Chapter 884: 669 Chapter Academic Research
Saint Danze looked at the old man in front of him with a smile.
"Yes, yes, I rushed over as soon as I received your message, but I didn’t expect to meet such an interesting little girl, hahaha!"
Master Slade laughed as he spoke, his eyes fixed on Ailin, filled with admiration.
"Little girl, who is your teacher? Who taught you that ancient magic?" Slade asked.
"None of your business." Ailin glared fiercely at Slade, her mood clearly foul since her magic had been interrupted.
"Hehe, you little girl, don’t you recognize me?" Slade seemed somewhat surprised.
"Are you famous or something?" Ailin looked the man up and down, not recognizing him at all, then glanced at Long Yi, who pursed his lips and shrugged, also not recognizing.
"Tsk tsk, I thought I was rather well-known. But to think that there are people who don’t recognize me because I haven’t been out and about for a while?" Although Slade’s face bore a smile, his words carried a hint of reproach.
The Divine Auffa Empire’s third Crown Prince, St. Antonio, hurried over and said, "Miss Ailin, this is Master Slade. He’s one of the foremost mages in the entire plane. His research on Giant magic has always led the way for magic studies throughout the plane, and many of his published papers on magic research have become the standard textbooks for our current magic practices! It can be said that, whether in terms of combat power or research capability, Master Slade is absolutely outstanding."
Listening to St. Antonio’s introduction, Ailin’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, and then she suddenly realized.
"Oh! I remember now, I once saw an article in your research institute about the study of mana geometrical shapes, signed by Slade!" Ailin said to Long Yi.
"During the active guidance process under different rules, the spatial geometric distribution of mana. Yes, that’s my work," said Slade, his unvanished smile softening a bit, as it was one of his proudest pieces. It was precisely because of this research that he had managed to raise the plane’s standard for magic damage by seven percent. That seven percent might seem small, but it could decide whether or not you could penetrate someone’s mana shield!
"So it was you who wrote that." Ailin nodded her little head.
"Yes, that person was me," Slade stated.
"To publish such an incomprehensible piece and still dare to show your face, it must have been hard for you. If I were you, I’d die of shame, wishing I could claim my guard wrote that article instead, yet here you are, proudly admitting to it! Aren’t you embarrassed?" Ailin fired away.
Slade, who was about to say something more, choked all his words back. He had never expected anyone to dare to question his academic level!
"You little brat, I heard from Emperor Saint Danze about an emerging genius girl, which is why I personally came to see if you needed any advice. Yet, you speak so rudely, showing no manners at all! You lack upbringing!" Slade’s face lost its smile as he pointed at Ailin in admonishment.
"Oh, really? We were in the middle of a duel, and you come over and disrupt her magic, having no shred of talent yourself and still shamelessly talking about giving me advice? Where’s the upbringing in this old fool?" Ailin immediately pointed back and retorted.
"I—," where ever Slade went, he was revered, people calling him ’Master’. When had he ever been treated like this?
"Still not convinced? Come on then, if you disagree, let’s have a contest, whether it’s magic or hand-to-hand combat, it’s your choice. Of course, your proudest magic research is also fine! I really want to see what more embarrassing stuff you can come up with!" Ailin was up for anything.
Had she never heard of Slade? Impossible! Since Ailin had decided to thoroughly study this world, the name Slade was unavoidable. Ailin had heard of him, and so had Long Yi. As for his contributions to this plane, Ailin could know clearly through various documents. However, what was equally as well-known as Master Slade’s research was his greedy nature. Greedy for wealth, money, and beauty. Using the name of Master, he had always been voraciously accumulating these things. Not to mention, for many years now, he had been recruiting many young female students annually. But as for how he taught them, it was an open secret.
Highly knowledgeable; powerful in strength; just lacking virtue, that was the plane-wide consensus about Slade.
Upon hearing Ailin’s challenge to his pride, his magic research, all of Slade’s anger vanished. His greedy eyes took another look at Ailin, the silver form-fitting armor highlighting her tall, perfect, and voluptuous figure; her fair complexion; and her delicate features revealed perfection in every aspect!
"You want to challenge me? Alright, what do you want to challenge?" Slade reclaimed his Master’s demeanor.
"Whatever you like, you’re so easy to beat that it really doesn’t matter to me," Ailin said, nonchalantly waving her hand.
"Alright. But as your senior, I shouldn’t bully a child, so let’s not compare magic. Let’s see whose magic research is more impressive?" Slade proposed.
"Fine, if I win, you better scram," Ailin said impatiently.
"Alright, but if I win, you have to come with me and become my student!" Slade declared.
