Chapter 255: Rewards Received
Today is a day worth celebrating.
Because after the exchange competition ended, the academy consolidated various rewards from different colleges and issued them according to rankings.
This notification was not announced within the academy; instead, it was communicated by the counselors, after all, only ten people from the Witch Academy participated in the competition, so there was no need for a campus-wide announcement.
Moreover, such a lack of announcement is also a form of protection for the participants.
After all, if it were announced campus-wide, it would expose their strengths and attract unnecessary hatred.
Don’t underestimate other people’s jealousy; to some extent, it can be the most terrifying thing because no one knows what crazy things they might do at any moment.
Although such things would happen regardless of whether they were mentioned, those wolfish characters would always be on the lookout for their prey, waiting for a moment of weakness to strike.
“These are your rewards. Honestly, seeing so many good things, which bring together the rewards from various colleges, is a bit shocking to me,” Teacher Ji said as she handed me a piece of storage equipment.
“Is this for real? Aren’t you an extraordinary witch, Teacher?”
I calmly took the storage equipment, which felt relatively firm and resembled my student card in style. It had the Witch Academy’s emblem on it, indicating it was specially designed for such rewards and appeared to be quite easy to store items.
“I worry about you, really. I’m the one who has been concerned for you. Originally, the rewards were supposed to be announced, which would foster competition among the new students in the academy, and you know…” At this point, Teacher Ji cast a barrier spell before continuing.
“Tan Han’s identity requires her to undergo continuous training through various challenges, whether it’s dealing with setbacks or healthy competition, even malicious competition; all of it serves as training for her. However, due to you and various other reasons, it hasn’t been announced yet. The academy isn’t willing to take such a big risk. Whether it’s because Tan Han is no longer the only Child of Fortune or because they fear your fortune will be further diluted among upperclassmen, which complicates unified management… In short, it has become this way, making the exchange competition end rather inconclusively…”
“So I should say thank you then?” I smiled and asked. Since the rewards had reached me, I certainly couldn’t maintain a stiff face, right?
“You should indeed thank me, but do you have any idea about the price you need to pay after receiving these rewards?” Teacher Ji asked seriously. In fact, the academy originally intended to announce them but were persuaded otherwise by her.
“Well, my things wouldn’t let others covet them, and I certainly wouldn’t give them up. But does the academy really not intervene?”
“As long as you report it, the academy will certainly take action, but don’t expect them to provide you with a fair resolution; the academy is not your personal protector, you understand what I mean, right?”
“They will intervene, but not extensively, right?” I asked with a smile.
This answer was not unexpected, or rather, they had already done their utmost. The academy’s willingness to intervene represented significant help; if they directly said they would not, then the competition would become even more rampant and unscrupulous, and there would likely be no fair transactions.
“That’s how it is. You may find the academy cruel or indifferent, but their will remains unmoved… Enough of that. With your strength, you should be able to solve quite a few troubles… How about discussing your Magic Source issue? Do you need my help?”
“Of course I do.” I nodded immediately.
Some things should be used when needed without hesitation. Even if those things might be snatched away the next moment, does that mean I can’t use them?
That would indeed be a joke.
Then I opened the storage equipment, and in that instant, I was startled by the overwhelming pile of items inside.
The most eye-catching were the Magic Sources and the Earth Vein Memory Crystals.
I remember during the competition, the first-place reward included over a thousand Earth Vein Memories and five hundred Magic Sources.
Now, with the exchange competition having been held, the ranking rewards from the Witch Academy hadn’t changed, but I had many rewards from other academies as well, though I regretted that I could hardly recognize many of the items.
“Wait… Why are the Magic Sources in odd numbers? Didn’t the first-place reward during the previous competition have five hundred?” After I took out all the Magic Sources, I curiously asked while handling the container that held them.
“Do you remember those resources you obtained after hosting the tea party?” Teacher Ji reminded me.
“Oh… But I didn’t get any back then.”
“The resources designated and summoned were discussed by them to be brought back by Tan Han and then distributed uniformly, so part of your first-place reward is what Tan Han allocated to you.”
