Chapter 817: The Small-Scale Promotion Experiment for Self-Generated Mana Begins
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 817: The Small-Scale Promotion Experiment for Self-Generated Mana Begins
Outside the indoor training ground.
"This must be the place, right?" The girls arriving at the site couldn't help but marvel as they looked up at the massive indoor training facility.
The surrounding area was under strict security, cordoned off by virtual warning strips linked to the Root Network.
Whether it was the information displayed on-site or the GPS coordinates they had been sent, everything confirmed to the arrivals that this was their final destination.
As they stepped into the zone, data from the Root Network and the Power Network quickly generated a visual interface before them—a specialized form of identity authentication.
"Welcome, Tester. Identity confirmed. Please follow the guidance to enter the venue."
Message text drifted across their vision like game prompts, followed by directional arrows appearing in their line of sight.
The Knowledge Seeds they possessed also linked up, popping up information boxes that notified them they had entered the mission area and detailed their next steps.
The list of objectives, laid out like a quest log, felt incredibly novel to many of them.
After all, the promotion of the Omni-Link Main Network Tree and Knowledge Seeds hadn't been going on for very long. The Academy’s utilization of these tools was still in the early stages of development.
If future missions were all presented this way, it would drastically reduce communication costs and make everything clear at a glance.
Of course, to achieve this, missions had to be meticulously broken down and configured in advance.
However... that wouldn't be too difficult.
With the Knowledge Shadow acting as the "butler" for the Knowledge Seed, most tasks were foolproof operations. Systemic and modular mission workflows could be designed through the subconscious.
Now, the students who had arrived early at the experimental site had one first task after confirming their identity: check in and get assigned to a group.
Before the formal experiment began, they needed to undergo a comprehensive collection of physical data and confirm the precautionary measures for this study.
What came next... was the supplementation of their Mana Sources.
This was a mandatory threshold for the experiment; ten thousand units was merely the starting point.
If anyone dropped out midway through the experiment, these Mana Sources would have to be returned.
However, since the Mana Sources for this project were "sponsored" by the Academy, the original Mana Source loan scheme had been scrapped.
Instead, they were being given away for free.
As the first batch of experimental subjects to dedicate themselves to the Self-Generated Mana experiment for the Witch Academy, they were worth the expenditure. Whether they ultimately succeeded or failed, the Mana Sources would not be reclaimed.
In truth, this plan only benefited a few individuals. Most of those eligible to participate in the experiment already had several thousand Mana Sources, and some were already capped at the ten-thousand mark.
One should never underestimate the seasoned senior sisters who had been around the Witch Academy for a long time.
Mana Sources were a fluid currency. If a graduating student didn't plan to pursue Transcendent advancement, they could exchange their Mana Sources for a massive amount of money or off-campus assets. Living a life of luxury and worry-free comfort was a common outcome.
"Everyone who has finished checking in, come over to me. It's time for the next step." At that moment, a girl wearing a distinct white lab coat waved, signaling the early arrivals to gather.
"Oh! Coming, coming!" Hearing the senior sister in the experimental uniform calling them, the group hurried over.
"Since you've made it here, I assume you have a general idea of what kind of experiment you're participating in, right?"
"Roughly... we just know that the experiment will grant us an ability called the Self-Generated Mana talent."
"A concise summary!" The girl smiled and said, "Let me introduce myself. I am Pei Huan. If there's anything you don't understand during the experiment, just ask me directly. I'll do my best to explain it clearly."
"Pei Huan? You're the Teaching Assistant Pei Huan?" someone suddenly asked.
"People actually recognize me?" Pei Huan was a bit surprised. As one of the several teaching assistants in Yi Rui's team, her fame wasn't particularly high.
"I had the honor of attending a class you subbed for..."
"Is that so?" Pei Huan was surprised but didn't dwell on it. Because the courses her mentor taught were very fundamental, she was often asked to fill in when things got busy.
"It seems we have a bit of history then. But for now, let's get down to business." Pei Huan pulled out a stack of parchment—mass-produced Witch Contracts.
