No pain, no gain and the cycle of cause and effect should be the basic laws of the world.
The magician seems to have violated this law. The clever magician tricks the universe into turning it around, allowing it to hand over uncaused results, allowing him to gain something for nothing.
Just one spell, how simple!
It can reverse time and space, distort other people's thoughts, and even create life.
Mages are simply like a group of cheaters who exploit loopholes in the rules.
But this is just an appearance. The real reality is that all miraculous powers have a price.
So far, no one knows the original or specific operating mode.
But once magic is used to interfere with reality, the mage must pay a corresponding price.
Even if he didn't know it at the time and didn't realize it when the price befell him later, the price would eventually come.
After discovering this "absolute truth" in the extraordinary world, a group of mages found a new way to reverse the cause and effect of "all magic requires a price" and turned it into "as long as the price is paid, miracles will be created".
That is cost magic.
The most common cost magic is at the cost of the caster suffering damage. After the damage is completed, the corresponding magic is activated immediately.
Magic can come in many forms.
For example, Harley learned the mind spell from Madam Xanadu and uses it to this day.
After she is hurt, part of the damage is converted into a "curse" on her mental power, which is equivalent to a soul attack.
For example, the signature skill of Zatara's magic family-escaping the room.
After being hurt, you can break free from ropes, chains, and closed doors.
Before today, all the price magic that Harry had seen was released immediately after paying the price.
In other words, if Harley is injured today, she will activate the mind spell today and at this moment. She cannot wait until tomorrow. When she sees someone she doesn't like, she will do it to him.
Simply put, cost magic is a passive skill and cannot be actively cast.
But at this time, the Constantine trio seemed to have accomplished something unprecedented.
"You really delayed the price magic?" Harley asked in surprise.
Constantine smiled proudly and said: "Delaying the cost of magic is indeed what we hope to achieve in many 'Saturday Night' studies.
Today, it finally came true and we created a miracle.
I just said, magic is a miracle, all miracles can be achieved through magic, and ‘magic miracles’ are no exception.”
"Did you invent this set of spells?" Harry looked at him with more admiration.
There is a common sense in the magic world: the strongest and most respected wizards are not the old ones who live a long time, but the "inventors" with flexible minds and good at creating new spells.
This is related to the characteristics of the mage profession.
Magic apprentices learn other people's magic, and formal mages use other people's magic to determine their own future path.
But at the third stage, the Archmage must innovate on the magic of his predecessors and create his own "exclusive spell".
The fourth stage, from Archmage to Grandmaster, requires the creation of a unique law in the world.
Even if they have the same attribute, for example, the thunder attribute law, the two thunder attribute laws are different.
A thousand masters create a thousand laws.
Therefore, the more innovative a mage is, the stronger he will be and the brighter his future will be.
This is different from the world of Xianxia and martial arts. You can't even become a great mage just by relying on the peerless secrets of the old masters without your own innovation.
Innovation is change.
The essence of magic practice is also change, the change of knowledge - the innovation of magic spells; the change of one's own body and soul, the transformation at the end of life.
It can also be said that the essence of magic practice is innovation.
Without innovation in magic, you cannot become a great mage; without "innovation" in the body (including soul and magic power), you cannot become a spiritual wizard.
Harley's magical talent is polarizing. Most mages feel that her qualifications are dull because her innovation ability is too poor. There are also a few mages who feel that she is uniquely talented because she has undergone two terminal transformations in a very short period of time, and her body is "innovating".
Constantine's magic power is mediocre, but he is considered to be extremely talented by all the extraordinary people who have seen him. Because he has experienced deathbed transformation and has a flexible mind, almost all of the commonly used spells are his own creations or adaptations.
However, this time the delay cost magic was not created by him.
"'Saturday Night' was Nick's idea, and I only played a role in it."
Constantine looked at Nick with the same look that Harry looked at him just now, a mixture of admiration and envy.
Harley looked at Nick again with admiration. This guy became famous earlier than Constantine and her, and he still maintains the title of "the number one mage in the modern era".
Nick really enjoys the way he looks at himself from the "first person in terms of strength, fame, status and power in the contemporary era".
However, he still shook his head and said: "I may have done more than John, but its structure came from Zatanna's father, Master Zatara."
Harley was stunned.
She remembered what Mrs. Xanadu had said ten years ago: Cost magic had long been determined by the ancestors to have no future, and few people later studied it, with the exception of Zatara.
"It's not easy to stand on the shoulders of giants and look far away." Harry complimented, and then asked eagerly: "Can you teach me this magic?"
Nick glanced at Zatanna, and she nodded slightly.
"certainly."
He was very straightforward and explained the entire magic and ritual process on the spot.
Like Harley, Zatara also wanted to delay activating the cost magic until she needed it.
However, their original intentions for coming up with this idea were different.
Harley thought to herself: I got beaten at home today and accumulated the "power to retaliate". When I go out and encounter an enemy, I will point my finger at him and blow his head off.
Zatara is a magician...well, a legendary "liar" magician who disguises magic as magic.
He thought to himself: If he could delay the activation of the "escape room" technique in cost magic, then he could perform more kinds of magic performances.
Well, in order to develop more amazing and more fantastic magic, he came up with the idea of studying this magic spell.
His exclusive magic spell is "irony magic", and escape room skills are just his "protection skills" to survive.
