Witch, don't be so lazy

"But now I can't, because Momo is already at the third level and has become a tower specialist, and she's mainly assigned to an outpost. She won't be staying at the academy for very long, unlike the cornerstone year~"

During the two semesters at the Tower Academy, the first five years of foundational studies are mainly spent at the academy, while the last eight years of the ladder are likely to be spent practicing and traveling outside.

Of course, the rules are actually quite flexible.

According to Xiao Hui's introduction, time has always been used to divide the lower limit. Any student in the cornerstone year can directly enter the ladder year as long as he meets three conditions, namely finding a teacher who recognizes him, being promoted to the second level, and passing the combat and mental assessment.

This is also the screening criterion. If you fail to meet the above three conditions within the five years of the cornerstone academic year, you will regretfully drop out of school.

To be more exaggerated, one can be promoted to the third level early, pass a series of examinations, and even graduate directly.

This is what happened to Momo. She only studied in the Ladder School for one year, then applied for graduation and teaching assistant qualifications. After going through the Asda City round, she suddenly became a Tower Commissioner.

But she is an exception among exceptions.

As I mentioned before when clearing the troll camp, there are quite a few students in the Tower Academy who reach the third level before graduation, almost 20%.

Being able to complete the promotion does not mean that you have the corresponding magical attainments and combat power.

For example, Encore has now been upgraded to the second level, but apart from the skills given by Fairy Tale Island, she actually doesn't have any matching mid-level spells, let alone the manifestation of construction.

Momo is different.

An Ke learned during the chat that because the "pseudo-infinite magic" was too shameless, it relied on the "fossils into mud" to make the third-level magician in charge of the assessment lose his temper.

There is no way. Some legends may not be able to achieve infinite magic power. At most, they can reduce the consumption to an extremely low level in the areas they are involved in.

If this ability is applied to the third level, it is very normal to kill people indiscriminately.

Miss Anke was very envious and wanted this hook too.

But for now, her focus is elsewhere.

"Hey, why does it feel like the teaching method in the Tower Academy is different from that in the Asda City Magic Academy?" An Ke asked curiously while huddled by the fire to keep warm.

"I remember that we had to attend large classes together, study together, and occasionally compete with the teacher. There were also many organized activities every day. Small class teaching and the use of knowledge crystals were relatively rare."

She had specifically looked into it before. According to elder sister Luya's description, the Arstar City School of Magic was similar to Hogwarts, but with more northern characteristics and more intense pressure and competition.

"High Tower Academy also has large classes. The most typical one is 'Spiritual Ecology and Exploration'. It's a super popular course with hundreds of people attending every time. However, the lecturer is still the teaching assistant."

Xiao Hui patiently explained, "Transcendent mages are all very busy, and Legendary mages are even harder to come by. Although they nominally hold positions at the academy, in reality, they can't even see their clones."

"But it doesn't make much difference who teaches the class. Most of the teaching assistants are from colleges and are still the best of the best. The content they teach is similar, so it doesn't make much difference who teaches it..."

Before Xiao Hui finished speaking, Momo interrupted.

"For a chef, teaching how to chop vegetables is undoubtedly a waste of time—that's what Professor Andris said. He's one of the most renowned chefs in the world, a transcendental mage of the natural school, and his gourmet and cooking classes are amazing."

Momo grilled the skewers, coated them with chili and honey, and then started to divide them. She had half, Anke had half, and Xiaohui had the extra meat.

"If you're interested in delving into life energy, you can go and listen. However, if you want to learn something profound, you must become a true student and join a small class. The things taught there, even if they aren't the most precious skills, are hard to find in the outside world."

"Oh, so that's it."

An Ke took the food and suddenly realized.

Unlike her previous life, when she was in college, she could see academic giants with a lot of titles giving lectures from time to time. However, the classes she took were just mediocre and their teaching level was hard to evaluate.

All I can say is that those on the stage read PPTs to complete the teaching tasks, while those below the stage play with their mobile phones to obtain elective credits. They are running in both directions.

But in the North, at the Tower Academy, high-level spellcasters usually don't waste their time.

Even the teaching assistants were reluctant to do the most tedious work, and the most basic content was left to the knowledge crystal.

"Can I use the Knowledge Crystal freely in the academy? Is the content rich?"

An Ke asked, "I see that the Winter Merchants Guild sells very few things, and they're almost all related to magic. I haven't seen anything related to everyday skills or knowledge. But when I looked through the books of the Kunda City Lord, I found that they seem to be available in larger cities."

This is a confusion that has long lingered in her mind.

The knowledge crystal is such a magical thing. In addition to creating magic tricks, it can also be used to record some daily skills.

Law, medicine, language, geography... Just like the civilian-grade chips in cyberpunk and Mewtwo, the ones related to magic are military-grade chips.

If that were the case, the customs and habits of the North, and even the entire alien world, would be changed, far from what we see now.

For example, for those cultural courses in school, if we put aside the reason of cultivating learning ability, wouldn’t it be better to use knowledge crystals directly? Even if common people can’t afford it, nobles will always find a way to get it... Well, that’s what they seem to do. As long as their age and mental level allow, they don’t mind using crystals to save time.