“Well, she might be overly kind; things like this should belong to whoever gets them.” I remarked slightly, but in my heart, I felt some gratitude towards Tan Han for not forgetting me.
“Hehe… Don’t take advantage of it and act coy. With these 634 Magic Sources, how much do you have now?”
“634? Probably around 1704… that’s quite fast… I might not need to graduate with at least ten thousand, right?” I calculated a bit and exclaimed.
“Mm? You didn’t know? Before you became an extraordinary witch, the amount of Magic Source you could acquire was about ten thousand.”
“Wait, ten thousand? How did I not know about this? Why?” When Teacher Ji said this, I was instantly stunned.
I only knew that more Magic Sources meant faster witch transformation, and while the transformation rate wasn’t additive in the later stages, if that’s coupled with a limit of ten thousand, wouldn’t the speed of witch transformation have an upper limit?
“Now you know. You actually didn’t know about this? Then do you know that the highest spellbook the academy can provide you with is the Universal Spellbook?”
“I know, since the limit is one hundred thousand, right?”
“Good that you know. So you must understand that you are now also a student who possesses two Excessive Consumption Spellbooks; the Universal Spellbook is hard to come by, but the Excessive Consumption Spellbook holds significant status in the academy… you think about it.”
“Understood…”
I felt an additional weight on my shoulders; after all, possessing something valuable could be a curse, but if one isn’t envied, they are no talent.
As the Magic Sources flowed into my body, I could feel a pressure of power surging throughout me. The Magic Sources were adapting to their new environment within me, and it wouldn’t take long before they would become my own power.
“Now that you have nearly two thousand, how does your body feel?” Ji asked.
“Not bad. My physical condition feels stronger, and even though I don’t meditate much every day, my mental power continues to steadily improve.”
“You should meditate more; mental power is crucial for many things.”
“Mm, I will.”
I nodded. Since Teacher Ji said meditation was essential, I should plan to extend my meditation time a bit.
It’s not that I don’t want to meditate from morning to night; if that were the case, I couldn’t sit still myself, even with the guidance of integrating knowledge and practice. Doing so continuously would lead to problems sooner or later.
“You’ve also gained quite a few spellbooks this time. How do you plan to handle them? I can’t guarantee that you won’t receive duplicate spellbooks, but… even if they are duplicates, you can still use them, just that they will have the same effects; at most, you won’t need to wait for the so-called cooldown of the spellbooks.”
“There could really be duplicates… but it’s fine. This exchange competition has taught me a lot, and I intend to thoroughly organize my spellbooks. My own spellbook collection is somewhat chaotic and lacks structure; some I haven’t even used much, and others with similar effects may have conflicts.” I thought for a moment and said.
While I may lament that my methods are somewhat inadequate, there are indeed spells I haven’t had the chance to use, such as the Spirit Cat Summoning Spell, the Falcon Summoning Spell, the Hypnosis Melody, and even the high-consumption spell Shadow Legion Summoning Spell that I haven’t used yet.
“Indeed, you should organize your spellbooks. Sometimes having more does not mean better. You should also confirm your own spell system. I see you have a fondness for manipulation spells; that’s a good choice.”
“But I can’t deny that other spells have significant effects, even if they are not strongly offensive.” I added.
“Arguing with you on this is pointless; you decide what to do. However, it’s time for you to build your own spell library to cope with various situations.”
“A spell library…”
“Of course! Every formal extraordinary witch has her own spell library. Many witches enjoy collecting various spellbooks. You can say that every extraordinary witch is essentially a moving spellbook repository.”
“Is that so?” Although I had considered this possibility, hearing Teacher Ji say it still shocked me.
Witches have long lifespans; thus, the spellbooks they collect naturally increase in number. However, surely many of those would go unused. To organize and form a spellbook library, does that not represent depth? I may not use them, but I cannot do without them.
If only I could have such depth as well.
Originally, I was thinking of whether to organize and sell the unused spellbooks to exchange for other resources I desired. Now I really have no intention of selling them.
