Free Web NovelChapter 18: Chapter 18: An Unexpected Surprise
The full name for Elf Reaction is the "Spirituality-Spirit Sympathetic Reaction."
Spirituality refers to the Spiritual Power contained within a Magic Potion.
"Spirit," on the other hand, refers to the body’s Spiritual Force Field.
When the ointment makes contact with the skin, the Spiritual Force Field and Spiritual Power begin to influence each other.
Fluctuations in one’s Spiritual Power guide the flow of Spirituality, while the influx of Spirituality in turn stimulates the activity of one’s Spiritual Power.
This is the essence of how a Magic Potion takes effect on the human body.
It isn’t a simple chemical reaction, nor is it a crude infusion of energy, but a more complex and subtle resonance.
It’s like two adjacent tuning forks; when one vibrates, the other resonates in response.
Between the Spiritual Force Field and the Spiritual Power, there exist unseen threads that silently connect them.
Mo Ning stood before a full-length mirror, gazing at the young man’s face in the reflection.
The ointment between his eyebrows and on his temples had vanished completely, fully absorbed deep into his skin.
But the cool sensation had not faded. Instead, it grew clearer and deeper.
It was like countless tiny streams seeping slowly inward from three sources, spreading along some kind of invisible network.
The feeling was strange and wonderful.
It was as if something was awakening inside his body.
With a subtle turn of his thoughts,
In an instant, an ethereal eyeball materialized from the depths of his consciousness—the Eye of Truth.
The eyeball was formed entirely of flowing motes of light. Deep within its pupil, a nebula seemed to swirl, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura.
Countless, extremely fine threads of light extended from the mystic eye.
They were condensed from some indescribable glimmering light, tracing arcs through the air like living things before instantly sinking into his body.
He had privately given these threads of light a ridiculously badass name—the Thread of Truth.
It wasn’t an exaggeration.
Because they were the fundamental components that constituted the Eye of Truth—fragments he could call upon, extracted after his cheat ability merged with him at the soul level.
Every single thread carried the primal impulse to analyze the essence of all things.
The Thread of Truth possessed an astonishing ability: to detect and record any subtle change in his body in real time.
This included fluctuations in Magic Power and Spiritual Power, the flow of every wisp of Spirituality, every leap in energy, and so on.
Most importantly, after the Eye of Truth acquired this data, it could automatically convert it into Divination Parameters for subsequent Secret Divination and Divination research.
This function had played an indispensable role in Mo Ning’s ability to continuously improve the High Mountain Breathing Technique and accumulate a wealth of experience in refining Secret Techniques.
For ordinary Wizards and Apprentices, recording their own cultivation data required specialized Witchcraft Items.
Such items were often quite expensive.
The data collection function of the Eye of Truth saved him a huge amount of Black Tower Points.
At this moment, as the cool sensation seeped in from between his eyebrows and his temples like a babbling brook, Mo Ning gradually felt a strange sensation of his spirit being "elevated."
The feeling was difficult to describe.
It was as if he had been standing in a valley with his view blocked by mountains, but now he was slowly ascending, rising above the peaks to look down upon the earth from a greater height.
His field of vision expanded.
His thoughts sharpened.
Ideas that he normally had to struggle to grasp now surfaced in his mind on their own.
He knew this was an illusion, a side effect of his spirit being nourished by the Magic Potion.
"HUUUUH—CHHHH—HUUUUH—CHHHH—"
Mo Ning took a deep breath, his chest once again rising and falling at a specific frequency.
This was the High Mountain Breathing Technique.
Each breath was like a precise charging process, drawing some form of invisible power from the air into his body and converting it into fuel for his spirit.
The ethereal eyeball hovering before him suddenly flickered.
A simple panel formed from a Light Curtain appeared without a sound:
[Name: Mo Ning]
[Spiritual Strength: 0.52]
[Physical Strength: 0.21]
This was one of the many practical little functions integrated into his cheat ability.
When he first saw this attribute panel, he had secretly hoped for some powerful function like "Deep Blue Points."
Something that would let his Spiritual Strength shoot up with a single thought, or boost his Physical Strength with one click, allowing him to effortlessly reach the pinnacle of the Wizard World.
Unfortunately, he had been overthinking it.
It was merely a monitoring panel that recorded the numerical changes in his status, allowing him to visually track his growth.
"HUUUUH—CHHHH—"
Mo Ning’s mind was highly focused as he continued to practice the Breathing Technique.
The effect of the Magic Potion made it easier to concentrate. Even practicing the Breathing Technique felt "smoother."
A moment later, he felt as if he had become a great mountain.
A mountain that had weathered countless storms—majestic, serene, and eternal.
This was the essence of the High Mountain Breathing Technique.
And with the boost from the Magic Potion, this experience became even more real, more profound.
The data on the attribute panel began to jump continuously.
[Spiritual Strength: 0.53]
[Spiritual Strength: 0.54]
[Spiritual Strength: 0.55]
His Spiritual Strength, stimulated by the Breathing Technique, began to rise temporarily.
The rate of increase was clearly a notch faster than it had been in the cafeteria earlier.
The Magic Potion’s efficacy was resonating with the Breathing Technique, pushing his spiritual activity to a higher level.
The Thread of Truth began to frantically collect data.
Innumerable pieces of information surged from every corner of his body, converging into a data torrent that flooded into the Eye of Truth.
Two seconds later, the attribute growth began to slow.
