"Wayne, would you like to be my student?"
"To be honest, not really..."
Wayne shrugged. Hefei's approach to taking on disciples was too old-fashioned, and the only attempt at being cool ended in failure. She didn't seem like a great teacher.
Too young!
In his mind, a teacher should have a long, flowing white beard, thick glasses, a scholarly and versatile appearance, weathered by life's experiences.
And there should be a scruffy robe, a simple yet sturdy sword, and a giant dragon under the seat.
The weight of the sword didn't matter; the key was the dragon under the seat!
While Hefei, with her mature charm, was certainly eye-catching, magic was a lifelong pursuit, not something to be taken lightly. A mature woman like her might catch his eye, but in a few years, he'd find his own way.
Sensing Wayne's disdain in his words, Hefei smiled faintly. With a surge of spiritual power, she stirred the tide of magic, drawing Wayne's mind into a fantastical world.
The cosmic universe!
Wayne recognized this place, the world behind the Gate of Truth!
"Sister, you're late again. I've seen this scene before."
Unaware of her failure to impress, Hefei withdrew her magic and the illusion of deep space. With an air of pride, she said, "Don't be fooled by my youthful appearance. Although I'm only two years older than you, I'm quite well-known in the magical world. What you just saw was the Gate of Truth, a sacred place coveted by countless wizards. I've been there and back safely."
Who hasn't?
Wayne's indifference was taken by Hefei as the ignorance of a young beginner who didn't know the terror and value of the Gate of Truth. She stopped her rambling and smiled strangely. "How about this? I'll introduce my daughter to you as an exchange. You become my student, deal?"
"You have a daughter?"
Wayne was deeply shocked. Who was lucky enough to find this gem? At the same time, he was amazed by Hefei's shamelessness. Wasn't her daughter only five years old? Introducing her to a boyfriend, wasn't that a bit too much?
"Yeah, she's 19 this year."
"How old are you?"
"20!"
"It's getting late, let's talk another day..."
In the villa.
Faced with Hefei's invitation to become her disciple, Wayne neither refused nor nodded, nor did he intend to return the magic book.
Honestly, he acknowledged Hefei's strength. The glimpse of her magic tide was like a supernatural warning, indicating danger only second to the Gate of Truth. It was enough to prove that Hefei was a powerful mage.
But...
Something just didn't seem right!
Wayne couldn't put his finger on it, attributing it to Hefei's unreliability. He also understood why Hefei was so enthusiastic when they first met. It wasn't because she was interested in him, but because she was interested in him.
Wayne undoubtedly thirsted for magic. He urgently wanted to gain powerful abilities, preferably surpassing Veronica and the others overnight, reaching the level of an outstanding graduate.
After weighing his options, Wayne realized he didn't have much choice. A powerful and outstanding mage had taken the initiative to come to him, orchestrating an inheritance, and it would be pretentious of him to act otherwise. So he tacitly accepted Hefei as his teacher.
"I know you think I'm too young and it's embarrassing for you to be my student. You have good taste. I am indeed very young..."
"How about this, let's each call each other what we want. You call me sister, I call you..."
When it came to calling her sister, Hefei seemed to think of something, her eyes gleaming mischievously, like a witch about to devour someone.
Her methods didn't seem very benevolent. Could she be a follower of some dark deity?
"Let me reintroduce myself. I'm Hefei Valentine, a follower of the Goddess of Nature. Returning to Lunden as the High Priestess of the district, representing the highest authority of the church in the Kingdom of Windsor, also representing the church's highest combat power in the Kingdom of Windsor."
With a strong sense of confidence, Hefei continued, "So, do you still think I'm not qualified to teach you?"
"Definitely not!"
Wayne's face changed rapidly, respectfully calling her teacher.
Hefei waved her hand, giggling behind it, "Sister will do. This title is more fun. I'm almost impatient."
Wayne didn't know what she was talking about. It was late at night, and a man and a woman were alone together. He suspected Hefei was being flirtatious. He kindly advised his teacher to be kind, explaining that the student's view of love was very conservative and couldn't accept a romantic relationship with a teacher.
