Above the mage

Chapter 782 Leo Monk's Relics

After Gao De finished explaining his findings, he fell silent and sat quietly in his seat, waiting for Du Wei to process and respond.

The tea room fell silent once again.

Du Wei did not respond immediately.

He quickly went through Gao De's words in his mind and then carefully recalled all his previous attempts.

"So," after a long silence, a clear glimmer flashed in his eyes, "the root of the problem lies not in the dragon magic model I deciphered, nor in the spells and potions, but in the mage who constructed the magic model."

"At least that's how it seems for now." Gao De nodded slightly in confirmation.

"That means that mages will have to temporarily block out their muscle memory when constructing dragon spell models." Du Wei tapped his fingertips lightly on the table and murmured.

It's easier said than done.

This is not a gap in knowledge, but a deep-seated constraint rooted in the subconscious and cognitive habits.

Muscle memory is very difficult to change.

More importantly, this muscle memory itself is good; it is something that mages have painstakingly cultivated, and it greatly facilitates the construction of new spell models.

If one forcibly subverts the teachings of dragon magic in order to learn them, in the long run, it's hard to say whether the disadvantages outweigh the advantages or vice versa.

Du Wei understood this, which is why he said "temporarily".

At this point in his thoughts, Du Wei fell into a long silence once again.

He remained silent for a long time, sifting through feasible solutions in his mind.

Gaode also sat quietly in the same spot, waiting patiently.

After a long pause, Du Wei slowly raised his eyes, all the confusion in his eyes fading away, leaving only a calm and certain expression: "There is indeed no perfect solution that can be implemented immediately, but the constraint you have pointed out has already indicated a breakthrough direction for this stalemate."

He paused for a moment, then said with gratitude, "You really are a genius."

The problem that had troubled him for a long time was solved by Gaode Maps in less than two hours.

"It's not me, it's you who should be called a genius." Gao De shook his head slightly and retorted in response to Du Wei's praise.

He was able to find the problem with the failure of the dragon spell construction because he was "lucky" enough to awaken the dragon spell [Wheel of Life and Death].

The discrepancy can be found simply by comparing the spell models, and then the cause can be traced back.

However, the spell model of the "Wheel of Life and Death" provided by Du Wei was completely deciphered and reconstructed by Du Wei himself, step by step.

It's called deciphering, but the actual difficulty goes far beyond that.

Dragon magic has always been mastered only by dragonborn mages and true dragons.

Their method of mastering dragon magic is through bloodline awakening, which is acquired automatically, eliminating the need for the process of constructing a spell model.

However, the process of constructing a traditional spell model requires the use of spell potions.

This means that Du Wei not only has to decipher the Dragon Magic model, but also has to create the corresponding spell potions.

And he really did it.

Whether the other two Dragon Magic spell models are correct is still unknown, but the [Wheel of Withering and Flourishing] is definitely a perfect recreation.

This is a truly remarkable achievement.

Unfortunately, such great talent was ultimately overshadowed by his even greater identity.

"I never expected that you, as the heir to the dynasty, would spend so much time studying dragon magic, especially in this direction," Gao De said, both impressed and curious.

No matter how you look at it, this is not something a successor of a dynasty should be concerned with.

Shouldn't the heir to a dynasty be someone who is well-versed in state affairs and wields power?

Studying ancient methods should be something that monks and scholars do, right?

"The dynasty's magic system is actually far behind that of the empire." Du Wei thought for a moment and said to Gao De in response to his curiosity.

His tone was unusually serious at that moment.

Gao De paused for a moment.

behind?

This was an entirely unfamiliar term to the ancient Plantagenet dynasty.

To this day, the Golden Broom Flower has always been one of the most powerful nations in this plane, sometimes even the most powerful.

With so many years of accumulated foundation, the dynasty's magical system has always been considered the best in the entire mage plane:

They are the only nation in the current mage plane with a complete magical heritage, and also the nation with the most ancient spells and personally named spells.

For such a dynasty, it seems impossible to associate it with backwardness.

But Du Wei, the future leader of this dynasty, calmly and earnestly gave such a conclusion.

"The empire has expanded its territory, recruited talents, and embraced all kinds of unorthodox magic. Its magic system has undergone successive innovations and has reached an unprecedented level of perfection."

"The empire is teeming with talent, and several groundbreaking mages have emerged."

