The Skill Tree is Duke’s greatest reliance. As long as he grinds up the proficiency of various skills, he can acquire a lot of knowledge.
Compared to this knowledge, attribute points aren’t all that important.
[Morian Language level up, free attribute points +1]
[Morian Language: Level 5]
[Constitution: 12]
[Strength: 12.6]
[Agility: 12]
[Spirit: 10.1]
[Free Attribute Points: 4]
While Duke was reading, his Morian Language unknowingly reached max level, earning him a free attribute point. Unfortunately, no traits or talents appeared.
He looked at the remaining free attribute points, thought for a moment, then added two points to Spirit, leaving two points as a reserve.
Duke originally planned to save up his free attribute points, intending to use them to boost Spiritual Power when it became difficult to improve through normal means.
But now, at the start of his journey on the wizard path, having higher Spiritual Power would help him grow faster and make his own strength a bit stronger.
Duke learned from the Magic Basic Theory book that Spiritual Power is akin to an engine in the previous life, while Magic Power is the fuel.
Spiritual Power is the foundation. The higher the Spiritual Power, the stronger the effect of the spells cast.
Duke increased his Spiritual Power to 12.1 so that mastering some spells later would be a bit easier.
He increasingly felt that he didn’t have enough time. After becoming a Wizard Apprentice, the skills to grind would only multiply, and 24 hours in a day weren’t enough.
...
Two days later.
Early in the morning, Duke and the three others went to a tiered lecture hall to attend class.
Jode was an old man with white hair, wearing round-framed glasses, with a somewhat serious expression, not easily amused.
Before coming, Duke had heard from Simon that Jode was a very powerful Level 1 Mage, and he had a bit of a temper, so they must not anger him.
Within Black Sail, it’s normal for an Official Wizard to casually execute a few Wizard Apprentices.
No one would pursue an Official Wizard for a few ordinary Wizard Apprentices.
Unless those Wizard Apprentices had backgrounds, at most, they would just receive a verbal reprimand and a symbolic fine, then that would be the end.
"Class begins." Jode glanced sharply at the class.
Everyone listened attentively. The lecture hall was filled almost only with the sound of quills scratching on parchment, and no one dared speak out of turn.
The entire morning, Jode expounded on the content of the entire Magic Basic Theory book.
He organized this hefty book into a clear line, dividing it into dozens of knowledge nodes.
Looking at these knowledge nodes noted in his notebook, Duke suddenly found the book’s content clear, no longer as vague as before.
In the past two days of studying by himself, he only felt the book’s content was as complex as the sea, with a sense of powerlessness and no way to start.
Now, after Jode’s explanation, he had clarified the structure of this knowledge, making future study much easier, just by focusing on the structure.
During the one-hour lunch break, Duke and Simon went to eat some bread, cured meat, and pickles.
The food was free, but the taste left much to be desired.
They were very frugal and didn’t splurge on buying delicacies with magic stones, just aiming to fill their stomachs.
In the afternoon, Jode began to use the spell Wizard’s Mark as an example, guiding them in constructing its Magic Model together.
Building a Magic Model requires engraving it in the mind with Spiritual Power, needing Spiritual Power throughout the process.
If the Spiritual Power is insufficient, it’s hard to complete this process, which is why Duke had increased his Spiritual Power earlier.
The Wizard’s Mark is the most commonly used spell by wizards and is almost known by everyone.
This spell’s Magic Model is extremely simple, consisting only of a few lines, straightforward and easy to understand.
After countless iterations, the Magic Model of Wizard’s Mark has become so streamlined.
Wizards never lack talented individuals, nor do they lack those with a spirit of exploration.
After repeated optimizations by these people, the Wizard’s Mark has been refined to the extent that further improvements are almost impossible.
Duke closed his eyes, sat in his seat adjusting his breath, and attempted to construct the Magic Model in his mind as Jode instructed.
His Spiritual Power was higher than most present, making the process simpler than expected.
A blue thread appeared in his mind, formed by Duke’s condensed Spiritual Power.
The thread wove and curved continuously in his mind, gradually forming the Magic Model of the Wizard’s Mark.
Moments later, the Magic Model took shape, symbolizing that Duke had mastered his first spell in life.
Simultaneously, a branch extended from the Skill Tree.
[Wizard’s Mark: LV1 (1/100)]
With a thought, Duke infused a bit of Magic Power into the Magic Model, activating the Wizard’s Mark.
In his vision appeared an empty list, representing that he hadn’t recorded anyone’s Wizard’s Mark yet.
Though the Wizard’s Mark seems extremely simple, its function is incredibly powerful.
Once a Wizard’s Mark is recorded, communication is possible throughout the entire Wizard Plane, unless in some special locations.
While in the Appalachian Continent, Duke can use the Wizard’s Mark to communicate with someone in the Florence Continent, bridging such a vast distance.
According to Jode, this spell isn’t as simple as it seems, with the efforts of several predecessor sages enabling such an effect and saving effort for many wizards.
As for what exactly those individuals did, Jode didn’t elaborate, likely involving high-level domains.
As Wizard Apprentices, Duke and others don’t need to concern themselves with these issues, as most will never encounter them in their lifetime.
After mastering the Wizard’s Mark, he quickly exchanged marks with Simon.
Simon had long mastered this minor spell, attending mainly for the knowledge of Magic Basic Theory.
"Can you receive this?" Simon silently sent an information burst using the Wizard’s Mark.
Duke quickly replied, marking his first use of the Wizard’s Mark.
[Wizard’s Mark proficiency +1]
Seeing the information from the Skill Tree, he thought he would need to chat with someone to grind the proficiency of this spell.
The information transmitted by the Wizard’s Mark is all in Spiritual Power form, but it can present as text, images, and even dynamic imagery.
But due to the generally low Spiritual Power of Wizard Apprentices, they usually can’t communicate with dynamic imagery.
Once again, Duke felt the advantages of information transmission via Spiritual Power, efficiently conveying messages and completely communicating his intended meaning.
Whether through text or speech, some intended meaning is always lost, but Spiritual Power can perfectly avoid this.