After all, I aim to become an extraordinary witch, and depth is formed by gradual accumulation, which reminds me of the small treasury that Store Manager Shali has. I wonder how much she has spent to collect so much?
“What’s wrong? Started daydreaming?” Teacher Ji’s words brought me back to reality. “It’s fine; I don’t restrict your fantasizing. However, if you want to turn your fantasies into reality, you need to take one step at a time.”
“I got it.” I turned my head, feeling ashamed to be interrupted while daydreaming.
“Good that you understand. I have no other matters, but before you leave, I think we can make a deal.”
“A deal? What kind of deal?” I looked at Teacher Ji in slight surprise; unexpectedly, she would make a deal with me?
“I have a somewhat special high-consumption spellbook, and I’d like to trade it for things that you may not need, such as Earth Vein Memory or Earth Vein materials, as well as other irrelevant items from other academies.”
“Ah? Why?”
That was my first reaction; Teacher Ji doesn’t need to be my garbage disposal, right? Although I don’t lack high-consumption spellbooks right now, in the academy, such a level of spellbook still holds considerable value, second only to the Excessive Consumption Spellbooks.
If the Universal Spellbook is hard to come by, then Excessive Consumption Spellbooks are foundational resources in many groups and clubs within the Witch Academy, while high-consumption spellbooks serve as commonly used trump cards.
“Because I’m a counselor, and I manage Class 14, which includes you as both the class leader and my group member. That’s why I take extra care of you. You can ignore the class, but I can’t; I trade that high-consumption spellbook for things you don’t want, and I can use it to reward and impose penalties in class—it’s a win-win situation for me, isn’t it? Moreover, I’m announcing it in your name to the class, so you receive the benefits and the reputation; what do you think?”
“Uh…”
“Is it difficult to decide? Or do you have any concerns?” Teacher Ji asked curiously, as if she thought this was a pretty good deal.
Additionally, the spellbook she prepared was a special effect spellbook, which she believed would attract students with a long-term vision.
She knows that Xiao Han does not lack destructive spells, and such a special effect spellbook is more likely to pique her interest.
“What does this incentive mean? Are you distributing it directly to them?”
“Similar to rewards for good performance; nothing for poor performance. You aren’t worried that I would squander the rewards you gained from the exchange competition, are you?”
“Um… That’s not it… I just don’t want some people to gain without effort…” I said somewhat shyly.
“There’s no such thing as gaining without effort in this world; only equal value yields equal benefits. Gaining without labor will lead to misfortune.”
“True…”
I fully agree with Teacher Ji’s words, but sometimes, this saying needs to be adjusted; it should be changed to ‘only value that is demonstrated can yield equal benefits to avoid calamity.’
I’m a new student, and I haven’t had the chance to demonstrate “value” to those older students, so with me obtaining so many resources, I might attract calamity.
Even though I had already displayed my strength during the exchange competition, it remains true; strength is also a form of value, which can maintain equal value.
Perhaps my current identity as a new student makes me too conspicuous, causing an imbalance.
Some always harbor hopes of fortune without effort.
“Then, do you accept this deal?”
“Can I take a look at what spellbook it is first? Teacher Ji, don’t try to deceive me with duplicate spellbooks.”
“Am I really that untrustworthy of a witch? You don’t trust me at all? Rest assured, although it’s a high-consumption spellbook, strictly speaking, it can also be considered a non-restrictive consumption spellbook, and it’s quite a famous one—it’s the Spellbook Rack Spellbook,” Teacher Ji said.
She would not only tell Xiao Han the name of this spellbook but also share information about other things, which is what a teacher should do. It also allowed her to understand the importance of this spellbook and learn more about the Void.
She’s not afraid of Xiao Han learning too much; she’s afraid of her learning too little, as she is destined to appear on the stage of the Void.
“What? Spell…book rack…spellbook? What kind of tongue twister is that?”