Leaving aside the smaller magical factions, the two major magical systems that have emerged within the Empire—blood magic and trickery—are far more powerful and effective than ordinary magical systems.

"If things continue like this, I really can't imagine what it would be like if we were to clash with the Empire in the future, with mages from both countries facing off."

Du Wei took a deep breath: "Therefore, dynasties also need to progress, and the magic system also needs to be innovated."

"Dragon magic is just one of my attempts and ideas."

"Dragon magic is the oldest and highest-ranking primal magic."

"If such a powerful magical system could be mastered by the dynasty's mages, then the empire's blood magic and trickery wouldn't be so terrifying."

"Moreover, I have a unique advantage in studying dragon magic." Du Wei's tone softened slightly when he said this.

"At the very top of the Candle Hold of the Royal Academy of Sorcery, dwells a special guardian: the Shadow of Elminster, the soul of the ancient silver dragon, who can provide me with great assistance in my research."

"His dragon soul only recognizes the orthodox bloodline of Liszt. In this vast dynasty, only I can communicate with him and seek his guidance. All my deciphering and deduction are inseparable from his guidance."

Duvet was very modest, attributing most of the credit for deciphering the Dragon Spell model to the Shadow of Elminster.

But Gao De understood that deciphering the dragon's magic into spells suitable for human control was not something that could be solved simply by having a dragon's help.

The perseverance and even wisdom required for this are immeasurable.

"I can't help you with how to make a mage temporarily disable their muscle memory when constructing a spell model, but—"

""

He looked at Du Wei across from him, thought for a moment, and then said, "But I can help you verify whether the other two Dragon Spell models you deciphered are equally correct."

Du Wei paused for a moment.

He had already encountered many unexpected things today, and just when he thought it was all over, another one came along.

"You mean?" he asked, looking at his friend to confirm.

Gao De nodded: "I can overcome this muscle memory."

Actually, saying "overcome" is not accurate.

He is not fighting against muscle memory.

He never followed the conventional path of building spell models.

Du Wei gave Gao De a deep look.

He was naturally curious about how Gaode had overcome it.

But since Gaode hasn't brought it up, it means that Gaode doesn't want to elaborate on it for the time being.

He won't ask on his own initiative.

"Alright, I'll have someone send you the spell scrolls later. As for the corresponding spell potions," he paused, a faint hint of contemplation flashing in his eyes, "you'll need to wait a few days."

He explained, "Dragon magic is of a very high rank, and the magic potions required to construct the corresponding spell model are not simple."

Du Wei's gaze passed over Gao De's shoulder and landed on the painting depicting an ancient silver dragon on the wall of the tea room. He slowly began to speak: "All dragon magic potions require core ingredients that rely on materials left behind by dragons, such as dragon marrow remnants, dragon scale powder, and the essence of dragon blood."

"With dragons almost extinct today, these resources are non-renewable, with fixed reserves. Every bit consumed reduces the reserves, and there is no possibility of artificial cultivation."

"The only good news is that there is an ancient silver dragon spirit within Candlekeep that can continuously provide certain materials."

"Of course, although these materials are renewable, the quantity is relatively limited, and the materials he provides can only be used to concoct Silver Dragon Dragon Magic Potions."

"Therefore, I have always focused on Silver Dragon language spells. Apart from this [Wheel of Withering and Flourishing], the other two dragon language spells I have deciphered are Silver Dragon language."

These restrictions fundamentally prevent the widespread adoption of dragon magic.

Even if Du Wei eventually breaks through the instinctual constraints of the human race's model and finds a way for ordinary human mages to master dragon magic, the scarcity of dragon magic potions means that dragon magic will never become widespread.

Ultimately, only a very small number of people will be able to master dragon magic.

But that's enough.

The mages of the Holy Empire who master blood magic and trickery are also a very small elite.

The group of mages he wanted to train, who were proficient in dragon magic, were intended to rival the core mage force of the empire.

"I see." Gao De wasn't surprised.

It's already incredible that dragon magic can be controlled by ordinary mages.

Overabundance? Not at all.

The matter of dragon magic has come to a temporary end.

Gao De looked up, his gaze sweeping over Du Wei's handsome face, and a sudden thought stirred within him.

Du Wei can certainly be called one of the most knowledgeable mages in the entire mage plane.

