Volume 5: The Great Plains Chapter 153: Breaking Through (1)
Lightning magic is actually a type of natural system magic, just like the wood system magic of the elf tribe. Orthodox elemental mages would not use this kind of magic. In the magical system of human mages on the continent of Aqin, there are only water and fire system magics that focus on attacking, earth system magic that focuses on defense, and wind system magic that is comprehensive and has both attack and defense capabilities, as well as auxiliary types. Of course, within each system of magic, there are also different types of magic. For example, although the water system magic has more attacking magic, it also has defensive magic like "Water Wall Barrier". Although the earth system magic is mainly defensive magic, it also has attacking magic like "Earth Thorn". However, in the human magical system, there absolutely does not exist wood system magic or lightning magic of this type.
It is said that when the creation god granted magic to various tribes, he gave beastmen lightning magic and strong bodies, high combat capabilities, but made their average intelligence level the lowest among all tribes. He granted wood magic and other systems of magic to the elves, shaping their physique suitable for casting spells, also granting them the talents required for archers, as well as long life, but made the elven tribe's fertility extremely low, making it impossible for them to become the masters of the continent.
The dwarves received strong bodies and superior forging skills from the creator god, although they did not receive magical talents. However, the dwarves have a natural resistance to magic, no matter how powerful the magic is, it will be greatly discounted when applied to the dwarves. Therefore, the dwarves have always been unimpressed by magicians and instead admire bravery.
Humans, on the other hand, seem to be an exception. Other races often mock humans as a failed creation of the gods or say that humans were created by the gods using leftover materials after creating other races. Although this is somewhat biased, it highlights a fact: humans can learn various skills, but it's difficult for them to reach the pinnacle of those skills. Human archers are not as skilled as those from the Elf tribe, and human mages lack the innate magical abilities of the Elves, with one less wood-element magic spell at their disposal. Even if humans do manage to learn wood-element magic, they struggle to match the level of Elven mages. Humans have brave warriors, but in solo combat, they are generally no match for Beastmen and Dwarves, whose physical strength puts humans at a disadvantage from birth.
However, it is precisely this kind of race that possesses strong learning ability, reproductive ability like locusts, and unparalleled creative ability. The archers of the human tribe are not as good as those of the Elf tribe, but they make up for it with numbers. In a rain of arrows, without precise aiming, they can still turn their enemies into hedgehogs. Their strength is not comparable to that of other tribes, so human warriors develop fighting skills. Countless skilled human martial artists trample on strong individuals from other tribes one by one. Humans also developed professions such as necromancers and light system mages like priests, making the human magic system even more rich and diverse. The absolute number of human mages far exceeds that of the Elf tribe. For thousands of years, countless human mages have created various powerful magics, which even make the Elf tribe's mages sigh in admiration. The emergence of alchemy has also greatly made up for the physical shortcomings of human magic. Countless top-notch mages on the continent have created one myth after another, and even giants cannot withstand human attacks. It is precisely because of this that humans have become the strongest race on the continent of Aqin, occupying nearly two-thirds of its land, establishing countless powerful empires and brilliant civilizations.
Saren was teaching me how to learn lightning magic, and he told me about the history of magic on the continent. He also sighed and said: "You humans are indeed the strongest race in terms of overall strength on the continent. I believe that many years later, on the Azure Continent, there will be no race that can match you humans."
"That venerable Salernos priest, what kind of accomplishments do you think humans can achieve by learning the magic of lightning?" I asked.
"Lightning magic is a type of magic that relies on the power of nature, for example, how far you can learn lightning magic depends not on whether I teach it with heart or not, nor on your talent or how hard you study," Salen said.
"I asked in puzzlement: 'If it doesn't depend on these things, then what does it depend on?'"
"The power of nature-based magic comes from the great outdoors. The powerful shamans who summon lightning can destroy everything, and there are special gods in charge of nature-based magic, such as the moon god worshipped by the elves who is in charge of wood-based magic, while the god in charge of lightning magic is our beastman shaman god! Therefore, to learn nature-based magic, one must first gain the recognition of the corresponding god, otherwise, even if one learns it, they will not reach a high level." Salen said seriously.
"No wonder I couldn't master the Wood magic of the Elf tribe as well as Freya did. When Freya had fully grasped the Wood magic, I could only cast mid-level Wood magic at most, and no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't cast high-level magic. It turns out that it was because I didn't have the recognition of the Moon God. Luckily, when I learned the Elf tribe's Wood magic back then, it was just to gain a deeper understanding of another type of magic, and to learn from the Elves their methods and theoretical systems for using magic, so that I could use this knowledge as a reference and comparison for my own studies, rather than specifically trying to master Wood magic to a certain level. Otherwise, I would have been stuck in a rut forever, and it would have driven me crazy."
Saren said disdainfully, "The Moon Goddess of the Elf tribe has always been petty. It's almost impossible for other tribes to learn her magic, no matter how devout you are, she won't acknowledge you. She might as well have put a 'only Elves can learn' sign on her Wood magic. Unlike our Shaman God, anyone can learn Lightning magic after passing the Shaman God's trial."
I nodded in agreement, but in my heart I muttered: "Your shamanic gods are not as generous as you say, otherwise why can't we humans learn the powerful totem skills of the shaman priests?" Of course, such a viewpoint is blasphemous, and I would never dare to express it.
"So, Honorable Salen, you mean I have to pass the Shaman God's trial before I can learn Thunder System magic, right?" I asked.
Saren nodded and said, "All shamans must go through this test before they can truly become a shaman of the tribe. You are no exception, even if you only learn one type of magic."
"Oh, what's the test like then? Can you roughly tell me?"
"The trial is held behind the Shaman Temple outside the city, and those who take the trial must pass through five difficult passes, namely willpower, temperament, ability, wisdom, and courage. The specific content of the trial for each person is different, and you will naturally know when you get there." Salen finished speaking, picked up the cane beside him, stood up with force, and then waved his hand at me, saying: "Follow me, go take the trial, and become the first foreigner recognized by the Shaman God in thousands of years!"