The Gate Traveler

I was very excited to show everybody my stone ball. They were impressed by it and carefully examined it.

“Excellent, let’s try teaching me spells,” Lis said excitedly, rubbing his hands together. A glint of enthusiasm lit up his eyes.

We headed outside, the cool air brushing against our faces. Lis turned to me and said, “Show me the parts of your personal information that have spells.”

Focusing, I streamed mana into my profile, feeling the familiar tingle as it popped into visibility.

“Did I mention how envious I am of your mana?” Lis asked, raising an eyebrow with a playful smirk.

I chuckled, shaking my head slightly. “Many times.”

He laughed, his eyes crinkling at the corners, and continued, “You must practice showing only parts of your personal information. Avoid showing the whole thing to anybody.”

“I trust you,” I said, meeting his gaze.

“Thank you,” he replied warmly, “but you still should practice.”

“I will,” I nodded, making a mental note.

He leaned closer, scanning my profile with keen interest, and asked, “In the General Spells, I see Absorb Mana, but I never saw it in the purchase list; how come you have it?”

A grin tugged at my lips as I explained, “I learned it from a barrel.”

“A barrel?” He asked, sounding bewildered.

“Yes,” I confirmed, “it purified water, and I examined it.”

He laughed heartily, shaking his head in amusement. “A barrel, who would have thought of that? Anyway,” he said, straightening up, “I’m interested in Healing Touch, Neutralize Poison, Regrow Flesh, Fortify Life Force, Neutralize Curse, Restore, Adaptable Light Ball, and Absorb Mana.”

“Do you know how Lyura’s Mother took control of her mana to teach her the spells?”

“I don’t know the exact sequence,” Lis admitted, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, “but from my understanding, she put her hands on Lyura’s back, took control of her mana, and guided it to cast the spell repeatedly until Lyura could cast it.”

“Okay,” I said, steeling myself, “let’s try that.”

I placed my hands on Lis’s back and attempted to focus my awareness into him, similar to what I did with the water or the stone, but it was impossible. He was too complex, and I also felt as if there was some protective field that prevented me from “entering.” No matter what I tried, it didn’t work.

I tried to think of a solution and thought about what Lis said, that she “took control of her mana.” I tried a different approach: I poured mana into him, not as a spell, just mana, and tried to direct it to reach his channels. That didn’t work either; the mana spread through his body and dissipated into the air.

Lis said, “My power center is the Mind orb; maybe try controlling my mana from there?” He pointed to his temple with a thoughtful expression. “When my wizard friend built my spirals, he placed both hands on my head.”

I did, and it worked a little better—I could “insert” my awareness into his power center; I even saw the orb, which was much bigger than any of the orbs I had in my body. But other than seeing the orb, I couldn’t do anything. I tried to “grab” his mana with no success; I tried to flow my mana into his power center, mix it with his mana, and then take control, but it didn’t work either.

We both found ourselves stumped and sat down, our minds churning as we tried to brainstorm a solution. After a few minutes of silence, Lis suddenly perked up. “I might have an idea.”

“What is it?”

“If I flow mana down my arms like when I carve runes or charge a ritual,” he explained, slowly extending his arms and studying his hands, “you think you can take control of the mana that comes out of my palms?”

“Let’s try,” I replied, nodding in agreement. “If we don’t try, we won’t know.”

I placed my palms on the backs of his palms, and he flowed mana. It was easier for me to feel his mana there, as if the protective field of his body was thinner or sparser in the hand area. At first, I could not connect to his mana, but slowly, as I allowed my awareness to sink into the mana that flowed from his hands, I began to feel “oneness.” I sank deeper and deeper into his mana and felt its “flavor.” It was like reading him. I could taste his thirst for knowledge, his desire to find things that made him smile or laugh, his care for people, his impatience when something didn’t go the way he wanted, and his enthusiasm for discovering new things. It was like a direct line to his fundamental essence as a person, and I saw he was even more impressive than I thought.

The mana flow suddenly stopped, and I was abruptly “thrown” out of the connection, disoriented momentarily.

“What happened?” I asked, blinking as I tried to regain my bearings.

“Out of mana,” Lis replied, his voice tinged with fatigue as he rubbed his temples.

“Oh,” I said, realizing what had happened. “I must have gone a little too deep. I need to find a way to feel the mana but not let it take me over until I lose my self-awareness and what I want to do.”

Lis nodded thoughtfully, taking a deep breath. “I have to regenerate, so maybe practice that while I do?”

“Yeah, good idea,” I agreed, giving him a reassuring smile as I settled back, ready to refine my technique.

I went back to training with stones. It was easier for me to connect with water, but because water is constantly in motion, it wasn’t a suitable subject for my training; I needed something static.

I trained for two days but made little progress. I had a collection of three stone balls I placed in a fruit bowl on the breakfast bar, but I always reached the point of directing the mana only after immersing myself in it for a long time. If I wanted to teach Lis spells, I couldn’t afford to sink into his mana for hours before I started directing it.

On the evening of the second day, while we were in the middle of dinner, this time with the food we bought in Sichuan because I was too frustrated to cook, it suddenly dawned on me, and I facepalmed.

“What happened?” Lis asked, his brow furrowed in concern.

“I’m an idiot,” I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck in frustration.

Lis raised an eyebrow, about to say something, but Mahya beat him to it. “What made you reach this enlightenment?” she asked, her tone dripping with playful sarcasm.

“Very funny,” I shot back, giving her a glare that was more amused than angry. “I forgot my most basic ability as a Wizard, the first ability I developed that gave me this class.”

