Chapter 9 - The Guide And The Host

Silence fell upon the room. The mood was solemn. It felt like like it could stretch for eternity. Basil was staring blankly in front of him. He had long been recovered from his dumbfounded state.

Currently, he was organizing the knowledge that he had just got. To say it was eye-opening was lacking. It was mind broadening!

"I see... All of those pain I have endured for years were all unnecessary pain."

He sighed forlornly. It was really unfortunate for him. If only he had learned the right way, he would have been way stronger in his past life. Furthermore, the reason he managed to survive all those pain was due to his already abnormal vitality.

He had thought that it had been the result of his Body Forging Technique. It turned out it had not been the case. All of those pain he had endured were all in vain —

"If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present. Now, I am living in the present. I have to be at peace. Moreover, every cloud has a silver lining. Thanks to the pain I had endured, I am resilient to pain."

— or not.

Every good has their uses. He had always had an eye for something seemingly useless. In the end, he always proved everyone was wrong. What you see is not always the truth. He had always had this in mind.

Basil was a reasonably optimistic person. Backed with his confidence in his self and his resilience, he could perform many close to miraculous things.

Sigh.

"Huuh... Can't be helped. It's back to square one then. I am going to learn the basics again. Guide, what is Body Forging Technique."

Basil wasn't arrogant. He did stick to his idealism, however he had never said his wrongs were right. Once he made a mistake, he admitted it and fixed it. He wasn't shy to admit his mistake. Therefore, he had never stopped growing.

[Body Forging Technique, as its name implies, is a technique to temper one's body to breach the boundary of human's limits. Body Forging Technique is a method to process natural Mana into one's energy called Qi. Once one utilized Body Forging Technique, the Mana outside would be absorbed to one's body, resulting in the strengthening of the body...]

Questions and answers went back and forth. Turned out, Qi and Mana was the same thing. Knight and Mage both used the same energy, yet they utilized it differently. Mage controlled Mana directly from the nature with the help of Mana Circle. Meanwhile, Knight absorbed the Mana inside their body and utilized it with their body.

It was also the reason why one had to have a natural talent in sensing and controlling Mana. Without talent, one could never be able to bend the natural Mana according to one's will.

In Basil's case, he had a defective heart. Meaning, he was born with a normal person's heart without any potential of practicing Magic. Therefore, he couldn't practice Magic yet.

He wasn't discouraged though. Although it was a common belief that Mage was naturally stronger than Knight. With his newly gained knowledge, he could make the strongest Mage bow down to him.

Overbearing! No, it was confidence!

"Guide, what is Core?"

He had to ask about it. From the knowledge that had been engraved into his mind previously, there was no mention of Core Formation. Therefore, he was curious why it wasn't mentioned.

[Core is a vessel to contain Mana inside one's body. Core is located at solar plexus, and is very prone to physical attack in its infancy. Therefore, there is a need to Infuse a newborn with Mana to help protect its Core after birth. This process is called Baptism...]

Another unexpected answer came out. He didn't expect that he had been entirely mistaken for his whole entire life.

'I might have been wrong in the past. But, isn't this just too much!?'

He cursed inwardly. It was a normal reaction though. Just imagine yourself in his position. You had believed something for a long time, only to discover that you had been misled for all of those years.

Core was naturally formed inside one's body. A newborn had already had a Core inside its body. Although it was very weak, it grew stronger the older the body got.

To conclude it all, Core Formation was something that someone whose Core was destroyed did to be able to use Aura. To say it simply, it was only for a cripple.

"Huuh... So, I have to check my Core now? I hope it is still intact."

A sigh came out. He had an anticipation for the result. He was very sure he wasn't baptized. So, the possibility of his Core had been already destroyed through his childhood was high.

"Let's get done with it. Either it was destroyed or not didn't matter. I can still be powerful either way."

He quickly took a lotus position. He breathed in and out. Channeling his meager Qi throughout his body, he quickly delved into his solar plexus deeper.

As expected of Basil, it took only three breaths for him to find it. His Core was found just like that. Actually, it was only right for someone like him. He had years of experience and the talent to do so. Luckily, he had his Core remained intact.

Immediately, he utilized the newly acquired Body Forging Technique, [Star Withering]. By accordance to the technique, he absorbed the Mana imbued with star energy into his body.

Just like a switch, his senses were instantly flipped on. The previously ethereal film like Core, was instantly lit. Now, it looked like a black crystal orb, signifying the first stage of Core Nurturing.

Boom!

