Chapter 744: Chapter 714: Level 2 Magic (2)

"I’ll remember." Duke rose, inclined himself slightly to this rigorous and trustworthy guide, then turned and left the office.

After advancing to a Level 2 Mage things would not become easier; the road ahead would only grow more arduous and obstructed.

Because once one became a Level 2 Mage, the natural goal was that seemingly unattainable Level 3 Mage realm.

For the vast majority of Wizards, to be able to advance to a Level 2 Mage was already one in ten thousand; those who could reach the realm of a Level 3 Mage were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

It might look like Duke had already encountered quite a few Level 3 Mages, but in truth their number was very small, merely the accumulation from the Wizard Plane’s development over so many years.

Like great waves sifting the sand, every year countless Wizard Apprentices step onto this transcendent path, but those who can keep walking, step by step, all the way to Level 2 Mage and Level 3 Mage realms are extremely few.

In essence, Duke had already surpassed the overwhelming majority of people, but in the face of the endless transcendent path, he was still only at the very beginning.

This road was that difficult; not everyone could smoothly complete one Life Level leap after another.

Strictly speaking, Level 3 Mages did not have a so‑called Spiritual Power threshold, because Spiritual Power was actually the least important requirement for advancing to a Level 3 Mage.

Theoretically, one generally needed 512 points of Spiritual Power to be able to advance to a Level 3 Mage.

However, for those who were capable of advancing to a Level 2 Mage, Spiritual Power was still something they could think of ways to slowly pile up bit by bit.

What restricted them from reaching the realm of a Level 3 Mage was their insight into and control over Rules; this was the most important standard distinguishing a Level 3 Mage from a Level 2 Mage.

To advance to a Level 3 Mage, one must be able to comprehend and grasp at least one kind of Rule Power.

If one could not take this step, then no matter how high they piled up their Spiritual Power, they would never be able to advance to a Level 3 Mage.

This was a tremendous limitation for Duke, because for him Spiritual Power was not difficult to obtain—he only needed to keep grinding attribute points to acquire it.

But Rule Power was somewhat ethereal, elusive and hard to seize.

Duke recalled that during his advancement to a Level 2 Mage, he had once been gazed upon for an instant by the Plane Will, and through that instant had glimpsed certain scenes.

Within those fleeting scenes, there had been the flow of omnipresent Rule Power.

To advance to a Level 3 Mage, he would have to rely on himself to see some specific Rule among these Rules, and truly bring it under his control.

"Rules..." Duke silently mouthed the word in his heart, and his thoughts stretched toward a far‑reaching contemplation of the future.

The joy of advancing to Level 2 and the tangible surge of power gradually settled, replaced by a clearer and more sober understanding.

The threshold for a Level 3 Mage did not lie in the numerical value of Spiritual Power, but in the contact with, and mastery of, Rules.

Thinking back to that brief glimpse gained with the help of the Plane Will during his advancement—a Rule network so vast and complex as to inspire despair—Duke knew very well that it was absolutely not something his present self could understand or analyze.

That single glance had left more of a vague imprint and sense of direction, like seeing the outline of a mirage from afar in a boundless desert—knowing the goal was there, yet not knowing the specific path, much less how to reach it.

"Insight into Rule Power is ethereal, impossible to force; this is absolutely not a barrier that can be broken through in a short time by burying myself in hard cultivation." Duke coolly analyzed his own situation.

He possessed the unique advantage brought by the Skill Tree, which allowed him to ignore conventional bottlenecks and raise his Spiritual Power; this was his enormous strength.

But Rule comprehension instead seemed to rely more on accumulation, chance opportunities, innate comprehension, and a profound understanding of the world’s essence—another dimension of challenge altogether.

"In that case, the clearest and most feasible path for now is very obvious." Duke’s gaze became sharp and pragmatic. "First, stack my Spiritual Power up to around the theoretical advancement threshold, and at the same time comprehensively study and master the knowledge and power system a Level 2 Mage ought to possess."

As for Spiritual Power, he had confidence.

By continuously grinding skills to gain free attribute points, then adding his own Meditation’s natural growth, pushing his Spiritual Power higher was not out of reach.

This required time and sustained effort, but at least the path was clear.

What was truly urgent, however, was to complete his knowledge and power.

