'Does that mean I can use mana like the mages from the western continent?' Alex thought while hearing Ethan's explanation. After all, he had yet to acquire skills from his spirit guardian. Other than his ability to release smoke screen, a very raw usage of energy there was nothing else he could do in a fight.
If not for the farm and its abilities, He would have died an early death. Alex concluded.
'If I can use mana like the mages, that would be for the better. Unlike a magic system that is dependent on 'feel', I prefer something with a concrete base on rationality.'
"So, if you were not bound by the chains, can you use mana to break the rune formation?" Alex eagerly asked.
But he was met with a smiling Ethan.
"I don't want to dampen your optimism by rejecting the possibility in its entirety. So, let's just say that with some luck, I can. But there is no way for us to use mana due to these chains. How are you going to solve that? After all, this chain is also has a rune formation inscribed on it. Before breaking the rune formation of the prison we would have to break the chain." Ethan stated the obvious facts.
This was not the first time he was imprisoned by a chain like that. So, he knew how futile Alex's actions were. Unless someone from the outside helps them, there is no way that they are escaping this prison.
"I don't have a way for now. But the same could not be said for later. So, don't completely dismiss the notion that we can escape. If you know some details about the rune formation, please share it in detail."
Even though it was futile, Alex's words influenced Ethan. He began to closely observe the rune formation. A gentle golden glow formed in his pupil due to the increase in mana concentration. This allowed him to temporarily peak into the structure of the rune formation.
They were engulfed in a giant three-dimensional net of rune formation. It looked like it was spread along the walls of the building beyond what he could see. The region they were occupying was just a small part of the entire rune formation.
"From my observation, it seems to have space and neutral elemental properties. I can see space lock and communication disruption formations. But it is beyond my scope of understanding. A large formation like this would have taken decades to build." Ethan said with a sigh.
"How did you see that? I can't see any mana or runes."
"Due to my eyes. I can concentrate mana on them to see the world differently."
"Similar to the tier 4 warriors' exclusive skill, spirit guardian possession? Spirit guardian possession allows warriors from the central continent to see the world differently. The flow of energy and mysteries of the world unravels before us in that state." Taka interjected.
"Yes, similar is the keyword. But it's not exactly the same. For example, we don't need an overflowing amount of mana to reach the same state. You just need better control over the mana inside you. It is the type of control you would never achieve with your reliance on spirit guardians." Ethan elucidated.
[A/N: Mana, Qi, Ki, Ether and Energy will be used interchangeably in the future.]
Ethan's description forced Alex to carefully reconsider the information. And he was excited to know that there are other ways to use energy. In the past, he could only use it to activate skills or to use partial or full body enhancement. So he was thrilled to know there were other uses to it.
And most importantly, he was excited to see Ethan use mana even though he was imprisoned in the energy-dispersing chains.
"HOW DID YOU DO IT?" The abrupt question forced everyone to focus on Alex. Even the depressed Kalina and Laya looked at him at that moment.
"How did you do it? Any skill activation is neutralised by these energy-dispersing chains. So, how did you use that skill?" Alex inquired while keeping his calm.
He had an inkling that his way to escape was present inside that skill.
"It is not a skill," Ethan paused for a moment.
"It is basic mana manipulation." His absurd answer felt like a kick to the warrior's ego. It was something 'basic' for the mages. It was something 'easy' for the mages.
"And what's the big deal about using mana manipulation? Mana-dispersing chains were developed by the mages to transport rouge mages to prison. It was designed as a method to capture rather than kill the enemy. So, it won't affect the flow of mana inside a person's body. It mainly affects the active use of it outside the body. Or else, we would have died due to mana deficiency if it can completely disperse the mana from a person."
"So, why doesn't body enhancement work? It is not a skill that is purely dependent on the spirit guardian. It's just a basic enhancement of the muscles. Isn't it similar to concentrating energy in the eyes?" The doubtful Taka asked.
"No, it's completely different. When I channel mana through my eyes, it doesn't interact with the physical world. It doesn't take form as a skill or spell as we call it. But the mana for body enhancement interacts with your muscles. So, it will be dispersed by the mana dispersing chains. Don't bother copying me, you won't be able to copy it with crude mana control skills that you…" Suddenly Ethan stopped his words.
As if he saw something shocking, he gazed at Alex. A white glow was seemingly forming inside his eyes.
"WHA! How!" He exclaimed while seeing that. This made everyone look towards Alex.
Alex smirked seeing this. He was initially shocked to see how well he could control energy. This was something beyond his expectation. He never thought he could imitate it perfectly.
Alex who learned the new ability took a moment to calmly observe his surroundings with it.
Looking around, he could finally see the mana in his surroundings. The lines of runes described by Ethan also became visible in his field of view. And in general, everything became clearer and more detailed than without it.
'It's almost like the difference between full HD to 4K quality. Besides that the colours have become more vibrant and the mana hotspots became glowing points of light. The brighter the glow, the denser the mana in that region. This is too awesome.' The excited Alex thought.
Ignoring the people looking at him, Alex observed the metal chain that bound him to the chair. Like everything else, it too had mana runes engraved on it. The glittering letters engraved in the chain became lively the moment he began to observe it.
And that's when he realised the essence of Mana runes.
'This is a friggin program.' Although it amazed Alex momentarily, he was happy to see the familiar structure of computer programs in runes. And by closely observing it, he could see the functional units of the runes formation inside the chain.
After realising that, it didn't even take seconds for Alex to make a general plan to crack it. He was going to do some simple experiments on them. By locating which parts are activated and when. He could locate the part he needs to abuse to be free from the chains.
Channelling the energy inside his body, he tried to use full body enhancement while observing the chain with mana vision.
As soon as the energy was channelled into his muscles, the chain activated. It began to crazily absorb any energy that Alex released. It fed on the energy and stored it inside itself, dispersing the effect of the skill.
This was how it was preventing Alex from using energy. And the energy he released was being used to power the runes inside the chains.
So, Alex came to a conclusion. There are two ways to break the chain. The first was to try and edit the runes in the chain. Or the other way was by making the chain spend more mana than it can gather. The former would have been a great idea if he could release energy normally. But he was chained, so the only possible way was the latter.
'So, I need to trick the chain into thinking that I am using energy while not actually using energy. Too easy.'
After thinking that, Alex activated full body enhancement once more. But instead of completing the skill, he cancelled it midway and absorbed the energy back into his body.
Although he lost some energy due to the chain trying to swallow his energy, he was able to reabsorb the majority of the energy. That way, he began to exploit the loophole, making the chain spend more energy than it could absorb.
One after another, he activated and cancelled full body enhancement until the glow from the chain faded. After a while, the runes inside the chain became inactive.
With a self-satisfied smirk, Alex twisted his arms to tear off the chains. Simple metal without its enchantment was easy to break for him. After all, he was a tier peak tier 3 warrior.
"Clank…Clank…" The sound of metal pieces hitting the ground shocked everyone. Four pairs of eyes quickly scanned Alex dumbfounded by the feat he has achieved.
Among them, Ethan couldn't even describe the feeling he was having.
'Who is this guy?' He thought while looking at Alex.
This content is taken from fr(e)ewebn(o)vel.𝓬𝓸𝓶