"Many years ago, a group of sorcerers who were extremely active and hungry for power left these behind."
"They pursued, captured, and studied Witchers using extremely cruel methods, trying to replicate or even improve upon the mutations."
"Later, their actions affected... interests and were... by me. After the purge, these materials became part of the leftovers from the cleanup."
He paused and continued: "As for the spell books you mentioned, focused on the spiritual and mental levels..."
"I have a few such books in my collection, as it's not my main area of research."
"However, I do have them, and when I return to sort things out, I can bring them to you."
They exchanged a few more words on some magical theories and the nature of energy.
Hen lingered no longer, raised his hand to open a portal, nodded to Karl, stepped inside, and disappeared into the light.
As for the reason Karl asked for the Witcher mutation data and the mental spell books to strengthen his subordinates against powerful enemies, Hen had no doubts.
For a sorcerer of his level, worldly power was within easy reach.
If Karl were truly obsessed with power, how could he spend most of his time alone in the sky or immersed in his own research?
In his opinion, Karl, like himself, was a scholar truly researching the unknown, but the knowledge he sought was different.
Therefore, he was not afraid that Karl would go down the wrong path or have other ulterior motives.
......
The next day, Hen returned to the manor, bringing a wooden box half a person's height, treated with some kind of magic.
After the magic was dispelled, the wooden box fell open, revealing neatly stacked ancient scrolls with leather covers, manuscripts, and several spell books emitting faint mental fluctuations.
"Everything you need is here. The mutation data is messy, some are experimental records, and some are failed analysis reports." Hen pointed to the wooden box.
"There is also fragmentary information they collected on the mutations of Witchers from different schools."
"There are only three mental spell books: one is on basic mental energy, another is on skills for creating mental defenses."
"And the third book... is a bit biased, concerning how to guide and amplify specific emotions in the recipient. It requires extreme caution when using it."
"There are still matters at the academy, and the sorcerer who studied the immortality elixir, now degenerated to the point of using magic for demon summoning and experiments on living people, also needs to be dealt with as soon as possible."
Having said that, Hen opened a portal again, his figure vanishing inside, clearly intent on doing as he said—cleaning up the trash.
......
After obtaining this valuable information, Karl immediately began to study it.
With his inhuman speed and comprehension, he quickly flipped through every file and book in the box.
In just a few minutes, all the information, half a person's height, was memorized in his head, initially absorbed and understood.
Then he ascended into the sky again, enjoying the sun.
While replenishing his energy, he deeply analyzed, deduced, and calculated this knowledge in his mind.
He focused on the Witcher mutation system, trying to find its flaws and determine the possibility of correcting them.
"Venom of the flying lion-monster... is one of the main triggers? No, the toxicity is too severe. Even if neutralized by other herbs, the damage to the nervous system is still irreversible..."
"Witcher grass replacing Karston leaves? No, the Chaos magic and toxicity contained within Witcher grass itself are still fatal to ordinary people..."
"Adding Moon Rose petals to stabilize emotions? The effect is weak and cannot fundamentally solve the mental stimulation caused by the Trial of the Grasses..."
He muttered to himself, listing the names of herbs, monster bodily fluids, and mutation triggers.
He constructed thousands of different ratios in his imagination and simulated the patterns of mutation pathways.
......
At noon the next day, Karl, suspended in the air, slowly opened his eyes, frowned, and came to a disappointing conclusion.
The Witcher... is indeed a failure, or rather, an expensive and imperfect way to gain power under the current world rules.
According to the existing data and mutation principles, he conducted tens of thousands of simulations and deductions, and none could create a completely defect-free Witcher.
The mutation process almost always involves inhuman torture and pain, or leads to serious side effects such as emotional apathy and loss of fertility.
He looked down at his feet, his eyes piercing through the clouds, as if seeing something deeper: "This planet... is too deeply imbued with Chaos magic."
"Almost all alchemical herbs, even many ordinary plants, contain traces of Chaos magic or natural toxins to a greater or lesser extent."
"Trials based on these materials are fundamentally difficult to achieve gentleness and perfection."
"Forget it. This path isn't suitable for now. Let's focus on the meditation and breathing techniques I envisioned earlier, which are more suitable for ordinary people."
Karl shook his head and temporarily abandoned the path of Witcher mutation improvement.
In contrast, the path he had laid out based on his own understanding of energy seemed more realistic and fully controllable.
......
A few days later, high in the sky, a satisfied smile again appeared on Karl's face.
He had returned to a normal breathing rhythm, but if you looked closely, you could see that his breathing pattern was extremely unusual.
It followed a rhythm of three short and one long, imbued with a certain mysterious cadence.
He casually raised his left hand, and as his hand swung, a layer of warm, solid orange energy instantly covered it.
Immediately after, this surface energy layer suddenly ignited into blazing golden flames.
He waved his hand towards a thick white cloud in the distance.
"Whoosh!" The orange energy attached to his hand instantly detached from the golden flame.
Then it transformed into a crescent-shaped, burning energy blade, tearing through the air at astonishing speed.
The energy blade precisely cut through the center of the cloud. BANG! There was no deafening explosion, only a muffled sound of violent energy collision.
The thick cloud, like oil cut by a hot knife, instantly split, tore apart, and completely dispersed, revealing the blue sky behind.
The edges of the scattered clouds even showed traces of scorching.
"The power is decent, and the creation of the breathing technique turned out smoother than I imagined." Karl nodded with satisfaction, pleased with the results of the past few days.
"Perhaps... this is related to my high affinity and control over the sun?"
He carefully experienced the resonance between the unique breathing rhythm and the energy pathways within his body when he had just mobilized the energy.