In Ivan's view, an Archmage should sit at level 80 and above, with a hard cap of 90.
Voldemort was roughly mid-stage Archmage. Dumbledore was infinitely close to the Archmage ceiling; calling him level 90 would not be an exaggeration.
As for Ivan, after breaking through 6 points in magic power, his level had already surpassed 90. Not by one or two levels, but by a massive jump of four or five.
The gap between 91 and 90 was a qualitative leap, never mind Ivan's system attribute points, which represented a comprehensive enhancement across the board.
"If nothing unexpected happens, that level difference will vanish once magic power reaches 7 points."
The level cap should be 99, not 100.
To Ivan, the so-called level was closer to the intensity of magic power. Its true form was not a number but a percentage.
Yes. 1% to 99%.
0% belonged to ordinary people with no magic at all, pure Muggles.
100% meant complete fusion with magic, making it an inseparable part of oneself.
Ivan believed Magic 7 was likely the origin of the very concept of magic, and the key to fully grasping the nature of this world.
Of course, Ivan was still far from that level.
Without solidifying all twelve types of magic and fusing them with the physical body, reaching Magic Power 7 was nothing but wishful thinking.
People were living beings. They needed to live.
There were so many kinds of magic, and they still conflicted with one another.
Stuff all of that into a body and you would be lucky not to explode and die, let alone live long enough to enjoy any of it.
"Is that why a certain physical constitution is necessary?"
The body was the container. The soul was the bucket. Magic was the water drawn from beyond the world.
Only when the three stayed in balance could the ultimate secret of magic be revealed.
"Constitution?"
"One of my ideas is bloodline."
Yes. Ivan preferred to call it bloodline rather than physique.
Ivan now possessed a constitution of 3 points and had awakened multiple bloodline magics. Those powers could be passed to his descendants through reproduction.
"Miss Clearwater, your current physique is at level 1. That means you have already begun to enter the realm of a bloodline wizard."
Penelope was clearly pleased by that.
Wizard families, especially those of mixed-blood or Muggle-born descent, were something people utterly despised.
Nobody liked racial discrimination, least of all when they were the ones being discriminated against.
But perspective was decided by position.
Once Penelope and Ivan successfully completed their magical transformation, they naturally joined the wizarding family.
This had nothing to do with pure-blood or mixed-blood. It was purely a matter of standpoint.
Imagine that when Ivan and Penelope left descendants, those children would be born with magical talent far beyond everyone else.
They would learn magic more easily and seize glory more readily.
Whether in strength or knowledge, they would stand above the rest.
Under those conditions, the rise of a brand-new social class was inevitable.
The idea of equality for all was just a way to keep ordinary people quiet.
In truth, this world had never been fair.
Set wealth and status aside. It all came down to talent.
Some people were born lucky. You could grind for ten years and still fall short of someone who simply played around.
"Give it a try."
Ivan explained the difference between bloodline wizards and ordinary wizards while handing Penelope a spellbook.
After taking it, she flipped through a few pages and found that the parts she had not understood before were now simple and clear.
She did not even know why she had failed to understand such a simple question before.
"Is this magical transformation? That's amazing!"
Penelope marveled at the power of magical transformation and felt even more grateful to Ivan.
Without Ivan, Penelope would never have had the courage to attempt a magical transformation, let alone obtain the potions and spells it required.
Those things were, without exception, the precious inheritance of ancient families.
Penelope, who came from a poor family, had never even known they existed.
Things were different now.
With Ivan present, Penelope could undergo a second and even a third magical transformation.
That depended on Penelope's own potential.
Ivan's Magic Eye and Spirit Vision were incredibly powerful, but they could not magically increase a person's potential.
Magical transformation itself was more like a recreation of the path the wizarding ancestors had once walked.
Introducing extraterrestrial magic into the body cleansed the soul, thereby transforming the bloodline and elevating life itself.
Modern wizards, corrupted over countless years, had bodies, souls, and magic in utter chaos.
The purpose of the magical transformation was to give Penelope a chance to experience that initial magical baptism.
As for the outcome, that depended on the individual.
Ivan himself had no so-called potential limit.
Voldemort and Penelope, by contrast, did.
First, Penelope. She still had a great deal of untapped potential and could be infused with even higher concentrations of magic potions.
Voldemort was the same in that regard.
If one ignored the side effect of Voldemort losing his nose, he would have used magical transformation at least twice, if not three times.
Ivan suspected that, given Voldemort's madness, his first experience with magical transformation had given him a taste of its benefits.
The second time, he was affected, and his soul fell into darkness.
The real transformation happened on the third occasion, not the fourth.
'If my research on magical transformations is correct, Voldemort's first three magical transformations succeeded in terms of effect.'
Even setting the side effects aside, Voldemort got what he wanted.
'During his fourth transformation, however, Voldemort failed, and his soul was injured in the process.'
In any case, given Voldemort's condition, his original body could never undergo magical transformation again.
The only option left was to abandon the original physical body and use the immortality granted by the Horcrux to be reborn.
That way, Voldemort could once again walk the path of magical transformation.
'Perhaps this is the real reason Horcruxes were created.'
The despicable Herpo invented Horcruxes to escape the gaze of death. Ivan pondered it carefully. 'If a Horcrux can restore a person to the state they were in before magical transformation, then this magic certainly has its merits.'
It was not without problems, however.
The principle behind a Horcrux was to divide the soul and then use that fragment as an anchor, ensuring the user was not drawn into another world and thus died.
A Horcrux reset the breakdown of the body, but the loss of the soul could not be avoided.
'Therefore a Horcrux is actually an incomplete item. It still needs the latter part, the part that allows a person's soul to be restored.'
Thinking of that, even Ivan had to admire Herpo's ambition. 'This guy wants to use Horcruxes as fuel to reach the level of Magic 6.'