Chapter 298 - 286: Rock Armor Skill
"The Earth element is solid and heavy. As the saying goes, the magic reflects the person, so your temperament is also very important. You must pay attention to this when cultivating your skills..."
In a chamber of the Demonstration Pavilion, the short, stout, and ball-like transmission senior, Yan Yuan, was speaking eloquently on the stage, explaining the secrets of cultivating Earth Element magic to the disciples.
Zhao Lin sat in the audience. On the surface, he seemed to be listening with rapt attention, but in reality, his mind was elsewhere.
His purpose for coming here today was simple: to select an Earth Element defensive Magic and ’absorb’ it as his own.
Ever since the Spirit Cultivation Map appeared, Zhao Lin had been pondering how to absorb Magic, and which ones to absorb.
The first question was easy to decide. Although the Spirit Cultivation Map offered three ways to absorb Magic, the first two were currently impossible for him.
There were no elderly cultivators nearing the end of their lifespan in Han Chi County, and Zhao Lin couldn’t bring himself to murder someone just to absorb their Essence Soul.
Humans weren’t Demon Beasts, after all. You couldn’t just kill them at will, especially not a fellow disciple.
The path of searching for cultivators’ remains was also a dead end.
The tombs of cultivators in the county were all protected by Arrays. Grave robbing was impossible. If he were discovered, he would surely be expelled from the sect. The gain wasn’t worth the risk.
That left only one path: coming into close contact with the Magic itself.
As for which Magic to choose first, Zhao Lin was most interested in those that could boost his strength—like attack, defense, or agility—or increase his chances of survival.
He definitely needed an attack Magic, but after making numerous inquiries, Zhao Lin learned that not a single person in the entire Spirit Dao Institute, or even Han Chi County, had managed to cultivate a Tier One Magic to the Perfection stage.
One reason, naturally, was that Magic became exponentially harder to cultivate in its later stages.
When the Spirit Cultivation Map analyzed a Magic, each level of mastery required four times the amount of Spirit Stones. This was basically consistent with the actual difficulty of cultivating the Magic.
Even for someone with outstanding elemental talent, it was impossible to cultivate a Tier One Magic to Perfection without twenty or thirty years of dedicated effort.
That was just one reason. Another was that when Qi Refining Realm cultivators broke through to the Late-stage of Qi Refining, they could begin learning Tier Two Skills.
At that stage, most cultivators would focus their energy on Tier Two Skills.
After all, at the same level of mastery, a Tier Two Skill was stronger than a Tier One Magic, so naturally, they wouldn’t continue to pursue mastery in a Tier One Magic.
This resulted in very few people ever cultivating a Tier One Magic to Perfection.
In the Spirit Dao Institute, only the institute’s supervisor, Elder Nie, and Transmission Elder Wu had cultivated a Tier One Magic to the Great Accomplishment stage.
So, was there anyone who had cultivated a Tier One Magic to Perfection?
Of course, there were. They were the veteran Qi Refining Realm cultivators who had meticulously studied a single Magic for decades but couldn’t break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.
Zhao Lin had heard that such a cultivator would be coming to the Spirit Dao Institute to teach in a while, so he decided to simply wait for that person’s arrival before learning an attack Magic, getting it perfect in one go.
He couldn’t just be idle in the meantime, so he thought about learning another Magic first, and also test the effectiveness of the Spirit Cultivation Map’s cultivation process.
Having absorbed the Golden Leopard’s Essence Soul, and with the help of the Cloud Flipping Skill, Zhao Lin’s running speed on land was nearly unrivaled. He was even a sliver faster than a Late-stage Qi Refining cultivator using the Divine Movement Skill.
So, he wouldn’t consider the Divine Movement Skill for now.
The trip to Jue Ming Mountain had made him realize how dangerous this world was. ’If I were suddenly ambushed by a Whip-Line Serpent,’ he thought, ’I’d probably have a hard time escaping unscathed.’
So he decided to learn a defensive Magic first to protect himself.
When it came to defensive Magic, although all five elements—Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—and the three exotics—Wind, Ice, and Lightning—had such skills, the undisputed master of this path was the Earth Element.
Earth Element Magic was heavy and stable; defense was its specialty.
The most proficient user of Earth-attribute Magic in the Spirit Dao Institute was the transmission senior on the stage, Yan Yuan.
"Brother Yan, may I ask what Earth-attribute defensive Magic there are? Could you give us a brief introduction?"
Zhao Lin took the opportunity to ask during a break in Yan Yuan’s lecture.
The other disciples all turned to look at him.
Earth Element Magic excelled at defense but not offense, so not many new disciples studied it. Most of the people present were senior disciples, and the group was more or less fixed.
Zhao Lin had never come before. His sudden appearance today, coupled with his enthusiastic demeanor, was rather puzzling.
"Who is this guy? How can he ask such a simple question without feeling embarrassed?"