After advancing to Level 2, his life form had changed, and Elementalization had brought an entirely new combat style and survival model, but the Magic, Combat Techniques, and even his understanding of higher‑level common sense in the wizarding world largely remained at the Level 1 stage.

It was like a child suddenly obtaining the body of a giant, yet not knowing how to most effectively use this strength to fight or to create.

After returning to the Deserted Island, Duke did not immediately enter closed‑door cultivation.

He knew very well that before starting any Level 2 Magic research, he had to fully prepare both in knowledge and in resources.

After advancing to Level 2, his permission rank now allowed him to glimpse those precious pieces of knowledge deep within the Black Sail Treasure Vault exchange list that had previously been out of reach.

Once his consciousness immersed into the domains linked to the Black Sail Treasure Vault, a vast information flow unfolded in a more orderly, in‑depth fashion, categorized and sub‑categorized, like an endless three‑dimensional library.

Duke’s goal was clear, and he quickly set his screening conditions.

On the knowledge side, the focus was on the key cultivation points for Level 2 Mages, foundational theory for Rule comprehension, analysis of common Plane Rule phenomena, in‑depth explorations of the essence of elements, and also overviews of higher‑tier Magic Potion and Alchemy principles.

On the Magic side, he focused on Level 2 Elemental Magic Models, giving priority to highly practical spells in offense, defense, control, and survival support, while paying close attention to model complexity and evaluations.

Contribution points began to flow out like water; the price of these Level 2‑tier knowledge texts and Magic Models was far from comparable to Level 1.

"’Essentials of Level 2 Elemental Control (General Volume)’ expounds how a Level 2 Elemental Mage can use Elementalization more efficiently for fine‑tuned manipulation, energy compression, and optimization of form transformation."

"’An Introduction to Rule Manifestations: From Elemental Phenomena to Essence’ does not involve specific methods of Rule comprehension, but systematically introduces the various manifestation forms of Rules in the material world, and how to observe possible traces of Rules from common energy flows and material changes; it is the most fundamental popular science text for Rule comprehension."

"’Guide to Advanced Energy Material Handling and Trait Preservation’ corresponds to the utilization of higher‑tier resources."

...

These were all types of knowledge that had to be supplemented after advancing to Level 2; they would allow him to gain a deeper understanding of this world and of the elements.

On the Magic exchange side, Duke knew full well that greed leads to chewing more than one can swallow, so he chose, for each element, one Level 2 Magic Model that was most representative or most suited to his current needs.

When the exchanges were complete, his remaining contribution points had plunged, but Duke felt more fulfilled than ever; a heap of knowledge waited for him to study.

He did not immediately begin constructing any Level 2 Magic Model, but instead immersed himself in those knowledge documents, especially ’Essentials of Level 2 Elemental Control’ and ’An Introduction to Rule Manifestations.’

He needed first to update his theoretical framework, to understand the deeper principles behind Level 2 Elementalization, and to build a more systematic cognition of the Rules he might come into contact with in the future.

Several days later, after initially digesting the theoretical knowledge, Duke finally turned his attention to those exchanged Level 2 Magic Models.

He carefully selected five Level 2 Magic Models of different attributes, while for Earth Magic he had other plans and did not exchange a finished model for now.

Every one of these spells was a top‑tier existence among Level 2 Elemental Magic: immensely powerful and with distinct characteristics. Correspondingly, their model complexity far exceeded that of Level 1 Magic, demanding extremely high Spiritual control and elemental understanding.

"Storm Thunder Prison, Water Domain Assimilation: Spring of Life, Solar Flame Burst, Holy Incarnation: War Angel, Shadow Ruins Return."

Duke looked at these spells; all of them were highly complex Level 2 Magic, and also the Level 2 Elemental Magic in each element that best suited him.

As for the Earth Element, Duke did not directly exchange any ready‑made high‑level Magic Model.

In his heart he had a more grandiose and more challenging design: based on the principles behind Gravity Yellow Sand that he had long since mastered and made second nature, and combining them with his Level 2 Rule cognition and elemental control, he would attempt to independently develop a final Earth Element spell integrating large‑scale control, terrifying damage, and environmental transformation.

He temporarily named it: Earth Explosion Star.