Chapter 277: Hold It, the Boss is About to Speak!

Chapter 277: Hold It, the Boss is About to Speak!

The news about the Witch’s Secret Treasure drew many people, but it didn’t affect Zheng Yichen’s daily life much. He had no intention of claiming that thing anyway. If it had been something like the ruin Irene left behind, he might have tried his hand at sneaking in. But right now, he had more important matters at hand. Irene’s research had finally yielded results. Zheng Yichen, who had been waiting so long his heart felt cold, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

If he’d had to wait any longer, he was prepared to forge some Magic Arms as filler to get it over with.

“Something bafflingly profound…” Zheng Yichen stared at the thick notebook in front of him, a headache forming. Irene had written this book herself. Unlike the books full of pointless ramblings, every page here was solid, valuable knowledge. The entire notebook recorded the power formed by the merging of ice and fire. Zheng Yichen wasn’t completely unable to understand it, but studying it was still quite taxing.

“Study it slowly. I’ve uncovered some results regarding that power, but for now, it’s only suitable for my use,” Irene said. She held up two fingers, and elemental energy of red and blue gathered under the pull of her Mana. The two powers spiraled together, slowly touched, and their colors gradually blurred, forming a pale purple force mixed with red and blue.

“This purple force remains an elemental power, but it inherits traits from both the Ice Element and Fire Element. This fused power cannot exist alone. It requires constant infusion from both its ‘pillar’ elements to appear. Otherwise, it fades away very quickly.”

“Fades away? Not explode?” Zheng Yichen asked.

“No, it disappears. Once this fused power exists independently, irreversible internal dissipation occurs. It completely vanishes in a very short time. After all, it belongs outside the normal elemental affinities. It needs the foundational elemental energies to sustain it.”

Without the combination of opposing forces, new energy wouldn’t form? This extra-normal energy wasn’t like regular elemental power that could naturally gather continuously and endlessly. Extra-normal energy was akin to an incredibly rare blood type—one in ten thousand, or even unique. Naturally, it couldn’t be easily maintained like common elemental powers. This merged power itself was an unusual energy form. Merely blending two elements didn’t suddenly grant it stability or tolerance; in fact, their conflict became stronger.

Born from water and fire elements, it couldn tolerate even a trace of an elemental power on its own. It requires both elements feeding in precise proportions to sustain it. Without the ‘pillars’ to support its existence, it would internally deplete and vanish. That was why Irene intertwined the two elemental powers spirally. The initial point of fusion generated the new power, but to sustain it, the merging point became the endpoints feeding the new center.

After spending a long time studying Irene’s research notes, Zheng Yichen gained a clearer understanding of this power’s mechanics. It remained somewhat perplexing. With the existence of the ‘pillars’, it could unleash force far surpassing a simple collision of ice and fire elements. Without the ‘pillars’, it couldn’t even create a ripple; the internal dissipation… Was it maybe that the two powers merged too deeply, with an over-precise balance, and without external stimulation, reacted differently, completely annihilating each other in a perfect one-to-one cancellation?

“Hmm… No, that might not be right. Your idea has merit,” Irene said, listening to Zheng Yichen’s thoughts. She frowned deeply, sitting back in her chair and falling into a brief silence. “With the elemental powers as the pillars, the generated merged force is already a new type of power. So, mutual cancellation is less likely. What’s more plausible is that without the pillar forces to sustain it, this power undergoes a qualitative change that causes internal dissipation.”

“You didn’t just finish the research, did you?” Zheng Yichen asked, surprised by her thoughtful posture. Given the long wait, he had thought Irene had things figured out already.

“Of course not. I wouldn’t make you wait that long unnecessarily. I came here immediately after I got the results.”

“I appreciate that then,” Zheng Yichen pondered for a moment. “Could it be that the purple force itself lacks any direct lethality? Its role is merely a catalyst? It acts on the pillar forces—ice and fire elements—triggering a super strong annihilation explosion?”

