I loaded the Mysticism panel.

Chapter 179 Truth is difficult, yet lovely (Bonus chapter for monthly votes: 15)

While he was packing his things, Isabella took out a small notebook from her coat pocket and turned to a new page.

"By the way, Richard."

"Um?"

"The list of documents you just gave me."

She picked up a pencil and began to take notes.

"Practice materials for double repetition... Do I need them for practice, or do I need to look at templates?"

"We want both."

"Then I'll have someone send you a set of practice questions for the preparatory course at Beijing University."

As for templates, I'll select a few samples with varying levels of difficulty from the library.

Is that enough?

That's enough.

"Galcant script," she continued writing. "How much do you recognize?"

"I only recently started memorizing the dictionary..."

"Then I'll just send you a copy of 'The Structure and Evolution of Gaelic Script'."

This book was compiled by Professor McFee twenty years ago and is the designated textbook for the Department of Classics at the Imperial College.

"Professor McFee?"

"Yes, he also comes from a hunter family in the Gaelic Highlands and is an authority in the field of ancient Celtic inscription systems."

She continued writing:

"Medieval church rituals in Latin...this one is rather troublesome."

The teachings within the school are kept secret, but there are several commentaries within the academy system. I'll have someone select two suitable for newcomers and send them to you later.

"Also, an extended comparison table of later variants of the Alexandrian school."

She drew a small checkmark on the paper: "I'll copy this one for you myself at the Imperial University Library."

"You want me to copy it myself?"

"The expanded reference table is only available for borrowing by lecturers and above."

"It's nothing." She waved her hand dismissively. "I go to the library to copy a lot of things every year."

Richard looked at the lines of writing she had made in her notebook.

Image transmission, exclusive borrowing privileges, students doing odd jobs... these are all part of my aunt's daily work.

For him, it may take several more years before he can even get a grasp of each of these things.

To be honest, being an associate professor and having a bunch of students to direct to do odd jobs is a pretty cool feeling.

Isabella put the notebook into her coat pocket.

The snow outside was falling heavier and heavier.

"The snow is getting a bit heavy. You should wait until it subsides before going back."

"Auntie, may I ask you a few more questions?"

Richard thought about it and figured he might as well wait anyway, since he didn't know when he'd be able to see Isabella again.

With such an associate professor right in front of me, it would be a shame not to ask him a lot of questions.

Isabella put the teapot down.

"The questions you wanted to ask tonight are enough for Sophia for a month."

"But I happen to have some free time. Is there anything else you'd like to ask?"

Richard pushed the tracing paper over.

"The first two lines I read were 'Singers to the Night' and 'Silent Ones to the Light'."

Isabella pondered for a moment.

The third line here translates to: "The person outside the door, the person inside the door."

"The first three lines of the second section together form: 'Singers who offer songs to the night,' 'Silent ones who greet the light,' and 'Those outside the door, those inside the door.'"

"This is a two-way declaration of the border stone circle, welcoming those coming from the other side of the veil and sending off those leaving from this side."

Over the next hour, Richard handed over the twelve sets of inscriptions one by one.

For each group she discussed, Isabella would make corresponding annotations and guiding notes on her blank sheet of paper.

It doesn't replace Richard's own thinking, but simply points out that this approach might be better.

All additions and corrections were written on my own blank sheet of paper in very small print.

She stopped when she got to the seventh group.

"water."

Richard understood and ran to the outer room to pour water.

When she returned, Isabella rubbed her temples.

Richard handed the cup over.

"Thank you for your hard work."

"fine."

She took the cup and took a sip.

"Let's stop here for the border stone circle section." She picked up her pen again.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?"

Richard pulled the bronze rubbings from the pile of rubbings.

Isabella took the copy.

"With oak for bones, mist for clothing; blood for pledge, water for reply."

"A typical Druidic ritual phrase."

She tore off a small piece of paper and wrote a few lines.

"I'm going to make a reading list, you can find it and read it when you get back."

After writing several notes, Isabella held the slips of paper and examined them for a while.

Then he pulled a complete sheet of paper from the other end of the desk and started writing again.

Richard sat across from him, waiting.

When he got to the second column, he realized something was wrong.

"Auntie?"

Isabella didn't respond; the pen scratched on the paper.

"...How much longer will you be writing?"

"Please drink your tea first, and wait a little while."

Richard picked up his teacup again.

The tea had gone cold, but he kept drinking it, sip after sip.

The scratching sound of the pen continued for several more minutes.

Richard shifted his gaze to the manuscript paper, where densely packed book titles had already filled most of the page.

Isabella finally put down her pen.

"alright."

Richard reached out and took the manuscript paper from him.

"Thirty-six books in total, that's not too many."

Isabella pointed to the page of books she had compiled.

"My goal in college was to read about ten books per semester."

