It's true purposes lay not in battling, but in exploring the intricacies of nature, it's rules, regulations, and then smashing those regulations to bits and pieces. Soul energy was not all about the physical, in fact it never was. I was just the fool who chose to brute force my way through everything, and using an energy as flexible and soft as soul energy to do so, makes me feel like a complete idiot.
So in regards to what can truly bring out the power of my soul energy, the three spells I chose were Projection, Ripple Shield and Soul Bind. Projection is the most intricate and complicated of the three, due to it's quite literal endless possibilities. This spell was weird in a manner that it's subsequent spells of the higher circles share the same name as it, and all with different modes of execution.
As a Zero circle spell, projection allows the spell caster to project an image of his or herself. It was a low level illusion spell, that I won't be using much in battles, however, it's the spells to come that had me tripping. Projection fell under the Balance discipline, in fact it was in fact one of the few zero circle spells to be so. It incorporated both the manifestation and conceptualization disciplines to the fullest extent of the word. It was a very vivid illusion, and at higher circles, the spell becomes capable of projecting attacks, thoughts, messages, and even enabling the spell caster to have access to the fabled astral realm, once the spell caster learns Astral projection at the sixth circle.
Projection covered many schools of magic, from divination, illusions, elemental, demonic, holy, alchemical and of course soul. There are numerous variations of the spell, and it's possible after extensive research, to tailors make a variation that's to your own taste. It was a spell that relied on finesse and surgical precision, which is why I know it's going to be my most challenging.
Next would be the Ripple Shield. I already had an unbreakable shield, when ever I do decide to weave into existence, but not a shield like this. It's a shield that passively attacks by sending out ripples of energy every three seconds that the spell is active. At the zero circle there's not much power in it, but it's higher circle variations had the power to destroy and entire city with just one ripple. And as a bonus if the shield is physically attacked, it reflects a percentage of the damage back. The only drawbacks is that it requires a ton of concentration, and a lot of energy to sustain.
Next was the soul bind skill, which is what I'm going to be learning first. I at first wanted to opt for soul burn, but I already had skills that could attack the soul, but not all souls would be susceptible to my attacks, not unless they're already weakened and my soul energy has invaded their body. Soul bind is a simple spell, white similar to the soul flash spell. It relies mainly on disrupting you opponent during a battle. Soul flash was like flash grenade, causing a blinding attack to your soul, it would be bright, but you'll adjust soon enough.
But soul bind was like tripping over your own shoe lace and smacking your face on the ground. Such a feeling was definitely it going to feel good, and to out the icing on the cake, subsequent circle spells, were borderline curses. Giving the spell caster the ability to bind a soul to a body, making them person incapable of death, regardless of how messed up their bodies are. They could lock a persons consciousness in their own body, turning them into a vegetable, or bind the recently departed soul of someone or something to a new body, or a new vessel. It was very weird and dangerous magic. But for now, as a zero circle spell, all it can do is make you stumble and fall, of course you'll be left with a massive migraine.
But my choice has already been made, and while I obviously passed over more destructive spells, I feel as if the potential for the three I've chosen are the highest. And it was right up my ally. I mean when it comes down to it, I can be in the front lines kicking ass, but I could also do more. And this spells, gives me a choice, a way to end a conflict with the least amount of bloodshed. Of course I could also torture the fuck out of anybody who pisses me off, so it's a very scary thing to have. But this felt right.
So I chose to go with soul bind first, and that was for no other dear n than the fact that it seemed easy to learn. To learn a spell, especially one that relies on incantations and spell circles, you first have to study said spell circle, and inscribe it, on your magical gate. Now the gates are within your mind, and they serve as the gateway to the different circles of a source of magic. And those gates won't be opening up to the next circle, unless you have placed the used your mental energy to simulate and draw the required spell circle on them.
So I studied the spell circle formula for soul bind. It was more like an in depth study to the draconic runic language, and I had to get a book on dragon runes for a reference. A spell circle worked in much the same way a rune circle worked, but there were vast differences between them. The spell circle had to be etched in the mind, and powered from there, and it was not as simple as rune circles.
The lines and curves of the spell circle had numerous variations, especially the runes that were used to facilitate a spells orientation. You had to study it intensely, and know the functions of each individual rune, and know how to write it properly without mistakes. Usually other magical acolytes would use their mental energy on specially provided materials to get used to the feel of creating and mastering the spell circle. Fortunately for me I had a cheat that enabled me to do the same thing, for less than a quarter of the time required, with a hundred accuracy rate.
And that was my mastery over my soul energy. So I first learnt to use my soul energy to draw the formula for soul bind, learning from that process and repeating as much as possible, again and again until I could practically write it in my sleep. I could skip the whole study the Individual runes and lines stuff, just draw it by properly visualizing it. And with the somewhat super brain and senses of a vampire and dragon, I could breeze through easily.
So after a day of using my soul energy, I transitioned to mental energy, and shit! Was it difficult. Soul energy was soft and flexible, mental energy was flexible and hard. It was like a jelly donut, with mental energy being the donut, and soul energy being the jelly. I'm sure there are better references than that, but that's what I'm going with. I've not had the chance to use mental energy before, so it was quite difficult at first.
