Wizards begin by accessing the Inspiration panel.

Chapter 22, The First Magic Trick (Please continue reading)

Richard poured all the bones onto the floor in the center of the room. He then awkwardly recited the spell for the magic trick "Manipulating Bones" from the book, while pointing his palm diagonally at the pile of bones.

A few seconds later, several bone clubs in the pile of bones moved slightly before returning to stillness. Clearly, the manipulation had failed!

[Host detected performing magic to manipulate skeletons. Do/Do you consume energy to gain inspiration for manipulating skeletons?]

"no!"

Without hesitation, Richard chose no. After all, it was only his first time using it, and he was not discouraged.

It would be strange if it were successful on the first try.

Richard then tried a few more times. The best time was when a few bones floated up, but just as he was about to set up the skeleton, it wobbled a few times and fell back to the ground.

Wow! A magic trick, and it's this difficult!

After seven or eight attempts, not a single one succeeded!

But the biggest problem is that, perhaps because Richard's mental strength is only 3.9, he has already started to feel tired after several attempts.

So Richard stopped, frowned, and began to think.

It's probably because my total mental energy is relatively low. Although casting the trick [Manipulating Bones] only consumes about 0.3 units of mental energy.

But thinking about himself, he only had 3.9 mental strength, and after more than ten times, he would be close to his limit.

You should know that excessive mental exertion can lead to a coma!

In fact, Richard also knew that there was a way to quickly restore mental strength; many medicines could solve this problem and thus speed up cultivation.

However, he is currently short of money, with only three magic stones left, and has no money to buy mental energy recovery potions to increase the number of times he can practice this trick.

Richard clenched his fists, his brows furrowed. It seemed he had no choice but to rely on his inspiration.

Previously, he thought that manipulating skeletons was just a low-level trick, and that it shouldn't be difficult for him to learn.

Energy points should be conserved as much as possible and used for the extremely difficult Rodrigo Meditation and Shadow Grip later on!

After all, his energy points didn't just fall from the sky; he obtained them with great difficulty, risking his life.

Originally, his plan was to learn how to manipulate skeletons using magic without consuming energy points, based on his own abilities.

Then, after completing the preliminary courses on meditation in a few days, consume energy points to quickly improve your mastery level of the Rodriguez meditation method.

Finally, all energy points were spent on upgrading the level 0 sorcery Shadow Grip!

But now it seems that plans can't keep up with changes. I misjudged the difficulty of the trick, or perhaps I overestimated my wizarding aptitude. It looks like I'll have to use energy points.

Because, based on his current learning speed, Richard estimated that it would take him at least a month to master the trick of manipulating skeletons.

Only after mastering the [Manipulation of Bones] skill to a proficient level can one unlock further learning—namely, learning the level zero sorcery Shadow Grip.

Therefore, Richard decided to expend energy to quickly enhance his ability to manipulate skeletons.

[Host detected performing magic to manipulate skeletons. Do/Do you consume energy to gain inspiration for manipulating skeletons?]

This time, looking at the numbers 1 and 3505 at both ends of the slider, Richard thought for a moment and decided to drag the slider to 100 to test the effect, and selected "Yes!"

In an instant, Richard felt as if his soul had left his body and he was in a dreamlike state, this time in a dark cemetery.

He possessed a hunched figure that was bending over to place a urn containing bones. The blurry figure chanted the incantation to control the bones over and over again.

Richard suddenly had a flash of inspiration; he realized that his pronunciation of the incantation had been inaccurate in one way or another.

It is important to know that only accurate pronunciation of the incantation can allow your spiritual power to activate the magical medium according to some mysterious law, thereby achieving the desired effect.

So that's how you should chant the mantra!

Then Richard realized that mental energy was like a tiny thread that could build up all the bones one by one in a specific order, just like building blocks!

After going over it again and again, suddenly, Richard had a sudden realization, as if struck by lightning!

It turns out that the process involves first building the lower body skeleton, which consists of 62 pieces, followed by the torso, and finally the skull.

Understood!

Richard's body trembled slightly as his soul returned to his body!

When Richard came to his senses, he suddenly felt a profound sense of enlightenment, realizing the vast difference between before and after the inspiration.

Previously, he had been practicing with great difficulty, as if he were completely clueless. But now, he has mastered all the key techniques of manipulating the skeleton!

Sure enough, when Richard performed the trick of manipulating the skeletons again, the whole process went much more smoothly.

Centered on the pile of bones, all the bones were drawn by Richard's mental power and floated in mid-air. With the vibrations of the incantation, the feet, legs, torso, and other parts of a skeleton were gradually constructed.

A few seconds later, a complete skeleton stood before Richard.

Seeing the successful scene before him, Richard smiled with satisfaction, his lips curving upwards, and he was in a great mood.

At this point, Richard tried again, using an invisible spiritual tendril to control the skeleton to move forward.

The skeleton began to walk in a very uncoordinated manner; it wasn't exactly moving in unison, but it was still very awkward to watch.

Clearly, given his current level of mastery of magic, Richard estimated that his tricks were only good for scaring ordinary people.

After all, such a disharmony might mean they couldn't even defeat a slightly stronger militiaman, making them utterly ineffective in combat!

Upon opening the panel:

Name: Richard Clavel

[Attributes]: Strength 2.1, Agility 2.4, Constitution 2.2, Spirit 3.9

[Witchcraft]: Manipulating Bones (Beginner 37%)

[Skills]: Clavier's Breathing Technique (Proficiency 2%), Cornell Swordsmanship (Proficiency 8%), Bow and Crossbow (Mastery 31%, Secret Technique: Shortbow Rapid Fire)

[Shortbow Rapid Fire: A special skill that allows for the continuous, rapid, and accurate firing of arrows within a short period of time, consuming a large amount of stamina. Requires a shortbow.]

[Energy Points]: 3405

Sure enough, in the newly added section on witchcraft, the trick of manipulating skeletons that I had just mastered was only at the beginner level of 37%. It was not yet able to make the skeletons perform smooth daily actions, let alone other complex actions.

Richard rubbed his temples, which were starting to throb, and knew that this was a reaction to excessive physical and mental exhaustion. He immediately decided to stop practicing.

After working tirelessly for several days and nights, it's time to take a good rest. A balance between work and rest is essential for achieving twice the results with half the effort!

That night, Richard snored loudly and slept soundly without any dreams!

When he woke up again, he looked at the bronze clock on his desk and found that it was already around ten o'clock the next morning.

Goodness, that's almost a full fourteen hours of sleep!

I slept like a log, but when I woke up, the effect was excellent, and I felt refreshed!

So Richard decided to strike while the iron was hot and continue practicing his magic tricks to manipulate skeletons.

[Host detected performing magic to manipulate skeletons. Do/Do you consume energy to gain inspiration for manipulating skeletons?]

After a moment's thought, Richard dragged the slider to 200 and selected "Yes!"

He planned to take this opportunity to elevate his mastery of the magic trick to another level.

(End of this chapter)