Chapter 501 - 243: The Budding of "Demonic Qi"? The Possibility of Mage Tank and Magic Assassin
Chapter 501: Chapter 243: The Budding of "Demonic Qi"? The Possibility of Mage Tank and Magic Assassin
But every time he attempted to fuse these two powers, he was met with a strong repulsive force, and his progress was practically nil.
[Frost Slash]!
Another ice-blue strand of Sword Qi shot out. Lin Mo shook his head and let out a sigh.
’It’s the same old story,’ he thought. ’In essence, this thing is just the Ice Cone Skill in a different shape, formed through fine control of my Magic Power.’
’And if I only use Qi and Blood for [Frost Slash], it’s no different from an ordinary slashing attack.’
’Progress has stalled.’
He was about to take a short break to think of other methods he could try when he turned and saw Shefilya approaching with a tray.
On it was a cup of steaming tea.
’I have no idea when she noticed I was out here...’
’The little Maid is truly thoughtful and considerate.’
Lin Mo took the cup from Shefilya and sipped the tea gently.
"Do you need any help, Master?"
Lin Mo shook his head, but just as he was about to decline, his eyes fell on a few intricately braided strands of hair at the front of Shefilya’s head. He froze.
"What’s this?"
An unnatural expression flickered across Shefilya’s calm face.
"Miss Feney said she wanted to practice her braiding skills..."
’So Feney used her as a practice subject?’
’No... the truth must be that Feney wanted to do her sister Shefilya’s hair, right?’
’But if she had said that directly, Shefilya would have definitely refused.’
’So she came up with that excuse.’
’When it came to handling her sister, Feney was quite experienced...’
Understanding this, Lin Mo couldn’t help but break into a knowing smile. The frustration of being stuck on a problem and the impatient desire for results faded away.
Lin Mo gently lifted one of Shefilya’s braids. He could tell Feney’s technique was still clumsy; it wasn’t braided very beautifully. This was probably because Shefilya had always been the one doing these things for her.
But Shefilya clearly loved it. Though she said nothing as Lin Mo toyed with it, he could see a trace of nervousness on her face.
A seemingly simple overlapping braid was, in fact, not simple at all. It was formed by constantly overlapping and weaving three or four strands of hair together.
Many things in the world were like this, with a complex core hidden beneath a simple exterior.
’It was like the saying: see a mountain as a mountain, then see that a mountain is not a mountain, and finally see that it is a mountain once more...’
’First, you perceive the surface of things, then you understand their essence, and finally, you return to the beginning.’
’Though it appears the same as it did at the start, it has in fact been completely deconstructed and rebuilt. One’s understanding of it is now on a completely different level.’
Lin Mo’s hands suddenly stilled. He was like an old monk entering a deep trance, and for a long time, he didn’t snap out of it.
Shefilya seemed to notice something, and she too became as still as a statue, not daring to move.
Finally, Lin Mo took a deep breath, released the braid, and sat down cross-legged. He closed his eyes and entered a state of Meditation.
Once again, he tried to mobilize his Qi and Blood and his Magic Power.
These two energies, now intimately familiar to him, moved like extensions of his own limbs under his precise control. He began to weave and overlap them, rather than just pushing them together to fuse.
As the Magic Power and Qi and Blood intertwined, enormous gaps remained between them.
These gaps stemmed from the repulsive force between the two energies, just as he had experienced when he tried to use them in concert before.
If he simply alternated them in a sequence—Magic Power, Qi and Blood, Magic Power, Qi and Blood—he would never be able to combine the two.
But what if he changed the structure from two strands to groups of three?
Magic Power, Qi and Blood, Magic Power...
Qi and Blood, Qi and Blood, Magic Power...
Magic Power, Magic Power, Qi and Blood...
Lin Mo continuously tried stacking the energy in different sequences, just as if he were braiding hair.
’No, it’s still not working!’
Lin Mo’s brow was tightly furrowed. No matter the arrangement, he still couldn’t get the two energies to cooperate properly.
’Others had probably tried these same methods long ago.’
’What if I take the [Frost Slash] skill into account?’
Lin Mo began to apply his various attempts to the operational framework of the [Frost Slash] skill.
Obviously, things didn’t go smoothly. None of the combinations fit the operational logic of the skill, which meant the skill’s activation pathway remained blocked.
’Was this direction wrong, too?’
Lin Mo couldn’t help but feel a pang of disappointment.
