Chapter 810: An Interlude Brought by the Bad Luck Curse
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 810: An Interlude Brought by the Bad Luck Curse
"Indeed, it is Self-Generated Mana. This is the first time I have witnessed it in such a primal state."
At that moment, Dean Serena Politzer stood before Yi Rui, observing her with keen interest as she offered her assessment.
For a witch of the Dean's caliber, it was rare for anything to pique her curiosity unless it was truly extraordinary. This particular form of Self-Generated Mana was, without a doubt, a novelty to her—something she had never encountered before.
"However, this Self-Generated Mana is still far too weak," Dean Serena said, shaking her head. Her gaze shifted to Tan Han, who was watching from the side, before finally settling on me. "I assume this is still in an unrefined stage?"
"Yes, there is still a Perfecting Ritual to undergo. We are currently in the exploratory phase," I hurried to explain.
"A Perfecting Ritual... interesting." Serena’s eyes turned toward the light screens and data displays. Though she couldn't decipher the specifics, she could analyze the general flow of the process.
While Dean Serena was preoccupied with the Shaping Technique for Self-Generated Mana, an unexpected situation cropped up on my end.
Just moments ago, my Tree of Great Knowledge had received a communication from Millian. I had been busy with Yi Rui’s Structuring Ritual at the time, so I hadn't answered immediately. The call had since disconnected, and I had only sent a brief text reply before turning my attention back to the task at hand.
Now, Millian had replied via text, detailing the current situation.
The acquisition of Soul Essence had hit a snag. The value of such a rare transcendent material and its circulation channels were far more troublesome than I had anticipated. Furthermore, my timing was far too late. Before the Void Expansion Realm had closed, these resources had already been allocated. Truly precious resources wouldn't be circulated at all, and whatever was available on the open market was of the most mundane variety.
Is this a little prank played by the Bad Luck Curse in that brief window of time...? I thought, feeling a hint of helplessness.
I had originally thought this would be simple... and was it possible that no one in a group as massive as the Fan Club was willing to trade? All I needed was enough Soul Essence for the hundred or so spirits of Fool's Dream to complete their Soul Depiction.
After briefly describing my situation to Millian, I set the matter aside for the moment. Since the process was already stalled, rushing wouldn't solve it immediately. It was better to focus on the problems at hand.
Now that Yi Rui had completed her Structuring Ritual, she could attempt the Perfecting Ritual, just as Tan Han was doing.
Dean Serena Politzer was also quite interested in the Perfecting Ritual. However, her interest was purely superficial. Once she realized the Shaping Ritual was difficult to grasp, she had no intention of delving deeper. As she had said upon her arrival, she was merely a spectator; she cared more about the engineering progress of the Self-Generated Mana and its eventual performance.
Not every witch felt the urge to immediately study and learn every new thing they encountered. Thus, after observing the entirety of Yi Rui’s Perfecting Ritual, Dean Serena took her leave.
The Dean left quickly, much like a satisfied theatergoer departing after a play.
With the Dean gone, the atmosphere in the laboratory relaxed considerably. Yi Rui was currently using the Perfecting Ritual to refine her mana, employing the latest version that Tan Han was also using. Judging by the Dean's expression earlier, she was quite satisfied with the efficiency of the ritual.
Meanwhile, the other sisters were busy archiving data while chatting about the experiment. Having Yi Rui as a second successful case had filled them all with excitement. If Tan Han had been a fluke, proving only that their path was correct, then Yi Rui’s success was true hope! Consequently, they were very diligent in gathering and organizing the information collected during the experiment.
"By the way, Sister Xiao Han, when your collar shattered during the experiment earlier, it really gave us a fright. What exactly happened there?"
Now that the Dean was no longer watching, the girls had fewer reservations and asked about the incident that had been weighing on their minds.
"Oh, that was just an alchemy item used to suppress a Bad Luck Curse. Did I mention it to you before? I severed my Ley Line Shackles prematurely, but since I haven't ascended to the Saint Realm yet, I can't resist the Bad Luck Curse the world imposes on me. I have to rely on alchemy items to keep it in check."
"Is that how it is?" Many were shocked by my explanation, though they seemed to have grown accustomed to me doing outrageous things.
