People in America: My Uncle Don Quixote

Chapter 435 Breaking Through the Trial of the Golden Knight (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

"No rush, Knight Don Quixote," Livy said, extremely curious about his dream. "Tell me first where you've been training these past few days?"

"Oh, of course."

Don Quixote scratched his helmet, as if pondering where to begin his story.

He paused for a moment, then said, "To be honest, ever since I witnessed you win the knightly tournament, it has given me tremendous confidence."

"I wanted to find my own path," he said, looking at his hands. "So I went to the far north in search of the Frost Giants."

"I encountered a pack of direwolves there, fought them for seven days and seven nights, and rescued the fishermen of the North."

"They told me that in the far west, there is a group of ascetic warriors who might have a way to break through to the Gold rank."

.

"So I went to the far west desert and found them in an oasis."

"They told me that the most important thing to break through to the gold level is to accept the trials of the gods."

"In the Golden Age, the traces of the gods still existed on the continent. As long as one received the blessing of the gods, one could advance to the next level. This method has never changed, and it still is now."

"A trial by the gods?" Li Wei couldn't help but ask. "But didn't you tell me that the gods have disappeared?"

“I thought so at first, but the warriors of the far west told me,” Don Quixote frowned, as if he were really recalling, “that the gods were just transformed into something else because their magic disappeared.”

"What is it?"

"The whole world," Don Quixote said, "is a kind of trial by the gods, with its erupting volcanoes, raging earth, floods, and storms."

[The Knight's Path - Phase 4 is now open]

[Divine Trial - Gold Advancement]

"So, you mean," Levi asked, looking at the panel, "that advancing to the rank of Gold Knight requires facing these kinds of trials and surviving?"

"Yes, and we must delve deep into the heart of the Trial Grounds," Don Quixote emphasized. "Only after spending enough time there can we gain the approval of the gods and complete the evolution of our lives?"

"Isn't the Golden Knight human?" Levi asked.

"The Golden Knight is meant to transform into a demigod," Don Quixote said. "That's why the trials of the gods are necessary, because one must obtain a trace of divine power from them."

Li Wei suddenly had a whimsical thought and asked, "Are there goddesses of beauty? Or goddesses of lust? What are their trials like?"

Don Quixote seemed stumped by Livy's question and remained silent for a long time.

After a while, he said, "After you finish what you did in the royal city, I suggest you do the trials like me. In this era, only in this way can you break through." After saying that, he turned and left.

You have encountered a quest: The Trial of the Gods.

[Quest Description: The knight Don Quixote, who has returned after his breakthrough, selflessly and generously imparts to you the path to becoming a Gold Knight.]

[Mission Requirements: Survive in the Trial Center for 1 hour to gain a sliver of divine power]

[Task Reward: Complete Advancement]

Li Wei watched Don Quixote return to his room, then went upstairs while deep in thought.

When he lay back down on the bed, Anya, half asleep, turned around and hugged one of his arms before falling back into a deep sleep.

Earthquakes are definitely hard to predict; there's no way to predict them at all, Li Wei thought.

The United States experiences many tornadoes and fires, and has several active volcanoes, so the chances of encountering these are relatively high.

He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Outside the manor, on the beach of Long Island, the waves crashed one after another.

Early the next morning.

Li Wei received a call from Dr. Elias Thorne.

He was very excited on the phone, announcing that he had enough inspiration and had made the first batch of prototypes.

"What are the specific effects?" Li Wei asked curiously.

"I don't know, boss, but I feel like I'm having a burst of inspiration right now," Elias Thorne said. "I've already made a batch of samples. When are you coming over to take a look?"

Li Wei glanced at his watch: "I'll be right there."

According to the system's explanation and Elias Thorne's description, it seems that he has successfully created the [Fountain of Wisdom (Mortal Version)].

I don't know how effective this thing will be yet.

Li Wei kissed Anya and Elizabeth once each, then got dressed and prepared to leave.

The manor's housekeeper was a woman around 50 years old, brought by Anya's housekeeper Katya, and was responsible for the daily life of Li Wei and the others.

Upon seeing Li Wei, she nodded slightly to him and said, "Good morning, Mr. Li Wei. Would you like breakfast?"

Li Wei can now replenish his energy through photosynthesis, so it's more important for him to check on the potion. After thinking about it, he declined the butler's suggestion.

"Understood," the butler said. "Also, there might be a little more workers these next couple of days because the New York City weather station says the hurricane may pass through in a few days."

Li Wei nodded. New York experiences a period of heavy rainfall every year between August and October. When he first arrived in New York and was living in the basement with Don Quixote, one night it rained heavily and the basement started to leak (Chapter 6).

He later learned that New York experiences several days of heavy rainfall every year around this time.

Hurricane Sandy, which struck more than a decade ago, was one of the worst natural disasters in New York's history.

