Origin ARS 5 Read Online Free PDF Page A

the development of a headache or becoming incapable of
concentrating effectively would give a clue that such a point had
been reached. Again, it was to simulate realism.
    Those pools of experience were important to
remember, as there were actually three of them for his character
level. He had pools to fill for skill development, combat actions,
and social interaction. He could not simply murder fluffy woodland
creatures and rocket up the level ladder. He had to actually
interact with the world and develop his skills. In short, he had to
live an actual life instead of hunt all of the time.
    Luckily, taking and completing quests counted
as social interaction. He could work on everything at once if he
took on a lot of jobs and spent a little down time afterward
hanging out in various places in town.
    He could also gain social interaction
experience from coming to a personal understanding, or rather
mental and emotional growth counted as social experience as well.
Expanding his general knowledge of the world through literature and
listening to stories could also work. Basically, social experience
was acquired during moments of living life outside of skill and
combat development.
    Scott moved back to his training spot and
started to work on developing his spell once more. This field was
in a place outside of normal time and space. He could take as long
as he needed to develop his initial abilities and no sense of time
would actually pass.
    He took a moment to calm himself and to begin
to control his breathing. With each breath he became more in touch
with his inner thoughts. He was able to focus on connecting with
the lightning in the world around him and within his soul. It took
a moment to recreate the blurring palm strike image he had used
before, but once he did the rest of the spell pattern clicked into
place. The surge began once more. His palms shot out at a rapid
pace.
    After a while he started to add his mana to
the flow to further empower the spell. The weak skitter of
electricity increased in intensity. Soon it became a steady arc of
power that snapped and buzzed.
    It became obvious after a while, however,
that he was missing something in the equation. His aura was what
actually maintained the electrical arc. His palms were merely used
to maintain circulation of his aura. They were more of a
concentration tool at this point that an active part of the
spell.
    Scott concentrated on the pattern of his
spell, the movement of his hands, and the circulation of the
lightning. It was not enough. He needed more power, more mana.
“Could it be so simple?”
    He stopped for a moment and changed tactics.
Instead of merely repeating the pattern constantly, he focused
entirely on drawing his mana to a single point within his body. In
this case, that point was within his chest. He continued to focus
on increasing the concentration of mana at that point until he
could not draw more, until it became difficult to even hold it
there. He could feel some of it start to slip away as his
concentration scrambled to keep up with the flow.
    A lot of that mana was lost when he tried to
split his attention and focus on the lightning energy, and his
spell focus. As that mana drifted away in large amounts Scott began
to feel strange. The bizarre feeling started as an itch along his
spine and a sensation of his body heating up. He ignored it at
first, as that was something he had felt before when he had used
his new spell for a lengthy time period.
    He became alarmed when things rapidly
changed. In the space of a few seconds, his fingertips became numb,
his vision blurred, and his heart began to beat erratically.
    Scott gasped loudly then clutched at his
chest. The rest of the mana that he had drawn erupted outward and
flooded his body system. He could not even scream due to the sudden
pain overwhelming his senses.
    He fell to the ground and gasped like a fish.
He could not speak and could barely move. His body could not
determine if it was burning