Mana Particles

Edward did not immediately continue explaining his idea since he needed to verify it. So, multiple magic circles appeared around Lee Kyuk to gather data, analyzing the essence of his magical system.

"I was right," he muttered. Meanwhile, Morgana had identified the spells he had used and had an inkling of what he was doing. But she did not have a conclusion yet.

"Can you explain what you discovered?"

"Our magic systems involved the macro. We expand our magic core or use our Soul Dimension to store a vast quantity of mana," explained Edward. "However, their magic systems are similar to the Dragon Heart–involving the micro."

"Mana as small as cells?" asked Morgana. Dragons have quintillions–if not more–cells in their hearts alone. And they stored most of their mana in each cell, thus granting them immense energy storage.

"Yes. The mana circles are made of thousands of Mana Particles as a way to store their energy. The first circle has the lowest particles, and the number keeps increasing with each new circle."

"Fascinating," commented Morgan as she also observed the magic circles and helped Edward gather data.

"There is something different about the fourth circle," she said, pointing to the circles. "The other three circles seemed to form a resonance with the fourth. However, what's the purpose of this resonance?"

Edward observed for a moment before responding, "Nuclear Fission."

"Indeed. The Mana Particles resonate and act similar to Nuclear Fission, generating even more energy than each single mana particle could do alone."

Morgana's eyes lit up, "So, Mana Fusion and Fission were possible. We wronged Tower Master Blaid."

Tower Master was an Arcanist who hypothesized this possibility. Unfortunately, mana has its own rules and regulations. Although it can often act similarly to the laws of physics, it is still different.

So, no matter what the Empire tried, no one succeeded in this concept of Mana Fusion or Mana Fission. Blaid believed in his theory wholeheartedly and refused to accept he was wrong.

At first, Edward supported him and granted him numerous resources for his research. But after years of failure and nothing to show, he also gave up on the latter.

"Indeed, we wronged him, but the situation back then could not be avoided," replied Edward; he tried his best, but Blaid could not back up his claims after wasting so many resources.

"True. Back to the topic, this discovery will significantly advance our understanding and use of mana," concluded Morgana. She could foresee new development in the creation of the Aether Stone or the Philosopher's Stone–which is one of the core technologies of the Empire's development.

"Whoever created this magic system is truly an unparalleled genius," commented Edward; he felt his magic system was crude compared to the intricacy of this one.

"Master, you don't need to belittle yourself," reassured Morgana. "This system is indeed brilliant, but it places too much emphasis on Mana Control."

To gather these Mana Particles, the users of this system will require extreme control of mana. As such, the talent required for this system is extremely harsh compared to the Empire's system.

"Plus, if I guess correctly, the limit of this system should have been between Tier 6 and 7. The only reason it can reach higher is because the God Space used its power to update it and created the higher tiers."

"Lee Kyuk looked at her in shock as she was right. His system came from a Korean Webnovel he read. The limit of this system was Tier 6, with only planetary-level destruction. However, after using Samsara Points, Lee Kyuk made it better and with a higher potential.

"There is no need to belittle this system–my ego is not that fragile," said Edward, slightly speechless. "It is brilliant, and I admit that. Now, our only objective is to incorporate it into our Arcane Rune System."

He could see this system was perfect with the Fate's Magic Circuit System he learned from Sasha. After creating a Soul Circuit, the Empire's citizens will have a higher Mana Control.

And adding the Gate of Truth, which is also an aid for Energy Control, more people will be able to use this Magic Circle System.

"Morgana, do a simulation on what will happen if Arcanists condensed Mana Circles into their Magic Core or Soul Dimensions."

"Aye, aye, Sir."

5 minutes, 32 seconds later:

"Death," she said. "From an explosion. Too much energy."

"As expected. The soul cannot control such large energy."

Edward expected this outcome. A Tier 8 Arcanist like himself already has enough energy to destroy a Star System. Now, if he condensed 8 Mana Circles inside his body, it would be like fusing with another self. However, his soul strength remained the same.

Without sufficient soul strength, it is impossible to control the energy generated by the 8 Mana Circles.

"Do you think we should add a second soul to control the circles?" suggested Morgana. The Empire has experimented on the possibility of an Arcanist having two souls. Although there were many problems initially–like schizophrenia or split personality–most have been solved over the years.

"No, a second soul will mean more resources will now be required to become a powerful Arcanist."

Such a method means Arcanists will require more resources to train a second soul. And from the previous experiments, it's been discovered the second soul cannot increase its strength using knowledge like the main soul.

"Yes, we cannot allow the gap between the wealthy and the poor to keep growing," nodded Morgana. Now, the Empire has entered an era where everyone has magical powers.

However, there will still be a hierarchy based on talent and resources. And if Edward made the Mana Circle System based on resources, then the wealthy would have even more advantages, thus leading to instability and chaos in the Empire's meritocracy system.

"Do you have a solution?" asked the little elf.

"Maybe."

"I'm all ears."

"Our objective should change to use this Mana Circle System and allow our arcanist to have an extra mana pool. So, in a situation where they used all the mana in their magic core and Soul Dimension, they can access the mana from the circles.

"So, we only need a second heart or magic core that is sealed. When needed, they can remove the soul and access the Mana Circles."

"This might work," said Morgana as she did another simulation. "With the sealed heart, there is no need to worry about the body exploding because of too much energy. The soul can control one Mana Pool at a time, not placing any burden on it."

"Exactly."

"However, it would be better to place the Mana Circles in the Soul Dimension. The heart is too fragile, and the Arcane Heart is also very expensive to create."

"Yes. The mana in the dimension is a unique area in the first layer. We can seal the second layer and place the circles. Wait," Edward's eyes suddenly lit up.

"We can also add more circles in the third and fourth layers."

If this plan succeeded, it would mean he would have 3 Extra Mana Pools. So, if he ever ran out of mana, he could just release the seal, access the other Mana Circles, and repeat the cycle. This method would mean he would increase his mana quantity by 3 times.

"This method might work for a freak like you, but most arcanists' Soul Dimension could not bear such a load and would crack or destroy, and even their bodies might not be able to bear it," said Morgana, making Edward frown.

"Didn't we study ways to reinforce the Soul Dimension?"

"Yes, but even after reinforcement, the majority of Arcanists won't be able to use another layer to store more mana. Maybe, they can have a few extra circles, probably equivalent to 10% of their Tier."

"An extra 10% is not bad."

The Second Layer Mana Circles will already make Arcanists even more powerful than other Arcanists. So, if they can store an additional 10% in the third layer, it will still increase their overall strength.