Chapter 913: Sister Bai and... Sheryl?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 913: Sister Bai and... Sheryl?
Don't be fooled by the fact that the Heart of the Cold Wave is just a minor vessel among the fragments of the Great Spellbook; its technical complexity is anything but low.
The materials sent over by Tan Han and the others mentioned a specialized fragmentation method for spellbooks. Splitting a complete spell requires considering many factors, such as the spell's architecture and its runes.
How to combine them so they fit, how to make them function independently...
The records in the data were quite vague, partly due to incomplete information and missing files, but who cared when I had the actual physical object in my hands?
With this, I could rely on the acquired data and the Tree of Great Knowledge to simulate the King-Making Ritual.
This wasn't an exaggeration. The Tree of Great Knowledge could help me derive spells, which was essentially theoretical simulation. There were many derived spells I hadn't even used yet, but that didn't detract from their logical soundness.
The rituals of the Ancient Remnant Ice were passed down through bloodline and instinct; the creatures themselves had no idea why they did what they did—they only knew they had to do it.
Furthermore, this required coordination with the Great Glacial Throne Technique. For such a sophisticated Great Spellbook, it would be extremely difficult for them to succeed on their own.
After all, that secret realm was originally a testing ground. If it were really that simple, would it have required so many witches to research it together?
Tan Han had described to me how massive the laboratories in the secret realm were, how many functional zones they had, and even the small experimental areas composed of other subsidiary labs.
A scale like that could only be described as luxurious!
So, in a sense, I was standing on the shoulders of giants, reaping all the benefits of being a latecomer.
Unlike my Tree of Great Knowledge, which required constant refinement, a Great Spellbook was the definitive, complete version once finished.
Not long after I began my research, I received a communication from the Academy Dean.
"Xiao Han, I heard your Dream Domain experiment has achieved phased success? Why didn't you tell me? If Muli hadn't contacted me, I would still be in the dark."
"Ah... Sister Mei, the experiment isn't completely over yet~ There's still a Sister Long here who's hit a bottleneck and hasn't broken through. I was planning to notify you once everything was finished," I explained quickly, resolutely refusing to admit that I had simply forgotten.
"Fine..." Dean Mei didn't dwell on the issue; she had already reached out personally, after all. "I won't ask too much about the rest. I know your time is precious. I only have one question: can Muli and Fanny reach the same level as your Sister Bai?"
"Hmm... more or less."
"How much is 'more or less'?" Dean Mei pressed.
"Heart Sense is something that relies heavily on individual understanding. If there's a deviation in comprehension, the effects will vary. But establishing Dream Order is the threshold. Once they cross that, they will definitely be able to trigger a counter-current against the Primitive Dream Realm's order. You can rest easy on that point~" I waved my hand, signaling that she had nothing to worry about.
"Alright. Speaking of which, this success... was rather quiet. Did it cause any Dreamscape Calamities?" Dean Mei continued.
For now, these minor disturbances caused by the riots in the Primitive Dream Realm were classified as "disasters," while anything affecting more than half the world was specifically designated a "Calamity."
Since the current stage wasn't fully mature, these terms were mostly used for convenience.
"Of course not! I rarely make the same mistake twice. Unless... Sister Mei, do you actually want me to cause a scene?" I said with a smile. I hadn't been stagnant all this time, after all.
"Now you're teasing me? It's for the best that nothing happened! If every witch caused trouble like you, this experimental zone would probably have to be rebuilt once a day," Dean Mei said crossly.
Of course, it wasn't that accidents didn't happen in the experimental zone. In fact, accidents happened almost constantly; it was just that most witches were able to stop them in time.
Only the ones they couldn't stop resulted in laboratory explosions, which usually just attracted other witches looking for a laugh.
And speaking of explosions...
One only had to look at the Alchemy Zone. That was the real disaster area. If a lab or two didn't blow up there every day, the residents would probably feel uneasy.
It was only because the Primitive Dream Realm I was researching was a "blue ocean"—a difficult-to-develop frontier for the entire witch race—that accidents were so hard to prevent once they occurred.
"Well~ I actually know my limits very well! Sister Mei can rest assured!"
"Hmph, it would be for the best if you could actually make me feel at ease. Also..."
"Is there something else?" I asked hurriedly.
