Chapter 480: Collecting Luck Data
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 480: Collecting Luck Data
Without a moment’s hesitation, Tan Han agreed to the cooperation. Controlling the distribution of water resources right from the start provided an advantage so massive she didn't even need to think to see it; it was no wonder the other party had come looking for her directly.
As for the trouble this would stir up and the string of incidental problems that would follow, Tan Han could naturally foresee them, but trouble was meant to be solved.
Thus, Tan Han understood that she would have to go there in person this time.
Just as Tan Han was preparing to set off, I also departed from the island where the Witch Academy was located, riding my flying broom.
My departure was hardly aimless. After all, the duty of a Patrol Teacher was to patrol everywhere. This responsibility granted me immense authority and freedom, giving me more opportunities to touch upon the truths I sought.
Just as I used to contemplate what I could gain from every battle, now that I had no mandatory patrol route, I was naturally more inclined to consider what exactly I wanted to do.
In fact, I could arrive at the answer through the process of elimination. A Patrol Teacher cannot actively initiate a challenge without a proper reason, so I had no suitable opportunities to continue iterating and updating my commonly used spells. Burdened with the duties of a Patrol Teacher, I had no time of my own and couldn't just hunker down somewhere and do nothing. Consequently, my research regarding the Tree of Great Knowledge had essentially ground to a halt. This included updates to the Ley Line Information Identification Art, the study of Knowledge Seeds, and the derivative inspirations between the Tree of Great Knowledge and the Spellbook Shelf Spellbooks.
I was at the heart of the script, and the Children of Destiny were nearly all gathered here. So… what better time was there to study Luck?
From the moment the joint exam began, I could see the restlessness within the flows of Luck, as if they had already taken the stage to engage in tentative gambits.
Therefore, I felt it necessary to come into contact with the information of these Children of Destiny one by one, treating it as a data analysis of Luck-related information.
Initially, when I decided to study Luck, my ambitions were grand. I attempted to treat Luck the same way the Tree of Great Knowledge treated the Ley Lines, trying to sink its roots into it.
Unsurprisingly, I failed. I was not a Child of Destiny; the realization was as uncomfortable as when I discovered I had severed my Main World Ley Line Shackles.
Although Luck did not possess the "regional" isolation of Ley Line energy—meaning even ordinary people could touch this power—it differed from Ley Line energy in one key way: it lacked "bearing" capacity. It did not carry various types of valid information. Therefore, my Tree of Great Knowledge could not extract any data from the power of Luck.
This awkward situation only stumped me for a short while.
First, I had to admit one thing: Luck indeed could not carry the vast information that Ley Lines did. However, as long as a concept exists, it is perceivable information; Spirit Vision had taught me that long ago.
Luck could not carry direct information, but its very existence contained "premonitions." In other words, it was a "transcription" of certain information.
I didn't care whether Luck reflected the actions of a Child of Destiny or if the actions of a Child of Destiny mapped the flow of Luck. Neither viewpoint denied one fact: the direct correlation between Luck and the Child of Destiny.
Discovering abnormal phenomena, observing the surface of things, and summarizing the laws of operation…
These are the most basic means of human utilization. This primitive method can be applied almost anywhere, including the irrational level of the Transcendent.
So, what I was doing now, in essence… was summarizing a Luck movement comparison table. If Luck itself contained no extra information, then I would endow it with corresponding information to form a manifestation I could understand.
I categorized this idea under the planning of the "Qi Observation Art," meaning… a spell for observing Luck.
As for whether it fell within the category of spell techniques… my answer was affirmative.
This was naturally a spell. Spells are not such inconvenient things; it was created by me specifically to achieve a certain effect. It was just that the threshold for use was a bit too high, requiring Spirit Vision or True Vision capable of observing Luck at a deeper level to function.
The effect of this spell was to input the Luck information I obtained and deduce a surface phenomenon caused by that Luck.
It felt… more like a spell technique, or even similar to the prophecy arts found in Mysticism.
They all seemed to obtain information through some channel—perhaps a revelation or a ritual—and then deduce an answer according to certain laws based on that information.
The only difference was that I was deducing answers related to the script.
But that was enough, wasn't it?
I didn't know much about Mysticism and didn't want to touch it at this stage. I preferred methods where I had completely mastered the rules, understood them clearly, and where the process was rational. It was easier for me to comprehend and fit my way of thinking better, given my possession of the Tree of Great Knowledge.