Irene’s brow smoothed instantly. She gave Zheng Yichen a long, deep look. “It was definitely right to come straight to you after the experimental breakthrough.”

Though Zheng Yichen’s knowledge of Magic was far inferior to hers, he possessed understanding from another system of knowledge. She had indeed learned Chinese from him, but that was just the language. Text alone could help her grasp concepts from his system more easily; it didn’t grant her mastery over its entirety.

If the purple force was positioned as a catalyst, several uncertainties from her experiments could be resolved. When studying the purple force, she had been puzzled. It had unique fluctuations, but they were extremely inert. Without its pillars, it dissipated immediately. Also, it repelled other forces wildly, yet forcing other powers into it didn’t trigger uncontrollable explosions.

Therefore, labeling it a catalyst fit perfectly. It catalyzed the explosive potential when ice and fire powers collided while simultaneously maintaining their fusion, holding them in a controllable state while it existed!

Irene pondered this. A semi-transparent Magic Barrier shimmered into existence around her. Within it, she raised both hands. Her left hand held the purple merged force from the fusion of ice and fire elements. The red and blue lights were spaced far apart, with thin, spiraling filaments of purple energy separating them at the center. The true meeting points were back at the endpoints. But Zheng Yichen realized this was just a sustained state.

Irene could force all the elemental energies together in an instant if she wished—yet the result would be a mass of purple force that would immediately dissipate…

Then Zheng Yichen saw light and dark elements appear around Irene’s right hand. He twitched and instinctively retreated several steps, controlling his Alchemical Avatar. The purple fused energy had stabilizing and catalyzing effects on conflicting elemental forces… But it was generated from fire and ice elements. Its effects were intrinsically tied to them. What possible relevance could it have to other types of power?

Zheng Yichen felt Irene’s attempt was terribly risky. Concerned, he layered several extra Barriers around the spot, just in case she lost control of the chaotic surge.

Gradually, Irene coaxed the merged force, carefully directing it towards the space between the light and dark elements. The instant the three kinds of energy touched, the light and dark powers erupted violently, bursting into a considerable explosion.

When elemental forces clash, explosions are usually the inevitable outcome.

“Cough… indeed not possible. The purple fusion force is only applicable to fire and ice elements,” Irene spoke calmly, dismissing the Magic Barrier around her. She gave a light cough. That confined explosion had been formidable; channeled and contained entirely within her barrier, the backlash should have harmed her far worse. Yet she appeared utterly unscathed. “Other elemental affinities require entirely new research paths.”

“After you figure out merged forces for all affinities… why not try merging those fused powers again? Repeat it to infinity? Maybe you’ll finally create that legendary force… Chaos Force.”

“From novels?” Irene asked, uncertain. While learning Chinese within Zheng Yichen’s Dreamscape, she’d encountered that term. Zheng Yichen had vaguely explained it originated in fiction or other peculiar channels, without concrete details. So, upon hearing Zheng Yichen’s bafflingly profound ‘Chaos Force,’ her mind naturally made that connection.

“Ahem… just thinking out loud.” Zheng Yichen coughed lightly. Though… could an ultimate force merging all disparate elements be described that way? The sheer complexity involved dismissed any thoughts of attempting it himself—at least not for a long time. Yet, the idea itself seemed worth noting in his personal records.

“What is it?”

Seeing his distraction, Irene asked.

“Hm? Just realized that passing thoughts can be preserved as sparks of inspiration. Anyway, let’s set that aside. Finishing the Magic Arms business is the real task right now.”

Irene nodded. Though solving the fusion of fire and ice elements had granted her deeper comprehension of power and broadened her perspectives, leading to substantial new research avenues—accumulation like this was how one gained strength! For now, fulfilling their agreement mattered more.

The first weapons crafted were naturally the pair—Xihe Sword and Wangshu Sword. Watching the forging process unfold, Zheng Yichen counted at least ten shimmering Detection Magic circles Irene continuously wove around the weapons—and those were only the ones he could perceive. How many others remained unseen? She was truly straining every method to gather data!

