Chapter 135: Spellbook Properties and Bugs
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 135: Spellbook Properties and Bugs
After giving Yu Yuetian a brief tour of the laboratory I was currently using, I set to work on my own tasks.
There wasn't actually much to see here, especially since I had only just finished cleaning the place up a short while ago.
The only thing worth showing off was yesterday's damaged spellbook. It had already been processed, its internal structure fully expanded and laid bare.
The spatial spell Teacher Ji Niang had solidified yesterday was still active, and I had been granted partial control over it. Since my experiments needed to be conducted right here, this setup made it easy to handle any spells I released. It gave me enough time to observe the state of a spell after its release, which was crucial for subsequent magic modification and adjustments.
Today, I planned to continue modifying the Fireball Spell. By avoiding certain "untouchable" structures, the process wasn't actually that dangerous. After all, the hazardous parts were limited to a few specific areas—mostly issues involving power supply, limiters, and the like.
"Um... I was wondering, what exactly are you doing?" After wandering cautiously around the room a few times, Yu Yuetian began to look bored. To be honest, there really wasn't anything fun to do here.
At the moment, I was busy reviewing yesterday's experimental records. Several Ley Line operating screens floated around me. It truly felt like a sci-fi experience, a sight that naturally drew Yu Yuetian’s gaze. At the end of the day, she was just a young girl who had recently come of age. Even as an Ascetic who worshiped the Holy Light, she still liked the things someone her age would typically enjoy.
"Experimenting. Trying to find new possibilities," I said with a slight note of apology. "Sorry, I’ve been ignoring you. There really isn't much to do here."
"No, how can you say that?" Yu Yuetian’s eyes were fixed on the light screens, which looked like holographic projections. This was the kind of thing that only existed in sci-fi movies in the outside world!
"You mean this Ley Line Operating System?"
"This holographic projection is called a Ley Line Operating System?"
"More or less. It’s similar to a computer, though you can't use it to play games. At least, I don't know where one would download games for this thing." I shook my head.
Clearly, Yu Yuetian didn't care that something this cool couldn't play games; she was simply fascinated by its existence.
Under her burning gaze, I opened a temporary blank screen for her to play with.
It suddenly occurred to me that Yu Yuetian was actually quite easy to please. This was the same person whose mere presence during a conversation used to pressure me, yet here she was, playing with the screen like a child.
I didn't feel the same way, though. I had already used it enough for the novelty to wear off. Plus, as the Class Monitor, I knew more than the others, so I had to maintain the calm, detached attitude of a senior.
Besides, I had already experienced the headache-inducing feeling of staring at all that floating data. Even now, it was a lot to take in.
Modifying a spellbook wasn't something you did blindly. It required a series of steps: pre-simulations, structural changes, logical design, and so on. If I just made it up as I went, I’d never have enough time. I could only implement a change once the final result of the modification was confirmed; otherwise, the spellbook wouldn't survive my tinkering.
I walked over to the area with the solidified spatial spell and skillfully connected the energy supply, activating the temporary spell. Having just finished the final preparations, I now needed to test the hypothetical case I hadn't completed last night.
With that thought, I unhesitatingly used my mental power to begin dismantling the spellbook's casing to alter the internal ritual. If this plan succeeded, I might just completely break the Fireball Spell!
As mana was injected, the spellbook hummed to life. The mana converted into fire elements... and the Fireball Spell array began to etch itself in front of me. However, the patterns on this ritual array were slightly different from the original.
This was my first attempt at a multi-zone ritual modification. Previously, I had only modified one small part at a time to see the results. This time, I had changed several areas at once.
What form would this Fireball Spell take in the end? Would it retain all the modified effects to produce a more complex and varied result, or would internal conflicts cause the spell to collapse instantly?
I suspected both were possible. It was a lot like running code—if you change too many things at once, you might not get new features; you might just get bugs or a total crash.
But when two fireballs appeared before me, I realized I had actually succeeded.
Double Fireball Spell. Shrunken size. Restrained fire elements. Self-rotation. All four properties seemed to have been preserved, with no obvious conflicts so far.
This was both a success and a failure. In this line of work, "no problems" was the biggest problem of all. Maybe I should try combining two conflicting properties to see what happened? By finding the conflicts, I could discover the "bottom line," understand the scope of the effects, and learn exactly what was possible and what was forbidden.
Of course, the risk was high.
I pushed the two fireballs into the solidified spell area and opened my logs to begin data collection. For instance: would the two fireballs interfere with each other while rotating? What was the maximum duration for the fire element restraint? How large was the blast radius of a shrunken fireball?
Then, I compared this data with the information from my individual experiments to see if there were any discrepancies, and analyzed why those differences existed.
