Chapter 118: Ley Line Stagnation
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 118: Ley Line Stagnation
"I'm sorry, but I have no explanation. After all, an explanation is often just a cover-up. I am simply speaking my mind—or rather, my decision—with as much sincerity as I can muster." I shook my head, finally voicing what was in my heart.
As I had said before, "I'm sorry" was the only thing left for me to say to Tan Han.
"Fine. That’s blunt enough. It seems I shouldn't keep pestering you," Tan Han said. "But I still wanted to talk to you. Since I happened to run into you here, I figured I’d come over and discuss this, though I didn't expect things to go quite like this. Consider the information I’m about to give you a parting gift."
As she spoke, Tan Han handed over a stapled stack of papers.
"This is a copy of the data regarding Ley Line Stagnation within the academy. The specifics are all recorded in detail inside. I think once you’ve read it, you’ll understand what this represents."
I looked at the stack of documents in her hand, momentarily unsure whether I should take them.
"Look... let’s put it this way," Tan Han said, tilting her head and thrusting the papers toward me again as if urging me to grab them. "If you take this, I won't come back to bother you again. Deal?"
"Thank you..."
In the end, I took the documents. Although I didn't know exactly what was inside, I had caught the term "Ley Line." Unfortunately, my knowledge regarding Ley Lines wasn't particularly detailed.
However, based on my experience with my information-gathering abilities, I knew that Ley Lines were incredibly important.
"No need to thank me. Since we can't be friends, you should learn not to say 'thank you' to people outside your circle, Class Monitor of Class 14," Tan Han said. Then, she added with a faint, knowing look, "What a coincidence—I happen to be the Class Monitor of Class 1. Perhaps we’ll meet again."
With that, Tan Han turned and walked away without looking back.
She left me standing there, looking thoroughly awkward.
Tan Han already knew I had become the Class Monitor of Class 14? Where did she get that news?
I hadn't even held the position for very long myself.
After taking a moment to calm my nerves, I sat down quietly to look through the documents. Although the preceding encounter had been difficult, at least there was some good news.
The bridge between Tan Han and me had been burned completely. The only thing I had to worry about now was potential friction between our classes in the future.
We were both Class Monitors. Contact would be inevitable. The Class Monitor of Class 1... that certainly fit her status as a Academic God.
Shaking off the emotions stirred up by others, I regained my composure and immersed myself in the reading.
The materials Tan Han gave me were quite comprehensive, seemingly sourced from an official archive. They mapped out the Ley Line network within the academy.
The documents also thoughtfully explained the characteristics of Ley Lines—specifically, their ability to carry Information. Because of this trait, the Ley Lines gathered countless fragments of complex data and past history. This could even lead to destruction when accompanied by surges of Transcendent energy.
Consequently, a specific phenomenon occurred within the Ley Line network: Ley Line Stagnation.
This phenomenon could cause an entire area to fall into an abnormal state. In such places, the normal flow of energy could be disrupted, and the feedback from devices that used Ley Lines to gather information could be interfered with.
For example, if Ley Line Stagnation occurred at my villa, casting spells there would be affected in various ways. A Fireball Spell might detonate prematurely, or a protection spell might end up trapping the caster inside. It could even cause the alchemy items in the villa to malfunction or suffer energy short-circuits.
This required the use of professional equipment—or rather, alchemical products—to dredge and redirect the Ley Line energy.
Normally, this was a standard procedure that shouldn't have had anything to do with me, Tan Han, or any of the other New Students.
But the descriptions that followed truly piqued my interest.
Typically, this kind of Ley Line Stagnation required Senior Sisters with professional training to use specialized instruments for dredging. However, during this process, one could naturally perform "extra" actions.
Namely, through certain means, one could strip away the "things" carried within the Ley Lines.
This included unparseable Information, unknown pieces of the academy's past history, various Training Memories accumulated from the Senior Sisters' practice sessions, and even Transcendent materials that condensed once the Ley Line energy was stripped away.
Setting aside the first few items, those special energy substances condensed from Transcendent energy after being tempered by the Ley Lines were incredibly precious.
The documents then highlighted two specific things.
The first was the Training Memories accumulated within the academy. This was a form of pure memory, devoid of subjective cognition. As such, it was a consumable that allowed for nearly perfect autonomous learning.
To put it in gaming terms, it was like EXP used to level up a character.
Acquiring these memories was like watching a recording in your mind that felt like a firsthand experience, yet it wouldn't interfere with your self-perception or worldview.
Of course, the drawback was that what you learned wasn't necessarily what you needed. Furthermore, they were difficult to obtain, the yield was low, and you still had to supplement them with your own training. Otherwise, it was no different from watching a vivid 5D movie.
As for the Transcendent materials condensed from pure energy, their value was immense. Compared to naturally occurring or artificial materials, they possessed a rarer uniqueness and could serve as samples to provide entirely new concepts for developing new artificial materials.
In a word: expensive. They were the ultimate luxury goods.
This data seemed to have been released recently. The past two days were the peak period for Freshman Enrollment, which was also when the academy utilized the Ley Lines on a massive scale.
Once the enrollment period ended, the peak of Ley Line Stagnation would follow. Normally, Ley Lines flowed through a fixed network, and the probability of sudden stagnation was minimal.
However, the various actions the Witch Academy took—using the Ley Lines to create special effects for recruitment—severely violated the Ley Lines' natural flow. Naturally, this resulted in various congestions.
Even though the three-day enrollment period wasn't over yet, signs of stagnation were already appearing across the academy.
In truth, this wasn't a bad thing; it was a deliberate move by the academy. It was simply a way to make the most of the Ley Lines once a year—a summary of the past year and a form of incentive for the New Students.
That’s right: the products of this Ley Line Stagnation would serve as rewards for the New Students.
And as for how these rewards would be distributed, they would naturally be given to the class representatives—the Class Monitors—to collect.
Thus, choosing a Class Monitor was the first competition within a class!
And how much a class could obtain would be the second competition between the various Class Monitors.
At this moment, I truly felt the pressure of the Class Monitor position. While the resources were indeed within reach, the pressure was very real!
Furthermore, I was a Class Monitor appointed by the Counselor. I hadn't gone through any discussion or competition with anyone else. Wouldn't this immediately draw public ire?
If that happened, how was I supposed to lead Class 14 and maintain unity?
If I distributed the rewards equally among everyone in the class, I certainly wouldn't be satisfied. Whether the hundred or so people in the class could even divide it up was one thing; whether the reward could be divided at all was another.
Whether based on objective conditions or my own selfishness, it couldn't be split. At least, that was my view.
Tan Han had really handed me a hot potato...
Was this another form of peddling anxiety?
If the final stage was a competition between Class Monitors, then it made more sense that Tan Han knew I was the Class Monitor of Class 14.
But how did she find out?
It couldn't be because Ji Niang had a big mouth and was telling everyone, right? That seemed highly unlikely.