If someone told me this was Mysticism, I would punch them to death. If the process of studying Mysticism is the process of eliminating the mysterious and the unknown, then it shouldn't be called Mysticism; it should be called basic science…
Reaching this point, I stopped my train of thought. I realized I was doing something very dangerous: I was defining a field I had yet to touch. Such behavior was undoubtedly an expression of arrogance.
It was just like when I first entered the Witch Academy. I had my own insights into the Transcendent. I was thinking about and denying the so-called Transcendent world, believing it shouldn't just be a simple stacking of mana sources and the acquisition of spellbooks, let alone limitations like so-called spell slots.
If there are limitations, it means one thing: I am acting within a framework someone else built for me.
When I began to question, the only thing left between me and the answer was the process of "walking over and picking it up." I was prepared to accept new perceptions, so when I touched the truth, what I experienced was a transition from shock to acceptance, rather than from bewilderment to doubt.
Thus, at this time, a white figure began to appear on various islands in succession. The figure moved extremely fast, like a diligent and responsible Patrol Teacher—arriving, observing, and leaving.
There were no other actions and no excessive communication.
Every time I reached an island, I would leave a teleportation mark to facilitate a quick return.
But even so, my gains were somewhat meager.
Because the candidates from different academies had not directly clashed, and there wasn't much contact between the Children of Destiny either.
Only on those islands where more than two academies were present did I gain a sliver of a harvest.
During this period, I also handled many trivial matters, such as those who actively chose to be eliminated. This required me to guide them back to the temporary settlement points of their respective academies in the real world.
It was hard to imagine how busy I would be when large-scale slaughter broke out. Then again, it might be better if they just died directly; it would save me the trouble.
However… during this time, I also discovered some rather underhanded methods used by the Wizard Academies.
That is, when someone is killed within the False World Space Great Witchcraft, although their main body is excluded from the great witchcraft, their corpse remains in the false world… Although that corpse is actually a "fake" molded by the false world replicating the participant's physical data, it isn't something an ordinary person can distinguish.
Everything in the false world is fake, but the experience is real. Nothing done inside affects the outside world.
The crucial point was that the students had not been told this.
I still clearly remember when the first instance of "death" occurred. The atmosphere of the joint exam changed instantly. The fear of death, the pain of seeing a teammate killed, the grief of losing a companion… it was all palpable.
There were even students who complained, asking why I hadn't appeared sooner so that their friend wouldn't have had to die…
At that moment, I looked at the live stream camera that had deliberately surfaced. I suddenly realized what the point of the live stream was.
It was because this was incredibly entertaining. But as a participant, I couldn't quite bring myself to laugh, because the emotions of the people I faced were real.
Subsequently, I watched with my own eyes as many of them completely lost their will to fight, even actively requesting to withdraw from the joint exam. To this, I naturally granted their wishes.
As for whether they would regret it after learning the truth once they were out… that was none of my business. Because… that was when they would become the true source of amusement.
As the time of the joint exam progressed, night shrouded the land. Tomorrow would be the true first day of the exam. Any actions taken today were merely for adaptation. Adapting to what?
Perhaps the environment, perhaps the jet lag, or perhaps something else. Because of these unfair aspects, the difficulty of the initial islands varied. It was a form of dynamic difficulty balancing and a final sliver of mercy from the four Transcendent academies.
But mercy was also a form of trouble. As today passed, the final preparation time had been exhausted.
The students from the four great academies who occupied islands alone were playing a game of map exploration. Meanwhile, the other academies were playing map exploration plus real-time online PvP—hot-blooded confrontation. This was the kind of confrontation where if you landed a blow, the other person's blood might actually splatter all over you.
They would realize the truth of this joint exam and the fragility of life much sooner. This eliminated those with weak minds early on, while also giving the survivors more time to accept the cruel reality.
People need to adapt. Freshmen who had spent a semester in the cradle of a Transcendent academy were suddenly hit with high intensity for their finals, leaving them dazed.
Of course, all of this was just a warm-up. Just as in the Witch Academy, where practical tests were added to the monthly exams and many new channels for obtaining power were introduced.
This was all a prelude to the chaos about to arrive in the Main World.
The collision between the small worlds and the Main World would occur during the holidays. Before the new semester even began, everything would change.
