Chapter 760: Arrangements of 【Extraordinary Knowledge】
As the announcement for the start of the match rang out in the arena, both sides immediately brought forth their most favored tactics.
Tan Han also quickly activated the Absolute Cold Wand, as if she was no longer holding back, preparing to seize the initiative.
The wand head transformed from the crown of absolute zero emitted a faint cold light, and in an instant, a sweeping cold wave surged forth, lowering the entire arena’s temperature.
The moisture in the air condensed into ice and snow, gradually falling down.
With just a single swing, the protective spell at the forefront of the viewing platform forcibly manifested.
And Tan Han’s opponent, the teaching assistant, was equally unwilling to fall behind, starting off with the Excessive Consumption Spellbook.
Since her opponent was Tan Han, if she still thought about probing and taking advantage in such a matchup, she could very well face a catastrophic defeat, unable to deploy her subsequent tactics.
Boom——!
As the high-intensity spell collision commenced, it instantly ignited the spectators’ passion!
This is exactly what they wanted to see!
No sneak attacks, no underhanded tricks, no probing; the opening was a collision of spells with such intensity and level! The explosion of energy, the intense sound, and the stunning elemental effects were the best performance to stimulate the audience’s senses!
“Is Tan Han’s Absolute Cold Wand actually an amplification magic wand?” I asked in surprise as I watched the clash between Tan Han and the teaching assistant.
After all, it was a weapon made by Sister Natalie, and I had seen the weapon when I went to find her, but I hadn’t understood its properties.
At first, I thought this weapon was a solidified attack-type weapon mode; after all, the crown of absolute zero itself is a kind of cold approaching the pseudo-domain level, and the activation level should have been comparable to the Excessive Consumption Spellbook of ‘Fire Rain Domain’ that I possessed.
But to my surprise, Tan Han was using the wand not in that attack mode, but as an attack carrier with other ice-type spellbooks, amplifying them with the Absolute Cold Wand, allowing even a simple Ice Spike spell to unleash tremendous cold wave power.
“If it is an amplification weapon… that wouldn’t be entirely incorrect,” the store manager remarked from the side.
As the important core’s former owner of this weapon, she was naturally familiar with the abilities of the Absolute Cold Wand as she accompanied Tan Han in getting accustomed to it.
“Initially, we only regarded it as a sealed item to be contained, but that alchemy master Natalie surprisingly managed to utilize its absolute zero properties to create a more functional amplification magical tool…”
“I see.” I nodded, acknowledging that it made sense. Sister Natalie, whom I introduced to Tan Han and the others, was indeed very capable, even if I wasn’t completely aware of her abilities.
Moreover, I could still sense that the seal on the Absolute Cold Wand in Tan Han’s hand had not been fully lifted. It seemed that it was not merely an amplification magic wand; there should be a means to fully release absolute zero on it, but I felt this method likely categorized as one that could affect both enemies and allies, thus should not be used lightly.
However, it was still not Tan Han’s trump card.
After examining Tan Han’s previous battles, I validated this guess, because this method was what allowed Tan Han to win against that teaching assistant last time.
The teaching assistant in the arena was probably cautious precisely because she feared Tan Han would use this move.
“Store manager, can I curiously ask about that portion of 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 in Tan Han’s possession?” I inquired with curiosity.
“Of course, Xiao Han, what do you want to ask? But… I don’t actually know a lot…”
“I want to ask what parts are missing if we want to complete this 【Extraordinary Knowledge】? For now, all I know is that the crown of absolute zero in your possession and that bead-like Heart of Cold Wave belong to fragments; are there any others?”
“Well… I actually can’t be very sure… I only know that this crown in my possession is the unique and largest among the fragments, and regarding the Heart of Cold Wave… I’m not sure about the exact count, but… I suspect it’s 12 pieces, as its shape corresponds to the 12 embedded slots on the crown.”
“There are so many Hearts of Cold Wave?” I muttered to myself.
“Indeed, there are quite a lot.”
