Frost Mist Moon, the 22nd.
This afternoon, he had the "Nolan Continent Geography and War Geography" class. As for the morning, Gaode followed his usual routine. He first headed to the Rune Workshop on the third floor of Gavin Hall to study Rune Science and ten new level-zero basic Runes. After reading through the materials compiled by Jose several times and ensuring he had a preliminary grasp of them, Gaode prepared to begin today’s attempt at Rune drawing.
However, before putting pen to paper, Gaode first cast [Divine Guidance Skill+] on himself to test its effects. Although his failure rate when drawing Runes was already extremely low, it was just that—extremely low, not impossible. Therefore, increasing his success rate even a little was always a good thing and certainly not a waste.
The moment [Divine Guidance Skill+] was cast upon him, an inexplicable, clear current surfaced within Gaode’s heart and spirit. It was as if a pool of clear water had washed through his brain, stripping away all distracting thoughts. His heart and spirit became highly focused, and his mind grew far more active than usual.
"Hmm?" Gaode unconsciously let out a sound of surprise at this state.
He wondered if the reason the Divine Guidance Skill could improve a target’s performance in their next craft was due to this bizarre state of an ethereal heart and spirit, and an active mind.
"Quite reasonable..."
Many things relied on one’s state of mind. Take something as simple as playing basketball, for example. The exact same person could be a sharp shooter one day and an absolute bricklayer the next, displaying two completely different forms. Without dwelling on it any further, Gaode began to draw the Runes, unwilling to waste the duration of [Divine Guidance Skill+].
Under the enhancement of [Divine Guidance Skill+], his thoughts became exceptionally sharp. The Rune diagrams and their corresponding deconstructed texts that he had memorized earlier rushed into his mind at this moment. They smoothly integrated within his head, blending and connecting until Gaode fully understood them. The parts that had previously left him slightly confused now seemed to have found their answers.
Inspiration surged as his soul took flight.
Taking a deep breath, Gaode set down his pen and began to draw. Whenever he drew Runes, an inexplicable intuition would often guide his pen. Jose called this a talent for Runes. Now, Gaode could clearly feel that this intuition had grown even stronger. Once again, he entered a state of absolute, undivided focus, completely losing track of time.
A long time later.
Gaode snapped back to his senses. Setting down his Rune Pen, he stared blankly at the table, hardly daring to believe his eyes. On ten sheets of Magic paper, ten nearly perfect basic Runes lay before him. Light flowed across their surfaces, displaying the wondrous nature of Runes.
Although Gaode’s failure rate in drawing Runes was already incredibly low due to his talent in Rune Science and his learning methods, he had never successfully drawn ten basic Runes in a single, uninterrupted breath like today. Not a single failure. What was more... he had completed them in such a short amount of time. He could even feel that his Pen Technique and his understanding of Runes had experienced a breakthrough improvement.
Gaode was stunned at first. After a brief moment of daze, his eyes gradually lit up, revealing an expression of sudden realization. He had still underestimated the effects of [Divine Guidance Skill+]. Or rather, his understanding of it had been flawed.
Before this, he had subconsciously assumed that [Divine Guidance Skill+] was simply a Support Magic used to increase the success rate during practical applications. But that wasn’t entirely the case. The true, far more powerful use of [Divine Guidance Skill+] lay in "learning."
First of all, the most difficult part of many things was going from "0" to "1". Once that "1" was achieved, the rest was merely a process of endless repetition, mastery, and breakthrough. This was especially true for learning a craft.
For example, brewing a certain Magic Potion. From the initial study phase to the first successful brew, it might take more than half a year. But after that first success, the time needed to successfully brew it a second time might not even exceed a single day. Finding that "1" was the true bottleneck of learning any craft. And the Divine Guidance Skill could help him achieve that "1" much faster.
The other aspect was an effect exclusive to [Divine Guidance Skill+]. Under the enhancement of Wind Spirit Moon Shadow, [Divine Guidance Skill+] had evolved. Instead of temporarily improving a target’s performance in a single, subsequent craft, it was no longer limited to just one attempt. It would now last for an entire hour, regardless of how many crafting activities the target performed during that time.
This allowed the bizarre state of an ethereal heart and spirit, and an active mind brought by the Divine Guidance Skill to persist for a full hour. It was no longer restricted to a single operation. And Gaode had just experienced it—in this state, the efficiency of doing anything was drastically improved, as if he had entered a lesser version of the Flow state.
Broadening his perspective, this state could indeed effectively improve his performance in crafting activities, but its applications didn’t stop there. Since the effect had changed to lasting for an hour regardless of how many crafting activities he performed, couldn’t that be understood to mean that even if he didn’t perform any crafting activities, the effects of the Divine Guidance Skill would still exist?
This meant he could also use [Divine Guidance Skill+] for mentally taxing endeavors.
Such as studying knowledge!
Having cleared up his train of thought, Gaode almost couldn’t wait to reopen the study materials Jose had given him. Drawing the ten basic Runes hadn’t taken an hour; the effects of [Divine Guidance Skill+] were still active.
He needed to verify his theory.
Sure enough, when he reread and studied the knowledge he thought he had already grasped under this state, he found himself continuously recalling his previous insights. As the two combined, new layers of understanding suddenly blossomed within him.
"So that’s how it is..." Gaode couldn’t help but mutter, revealing an intoxicated expression of complete enlightenment.
It wasn’t until the duration of [Divine Guidance Skill+] finally ended that Gaode snapped back to his senses and set down the materials in his hands.
Then, his vision momentarily darkened, and he nearly passed out.
Gaode quickly grabbed the edge of the table to support his body. He hastily untied the water skin he carried with him and gulped down a large mouthful of Leakless Water fruit drink, GLUG GLUG GLUG. Only after a brief moment did he finally recover.
This was the side effect of his brain operating at such high intensity for a full hour. His mind, having never run under such a heavy load before, had failed to adapt to the sheer Strength of the strain. It had instinctively triggered a defense mechanism, wanting to shut down and hibernate for a while. However, as long as he did this a few more times, his body would gradually get used to it.
Gaode rubbed his temples, which were still throbbing slightly.
"Learning is good, but it must be done in moderation. Before my body adapts, I shouldn’t use [Divine Guidance Skill+] too frequently for studying knowledge, or my head won’t be able to handle it," he reminded himself.
Although the current fatigue and slight swelling in his head made him uncomfortable, the learning experience of being in that Flow state just now left him incredibly addicted. He still felt a lingering sense of wanting more.
More importantly...
Thinking of the classic Spiritual Object from the xianxia novels of his past life, Gaode muttered to himself, "Isn’t this equivalent to Little Enlightenment Tea? How is this [Divine Guidance Skill+]? It’s clearly a Little Divine Skill.
"Looking at it this way... taking first place in credits doesn’t seem that difficult after all..."