"Hahaha! Congratulations, Master, on getting a new female student!" Saint Danze applauded from the sidelines, as did Saint Karen and Saint Ailun at the same time.
"Don’t do it, Miss Ailin!" St. Antonio exclaimed in alarm.
"Shut up! Why worry about an old fool like that?" Ailin dismissively snapped.
"Very well, come then, since that’s the case, let this old fool set a question," Slade glared at St. Antonio, who immediately hid behind Saint Jialin.
"I hear, Miss Ailin, that you’re actually pretty good at magic research," Saint Jialin suddenly whispered.
"Actually, she’s very, very impressive!" St. Antonio smiled, not a hint of worry on his face; it was all an act to confuse Slade!
"Hurry up and set the question! Stop wasting time! And, Xiaohong! Get down here!"
The massive Red Demon Scorpion slammed down heavily, its three crystal stingers filled with lethal energy.
"Xiaohong, keep an eye on our surroundings. The moment that old bastard leaves, hit them with indiscriminate fire immediately. I want to make today the day the Sanctuary Empire’s Emperor will mourn!"
At Ai Lin’s command, the three crystal stingers on the Red Demon Scorpion’s tail merged into one, doubling in size in the blink of an eye! The scarlet crystal glowed with a fatal light, and the rune armor all over its body lit up continuously. This was the state of full combat readiness!
Slade’s eye sockets twitched, clearly unaware of the Red Demon Scorpion’s capabilities. Despite his great strength, he had never seen such a huge Red Demon Scorpion before. And this one had three stingers!
Meanwhile, Long Yi took a step forward.
"Little Zi, Lingling."
The adorable little maid flew out, and Lingling also stepped out of her private space.
"Prepare for battle. As soon as Xiaohong starts the attack, we make our move," Long Yi said.
Slade’s eye sockets twitched again.
My God, what am I seeing! A Female Demon! And a Sanctuary-level Female Demon at that! So powerful! So beautiful! And that crystal Golem, what in the world is it made of?
These are mine! All mine!
Slade shouted inside his mind but didn’t show it outwardly. On the surface, he still maintained his affable demeanor.
"Since you just dismissed my research, perhaps we should discuss the issue of Mana’s spatial geometric distribution during the active guiding process under different rules," Slade said.
"You’re kidding, right? Are you really going to discuss such a childish issue?" Ai Lin said.
"Yes, let’s start with something easy as a warm-up, and then move on to something harder." Slade said.
However, Slade knew very well that although the problem seemed simple, it had troubled many Magic scholars for hundreds of years. Had it not been for his own pioneering and inconceivable approach, he might still be stuck at the same place. A mere seven percent was enough to make Slade a Master.
"Alright then, describe your formula model first," Ai Lin said.
With a slight smile, Slade manipulated Mana within his hands, and various runes rose up, forming large symbols. These symbols then composed Arrays. These Arrays were intricate and floated in the air, the fundamentals of Magic; formula and model. During actual spellcasting, these would flash into existence under the influence of Mana, but only for an instant. Yet even this brief moment of progress was exceedingly difficult to achieve.
"That’s it?" Ai Lin asked disdainfully.
"Yes, this is it. I replaced one of the formulas here with a new one, which I have named the Slade Formula," Slade said, swapping in a new formula. Immediately, the Array changed.
"With the Slade Formula replaced, the output of Mana increased by seven percent," Slade said proudly.
Clap clap clap! Saint Danze led the way as the entire Divine Auffa Empire clapped for Slade. Slade tilted his head back high, yes, he accepted this honor. It was the honor he deserved.
"Okay, let me think," Ai Lin said.
"If you’d like, I can give you a month to think it over, so I could..."
"That’s enough, I’ve thought of it." Ai Lin cut in before Slade could finish speaking.
"Understand this, little girl. Don’t think of using any sleight of hand to trick me. I, Master Slade, am not one to miss a ruse!" Slade whispered.
"Shut up, you imbecile, and watch closely!"
Ai Lin opened her hands, and runes flew out, forming a model identical to the one in front of Slade.
This surprised Slade, for while many Mages could use Magic, breaking down the spell formula was as difficult as laying claim to their life.
"Look, this is your formula," Ai Lin pointed to a spot, and Slade nodded, it was exact.
"Now, let me make a slight alteration to this formula."
In Ai Lin’s hands, the Slade Formula transformed, becoming a brand new formula. Even simpler, yet the power of the Array increased by thirty percent almost simultaneously!
"See, a casual tweak can raise it by thirty percent, and that’s on top of your laughable seven percent."
Slade was completely dumbfounded. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