[Spiritual Strength: 0.67]
[Spiritual Strength: 0.68]
Mo Ning’s eyes were fixed on the line of numbers, his breath held unconsciously.
This was his previous limit.
When facing Goblin Fodder’s Goblin Shocking Skill, the High Mountain Breathing Technique had boosted his Spiritual Strength to 0.68.
That was the highest value he had reached so far.
With the aid of the Magic Potion, that limit was now being broken.
Finally, under Mo Ning’s expectant gaze, the attribute broke through its limit.
[Spiritual Strength: 0.69]
’He broke it!’
But 0.69 was not the end.
The attribute was still rising, though the speed had slowed even further.
"HUUUUH—CHHHH—"
Propelled by the coolness flooding in from between his eyebrows and temples, his spiritual activity continued to climb.
[Spiritual Strength: 0.70]
[Spiritual Strength: 0.71]
[Spiritual Strength: 0.72]
The numbers ticked up more and more slowly, but each jump marked a new peak.
Mo Ning could even feel his own thinking speed quicken.
It wasn’t an illusion; it was a real, tangible acceleration.
After a full minute, he finally felt that he could not continue much longer.
A faint, burning sensation appeared in his chest and abdomen, as if a small fire was scorching him from within.
The feeling wasn’t intense, but it was clear—a warning that he couldn’t go on.
He naturally understood this was a sign of a mild strain on his lungs from overusing the High Mountain Breathing Technique.
’This is the limit.’
’My Physical Strength is too low,’ Mo Ning thought to himself, stopping the Breathing Technique at just the right time.
The rise and fall of his chest gradually slowed, and his breathing rhythm returned to normal.
And the number on his attribute panel had risen to a new high that took him by surprise:
[Spiritual Strength: 0.83]
0.83!
From 0.52 to 0.83—a full increase of 0.31 points.
This number was 0.15 points higher than the 0.68 he had reached when facing Fodder.
Mo Ning couldn’t help but praise it internally. ’Magic Potions really live up to their reputation!’
He finally understood why so many Apprentices considered Calming Ointment an essential item when practicing their Meditation Techniques.
Then, the attribute began to fall rapidly.
[Spiritual Strength: 0.82]
[Spiritual Strength: 0.81]
[Spiritual Strength: 0.80]
The speed was much faster than when it was rising, like a tide that comes in slowly but recedes with a torrential rush.
Mo Ning wasn’t surprised.
After all, it was a temporary attribute increase. Once the stimulation from the Breathing Technique vanished, his Spiritual Strength would naturally drop back down.
It was like taking your foot off the gas pedal; the car’s speed would slow down.
「Thirty seconds later.」
The number on the attribute panel froze at a value that surprised him:
[Spiritual Strength: 0.53]
Mo Ning blinked, thinking he had misread it.
He had expected the attribute to fall back to 0.52, returning to where it started.
But now, the number was stuck at 0.53, unmoving.
A thought involuntarily popped into Mo Ning’s head. ’Could it be... my Spiritual Strength has permanently increased by 0.01 points?’
He could hardly believe it.
He had only been experimenting with the Magic Potion’s effect and practicing the Breathing Technique for a short while. How could he have possibly gained a permanent increase of 0.01 points?
「One minute later.」
The aftereffects of using the High Mountain Breathing Technique finally arrived.
Because he had used the Magic Potion, the spiritual overdraft was even more severe. Mo Ning felt an intense sensation of being "drained."
Even though the Magic Potion was still in effect, he still felt an intense fatigue.
His eyelids began to fight to stay open.
It was as if something was pulling at his consciousness, trying to drag him into a dark abyss.
Mo Ning forced himself to glance at the attribute panel:
[Spiritual Strength: 0.53]
’It didn’t change!’
’It really didn’t change!’
Logically, any "temporary" boost should be impossible to maintain when suffering from severe spiritual overdraft.
But the data hadn’t changed.
This was enough to prove that it was truly a permanent increase.
The joy in Mo Ning’s heart felt like it was about to burst from his chest.
He never would have thought that simply experimenting with the Magic Potion’s effect would yield such an unexpected and pleasant surprise.
Mo Ning fought against the increasingly intense drowsiness as a series of thoughts flashed through his mind.
’This must be the combined effect of the High Mountain Breathing Technique and the Calming Ointment.
’The Breathing Technique stimulates spiritual activity, and the Magic Potion provides a continuous source of fuel for it.
’The two combined helped my body break through some hidden limit, ultimately resulting in a permanent 0.01-point increase in Spiritual Strength.’
He praised it with sincere gratitude. ’Praise the Magic Potion!!’
He laboriously moved his feet, sealed the small black jar, and placed it back in the secure locker before struggling onto his bed.
The moment his body touched the bed, it went as limp as a pile of mud.
He didn’t even have the strength to take off his clothes and just lay down stiffly.
He was so exhausted!
It was the kind of exhaustion you’d feel after thinking for three days and three nights straight, or as if most of your energy had been siphoned away.
His entire head was groggy, and even moving his eyeballs felt like a chore.
Almost at the very instant he lay down, Mo Ning’s willpower was utterly crushed by fatigue.
In the last moment before he fell completely asleep, a final thought flashed through his mind: ’The High Mountain Breathing Technique should have even greater potential.’
The thought streaked through the depths of his consciousness like a shooting star, only to be swallowed by darkness.
「The next second.」
"Zzzz~"
The sound of a soft, contented snore began to echo gently throughout Apartment 804.