"You don’t know him? He’s the only Martial Cultivator in our Spirit Dao Institute. I heard he has six-attribute Spiritual Roots!"
"He has a lot of Spiritual Root attributes, sure. But is he trying to learn everything? Isn’t he afraid of biting off more than he can chew?"
The disciples muttered amongst themselves.
Yan Yuan didn’t mind. As a transmission senior, he naturally hoped for as many disciples as possible to study Magic under him.
This way, his monthly stipend and merit points would also increase accordingly.
Hearing Zhao Lin’s question, Yan Yuan smiled faintly and said, "There are numerous Earth Element defensive Magic. It would probably take more than an hour to introduce them all."
"Let’s just talk about the three most common ones, which are also the most suitable for Qi Refining Realm disciples to cultivate: the Sand Wall Skill, the Earth Shield Skill, and the Rock Armor Skill."
"The Sand Wall Skill has the widest defensive area and can block long-range attacks from Magic and magical treasures. The Earth Shield Skill takes the form of a large shield; it’s solid and heavy, and within a ten-foot radius, it’s so solid that neither wind nor rain can pass through."
"The Rock Armor Skill protects the entire body and is incredibly durable, and it also consumes the least Mana. The three Magic each have their own strengths. You can choose one based on your personal situation and preference."
Yan Yuan spoke eloquently, clearly singing his own praises.
Zhao Lin understood. The defensive range of the three Magic went from large to small, and their effective distance from far to near.
After a moment’s thought, he had his answer: the Rock Armor Skill.
He didn’t need a wide defensive area, and the Rock Armor Skill also consumed less Mana, which was perfect for him, as he was only in the early stage of Qi Refining.
Zhao Lin deliberately put on a hesitant expression and asked, "The Rock Armor Skill sounds good, but I wonder if Brother Yan is proficient in it?"
At this, a senior disciple couldn’t listen anymore and chimed in, "Brother Yan has cultivated the Rock Armor Skill to the Proficient level. You think he can’t teach you?"
Zhao Lin said, "Oh," then asked, "I’ve seen Senior Brother Li’s Water Curtain Skill, and its defensive effect was excellent. I wonder how the Rock Armor Skill compares to it?"
Upon hearing this, Yan Yuan threw his head back and laughed.
With his short and stout build, he looked a bit comical laughing like that, but he himself was completely unaware, his face full of confidence.
"I can’t speak for other things, but when it comes to defensive Magic, if my Earth Element is second, no one dares claim first!"
Zhao Lin’s expression turned serious. He said in a deep voice, "I am a Martial Cultivator. I believe that seeing is believing. Dare I ask if I can test it with my fist?"
"It is an impudent request. I hope Brother Yan will forgive me."
Yan Yuan waved a chubby hand magnanimously. "Why not! Come on up."
Earth Element Magic excelled at defense, so it couldn’t be demonstrated as easily as attack Magic. This was a perfect opportunity to let the disciples in the audience witness its power.
Zhao Lin strode onto the stage, instantly drawing everyone’s gaze.
The two stood facing each other. Zhao Lin cupped his fist and said, "Senior Brother, I’m about to make my move."
Yan Yuan said calmly, "Come."
Zhao Lin’s figure flickered. He became a flash of lightning, throwing a punch that carried a fierce gust of wind.
Yan Yuan was slightly startled. His hands formed a spell seal with incredible speed, as fast as snapping his fingers, and the Magic took shape.
A yellow light suddenly appeared a foot in front of him, instantly transforming into rugged, heavy rock.
The texture of the rock was clearly visible. It was at least half a foot thick and wrapped his body tightly.
BANG!
Zhao Lin’s fist slammed into the rock armor, and the impact sent him staggering back several steps.
’This is shocking,’ he thought. ’With my cultivation as a Martial Grandmaster, I have enough power to shatter metal and crack stone, yet when my punch landed on that Magic, he didn’t even budge.’
Yan Yuan was also startled. The force behind Zhao Lin’s punch was no less than that of many Middle Stage of Qi Refining cultivators. If he hadn’t used his full power to cast the spell, the rock armor might have cracked, and its effectiveness would have been greatly diminished.
However, his expression remained calm. With a slight lift of his lips, he asked, "Well?"
Zhao Lin put on an admiring expression. "The Rock Armor Skill truly lives up to its reputation! I ask Senior Brother to teach me the Magic!"
His meaning was clear: he intended to cultivate this Magic.
Yan Yuan was delighted. He smiled and said, "Of course. Come to the Transmission Hall later, and I will impart this Magic to you."
"Thank you, Senior Brother."
Zhao Lin bowed again and walked back to his seat.
When no one was paying attention, he lowered his gaze and looked at the Spirit Cultivation Map in his sea of consciousness.
In the first grid of the Spirit Cultivation Map, three words appeared: Rock Armor Skill!