The hurricane caused more than 100 deaths across the United States, left 800 million homes without power, caused the worst damage to the New York subway system in a century, and forced the United Nations headquarters and the New York Stock Exchange to close for several days.

Li Wei scoffed at the data. He knew all too well what kind of people America was; many homeless people and immigrants on the streets were not included in this number, and the death toll far exceeded the official figures.

"Is it serious?" he asked, pulling out his phone to search for information. "What kind of preparations do I need to make?"

"The weather station says it's a normal transit phenomenon and won't cause too much damage, except for the heavy rain," the butler said.

To prevent damage to the vegetation in the garden, I have already had people prepare fixed frames and devices.

Li Wei nodded and instructed, "Use the best materials, hire more people, and make sure the workers are paid their overtime wages in full. Don't skimp on this."

The butler smiled and agreed.

Li Wei thought back to what Don Quixote had said late that night, and the more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed.

After he left, he turned back and gave the housekeeper a few more instructions, telling him to handle the current situation the same way he had dealt with Sandy years ago.

Upon arriving at the laboratory, Levi soon saw Elias approaching with a beaker containing approximately 200 milliliters of milky white liquid.

The color was much lighter than the one Li Wei drank yesterday, and it didn't have that slightly shiny sheen. It looked more like lime water than a magic potion.

"How did you mix these ingredients?" Li Wei asked curiously.

As he asked, he pulled out the [Chattering Jester Skull] from his inventory to show him if the potion was real.

After the [Rigoletto Skull] flew out, the ruby ​​in its eye socket first flashed, but instead of responding to the beaker in Li Wei's hand, it flew up and down around Li Wei.

[Hehehe, peak Silver rank? My respected master, you've improved so quickly?]

[I was just one step away from reaching the Golden Realm. In my time, a master in the Golden Realm was considered a powerful figure, capable of protecting the entire city.]

[Especially in this... uh, in this world where magic is extremely scarce.]

"Stop flattering me," Li Wei thought to himself, "look at the potion in my hand."

The light in the eyes of the [Jester's Skull] shone on the beaker in Li Wei's hand, and after a few seconds, a dialog box lazily popped up:

[A severely weakened version of the Fountain of Wisdom, seemingly intended for the mages' servants, to make them a little more astute while working and thus less likely to be whipped by the mages.]

After a comment popped up, the [Jester's Skull] seemed to lose interest in the [Fountain of Wisdom] in Li Wei's hand.

Looking at the scars on the skull of the jester, Li Wei wasn't surprised that it had been beaten to death in its lifetime.

The item description says it's for nobles to drink, but this foul-mouthed "Jester's Skull" says it's for the mage's servants. If he doesn't get beaten to death, who will?

However, since this item has passed verification, it means that the replica should have been successfully made.

"How did you concoct this?" Li Wei asked curiously.

"I got completely drunk at home while looking for inspiration," Elias Thorne said somewhat embarrassedly, "and then it was as if my body had traveled through time. I saw several people wearing robes of different colors, one of whom was muttering something to another."

"I've forgotten what they were chanting," Elias Thorne said, pointing to a set of separation and filtration equipment on the control panel. "But after waking up, I suddenly had an inspiration for the experiments I had done before, so I came over and tried them out, and they confirmed my guess."

Li Wei nodded and handed the beaker back to Elias Thorne: "You drank it yourself? No lab rats to test it?"

"I just couldn't resist," Elias Thorne said, placing the beaker on the table as if it were a precious treasure. "Anyway, chemistry is just like that, it's not like you can just conjure up some kind of drug or something. I drank it, and afterwards I felt like my inspiration was bursting, and my execution and concentration improved a lot."

Li Wei nodded: "Go through the normal procedures, do several rounds of experiments, and then give me a report."

"Understood," Elias Thorne said confidently. "I have a strong feeling this will be another major product for the art world and academia!"

"I had a feeling about this too," Li Wei smiled and walked out of the lab. "Remember to send out the report."

A few days later, in the LW Group conference room.

"A new product?" Kim Ho-eun asked in surprise. "So soon? I remember we just allocated 20 billion to Dr. Thorne?"

"This is a previous product," Li Wei said somewhat vaguely. "It has been validated on animals and we are currently recruiting clinical trial participants. This is the experimental report."

Everyone nodded and looked at the projection screen.

"Simply put, I plan to call it the Fountain of Wisdom, which corresponds to the Water of the Spirits," Levi said. "Its effects are likely to be quite noticeable in stimulating inspiration, improving focus, and enhancing execution."

Just then, Li Wei's phone suddenly rang.

He picked it up and saw that it was a call from New York City Mayor Holmes himself.

"I'm Levi," Levi said. "Mayor Holmes, is there something you need?"

"Nothing special," Holmes said briefly, "just a reminder that this year's hurricane is unusual. It's expected to make landfall in New York in five days. The weather station and the city government will issue a warning in two days. If you need anything in the next few days, buy it now. If you can't find any special supplies, contact me."

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