"Teacher! Take me away! I don't want to die… I really don't want to die! I want to leave this place, I can't participate in the competition anymore! Please, take me away, I don't belong here! I really don't…"
Looking at the nearly incoherent beast-eared boy, his body was in a state of partial beast transformation. His clothes were completely shredded, and fur covered his body. His fur was stained with blood, and a chunk of muscle had been sliced off his arm, with blood soaking the entire limb.
The pain had caused him to lose his mind. Seeing my style, which was so out of place here, and the chest badge representing a Patrol Teacher, he crawled toward me as if grasping at the final straw.
I looked at the tail behind him and identified his beast-transformed race; it seemed to be canine. I wasn't sure if he was from the Dog-kin Academy or the Beast Academy Affiliated Academy. As for the Beast Arena Academy… well, they probably wouldn't be this pathetic. Of course, I couldn't be too certain.
At this moment, it wasn't just him; several others nearby were in a similar state. The two academies on this island both seemed to be of the Beast Academy type, and their resource point was in the center. Competition was inevitable.
Once it was clear there was water at the resource point, they understood that sacrifice was unavoidable. Although I guessed they might eventually cooperate temporarily—since pointless attrition would only leave both sides struggling for the final chance—the initial conflict and the sacrifice of pawns were also necessary. These people were the ones being sacrificed.
Watching both sides slaughter each other unwillingly, I couldn't help but marvel at the strict hierarchy of the Beast Academies and their obedience to orders. This absolute control over their own students was even more absurd than Tan Han gathering people through her fan club.
As expected, these Beast Academies favored such bloody methods, though the "bloodiness" referred to the sacrifice of the weak.
But the Beast Academies were likely the ones that emphasized the law of the jungle the most…
Now that the data collection was complete—even though the Children of Destiny hadn't clashed, the conflict between their Luck signatures had already occurred—it was a rare situation, and I had obtained a good sample of information.
Every academy participating in this joint exam had one or more Children of Destiny. I could only say I wasn't surprised at all.
"Since you have personally requested to be eliminated and withdraw, I will take you away," I said flatly, stepping aside to avoid the hand the nearest dog-kin boy tried to grab, then spoke.
"Teacher… do you have a healing spell? I'm going to die… I'm really going to die…"
"You'll be fine once you're out," I said simply. With a wave of my hand, several boys and girls were brought before me. "I'll ask you all at once: you're all giving up, right?"
Seeing them nod repeatedly, I wasted no more words and took them away directly.
The next moment, we appeared on the Bobapus Archipelago in the real world.
The thirteen affiliated islands in the real world were temporarily closed to the public, as they had become the places where each academy received their eliminated students.
Even if they reached the main island later, once eliminated, they would still be sent to the corresponding island in the real world.
Students eliminated early were not qualified to stay on the Bobapus Archipelago to enjoy themselves; they would be sent back to their respective academies by their own schools.
There was also an "Easter egg" at the end of this joint exam: candidates who fully endured the exam—those who were neither actively nor passively eliminated from the false world—would receive a chance to vacation on the Bobapus Archipelago with all expenses paid.
For teachers and teaching assistants, this was a direct benefit, but for students, it was a reward they had to fight for.
Whether the students cared for it was another matter; the academies didn't force anyone to take the vacation.
"I… I'm out!"
Feeling the change in the surrounding environment, the people I brought out immediately roared with joy, venting their delight at escaping that demon's den like wild beasts.
But before long, they discovered that the injuries and blood on their bodies had all vanished.
The joy and excitement made many feel as if they had been reborn, but at this moment, someone finally noticed the anomaly.
"My wound is gone! I'm not disabled! Not dis… no… that's not right! It's fake! All of it was fake, wasn't it! We wouldn't have died!"
"My injury is gone… what did you say? What's fake?"
"We wouldn't have died… we were tricked! There's no death in this joint exam at all! The injuries were all fake! We… ah!"
The boy quickly figured out the key point, his tone becoming filled with regret. But before he could finish, a massive fist slammed down onto the top of his head.
"Now the injury on your head is real. What a pathetic piece of trash, shaming our entire Beast Academy!" At this moment, a muscular man with bulging veins walked over. He gave the boy a blow to the head and then looked at me. "Thanks for bringing them all back."
"It's nothing, just my duty." I shrugged. Since their mentor had arrived, the handover was complete.
I would likely be sending several more batches soon. The conflict happening back there was really going to eliminate a lot of people.