"Nothing much. Just, if there's progress on your current experiments, report to me at any time. I don't want you pulling any more stunts."
"Don't worry~ The projects I'm working on now won't cause any big commotions," I reassured her.
Whether it was the Fool's Dream life experiments, the Nightmare Purification Method, or the soul-enhancement techniques, none of them would cause a massive stir, let alone an explosion. I was quite confident in that moment.
"Good. Then I won't disturb you further."
Dean Mei nodded, seemingly satisfied with my attitude. As for what actions would follow that attitude... that would depend on my future performance.
Ending the call, I refocused all my energy on the Great Glacial Throne Technique.
The moment I prepared to interfere with the Ancient Remnant Ice, this secret realm was destined to be lost.
The secret realm could not contain the King of the Ancient Remnant Ice in his prime.
Nor could it withstand the tearing of a Void Rift—after all, this was the reconstruction of a Great Spellbook!
The concept of the Void Rift was one of the most vital factors within a Great Spellbook.
And I desperately needed a Void Rift.
Because the Void Rift was the breakthrough point for my research into "Infinite Mana," derived from Prototype Self-Generated Mana.
Right now, I felt like everything was a treasure and I wanted it all. I realized I was being greedy, but there was no helping it.
Learning to properly indulge one's own greed is an instinct one must acquire.
Of course, my own Great Spellbook already contained a Void Rift, but that wasn't easy to study, and the ones torn open by totems were far too specialized.
The main reason, however, was... if I just tore open a Void Rift for no reason, Sister Mei would lecture me!
If it happened within the context of the secret realm, I wouldn't have to take responsibility. Even if the Dean knew I was the mastermind, she would turn a blind eye.
Since the Dean had already set up this Luck-based scheme, she had already accounted for the maximum impact this event could cause.
I was merely giving it a little nudge.
* * *
While I continued researching the Heart of the Cold Wave in my spare moments, within the Glacial Throne Secret Realm, Tan Han and the others had fallen into... a bitter struggle.
Well, they hadn't reached a true dead end yet, but their "cooperation" with the Ancient Remnant Ice had been "exposed."
In reality, someone had simply framed Tan Han with a convenient excuse to target her, but they had accidentally guessed correctly.
Since they were being "slandered" for collaborating with the Ancient Remnant Ice to persecute their fellow students, Tan Han figured she might as well make that cooperation real.
Otherwise, she would truly be suppressed and beaten by everyone else.
But Tan Han wasn't at a total disadvantage; she still had a trump card to turn the tables!
And this trump card was the foundation for their further cooperation with the Ancient Remnant Ice.
That was... the King-Making Ritual!
The King-Making Ritual was an original rite of the Ancient Remnant Ice race, a concept that existed before the Great Glacial Throne Technique. Thus, even if the fragments of the Great Spellbook were incomplete, it didn't mean the ritual couldn't be performed.
Moreover, the most important piece—the crown—was already in the hands of the Ancient Remnant Ice. They needed to exert this transcendent power to a greater degree.
This required professional guidance to reconstruct the ritual.
Actually, what Tan Han needed to worry about now was those people trying to take the fragments out of the secret realm.
Now that the students had broken through the blockade of the dream teleportation points, it meant the opposition could take the fragments away at any time.
However, they generally wouldn't do that.
The reason they had so many people enter the secret realm holding fragments was to gather them all in one place. Unless they realized the fragments would never fall into their hands, they wouldn't resort to such a desperate move.
So... the Ancient Remnant Ice needed to give them hope.
Feigning weakness was currently the best strategy.
The extremely harsh environment of the secret realm reduced direct conflicts between the two sides, providing a significant buffer and the possibility for strategic maneuvering.
The Ancient Remnant Ice had already obtained the "Absolute Zero Crown" from Tan Han to serve as the core, along with the highly specialized Ice Sealed World.
They also had one instance of the Ancient Remnant Ice Transformation.
Of the twelve Hearts of the Cold Wave, they had obtained three, one of which was "provided" by Lucianne.
Based on the large amount of Soul Crystals I had Millian trade for one Heart of the Cold Wave earlier, the Jack-of-all-trades Club should still have one fragment.
As long as they held a fragment, they could maintain the initiative.
These were the current "gains" of the Ancient Remnant Ice.
Excluding the one I held, that meant eight were still missing.
