He was unable to meditate any longer, and sleep was equally out of the question.
Thus, he could only lean against the window, making use of the faint moonlight that filtered through.
He summoned the magic book again and started to study the three zero-level spells it contained: The Gray Mist, The Bone Tooth, and The Touch of Fatigue.
Among these three spells, The Bone Tooth was the clear first choice for study, as it was the only spell with offensive power.
The plans to learn the other two spells could be postponed. In this perilous Spirit Realm, having some offensive ability was essential for survival.
The Bone Tooth didn''t require a large number of spell runes, yet memorizing them was quite a challenge.
Without a teacher''s guidance, Kael had to rely entirely on this magic book for his learning.
Mastering a spell was a time-consuming endeavor that demanded a great deal of effort.
According to the book, an apprentice usually needed one week to half a month to gain a basic understanding of a zero-level trick.
And even then, it merely meant being able to cast the spell, with the risk of failure still looming during the casting process.
To cast the spell more swiftly and accurately, extensive and continuous practice was necessary. Fortunately, a failed casting of this sort wouldn''t cause a backlash to the caster.
Otherwise, many mages would die during the learning stage before even entering a battle.
Mastering spells required a significant amount of time and was a lifelong pursuit.
Under normal circumstances, casting a zero-level spell, from the moment of drawing the runes to the successful release, took about three seconds.
In ordinary situations, this might not be an issue, but in battle, those three seconds gave the enemy plenty of time to act.
Therefore, to use a spell effectively in combat, one first needed to be able to cast it skillfully and successfully, while also shortening the casting time.
Some casters could reduce the casting time to one second or even less, casting spells almost instinctively.
The advantage of such casters in battle was extremely significant.
An apprentice-level caster was at their weakest state.
Most zero-level spells lacked lethality. Even those with offensive capabilities had limited destructive power.
Besides, the casting time was relatively long, and the risk of failure remained.
The amount of magic power within their body was also limited. All in all, they could probably cast only a few spells before running out of magic power.
This was the only stage when warriors could gain an advantage over casters.
Unlike casters, warriors who fought in close combat relying on their physical strength already had combat ability at the apprentice level.
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By channeling the battle qi they cultivated into their bodies, they could unleash powerful force.
Even when their battle qi was exhausted, their well-trained bodies could still support them in the fight.
Of course, the power of casters wasn''t just shown in battle. Casters had a wide range of capabilities.
An apprentice-level caster, although they couldn''t cast many offensive spells, once they mastered the spells proficiently, they could easily defeat several warriors with their magic.
Moreover, even zero-level spells came in various types, including those for disguise, protection, attack, clearing the way, and decoding—all of which could be learned.
In contrast, apprentice-level warriors could mainly only slash at people and monsters.
As they advanced in rank:
Black Iron and Silver rank casters could master more spells, enabling them to deal with various challenges in life and battle.
They began to have spells with greater lethality, better control over their magic, and could even learn healing spells.
While Black Iron and Silver rank warriors just learned to strike more powerfully.
When it came to Gold and Holy Domain rank casters, their spells could basically meet all the needs in combat and daily life.
They could use powerful magic to crush their enemies, summon powerful creatures to fight for them, resurrect the dead, teleport over long distances, travel across multiple planes, and even create a space for rest.
On the other hand, Gold and Holy Domain rank warriors could slash at their opponents with even greater savagery.
Legendary casters were truly extraordinary.
They could move mountains and fill seas with a single thought, create or destroy a world, and pick stars from the sky effortlessly.
Space was like a thin piece of paper in front of them, and they could travel through countless planes, moving freely even in the deepest abysses.
In comparison, legendary warriors could use their legendary physiques and great power to deliver even more powerful slashes.
This was the fundamental difference between casters and warriors.
This was exactly why casters were nicknamed "Master Caster." Compared with other professions, they were far more powerful.
...
It was late at night, a time when sleepiness naturally came.
After waiting for a long time and hearing no more sounds of zombies passing by, Kael, whose eyes were almost too tired to keep open from reading, decided to get some sleep.
He had already experienced the dangers of the night in the Spirit Realm, but he didn''t know what dangers might lie in this abandoned city during the day.
If he didn''t take this opportunity to rest and regain his strength now, he wouldn''t be able to deal with any potential danger tomorrow when he was tired.
Fortunately, he didn''t snore when he slept.
Otherwise, he couldn''t help wondering if the sound of his snoring would attract the zombies.
This thought flashed through his mind just before he fell asleep.
...
He didn''t know how long he had slept, but the gentle sunlight shone on Kael''s face, and he slowly opened his eyes.
The second day in the Spirit Realm had arrived. Feeling the warmth of the sunlight, he stood up and stretched.
After simply satisfying his hunger and thirst, Kael continued to open the magic book to study spells.
Learning spells was a process that needed a lot of time and had no shortcuts at all.
He tried hard to memorize the runes, constantly visualizing and drawing them in his mind.
This was what occupied Kael''s morning.
At one point, he took a short break to find a room upstairs to relieve himself.
Afterward, he used the items in the room to bury his excrement, preventing any smell from leaking out and attracting trouble.
...
As Kael was deeply engrossed in studying the magic book, a series of sounds reached his ears again.
Was there no end to this? What kind of trouble could there be in this city during the day?
He carefully poked his head out and looked in the direction where the sounds were coming from.
Squinting his eyes, he looked for a while and finally saw several green figures at the end of the road.
Upon closer inspection, he realized they were goblins!
Goblins were a common creature in the Spirit Realm. They were entirely green and were between 1.2 and 1.4 meters tall.
They were omnivorous and lived in groups. Most goblins had low intelligence, similar to that of a seven or eight-year-old child.
Goblins usually lived in small tribes.
Their temperament was both fierce and cowardly, and their courage depended on the number of companions around them.
The more companions they had, the bolder they became.
At the same time, when a goblin tribe grew to a certain size, some goblins with higher intelligence would emerge.
The larger the tribe, the higher their intelligence would be. Some goblin tribes could even develop into goblin kingdoms.
These intelligent goblins could also cultivate battle qi and even have casters among them, though the number was not large.