Chapter 147 - 146: Accumulation (2)

Chapter 147: Chapter 146: Accumulation (2)

Praise of the Sea.

Eighth Tier Rune Armor.

A set of Eighth Tier Rune Armor was enough to serve as the foundation that kept Coastal City standing.

As Gaode followed the crowd out of the classroom, his Heart and Spirit were still somewhat immersed in Instructor Mr. Mosen’s recent introduction. He realized that although he had been studying Rune Science for nearly ten days, he still knew absolutely nothing about what Rune Armor was.

According to the mentor introduction he had received initially, the area of expertise of his own mentor, Jose O’Kenley, was... Rune Armor?

Step by step... He hadn’t even finished learning basic Runes, so what was the point of introducing Rune Armor to him?

Gaode was very rational; he didn’t think Jose O’Kenley had never mentioned Rune Armor to him out of a desire to hold back secrets. Amidst these rapid thoughts, he felt as if... he had overlooked something.

It wasn’t until he walked to the Cultivation Building that Gaode slapped his forehead, finally realizing it.

"Hidden Mist Fang, the Okenley Chamber of Commerce!"

"Coastal City... the four great chamber of commerce families, the Okenli Family, Jose O’Kenley... Is it a coincidence?"

This wasn’t his first time hearing the name Okenley; to be precise, it should be the third time.

Shortly after arriving in this world, Gaode had heard the name Okenley in Hogan City and had bought the Hidden Mist Fang, which was said to be manufactured by the Okenley Chamber of Commerce.

That was the very first time he had heard the name Okenley.

As for the second time, it was his mentor.

Jose O’Kenley.

He thought to himself, "If my mentor is truly from the Okenli Family, there is no reason for him to leave the prosperous Coastal City and come to the Sean Duchy, which is basically a rural farm compared to Coastal City.

"Furthermore, Coastal City is in the southeast corner of the Nolan Continent, while the Sean Duchy is in the northwest corner, adjacent to the House of Plantagenet. The two places are so far apart, which makes even less sense."

Gaode pondered for a moment and ultimately felt it should be a coincidence.

No matter how powerful the Okenli Family’s chamber of commerce was, they wouldn’t monopolize the surname Okenley. So he couldn’t just assume that anyone with the surname Okenley was a member of the Okenli Family.

Lost in thought, Gaode had already entered the Cultivation Building. He familiarly booked a room at the front desk and then began his cultivation for the day.

Over the past few days, he had tried all the jars of fruit drinks brewed with Leakless Water. Aside from the different flavors caused by various fruits, the effects were basically indistinguishable from the original Leakless Water.

At least, Gaode couldn’t feel any difference.

With the dual boost of the special fruit drinks and the One Tier Cultivation Room, Gaode’s progress in his Guiding Technique had increased rapidly these days.

On the 12th of the Dark Gold Moon, his Guiding Technique had just completed a breakthrough.

Now, barely twenty days later, Gaode faintly detected that the next advancement was not far away.

This visible speed of improvement made Gaode even more motivated in his cultivation.

After spending two and a half hours, Gaode finished his cultivation for the day and hurriedly left the Cultivation Building.

He first rushed to the cafeteria for dinner, then hurried to the Cultivation Room to carry out his daily Poisonous Insect Cultivation task.

His reward was happily gaining another +1 to the Origin collection progress of the Illusory Thorn Centipede.

It was at this point, having officially entered the student phase, that Gaode truly understood why every student he encountered in the academy always seemed to be in a rush.

It wasn’t that the students of the Cyrus Academy were putting on airs; they were genuinely busy.

Attending classes, cultivating, academy tasks...

Every single activity consumed a massive amount of time and Energy.

Frost Gold Moon, 3rd day.

Gaode was even busier today.

This was because his selected required course, Mage Basics, officially started today.

Since Mage Basics was taught in the morning, Gaode had informed Jose in advance, and today’s Rune Science class was conveniently moved to the afternoon.

This was the advantage of studying under a mentor. At least the schedule was flexible and could be adjusted appropriately.

The course Mage Basics sounded completely unremarkable by name, but it was actually packed with valuable knowledge; otherwise, it wouldn’t have been listed by the academy as one of the three mandatory courses.

This was also Gaode’s first time receiving a formal and systematic education in Magic.

"The composition of a Mage’s power is not complex, but it’s not as simple as just comparing Mage Levels and the number of Magic spells mastered," Instructor Mr. Povi, a short and plump middle-aged Mage, explained.

"Although it is certainly better for a Mage to master more Magic spells than someone of the same level, this cannot be used as the sole criterion for judgment.

"Aside from Mage Level and the quantity of Magic, a Mage’s power also depends on their breadth of knowledge, magical equipment, wealth, and expertise!

"Actually, besides these four, there is another factor: a Mage’s wisdom.