Under normal circumstances, Zatala must be injured when performing an escape room, or she must sink into the water and hold back the injury; or she may be tied up tightly and strangled; or she may hide small nails on her body and squeeze and stab her... If
Zatara stripped off his clothes, tied his hands and feet, and threw them into the closet. He could not escape without using magic.
In many past escape performances, his "magic" failed because he could not accumulate enough damage, so he could only secretly use irony magic.
In short, in order to use the escape room technique more smoothly and freely, Zatara began to try to delay the activation of the cost magic.
His idea is not subtle.
The process of people being injured is not completed instantly; only when the injuries accumulate to a certain extent within a certain period of time will the cost magic be activated.
So, can the ‘certain time’ be extended?
For example, if you burn Constantine with cigarette butts, you must use ten cigarette butts at one time to activate the escape room.
Now let's change the method, burn a cigarette butt today, another one tomorrow, and ten days later, he will use the escape room to escape.
"This new spell actually requires a huge amount of magic power to distort time, space and the laws around you. The prelude alone takes more than an hour... It's too complicated and the price-performance ratio is too low." Harley frowned.
"More importantly, it's not suitable for you." A gleam flashed in Zha Kang's eyes, "You need to pay for it, but this is an escape room technique.
You need to accumulate an infinite amount of 'retaliation power', accumulate the damage of a thousand cigarette butts at one time, and then use the cost magic of ten cigarette butts damage anytime and anywhere.
Oh, for you, the best thing is to accumulate tens of billions of cigarette butt burns, and then release them all at once, killing gods and demons instantly, and becoming invincible in the world."
Harley said with a dull face: "Only those that are suitable for me have practical uses. What else can your 'Saturday Night' do besides fooling the audience?"
Zatanna pulled a sheet around her body and said: "We do research to accumulate wisdom and find inspiration in the process of exploring the limits of cost magic, not for the magic spell itself."
Harry's eyes flashed and he said with a smile: "Your 'Saturday Night' is not yet mature, and it can be improved again, right?"
Zha Kang said while getting dressed: "You want us to help you with research and development? We don't study this magic every Saturday night.
And the natal curse is your road, let others develop it, are you not afraid of the road being taken over?"
Even if he, Nick, and Zatanna formed a "Saturday Night Threesome," and their relationship was so close that they treated each other honestly, they never discussed their respective curses together.
They only study low-level side magic spells like escape room techniques that do not involve their own core path.
"I will kill anyone who dares to take my way. After listening to Poseidon's story, I now fully understand that 'I am the only one who has the right way'." Harley sneered.
Then her big eyes moved around flexibly, and she said with a sweet smile: "Do you think this will work? I will also join the magic research of 'Saturday Night'."
Not only did I contribute my own efforts and participate in it personally, but I also provided all the materials.
If you want to conduct any experiments, I will reimburse you for the funds and resources.
However, the direction of research needs to change. I will hand over the 'Head Curse' and the natal curse, the Black Vortex of Thorns, to you. We will focus on studying how to accumulate 'counter-injury power' in unlimited amounts without time limit."
"Even the Black Vortex of Thorns is open to the public. Aren't you afraid that after it spreads, countless targeted magics will be developed?" Zha Kang asked in surprise.
"Will you spread the word?" Harley asked.
It doesn’t matter if it is passed on, because the thorn vortex is divided into the "counter-injury thorns" of cost magic and the "black vortex of graft" of the experience jar.
The black vortex and the thorns are two parts, and she will only reveal the thorns, which have little technical content.
Zha Kang held a cigarette in his mouth and said vaguely: "I don't believe you will trust us so much."
"You should believe in your abilities and my desire to improve the Black Vortex of Thorns. Of course, I will not let you work in vain."
Harry glanced at the three calm magic masters with a friendly and confident smile, "Nick, John, Zatanna, we are old friends for many years.
To bribe you with money or other benefits is not only an insult to you, but also an insult to myself.
But we are all mages.
All miracles have a price, which is one of the basic laws of the mage.
Today you help me develop a natal magic spell, and when you repay your magic or other debts in the future, I will help you deal with the debt collector."
Zha Kang's pupils shrank and his expression remained unchanged.
Zatanna and Nick were shocked, and their expressions changed drastically at the same time.
"If you can help us, why don't you activate the magic yourself?" Constantine lit the cigarette and said slowly.
"Only by standing above the trap can you pull the person in the trap." Harley said.
Nick said in a deep voice: "Harry, is this your promise?"
"I never lie to my friends."
Nick's heart was pounding, and he turned to his two companions and said, "We are all studying cost magic anyway, so why not do it?"
Looking at these three magic geniuses, Harley suddenly had an idea in her mind: There are talented people from generation to generation, why not turn her magic into an open source model and let all geniuses contribute their talents and time to it, and she wouldn't
A magic spell that can infinitely improve one's self?
As for the cost...
I heard that Hecate is the mother of magic. When Harry heard the name, she felt full.
In the future, when she becomes invincible, she can use the Escape Pattern to transform endless magic power. She can't even use her divine power, so she might as well build a magic bank and lend money to the heavens.
She doesn't ask for souls and magic power like other bosses who are the source of magic. She needs wisdom... and, by the way, experience points.
If the existing magic usage mode is "Android system", she can create her own "HQ system".
The APP that matches the system is the magic.
It seems very promising, I must try it if I get a chance.