"I've been transferred back to Lunden from the Paris headquarters to take over a big mess. Otherwise, our apprentice ceremony would have been more sacred. But for now..."
"You're already dating my daughter, so it doesn't matter if we have a ceremony or not. Just listen to Veronica in the future."
"It was my intention to spend a lot of time teaching you, but the situation in Lunden is worse than I imagined. I'll be returning to Lunden to take charge of the situation in three days. You need to be prepared to work tirelessly these three days."
Hefei admitted that she was tempted by Wayne's talent and was willing to stay for three days to guide him. She didn't mention the condition that Wayne had to become her student in return for her promise.
It was clear that Wayne showed resistance when she set up the situation. In such a situation, it was absolutely unacceptable to force him.
He needed to be persuaded!
The effect was quite good. Wayne was coaxed into being quite happy by her. Perhaps he was still a bit stubborn in his words, but his body was honest. He tacitly accepted her as his teacher.
Hefei: Damn it, this bastard. Such an effective coaxing method. Are you so skilled that you had other women before me?
Hefei's expression became serious as she adopted the posture of a teacher, toning down her teasing. She explained to Wayne how to open the Hexagram Magic Book. "This is the masterpiece of legendary mages of the church, summarizing thousands of years of magical practice. It has the best meditation methods and the most comprehensive training system, which can help you avoid many detours..."
Under Hefei's instructions, Wayne opened the magic book. The first page displayed a hexagram pattern composed of six straight lines, two triangles interlocking not in a simple geometric pattern, but in a complex interweaving of lines.
"Black Forged Hexagram, Silver Cross Star, Golden Triangle Star. You don't need to worry about the latter two for now. First, master the Hexagram. Only after lighting up the Hexagram can you access higher levels."
Hefei sat across from Wayne, pointing at the Hexagram. "What I'm about to tell you next, you must remember. The Hexagram represents Earth, Fire, Water, Wind, Void, and Me..."
"Earth, the foundation of life, represents the muscles, bones, and organs of the human body."
"In nature, Earth is the ground, and all life, you, me, and others, come from the ground. The ground is the foundation and the most important part of the Hexagram system's harmony."
"You can communicate with the Earth by connecting with nature, bringing more Earth elements into your body..."
Hefei's words seemed to possess a magical power, making Wayne see a myriad of natural scenes before his eyes. He wandered through mountains, forests, and plains, walking barefoot on the earth, always maintaining a connection with it, gaining wisdom and memories from it.
"Fire, the energy of life, represents human desires."
"Human desires are endless. The energy in your body is already sufficient, so as a mage, you don't need to introduce Fire elements from nature. What we need to do is learn to balance and even suppress desires."
"Anger, greed, lust, laziness, arrogance... We have too many desires. A mage cannot maintain tranquility with so many desires. The flames will devour the other five rays of the Hexagram, making your magic impure and your thoughts chaotic."
"At the same time, if tranquility reaches its peak, a mage will lose desire and the energy to move forward in life. Maintaining balance, facing yourself..."
As Hefei spoke, Wayne found himself in a sea of fire. The high temperature distorted his thoughts while also forging his will.
"Water, the source of life, represents the blood and fluids of the human body, keeping our minds clear and balancing our desires."
"Water elements are calm, gentle, and pure. Bathing in water, you will gain the greatest balance in the world. It teaches us the value of life and that desire is not the highest pursuit; life is above all else..."
"Water will help you extinguish the flames, but remember, the flames cannot be completely extinguished!"
Wayne swam in a blue ocean. He felt like he had become a vessel carrying water, achieving a kind of balance. His thoughts remained absolutely clear, the burning flames dissipated, no longer swayed by desire.
"Wind, the breath of life. You can understand it as the breath you take every moment."
"Wind elements are not prominent in nature, but they are the most energetic. Influenced by the other three elements, they also change the other three elements..."
"Your breath will change with your flesh, desires, determining your physical condition. If your flesh and desires decay, your breath will also become sluggish."
"On the other hand, if you can keep the wind elements in your body always active, you can affect your flesh, desires, delaying decay or even eliminating it. An outstanding mage maintains the vitality of the wind elements, ensuring perpetual youth."
