Wizard: Starting from the Skill Tree-Chapter 569: Energy Well

Any expansion comes at a cost, and launching a plane warfare requires a large investment of resources.

After occupying a plane, subsequent maintenance and governance also demand resources.

If the Wizard Plane continuously conquers one plane after another without pause, it might eventually collapse under its own weight.

Therefore, most Wizard Organizations in the Wizard Plane expand methodically; after a period of plane warfare, they take time to recuperate.

This serves both to accumulate strength and to absorb prior resources, making better use of those from the conquered planes.

This recuperation period is not synchronized across the entire plane, but decided by each Wizard Organization independently.

After Black Sail concluded the warfare on the Devourer Plane, the decision was made from above to take a break.

The news that Black Sail decided to enter a rest period quickly spread within the organization.

This means large-scale plane warfare will temporarily halt, and the corresponding war tasks and the immense profits linked to them will sharply decrease.

Duke currently holds over sixty million Magic Stones, which seems like a lot, but in reality, it is still insufficient.

His most critical goal now is to advance to Level 2 Mage; the transition from Level 1 to Level 2 is a massive leap, reaching an entirely different Life Level.

Duke is following the path of an Elemental Mage, and for Elemental Mages, the biggest trait is the ability to partially or completely elementalize their bodies. This not only significantly increases resistance to physical attacks but also signifies a new level of understanding and manipulation of the corresponding elemental essence, greatly enhancing casting strength, speed, and survival ability.

However, to achieve such a transformation in life essence, it requires the absorption of vast amounts of highly concentrated pure Elemental Energy during the promotion process, forcibly washing and remodeling the body and soul to deeply conform with the Elemental Rules.

In this process, the Spiritual Power Crystal undergoes immense Elemental Energy washing and gradually transforms, enabling the mage to control elementalization.

But this does not directly transform the body into an elemental state; it simply means having such means.

During the promotion process, relying solely on temporarily absorbing energy from the external environment is far from sufficient; not only is it slow, but it is also extremely dangerous, easily leading to energy loss of control.

Therefore, mages usually prepare Energy Wells in advance. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

This is a special piece of Alchemy or a constructed Special Magic Model, its core function being to pre-store a vast amount of highly purified and stable elemental energy sufficient to support the entire promotion process before promotion.

In critical moments of breaking through, activating the energy reserved in the Energy Well, one can obtain a stable and surging source of power.

This process is extremely perilous, very prone to problems.

Although the transition from Level 1 Mage to Level 2 Mage offers a great enhancement, it also faces enormous risks.

The massive release of Elemental Energy from the Energy Well, like a burst dam, needs to be precisely guided in a very short time to wash and remodel every corner of the body.

The slightest distraction, or a minor deviation in the Spiritual Power’s control of energy, can set this rampant power loose, rampaging throughout the body.

At best, it causes bodily injuries and organ damage, leaving difficult-to-heal hidden wounds; at worst, the flesh cannot withstand it, resulting in uncontrolled elementalization or being instantly burst by the overwhelming energy, leaving nothing behind.

Promotion is not only a physical transformation but also a sublimation of Spirit and soul.

As the vast energy remodels the body, it also fiercely impacts the Spiritual Sea. The core Spiritual Power Crystal must remain stable amidst the energy storm, completing its own qualitative transformation and sublimation.

Once the Spiritual Sea cannot withstand the impact, cracks or even collapse may occur; the mage’s consciousness may be lightly damaged, leading to madness or insanity, or be utterly obliterated by the energy torrent, leaving not even a fragment of the soul.

Especially for ordinary single-element Elemental Mages, only one type of elemental impact is faced, but Duke needs to simultaneously guide six different, even conflicting, Elemental Energies.

This requires him to have an almost perfect understanding and control of each element’s properties and their mutual synergies and antagonisms.

Any tiny imbalance could trigger catastrophic elemental turbulence or conflict within the body.

Meanwhile, when energy impact and mental stress peak, negative emotions deep within the mage’s heart, such as fear, obsession, and regret, will be greatly amplified, forming illusions.

If the will is not firm enough, indulging in illusions will lead to self-loss, causing promotion failure or even permanent mental slumber.

Even for ordinary Elemental Mages, the process of advancing to Level 2 Mage is extremely dangerous, let alone for Duke.

Ordinary Elemental Mages usually only need to prepare an Energy Well matching their primary element, storing energy valued at around ten million Magic Stones.

This is the most basic Energy Well; a better-configured one would cost two to three times more.

To increase the probability of successful promotion, it’s necessary to prepare a better Energy Well; most mages also strive to prepare a well-configured Energy Well.

But Duke’s situation is far more complex and difficult than others’.

His Spiritual Sea’s core is a composite Spiritual Power Crystal, centered on the Light Divine Status, and fused with six major Elemental Attributes: wind, fire, earth, water, light, and dark.

This means, to achieve a flawless promotion without hidden dangers and achieve a perfectly balanced elementalized body that can bear the strengths of six elements, he must simultaneously activate six different pure energies to perform a comprehensive and balanced cleansing and remodeling during promotion.

This requires him to prepare six Energy Wells corresponding to different elements in advance, which not only multiplies the quantity but also geometrically increases resource consumption.

Among the six Energy Wells needed by Duke, the ones for wind, fire, earth, and water are relatively easy; with enough Magic Stones, they can always be bought somehow.

The real challenge lies in the energy wells for light and dark.

High-purity source energy for Light Attribute and Dark Attribute is extremely rare and hard to preserve in the Endless Plane, usually sourced only from certain extreme environments or specific High Planes.

The core materials for preparing Energy Wells for these two attributes are not only priced staggeringly high but are often priceless.

Therefore, the six million or so Magic Stones Duke holds, while appearing substantial, are actually far from enough to secure the resources needed for promotion, at most capable of purchasing two or three ordinary Energy Wells.

With plane warfare stopping for a while, the fastest way to acquire resources is also gone.