“This is a prototype spell that was severely underestimated. Its effect is to create a book rack that can hold spellbooks; generally, spellbooks require a physical entity for support, but this spell breaks that perception, making spells themselves carry the spellbooks. Oh, of course, Earth Vein Energy has a carrying characteristic; it also acts as a medium for non-physical spellbook support, but let’s set that aside for now.”
“Only serving the function of carrying spellbooks? Can’t my body hold spellbooks too? Isn’t that a repetition of effects?”
I frowned and asked.
“Well… from an effect perspective, that is indeed the case, but you missed the keywords in my earlier lengthy explanation—prototype spell.”
“Prototype spell… oh! The derived spells are the key!”
“Exactly! Without prototype spells, there are no derived spells. The derived spells are crucial; the less noticeable the spell, the more likely its derived spells will be unexpected. The Spellbook Rack is such a spell.”
“So… what are its derived spells?”
“Sorry, I can’t tell you that. Xiao Han, you need to understand one thing: while derived spells may seem simple to you, in the grand scheme of the world and the endless Void outside, these belong to the domain of geniuses. I can barely count as a genius myself, so you will need to explore this on your own. All I can tell you is that its upper limit is very high. Whether you agree to this deal or not is up to you; I won’t push you since this is merely a suggestion I made.”
“Is there no information regarding the derived spells of this spell? The extraordinary techniques and knowledge…”
“Techniques and knowledge aren’t automatically known just because you hear about them. However, I can describe the effects of those derived spells, but before that, do you know which type of spell is more prevalent among prototype and derived spells?”
“Roughly the same?” I tentatively asked.
“They are indeed about the same, but within derived spells, a good portion is also prototype spells. Remember that I’ve mentioned the Fireball Spell and the Explosive Flame Technique; they are different expressions of the same prototype spell, right? However, the Explosive Flame Technique is also a derived spell that originates from the Fireball Spell, but it can also be used as a prototype spell for further derivation.”
“This is how the statistics for the numerous derived spells come about. Regardless of effects or damage, the value of derived spells always exceeds that of prototype spells, not for any particular reason, but simply because they are rare and precious. Prototype spells can always be obtained in some way, but derived spells cannot.”
“So lower-level spells have more derived spells, but higher-level ones have significantly fewer, even to the point of being closely guarded secrets?” I nodded, slightly understanding.
“Those who understand derived spells get it, while those who don’t, won’t understand for life. Saying they are closely guarded secrets is about right, but generally, witches enjoy sharing. Most of them are like that. At most, they have their derived spell names eternally recorded in the history of the Witch World. However, even when shared, not all witches can create them again through true editing; some derived spells cannot even be produced a second time by their original creators.”
“So even I, if I obtain this Spellbook Rack, will also be gambling that I can derive special effect derived spells?”
“Right… If you can derive from the high-consumption spellbook, then you might become a revered guest among those extraordinary witches in the Witch Academy who master genuine editing techniques. Do you know what that implies? They will seek you out like students asking you to teach them the principles behind this derived spell.”
“Alright… I accept the deal, but I hope my original derived spells won’t…”
“They won’t. Do you think those teachers who are extraordinary witches would fail to recognize even those elementary derived spell effects that you have derived?”
“I said nothing; I was just asking.” I chuckled awkwardly. It seems my current achievements are still child’s play in the eyes of extraordinary witches…
But as for the derived spells… I think I’ll set that aside for now. At this stage, my primary focus should still be mastering the techniques and solidifying the foundation, especially since I haven’t fully grasped Rune Literature yet. There’s no need to rush.
I can’t believe I’d still have luck hunting for opportunities before a high-consumption spellbook.
At that time, even an elemental sprite’s protective spell book left me feeling overwhelmed; now, it’s better to proceed with caution.
However, it seems I can take this opportunity to collaborate with Teacher Ji to work on my Memory Shelf spellbook, not needing to derive anything, just a slight magical modification. I really don’t want to copy until my hands ache.
Such matters are always better prepared than done in a rush.
It is also a chance to stay low-key in Teacher Ji’s office, as I might just run into some senior outside the teaching building.