Then there were the very special fragments, such as the Snow Spirit's Blessing held by Yao Beijuan, and the "Ancient Remnant Ice Transformation Great Witchcraft" and "Frost Angel Divine Descent" from the same series as the transformation spell.
These three "transformation spells" from the same series showed different effects in the hands of different races.
But ultimately, what they represented was similar.
It had to be said that the Ancient Remnant Ice's efficiency in gathering these fragments was somewhat underwhelming.
But there was no other way. Under the siege of the Ancient Remnant Ice, it was actually quite easy for the students to prevent their items from being snatched.
Unless a powerful member of the Royal Clan personally took action, it was hard to guarantee absolute suppression.
Even then, nothing was foolproof, let alone when dealing with guard-level units or the common mobs found everywhere.
Furthermore, even after an item was snatched, it was liable to be stolen again before it could be delivered to the Royal Clan.
Those people were obsessed with the fragments. It was only at the very beginning, when some didn't understand the rules and forcibly withdrew, that fragments were left behind for others to pick up easily.
The main issue was that the Ancient Remnant Ice didn't know how to handle the spell-based tracking on the fragments, which was why they were recovered so quickly.
"According to the ritual requirements Xiao Han sent over, the crown—which is a mandatory component—is already in our hands. The Ancient Remnant Ice Transformation represents the guards, the Great Witchcraft represents the common soldiers, and the Divine Descent represents the Royal Clan... Right now we only have the transformation spell, but it's barely enough..."
The Great Glacial Throne Technique was an incredibly complex spell. Or rather, most Great Spellbooks were entire systems; they couldn't be simply categorized as Evocation or Summoning.
At most, they had a slight leaning.
For instance, the Great Glacial Throne Technique appeared to be about manipulating wind and snow, but that was merely one of its most basic powers.
The Ancient Remnant Ice race had endowed it with abilities similar to transformation and summoning.
The transformation spell... was essentially the racial prototype.
Of course, this "summoning" didn't mean summoning actual members of the race, but rather "summoned puppets" or projections shaped by the spell's effects.
Currently, Tan Han was negotiating with the Ancient Remnant Ice Royal Clan, preparing the layout for the first King-Making Ritual.
However, according to Xiao Han, the commotion from holding this ritual would be massive, so it would be impossible to hide it from the people still in the secret realm.
The biggest issue was the ritual site: the "Ice Crystal Temple."
This wasn't an existing structure in the secret realm, but a racial symbol—a palace molded from ice crystals using the entire effort of the Ancient Remnant Ice race.
It would be a massive undertaking.
Even though every member of the Ancient Remnant Ice was a master at controlling wind and snow, building a luxurious palace in a short time was difficult.
Even Tan Han's suggestion to build something simpler was rejected.
Because this building was more like a spiritual pillar for the race; they refused to compromise on it.
This meant that their attempt to construct such a massive complex within the secret realm was destined to be arduous.
If others saw it, they would never allow the Ancient Remnant Ice to complete the construction.
But they had to do it!
This was Tan Han and the others' only chance to turn the tables, the only means to break the deadlock.
It was also the Ancient Remnant Ice race's chance to gain the power and leverage needed to leave this secret realm and face the world outside.
Though they weren't sure if they were qualified to negotiate with witches, having power was never a bad thing!
* * *
"Strange... Sister Bai actually asked to meet me at the villa. That's rare."
Since my main body couldn't leave the laboratory—otherwise the Primitive Dream Laboratory would easily collapse, rendering the "Primitive Dream Laboratory" a name in title only—the one Sister Bai had invited was actually my clone, "Moon."
Moon's appearance was slightly different from my original form.
After all, this clone was frequently active within the academy. If I were recognized every few steps, it would be quite a hassle.
I was just a bit surprised why Sister Bai wanted to meet at the villa. It couldn't be that she's been away so long she’s started craving my clone, could it?
But I remembered that Sister Bai didn't seem to have that kind of "desire" for my clone.
Looking at Sister Bai's villa, it felt like I hadn't been here in a while—and even this time, it was only my clone.
I pushed open the door.
"Sister Bai~ I'm here~"
My voice was light and cheerful, clearly curious about what kind of surprise Sister Bai had prepared for me.
But the moment I saw the two figures inside the villa, I froze.
Because the person standing next to Sister Bai... was Sheryl.