“Then… would the store manager share how you obtained this crown? Of course, if it’s inconvenient, just treat it as if I didn’t ask; I’m just a bit curious.”
“Story…” The store manager seemed to fall into memories upon my question, “How shall I put it? I was still a student at the time, conducting research on a new topic with my mentor, probably… at that stage.”
“Probably?” I felt puzzled, acquiring this crown should have been an important time point; the impression should have been quite profound.
“After all, it was quite a long time ago… I’ve graduated from the Witch Academy for many years now, and it’s been long enough that… my mentor has already left the Witch Academy…”
“Eh? Left?”
“Yes, the turnover of mentors at the Witch Academy; Xiao Han, you are a teaching assistant, so you should know that the witch mentors leave after a period of time and new mentors come in, right?”
“I understand now; so that’s what you meant by ‘left’.” I nodded, realizing.
“Exactly, because my mentor left, I severed the last connection with the Witch Academy, so… I couldn’t guard this 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 fragment anymore, and ultimately, I chose to pass the responsibility of protecting it to Tan Han.”
“Then does the store manager have a compelling reason to guard it? A treasure you can’t guard yourself; rather than spending all your energy on it, it’s better to let go of this trouble, which can be seen as a relief for yourself.”
“A compelling reason to guard it… The mere value of this 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 fragment is enough for me to protect it, right? This is a trophy I earned during my prime of youth, and its significance to me even exceeds its own value. Even if my mentor told me it was too early for me to come in contact with this… but who hasn’t been young and reckless?”
“Then may I ask, store manager, who were you competing with to seize it at that time?” I continued to ask.
Although the store manager had been sharing a lot of things with me, she seemed to be evading the story of what had happened back then, so I had to piece together what had occurred bit by bit through my inquiries.
However… based on the luck this 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 has tainted and the fact that Principal Mei explicitly recognized that this was part of the script’s layout, I could probably guess some of the truth; the store manager likely became a pawn driven by luck, guarding it until now.
“Well, many academies were vying for it at the time, at least three top academies were involved, but it was still limited to conflicts among students, which has become an implicit tradition among the various extraordinary academies.”
“So many extraordinary academies’ students participated in the fight… With so many extraordinary academies converging, this 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 must have caused quite a stir, right?”
“Yes, I remember that area suffered a severe snow disaster, and it was precisely due to the abnormal weather in that area that it attracted many extraordinary academy participants, ultimately discovering that it was this 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 causing trouble. However… at that time, we didn’t know the concept of 【Extraordinary Knowledge】; we only knew it must be a precious extraordinary treasure.”
“Really? There was such an event?” I was somewhat surprised, but upon reflection, I didn’t seem to recall any news of significant abnormal snow disasters occurring anywhere in the world.
Maybe I was too young at that time and didn’t have much impression, besides, back then, I couldn’t watch television, let alone the news; my family didn’t care about the news nor pay attention to it, they only cared about themselves.
I continued to listen to the store manager recounting, and afterwards, the plot became quite ordinary, as the store manager outperformed students from various extraordinary academies and even competitors from the Witch Academy, seizing the crown.
Furthermore, the store manager’s reputation was also established at that time.
However, what concerned me most was what the store manager mentioned: the 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 was shattered at that time.
“Wait… there’s a problem, store manager, slow down. You said that at that time, the 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 was just a massive shapeless light sphere, which, upon contact, would manifest into a huge throne, and then its internal magic power would be drained?”
“I don’t remember clearly; I didn’t have the chance to touch that massive light sphere. I only acted after it shattered into many small, shard-like fragments,” the store manager recalled, seeming not to have more details.
“Store manager, you said… at that time, that 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 might not have been 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 itself, but a fully formed Great Spellbook?”
“That… should be impossible, right? No! Absolutely impossible!” The store manager seemed hesitant at first, but then became resolute, “Who would just leave a Great Spellbook lying around? Xiao Han, didn’t you say that the Great Spellbook is something even extraordinary witches yearn for? How could it fall into our hands to contend over?”
