Free Web NovelChapter 34: Chapter 32: Basic Meditation Technique
Mo Ning’s gaze swept across the five pale faces. He felt a pang of sympathy.
But this was the academy, not a school from his previous life.
Newcomers weren’t protected by the law; the academy held the power of life and death over them.
Therefore, good performance was rewarded, while exceedingly poor performance was punished.
Mo Ning noticed something: without exception, the unlucky ones who were punished were all newcomers with high serial numbers.
In the dining hall, they all sat alone at their tables.
Conversely, newcomers with teammates had companions to remind them, even if they themselves forgot.
This struck a chord with Mo Ning. ’Having teammates is clearly better than not having them.’
He was so absorbed in his studies and research all day that he was practically oblivious to the world outside.
It wouldn’t be unacceptable to have a teammate—even one with slightly less strength, as long as they could help gather information.
Otherwise, what if one day he ended up in the same predicament as those five unlucky souls?
In the center of the Lecture Hall.
Lv Mei finally got to the main topic.
Its voice returned to a calm state, carrying a convincing rhythm of its own:
"In the distant Ancient Wizard Era, the conditions for mastering the Basic Meditation Technique were extremely harsh.
"First, one had to possess the outstanding talent of having a Spiritual Strength of 2 points or more.
"Second, one needed to undergo at least three years of arduous Meditation to condense their own unique Meditation Mark.
"However, the Ancient Wizards were generally exceptionally talented. Once they had a Meditation Mark, they could usually succeed in condensing their first Spirit Ring within half a year.
"When the Era of Secret Divination arrived, the Divination Wizards completely reformed the Magic System, drastically lowering the entry barrier."
A hint of pride for the Era of Divination crept into Lv Mei’s tone:
"As long as one’s Spiritual Strength reaches 0.5 points, and they infuse the ’standard Meditation Mark’ into their Spiritual World and then persist in Meditation, they have a chance to condense their first Spirit Ring.
"It is precisely because of this that the number of people capable of condensing a Spirit Ring became hundreds of times greater than in ancient times, ultimately laying a solid foundation for the glorious Era of Secret Divination."
The history from the ancient Meditation Technique to the divination Meditation Technique was something most of the newcomers present already knew.
The biggest draw of this class for the newcomers was definitely not the First Level Wizard, Lv Mei.
It was—the standard Meditation Mark.
It was said to be a miraculous thing that could allow one to touch the Ocean of Magical Power and ultimately master powerful Witchcraft.
Lv Mei briefly reviewed the history and then asked directly, "Everyone, what is the essence of Meditation?"
The hall fell silent.
No one answered.
Even Mo Ning, with a library’s worth of knowledge in his head, was stumped by this question.
He had read many books on Meditation.
Some analyzed Meditation from the perspective of Divination, breaking it down into formulas and variables;
Others discussed Meditation from the perspective of personal enlightenment, writing in an abstruse and mystifying way.
Mo Ning quickly discovered a problem:
Whether it was the analyses from Divination or personal enlightenments, the authors’ understandings of the Basic Meditation Technique were all different.
Some called it a "self-dialogue of the spirit," others a "passive nourishment of the soul," and still others a "search within oneself."
Each theory was a self-contained system, yet they contradicted each other and could not be unified.
This gave Mo Ning a feeling: ’The standard Meditation Mark is like a seed. When planted in different Spiritual Worlds, the life that grows is bizarrely varied.’
Many authors mentioned one fact—it was one of their few points of consensus:
The more profound one’s understanding of the Basic Meditation Technique, the smoother their future path as a Wizard would be.
But as for how to gain that profound understanding, Mo Ning still had no clue.
In the center of the Lecture Hall.
Lv Mei didn’t seem to expect an answer and continued on its own, "Everyone, let’s watch an experiment first."
It raised its right hand, its five fingers gently twisting together.
Two points of emerald green light emerged from between its fingers.
They danced in the void, leaving distinct, light-green trails, like two invisible paintbrushes sketching the outlines of two objects in the air.
Then, something strange happened.
The outlines sketched by the trails rapidly grew distinct, eventually transforming into real objects.
The newcomers stared with wide eyes, their gazes filled with astonishment.
Mo Ning stared at the two objects and wondered inwardly, ’Why do they look like tuning forks? This can’t be a tuning fork resonance experiment, can it?’
They were indeed two silver metallic objects that strongly resembled tuning forks.
One was taller than an adult, and the other was nearly a meter high.
The so-called "tuning fork resonance experiment" is when two tuning forks have the exact same natural frequency; striking one will cause the other to vibrate and emit sound from a distance.
This was an experiment from a physics class in his previous life.
Lv Mei explained simply, "These are Magic Sonic Forks. They are specifically used to counter sound-based Witchcraft, but for now, they are experimental props."
The Tree Spirit Wizard raised a finger, pointed it at the large fork from a distance, and tapped lightly.
"VMMMM—"
The large sonic fork vibrated violently.
Visible ripples spread out from around the fork, like a stone tossed into a calm lake.
Wherever the ripples passed, the light also visibly distorted, blurring the scene behind it.
Lv Mei explained at the opportune moment, "You can think of the large sonic fork as the omnipresent Ocean of Magical Power."
Its gaze shifted to the small sonic fork. "And this is the standard Meditation Mark."
After a moment, the small sonic fork began to vibrate in response.
At first, it was just a very slight tremor, almost imperceptible.
Soon, the amplitude increased from slow to fast, growing more and more intense. Ripples spread out from it, echoing the large fork from afar.
Finally, the ripples emanating from the two sonic forks actually merged into one.
Lv Mei’s speech slowed, making every word fall with clarity:
"The essence of Meditation is like the resonance between two Magic Sonic Forks. It is using the standard Meditation Mark to find your own strand of resonance within the Ocean of Magical Power."
The Lecture Hall was extremely quiet.
The newcomers stared at the two forks, which were still trembling slightly, each with a pensive expression.
A faint trace of pride tinged Lv Mei’s tone. "Of course, the above is merely my personal understanding."
The green light in its pupils flickered slightly. "The Apprentices I teach condense their first Spirit Ring at what should be the lowest level of Spiritual Strength in the entire academy."
Lower Spiritual Strength meant condensing a Spirit Ring sooner—which was obviously a good thing.
From the newcomers’ perspective, this meant a greater probability of condensing a Spirit Ring within two years.
Lv Mei changed the subject. "Now, I will talk about the deep connection between Spirit Rings, the spirit, and the soul, as well as how to grasp that wisp of Spiritual Light that belongs to you."
Mo Ning stared blankly at the two Magic Sonic Forks.
The analogy echoed repeatedly in his mind, growing clearer and brighter.
Finally, a brilliant flash of Spiritual Light suddenly bloomed in his mind.
Mo Ning’s hand suddenly tightened around the Ink Tube Pen he was holding.
He had a strong intuition—’I think I’ve just grasped "that wisp of Spiritual Light that belongs to me".’