Work on Xihe Sword and Wangshu Sword consumed a full half-month. Zheng Yichen wanted it done faster. But even with Irene’s fundamental discoveries on merging fire and ice, practical application onto the Magic Arms posed countless hurdles they hadn’t anticipated. Most of those two weeks were consumed by debugging and modifications—just getting the foundational stability resolved took nearly a full fortnight, tackling core issues like the shifting of water to ice. Only then were the rest of the sessions dedicated to solving minor flaws before shaping the final weapons.

Just as these unique Magic Arms were finished, critical barriers around the Witch’s Hidden Treasure ground—the long-impenetrable entrance—were finally overcome. The atmosphere among the gathered factions turned abruptly grave. It wasn’t competition over entry order—tensions between key factions resolved through prior negotiations, exchanges, and unseen maneuvers—entry succession strictly followed the prearranged plan. The gravity of mood… was just obligatory ceremony. Remaining lackadaisical would undermine this entire significant undertaking!

“Well then… let’s begin.” Achille stepped forward first. As their longstanding ‘Boss’ and anchor of authority, his move was expected and sanctioned. Positioned respectfully elsewhere, several figures carrying immense elemental presence—visibly aged yet radiating power—nodded ever so slightly in assent. Though many among the crowd were itching to surge inward, under the overwhelming power projection of these seniors, silence held firm. Not until these figures spoke could action start!

“Huh? The Magic Arms got updated! What’s ‘Paired Magic Axes’?” An entirely inappropriate, youthful female voice broke the pervasive tension mid-word. Realizing her disruption, ‘Lena’ offered a sheepish, slightly fearful smile. “I… got too absorbed unexpectedly?”

“Hmph!” A white-haired elder gave a cold snort. Lena instantly paled, staggering backward two steps as if physically struck by his power projection. She inwardly seethed… already mentally logging the elder onto her ‘payback list.’

Utterly unaware that, unknowingly, he’d incurred serious trouble, the white-haired elder swept a stern gaze across the assembly. Lena’s interruption shattered the solemn tone; worse, it diverted attention significantly. A considerable number here were practicing Magic Weapon Summoner! Over a month prior, the enigmatic Creator behind the Magic Weapon Summoning Book announced a pending significant update, delaying until this precise, fraught moment! If they were standard weapons, it might be forgivable… but judging by the girl’s surprised tone, these were incredibly unique magic items! Amidst the coming battle for the Witch’s Arcane Treasure—even with power-level restrictions guarding the vault, excluding overpowered figures—securing the prize remained uncertain. Now… if an unexpectedly potent Magic Arm arose? Even a marginal edge could offer new hope. Thus… many secretly opened their Magic Weapon Summoning Books to check the newly released weapons. Suddenly… the revered senior figures poised to speak found themselves confronting a uniquely awkward silence. Moments ago, their words commanded absolute attention. Now? Look at these youths! Heads bent over… that thrice-damned book! Look! Look all you want! Obsessed with mere toys! Truly wasting potential!

“Oho! Lao Yan, this newly released Magic Arms… looks like it’d suit you well!”

“Hey! Ice geezer, this one looks perfect for you! How fitting should it be?” The elder nicknamed ‘Lao Yan’ answered with a wide smile.

Another elder glowered fiercely at him from nearby. “That design screams ‘feminine.’ What use would I have for such a weapon? Or… are you entertaining some… strange notions about me?!!”

“Where’d that come from? But that Ultimate Art within it… looks incredibly powerful. Known each other decades… how about testing it someday?”

Seeing that even one major player had fallen into examining the new additions, the remaining Magic Weapon Summoner felt less inclined to stealthily peek. They glanced more openly. This left the few ‘venerable seniors’ clinging precariously to gravitas even more acutely embarrassed… having missed their opportune moment to speak, retreat openly felt impossible. Achille, fortunately… had spoken earlier and withdrawn without fuss… well away… waiting… silently… perhaps internally gritting his teeth watching the scene.