Chapter 298: A Test Targeted at the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 298: A Test Targeted at the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art
"It’s settled. Those Abyssal Demon brutes are as stubborn as they come; I had to slaughter my way through to the fourth Demon Lord before they finally changed their tune and agreed to our proposal." At that moment, a Transcendent Witch returned from the Void to the witches' outpost.
"It’s good that they agreed. We were the ones who resorted to force first, so technically we were in the wrong. For now, let’s just wait and see how things develop," Dean Mei Lind nodded, offering no further comment.
The other Transcendent Witches curled their lips at the phrase "in the wrong." In the dictionary of a Transcendent Witch dealing with other races, those words simply did not exist.
However, because of this interference, the situation had reached a strangely stable equilibrium. This would be an absolutely fair struggle—or at least, everything would be "fair" until the fighting actually started.
"Dean, if you ask me, there was no need to let those Abyssal Demon types join the fun."
"True. They’re disgusting creatures. Aside from the Abyssal Succubus Witches, I can’t stand the sight of any of them."
"It’s fine. They’re just tool demons. Don’t forget what we’re testing this time." The Dean raised her hand, signaling for silence, and the group quieted down.
Transcendent Witches within the academy were a prideful lot. Even the Dean was merely an "equal" when facing the scholars of the academy. However, Dean Mei Lind was truly capable.
The Transcendent Witch scholars, who rarely showed their faces, usually looked down on the witches whose heads were filled with nothing but fighting. Everyone was a Transcendent Witch; no one was inferior to anyone else.
In reality, however, the status of a Transcendent Witch scholar was slightly higher than that of a witch who only knew how to pick fights and seek amusement in the Void.
In fact, those battle-hungry Transcendent Witches loved to put these scholars on a pedestal. These scholars were the source of all spellbooks. Witches who excelled at creation were always given the highest praise by their peers. The very best among them—witches worshipped like idols—were granted the title of Truth Witch by the Primal Witches.
For instance, the "Witch Contract" established the witches' trust system; the "Mana Source" built the power advancement system; "Spellbooks" created the sublimation of spell techniques and derived Real Editing Technology; "Magic Potions" opened up unique ritual applications exclusive to witches; "Soul" interpreted life and guided the sublimation of Resurrection Spells and the development of dreams...
These were the paths carved out by Truth Witches for the witch race. They gave back to their kind through Truth Dedication.
This was the foundation of a transcendent race, and the source of the witches' confidence as they stood tall within the Void.
Thus, the scholar witches who followed and emulated the Truth Witches formed the second line of faith, just below the Truth Witches themselves. Many of their research directions—take the Great Spellbooks as an example—produced spells derived from [Transcendent Knowledge] that were highly coveted treasures.
The relationship was much like that between children and a toy manufacturer.
No witch knew what kind of spellbook they might obtain in the next moment.
The reason so many Transcendent Witches had gathered here wasn't just for a single Script; a Script alone couldn't attract such a crowd. The sole reason was the anticipation of the Dean conducting her Great Spellbook test!
This was a Great Spellbook!
How many Transcendent Witches present actually possessed such a thing?
Even those who did have their own Great Spellbooks dared not neglect such a grand event. This situation was like a breakthrough in technology, drawing countless spectators to witness the spectacle.
It had even attracted beings who weren't Transcendent Witches.
Everyone had been waiting for this moment for a long time. Usually, a Great Spellbook would be tested immediately after its birth, but the Dean had delayed it for so long that the sense of anticipation was at its peak.
Of course, many well-informed witches had learned the inside story behind the creation of this Great Spellbook.
The role of a certain freshman was crucial, and that same freshman would be the one chosen to test the Great Spellbook.
Many witches found this contrast difficult to accept, but it didn't matter. Mei Lind would make them accept it. This was also her way of making them realize the importance of Spirit Vision—especially Innate Spirit Vision.
Consequently, after learning the truth, many witches went to see the "genius girl" praised by the Dean, even if it was just to get a look at her or pinch her cheeks.
According to Mei Lind’s description, she possessed Floating World level Spirit Vision, a quality comparable to the existence of Floating World level True Vision.
Even if she wasn't a Transcendent Witch yet, being favored by the Dean meant... she wasn't far off.
What puzzled them most was that the Dean had actually given a Great Spellbook to a student who wasn't even a Transcendent Witch. Even if it was called an investment and given through an Exchange Contract, many witches remained baffled.
But how others decided to act was their own business. Not understanding was one thing, but interfering with someone else's decision was impolite. At most, they would just gossip.
Even though they knew the Dean had traded a piece of [Transcendent Knowledge] and two Primal spell sequences for this, those were just intangibles.