"... There are risks, and the production process is complicated. The most important thing is the raw materials. Even if they are just scraps, people generally don't want to waste them on ordinary daily skills. Magic is the most precious thing..."

Momo ate with her mouth full of oil as she mumbled, "Don't you think the Knowledge Crystal is magical, Anke? It's just a tiny thing, and you squeeze it in your hand, and then you can gain a skill that would have taken a long time to study. It's almost like a miracle..."

Of course.

An Ke nodded vigorously. In her eyes, this thing was even more outrageous than science fiction. The chip had to be inserted into the brain, but the knowledge crystal only needed to be crushed and it could turn into streams of light to pour knowledge in.

Whether it is the craftsmanship or the materials, even in magic, this seems a little too magical.

And today, her confusion was answered.

The answer was like a bolt from the blue, making her head feel dizzy.

"Because... the main raw material of the Knowledge Crystal is Oriha Steel."

Momo said lightly, "Although the lowest-level magic crystals use derivatives, they are also derivatives of Orihagang, and the annual production is limited. As for the higher-level ones, they use genuine products, and they are not ordinary genuine products."

Glancing at the confused girl, Momo explained in detail, fearing that she didn't understand.

"It's Orihagang, His Majesty the Sage of Steel, Yaqi. All the manufacturing processes and raw materials related to the Knowledge Crystal are firmly controlled by the Tower Council and the Steelheart Family."

"As for other factions, the quantity of knowledge crystals they can produce is extremely limited, and the upper limit of the knowledge they can hold is also low, because the largest production base of Orihagang in the current world is in the North... Aside from the Papal States, other factions are very envious of the knowledge crystal industry in the North."

"That's why His Majesty Yaqi is called 'Sage'. Amo achieved this through breakthroughs in alchemy, while His Majesty Secinica, the 'Sage of Flowers', made outstanding contributions to potions. As for the 'Sage of the Tower'... well, you'll find out later."

Momo seemed to realize that some things should not be said casually, and quickly changed the subject.

"Of course, for low-level knowledge crystals, some substitutes can be found, such as those circulating on the black market. However, even if the makers didn't deliberately set up traps, the risks of normal use are very high. It's no exaggeration to say that they are simply mass-produced dark wizard devices."

She paused here deliberately, swallowed the meat she had eaten, and complained with a pout.

"Even though the North has launched a comprehensive crackdown, the black workshops and dark wizards cannot be completely eliminated. Some very evil hostile forces are deliberately supporting and interfering with the North."

"Desire is inexhaustible. There will always be people pursuing power and taking risks, just like the ever-present Mammon Society."

Xiao Hui added from the side.

Mammon pretended not to hear what the little gecko said. She was still immersed in shock.

First of all, he realized the extraordinary nature of the Crystal of Knowledge. At the same time, he also realized one thing again: there are random names, but no random nicknames. To the Tower, His Majesty Aceh is truly a "sage".

The fact that the North could rise in such a short period of time was a miracle created by all kinds of factors. It was not enough for Ms. Adela alone to achieve this.

She may have realized or foreseen this, so she made sure to gather enough manpower when she first established the Northern Territory.

Anke also understood how big a deal it was that the Tower Council decided to give apprentices the power to practice magic and purchase knowledge crystals.

I don't know if it was because he foresaw the future war with the Papal States, or because of something else, but he felt that the time for change had come.

Momo naturally couldn't read Anke's inner thoughts, she just continued along the topic:

"But don't worry, Xiao An. The High Tower Academy is the top priority for the supply of Knowledge Crystals. Only here can we afford to use so many Knowledge Crystals to collect daily knowledge, just to save everyone's precious practice time."

"And they're all high-quality products, making them safer and more reliable. Risks like mental disorders, perceptual errors, distorted thinking, and self-dissolution are all minimized. Combined with a comprehensive inspection system, accidents typically only occur once in a million cases, making the risk less than one-tenth of the official products sold outside."

Momo tilted her head, and her flaxen hair swayed.

"So, for those advanced knowledge that doesn't involve magic or spiritual power, crystals can be used directly. Every student can earn credits for enrolling, advancing, completing tasks, taking exams, and so on. The most important use of credits is to purchase crystals and various resources."

"Like this, is it delicious?"

Momo raised the kebab in her hand, which had only the long skewer left after she had finished eating it. After receiving the girl's affirmative nod, she raised her head proudly.

"'Common Cooking Techniques and Recipes in the North' is the knowledge crystal offered by 'Andris Cooking Class'. It's included in the Watch Society's 'Adventure Guide Pack' set. Other sets include 'Trauma First Aid' and 'Herb Identification'."

"But it's all very basic content. For example, the cooking knowledge only covers the North, not the South, because that's too much. It also doesn't cover methods for preparing complex and extraordinary foods, and there's even less information on life energy and magic. Those require classes and assessments, and ultimately, Andris's approval before you can access them."

Very reasonable.

An Ke nodded. Some things are the result of other people's hard work, so how could they be easily known to ordinary students?

It’s like when you were in college in your previous life, just because you attended classes doesn’t mean you would necessarily be able to learn about the topics and results that the teacher was researching.