"However, this aspect varies from person to person and cannot be quantified, so we will set it aside for now.

"And what this course does is expand your breadth of knowledge, thereby increasing your power."

The first class of Mage Basics covered how to effectively improve cultivation efficiency when the environment and Cultivation Technique remained unchanged.

To the Second Generation of Magic, this was nothing special. Every Mage family had, more or less, their own secret traditions in this regard.

But for Gaode, it was the most valuable of valuable knowledge.

He had never considered that improving his methods could further enhance the cultivation efficiency of his Guiding Technique.

Gaode listened exceptionally attentively during this class.

"Breathing is the source of life, and also the anchor of the soul," Mr. Povi continued.

"We obtain the nutrients needed for life through breathing.

"Similarly, a proper Breathing Technique allows us to unconsciously and automatically inhale a portion of Magic Power through breathing while cultivating.

"This unconsciously inhaled Magic Power is certainly incomparable to the Magic Power actively drawn into the body through Spiritual Power and the Guiding Technique, but its advantage lies in being constant, slowly accumulating over time.

"..."

It was actually not complicated; it was simply adjusting and controlling one’s breath.

Subsequently, Povi demonstrated a breathing skill called the Deep Sea Breathing Technique.

This required the students to inhale slowly and deeply, as if they were in the deep sea, struggling to absorb meager oxygen.

Gaode tried it along with him. At first, he felt this breathing rhythm was extremely odd and quite uncomfortable.

After several heavy and light breaths, he almost forgot how to breathe entirely and started coughing violently.

But this was, after all, not some complicated Magic or profound Cultivation Technique; it was merely a breathing skill.

So after trying a few more times, Gaode adapted to the rhythm and felt the superiority of this method.

Even though he had not yet tried it during cultivation, as of right now, Gaode could clearly feel that the oxygen he took in with every breath far exceeded what he had before.

This alone was already quite remarkable.

"This breathing method also allows you to focus more during Meditation, slightly increasing the cultivation efficiency of your Meditation Technique. Of course, the effect is very weak, but it’s better than nothing..."

Finally, Povi supplemented his introduction with the benefits of the Deep Sea Breathing Technique and then dismissed the class.

With the arrival of the Frost Gold Moon, Gaode’s eight courses began one after another.

Besides Rune Science, for which he had already applied for an exemption, the other seven courses—Mage Basics, Magic Application and Combat, Basic Cultural Course, General Magic (0-3 Rings) Recognition, Nolan Continent Geography and War Geography, Medicinal Materials General Knowledge, and Magic Plant Cultivation—were all carefully selected by Gaode as the fundamental knowledge he lacked the most at the moment.

He naturally arrived on time for every class, never late and never absent.

He couldn’t bear to "skip class."

These were courses he had spent a large amount of money to take, and Gaode was already very clear on just how expensive knowledge was.

In particular, the content of General Magic (0-3 Rings) Recognition and Medicinal Materials General Knowledge had always been hoarded by Nobility as costly knowledge, never easily shared with outsiders.

Being able to learn this through courses was a very fortunate thing for a Mage of commoner origins like Gaode.

The content of General Magic (0-3 Rings) Recognition simply introduced the names, effects, limitations, and even countermeasures of common 0th Ring to 3rd Ring Magic—everything related to the understanding of Magic.

And though it was called General Magic, it actually included introductions to some Rare Magic as well.

This 1-credit "knowledge-based filler course" would introduce a total of 35 types of 0th Ring Magic, 55 types of 1st Ring Magic, 55 types of 2nd Ring Magic, and 45 types of 3rd Ring Magic.

As for Medicinal Materials General Knowledge, it would guide students to recognize over five hundred types of Magic Potion ingredients.

The course content included the names, medicinal effects, values, appearances, collection precautions, preservation key points, and even the Magic Potions they were commonly used to brew, among other knowledge points.

It was not difficult, but it was highly complex and tedious.

These two courses were equivalent to "liberal arts."

Understanding them wasn’t hard, but to memorize all the knowledge points and pass the final assessment to earn credits, one still needed to put in a lot of hard work for rote memorization.

If it were just one course, it would have been fine.

But with Gaode taking both courses simultaneously, the required amount of memorization was massive.

However, just the act of memorization itself was extremely acceptable to Gaode, who had experienced the educational system of his past life.

He would recite the knowledge points he learned that day once before going to bed, and review them again when he woke up early.

On the weekends, he would carve out a solid block of time to go over all the knowledge points of the week.

Doing this a total of three times formed a very deep memory.

Starting from the Frost Gold Moon, Gaode’s daily rest time had been reduced to less than five hours.

He often stayed up memorizing "knowledge points" until one or two in the morning, and was already awake around six.

He felt as though he had become a machine, repeating dull studying and cultivation without any form of entertainment.

No wonder the staff member had looked so hesitant during course selection when they saw him choose eight courses all at once.