His noble birth allowed him to possess many ancient secrets.

And to a certain extent, they can be trusted.

Some of the problems that have troubled him for a long time may find answers or a breakthrough through Du Wei.

With that thought in mind, Gao De's mind immediately became active, and he got straight to the point: "I also have some questions I'd like to ask you."

"Go ahead and tell me." Du Wei seemed calm and confident about this: "While I can't guarantee I can give you an answer, I should at least be able to clarify a direction for you."

Since Du Wei had already said so, Gaode didn't hold back either.

He took out a neatly folded square velvet bag, placed it gently on the table, and slowly unfolded it.

A palm-sized, dark silver metal fragment was quietly revealed before the two of them.

The edge of the fragment was inlaid with a ring of extremely fine golden magic patterns, and it also contained a trace of extremely faint divine energy.

On the fragments were some strange patterns and characters.

The text, in several lines, was winding and wavy, carrying magical fluctuations. Unlike ordinary writing, it was clearly some kind of special magical script.

In the lower right corner, there is a fragmented and unfamiliar character engraved.

It was the metal fragment that Gaode had unexpectedly discovered in the Shadow Swamp.

"This is a piece of metal that I obtained by chance. It is definitely very old, but the exact age is impossible to verify. Even so, it still retains a faint trace of magic."

"As for the magical text above, I've tried various methods to translate it, including spells and consulting ancient texts, but to no avail."

"But the more it's like this, the more it shows that this thing is not simple. Read more books and see if you can figure out its origin or identify these characters," Gao De said briefly.

Upon hearing Gao De's account, Du Wei's relaxed expression vanished, replaced by a serious one.

He leaned forward slightly, his gaze lowered, scanning the dark silver fragments inch by inch.

Du Wei's gaze first fell on the golden pattern around the edge.

As his gaze swept over them, Du Wei's brow twitched slightly, then smoothed out again.

Then he turned over the fragments.

The back features a magic circle pattern, with intricate, spiderweb-like patterns that are interlocked and nested layer upon layer.

Even though it has been largely corroded and blurred, you can still see the exquisite craftsmanship when it was originally carved.

There is an irregular indentation in the center with smooth edges, which is obviously where the core of the entire object was once fixed, but is now empty.

"The layout of this magic circle," Du Wei's gaze fell on the recessed area, his voice a few decibels lower than before, "looks somewhat familiar."

Du Weixuan flipped the fragment over again, his pupils contracted slightly, and he lightly touched the incomplete character in the lower right corner with his fingertip, slowly stroking the incomplete patterns.

He took a deep breath, his gaze never leaving his face.

"This is indeed no simple thing," Du Wei said with certainty. "You've really come to the right person. Apart from me, if you show it to other mages, including scholars who specialize in ancient scripts, they will most likely regard it as an ancient script."

"The curved patterns on its surface are indeed magical characters, but this incomplete character is not a character, but an incomplete mark totem."

"A mark?" Gao De's eyes narrowed.

"Yes, this is the mark that Master Leo Meng carved on his work. What you see now is only the upper half of the complete mark."

"Leo Monk!" After a moment of silence, Gao De spoke, his eyes filled with undisguised astonishment.

It wasn't that he was making a fuss; it was just that the name Leo Meng carried too much weight.

He was the most powerful mage in the history of the Golden Flower Dynasty, and even in the entire history of the Nolan continent.

Leomon was once incredibly close to the legendary ninth-ring mage level, and is the only mage to date to have touched that level. He is an unparalleled figure who spans the history of mages.

The current mage system is largely built by Leo Monk, and his influence is evident everywhere.

Leo Monk's sudden disappearance remains a huge unsolved mystery to this day.

"Master Leomon is not only a supreme spellcaster with unparalleled combat prowess, but also one of the most outstanding ancient alchemy masters in the history of the continent."

.

"Like most alchemy masters, he left his mark or totem on his masterpieces to indicate that the work was his own style."

"The royal treasury contains many of Leo Monk's works, covering the styles of his works from his early, middle and late periods."

"The totem pattern on your fragment perfectly matches the distinctive features of his later works; there is no other possibility."

After saying that, Du Wei slightly raised his fingertips and traced the twisted and mysterious patterns in the center of the fragment.

"These are the magical scripts."

His gaze darkened slightly as he stared at the characters: "As for their specific meaning—"