Chapter 59

Reincarnated as the Sword Emperor in the Sword Saint's Family (59)

"…You."

Ester's lips repeatedly stuck together and parted, as if wringing out a dry towel, emitting a strained voice.

This was not the reaction one would expect after the successful casting of a 1st Circle spell.

Leonard inwardly sighed deeply.

It seemed he had done something wrong again.

"Y-You? You, you, y-you?!"

Shocked to the point of losing her language skills, Ester stammered as she approached, grabbed his collar, and shook him.

However, Leonard's body was not about to stagger from her strength. Though he was at the 3rd stage of the Body Tempering Realm, his body had never been properly trained. Ester's thin, long arms almost lost their grip and fell backward.

Naturally, it was Leonard who reacted in that moment.

"Calm down. I can't understand why you're doing this at all."

Ester, who had inadvertently ended up in Leonard's embrace, looked dazed as she looked up at him, then quickly slapped her hand off the back of her head and regained her balance.

After several minutes of deep breathing and suppressing the urge to scream, Ester finally managed to speak.

"You, how did you do that?"

"Are you talking about [Magic Missile]?"

Leonard's calm face made Ester, who was on the verge of exploding again, stomp her feet.

"Right! That damn [Magic Missile]! How did you manage to create five at once and even alter their shape? That's not possible for a 1st Circle!"

It would have been impossible even for a 4th Circle to use just one circle to cast [Magic Missile] like that. It was even more impossible for someone who had just started learning magic.

She didn't say that much because Ester was trying to maintain her last bit of pride.

"I modified the formula. When I tried to activate [Magic Missile], I felt that a few adjustments would make it better."

"Modified the formula? Without any research, just by feeling?"

What Leonard said was on par with telling ordinary mages to go to hell.

Ester, who was no exception, turned pale, trembled, and finally shouted, unable to believe it. It was something she would never have said under normal circumstances.

"If what you say is true, teach me the modified formula for [Magic Missile]! I want to try it too!"

"Sure."

Leonard deduced the formula optimized by the [Five Elements True Dragon Ring] and taught it to her in a few words.

Ester, with a doubtful expression, memorized the formula and activated her circle to cast [Magic Missile].

It was more concise than the previous formula but without any loss of power.

Paf! Paf! Paf! Paf! Paf!

As five mana projectiles appeared simultaneously, Ester's expression went from shock to returning to normal.

It was because there was a difference from Leonard's [Magic Missile].

"They didn't change into daggers, did they? Did I make a mistake? Or did you leave out the shape-changing formula?"

"Ah, that's the whole formula. If you want to change the shape, you need to use your mental power to alter it from the fixed state."

"What? Mental power? What's that?"

Ester's mental state finally reached its breaking point.

"Mental power? I've studied magic for 20 years, and now I'm listening to a kid who just made a 1st Circle spell! I can't even understand the explanation! Is this even a reasonable thing to happen?!"

She fell to the ground and started sobbing.

Trying to comfort her, Leonard felt a sense of déjà vu.

'They had a similar expression back then.'

The scholars preparing for the imperial exams when they heard that the scope of the exam had tripled this year.

They clutched their eyes and ears, tore their hair, and rolled on the ground. While Yan Wuheng couldn't understand their position, he could see that their suffering was not ordinary.

Comforting someone you don't know doesn't really help.

Leonard could only wait patiently for her to compose herself.

A few more minutes passed.

"Sniff, sniff, hic, cough."

Wiping away her tear-stained face, Ester, with her eyes swollen and red, spoke.

"S-So? What is mental power?"

Her determination to explore magic, even after being discouraged, was commendable. The fact that she could seek knowledge from someone younger and less experienced was a sign of her excellence.

Leonard, like he had done for her, generously shared his new teachings.

"Mental power literally means the power of the mind. It's a force that everyone who can use mana possesses, though it's difficult to recognize and control consciously."

It was a completely different domain from the brain's neural signals.

Controlling mana was not about muscles, blood vessels, or nerves.

It was about the intellect and consciousness residing in the brain, the part corresponding to the 'spirit' in the concept of 'Qi, Spirit, and Shen.'

For those who hadn't opened their Upper Dantian, recognizing mental power was difficult, and even if they recognized it, controlling it consciously was nearly impossible. It was a force that everyone used but few understood.

"Then, can I not use it?"

"No."

While comforting Ester, who started to sob again, Leonard reviewed the martial arts techniques in his mind.

'I remember. It was a cultivation method I obtained from the Qingcheng Sect.'

The [Qingming Heart Method].

It was a neglected technique in the Qingcheng Sect because it cultivated the spirit rather than Qi, so no matter how much one practiced, their internal energy wouldn't increase.

However, after studying the [Qingming Heart Method] for a few weeks, Yan Wuheng couldn't help but criticize the Qingcheng Sect's foolishness for neglecting it.

—This is a cultivation method to train the 'spirit' in Qi, Spirit, and Shen. It can prevent mental disturbances caused by hypnotic techniques in both Gong and Ma techniques and significantly reduce the risk of mental breakdown.

