

Throughout the system's descriptions, there was never any mention of a defensive spell! Where did this term come from?

Hmm? Upper-class?

Ren quickly changed his path, heading to the Swordsman Branch's library.

In an instant, the dagger transformed again, this time into a delicate little iron hammer.

However, a typical blacksmith's hammer would only have an iron head, while this small hammer was entirely made of iron, including the head.

But now, not pursuing the path of metal magic would be a waste of his talent.

Amidst his excitement, Ren furrowed his brows, suddenly realizing something.

He froze in place as the realization hit him! He remembered the fourth condition for triggering the promotion to Flame Walker (Legendary)—mastering the Level 1 Fire Magic 'Flame Barrier'.

Metal Transformation Technique lv1 Effect: Consumes a certain amount of Mental Power to activate a specific Magic Model, drawing upon surrounding Metal Energy Particles to alter the shape of the host's metal.

After spending considerable time memorizing the structure of the Magic Model, Ren went to a corner, picked up a heavy iron ingot, and began experimenting.

"There's also the Metal type!"

When he saw the Intermediate Steel Body talent, Ren narrowed his eyes, suddenly thinking of something! "Could it be because of the time when my talent points increased and I gained the Basic Steel Body talent?" Ren muttered to himself.

And so, at this moment, Ren faced a happy dilemma!

Recalling his previous visit, Ren remembered that regardless of whether the sharp weapons were made of bronze, wrought iron, or steel, they all required tempering to enhance the hardness and sharpness of their blades.

"No, thank you."

"Wait, the effect of the Sharpening Spell I just cast seems much better than before." In an instant, Ren noticed a problem.

[Note: After the promotion to Wizard (Legendary), the Apprentice Wizard (Supernatural) profession panel will be overwritten.]



At this moment, Ren's mind was focused on choosing his spell path.

"Sir?" The girl blinked her big eyes at Ren.

This meant that Metal Magic was the most suitable for his talent! "I remember Naya testing me once. My Fire Elemental Affinity was 71, and my Metal Elemental Affinity was 72, both in the upper-middle range of affinity."

He had just tested it, and the hardened steel ingot was much more difficult to work with than the iron ingot of the same weight!

"No problem, sir. The total cost for borrowing is 110 Merit Points."

Such statements.

At this time, Ren also noticed that a system prompt appeared:

"If it's really as I suspect, and enhancing the Steel Body talent increases my Metal Affinity..." Ren's heart couldn't help but stir with excitement.

Ren's heart skipped a beat! Indeed, his Metal Elemental Affinity had changed.

This brought a smile to Ren's face.

It seemed fast, but the difference between this and Ren's initial expectations was still noticeable! Previously, Ren had envisioned that in combat, his weapon would instantly transform, for example, a greatsword suddenly becoming a scythe, catching the enemy off guard and striking them instantly! Or perhaps, the warhammer in his hand would instantly transform into a tower shield, blocking an enemy's sudden attack and so on.

"Sir?" The girl saw the young Swordsman with his rare talent standing there in a daze and gently reminded him.

"Sir, do you need any other tests? Like Total Mental Power or Magic Model Understanding." The girl asked proactively.

He carefully examined the blade of the dagger several times and tested its sharpness with his fingers, deep in thought.

These were the words of Naya Usman, a descendant of a Sorcerer Clan: ".Wizards have discovered that the best choice for solidifying a Magic Model is a defensive Level 1 spell. In ancient times, many wizards chose offensive spells. But later, they found that when facing assassins or monsters with invisibility, they were often caught off guard by surprise attacks."

Additionally, ancient texts rarely mentioned anyone whose Elemental Affinity changed.

"If this is applied in combat, the destructive power of sharp weapons will decrease significantly."

The last time he was here, he mainly visited the first floor's Rapid Flow Chamber and Advanced Rapid Flow Chamber, so he wasn't familiar with the second floor.

He found that even at lv10, it still required about three seconds.

At the same time, multiple ancient texts recorded that 'Metal Transformation Technique' was a very important Metal Magic, providing different levels of enhancement to other Metal Magic.

As a result, it took a full ten minutes to transform over ten iron ingots into the shape of the original boar head hammer!

Metal Elemental Affinity 84.2!

He remembered it clearly.

"Sir, using this testing crystal is simple. Just hold it, focus your mind, and try to mobilize as many Energy Particles as possible." The girl gestured and explained beside him.

Ren cast the Metal Transformation Technique again, turning the small iron hammer back into a dagger.

"Very well, sir. According to the regulations, this service will cost you 5 Merit Points. Is that acceptable to you?"

"I was too hasty in my previous assumptions!"

"But that's impossible. I've never heard of anyone's Elemental Affinity changing."

"The blade of the dagger is a bit soft. This is because it was formed through Metal Transformation Technique without undergoing Tempering to harden it."

