Precision in experimentation is paramount. After completing the procedure on one buck, Adam procured several more, each subjected to varying degrees of disruption to the conduits of life-force that sustained their reproductive functions. Following a period of observation, he would assess the degree to which these alterations stimulated their physiology.
"I initially intended to begin with the lungs, but I promptly reconsidered," Adam remarked during a discussion with Antony in the Library Wing. The wing was replete with tomes, among which Adam had discovered several treatises on cultivation techniques and destiny charts—subjects he had already begun to explore.
"Most destiny charts commence with the breath, facilitating the permeation of personal will into the life-force. However, the life-modification procedure I envisage is guided by external forces, rendering that initial step unnecessary at present. Quite the contrary; a more rational approach entails intervention on three fronts: the reproductive function, which is a voracious consumer of life-force; the stomach, the principal avenue for life-force replenishment; and the heart, the regulatory center of that vital energy."
Adam's path gradually clarified. He resolved to focus on animals as his primary subjects, for he prized the potent efficacy of charisma upon them. Humans, though endowed with extraordinary intellect, were burdened by a labyrinth of emotions—it was unreasonable to suppose that benevolence and magnetic charm alone would secure their unwavering loyalty. Thus, his aim became to modify animals—whose minds need only harbor devoted simplicity—while entrusting their cultivated strength to his life-modification art.
"That is a sound notion, yet you must also contemplate the management of surplus life-force," Antony advised. "In this regard, you might consult the spellcraft associated with the dark meditations of the netherworld." Antony's teachings extended beyond mere meditation, encompassing a repertoire of complementary spells such as the creation of clay effigies. By channeling natural forces to mold a corporeal form and subsequently infusing it with a soul, one might fashion obedient minions. Consider, for example, Antony's Reflection Tower: conceived as an embodiment of the central bell tower's mirrored radiance, it stands as his second self—a manifestation of his essence.
This, indeed, is the orthodox pathway of dark meditation: to forge a body from nature's own forces and then imbue it with the spirit or soul, creating one's vassals, which may later be summoned through the indelible marks left during their creation—a classic summoning art wielding both spirit and natural forces. Adam's vision for life-modification, however, diverged, involving both spirit and life-force. Not out of a desire merely to be novel, but because his inherent bloodline aptitude was intertwined with these very energies, promising a future path inseparable from them.
While pioneering his life-modification technique, Adam also pursued the spellcraft requisite for orthodox dark meditation. A figure robed in a featureless black garment approached, retrieving a book from the shelf and gently placing it before him. Upon careful observation, one would note that this mysterious figure appeared to float without feet, his hood shrouding all but an impenetrable darkness—if it were a white bed sheet, he might as well be impersonating a ghost.
This was the advanced form of the Invisible Blade spell—Invisible Minion. Due to Adam's partial consolidation of the Invisible Blade, the casting time for Invisible Minion was halved and its difficulty significantly diminished. Antony had set this spell as a study goal for Adam, summoning several Invisible Minions to work, allowing Adam to observe their behavior. True to their name, without additional garb, these minions were imperceptible, their operations preordained by Antony's spiritual intent rather than true sentience.
Moments later, Cylin entered bearing tea, carefully placing a cup before Antony, casting a withering glance at the Invisible Minions before fixing Adam with a stern look, then departing abruptly. "Is she jealous?" Adam mused, glancing at the empty table before him and discerning the origins of Cylin's temperamental mood. "Alas, the intricacies of male-female relations remain daunting—better to avoid them in the future, since I am far superior in appearance." Shaking his head, Adam meticulously recorded the procedures of this life-modification surgery before accepting the tome that the Invisible Minions had provided.
The book, titled Clay Effigies, was virtually indispensable to the dark meditative tradition—a standard spell therein. Previously, owing to Adam's partial consolidation of the Invisible Blade, Antony had directed him towards mastering the creation of Invisible Minions. The term "dark meditation" itself derives from the bloodstained earth when Yisheng begot the fiftieth offspring. Thus, the crafting of effigies from clay became an inheritable technique within this lineage, evolving through generations from simple clay dolls to clay automatons, clay knights, and even colossal clay giants akin to mountains.
"You must focus on the clay knight," Antony advised. "The clay knight is the closest semblance to a human form—a meticulously polished clay body that bears little difference from that of a genuine human. In fact, some have even commissioned bespoke destiny charts for these clay bodies, enabling them to seamlessly pursue the path of the knight. Owing to their manufactured nature, they can directly ascend to the Overflow Stage, essentially being recognized as a new, transcendent species." Antony continued, "However, inherent soul deficiencies still afflict clay knights. Your life-modification art may take inspiration from the clay knight, but you must first understand its foundation—the clay effigy."
"Truly, one must never underestimate the creative prowess of an arcanist," Adam thought as he cradled the Clay Effigies book, delving into its contents. Effigies fashioned from clay need not mimic human form, yet their innards must facilitate cyclic processes. "Cycle is the essence of life." Whether in soul or in life, a cycle endures—a plane of repetition, ascending spirally in higher dimensions. Most spell models are underpinned by stable cycles; without such continuity, no spell may be successfully enacted or sustained.
As Adam read further, he discerned both shortcomings and merits in his envisioned life-modification technique. The fundamental challenge of ordinary clay effigies lay in their "soul"—typically simulated by the caster's own spirit. This raised issues of sustaining spiritual energy; the most effective current method utilized a special mineral from the Forging Spellbook. Lacking sufficient resources, some resorted to dissecting and reconfiguring existing souls for insertion. After attaining proficiency in dark meditative practices, Adam could faintly perceive a bird's soul—if sufficiently potent, he might even extract it. Yet such methods invited a host of complications: the compatibility between an avian soul and a clay body, preservation of the soul, and the challenge of issuing control directives.
Many arcanists devote their lives to unraveling the mysteries of the soul. Though they may extract or even transform a soul via spiritual energy, deeper understanding remains elusive. This process of soul extraction has precipitated numerous incidents of summoned minions defecting; severing the connection between soul and former life often results in deterioration, yielding what might be termed as dead souls—a regression difficult to reverse.
The merit of the life-modification art lies in that Adam's subjects inherently possess souls, obviating the need for an additional control core or soul implantation—the soul and body are naturally paired, imbued with the potential for self-enhancement. The drawback, however, is that summoning them later via conventional summoning arts could prove cumbersome. Currently, orthodox summoning manifests in two forms: one, spatial summoning, which retrieves targets stored in a special dimensional space; and two, projection summoning, which transposes the target's mental projection and materializes a corporeal semblance. Although the latter is easier to execute and any resultant projection suffers no lasting harm to the summoner, it is not applicable to the targets of life-modification art, for projection summoning accommodates only dead souls and one's own spiritual energy.