Whether or not I could solve these questions didn't matter; having the questions was a good thing in itself. I could always ask Teacher Ji Niang later. If she didn't know, she would look it up. There was always an answer.
I had great confidence in the information available in the Witch World. If an answer couldn't be found for these questions... then things were truly serious! It would mean that no research had been done in this area within the Witch World—it would be a "no-man's land" that no one had discovered yet!
I had a feeling that if that were the case, Ji Niang would immediately set to work writing a thesis to fill that void.
"Was... was that magic you just used?" Yu Yuetian stood to the side, not daring to get too close. The intense heat generated during the energy conversion of the Fireball Spell made her instinctively feel it was dangerous. She was just an ordinary person, after all, and she feared death and injury like anyone else.
"Pretty much, though we usually call them spells. And I’m using a spellbook—it’s a very convenient tool."
"Spells... a spellbook?"
Clearly, Yu Yuetian wasn't very familiar with these things, as her face was clouded with confusion.
"They'll explain all this in later classes. It's fine if you don't know yet," I comforted her. To be honest, I didn't really want to explain too much right now. I had a lot to do, and I’d be annoyed if someone interrupted my train of thought with irrelevant chatter.
Besides, I had checked the syllabus. There was a course called "Theory of Spell Construction." I didn't believe they could talk about spell construction without mentioning spellbooks.
Before entering the Transcendent Academy, we had also studied courses like Spell Theory and Elemental Theory. Although they were very basic, they provided the fundamental cognition required to understand spells.
Only after actually coming into contact with real spells did I realize how much of a joke those previous theory classes were. It felt like they were teaching math, physics, and chemistry under the guise of "Spell Theory."
But that wasn't necessarily wrong. Those subjects were also means of perceiving the world. People who didn't have my terrifying Spirit Vision talent could only rely on those methods to understand the laws of the transcendent.
Even in a world with the supernatural and magic, science would still exist. It was a method of perceiving the world and a means of summarizing its laws. You couldn't say that science ceased to exist just because magic was real; it simply took on a different form to accompany everyone.
Otherwise, the efforts of those who delved into transcendent truths with a rigorous, scientific attitude would be nothing but a joke, wouldn't they?
I didn't see Teacher Ji Niang today. Without her around, my attempts became much bolder. Having someone watching you versus being alone created two completely different mindsets.
After that one visit, Yu Yuetian didn't come back to the lab. She began to settle into the atmosphere of Class 14.
However, due to her unique status as an Ascetic and her particular way of speaking, she didn't quite mesh with the other students. While this world practiced freedom of belief, the Holy Angel sect was unique enough to draw stares. Most people were indifferent, but there were certainly those who looked down on her.
I took advantage of these days to conduct multiple research sessions, even extending my "claws" toward my other spell: the protection spell, Energy Shield.
Even so, I frequently checked in on my classmates in the group chat. I couldn't attend classes with them, but I could offer recommendations in the chat.
Furthermore, that big-mouthed Hong Chenyi had spread the word that I had already succeeded with the Witch Meditation Method. The class had recently started meditation lessons, but the vast majority of students couldn't grasp the essentials.
As a result, a strange behavior emerged in the daily group chat: "worshiping." Whenever I popped up in the chat, I’d be met with a wall of "+1s" and bizarre displays of reverence. It was as if they thought that by basking in the "top student energy" of the Class Monitor, they would have no more worries about their coursework.
Between that and the accidental displays of my abilities—like flying, meditation, and spellcasting—the class seemed to have fully accepted my status as Class Monitor. In fact, there was a sense that my position had ascended to a level far above the other members, reaching a height they couldn't touch.
And here I was, trying to go for a "man of the people" vibe! Why did it feel like I was being deified by the students?
In the eyes of the average freshman, I really was an unreachable goal. Not long after school started, I had already received course exemptions. They had only attended a few classes and couldn't cast a single spell, while their Class Monitor already knew several. They hadn't even figured out what a Mana Source was, while I already had dozens. They were still miserably taking notes in class, while I had my own lab and had begun spell research.
If I hadn't clarified things immediately, the rumors probably would have gotten even more ridiculous. Of course, Hong Chenyi’s constant instigating didn't help.
Now that school had started, everything seemed to be getting on the right track. However, one event was drawing closer and closer: the Freshman Class Monitor Competition!
After all this time, the candidates for Class Monitor in most classes had been decided. This was a manifestation of healthy competition. Moreover, it was a way for the freshmen to see the gap between themselves and their peers.
At the same time, it would give them a glimpse into the wonders of the transcendent world and help them set goals. After all, their peers were people within reach—targets they could catch up to if they put in enough effort.
It was also an excellent platform for self-expression—a stage to prove one's own value!