"This is a Witch Contract that needs to be signed before the experiment. Broadly speaking, it requires you to keep professional information regarding the experiment confidential, prohibits the theft of our data in any form, and forbids malicious interference with the experimental process. If you fail to cooperate or are passive in following the progress, we reserve the right to revoke your eligibility..." Pei Huan explained while distributing the parchment contracts.
"Read it carefully. If you find the terms acceptable, sign it."
"Alright, but please give us a moment to look it over."
"Seems okay..."
A few girls exchanged glances and scanned the contents.
In the Witch Academy, reading a Witch Contract in its entirety was standard behavior. This wasn't some game's disclaimer or a digital user agreement; a Witch Contract carried powerful, binding magical force!
Therefore, no one felt that taking the time to read was being difficult.
However, a few individuals used Quantum Speed-reading to finish the content in seconds and briskly signed their names. Soon, the parchment glowed and burned away, transforming into contract power that bound them.
It was clear they trusted this experiment deeply and had no intention of backing out; their resolve was firm.
Pei Huan sat nearby and waited for a while. As people finished signing, she guided them to the next stage: topping up their Mana Sources.
Once the Mana Sources were replenished, the next phase involved explaining how the experiment would proceed and subjecting them to the Demonification Reshaping Rebirth Spell.
The hurdle that could not be bypassed in the first stage was always the Demonification Reshaping Rebirth Spell.
Although some were trying to transcribe the effects of this spell into a magic potion, it was clearly not easy. Currently, there was no finished potion that could effectively replace the results of the spellbook.
Thus, at this stage, they had to rely on those few spellbooks to complete the step.
Of course, one could also manually cast the framework of the Demonification Reshaping Rebirth Spell and then solidify it into a magic circle on the ground as a Spell Rune Ritual.
But that was far too complex. Given that there were only about a hundred and forty participants, five or six Rebirth Spell spellbooks were enough to handle the situation.
This process continued until nine in the morning. Nine was the scheduled arrival time, and it was only at this point that the experiment truly began to get on track.
I had arrived early as well, donning a white lab coat just like the other sisters.
In truth, these uniform coats were mainly used to distinguish identities.
Most people were meeting here for the first time. It would be quite a mess if no one could tell who was a tester and who was a researcher.
These white gowns were standard-issue alchemy items. With basic dust-repelling and cleaning functions, one didn't have to worry about them being white. I heard they even had enough defensive power to stop a knife thrust, and the fabric felt great to the touch.
As for that last bit of defensive utility... personally, I thought it was a bit redundant. Did people really think Academic Witches were pushovers?
While not every sister in the laboratory was a combat specialist, that didn't mean they lacked combat power. Could anyone imagine that those who researched spell runes didn't have a few terrifying tricks up their sleeves?
Pick any one of them, and they could likely crush a large portion of the people here.
Their specialty was the modification and derivation of spells!
What did that mean?
It meant they had the ability to alter the mana consumption of a spell. With a single move, they could trigger an overload-level consumption of a thousand points. Even a simple fireball could be scaled up to the size of a building.
Of course, that was just a possibility, as everyone had their own research bias.
The more fundamental a spell, the harder it was to modify—especially since the Fireball Spellbook had its limits. However, if they used a hundred-point consumption spellbook as a template and modified it into a thousand-point overload spellbook, they were quite confident in their success.
"It's nine o'clock. The final count matches the statistics: 147 people. It seems no one was willing to give up this hard-won opportunity," Pei Huan said, handing the data to me.
"Mm-hmm~ It looks like Millian did a high-quality job," I said, nodding with a smile.
Although Millian wasn't on-site today, the two girls accompanying me were the ones from the intelligence group. They were willing to handle many of the trivial matters for me.
I scanned the list once more. It was a bit of a pity... Lucianne didn't come.
My four roommates, however, did show up.
Looking up, I saw them in the distance chatting excitedly. I didn't even have to guess to know it was likely about scoring ten thousand Mana Sources for free.
The naivety they displayed formed a sharp contrast with the upperclassmen.
Among the crowd, I also spotted Tan Han. She was here too.
"They really are quite good. Xiao Han, now that they've all completed the transformation of the Demonification Reshaping Rebirth Spell, we should start teaching the Ritual War Dance and the Resonance Method to lay the foundation for the Shaping Ritual, right?"
