For my next attempt, I wished to determine two things in one go. The first being whether the complexity of the cut improved the gem’s strength. The second was if my intent had anything to do with it.

I made a brilliant-cut gem, a typical cut seen on diamonds. Once again, I let it absorb the mana solution, only this time it slurped up all the liquid instantly. I added more and the gem drank the liquid faster than I could pour. Luckily, it was satisfied after the 2nd bucket.

Once more, injected my own mana into it with great care. I closed my eyes and went back to the scene of the battle between the two wizards. The specific moment where the tornado in the forest went up in flame. If I could even mimic a fraction of that power, I would be unstoppable in this region.

Searing Cyclone Torchite Launch a tornado of burning flames, capturing and burning everything in its wake. The tornado is 6 metres tall, has a radius of 3 metres, and moves at 30 kilometres per hour. The tornado is cast 1 metre in front of the user, and it will move forwards on its own. The user has no control over the tornado but is not subject to its effects. The tornado dissipates after 15 minutes. Anyone swept up in the tornado’s winds will be knocked around and damaged by magical fire. Cast time: 5 seconds, Cost: 400 Mana, Recharge rate: 3 days. Removal cost: A Searing Cyclone will be summoned upon the user.

I smiled. It was a very powerful spell, one of the most powerful gems I had encountered thus far. Its cost reflected that too, 400 mana. Anyone else apart from me or Voglo would not be able to even use this gem. I wanted to absorb it. But I could only do so after removing the [Blood Scarred Opal]. Until then the [Searing Cyclone Torchite] would remain hidden.

My suspicious were now confirmed. The intricacy of the cut improved the strength of the spell, but also the amount of mana it required. My intent also had an effect on it. It required a lot of resources and time to produce gems like the last one. To make the same amount of mana solution, one would need to brew nonstop for a few days. Not to mention ingredients like Thorn Yam were hard to grow.

After a night of cutting, polishing and brewing I had depleted all my mana and resources. I experimented with different types of cuts to find a suitable one for mass distribution. It was no good if a spell was too strong, that would take power from me. But if a spell was too weak, or complicated to use, it would not be helpful on the battlefield.

Interface You have raised your Cutting (Novice) to Cutting (Initiate) You have raised your Faceting (Novice) to Faceting (Initiate) You have raised your Polishing (Novice) to Polishing (Initiate) You have raised your Alchemy (Beginner) to Alchemy (Novice)

Blazing Bolts Torchite Launch a barrage of 5 fiery bolts from the palms of your hands at your enemies. Each bolt is the size of a standard crossbow bolt and travels at the same speed and distance as one. All bolts come out at once from one hand. The trajectory of the bolts cannot be manipulated. The user can influence the spread of the crossbow bolts. The bolts naturally dissipate after 5 minutes but the caster cannot do so forcefully. The bolts strike with flame imbued magical energy. Cast time: 3 seconds, Cost: 40 Mana, Recharge Rate: 1 Minute. Removal cost: Each limb and the heart are penetrated by the crossbow bolts.

It was a good offensive spell. In essence, it was a shotgun blast of crossbow bolts, but with some long-range potential. I felt a little bad for Froblo, he had received a flash grenade, but the others would be getting stronger spells. I supposed that was the price for coming first. My original plan was to distribute a single gem after each sermon. That way I would be building loyalty and faith over time. But now was a time of crisis. I had to give away a lot of gems at once, to raise our fighting ability. War was a good test of faith as any.

It was the same situation for the prisoners. I could not afford to elaborately convert each red skin one by one. A silent visit during the night was enough. Forcing them to witness the transformation of their ally into a thrall broke them. That was what I had intended.

With the help of a few mana potions, before long I had 2 more Burning Blood Crystal Thralls. It appeared as if the shape of the gemstone had no effect on the type of Thrall that resulted from the conversion. A pity and a shame.

The Thralls did not have any desires for sleep, food or play, and they were sturdy. The only problem was that they were beyond stupid. They could not comprehend any command that was longer than 5 words. For example, I would say “Follow me, but do not follow me if I am using the toilet.” The Thrall would then follow me into the bathroom. A rather benign example, but it meant I could not give them anything complex beyond “go attack here.” They were also slow to respond, taking almost a full minute to start following a new order. But they were still plenty useful.

The Gulk had managed to produce vast amounts of flammable oil as promised. So, we loaded barrels of them and hid them around Woodwick. The production of their homes had slowed due to the war effort. But day by day, a new giant stone shell or rocky stilts was erected in the swamp.

I ordered each 2 thralls to hide in a stockpile of oil, and kill themselves once the humans were settled in. The other thrall would hide further away and run back in case of an explosion. It was of waste to get rid of a thrall like that. But it didn't matter, we were going to be receiving plenty of prisoners soon enough.