"Yeah. That collar had been in use for quite a while, constantly fighting against the world's curse. Its durability probably just ran out. See? I've already got a new one," I said, shaking the woven bracelet on my wrist. It was a special alchemy item with a distinct sense of age.
"Something given personally by the Dean... but it doesn't really seem to match your style, Sister Xiao Han~"
"I feel the same way, but compared to such trivial details, staying alive is more important. You have no idea how eerie this Bad Luck Curse can be."
"Eh? Really?"
"Of course. If I didn't suppress it, I might trip on flat ground just walking around, or have a decorative ceiling lamp fall on my head while drinking coffee. While these accidents might not necessarily kill me, just imagining a whole day filled with such miserable luck is enough to cause psychological issues."
"Huh? That's terrifying. Just hearing about it makes my skin crawl. These aren't your personal experiences, are they, Sister Xiao Han?"
"In a way? But I put that alchemy collar on early, so I haven't actually experienced too many unlucky incidents~" I shrugged, responding nonchalantly. The others took it as a lighthearted story.
After some brief gossip, the matter was dropped.
Not long after, Millian arrived at the laboratory. After the Dean left, I had asked Millian to come over so we could discuss the matter of the Soul Stones in person.
The whole situation felt strange. I reasonably suspected that this might be a lingering side effect of the Bad Luck Curse. After all, the world had countless ways to make someone's life difficult! Fortunately, the equipment and layout of the laboratory were highly professional; otherwise, I might have suffered the "judgment" of these objects—like a falling light fixture or stubbing my pinky toe on a table leg. Just the thought gave me goosebumps.
"Millian, over here," I called out, leading her to my experimental cubicle. The matter we were about to discuss was personal.
While I didn't particularly mind the other sisters knowing—otherwise, I wouldn't have met Millian in the lab—letting them in on it would introduce too many uncontrollable variables. After all, the connections gathered in this laboratory... heh. Though they didn't interact much with other students and weren't necessarily the "socially successful" types in the academy, no one wanted to cross them. In fact, many students wanted to curry favor with them!
Lest anyone forget, what they were researching was spells! Derivations! They could even shape super-limit derived spells with mana costs exceeding a thousand points! Who would dare provoke them?
I closed the door behind us, pulled over a chair for Millian, and sat down casually on another.
"Tell me exactly what's going on with the Soul Stones," I said plainly.
"Right," Millian sat down and began her report. "I went back to collect Soul Stones as you suggested, Sister Xiao Han, but I realized we underestimated their rarity. Soul Stones and those transcendent crystal ores are completely different concepts. During the time in the Void Expansion Realm, it was impossible to obtain Soul Stones through conventional mining channels. Those who hold them are basically powerful upperclassmen or teaching assistants, and they almost never let go of such things..."
Millian said a great deal in one breath, analyzing the current situation for me. Essentially, Soul Stones were precious, there were no established purchasing channels, and everyone was either waiting for them to appreciate in value or keeping them for personal use. Millian had tried to buy them regardless of the cost, but she had only managed to secure a small amount.
"The Fan Club... they aren't willing either?" I asked casually.
"Sister Xiao Han, I still hope you don't place too much hope in the Fan Club. It is, after all, a loose organization. Once their core interests are touched, it's very easy for them to..."
"I understand that, of course. That's why I've never expected anything from the Fan Club." I only need it to be useful, I added silently in my heart.
The Fan Club was a massive, "virtual" concept I had constructed within the Witch Academy; they existed in the space between being real and being a phantom. When I needed them to do something for me—like swaying public opinion on the Academy Network—they were willing to do so in my name. But the moment I touched their actual interests, they would turn into loose sand. Perhaps among those many people, there were true followers who supported me, but most were there for profit.
The Fan Club was a handy weapon that allowed me to seize the high ground of public opinion and prestige within the Witch Academy. The key lay in how to use it. It only worked if used correctly; trying to exploit them without offering any benefit was like trying to hold water in your hands—the harder you squeezed, the more it leaked away.
Furthermore, I was well aware that my Fan Club contained many members from the various families. Most people who could navigate the Witch Academy successfully were family members. They formed vast networks and circles; for a loose group like the Fan Club, they didn't even need to "infiltrate" to claim membership.
