Chapter 509: Refining the Great Knowledge Seed and the Promotion Plan
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 509: Refining the Great Knowledge Seed and the Promotion Plan
After a round of punishment from Sister Bai, she finally let me go amidst my repeated pleas for mercy.
"Xiao Han~ You still need to improve this spell, okay? With such a glaring flaw, anyone else using it would be punished~"
At this moment, Sister Bai looked thoroughly satisfied. Although her words were cautionary, her tone held no hint of actual blame.
"I get it, I get it..."
I replied hastily, looking as if I had only just recovered. My finger subconsciously brushed against the corner of my mouth, which glistened slightly, and my expression remained somewhat reminiscent of the experience.
"Xiao Han didn't see anything just now, right?"
"Mhm! Mhm!" I nodded vigorously. Only after coming back to my senses did I frantically scan our surroundings. I let out a sigh of relief when I realized no one had noticed us.
However, it seemed we hadn't escaped everyone's notice. I saw an unfamiliar Transcendent Witch mentor in the distance who shot me a knowing "I get it~" smile. I simply pretended not to see her and picked up a nearby book to read.
I really hadn't expected Sister Bai to use such private memories for her first attempt... Who would have thought she’d suddenly cram her "black history" memories into the Tree of Knowledge like that?
But during that brief period of "punishment," I managed to learn a few things from her. For instance, the initial growth stage of the Tree of Knowledge within her body only required mana or other external Transcendent energy. Subsequent growth, however, required the nourishment of memories and information to sprout new leaves. Furthermore, when a memory was placed into the Tree of Knowledge, the individual didn't actually lose that memory; it was merely a "rubbing" or a copy of that knowledge.
As the caster, I had the authority to observe the information within the other person's Tree of Knowledge. I had expected this ability, but I hadn't anticipated confirming it in such a... unique fashion.
"Um... Sister Bai, let's test something else, okay? Please?" I asked, trying to negotiate, terrified that she might get carried away and "finish me off" again.
"Ahem, true. Since I already agreed to your request, I can't go back on my word." Sister Bai nodded, acting as if nothing had happened, her tone returning to its usual calm.
"Then... Sister Bai, have you tried deleting memories from the Tree of Knowledge? Why don't we try to see how the deletion process works?"
"Deletion?"
"Mhm!" I nodded repeatedly. "Since this is a test, we naturally need to customize a standardized process based on feedback. Recording and deleting memories are the most basic functions, after all~"
"Fair point. Though, I feel like deleting memories from the Tree of Knowledge should be quite simple..."
"Can they be recovered after deletion?" I pressed further.
While this operation might seem useless—since the Tree of Knowledge is just a backup of memories, and one could simply re-upload them if they were deleted—it was actually different. Human memory has many traits, such as forgetfulness and distortion. A second backup wouldn't be the exact same record as the first.
If the Tree of Knowledge held a memory that the person had already forgotten, and that record was lost due to an accident or carelessness, then it would be gone forever. The person wouldn't even realize what they had lost.
"They might be unrecoverable," Sister Bai said as she manipulated her Tree of Knowledge, wiping it clean. All her previous embarrassing memories were purged. After confirming they couldn't be retrieved, she spoke to me again.
"I see." I nodded, not particularly surprised. I didn't necessarily need the spell to have recovery capabilities.
Testing the Tree of Knowledge and mapping out all its functions was a massive project that couldn't be finished quickly. My goal was simply to create a specific model of the tree that would be easy to promote.
If possible, I naturally hoped this spell could be promoted throughout the entire Witch Academy. I wanted everyone to be working for me!
But that was impossible. First, there was the issue of privacy, followed by the endless stream of problems and complications that would arise from it.
Its only real hook was probably... that it could help with rapid learning?
Plus the specialized "assistant" of the Knowledge Shadow and the Ley Line Identification Art.
Right now, I felt like I was marketing a smartphone, and these were my only three selling points.
For some reason, it felt insufficient... After all, even a basic phone has more functions than that. Comparing the two made me feel a bit anxious.