Dean Mei Lind’s attitude was what mattered most.
Similarly, that piece of [Transcendent Knowledge] was also very important.
Transcendent Knowledge does not exist in isolation; it has its own environment of birth, where its revelations are nurtured.
For example, the [Transcendent Knowledge] Mei Lind obtained was strongly correlated with Fool's Dream. Therefore, she understood that she needed to gain revelations from within it. Gaining revelations was the breakthrough in researching [Transcendent Knowledge] and the most convenient way for a living being to comprehend it.
If Transcendent Knowledge is separated from its original environment—for instance, if Mei Lind had killed all those Fool's Dream creatures to obtain a standalone piece of [Transcendent Knowledge]—it would become "sourceless." Researching sourceless knowledge was like trying to open a safe without a combination; there was no place to start.
This was precisely the value of the [Transcendent Knowledge] Mei Lind had acquired.
Because Mei Lind knew it wasn't sourceless.
It was something obtained by a native human of the Main World upon the awakening of their talent.
However, any witch who had experienced or understood the secrets of this Main World knew what those talents actually were. They were blessings from the World Consciousness, and the only true blessing was "Spirit Vision."
The secondary blessing—the so-called freshman talent awakening—was, in essence, "plunder."
This was why Spirit Vision was a self-awakening, while talent awakening required an "Awakening Ritual." That wasn't a talent awakening ritual at all; it was a complete plunder ritual that used the native lives of the Main World as components.
Plundering whom?
Plundering the Main World, of course. As for what was being plundered, it was the war ruins left behind after the conquest of the Main World over a thousand years ago.
Behind the witches at the Void outpost lay the Main World, but looking back, it was a landscape of ruins.
If the Main World were compared to an apple, this apple was now completely rotten.
The "peaceful society" where the various academies were located was the last piece of paradise... the last bit of the Main World that had been preserved.
To prevent the Main World's consciousness from a final, violent self-destruction, this paradise had to be maintained.
Under the agreement of the four transcendent races, absolute suppression of power was enacted in that last pure land at the cost of a Great Spellbook.
In that place, power above the Transcendent level could not be used, and even extraordinary power was greatly suppressed.
Because of the effect of that Great Spellbook, the Main World had become a Void anomaly.
The effect of the Great Spellbook was eternal and had been maintained until now. To achieve such an effect, that Great Spellbook had to be completely "sacrificed."
Even though the Great Spellbook that created the effect was shattered, its spell effect remained undying. This was the true majesty of a Great Spellbook.
Consequently, the [Transcendent Knowledge] within that Great Spellbook also became part of the Main World's ruins, captured by the World Consciousness.
The ritual to plunder the Main World's ruins was an attempt to recycle those post-war remains.
This ritual had been performed for over a thousand years. it proved that the war ruins captured by the World Consciousness were indeed vast, but blessings like Spirit Vision only appeared occasionally. The proportion was incredibly small.
Of course, the original idea of the plunder ritual was to fish that [Transcendent Knowledge] back from the World Consciousness, but clearly, that idea was unrealistic.
As for why the plunder ritual would awaken Luck Seeds... it only signified one thing: after so much time, the World Consciousness had noticed this theft. However, since the stolen goods weren't leaving the world, the World Consciousness didn't forcefully break the ritual. Instead... it utilized the ritual in reverse to provide a boost, turning it into the starting point of the Script.
The awakening of multiple Luck Seeds could only be attributed to someone's interference. Even if it wasn't the Abyssal Demons, it was inextricably linked to them.
When a student awakened that piece of [Transcendent Knowledge] as a talent, Mei Lind was the first to know. From that moment, she had been watching Xiao Han, though she hadn't made a move.
Similarly, the other Transcendent Witches hadn't moved either. It wasn't that they didn't covet the [Transcendent Knowledge].
It was because the owner of the Great Spellbook that this knowledge once shaped was... Mei Lind.
No one would fight her for something that originally belonged to her. Likewise, many witches and other academies were relieved that this [Transcendent Knowledge] had awakened within the Witch Academy. Otherwise, Mei Lind might have charged straight into another academy to seize both the student and the [Transcendent Knowledge].
As for why no one else felt greedy... one needed the strength to back up such greed. Besides, acquiring the [Transcendent Knowledge] didn't equate to owning a Great Spellbook. There were better ways to seek death.
The witches who knew these inside details naturally saw nothing wrong with Mei Lind’s current behavior.
Trading a finished Great Spellbook for the [Transcendent Knowledge] of a Great Spellbook she once owned—at least to Mei Lind, it was a bargain.