"Trauma first aid is similar. I can identify herbs and understand bandaging techniques, but performing professional surgery is more difficult. On the one hand, the included knowledge is limited, and on the other hand, there are inherent limitations of the knowledge crystal. Even if I use the best materials and craftsmanship, those things cannot be changed."

The so-called inherent limitations are actually easy to understand.

No matter how the memory is instilled, it is essentially taking other people's things and using them directly. Other people's mental strength, magic power and spirituality are not exactly the same as yours, and they still cannot be perfectly replicated.

It's okay at low levels because the spells are simple, do not involve advanced and complex techniques, and do not have overly distinct personal characteristics. But once the spells become difficult, the differences between individuals may cause irreversible consequences.

Even if you want to adjust or modify it, it will affect the entire body, and the energy consumed is far beyond your imagination.

This is a difficulty that almost all inheritance methods cannot avoid. Generally speaking, there are indeed no two leaves in the world that are exactly the same.

Even if the teacher teaches everything he knows, there is no guarantee that students will learn it 100%. Sharing memories and mental journeys is not enough. This has nothing to do with talent and is all about adaptation.

Especially self-created spells.

Why are there so many geniuses in the North and the Tower, but Sutur's Sword of the Fire Demon has never found a successor?

Because his own creations had too obvious personal style and were difficult to practice, it was also difficult to find flames related to sun fragments in the North Territory, and even if they were learned, they could not replicate such powerful power, so naturally no one was willing to waste their energy.

But the encore doesn't matter.

Even if she didn't become a priestess of the Dark Sun Lord and didn't get the Dark Gold Holy Flame, she would definitely learn it if she had the chance.

After all, with Tongbao, those differences in spellcasting do not exist. You can definitely learn it, and as long as you are willing to work hard, you can even innovate and become invincible.

Huh?

From this perspective, Miss Anke is simply a congenitally inherited holy body. I just don’t know whether Mr. Deng can react early and make arrangements quickly.

If it weren't for the letter of recommendation, I would have pointed out a name right now, don't you think, old man?

······

Although the journey was painful for a while because he couldn't play, Encore still had a happy time thanks to the enthusiastic sharing of Xiaohui and Momo.

Not only can Momo learn new knowledge, but she can also hold something while scanning the pictures. It’s wonderful.

As time passed, four days later, we finally arrived at the transfer station.

Black Rock City.

A super-powerful city that is so huge that it is unimaginable. Standing on the central platform and looking around, it feels like it is as big as many Asda cities. The wall at the end of the field of vision almost merges with the horizon.

The highest point is still a tower, located in the center of the city. It has a very strange shape and a huge scarlet eyeball at the top.

That’s right, it was the legendary monster that was killed that year, the Cyclops.

The eyeballs are from it, and even the main body of the tower is said to be made from its spine.

Apart from this, which is somewhat similar to Asda City, everything else is completely different.

There are hundreds of meters of black rock walls, streets extending in all directions, buildings scattered all over the place, even forests and mountains in the city, and railway tracks and elevated lines extending and interweaving... Because it looks relatively modern, Anke was almost stunned.

Did we go to the wrong set?

Because just a casual glance over there showed alchemical creations everywhere, including some surprising things.

Cars, puppets, aircraft... The most outrageous thing is something that looks like a train across the sky. Momo said that this is the Alchemy Skyrail to Pandgar. It is very expensive. A ticket costs 7,000 gold coins. It takes a week to reach Pandgar. It is much faster than an airship and safer. There are clones of a fourth-level extraordinary wizard and multiple third-level wizards in charge.

Of course, students of Tower Academy do not need to pay for tickets. Everyone gets VIP tickets for free, but it is only for this one time of reporting. After that, you have to pay for your own rides, and at most you can get a discount.

Anke's reaction was still confused.

After all, the difference between this and Asda City is really too great. Even though some clues can be seen from the airships and war golems in Asda City, there is still an inexplicable feeling of entering an international metropolis from the Ten Thousand Mountains.

Everything you see is new and shocking.

Even she, who traveled through time, was like this, let alone others.

Although adventurers and bards have heard of some books that describe the grandeur of Black Rock City as the alchemy capital of the North, the written descriptions are far inferior to what one sees with one's own eyes, and it is difficult to distinguish the truth from the false.

I just don't know why, but there seems to be no photo stones of the appearance of these first-tier cities circulating. Are they deliberately controlling information to avoid huge gaps and public unrest?

Anke didn't know, but she knew one thing: Black Rock City was really awesome.

Just look up and you will know.

In addition to the sky rail, there is a large flying docking platform not far away. Huge alchemical airships are neatly arranged, like giant steel beasts, awe-inspiring and majestic.

It is surrounded by a series of black towers, on which stand various mechanical facilities used for maintenance.

Apart from the skytrains that go directly to the other three first-tier cities, travel to other cities depends on these alchemical airships, which are equipped with accompanying third-order or second-order airships according to specifications.

The extended open-air gangway is like a bridge, connecting the airship and the platform. Each ship has its own terminal tower, which is densely packed with living creatures.