Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

Chapter 1983 Destroy the Core

Adam sat cross-legged in the center of a dark room, his back perfectly straight and his hands resting loosely upon his knees. His eyes were closed, and his breathing was slow and steady, almost imperceptible.

To an outsider, there was nothing remarkable about him. He appeared to be nothing more than a Magus sitting and practicing mindfulness.

But within his body, an entirely different scene was unfolding.

Mana surged through his channels in endless streams, drawn from the surroundings and pulled into his body. It flowed through the intricate network of channels he had spent countless years tempering, nourishing his flesh, strengthening his bones, and reinforcing his very existence.

That was where every Magus began.

At the Apprentice ranks, mana was something external. Something borrowed from the world.

At Mana Foundation, the Magus learned to receive that power. Their channels gradually became capable of drawing mana from their surroundings and circulating it through their bodies.

At Mana Liquefaction, the chaotic energy was refined and transformed into abstract liquid, which gathered within the stomach region.

Then came Mana Vortex. The liquid began to revolve. Round and round it went, forming an orderly cycle where there had once been nothing but chaos. Mana was drawn into the body, refined, condensed, and circulated again.

With every revolution, the Magus became stronger.

But when a Magus reached the Mana Core Rank, everything changed. This was the stage where one attained Magushood — a sentiment shared by every spellcaster in the Greater Universe.

Adam's consciousness descended deeper into his body. Within the depths of his stomach region floated an ethereal sphere.

His Mana Core.

It was an existence that seemed to defy ordinary understanding. It was tangible, yet intangible. It possessed a definite shape, yet no physical substance. It was as though an entire sea of mana had been condensed into a single celestial body.

For Adam, forming the Core had been another step along the Way.

The purpose of the Mana Core Rank had never been to make the Core larger. It was the exact opposite. It was to make it smaller.

Adam focused his mind.

The ethereal Core trembled. Under his guidance, it began to shrink!

The change was almost imperceptible at first, but the consequences were anything but minor. Mana surged violently within the Core as its enormous volume was forced into an increasingly smaller space.

Adam remained completely still. He had spent almost a hundred years consolidating his strength at the Mana Core Rank.

Decades refining his mana. Decades strengthening his foundation. Decades nourishing his Core and slowly preparing for this day.

This was the path he had chosen long ago.

The path of accumulation had ended.

Now came the path of refinement.

An Apprentice might wonder how much mana they could gather. As they progressed, they learned to refine that mana, organize it, and eventually condense it into a Core.

But the moment the Core was formed, the question changed.

It was no longer about how much one possessed. It became a question of how much one could compress.

Adam's Core continued to shrink.

Its vastness gradually disappeared, replaced by an increasingly concentrated existence. What had once seemed like an enormous sphere of ethereal mana was slowly becoming smaller and denser.

This was where the Magus' foundation revealed its true worth.

Two Magi might reach the Mana Core Rank at roughly the same age. They might possess similar amounts of mana in their reserves, and even display comparable talent. Yet when they attempted to compress their Cores, the difference between them would become painfully obvious.

One might only be able to compress their Core to the size of a fist — for explanation's sake. Another might compress it to the size of a fruit. A truly extraordinary Magus might compress it until it was no larger than a pearl.

The limit depended on the foundation they had built during the arcane stages that came before. The stronger the foundation, the further the Core could be compressed. And Adam's foundation was extraordinary.

The Core shrank again.

A faint tremor passed through Adam's body, but his expression remained calm. He had long since prepared for this and had gotten into a pristine state of mind. Additionally, the Eternal Soul Lotus soothed his spirit sea, making him even calmer.

Thanks to the library of memories, he had long since understood that the Way of a Magus was not simply about gathering more. It was about removing everything unnecessary until only the essence remained.

The Apprentice gathered mana and gave it order.

The Core gave it form.

And now, Adam was going to strip away even that form!

His Core continued shrinking. The ethereal space became smaller and smaller, its tremendous power becoming increasingly concentrated.

Adam's mind remained completely focused upon it. He could feel every fluctuation, every strand of mana, every minute imperfection. There was no room for error.

This was the culmination of everything he had done at the Mana Core Rank. No, more accurately, everything in his journey up to the Mana Core Rank.

The Core shrank again.

And again.

Then again.

Until finally, it reached the limit that Adam had spent almost a century approaching. His consciousness became completely still. He took a slow, steady breath.

He had arrived at a very dangerous moment in time. Even the tiniest of mistakes could spell doom, with the worst-case scenario naturally being death.

The Core had seemingly reached its extreme. There was nowhere else to go. But Adam knew that the Core was never meant to be the final destination.

It was merely a vessel. A stage. A temporary form that existed to prepare him for what came next. The next step was the most crucial.

He had to destroy the Core!

Adam's expression became solemn. The thought emerged naturally within his mind:

The Core has to die…

It had served its purpose. It had taken the chaotic mana of the world and transformed it into something that belonged to him. It had carried him through the Mana Core Rank and allowed him to establish the foundation necessary for the next arcane stages.

But it could not go further.