A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 461 Possibilities of the Future

At first, Rorschach did not understand what the master meant, but he understood after exchanging words with him.

Magic should be mysterious and unfathomable, its underlying principles and mechanisms worthy of the spellcaster's utmost intellect and life to study, even considered an art. Whether this idea is correct or not, it is the foundation of pride for the Arcane Tower and the entire mage community.

But the system that Rorschach has presented is far too clear. Even with the two systems of "descriptors" and "characteristics," it's as simple as speaking to an archmage. The most complex step has already been completed by the uploader and the tower spirit; everyone who subsequently casts that spell is merely a "user."

In other words, the cost of learning magic will be greatly reduced. More importantly, the so-called "veil of mystery" will not disappear, but will be stuffed into a simpler and clearer system by Rorschach, making it invisible to most people.

There are advantages, such as lowering the learning threshold and casting difficulty. Conversely, mages who only know the new magic system will lose the opportunity to see the essence and mechanism of magic, as well as the motivation to delve into it.

"Although I cannot know the source of your concerns, I can roughly understand your views on the new system. To me, primal magic is not that mysterious. The new system is also based on primal magic. Its effectiveness only proves that primal magic is not chaotic. It also has rules and can be re-edited."

"On the other hand, I admit that the new system, besides being more convenient, also has a negative aspect. It can be altered and is influenced by tower spirits, meaning that compared to the uncertainty and infinite possibilities of original magic, it is more rigid and mechanical."

"However, even so, most people just want to use magic faster and better, and don't care about the underlying principles and mechanisms. In the past, they had no choice but to start from the most basic concepts and learn little by little. The spell cloud can help them."

"There is also a small group of people who may have extraordinary talent and an inexhaustible energy to explore magic. Even if they initially rely on the 'spell cloud' as a crutch, they will eventually reach the limits of the new system and break through the unknown and the impossible. At that time, they will naturally return to the original magic and even become improvers and maintainers of the 'spell cloud'."

"We are just the first generation." Now that Rorschach himself, Caroline, and Feuerbach are involved, there will certainly be more spellcasters in the future. Of course, we can also count the "Ancient Sage." His gift of knowledge and Rorschach's memories are integrated in the Tower Spirit, giving the spell cloud a unique and powerful processing function.

Feuerbach nodded slowly, tentatively acknowledging Rorschach's statement, but his "torture" wasn't over yet: "There's one more thing. The 'Tree of Law' you refer to has a will, right? Why do you keep calling it a 'Tower Spirit'?"

From the very beginning, the master had a strong opinion about the enormous "preserved egg spirit," while Rorschach only vaguely stated that it was the guardian of this place. Feuerbach, however, clearly saw that the radiance within it was linked to the Tree of Law and that it could understand the two of them. Furthermore, when Rorschach and he were developing a new system, Rorschach seemed to be communicating with the Tree of Law.

The knowledgeable and experienced master quickly became convinced that the Tree of Dharma possessed a will.

This is the biggest hidden danger and a warning sign. For someone who doesn't understand the Tower Spirit, it's very dangerous for a thinking intelligent entity to take over the spellcasting of countless mages.

"But it really is a Tower Spirit." Rorschach shrugged, indicating that he had merely found a steward for the Tree of Law to facilitate their handling of various systems: "Created using [Enlightenment] and artificial souls."

"Have you ever considered that it might acquire divinity?" Feuerbach reminded him. "If in the future it can invoke all spells cast by spellcasters, witness and intervene in spellcasting throughout the world, and influence all mages using the new spellcasting system, then it will be no different from a god."

It seems that's true. Luo Xia had also thought about the growth of the Tower Spirit, but he was purely a performance enthusiast, concerned with whether he could add more users and more features to the spell cloud.

"The system is still very immature, and it is limited to low- to mid-level magic. It is far from the 'Tree of Truth' that covers the original text layer. But one day, it and your so-called 'Tower Spirit' will grow to a critical point or undergo a qualitative change. At that time, it is not impossible for a genuine god of magic to be born."

"Either strip it of its mind, rendering it completely lifeless and mechanized, turning it into an omnipotent machine rather than a thinking being, so that the user of the spell cloud can guarantee that everything is under control. Or, transfer all this power and burden to yourself. Perhaps that will be a miracle, a way for you to ascend to godhood."

"That's too far away." Rorschach had seen the real thing; compared to the real thing, his current Tree of Law was nothing.

Rorschach's unmoved attitude relieved Feuerbach: "Yes, that's too far into the future. But regardless, you are the creator and owner of all this, and the future is yours to decide, Rorschach."

His gaze was scrutinizing: "Fortunately, so far you have not been a 'monopolist,' willing to work to lower the threshold for casting magic, and willing to bring me here to participate in the construction of the system."

"But what about the future? I'm not sure what choice you'll make yet. The spell cloud is still in its infancy, so please allow the Tower of Arcane Arts to continue to observe."

Feuerbach once expressed to Rorschach that he most hated gods monopolizing a concept and turning it into their own authority. The birth of a magic god like the gods of the past would undoubtedly be the greatest disaster for mages like Feuerbach. Fortunately, "spell clouds" have always been an option besides primal magic, and Rorschach currently shares miracles with an open attitude.

The master wouldn't deny ownership of everything in the "Boundary" (he hadn't yet discovered why this space felt familiar to him), and he acknowledged that Rorschach had absolute control. Since Rorschach was willing to open it up to more people, which also facilitated the tree's growth, it wasn't unacceptable.

However, it is necessary to accumulate more credit and maintain an open attitude. Credit will increase as you build up your credibility. But if you abuse your authority to rudely interfere with others, your credibility will be destroyed.

"At least while the mages still have a choice, let us see your true face, see your true nature," Feuerbach thought.

Ultimately, the Arcane Tower and Rorschach reached a compromise: the Special District not only funded the bank's rescue but also acquired shares in the three major banks. Although the Kingdom was not happy about this, there was nothing they could do.

What Rorschach was truly concerned about was that his mage tower had taken in a large number of spellcasters, whose fates had been permanently altered. They had effectively broken away from the old system, whether it was the "Arcane Tower" or primal magic.

As for adding courses on the spell cloud to the main campus, Feuerbach refused, but he promised to organize professors to participate in the research and promote its continued iteration and upgrading.

In early July, Caroline returned to the podium after a long absence. The students in this class had all struggled in the Arcane Tower.

After introducing herself, she took out a piece of paper and read aloud: "Before class, I'd like to announce a new way to earn advancement points: participate in the first Magic Apprentice Spell String Design Competition and win a prize, optimize the descriptors of existing spells and get approved by the Tower Spirit, or substitute teach at Kempson Elementary and Middle School."

(End of this chapter)