Chapter 169 - 168: Trigger Skill
Recalling the day Instructor Marvin and Instructor Lena faced the Abyssal Evil Vine, Zelir couldn’t help but feel a sense of longing.
The vine attacks that blotted out the sky, filled with corrosive Magic Power, were all completely blocked.
’Fog Flowing Gauze isn’t enough.’
’I need a stronger Defensive Magic!’
Zelir took a deep breath, calmed his racing thoughts, and entered a state of Shallow Meditation.
After confirming he was in peak condition, his Magic Power began to trace the Spell Structure.
This was Zelir’s first time attempting to cast a Level Five Magic. Just a brief mental scan was enough to feel the extreme complexity of its circuitry.
’I wonder if my 118 Spirit Attribute is enough to cast it successfully.’
The Magic Power originated from the anchor point, then slowly and arduously flowed along the predetermined path.
Zelir struggled to control the flow of Magic Power, not daring to let his focus waver for even a moment, ensuring it didn’t deviate.
Although it was awkward and unpracticed, he stumbled through the process.
Finally...
As the final wisp of Magic Power flowed precisely into the Technique’s endpoint, the entire circuit snapped shut!
The Technique was formed!
In that same instant, a wondrous change occurred around Zelir.
Unlike the hazy halo of Fog Flowing Gauze, a layer of intense Flame erupted from under his feet, then slowly spiraled upward, wrapping around Zelir.
The Magic Power began to coalesce into a tangible substance, completely protecting Zelir.
A leaf drifted lazily down, but the moment it touched the outer layer of the Blazing Flame Shield, it was instantly ignited and turned to ash.
This gave Zelir an even greater sense of security than when he cast Fog Flowing Gauze.
’Blazing Flame Shield!’
"Whew... Is this the Magic that Instructor Lena used?"
Zelir clenched his fists, getting a feel for it.
Unlike Fog Flowing Gauze, which specialized in defending against physical attacks...
The barrier formed by the Blazing Flame Shield not only blocked physical attacks, but also had a decent protective effect against Magic Power.
When incoming Magic from an external source came into contact with the barrier, it would trigger a violent counter-reaction.
This would continuously neutralize the incoming spell’s might, thus protecting the caster.
Furthermore, when an enemy’s attack touched the Blazing Flame Shield, it would automatically trace back to the source and launch a Flame attack!
’It’s basically a thorns shield.’
However, when facing purely physical attacks, the Blazing Flame Shield couldn’t deflect force with the same almost freakish efficiency as Fog Flowing Gauze.
The Blazing Flame Shield took hits head-on, while Fog Flowing Gauze deflected and dispersed the force. The two had very different defensive models.
It was possible to shatter the Blazing Flame Shield with continuous sword and saber strikes, provided the enemy could withstand the constant fiery counterattacks.
Next, Zelir tried the Ring of Resistance.
After using this Magic, Zelir felt that its protection was even stronger than the Blazing Flame Shield’s.
When attacked, it not only used a Magic Barrier to resist external forces, but could also generate a repulsive force to push them away.
Of course, the Ring of Resistance certainly didn’t have the fiery counterattack ability of the Blazing Flame Shield.
All in all, Instructor Lena’s Blazing Flame Shield was more of an all-rounder, balancing offense and defense. It would definitely be more useful when surrounded by a large number of grunts.
It could even burn goblins to death.
The Ring of Resistance was better suited for facing powerful enemies, for times when you wanted to drastically increase your chances of survival.
"No, no... I can’t sustain this."
Zelir hurriedly dispelled the Ring of Resistance.
That brief experiment had already drained a quarter of his Blue Bar.
’And that’s without even entering actual combat.’
’But then again...’
’These are Defensive Magics that Upper Level Mages maintain constantly. I’m just a Junior Mage right now, so of course it feels strenuous to use them.’
’Sigh... I hope Barrett finishes my custom Magic Robe soon, so I can reduce my Mana Consumption.’
After mastering two new types of Defensive Magic, another thought surfaced in Zelir’s mind.
’Visible attacks can be dealt with, but what about invisible ones?’
’Enemies won’t always fight you honorably and openly. Ambushes are inevitable when you’re adventuring.’
’It takes two or three seconds to cast an Energy Storage Defense Magic, but an enemy’s blade can slit your throat in less than one.’
’Keeping a Defense Magic active at all times isn’t realistic either; the drain on both my Spirit and Magic Power would be completely unsustainable.’
’It’s time to learn a more advanced Casting Technique.’
’A Trigger Skill!’
...
「Outside Black Stone Town」
No. 13 Mine Area.
Deep inside the mine, the stuffy air was thick with the smell of sweat and dust as the miners worked with fiery enthusiasm.
The sound of metal striking rock echoed endlessly.
"Hey! Old Tom! Is your rubble cart full yet? If it is, hurry up and pull it out! Don’t block the path!"
"Coming, coming! What’s the rush? This damn wheel is stuck again!"
The experienced miners had a clear division of labor.
The burly men wielding the hammers were shirtless, their knotted muscles glistening under the dim yellow light of the Fluorescent Stone Lamps.
They took turns swinging heavy pickaxes, chipping away at the hard rock face piece by piece.
Others were responsible for loading the dislodged rubble into wheelbarrows and pushing them outside along the rust-streaked tracks.
They were currently digging a new tunnel, heading deeper into the earth.
The foreman, Dick, leaned against a rough wooden support beam.
A cheap, hand-rolled cigarette was wedged between his thick fingers. As he smoked, the swirling smoke made his face appear and disappear in the gloom.
The tunnel already extended nearly a hundred meters into the depths of the lode, and the Black Stone Glaze Vein could be seen clearly on both walls, clinging to them like black blood vessels.
"Boss."
A young miner, out of breath, pushed a cart full of rubble past Dick.
"At this rate, how much longer do we have to dig to reach the main lode?"
Dick took a deep drag from his cigarette, squinting as he mentally calculated their progress.
"What’s the rush? The rock in this new vein is much harder than the last tunnel. It’ll take at least another half a month to break through."
After speaking, he turned and yelled at a few workers installing new support beams not far away.
"You lot! Place them closer together! Do you understand safety distances?! You want to lose your lives here just to save a few pieces of wood?!"
Dick wasn’t just responsible for planning the progress of the entire workface; there were countless other miscellaneous matters that required his attention.
For instance, checking if the support structures were stable, assessing the quality of newly discovered Ore, and mediating arguments between workers over trivial matters.
He even had to watch out for anyone secretly pocketing high-quality Ore...
He was truly a busy man.
Dick walked over to a newly excavated rock face, took a geology hammer from his belt, and tapped lightly on the black vein, leaning in to listen to the echo.
"DING..."
’Hmm... A clear, crisp sound. This is excellent material.’
’Once the tunnel is complete, the Alberti Clan should give me a handsome reward, right?’