To put it bluntly, this kind of ability wasn't exactly rare. I could achieve this through the Great Spellbook, and others with massive resources could do things even more impressive than me. This was what "lack of competitiveness" looked like.
In the end, I just shook my head with a smile, silently scolding myself for overthinking.
The Void was vast. I hadn't even stepped out yet, and here I was worrying about my future. The Tree of Great Knowledge wouldn't stay at this level forever. Opportunity favors the prepared; who’s to say I won't carve out a path for myself in this competition?
I believed my ideas were good and would only get better. If I started worrying about my future just because of a hypothetical rival, I wouldn't be fit to continue on the path I had chosen.
...
As Sister Bai and I continued testing the Great Knowledge Seed, several days flew by.
During this time, we tested many functions, including the application of the Knowledge Shadow and the Ley Line Information Identification Art on the Tree of Knowledge.
The experimental results for the Knowledge Shadow weren't much different from the Knowledge Leaf. Thanks to my efforts, Sister Bai's experimental Knowledge Leaf had already "returned to the earth," becoming nourishment for the Tree of Knowledge within her Sea of Consciousness, adding a unique nutrient to its robust growth.
However, testing the Ley Line Information Identification Art on the Tree of Knowledge hit a significant snag. Although the Knowledge Seed could carry the Identification Art better than I expected, it was still just a spell effect. It couldn't provide the foundational basis for the Identification Art—namely, the Tree of Great Knowledge's characteristic of absorbing Ley Line information.
But this problem wasn't particularly difficult to solve. I just needed to strengthen the link between the Great Knowledge Seed and the Tree of Great Knowledge to a certain extent.
This also incidentally solved the problem of the massive "database" required when using the Identification Art.
For now, though, these ideas would take time to implement.
It couldn't be finished in a few days, but the good news was that once the plan was set, I could achieve my vision through step-by-step iterative updates.
Without realizing it, I seemed to be becoming the kind of person I used to envy—someone who could solve problems as they encountered them.
Undoubtedly, at this stage, I had no foundation. But through constant trial and error, a vision using the Tree of Knowledge as a framework was gradually taking shape.
During this process, I discarded many of the Great Knowledge Seeds I had condensed; they were the costs of my mistakes.
As for Sister Bai's seed, which had already become a Tree of Knowledge, it wasn't left behind by my iterations. Because she had me, I would personally update the functions of her matured Tree of Knowledge.
Others wouldn't get that treatment. Of course, as of now, no one besides Sister Bai had even received a Great Knowledge Seed.
"Still researching your Great Knowledge Seed? Xiao Han~ remember to balance work and rest, okay?" Sister Bai suddenly said to me.
"Hmm? Oh, okay~" I nodded gently. I had lost track of how many times she had told me that over the past few days.
Personally, I felt my current intensity was fine. I had a regular sleep schedule, meditated and exercised daily, and didn't stay up late. Compared to those academic witches who wouldn't close their eyes for days to research [Transcendent Knowledge], I was practically living a life of leisure.
However, when I looked up at Sister Bai, I froze. "Sister Bai, where are you going? You're dressed... quite beautifully~"
"Didn't I tell you? A mentor here chartered a yacht and is planning to throw a party. She invited a lot of mentors and students. I heard it's a swimsuit party, too."
"Eh?" I was stunned. Had Sister Bai mentioned this?
"Looking at you, you weren't listening to me at all, were you? You were invited too, you know."
"I was invited?"
"Mhm. She asked me to pass the message along. You didn't hear a single word, did you?" As she spoke, Sister Bai tossed me a swimsuit we had bought earlier. "Are you going? I'm going, anyway~ If possible, I'd like you to come along. You could meet a lot of people there. Of course, if you don't want to socialize, you can just stay quiet in a corner; I'll keep you company."
"Since you've put it that way, Sister Bai, I can't really refuse..." I chuckled and set down the work I was busy with.
Of course, I wasn't just giving in to her. Honestly, I wasn't very fond of crowded parties.
But over the past few days, as I refined the basic functions of the Knowledge Seed, I had realized one thing: one person can never compare to a group.