"So, what do you plan to do, Sister Xiao Han?"
"Ignore it for now. Didn't you say you could get a small portion of Soul Stones? Just bring those over." My previous need for a large amount of Soul Essence was for the sake of all the spirits of Fool's Dream, but for the actual experiment, it would ultimately fall on the three little ones following me. I only needed four or five portions—three for research and one or two as spares.
Besides, it wasn't as if I hadn't collected Soul Stones before. I had gathered quite a few back at the Ley Line convergence point. To ensure the experiment proceeded smoothly, the amount of Soul Stones required wasn't actually that large.
"I... alright." Millian was stunned by my words. She hadn't expected me not to be angry or to push back, but to simply compromise.
"I needed a large amount of Soul Stones for something else, but for the experiment, a small amount is sufficient. I can't be bothered to argue with them; these petty matters won't block my experimental progress. Continue negotiating with them and see what they actually want."
"I understand." Millian nodded, though she couldn't help but marvel inwardly. In her eyes, Sister Xiao Han was truly the type of person who wouldn't let anything distract her from her experiments.
"However, I do have a general idea of what they might want. Once the word got out that I was collecting Soul Stones, the news spread instantly. Even the Jack-of-all-trades Club approached me during this time."
"Oh? Tell me more about the Jack-of-all-trades Club. Did they approach you of their own accord?" I asked, intrigued.
The Jack-of-all-trades Club was a contradictory organization. It wasn't controlled by the will of a single family, but was rather the product of cooperation between students from many different families. Because of this chaotic nature, the club was currently split into two main factions: the "Old Guard," who remained loyal to the Witch Academy, and the "Fence-Sitters," who were on the verge of being swayed by families from other transcendent academy territories.
My trip to Monopeng City had taught me about the schemes of those other families; they were still hoping to use the families surrounding the Witch Academy to help them acquire [Transcendent Knowledge] fragments.
"A sister within the Fan Club acted as a liaison for me..." At this thought, Millian felt a pang of regret. She had once been a member of the Jack-of-all-trades Club herself. But since she had started following Sister Xiao Han, everything had changed. Still, she did not regret her choice.
Millian recounted the process in detail. In the end, the Jack-of-all-trades Club stated they were willing to release the batch of Soul Stones, but they would not accept any form of common currency, transcendent materials, or resources in exchange. They wanted to use the Soul Stones to trade back the Heart of the Cold Wave that had originally belonged to them.
It was an interesting proposition. In a sense, the Jack-of-all-trades Club was indeed the previous owner of that Heart of the Cold Wave, but they had failed to protect it, leading to it becoming my spoils of war after I snatched it from the players. Back then, they had secured a promise from me that I wouldn't give it away to anyone else without reason—especially not to Tan Han.
And now, they had seized the opportunity, hoping to recover the Heart of the Cold Wave this way. One could say they were being quite reasonable; they had cut ties cleanly back then without any bickering, and now they were willing to trade high-value Soul Stones to get it back.
I saw no reason to refuse. I had expected this to be a headache, but I hadn't expected it to be resolved so quickly.
"The Heart of the Cold Wave? Fine. I agree," I said readily.
"Eh?!"
Hearing me agree so decisively, Millian was shocked once again. Based on how things usually went, shouldn't Sister Xiao Han have refused on the spot? Millian stared blankly at the Heart of the Cold Wave I had produced and handed to her.
"Surprised? This thing is useless to me on its own. It’s just one fragment; its true value only emerges once the set is complete. As for the Heart of the Cold Wave... I have two." As I spoke, I produced another Heart of the Cold Wave.
"A precious item is only truly valuable when it's the last one needed. The ultimate initiative remains with me. Using this extra one to solve my immediate problem is a fair trade."
"Two... two of them?!"
"Yes. It's the last one of the twelve that those families are currently searching for—Number 12." I admitted it openly; it didn't matter much to me.
"By the way, the Heart of the Cold Wave in your hand is extremely precious. Those family people will pay a massive price for it, likely far exceeding its intrinsic value. After all... it's a Heart of the Cold Wave from my hand, and it's the hardest one to obtain in the entire Witch Academy. Its added value is immense. So, help me squeeze as much value out of it as possible. I only want Soul Stones; I don't care about the rest."