Fantasy Writers 1860

Dislifei rested her chin on her hand, watching with interest the men and women resuming their training in the distance, while responding to Dorian's question:

"Phantom books can be copied, and they are divided into [original texts] and [copies]," Dislifei added. "Original texts become phantom books after they are fully created and recognized by the underlying laws of the world. Texts that are not yet finished but are recognized by the world in advance as qualified to become phantom books will first become phantom manuscripts."

"The printed copies containing the contents of the phantom book don't gain any power; they're just ordinary books. Otherwise, public libraries would be full of phantom books," Dislifei laughed. "Only the copies created through the [Inscription Transmission Ritual] can inherit a portion of the original's power; how much they inherit depends on the level of the ritual."

It seems that the magical books used by the Literary Advisory Institute on a daily basis are all [copy copies].

And does this depend on the level of the ritual... mean that even with the same original text, there will be differences in the strength of the copies created by different people?

Dorian put aside his questions for the time being and continued to listen quietly.

"According to the classification standards of this country and this era for fantasy books, they are divided into four levels from weakest to strongest: paperback, hardcover, collector's edition, and special edition," Dislifei continued.

"A magical book usually possesses the potential for three abilities: one is the [self-manifestation ability], which is an ability that will remain effective as long as it is possessed; another is the [manifestation ability], which requires a certain ritual to manifest; and the third is the [sacred covenant], which is actually a type of [manifestation ability], but is always mentioned separately because of its powerful effects."

"Not all magical books possess all three abilities simultaneously. Paperback magical books only have the [self-manifestation ability], while hardcover magical books generally have the [self-manifestation ability] along with 1-2 [manifestation abilities]. Magical books with 3 or more [self-manifestation abilities] or [manifestation abilities] are collector's edition magical books, and those possessing the [Holy Covenant Rules] are special edition magical books."

"Take this book, 'The Long Poem of Secret Words,' for example," Dislife stood up and picked up the book from Dorian's hands. "Its [self-manifestation ability] enhances the holder's combat awareness, making it easier to sense potential dangers around them."

"Its [manifestation ability] is one, which is to grant a person [inspiration] for swordsmanship through possession and synchronization - this kind of [inspiration] for granting a person a certain skill is a common [manifestation ability] in paperback fantasy books."

Passive skills, active skills, and... ultimate skills? Dorian made this concise summary in his mind.

Disri handed the book back to Dorian. "However, this kind of inspiration isn't something that's directly instilled. You need to understand it yourself, to feel the power between the words, and to strengthen the changes that inspiration brings you through practice and reflection."

"All magical books are based on the same principle. The more you understand them, the more you can unleash their true power."

Understanding? So, even the same fantasy book can be judged differently based on the user's understanding?

Lily stepped forward and stood beside Dorian, her tone still cool but now showing more of an instructor's patience: "That's basically it. Now I'll teach you the basic uses of the power of the Illusionary Book."

"The first step is to clear your mind of distractions and concentrate on the illusory book. For beginners, the most effective method is to touch it directly with your hands and feel its presence."

Dorian nodded gently, gripped the "Secret Long Poem" tightly in both hands, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and tried to clear his mind of distractions.

"The second step is to feel the details, including the texture of the cover and the paper, while trying to recall its contents."

Dorian held the book and began to fill in the blanks in his mind, which was not difficult for him.

"The third step is to let go."

what?

What does it mean to let go?

Dorian was completely baffled by this inexplicable instruction.

Although he was full of confusion, he did as instructed.

As Dorian had anticipated, the book in his hand fell to the ground with a thud.

It seems that the law of universal gravitation also holds true in this world.

However, contrary to the law of universal gravitation, Dorian clearly saw that the book hovered in mid-air for about a second before hitting the ground!

"The book didn't fall directly to the ground," Lily's voice rang out at the right moment. "The first two steps were to establish a connection between your mind and the phantom book. When this connection is strong enough, it will float in front of you when you let go in the third step."

"Imagine it floating in mid-air, and believe without a doubt that it will float in mid-air." Lily said expressionlessly, bending down to pick up the "Secret Words Poem" that had fallen to the ground and handing it to Dorian.

"Imagination, and believing in one's own imagination, is exceptionally important when using the Book of Illusions. As a writer, you should be quite good at this."

Dorian understood: the power of belief is magic.

As a time traveler, I can't say about other things, but in terms of imagination, he is definitely far ahead of his time.

He started from the first step again, gripping the book tightly with both hands, taking a deep breath, carefully feeling the rugged cover and the rough, scratchy pages, sketching its existence in his mind, recalling the parts he had just flipped through, and imagining it floating in the air.

Then let go.

Sure enough, the image in my mind was brought into reality, and it truly floated in front of me.

At the same time, it started flipping pages quickly and automatically, making a rustling sound.

"Fourth step, read aloud the words you see," Lily cleared her throat and said in a slightly aria-like tone.

Even though the phantom book in front of him was rapidly turning its pages on its own, for some reason, Dorian could still clearly see all the words.

"Young knight, learn! Respect the Lady and honor the Lord, to increase your glory. Temper your knightly spirit, learn all arts to improve yourself, and gain glory on the battlefield... In this way, you will understand: all skills have profound and vast realms..."

"Show your skills, Junwang. Move to the left, then strike fiercely to the right. From left to right, this is the way to fight bravely and skillfully... Attack the four windows simultaneously, focusing on the closest one. You are all prone to change; how can you break through the shield...?"

These few lines of poetry sounded ordinary, but as Dorian recited them, he felt as if they carried a strange rhythm, and even his own voice sounded different to him.

As he recited, the "Secret Long Poem" floating in front of him began to emit a pale golden light, and its pages turned back and forth at a faster speed as if blown by a gale, but Dorian could still see every word and every picture on every page.

At the same time, the pale golden light began to transform into particles, drifting out from the pages and slowly wrapping around Dorian's arm.

A cool sensation spread from his arm to his whole body. In Dorian's mind, some images seemed to flash by, though they were as blurry as oil paintings by abstract painters.

A "knight" clad in red patches, barely recognizable as human, wields a rectangular weapon; his steps are chaotic yet reveal a strange, unsettling order...

He didn't know how much time had passed—he didn't even remember when he stopped reciting. When he came to his senses, he found that the book "The Long Poem of Secret Words" was lying quietly between his hands, as if nothing had happened.

"The manifestation of 'Sword Inspiration'." Lily's voice carried a hint of barely perceptible approval. "This is just the beginning. Afterward, you must continue to familiarize yourself with the feeling of establishing a connection with the Illusion Book until you can activate it directly without chanting."

Dorian put down the book and stretched his limbs. Although the cool sensation and the abstract painting in his mind had faded, he still clearly remembered the wonderful experience of being "enlightened."

At that moment, Lily found a longsword from somewhere and threw it to him.

"This is..." Dorian reached out a hand to take the sword, but before he could finish speaking, he saw Lily holding the longsword with both hands, raising it high above her head, and smashing it down on him!