A month passed in a blink of an eye. Right now, Zero was concentrating hard. The sun was hot but he tried his best to ignore it. He had a task at hand that required everything he had.
He couldn't decide which batch of pills he made was the best. After tasting sixty-nine different batches of pills, Zero stared at almost seventy small pill bottles. They were made using different methods and ingredients but Zero only wanted the best. The honey ones were great tasting but they were not good for fast effects. The fast effects weren't long-lasting and had a quick expiry date. The long expiry-date pills lacked freshness and those that had all of the above wasn't practical to produce in quantity.
Zero only wanted the best because it was going to be a gift for his best friend who was working hard in some place far away. Zero wanted to give Truen a gift but couldn't decide which batch of pills were the best. His skills were definitely improving and his pills looked good. Zero even tried making chewable pills look like little animals. Hua Tuo was amused when Zero made a pill that resembled the Great Gods. They were too small for any details but the main characteristics were there. Sedna had a tail, Zeus was half naked, Hades wore a cloak, Freya had red hair - yes, Zero used some food colouring for it, Isis had her signature sharp eyes and Gaia looked like a tree lady. Buddha and En received some too. The Sage God was pleased to see his peaceful expression and bead-like hair. King Yama was touched even though he wasn't sure if he looked as scary as he did. Still, they enjoyed the gifts immensely.
"Why don't you make character pills for Truen as well?" Hua Tuo suggested. His apprentice had been mulling over the matter for two hours now. Normally, he wouldn't tolerate time wasting. However, today was an off-day so it was fine. Zero didn't skimp on morning exercises or tending to the fields so Hua Tuo closed one eye.
Zero sighed. "I couldn't make nice looking character pills... it's difficult to make Truen shaped pills..."
The physician had to stifle a chuckle. He'd taken a peek at Zero's work in progress. Truen pills were indeed harsher than King Yama pills. While King Yama looked like a menacing child, Truen looked like a child-eating monster. Zero was right about that but Hua Tuo couldn't blame him. After all, it was hard to replicate green eyes and elf ears with dark skin without making it look like a creature from hell.
Zero sighed once more. He didn't know what to do after exhausting all his options. He didn't want to give his best friend a failed product but at this rate, he might just have to. Over the call with Isis, the goddess let it slip that Truen was often mana exhausted. Although Zero learnt how to make different pills for various illnesses like cough, fever and digestion related issues, he felt compelled to master the art of mana replenishing pills.
Zero flopped onto the ground, not minding the heat and dirt. The pills laid spread out on a sheet under the sun, taunting Zero about his failures. The boy gave a groan and slammed his head against the rock beside him. Zero wasn't hurt by that action but Hua Tuo swore he heard the rock crack a little.
Coughing to get his apprentice's attention, Hua Tuo suggested that they try to make the pills together.
"You will help me?"
Hua Tuo grinned. "On one condition."
Zero immediately became wary. The physician has been pestering him about holding knives and needles but Zero refused. He didn't want to hurt innocent animals. Hua Tuo claimed that acupuncture and surgery will make them better but Zero highly doubted that. You couldn't make someone feel better by hurting them.
The doctor sighed. "You won't hurt them, I promise. I can prove that to you, I'll stick needles in my own arm."
Zero hesitated. Although he didn't want animals to get injured, it didn't mean he wanted to see Hua Tuo get hurt because of him. "No, I'll do it. You can stick needles in my arm instead. If it really is true, I'll learn how to do acupuncture and surgery."
Hua Tuo did a mental leap of victory. "Alright, let's get started then. Bring out the grinding stone."
"Yes, sir!" Zero cheered and ran to the workroom.
***
"I'm impressed," Merlin stroked his beard. Truen had the glasses on and was still reading a book when the wizard decided to pay his apprentice a visit.
There were piles and piles of books surrounding the wood elf stacked in a complicated fashion. To anyone else, it would appear as if the wood elf was a disorganised person. However, Merlin knew better. He was careful not to touch them as he walked over to his student.
Truen had been hard at work over the past three weeks. After training himself in high-speed arithmetic with En, Truen immersed himself into mastering basic alchemy. By the end of the second week, Truen was able to create and maintain a second Parallel Mind. With the help of supplies from Hua Tuo and Zero, Truen worked at it without sleep for yet another week. The first few days were increasing his capacity to create more Minds and Truen succeeded. He now had sixteen Minds and as he progressed in Parallel Thinking, it got more difficult to acquire additional Minds. However, having said that, the wood elf was making quick progress.
With one Mind dedicated to arithmetic training and one Mind dedicated to increasing Parallel Minds, Truen was able to use the remaining fourteen Minds effectively. One Mind was often left to read and coordinate the activities used by other Minds. It took Truen a while to figure out how to leave on Mind in the space-time dimension and that was training with any of the Great Gods at any one point of time. Information overload was no longer a problem for Truen. While he continued to read, analyse and acquire battle experience as well as learn from the Great Gods, the wood elf had reached an insane level of magic proficiency without his knowledge.
Merlin sensed it when Truen made his final breakthrough. The wood elf was now on the same level of raw potential power in terms of mana as a demigod. What Truen lacked was experience and practical knowledge. Merlin was pleased to find that over thirty percent of the books in his library had been read. The pile to Truen's right were books he had completed. The pile of books to his left were waiting to be analysed. Currently, there were about three hundred books being analysed and Merlin looked at the pile behind Truen. Those were the books Truen needed to read at the next stage.
"Arcane theories? You're progressing quite well."
"Thank you, sir."
Merlin glanced over the titles of completed books and nodded. "I assume you've found a way to finish all these books within a year?"
Truen shook his head. "At the rate that I'm progressing, I would be able to complete reading and analysing by the next two months."
Merlin chuckled. "Isis told me about your intentions to travel after half a year of training."
Truen smiled. "Yes, sir. I wish to make the necessary preparations for Zero's travels."
Merlin stroked his beard. "I won't stop you. However, you need to train with me in the space-time dimension for the next three months after you have completed reading. Magic is more than throwing a bunch of spells at your enemy. There are many different kinds of magic and not all of them are battle related. A true magician is one who is able to create new solutions and explore the endless number of possibilities."
The wood elf bowed slightly. "I have yet to finish reading everything there is in this library but I understand. I did not intend to limit myself to becoming a bodyguard with only battle-related spells."
Merlin nodded once more, satisfied with Truen's answer. This wood elf was worthy of becoming his apprentice. Zero showed great potential with his unusual way of thinking but Truen displayed the ability to overcome any obstacle in his way. Both were great students and Merlin was proud to have them as his apprentices.
"I shall visit again in three months. Should there be anything you do not understand, feel free to send me a message."
Truen stood up and bowed deeply this time as Merlin prepared to leave. "Thank you, master!"