"Yes. It's a slow process. Teaching this many people is going to be a bit of a hassle," I replied with a nod.
The Demonification Reshaping Rebirth Spell only established a basic connection between those ten thousand Mana Sources and their bodies and life essence. In essence, it was no different from Mana Sources carried on Ley Line Shackles.
The most critical parts were the two points that followed.
The first was the Ritual War Dance, which allowed the body to adapt to the Mana Sources and laid a solid foundation for the shaping of Self-Generated Mana. This was a prerequisite for the Tenfold Base Resonance Method and the advanced Micro-Operation Resonance Method, as well as a node and threshold for the Shaping Ritual.
The second was the Resonance Method itself.
Furthermore, before learning the Resonance Method, they had to learn a quick self-rescue technique. This served as an insurance policy to forcibly terminate the process if uncontrollable factors endangered their lives during the Shaping Ritual.
Tan Han had already proven through her actions that this process wasn't strictly necessary, but as a form of psychological comfort, we kept this special step.
Besides, if someone truly courted death by encountering a danger we hadn't discovered yet, it served as a safety net.
"By the way, Xiao Han... are you sure you don't want to say a few words to the group under these circumstances?"
One of the sisters nudged me with her elbow and asked.
"I'll pass. Let Yi Rui do it. This is an experiment, not a battle; efficiency is the priority." I shook my head.
"Alright, what a shame."
"I'll leave the situation here to you all for now. It looks like a Mentor has arrived over there." I glanced toward the distance. Being connected to the Root Network, I could clearly sense the presence of a Transcendent-level life form appearing.
"No problem~ Sister Xiao Han, you can safely leave this experiment to us!"
"Do you need any of us to go with you, Sister Xiao Han?"
"Sister Xiao Han doesn't need our company. Put away those little schemes of yours~"
"It's fine. The experiment we're conducting is very high-profile; it was expected that Mentors would come. I'll head over now." I politely declined their offer to accompany me.
As I walked away, they stopped chatting and got down to business.
Yi Rui stepped in front of the crowd. With a simple sound-amplification spell, her voice echoed throughout the training ground.
"Everyone, please be quiet. Having gone through the previous process, each of you has undergone the baptism of the Rebirth Spell. We know you have some questions, and I will answer them one by one."
Yi Rui's voice immediately silenced the crowd, and everyone turned their full attention toward her.
"Just now, I shared a set of files to your Knowledge Seeds. Those interested can look through them. It's introductory material regarding Self-Generated Mana, and it covers the experimental procedures you may face later. I suggest everyone gets a general idea of it."
"Now, after the baptism of the Demonification Reshaping Rebirth Spell, you should be able to feel that the ten thousand Mana Sources in your bodies are in a different state than before. This is perfectly normal and is the prerequisite for the experiment to continue. So, I'll say it again: do not worry about this abnormal state."
"Next, you need to perform the preliminary preparations. You will need to learn a special Body Cultivation Method. Has anyone here had contact with Body Cultivation before?" Yi Rui's voice carried across the entire site, ensuring everyone heard clearly.
This was the first time these students had participated in such a large-scale test. They knew nothing about Self-Generated Mana, so they naturally followed Yi Rui's lead.
While there was some nervousness, no one felt excessive fear.
They weren't worried about accidents at all. Not only were they going to learn a self-rescue technique, but there was a Mentor watching over them from the side, and the experiment had a specialized Resurrection Spell as a fallback. They had no reason to be afraid.
When Yi Rui asked her question, the response was unexpected. Out of these hundred-plus people, more than half had actually encountered Body Cultivation!
Or more accurately, they had encountered Body Arts.
Unlike academic researchers like Yi Rui, these students were more inclined toward pursuing Transcendent combat power. While spells were their primary focus in battle, certain Body Arts could provide significant boosts.
For instance, combat mobility or melee techniques after a spell transformation—these were all skills learned from Body Cultivation Methods.
However, they couldn't possibly invest all their energy into the practice of Body Cultivation. Their primary focus remained spells. After all, they only needed the combat techniques, not the raw power of a body cultivator.