He had thought he’d found the right path, but now it seemed that wasn’t the case.
A balance between Magic Power and Qi and Blood could never be achieved. No matter how he arranged them, one side would always briefly overpower the other.
This made it impossible to compress the intertwined energies and eliminate the gaps created by their mutual repulsion.
’Then what if I make it even more complex...’
’For instance, instead of weaving with pure strands of Magic Power and Qi and Blood, what if I wove with composite strands made from combinations of the two!’
Magic Power, Magic Power, Qi and Blood.
Qi and Blood, Qi and Blood, Magic Power.
He created two composite strands following those patterns, then tried to weave them together...
’It’s no use. Still no change.’
’Then...’
Undaunted, Lin Mo experimented again.
Magic Power, Qi and Blood, Magic Power.
Qi and Blood, Magic Power, Qi and Blood.
He formed another strand with the opposite pattern, alternating between (Qi and Blood, Magic Power, Qi and Blood) and (Magic Power, Qi and Blood, Magic Power), repeating the combination.
This process yielded three composite energy strands. Two of them started with the "Magic Power, Qi and Blood, Magic Power" pattern. He then inverted the pattern to start with "Qi and Blood, Magic Power, Qi and Blood," and proceeded to combine all three of these new strands.
Then, he tried to spirally weave the two new energy constructs that resulted from that combination...
Even with his immense control over both Qi and Blood and Magic Power, he was now drenched in sweat. The slightest lapse in concentration could render all his efforts useless.
’No, it’s not enough! I need to break it down further and add even more combinations!’
The "Magic Power, Magic Power, Qi and Blood" combination that he had previously discarded was added back into the mix. Lin Mo endlessly experimented, searching for a configuration that might finally achieve balance.
The energy construct inside him grew larger and larger. Due to the massive internal gaps, it became increasingly "vast"—or, more accurately, diffuse. This unfocused energy was impossible to channel or use, and the skill’s activation remained completely stalled.
Still, Lin Mo remained calm and continued to experiment relentlessly.
Finally...
At a certain moment, this energy, which had undergone countless layers of nested combinations, showed a brief, minuscule "compression."
Although it quickly sprang back and the balance was broken once more, it was enough!
Lin Mo’s eyes snapped open, his expression one of pure excitement.
This was the proof! He was very likely on the right path!
If he could remember that last combination and continue to adjust it, perhaps he could find the delicate balance point needed to compress this diffuse construct of complex energy.
He had to eliminate all the gaps between the Magic Power and Qi and Blood, then use even more finely-fragmented particles of both to build in the same manner. If he could finally compress this complex energy until its "volume" and "shape" were similar to that of normal Magic Power or Qi and Blood, a brand-new energy might be born!
This energy, formed from both Magic Power and Qi and Blood—Lin Mo wanted to call it "Demonic Qi."
This was different from the logic behind the Holy Knight Profession.
The Holy Knight Profession existed not because past Holy Knights like the Saintess Joan of Arc had conquered the fusion of Magic Power and Qi and Blood. Instead, they had exploited the similar activation logic and pathways of certain Knight and Priest skills, borrowing the divinely bestowed Power of Holy Light to execute and create their abilities.
This Power of Holy Light was, in essence, a very special form of Light Elemental Magic Power. Therefore, a Holy Knight was fundamentally based on the Priest Profession. By learning the skills of the Knight Profession and channeling them with the Power of Holy Light, they could exhibit defensive and protective capabilities far greater than a standard Knight, all while retaining the support and Healing abilities of a Priest.
After reading the records from the Church, Lin Mo was more inclined to call them "Pseudo-Saint Knights."
This was because, in essence, they weren’t a true combination of a physical and a magical profession, but rather a specialized extension of one.
The Power of Holy Light was a formidable energy, and a true Holy Knight might not necessarily be stronger than a Pseudo-Saint Knight. However, they would certainly have far more flexibility. The profession’s skills wouldn’t be limited to a specific set of "Holy Knight" abilities. Instead, they could freely use a Light Element-infused Demonic Qi to enhance any skill from either the Knight or Priest professions.
And once he mastered the Demonic Qi composed of Qi and Blood and Magic Power, Lin Mo could not only become a Demon Swordsman and a true Holy Knight, but he could also use this Demonic Qi to enhance and use the skills of other professions, transforming into a Mage Tank, a Magic Arrow, or a Magic Assassin!