"It is the breath of life, vitality!"
Wayne felt the rhythm of breathing, exchanging with nature, alternating between inner and outer impurities and purity, keeping his body healthy and strong.
"Void, it is both energy and matter, knowledge and the objective laws of existence."
"The four elements are the foundation of life, while the Void transcends the four elements. It is the most difficult aspect of the Hexagram system to master. Beyond nature, it is the cosmos, also known as ether."
"The energy of the four elements is finite, while the space of the ether is infinite, possessing high intelligence. Connecting with the Void, your thoughts, wisdom, and even magic will be guided and gradually amplified by the Void."
"The Void is closely related to the four elements. The four elements constitute your life and determine how much wisdom you gain from contact with the Void."
"In simpler terms, the Void is knowledge. With knowledge comes magic. Communicate with the Void with your life, and your magic will blossom in miraculous ways, changing reality."
This time, Wayne was surrounded by a white expanse, looking up at an infinite starry sky, where countless stars represented the highest wisdom of the universe. All knowledge and truth were there.
"I, the Ego, thought, belief, the lifelong pursuit of a mage."
"We control magic with our thoughts, drive magic with magic, and change reality with magic. Thought is based on perception and transcends the limits of perception, involving all cognitive or intellectual activities. Without thought, we are nothing."
"In the process of learning knowledge, our thoughts will be strongly impacted. To ensure that our thoughts remain rational, we must restrain ourselves with belief, and rely on the protection of the gods to gain higher wisdom."
Wayne saw a mirror in front of him, where he appeared with a confused gaze, his entire body showing a sickly paleness.
The color of the dead!
Suddenly, the burn marks on his chest split open, and a giant eyeball opened, corrupting his flesh and turning him into a monstrous being with only tentacles and eyeballs, sticky and indescribable.
At this moment, a green light shone down, dispelling Wayne's evil cloak, turning him back into a human.
The green light was holy and natural. Vaguely, Wayne saw an elegant and graceful figure within it.
Wayne: ???
Teacher, there's too much personal stuff in this section. Did you add something extra?
"The foundation of the Hexagram is the four elements, the foundation that every mage must solidify. Master the four elements, and you can cast corresponding magic. But for magic involving belief and divine arts, a devout heart is necessary."
Teacher Hefei clearly added a lot of personal touch to this, to let Wayne experience the greatness of the Goddess of Nature, to let Wayne embrace the embrace of the Goddess of Nature. She didn't hesitate to expend a lot of magical power, painting illusions, and it took a lot of effort.
These illusions allowed Wayne to intuitively feel the four elements, void, and ego. It was a very clever way of guidance, similar to a sudden enlightenment, teaching Wayne how to sense and balance the four elements, perceive the void and ego.
This was the benefit of having a great teacher. If it were a night school, Wayne would have had to spend at least another year.
"The four elements have strengths and weaknesses, depending on your talent. Some are born with a strong desire for progress, represented by fire; some are born calm and peaceful, leaning towards water; and there are those born as outstanding athletes, representing earth; those who maintain eternal youth and longevity are of the wind..."
"Conversely, strong desire is fire, coldness is water, weakness is earth, and aging is wind!"
"There's no need to deliberately pursue perfect balance in the four elements. Such geniuses are absolute monsters. What you need to do is master the four elements, coordinate with the knowledge you've learned, and delineate the Hexagram together with your thoughts."
Hefei lifted her hand and tapped Wayne's chest, where the Hexagram pattern faintly appeared. "Once you complete this Hexagram, you will be a qualified mage, and your magical power will greatly increase. Later, I will tell you what the Silver Cross and Golden Triangle represent. Don't be impatient; this journey is still long."
Wayne acknowledged Hefei's teachings. This teacher wasn't wrong; she really knew her stuff.
Suddenly, he remembered something. "Um, teacher, I have a belief now, it's in the Moonlight Goddess. I promise..."
"Have you registered?"
"Registered for what?"
"Then you're not a follower of the Moonlight Goddess. Change it. From now on, follow Sister's footsteps and follow the Goddess of Nature."
"...So casual, are you a mage of the Free Alliance?"