NOVEL NEXT Chapter 162: Books
This Baihui Point was Van's favorite pressure point as it worked wonders against tough opponents. No one was safe from this particular acupuncture point, not even Magicians…
Thud!
Just like that, there was a controlled tap to the crown of Korv's skull.
Soon, the man's eyes rolled back.
THUD.
Similar to most of Van's enemies, Korv collapsed face-first into the sand. He was out cold before he even hit the ground.
"Whoah!"
"He really did it!"
"Awesome!"
"I knew it… That was not a fluke!"
"He's the real deal. I wonder where he came from."
"There's no way he came from an unknown family. He must be a noble's son from a smaller kingdom."
"That's true… His demeanor seems like he's a noble."
Many servants couldn't help but feel elated at the result of the battle. Of course, those who lost their bets weren't happy. That was quite understandable.
Soon, coins clattered as fortunes changed hands.
Van exhaled as he looked at the report of his Ocularis Lens.
[ Total time: 48 seconds. ]
'That's a lot slower than I expected.' Van mused as he believed that he could've defeated the man a lot faster, considering Korv's current injuries.
In any case, he earned a lot of money, so he probably shouldn't visit this place for some time. It wasn't because he was afraid of getting challenged, but because he didn't want to always be the center of attention. He'd wait for some time before visiting the place once again.
He should focus on his Meditation and research about his collar for now.
At this time, Sarah had already collected her winnings and joined up with Van.
Then, as the crowd dispersed, the two hidden mages on the balcony exchanged glances.
Mage Ryn drained his flask as he looked at Korv being carried by his friends.
"That wasn't luck."
Mage Connor nodded as he pocketed the Sunspark Elixir he'd just won.
"No. That was training. That's Van was quite special. Do you think he's a Medical Practitioner?" Mage Connor muttered….
***
Below, Van accepted a canteen from Sarah…
Korv was still unconscious, and they had no idea when he'd wake up…
Xiel, leaning against the arena wall, finally spoke. "You could've done that the first time."
Van took a sip. He hadn't noticed Xiel up until now and nodded. It seemed that he was too focused on his duel...
"Where's the profit in that?" He replied.
Sarah then tossed Xiel a heavy pouch—his cut of the winnings. She then turned to Van.
"Next time, tell me before you sandbag a fight. I almost missed the chance to earn money…"
Van wryly smiled at this. "Let's hope that next time, the odds will be even better."
***
The servant quarters were silent when Van returned…
At this time, Sarah and Xiel were just practicing or meditating in the small garden while also guarding the plants that they had been growing over the past few weeks...
Well, it was already quite impressive that Sarah wasn't celebrating with her winnings, Van really thought that she would splurge a bit instead of saving her earnings.
In any case, it wasn't time to worry about that…
Van sat cross-legged on his thin pallet and closed his eyes.
Soon, he started with his modified Aura Breathing Technique…
His breaths slowed, each inhale drew energy from the air, and each exhale circulated through his meridians.
With his constant use of such technique, his Ocularis Lens was already capable of analyzing the changes or flow in his body accurately.
After about an hour, he finally stopped.
[ Aura Circulation Efficiency: 89%
Residual Fatigue Cleared: 100%
Collar Restriction Status: Active ( Mana-Suppression Seal - Tier 3 ) ]
The collar around his neck—a thin band of black metal etched with a high-level formation array—was designed to prevent slaves from having negative thoughts about their master and it also slowly brainwashes their mind to become fully loyal to their master…
The effects may not be effective against Van, but this collar must still be removed since it could be traced by most Magicians, especially their Master.
Unfortunately, if he removed it recklessly, it could tighten and kill him instead…
However, Van had long suspected it had weaknesses.
'If I can't break it… I'll have to understand it.'
This time, Van finally turned to the new books that Julia borrowed for him.
Julia, in her typical impulsive generosity, had "borrowed" a stack of beginner magic tomes from the Tower's library under the guise of "extra studies."
Of course, this was already the fifth time she had done it for Van…
Now, he spread them across the floor and his Ocularis Lens swiftly analyzed them after a brief scan for the cover and its pages from it.
Well, thanks to his A.I. Assistant of Ocularis Lens, he was able to easily analyze books. However, he still had to read them as he couldn't just rely on the database of his Lens, he had to learn as well.
[ Fundamentals of Rune Engraving: A dry, technical manual on basic spellscript.
Useful For: Deciphering the collar's suppression runes.
Key Insight: "Tier 3 seals often have a 'heart rune'—a single glyph that anchors the spell. Disrupt it, and the entire matrix falters." ]
This first book was quite important… After all, he believed that he would also encounter a lot of Runes in the future, even after escaping from being a slave.
Next, he turned to the second book.
[ Mana Signatures & Their Traces: How to identify spells by their residual energy.
Useful For: Detecting if the collar's magic weakens over time.
Key Insight: "All spells degrade. The question is how fast." ]
The Ocularis Lens had basically summarized it for him, and he felt like reading this first before the Fundamentals of Rune Engraving.
"Still, Mana Signatures should be quite easy now with the Lens' current performance," Van muttered.
Since his Lens already had plenty of sample data, he was quite confident about this matter.
In any case, she turned to the next book, and this time, he finally felt excited... This was definitely something he had to learn.