A new sense of power like never before filled his body. It was different with his last life. This time, he didn't feel any discomfort for utilizing the Qi. It was as if the Qi had truly belonged to him, both figuratively and literally.

The Qi quickly filled his body. The absorption rate was as fast as when he used a low tier Catalyst.

Mana was absorbed constantly, and his Core converted it to Qi. Although the conversion rate wasn't as fast, he could fill that part with his experience of dealing with Core.

He felt refreshed. The injuries he got from the beating were gone. Unblemished skin could once again be seen underneath his shirt. His usually pale complexion, turned brighter. Right then, he was the very definition of a pretty boy.

"Huuh..." He exhaled a thin black smoke from his mouth. It was Impurities! The expulsion of impurities in this early stage was a proof of how godly the technique was. "It would be better if I could start carving circle on my heart." He sighed in disappointment.

It can't be helped. Although now he had figured out that someone's talent in Magic was measured by their natural Core, his natural Core was the lowest tier. Those "Children of Heavens" were born with at least a late stage Red Core or early stage Yellow Core. It was also the reason why those prodigies could use magic, although sloppily, even before Circle Carving.

However, not only his natural Core was low tiered, but also his heart wasn't suitable for Circle Carving. He had tried many times in the past, his heart rejected the act of Carving. No matter how hard he tried, the circle he had carved was erased the moment he activated it.

"Can't be helped. I can't learn Magic, right?"

A helpless sigh came out unintentionally. However, at that moment —

[The Host can learn Magic]

— an even shocking thing happened.

"..."

He calmed down his self. Although the Guide was very knowledgeable, there was no guarantee that it couldn't make any mistake.

[The Guide was created by a very profound being. Therefore, only the truth is contained within the Guide. There is no possibility that...]

He merely ignored the implicit protest of the Guide. Who was he to joke? The Guide was insentient, right?

[...]

The Guide remained silent and it was somehow fishy. However, he decided to ignore it. The Guide had claimed that it wasn't sentient anyway.

[The Guide is an existence that transcended a boundary between inanimate and...]

He glossed it all over again. It was useless to recall the same useless knowledge.

"Now, that I think about it. It seems more fishy now. I didn't ask any question, why did it provide me answer?"

[...]

Silence ensued. It was just a soliloquy, yet he managed to silence the Guide. No more useless explanation was spouted out of the Guide.

He squinted his eyes, while looking at the ceiling. As if it didn't want to be discovered, the Guide stayed silent. The silence seemed to stretch for eternity. However, at that moment —

"Hmph! A mere object dared to defy its master. Ridiculous!"

— a cold snort was heard.

Overbearing!

Who was Basil? He was a man of his idealism. He had never bent to someone's will. No one had any right to dictate him. Therefore, when a mere anonymous existence in his head dared to defy him, he found it funny.

Wasn't he afraid of something happening to him? No, he wasn't! As long as its within his body, it belonged to him. And everything belonged to him, was under his control. Was it empty words? No, it wasn't. Basil wasn't someone who spoke dirt.

"How can I learn Magic?"

[The Host can learn Magic with Mana Heart.]

"What is Mana Heart?"

[Mana Heart, as its name implies, is an organ to utilize Mana. The stronger the Mana Heart, the better the control over Mana, and the more the amount of Mana can be utilized.]

It wasn't a foreign term for him. Mana Heart was something he had heard. He knew already, that anyone who possessed Mana Heart could utilize Mana. However...

"Mana Heart is something owned by Elven race and Dragon race. How could I get one?"

He shook his head in disappointment. Those born with Mana Heart weren't human at all. Although there was a case of someone who obtained Dragon Heart, it wasn't just anyone who obtained it.

All of them were eighth-circled or above. Even though some of them obtained it when they were a seventh-circled Mage, they only implanted it when they were already eighth-circled.

It was because the abundant amount of Mana contained in the Dragon Heart. Naturally Dragon Heart attracted Mana. If one wasn't careful, one could have the body explode.

As for the Elven Heart, no one crazy enough to take their heart. Once one took an Elven Heart without the consent of the previous owner, they would receive the wrath of the earth. It was better to avoid it at all cost.

He shook his head at those thoughts. It was better to focus on his Body Forging rather than waiting for the chance of getting Mana Heart. Even if he was given a Mana Heart right then, he couldn't use it anyway. He would explode after all.

Just as he was about to chastise the Guide for its useless knowledge —

[The Host can cultivate his own Mana Heart.]

— he was dumbfounded once again.