“Which is?” Mahya asked, tilting her head with genuine curiosity.

“Mind Split,” I explained, feeling sheepish. “Instead of trying to get to where I’m immersed in the mana but also have control over it, I can split my mind; one part is immersed in the mana, and another directs it.”

Lis’s eyes lit up with understanding. “Let’s try it. Like you said, if we don’t try, we won’t know.”

We went outside again. I put my hands on the backs of Lis’s hands, and he flowed mana. I split my mind and let one part sink into his mana. This time, it also went much faster. Probably, all my training with the stones taught me to submerge faster. Once I fully immersed myself in his mana, I used the other part of my mind to control it, gently directing it without pressure or force.

Immediately, I realized two splits were not enough. One part immersed in the mana, and the second directed the flow, but I still needed a third part to cast the spell and determine the flow to direct it. I split my mind into the third part—this part was always more complicated, and I felt my mind start to “sweat and tremble”—and cast the spell Healing Touch over and over. The second part directed Lis’s mana to flow through the same patterns as the spell.

I told him through gritted teeth, “Try to learn the pattern as quickly as possible; the third split is tough for me.”

Little by little, I felt him taking control of the mana, and the more he took control, the more I let go. However, I continued to direct the mana to the correct pattern, this time half nudging the mana along and half nudging him.

After over forty casts, I could release my control entirely. I maintained my connection with his mana to monitor that he was doing it right, but I didn’t have to direct it anymore and could let go of the third split. That was such a relief that I almost sagged. I was breathing heavily and felt like I had run a marathon, and my mind felt like it was having a muscle spasm. It wasn’t exactly a physical feeling; it was more mental, but a muscle spasm was the closest feeling to what I felt in my mind.

“Cast the spell again,” I said, focusing on observing his technique.

He did, and I could immediately sense that his spell casting was flawless, the mana flowing seamlessly.

“Cast it another couple of times to ensure you got it,” I suggested, not wanting to leave anything to chance.

“No need,” he replied with a confident grin. “I have the spell in my General Spells list; I checked.”

“Phew! That was difficult; the third split is a killer,” I admitted, letting out a relieved sigh as I relaxed my shoulders.

Lis raised an eyebrow, a hint of amusement in his eyes. “If I recall correctly, when we met, I told you to practice this ability, or am I mistaken?”

I felt my cheeks flush slightly. “No, you’re not. I remember you telling me.”

“So why didn’t you?” he asked, crossing his arms and giving me a knowing look.

I rubbed my neck sheepishly, avoiding his gaze. “Too many other things to do, and I forgot.”

“You forgot,” he repeated, his tone flat, though the corners of his mouth twitched with a suppressed smile.

“Yeah…” I admitted, drawing out the word as I gave him a helpless shrug.

He started roaring with laughter, the sound echoing all around us. After a minute, he wiped a tear from the corner of his eye and said, “I think you are the most talented Wizard I have ever met but also the most scatterbrained.”

“I’m not scatterbrained,” I protested, crossing my arms defensively. “There are so many things to learn and discover that I keep skipping from one thing to another. Not because of lack of focus, but because of the enormous selection and the specific things YOU tell me to learn.” I pointed my finger at him, giving him an accusatory glare.

Lis chuckled, shaking his head. “I think you should make a list of all the things you need to learn, perfect, and practice, and stick to it until you master those things, at least partially, before moving to the next thing.”

“Yeah, good idea,” I agreed, nodding thoughtfully as I considered his advice.

Lis’s expression shifted to one of curiosity as he asked, “What is your vitality number?”

I blinked, caught off guard. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“Humor me.”

“Fifty-one,” I replied, still puzzled by his line of questioning.

“And what is the average life span on Earth?” he continued, his tone more serious now.

“Seventy or eighty years,” I answered, wondering where he was going with this.

“So,” Lis began, giving me a pointed look, “with your vitality, even without considering that your father was probably from one of the long-lived races, your life expectancy is around 400 years. If we add that you matured at about half the speed of the inhabitants of Earth, then even if your mother’s genetics shorten your life span, you still have at least 750 years to live.”

I stared at him, slack-jawed, absorbing the implications of his words.

“Take your time to perfect everything you do,” Lis advised, his voice gentle yet firm. “If you do everything quickly, you won’t have anything new to learn or discover later. Slow down, take your time, and enjoy the experience.”

I stared at him in shock. Seven hundred fifty years? Seriously? My mind raced as I tried to comprehend the enormity of that number. I knew our life expectancy increased as the Vitality stat increased—Lis had told me he was over 400—but I had never done the math. Seven hundred fifty years? My legs suddenly felt like jelly, and before I knew it, I dropped to my butt on the ground, too stunned to stand. I just sat there, processing this information, my mind spinning with the implications.

Seven hundred fifty years?

 I’m going to live at least Seven hundred fifty years?

Oh my god! I’m going to live over Seven hundred fifty years!!

I burst into uncontrollable laughter and deliberately relinquished any sense of urgency.

There is no need for me to rush.

I felt how the future unfolded before me like an endless road full of amazing adventures and experiences, different worlds, different people, different varied knowledge, things to learn, achieve, and perfect. At the same time, I felt myself growing and expanding. I took a deep breath and felt the spiritual expansion with the physical sense of release I had already learned to recognize. I checked my mana: 510/9300.

My mana went up another 400 points. I checked my mana to locate the progress, and for the first time, it was in my Mind’s power center.