Chapter 47

Magic.

What is magic?

The masters of the Holy Empire's Royal Magic Association quoted the words of the First Empire's founding emperor as the sole interpretation of magic. This great leader, who established the first human kingdom in the barbaric age and brought the art of magic to humanity, said:

"Magic is the miracle produced by humans altering the elemental order, used to heal, strengthen, and assist allies, as well as to curse, destroy, and manipulate enemies. It is a tool for battle, resistance, protection, destruction, and revenge. It is the solace of those who have been abandoned by martial arts and cannot become warriors, and it is a powerful weapon for humans to display their courage and dignity to the threatening other races..."

Those who channel mana to resonate with the elements of heaven and earth and release magic are called mages. However, magic is not the exclusive domain of mages. By solidifying spell models in various ways onto physical objects, these items can store complete spells or semi-permanently possess certain magical properties, allowing those without casting abilities to enjoy the convenience and power of magic. Those who accomplish this are called alchemists.

With the rapid development of magical civilization on the Nolen continent, the branch of alchemy has become increasingly important. Under the efforts of some masters, a relatively complete system has gradually been established, including the fields of potion alchemy, equipment enchantment, and scroll manufacturing. The potions, enchanted equipment, and spell scrolls produced by alchemists are not only enthusiastically pursued by nobles and warriors but are also regarded as indispensable parts of modern warfare by great kings and wise generals.

A heavily equipped cavalry unit with full enchanted gear, sufficient potions, and scrolls can play a decisive role in a war. A vial of invigorating potion can give you the capital to turn the tide when you are in a desperate situation, and a scroll inscribed with a powerful spell can give you a second life in the intricate political struggles.

Recognizing the broad prospects of alchemy, various academies have increasingly emphasized the development of alchemy. Although alchemical products still serve only the strong, the powerful, the wealthy, and the war, rather than entering the daily lives of ordinary people, civilization always develops step by step. Great changes always require the tireless efforts of generations, don't they?

Our protagonist, Sigma Washington, the most beloved (and envied) great genius of Atlas, foresaw the great prospects of alchemy with his wise thinking and long-term vision and was willing to be a pioneer in advancing the wheels of history.

Just like now, he has already begun the great research on high-fidelity artificial humans and artificial intelligence, aiming to create a powerful undead creature from scratch, a mighty being known as a Death Knight. This negative energy creature has the same bodily structure and functions as living beings, but their body parts are not made of flesh and blood. Instead, they are composed of various alchemical and elemental materials, which provide better performance and elemental flexibility—undoubtedly, this will endow the Death Knight with physical strength and spellcasting abilities that living beings find hard to match.

However, the wisdom of one person is limited, and Sigma's genius in alchemy is constantly being suppressed by those who envy him. They force Sigma to practice dark and heavy necromancy, trying to distract him and saying, "You can do whatever you want after you reach the legendary level," with very sinister intentions.

But the resilient Sigma is unwilling to give up.

Even now, with his research encountering bottlenecks, lacking sufficient experimental materials, and without funding, Sigma persists in his research. He brings his work to the door of the Atlas Academy's Alchemy Project Research Fund Review Committee, trying to get his project officially approved. Even if he is mocked and deliberately made difficult, he is unwilling to give up because he loves alchemy the most!

Yes, that's how it's written... Sigma wrote an emotional line in his little notebook, read it from the beginning, and was disgusted by the sappy words, causing goosebumps to fall all over the floor. If the old-fashioned committee members don't agree, don't blame him for posting big-character posters on the streets and alleys, using the name of Atlas's top troublemaker to accuse them of ignoring academic progress and suppressing young people, launching a public opinion offensive to disrupt their peace.

The steel golem guarding the door said in a deep voice, "Next, Sigma Washington."

Sigma straightened his mage robe, nodded to the golem with a smile, and pushed the door open.

After paying respects to the several skilled mages with the title of Grand Alchemist, Sigma opened the box in his hand.

On a red silk, a thirty-centimeter short rod was neatly placed.

The rod's body was a smooth, milky white, with magical runes hidden within, emitting a faint elemental fluctuation.

"Is this the 'Light Saber'?" one of the masters exclaimed in surprise, "Sigma, I read your paper in the 'Magical Weekly' about a new application of the scorching ray. By using special materials and an enchanted force field to construct an elemental circuit, a high-energy scorching ray is confined into the shape of a sword. Relying on the effects of super-magic materials and the elemental circuit, this scorching ray will become a flame blade that can cut through anything. Due to its lightness and operability, the light saber can completely replace the mage dagger and arcane wheel as the new generation of protective weapons for spellcasters—have you already achieved results?"

The head of the examination department, who was also the examiner, adjusted his monocle and nodded in satisfaction, "Even if it's just a rough prototype, it will attract enough attention. Sigma, this work can get you an independent diamond-level research team in the Arcane Armament Department. You, when you're serious, can still do some useful things..."

"Sorry, from a practical and cost perspective, the technology for making light sabers is still not realistic, and this is not a light saber," Sigma explained politely, "In fact, this is just a massage wand."

"A massage... wand?" the head of the department asked in confusion, "What is that?"

"Um, a very useful health product, a massage wand for women." In front of the conservative mages, words were powerless, so Sigma took out the white short rod, held one end, and formed a circle with his left thumb and index finger. The thicker end of the short rod was inserted into the circle, and he moved it in and out rhythmically, nine shallow and one deep.

"The main material is a mixture of Dusk Moon resin, making the touch feel as close to human skin as possible. It is equipped with a weakened version of the ice and fire dual-temperature control array, allowing the temperature to change freely. It also has a vibration spell, which can be adjusted to five levels of amplitude, and a focus spell, which makes the user's spirit more sensitive, and more..." After a brief explanation, Sigma put down the buzzing white short rod. The best student of Atlas Academy raised an eyebrow at the examiners: "Sorry, due to the extreme lack of materials, I couldn't even make a cup, so I could only make this..."

The review hall fell into a deathly silence, as if a legendary mage had cast a large-scale petrification spell here.

After a long time, Sigma broke the silence, cleared his throat, and tentatively asked, "Why do your expressions look like those of a genius youth who, after waking up to find his magic gone, is taken advantage of by his treacherous cousin and still loved by his cousin?"

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PS: The second volume, which is completely insane, has begun. Votes are requested!

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