It was a fundamental part of what were called supreme martial arts.

The Kunlun Sect's [Supreme Qingcheng Technique].

The Wudang Sect's [Yangyi Wuji Technique].

The Qingcheng Sect's [Wanxiang Guiyi Technique].

The Shaolin Temple's [Banya Technique] and [Wushang Daining Technique] were examples.

'But supreme martial arts are not just for dogs and cats; most people go through life without even hearing a single word of their techniques.'

The [Qingming Heart Method] was relatively easy to learn, allowed one to control their mind, and achieved results very quickly. It would be more beneficial to practice such a mental technique than to desperately try to accumulate 1-2 years of internal energy faster than others.

Unfortunately, the Qingcheng Sect seemed to have ignored his advice, as even a few years later, no one was practicing the [Qingming Heart Method].

"I'll teach you how to control mental power. After stopping the circulation of mana in your body, show me your back."

Ester, startled by the request to show her back in a vulnerable position, looked at Leonard with a shocked face.

"What?! T-That's...!"

"If you can't trust me, we can stop here."

Leonard knew he had no reason to harm her, but the psychological resistance was inevitable.

Ester bit her lip hard and said,

"...Alright, I'll trust you."

She stopped the rotation of her circle within her body, closed her eyes, and turned around to sit. It was a situation where she was entrusting her life to him, as a martial artist of the External Force Realm could kill her with a single punch.

Leonard responded without hesitation.

"Absolutely do not speak, just listen to me."

Mingmen Point.

As his palm pressed into the center of her back, Ester managed to maintain her composure and focused her concentration.

The mana slowly flowed up her back, as if guiding her.

—If wise people are not exalted (不尙賢), people will not fight uselessly (使民不爭).

The [Qingming Heart Method] was a study of Daoism and a method to control the mind.

That's why the formula is written in the words of the Dao De Jing.

—If rare treasures are not valued (不貴難得之貨), there will be no theft among people (使民不為盜).

Desire is just a part of the mind, and if one can control their mind, they can suppress it.

One becomes arrogant because they believe in their own wisdom.

One becomes complacent because they believe in their own strength.

One becomes dogmatic because they believe in their own goodness.

The [Qingming Heart Method] points this out using the third chapter of the Dao De Jing.

—If people are always without knowledge and desire (常使民無知無欲), even the wise will not act rashly (使夫知者不敢為也).

By emptying the mind, no temptation can shake the practitioner's spirit.

While the Dao De Jing discusses methods of governing, the founder of this technique used the words to empty the practitioner's mind of knowledge and desire, thereby strengthening mental power.

After shaking off all trivial thoughts and desires, only pure spirit remains.

—By doing nothing (為無為), nothing is left undone (則無不治).

As he recited the final formula and completed the circulation of Qi, Ester was already in a state of no-self.

Although it was not a technique for absorbing Qi, there was no disturbance of Qi around her body, but the image of Ester reflected in Leonard's eyes was changing every second.

The experience and knowledge she had accumulated over years of stagnation were now leaping to a higher dimension as they met the [Qingming Heart Method].

'Could it be?'

Leonard's eyebrows shot up.

While the methods of breaking through in mana cultivation and circle rotation were different, the 'rank' perceivable by the Upper Dantian was continuously rising.

If translated into the ranks of martial artists, the flow that started at the peak of the early stage had risen to the peak of the middle stage, and then to the peak of the late stage, with no sign of stopping.

If this continued, she would surpass a major realm.

'Am I helping her reach the 5th Circle?'

He had only intended to lay the foundation for mental power, but the situation was getting out of hand, leaving him speechless.

Kwaahaaa——

And just as Leonard had predicted.

A pleasant and powerful sound of circle rotation overflowed from within Ester's body, spreading a much stronger control in all directions. Even within the range of the [Five Elements True Dragon Ring], his magic was not completely sealed.

It was the sudden birth of a 5th Circle mage.

"……"

Ester, having perfectly stabilized her five circles, blinked her eyes. She was more bewildered than happy, unsure of what had happened.

Without realizing it, she activated the last spell she had learned, the improved [Magic Missile] that Leonard had taught her.

Paf! Paf! Paf! Paf! Paf!

Five mana projectiles materialized in the air, just as before.

When she couldn't use mental power, this was her limit.

Kiiiiiiing.

It was slower and the dagger shape was crude compared to when Leonard did it.

But she had successfully deformed the spell formula using mental power.

Kwak! Kwak! Kwak! Kwak!

The five [Magic Missiles] pierced their target, making a sharp sound as if real daggers had been thrown.

Ester pointed at them with her index finger, then pointed at herself, looking at Leonard. She wanted to say something, but her voice wouldn't come out.

Seeing her ridiculous expression, Leonard didn't laugh.

He just took a step forward and extended his hand.

"Congratulations on reaching the 5th Circle, Ester."

Hearing this, Ester was momentarily stunned, then tears streamed down her eyes as she ran to him.

Before shaking hands, Leonard was hugged, leaving him bewildered.