"In that case, choosing Metal Magic as my innate spell isn't impossible!"

A problem that no one else would ever have.

Ren furrowed his brows and, puzzled, flipped through the system to the attribute panel, scrutinizing each item.

"Ah?" The girl's beautiful eyes widened in surprise.

For Ren, having the system meant that a single successful attempt would permanently etch the skill onto his profession panel.

After spending over an hour and failing dozens of times, Ren, with beads of sweat on his forehead, finally succeeded! With the casting of Metal Transformation Technique...

He decided to put Metal Transformation Technique aside for now.

Ren did a quick mental calculation.

This school was specialized in the study of Metal Puppets and War Golems, and its members were few and far between.

[Your skill Metal Transformation Technique has been improved. Experience +1]



[To advance to Wizard (Legendary), the following prerequisites must be met: 1. Wizard Aptitude; 2. Mental Power above 30; 3. Basic Meditation Will Rune (24/24); 4. Mastery of any Level 1 spell; 5. Fog Condenser. Current conditions are met. Do you wish to advance to Wizard (Legendary)?]



Ren had already considered that if he wanted to improve Locke's Axe Shield Technique in the future, he could come here and potentially save some skill points.

"In that case, I'll need to find a special metal or alloy to complement this Metal Transformation Technique to achieve the best effect in terms of power."

This time, with his mind focused on testing his Elemental Affinity, he had no intention of massaging.

Ren estimated it would take about three seconds.

He immediately began flipping through the books.

Ren opted for a scanning-style speed-reading approach.

"Oh, that's where the Swordsmen test the power of their extraordinary techniques. There's also a spell testing room on the third floor." The girl explained quickly.

These short arcs formed concentric circles, as if the palm was facing the metal pillar, releasing some mysterious force that caused the pillar to distort and deform.

Battles between Great Knights were not calculated by the second but by tenths of a second, or even shorter intervals.

However, "The type of metal and the total amount of deformation are inversely proportional, which is a bit annoying," Ren muttered to himself.

Ren was quite certain about this.

However, due to the unique applications of Metal Magic in equipment crafting, it was strictly regulated by the Empire.

[You have studied Metal Transformation Technique and improved your understanding of it!]



"The problem is that there are too few spells if I choose Metal Magic."

At this moment, Ren suddenly remembered that he hadn't checked the system prompt from earlier.

"Oh, right. What's on the second floor?" Ren asked casually.

"Wow, sir, you have an extremely rare and high-level Metal Elemental Affinity! That's amazing!" The girl exclaimed in surprise.

"The hammer is much better, and the impact isn't as significant."

"That's not right!"

As mentioned in "Application of Metal Magic in Artifice," the Bius Artifice Academy possesses a Level 2 Metal Magic spell called "Artificer Guardian."

This unexpected situation made Ren's expression turn a bit sour. Although he was currently at Level 1, he could improve it through further skill allocation.

Along the way, Ren continued to ponder.

"That's not right!"

"I found it, sir. There are eleven ancient books related to Metal Magic: 'Introduction to Ancient Metal Magic,' 'Application of Metal Magic in Artifice,' and 'Introduction to Ancient Metal Magic (Steel Barrier).'"

"Is there a problem?"

Upon seeing Ren enter, the receptionist's eyes lit up, and she eagerly approached him, asking, "Sir Ren, is there anything I can help you with?"

"Hello, sir. Is there anything I can help you with?" A beautiful female staff member noticed Ren and stood up to greet him with a bow.

These can be tested whenever you feel like it next time.

However, Ren's mind was preoccupied with the matter of Elemental Affinity, so he didn't examine them closely. Instead, he left the room and quickly made his way to the Training Building.

This meant that his Metal Elemental Affinity might reach even higher levels, significantly increasing the power of his Metal Magic!

"Yes," Ren nodded.

However, the problem was that improving Mental Power required months of dedicated meditation.

"I don't need to seek out rare or exotic metals."

He quickly walked to the corner of the room and picked up a fragment of Tempered Gold in the shape of a handle, which was a piece of his broken Boar Head Hammer's handle.

He now had a general understanding of the layout of the entire Training Building.

"Level 3 is over six seconds, Level 2 is over five seconds, and Level 1 is over four seconds."

"Hello. This time, I'd like to test my Elemental Affinity."

Ren nodded in understanding.

"So, Metal Transformation Technique can indeed become an innate spell!"

"With my 'Intermediate Steel Body' talent, my defense is already quite strong. If my talent continues to improve, it shouldn't be any weaker than a Level 1 defensive spell."

"Oh, and there's more! Metal Transformation Technique can also be used to create shields and armor, which is essentially a defensive spell, right?"

Instantly, Ren's eyes lit up!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end