In any case, Luke finally paid back the wands he owed.
And besides the wands for Arwen and the other three, Luke also made one extra wand.
It was a twelve-inch wand made from Mallorn tree core and a strand of Lady Galadriel's hair.
This was Luke's second backup wand for himself.
This wand was very suitable for casting White magic, and because the core was Lady Galadriel's hair, holding it in hand could resist the erosion of darkness and protect the mind.
The only drawback was that Dark Arts could not be cast with this wand.
With the wands completed, the mission in Lórien was pretty much done.
However, he had no intention of leaving immediately.
Because Gandalf was going to craft a staff for him.
The wood for the staff was finally decided to be Mallorn tree core, which was the remaining portion of the core Lady Galadriel had given him earlier.
That section of the core was five meters long, and after making wands for Elrohir, Elladan, Legolas, and Luke himself, there was still more than three meters left.
It was more than enough to make a staff.
While Gandalf was crafting Luke's staff, the Elven craftsmen also helped.
And Luke watched from the side.
The Elven craftsmen's artistry was exquisite, and their aesthetic taste was first-class; under their carving, a perfect and fluid staff gradually took shape.
The Elven craftsmen carved exquisite and natural floral patterns and vines along the wood grain, and outlined Elven runes with Mithril threads as fine as hair.
Gandalf, on the other hand, held the Elessar emerald, which was to be the core of the staff, in his hand, continuously chanting incantations.
The gem was activated, emitting a jade-like glow that made everyone bathed in its light feel a warmth, as if it were the spring sun.
The top of the staff was carved by the Elven craftsmen into a hollow shape of closed Mallorn tree leaves.
Gandalf held the staff in his hand, and as he chanted the spell, the closed Mallorn tree leaves at the staff's head opened. He placed the Elessar emerald inside, carefully adjusted and installed it, and then the carved Mallorn tree leaves automatically closed, firmly embedding the gem within.
After all that, Gandalf held the staff in his hand, felt it carefully, and then nodded with satisfaction.
Immediately, he handed the staff to Luke, who was already eagerly waiting, and said with a smile, "This is your staff. Try it to see if it fits?"
Luke eagerly took the staff, his face full of smiles as he looked at the magnificent staff.
The staff was about 6 feet, or 1.82 meters, long, roughly his height. It was golden-brown all over, with smooth grain lines, mysterious silver runes outlined on it, and lifelike floral patterns and vines carved into it.
The hollow, leaf-shaped head of the staff was inlaid with an emerald that shimmered with a jade-like glow, as if endless mysteries were contained within.
The staff as a whole was natural and elegant, revealing the craftsmanship of the Elves.
"Lumos!"
Luke cast a spell with the staff, and magic flowed through the staff into the gem. The gem instantly released a dazzling light that illuminated Caras Galadhon, visible even from outside the Lórien forest.
Luke was very happy. A staff is different from a wand. A wand is inward, its main purpose is to channel internal magic to achieve magical effects.
A staff, on the other hand, is outward. A Wizard communicates with the magic in nature through the staff, thereby achieving the goal of casting powerful magic.
More importantly, the gem at the core of the staff is not only an amplifier but also a reservoir; magic can be continuously injected into it, allowing for a single, powerful burst with immense force.
Of course, this does not mean that a staff is superior to a wand.
Wand casting is simple; it's like a stable pipe that can steadily and continuously output the water from the magic reservoir, allowing for free control of the flow's application.
But a staff is like a floodgate; once opened, the torrent is absolutely surging and incredibly powerful, but not easy to control.
Moreover, casting with it requires more time and is not suitable for emergency situations.
Therefore, wands are suitable for precise, high-accuracy magic.
While staffs are suitable for casting large, high-power spells.
"Congratulations, Luke, you now have a staff. You are truly a Black-robed Wizard," Gandalf said with a chuckle.
"I have to thank you, Gandalf, and Lady Galadriel and the Elven craftsmen," Luke said, leaning on his staff, his eyes full of gratitude, "If not for your gifts and help, I couldn't have such a good staff."
Gandalf smiled and shook his head.
"You make wands for me, I make a staff for you. This is mutually beneficial, no need to be polite."
"Alright, now that you have a staff, you should have felt its limitations, right?"
Luke nodded, frowning slightly.
"I feel that when using the staff, the magic is not as easy to control as when casting with a wand. If it's a one-time spell, that's fine, but if I want to continuously cast magic, it's very mentally exhausting."
Gandalf agreed:
"The essence of a staff is for a Wizard to communicate with the power of nature through it, thereby casting magic of great power. After all, people have their limits; no matter how powerful an individual's strength, it cannot compare to the entire world.