Instead of working behind closed doors and tinkering alone, it was better to try and promote this ability. The Tree of Knowledge grown from the Knowledge Seed had almost "infinite" potential. Keeping it all to myself only restricted its development; everyone would have a different understanding and application for it.
Moreover... my current Tree of Great Knowledge desperately needed nourishment, and I had already planned the source of that nourishment: the Ley Line Information Identification Art!
I would let all those curious people help me gather information from the Ley Lines.
This period of busy work had also made me realize something very important... my time was precious!
Anything that could be done by others shouldn't waste my own time.
And currently, the biggest time-sink was using the Ley Line Information Identification Art to gather data.
Even if I could maximize efficiency by doing it myself, the time cost simply wasn't worth it. There was no need to waste my time on such cumulative tasks. I would rather have others do the work for me at a lower efficiency. Besides, if the numbers were high enough, individual efficiency wouldn't even be the most important factor anymore.
"By the way, Sister Bai, which students did that lead mentor invite?" I asked curiously.
"Well, most of the students still in the Bobapus Archipelago were probably invited. Xiao Han, why do you ask? Are you planning to play with people your own age?"
"Mm-hmm~ something like that~" I replied with a smile.
While I was asking Sister Bai, I simultaneously began the deduction for the Qi Observation Art.
The result showed that the three most famous Children of Destiny in the Witch Academy all seemed to be in the Bobapus Archipelago, but not all of them intended to attend this so-called swimsuit party.
For example, Lucianne didn't plan on going. After all, she likely still retained a degree of male thinking; a swimsuit party full of girls in revealing outfits might be a bit much for her to handle.
Actually, the moment Sister Bai mentioned the party, several plans had flashed through my mind. I wanted to take this opportunity to "promote" the few Great Knowledge Seeds I had on hand. I didn't need many; even one would probably be enough.
And the target I had chosen was naturally Lucianne.
This reminded me of when I first completed the Qi Observation Art and ran into Lucianne in the library. She seemed to have a bit of a headache regarding theoretical studies. If I recommended this to her, she probably wouldn't be able to refuse.
After all, from her perspective, once she understood what this was, she should be the one begging me for it.
Of course, I would give her the Great Knowledge Seed for "free." But she would have to understand that free things are always the most expensive; the person pulling the strings has already marked the price behind the scenes.
Naturally, my desire to give the seed to Lucianne for free was because of her status as a Child of Destiny. I wanted to use her as a springboard, leveraging the powerful push of her Luck to further perfect my Tree of Great Knowledge.
In a sense, once I gave away a Great Knowledge Seed, I could no longer interfere with it. It would belong to the user. Whatever development they achieved with their Tree of Knowledge would have nothing to do with me, though I might gain a bit more knowledge nourishment.
But that bit of nourishment was insignificant compared to the sheer volume of data. The most valuable thing she would provide was her train of thought!
If possible, I didn't want to limit the promotion to just Lucianne. I wanted to reach Ninglan Qiuyue and even Tan Han. However, I didn't know what Tan Han's attitude would be. Since she was a genius herself, I wasn't sure if she would look down on such methods.
Maybe I should come up with some gimmicks to package the Great Knowledge Seed. For example... photographic memory, one-on-one tutoring from a master, or "point-and-learn" functionality?
It felt very suitable for promotion within the Witch Academy. If it could be popularized throughout the school, the students' learning efficiency would skyrocket.
Perhaps... I should go ask Dean Mei. She was my biggest backer right now. Being in the Witch Academy, I couldn't escape the Dean's gaze anyway. If I wanted to achieve my goals, I had to pass her inspection.
Maybe the Dean could provide me with fresh inspiration. Of course, she might also scold me. I couldn't be sure, because at its core, I was plotting to use the student resources of the entire Witch Academy!
I couldn't exactly promote this to other Transcendent academies, could I?
Actually... that might not be impossible.
I just lacked the channels. My instinctive urge to go to the Dean was because I subconsciously believed that no channel in the Witch Academy could beat hers.
"Since you've agreed to go, Xiao Han, hurry up and change into your swimsuit. Remember to wear something over it."
"I know, I know~"