Soul energy was like smoke, you can direct it, but you can't drag or hold on to it, because it would just slip out of your grasp. Mental energy on the other hand was like paper, a lot more tangible than soul energy, though just as flexible as It could bend and move In a variety of ways. Mental energy is moved with a gentle but firm hand, any harder and you would shred said paper, giving you a headache you're probably not ready for.
And so I learnt to handle the paper, to bend, fold and flap it with as much ease as I could muster. I was already familiar with mental energy, though I've never had to control it like this, my previous familiarity was what helped me pull through, learning to move and control it in just two hours, and then I spent another six hours using it to etch the spell formula for soul bind.
It was only until the six hour was up, did I finally manage to draw the formula with my mental energy, without making any mistakes. And in that process, my mental energy began to seem less like a paper, and more like an extra limb, confusing me about its very nature. I think the more I used it, the stronger it became.
After that six hours, I took a short break, left the library and got to know the dragons that were around, and learnt how big the realm of kings is. Apparently it was not that big, at the very least it was the entire size of the pit combined, and most dragons could travel from one end of it to the other in under three hours, some lesser than that. After learning about the geography, and feeling as if my head was no longer in and danger of exploding, I went back to refine my control over my soul energy, and my capability of drawing the soul Bind spell circle. It only took me an hour to master it, and just like I learnt with my soul energy, I could draw it using my mental energy with my eyes closed, though it would take a little longer than usual due to the different nature of the energies.
And then I closed my eyes, and searched my body for the gates. All in all there's supposed to be ten circles of it, Adamas seems to believe that I might never reach the pinnacle of spell casting circles, but that was okay. I might not become the most powerful magician, but my path to godhood laid with a different set of circles, and that was my cultivation of soul energy, I was already in the fourth realm.
I found the first gate almost immediately, it was placed in a the same mental space as my mind tree, in fact the gate was on one of it's roots. I didn't expect that, but I think it wasn't to weird. I understood that Adamas couldn't tell me everything as there were somethings I just had to experience for myself. But the gate being on the root of the mind tree was a good thing, which meant my mental energy was already flowing through it, and all I had to do was just draw the soul bind spell formula.
It was easier said than done, and quite honestly terrifying. The endless blackness that was my consciousness began to shake intensely with each stroke or curve I made with my soul energy. The entire ordeal terrified me, and I almost stopped out of fright, but I knew once the procedure for drawing the spell circle started, it would have disastrous consequences if you don't finish it in one go. It would be like handing a grenade to a three year old child, in a playground, in the middle of a birthday party. So I had to see this through to the end, no matter how much everything seemed to be shaking.
The entire process was daunting, as it seemed to be a hundred times more difficult than before. I couldn't be too slow, or the gate would fix the marks I made, erasing them after me, and I couldn't be too fast either, or I would loose control of my mental energy. I think I now understood what Adamas meant by telling me that learning magic, was going to be a test of will and discipline. This was something you couldn't half ass or bulldoze your way through, it required a softer approach, but also a steady, firm and resolute mind to handle the stress that came with it.
Eventually I just let everything fall away as I placed all of my focus on the task at hand. I lost track of time, and I was so focused to the point that I didn't realize I had gotten hungry. And that would have been the first time for me since I got to the realm of kings. But I didn't care, I just drew and drew, and when things got to hard for me, I listened to my body sing, using the dame mental song I had used to cultivate my mental energy, to calm me down and keep me focused.
And it worked marvelously, even to the point that my mental energy began to experience an increase in volume. I was slowly pushing forward to the second circle of the essence mind realm, so I kept at it. Getting more and more proficient, and also mastering this new difficulty that had been placed in front of me.
My mind was pushed to the brink, and most of the time, even with the mental song playing, I wondered if I would be able to see this through to the end. But just like that I was done. Heck I didn't even realize it, until all of the shaking suddenly came to a stop. Then the completed Spell circle lit up, as the runes on it's surface began to twirl around each other. The soul bind rune suddenly occupied the lower left side of the gate, flashed once as it began to draw in massive amounts of soul energy from me.
But as if that wasn't enough, I felt it draw soul energy for outside my body too, drawing on all the ambient mana and ether in the air around us to power and activate itself. The suction force from the spell circle was so powerful, that my soul energy was half empty in just under five seconds. I was shocked, and worried that it would drain me dry, but it just continued wantonly taking energy, until my soul energy reserves were almost dry, and then it stopped. And then with s ting sound, the spell circle flashed a deep blue, and remained on the gate, glowing, and ready for me to activate it with the proper words.
Now this was where incantations came into play, as they're needed to activate the spells, after all that's why they're called spells. But that could be forgone after sufficient training and gaining the skill wordless chant or instant cast. That would help me eliminate the need of announcing what sort of spell I was going to use, so that my enemies won't be prepared for it.
But now, with all these out of the way, I needed to take a nap, and after that. The next spell on my agenda, was Ripple Shield.