this infinite world

—I must have missed some crucial information.

As Andy's words echoed in the darkness, Yang Yun suddenly realized that he seemed to have overlooked a crucial detail, a detail that should have been obvious but had quietly slipped through his fingers...

"...Yes, it's time for the spell to be cast."

Every detail of Andy's attack was reconstructed and dissected in Yang Yun's rapidly working mind, leaving no secrets whatsoever. With his extraordinary thinking speed, even without entering the "Light and Wind" state, he instantly grasped the strangeness of the attack: "When he launched the attack, there was absolutely no casting animation, no hand-raising motion, not even a process of energy condensation..."

"This is... a complete 'instant cast'!"

Omitting the casting animation and preparation steps is understandable; after all, in any world, top spellcasters can simplify these processes through skill. However, the fact that there was "absolutely no energy condensation process" was completely unexpected by Yang Yun.

In any known energy system, launching an attack inevitably involves the accumulation of energy. The more energy there is, the more concentrated it is, and the greater the power of the attack. Even the most basic physical attack, the "fist," requires clenching the five fingers to increase kinetic energy... So, is it normal for an attack to completely skip the energy accumulation stage?
Clearly, this is abnormal, and extremely abnormal!

Yang Yun's mind raced, countless possibilities intertwining in his consciousness. If Andil's attack didn't require condensing energy, then the source of that energy could only be one thing—it had been pre-stored somewhere. Like a dam that can release water without temporary storage, this meant that Andil might have established a vast energy reserve on some level of this world, or…

Yang Yun's gaze swept across the surrounding darkness, and an even more astonishing conjecture surfaced in his mind. Perhaps Andir didn't need to "condense" energy at all, because he himself was part of this fragmented world, just as a person doesn't need to deliberately "condense" air to breathe. If the spellcaster is connected to the essence of the world, then mobilizing energy is as natural as mobilizing one's own limbs.

If Andil has already deeply integrated into this world, then his abilities here are likely far beyond imagination—

"--boom!"

However, the second wave of attacks that followed allowed Yang Yun to overturn all his previous speculations and ideas!

It was still that same dark blue pillar of soul light, still that familiar energy fluctuation. Yang Yun seamlessly blended into it, perfectly avoiding the seemingly identical attack, but his heart was in turmoil—for no other reason than that Andir's second "Soul Torrent" was at least 50% more powerful than the one from dozens of seconds ago!

It was by no means a simple "concealment of weaknesses," nor a mere energy amplification, nor a subtle improvement. Yang Yun, now one with the attack, could clearly perceive that this was a fundamental reconstruction of the entire spell's structure, an essential sublimation of the attack pattern, which resulted in a qualitative leap in the attack's power…

But, how is this possible? !
Breaking through in battle is not a power exclusive to the protagonist; rather, learning from failures and constantly evolving is an essential combat wisdom for top-tier powerhouses... However, if a spell can be innovated and transformed to such a degree with just two spellcasting attempts, there must be some kind of extraordinary anomaly involved!
"I see... So it's not that kind of problem?"

The aftershocks of the previous soul surge hadn't even dissipated when Adil's whisper rang out. The sage, perhaps the most inquisitive in the Dark Souls world, tapped his cane: "Then, let's try another method—"

In the next instant, it was as if an invisible water valve had been opened in front of Andil, and the third torrent of souls blasted out again!
Unlike the previous two times, this time the soul torrent did not present a ghostly blue light, but instead revealed an eerie white. Wherever it passed, the space seemed to be sealed and solidified layer by layer, turning into a magnificent crystalline channel—the soul torrent... or rather, the crystalline soul torrent!
This time, before the attack hit, Yang Yun vanished from his spot in a flash, dodging the attack's range and letting the surging white light leave behind a magnificent crystalline mark on this dark land.

"...Oh, just as I thought."

Seeing that Yang Yun was no longer as unmoved as before, ignoring the terrifying attack, and instead chose to dodge, a smile finally appeared on Andil's wrinkled face.

The archmage, who had just displayed astonishing skill, said softly, "Your method of dodging just now was to merge yourself into the energy flow of 'Soul Torrent,' which proves that your understanding of soul-based magic has reached a state of perfection. And when I fused Crystallization Magic with Soul Torrent, you no longer dared to take its edge head-on..."

No, you've got one thing wrong.

Despite appearing slightly passive on the surface, Yang Yun calmly brushed off his clothes, removing the crystalline fragments that weren't actually on his body: "It's not that I have a deep understanding of soul magic itself, but rather that I have a thorough grasp of the basic energy that constitutes this type of magic... However, analyzing two completely different energy systems at the same time is something that my current computing power cannot do."

One plus one is far greater than two—this is the crux of the problem. If the original body were here, then let alone two combinations of energy, even a hundred or a thousand would be commonplace… But currently, Yang Yun's computational ability remains a weakness, and it is precisely because of this that an inappropriate flaw has arisen.

"Oh, you're stronger than I thought, and thank you for your self-explanation."

Andil nodded and said softly, "Then, let's use the Soul Torrent, a combination of three energies. The crystallization of the White Dragon Seath carries a terrifying curse, while Logan the Great Hat, who mastered the ancient dragon's techniques, abandoned this deadly weapon. Now, my magic—"

"—Provided that it really is your magic." Before Andil could finish speaking, Yang Yun interrupted him with a smile.

"…What does it mean?"

"It's very simple. If you still can't see the secret after observing it three times, then you're underestimating my eyesight."

Meeting Andy's scrutinizing gaze, Yang Yun shrugged nonchalantly, a knowing smile returning to his lips: "I see, I think I understand why the Supreme God sent me to this world called 'Dark Souls'..."

"I roughly understand now what I should have learned from your obviously abnormal behavior." (End of Chapter)