Hetty lowered her head, carefully studying each symbol on it and the rules of how the symbols connected, her brow slowly furrowing: "Nothing but the most basic runes... and the most basic arrangements and combinations, too. I don't think the highest energy level even exceeds the second rank?"

Gao Yang nodded: "Because whoever left this magic circle behind could only control rune arrays up to the second energy level."

Hetty looked up at him in surprise, and when she looked down again, the expression on her face could not help but take on a trace of admiration: "It really is all designed with basic runes... to conjure a circle of this scale out of the most basic runes, this... this is truly an incredible creation... It looks like a structure that can draw free energy from the natural environment? But what are all these surplus, elaborate structures...?"

Gao Yang pointed at the ceaselessly repeating structures in the circle's middle ring: "Amplification."

"Amplification?" Hetty's eyes went wide, and then sudden understanding dawned: "Of course! This way it can be amplified... and the structures here can further refine the free energy... This way, these basic runes can draw free energy at far higher efficiency. This is truly... truly..."

Hetty went on saying "truly" for quite a while without finding the right words to describe what this circle made her feel, but Gao Yang knew what she wanted to say: "Truly an effort, right? Like a lame man crossing the whole world on a crutch. Like a man with no weapon at all carving poems into stone with a stick. This is effort that transcends limits—using the most basic second-rank runes to draw a miracle that would leave even the great archmages gaping."

"Those great archmages probably wouldn't gape at all. They wouldn't even give it a proper look," Hetty said with a bitter smile, shaking her head. "Because however creative this circle is, it's ultimately pieced together from second-rank runes. However efficient it is, the energy it draws can't compare with the personal magic wells the great archmages possess..."

"But it's a prototype—a basic model that can be endlessly refined. It has only second-rank runes, but what if, building on this approach, you swapped the second-rank runes for third-rank? What if you raised the complexity of their combinations to the third rank as well? How many times the efficiency of existing self-charging circles would it have then?" As Gao Yang spoke, he pointed to several special nodes in the circle. "And beyond efficiency, look at these more crucial parts."

"This... looks like magic channels?" Hetty frowned. "I noticed them just now, but I didn't see any corresponding energy-consuming units. Is it because the circle isn't complete?"

"No. From the very beginning this circle contained no energy-consuming unit. Its sole purpose was to supply magic outward—to supply magic to one frail human being. And precisely for that reason, its internal interfaces differ from an ordinary circle's. The 'compatibility' of these channels is so high that any energy-consuming unit at all can dock with them," Gao Yang said slowly. "So now—can this circle supply energy to the smithy?"

"If all the symbols function smoothly... no, they will certainly function smoothly. It has almost reached the limit of what calculation can achieve!" The look on Hetty's face gradually grew excited. She had finally broken free of the fixed mindset of a traditional mage and recognized the greatness of this thing. "High-efficiency self-charging, and it can output energy outward at a remarkably broad 'frequency' besides. It can absolutely power the smithy—it could even... power far more than that!"

And right on its heels she asked impatiently, "Ancestor, what is this genius of a formation called?"

Gao Yang fished an old, worn notebook out of his clothes. "No need for me to name it—its creator already gave it a name."

He opened the notebook. On one of the pages was a short line of writing:

"Annie, today I finally finished the 'Magic Web'. May it watch over your health."