"No need to rush. You can take a look at the materials I've prepared for you in a couple of days. These thirty-six books are what you'll need to study after you pass the preparatory course."

At your current pace, thirty-six books will barely be enough for two years of preparatory courses.

"Look at this column." She stood up and circled the first column with a pencil.

"This section covers the fundamental aspects of inscription literature."

"These are just the basics?"

"The basics," she repeated, leaving no room for negotiation.

"Inscriptions are like building a skeleton. If the skeleton isn't built well, no matter how much flesh is added later, it won't be able to support it."

If you don't learn this well, you won't be able to dismantle spells or write judgments on evil entities in the future.

She then pointed to the second column.

"The second column contains annotations of various occult rituals; just take a look at them."

"The third column consists of critical studies on the Abyss tradition by academics."

Richard took notice.

"Critical research," Isabella emphasized the latter part.

"Guides will warn you against touching the Abyss tradition; this is from a 'practical' perspective."

However, from an academic perspective, the study of the Abyss tradition is something that anyone pursuing a scholarly career cannot bypass.

We need to know what it is so that we can recognize it when we encounter it.

This section covers the "understanding" level, which is different from "practice."

"...I can tell the difference."

"As for the fourth column."

Isabella tapped the top of the fourth column with the tip of her pen.

"Of the seven books, six are introductions to major traditions and various case studies. The first five books each discuss a major tradition, the sixth book discusses the minor traditions, and the last book..."

Richard followed the tip of her pen.

On the fifth page of the fourth column, there was a line of text.

The Influence of Later Variations of the Alexandrian School on Sealing Theory in the Western Continent

Author: Isabella Ashford, 1904 (Gregorian calendar)

Richard probably guessed it.

"Auntie, is this your... graduate thesis?" He roughly estimated the time.

"It's actually my doctoral dissertation, and it's been published for almost ten years."

Isabella picked up her teacup and took a sip: "It caused a small stir in academic circles at the time."

Richard tactfully picked up the conversation.

"Is it still being cited now?"

"According to statistics from last year, it has been cited 127 times in various academic journals over the past five years."

Isabella smiled slightly and spoke a little faster than before.

"When I defended my dissertation, my advisor commented that 'this is one of the most solid doctoral dissertations in the Department of Classics in the past decade.'"

"One of the most solid?"

"...is the 'most solid'."

Isabella cut out "one of".

"Back then, there was no 'one of them'."

Richard nodded earnestly.

"I must read this carefully."

He then asked a question that he had been holding back for a long time:

"Auntie, when did you start walking this path?"

Isabella placed the teacup back on the saucer.

"When I was sixteen, your maternal grandfather left me at the entrance of the preparatory class of the Department of Classics at Imperial University."

"After completing the two-year preparatory course, the next steps are undergraduate and postgraduate studies."

"Those years during my student days formed the foundation."

"After graduating with my master's degree, I chose to stay at the university as my supervisor's teaching assistant."

The job of a teaching assistant involves grading assignments and papers for undergraduate and graduate students, and sitting at the back of the classroom watching the professors lecture.

"Sitting at the back of the classroom watching the professor lecture?"

"Yes, I sat there for three years."

There was no sign of grievance in her eyes, but rather a hint of nostalgia.

"Over the course of three years, I listened to every single one of my mentor's lectures countless times."

First listen to what he says, then think about how I would say it if I were in his shoes.

"After three years, I can now teach the same course better than him."

"better?"

"At least in my own opinion, it's better."

Isabella picked up her teacup:

"But in academia, seniority matters. At that time, I was a teaching assistant and he was an associate professor. No matter how well I lectured, I could only continue to sit at the back of the classroom."

She took a sip of tea.

"The lecturer stage takes several more years."

"The job of a lecturer is to teach those marginal courses that nobody wants to teach."

This category includes works such as "An Introduction to Ancient Celtic Sealology," "Examples of Priestly Ritual in the Pre-Roman Period," and "A Textual Criticism of Early Documents of the Alexandrian School."

"And what about when you were promoted to associate professor?"

"When I was in my early thirties, I don't remember the exact year."

Richard felt that she was deliberately being vague about the specific year.

"Auntie, what are you doing now...?"

"Have some tea."

Isabella glanced at her nephew and pushed the freshly refilled cup of tea in front of him: "Otherwise, the tea will get cold."

Richard obediently picked up his teacup.

He took a sip and knew the topic was over.

Isabella glanced at the ink bottle on the table.

The Latin motto carved on the side of the bottle gleams faintly under the light.

"Truth is difficult, yet lovely; this is the sentence I truly want to give you."

"The Latin word amabilis literally means 'worthy of being loved'."

"Truth itself is cold, hard, and difficult, so much so that young people may spend their entire youth immersed in books and still not be able to escape."

Isabella made a self-deprecating remark.

"But she deserves to be loved."

"Those who can endure sitting on the sidelines will naturally understand this."