“That makes sense.” I nodded, not debating. If this was led by the Witch Academy, it was entirely possible that it was a formed Great Spellbook.
Plus, Sister Natalie mentioned that the material of that crown was certainly not ordinary; perhaps it was originally meant to carry the Great Spellbook?
“By the way, store manager, can you help me sketch the general location of that snow disaster at that time?” I unfolded the world map of the main world and finally inquired.
“Of course… but Xiao Han, why are you so interested in this?”
“Just to satisfy my curiosity～” I casually found a reason to brush it off.
Meanwhile, I was thinking about other matters.
If this was the Witch Academy’s doing and they wanted to involve various extraordinary academies, then the location of the snow disaster… should be here.
I looked at the positions of various extraordinary academies radiating on the continent and finally locked onto a borderland continent, then the store manager approached and gently circled the location I predicted with her hand.
Sure enough… just as I predicted, the emergence of this 【Extraordinary Knowledge】 was to provoke a scramble among various extraordinary academies.
But… why was it brought back by the store manager after the scramble?
What significance does this have?
Was this also part of the Principal’s arrangements?
It seems I still couldn’t grasp the level of consideration from someone at the principal’s level.
So, after satisfying a bit of my curiosity, I didn’t dig deeper into any details.
If this really involves many important matters, I wouldn’t mind personally going to that place to conduct an earth vein retrospection.
The technique combining the sense of time and earth vein identification techniques results in experiences and firsthand encounters indistinguishable; this method of exploring the truth is far clearer than the store manager’s narration.
Moreover, it seemed the store manager really didn’t recall many details from the past.
Ultimately, my gaze returned to the arena.
At this moment, Tan Han had already found herself entangled in combat. If it came to a war of attrition, Tan Han did not seem to be at a disadvantage, especially since she had the Absolute Cold Wand as an amplifying tool. Also, most of her tactics employed were consuming spellbooks with consumption values in the tens or even hundreds, so in terms of consumption, Tan Han had a significant advantage.
However, that teaching assistant, after spending so long as a teaching assistant in the Witch Academy, had long reached the upper limit of ten thousand magic sources.
Although Tan Han hadn’t reached the upper limit of ten thousand, she still had thousands of them, and since her consumption was not as much as her opponent’s, she was barely at an advantage.
After all, Tan Han’s opponent needed to rely on the Excessive Consumption Spellbook to clash with Tan Han.
Thus, the limits on the number of magic sources restricted the duration of their war of attrition. Once one side’s consumption reached a certain critical point, that would be when they truly let loose.
“I didn’t expect that Tan Han’s combat skills had reached this level! Indeed, actual combat is the fastest way to improve oneself.”
“Her opponent’s battle instincts are also excellent; to maintain a stalemate against Tan Han, she must have a deep understanding of spellbooks.”
“This level of application of the Excessive Consumption Spellbook nearly reaches the level of its remodification. It seems she has perceived the concept that spellbooks are actually platforms for spell derivation…”
While watching the changing situation on the battlefield, I expressed my views. This level of confrontation depended on details, tactics, and awareness. Currently, such confrontations hadn’t perfectly manifested the charm of “unrestricted,” but they certainly embodied the beauty of perfect spell combat.
I had initially thought that the teaching assistant would employ some underhanded tactics, whether through sneak attacks, trickery, or unexpected methods, yet I did not expect this battle to be such a fair confrontation.
“Huh? Store manager, Ying Shiqian senior, why are you all silent?” Just a moment ago, everyone was chiming in, and now I was the only one left, making it feel quite awkward…
At this moment when no one was talking to me, Shali, Ying Shiqian, and Xiao You were all seated, not daring to make a sound.
Next to them stood a figure exuding an oppressive aura of authority, her hand on her lips, signaling for the store manager and the others to remain silent.
Then she quietly approached the figure in the front row, a teasing and triumphant smile growing at the corner of her mouth.
Until she stretched out her hand as though to present a surprise, suddenly launching an attack from behind!
“Hey~ hey~ Xiao Han! Long time no see! Do you remember me?”