And to communicate with the power of nature, one must possess strong mental power, which means having a powerful soul."
"A powerful soul?" Luke was stunned; this touched upon his blind spot of knowledge.
The magic in the Harry Potter world only taught how to cast spells; as for soul-related magic, that was taboo.
For example, the three Unforgivable Curses: Avada Kedavra deprives the soul, Crucio tortures the soul, and Imperio controls the soul.
Without exception, any magic involving the soul fell into the realm of the most evil Dark Arts.
Once someone was discovered researching souls, the outcome was direct imprisonment in Azkaban.
Gandalf truly treated Luke as one of his own, so he unreservedly revealed the secrets of this world:
"Luke, you must know that the soul is the foundation. A powerful soul can perceive the world, influence matter, and communicate with the power of nature.
Ancient Elves like Lady Galadriel and Lord Elrond, over long years, accumulated enough wisdom and knowledge, and their souls were tempered to be powerful and indestructible.
Therefore, even without a staff, they can cast magic far stronger than a Wizard."
"If you want to gain greater power, or even better control your staff, then make your soul powerful."
Hearing Gandalf's words, Luke couldn't help but frown.
"Then how does one make the soul powerful?"
Elves have eternal life and can slowly refine their souls over time.
But he was just a Wizard, and not a Maia disguised as a Wizard like Gandalf; his lifespan was limited, and he didn't have that much time.
Gandalf showed a mysterious smile, as if he had been prepared.
"There are many ways to make the soul powerful."
"First, like the Elves, they can, over long years, accumulate enough wisdom and knowledge to break through the soul's limitations and become powerful."
"This method is the simplest and most reliable, but the drawback is that unless you have the time of an Elf, you won't be able to accumulate enough knowledge and wisdom."
Luke immediately ruled out this option upon hearing it.
He didn't have that much time, nor could he spend thousands of years slowly strengthening his soul.
However, he was not in a hurry and continued to listen to Gandalf's narration: "Second, one can undergo various trials and tribulations, allowing the spirit and will to be continuously tempered, thereby possessing an indomitable soul.
Especially experiencing great terror between life and death can most transform the soul. For example, Lord Glorfindel, after killing the Balrog, was reborn with a purer soul, possessing power comparable to a Maia."
Hearing this, Luke immediately shook his head inwardly.
This method sounded very dangerous and completely unreliable; one wrong move could mean losing one's life.
After all, not everyone could be like Glorfindel, granted a chance at rebirth by the Valar.
Gandalf seemed to have seen Luke's thoughts and said with a smile, revealing the third method:
"Third, there is meditation. This is also the method I recommend as most suitable for you."
"Meditation?" Luke questioned.
"Yes, meditation. Meditation can temper the spirit and will. Although it's not as quick as life-and-death trials, it's much faster than slowly accumulating knowledge and wisdom," Gandalf explained.
"This is the little trick I told you about before, that I would give you once you had a staff."
"Then how does one meditate?"
"Meditation is not difficult, nor is it simple. Simply put, it means clearing all distracting thoughts, emptying your mind, or focusing on only one thing. In my leisure time, I go to the Hall of Fire in Rivendell to sit and meditate."
"You need to meditate too?"
Luke was surprised, as Gandalf was a Maia, with an incredibly powerful soul. Why would he still need to meditate?
Gandalf seemed to know what he was thinking and said meaningfully, "Meditation is never exclusive to one type of person, Luke. Even the great Valar need to meditate; it's just a matter of how deep the meditation is."
"Alright, now back to how to meditate," Gandalf said, "In fact, you already have a meditation method,
and it can even be said to be far better than the meditation I had in mind, only you haven't realized it yourself."
"I already have a meditation method?" Luke was stunned and confused. How could he not remember when he had a meditation method?
"Have you forgotten the music Tom Bombadil taught you?"
"You mean that music is a meditation piece?" Luke's eyes widened, his face full of disbelief.
Luke had always regarded that music as a way to evoke positive emotions and dispel the negative emotional effects brought by Dark Arts.
Besides that, if he cast this music magic before casting the Patronus Charm, the Patronus Charm would become stronger.
He never expected that such a piece of music, which he considered an auxiliary, Gandalf would call a meditation piece.
Gandalf nodded: "There are many types of meditation methods. Some meditate through contemplation, some through prayer, some through chanting poetry and scriptures, some through walking... The piece Tom Bombadil taught you is a very effective way to meditate, you just never delved deeply into it."