Furthermore... there were differences between Great Spellbooks.
The simplest comparison was between a Great Fireball Spell and a Great Annihilation Spell. In this world, there was no such thing as "there are no useless spellbooks, only useless casters." A spell is a spell, and a concept is a concept; they cannot be equated.
In truth, Mei Lind could have simply plundered what once belonged to her, and no one would have said a word.
But at that time, Mei Lind was still immersed in the stage of exploring her new Great Spellbook. She wasn't in a hurry to take it back and disrupt her rhythm. Since the girl was in the Witch Academy and wasn't going anywhere, she set it aside for a while.
During that time, she gradually realized that the student she had defined as a mere vessel for [Transcendent Knowledge] was actually a genius.
Later, she saw the wondrous combination of Spirit Vision and Soul within her. Finally, when the girl helped her complete a Great Spellbook that she estimated would have taken another hundred years, Mei Lind’s perspective changed. Perhaps she could try investing in this little one to see what other surprises she might bring.
Regardless, she wouldn't lose out in the end, would she?
At worst, she would only lose the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art, but even if she lost it, it would return to the Witch World's Great Library. Such was the power of the contract.
Besides, she didn't feel that a spell like Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art suited her. One must not forget that she was once a powerhouse who had used a Great Spellbook to suppress the other two top transcendent races and forcefully establish a presence in the Main World.
Compared to the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art, she still preferred what had once been hers... the Great Weakening Spell.
To recover what was lost.
For anyone, paying an even greater price for such a feeling would be worth it, let alone a Great Spellbook she didn't even particularly care for.
* * *
"I have to say, several days have passed, and the Script still hasn't progressed at all."
"The protagonists haven't fully taken the stage yet, so what's the rush? Besides, I didn't waste my time just to watch these little ones squabble."
"I'm still looking forward to the performance of the Great Wisdom Enlightenment Art. The ones strongly associated with this Great Spellbook are those little cuties, right? What are they called? Fool's Dream? I'm looking forward to the moment they become true life forms."
"Dean, you wouldn't mind if someone as impatient as me accelerated the Script's progress, would you? They're being so timid. Those Luck Seeds are the worst I've ever seen. The Children of Destiny I've encountered in small worlds have more ambition than these guys."
"If you do that, you'll cause the dream to invade reality. Making such a big commotion will affect too many students," another witch spoke up before the Dean could answer.
"So what?"
"Enough. Let things ferment a bit longer," Mei Lind spoke, suppressing the restless nature of these Transcendent Witches.
* * *
Meanwhile, at the Witch Academy.
After confessing everything to Sister Bai, a weight was lifted from my heart. That Sister Bai could understand me was, naturally, the best possible outcome.
As for what to do next, since the Dean hadn't said anything, I couldn't just sit around waiting. I went about my studies as usual, enriching myself.
After all, worrying too much about things I couldn't control was just a form of self-attrition. It was better to maintain a calm mind and treat myself as a tool. Until the time came for me to play my part, I would simply live my life step by step.
However, this routine didn't last long before I was met by someone who surprised me.
"Tan Han? This is a surprise. I didn't expect you to find me even in the library," I said with a smile as I looked at Tan Han.
I had thought we wouldn't have any more interactions. But thinking back, I seemed to have promised something in the Fool's Village Secret Realm. However, with the secret realm shattered and that meditation technique gone, it all seemed to have come to nothing.
"Is something the matter? You look like you came here specifically to find me."
"I just happened to be at the library to return a book and ran into you. It’s been a while since we last met, so I thought I’d come over and chat."
"Chatting... sure. A lot has been happening at the Witch Academy lately. You don't want to talk about that, do you?"
"Yes, I'm just curious. With such a major event happening in the academy, you can still study here so calmly."
"Is it that strange? The academy will eventually resolve the issue. What does it have to do with us freshmen? You... don't actually think you can solve it, do you?"
"Who knows? Several students in our class have already fallen victim to the Sleep Curse. From what I’ve gathered, your Class 14 is the same. Don't you find it strange that a major event involving so many transcendent academies is primarily concentrated among the freshmen?"
"So it's mainly targeting the freshmen? I haven't looked into it closely yet. So? Do you think there's some mastermind deliberately targeting us?" I looked up at Tan Han with a smile. Her worried expression was truly... it was as if the world would stop turning without her.
But saying that wasn't entirely wrong.
If there were no external interference, and the world didn't have a steady stream of Children of Destiny to "provide" for it, it really might stop turning.
But that wasn't the case now. With the transcendent academies, the transcendent races, and the Script... everything had already become like a tool.
When one's perspective is too high, everything starts to feel... a bit insipid.