The Essence of Magic and the Ultimate Creation of Alchemy

"Because wands, spells, and gestures don't matter, they're just supplementary spells! What matters is magic, or…" Ivan muttered.

After Nick Flamel's spell-casting demonstration, he understood the meaning behind Flamel's words, but his years of materialistic education had left his conclusion stuck in his throat.

"Magic is the heart! It is the embodiment of a wizard's mind, of his will…" Nick Flamel answered for him as he watched the pigeons soar into the sky.

"Influence the physical world with one's mind?" Ivan listened to the answer, although he had just thought of it, and still found it hard to accept.

If he had said such an idealistic statement openly in his previous life, he would have been mocked and criticized.

However, Ivan also knew that he was now a wizard, and this was the wizarding world, so there was plenty of evidence to support this claim!

"Well… mental influence on matter?" Nick repeated the phrase, amused at how Muggle-sounding it was.

"Ha! You could say that! Magic is magical because it allows you to get what you want!" Nick exclaimed as he strolled back to the table and looked at Ivan.

Ivan waited for a long moment before exhaling slowly.

"This is… unbelievable!"

Ivan felt as if he were entering the wizarding world for the first time, the veil of magic unfurling before him…

At the same time, Nick Flamel's words solved a problem that had been bothering him for a long time, which was why young witches and wizards would subconsciously perform all kinds of magical abilities when their magic was about to explode.

Ivan finally understood what was going on, because the active magic power that erupted would materialize all the thoughts in the young wizard's mind, and this huge power was not something that a young wizard could control, so it was possible that it would lose control and cause some damage!

Ivan, who had experienced many magical outbursts, knew this very well. The sudden increase in magic did not work as planned, and it was difficult to use it.

It was only in protective mode that he could easily control his magic and cast spells almost at will within a certain range.

At this thought, Ivan asked curiously,

"Mr. Flamel, if a wizard can cast spells without assistance, what is the point of learning spells and gestures? To gain more control over our magic?"

The three steps of spell-casting, which were compulsory for almost every wizard, were apparently important.

Combining what Nick had just said, Ivan suggested that it was likely due to the inability of the vast majority of wizards to control their magic, and thus the need for steps to guide it.

Yvonne voiced her suspicions, but Nick shook his head and laughed, saying that it was not accurate enough.

The thousands of years of painstaking research, summary, and popularisation of spell-casting in the wizarding world were not limited to this, but each had its own uses!

The wand was responsible for guiding the magic to reduce the difficulty of casting spells, while the gesture and incantation could make the magic more accurate!

"Without these steps, I'm afraid most wizards and witches would not be able to use their powers. Free-spell… As easy as it sounds, I'm afraid there isn't a single wizard who can do it!" Nick sighed.

"Even you and Professor Dumbledore can't do it?" Yvonne was surprised, as she thought Nick Flamel and Dumbledore were close enough to be able to perform magic without the use of a wand.

"Of course not, we're nowhere near that level!" admitted Nick Flamel candidly. "A man would be a god if he had complete control over his magic!"

God? Yvonne pursed her lips, thinking that Nick Flamel was exaggerating, but then she thought, if anyone could get their way, they'd be God.

"Mr. Flamel, what about alchemy? You haven't told me what alchemy is…" Ivan quickly recalled the importance of this exchange and hurriedly asked.

"Alchemy, like magic, is ultimately a way to use magic!" Nick explained.

In ancient times, spellcasters found direct control of magic to be extremely difficult and impossible to achieve for the vast majority of people, so they experimented with all kinds of external factors.

The three most dominant schools of magic were those that relied on wands, charms, and gestures to control the precise output of their magic, those that extracted the essence of the potion's potion, and those that used the alchemy of magical spell-conversion.

However, after thousands of years of development, the three factions are not entirely separate, and there is much integration between them.

For example, some advanced potions required wands to fuse, and some enchantments could be used to enchant objects to an alchemical effect.

"The three factions each have their own strengths, and they all use their magic for their own ends," concluded Nick Flamel.

Hearing this, Ivan was shocked. He had never known so much about magic, potions, and alchemy!

Ivan looked at the six-hundred-year-old man in front of him, impressed by his knowledge and wisdom, and grateful.

He had never read about such secret knowledge, and if Nick Flamel had not explained it to him, he would have taken many wrong turns.

If Ivan had no idea how to raise a spell to the seventh level, he now had some idea.

"Sir, you just told me about the ultimate form of magic. What about alchemy?" Ivan asked, unable to contain his curiosity.

"The ends of the three factions don't really make a difference, except in the means to the end," explained Nick Flamel.

After a pause, Nick Flamel seemed to hesitate again, unsure if it was a good idea to tell Ivan now.

However, he quickly realized that even if he did not say it, this clever young wizard would guess it soon. He shook his head and enunciated each word clearly.

"There is naturally a way to the end of alchemy, and that is to create an alchemical object… the Philosopher's Stone!"

"The Philosopher's Stone?!" Yvonne stared at Nick Flamel in disbelief.

He had obtained the Philosopher's Stone himself, but Dumbledore had taken it when he was unconscious.

Ivan couldn't help but feel that this was ridiculous, and his heart ached. He hadn't expected Alchemy to end so close to him…

(PS: One update, please forgive me, today I want to set my head bald…)