Chapter 196 - 1: The Young Pilot, Another Major Theory, The Strong Person’s Treatment

Chapter 196: Chapter 1: The Young Pilot, Another Major Theory, The Strong Person’s Treatment

「Inside the Lecture Hall.」

"...As we’ve discussed before, during the era of the First Wizard Empire, the highest-ranking officials who wielded imperial authority—that is, the Legendary Wizards—had a very peculiar tradition.

"After any Legendary Wizard unfortunately fell, the empire would construct a magnificent legendary tomb for them, filling it with a dazzling array of rare and precious treasures."

The monotonous voice of the Third Level Apprentice Instructor, Stone Soul, echoed throughout the vast, tiered lecture hall.

Compared to the first class of *Epic of Witchcraft* four months ago, a full thirty-six fewer newcomers were now sitting in the audience.

This was not a number that could be brushed aside lightly.

When they first entered the academy, there had been a total of 286 newcomers, meaning that nearly thirteen percent of those faces had since disappeared from the Lecture Hall.

The reasons for their disappearances varied.

More than half had died unnatural deaths—some fell during assessments, some were exposed as Traitors and executed, and others had quietly passed away during Meditation.

The newcomers had long heard that every year, some people would become completely lost during Meditation, their souls mysteriously vanishing, transforming them into bizarre Soulless People.

But when those two bodies, their souls annihilated, were carried out of the dormitories by Witchcraft Puppets, the young men and women who witnessed the scene firsthand were still struck with an unprecedented shock.

Among the rest who had disappeared, some were forced to leave due to severe disabilities, while others had suffered soul damage that caused a permanent drop in their Spiritual Strength, completely robbing them of any hope of condensing a Spirit Ring.

There were even two female newcomers who couldn’t withstand the immense pressure within the academy.

One went mad right in the middle of class and was only quieted down after being hit with a Sleep Technique;

The other started spouting pitiful and ridiculous nonsense in her lodgings, wandering alone along the Secluded Path late at night.

The day after their respective breakdowns, both were sent away.

However, every newcomer who survived this difficult period was like fine steel repeatedly tempered by fire, having undergone a complete transformation.

A single glance around the Lecture Hall made it easy to see—their gazes were calmer, their expressions more resolute.

At that moment, as words like "legendary tombs" and "rare and precious treasures" left Stone Soul’s lips, the newcomers’ ears perked up in unison.

Even an idiot knew that the things worthy of being placed in a legendary tomb would likely tempt even the Legendary Wizards of today.

Stone Soul continued to reveal secrets of an even higher level:

"Back then, the legendary powerhouses of the empire were extremely keen on exploring the mysterious Spirit Realm. They discovered many ’Spirit Realm Islands’ that were connected to the real world.

"All the legendary tombs built during the time of the First Empire were located on these mysterious and dangerous Spirit Realm Islands.

"The First Empire has now been gone for fifty-five millennia, yet six of those legendary tombs have yet to be found. It must be said, this is a great regret."

Stone Soul’s tone suddenly shifted. "I hope that one day, someone in this Lecture Hall—perhaps our ’Pilot,’ perhaps someone else—will be able to find a legendary tomb that has been lost for tens of millennia."

Mo Ning’s face twitched slightly.

The gazes of many newcomers swiveled to him in an instant.

Most of those gazes were filled with envy, though a few held deeply buried traces of jealousy.

After all, for a former "underachiever" to make such a conspicuous achievement, it was inevitable that some of the self-proclaimed "strong ones" would feel a sense of resentment.

Anya and Reina sat on either side of Mo Ning like two flowers flanking a single green leaf. They both glanced at him, their beautiful eyes filled with unconcealable amusement.

This so-called "Pilot" was Mo Ning’s current nickname.

Three months ago, during the second general assessment, he had single-handedly wiped out all the monsters in the assessment area, accomplishing something that many full-fledged Apprentices could only dream of.

This rather sensational feat quickly spread throughout the academy.

While he wasn’t exactly famous throughout the entire academy, he had at least made a name for himself within the apprentice circles.

A few days later, he completed his research paper on the Triangular Wing and formally submitted it to the academy.

The paper, its title bearing the two weighty adjectives "innovative" and "practical," earned him a massive reward with a total value of no less than 3,000 Black Tower Points—including Black Tower Points, Magic Potions, and Witchcraft Items.

But that wasn’t all.

A First Level Wizard at the academy named Hede read the paper and was immediately inspired.

This lord made significant improvements to the Triangular Wing, adding a power system that "integrated fluid control with powerful thrust," successfully turning the unpowered Triangular Wing into a Powered Triangular Wing.

It was worth noting that Lord Hede personally wrote a comment on the paper: "The conception of the Triangular Wing is a stroke of absolute genius."

This sentence, like a gust of wind, further elevated Mo Ning’s fame.

Even more interesting events followed.

Lord Hede specially commissioned an exquisitely crafted Powered Triangular Wing for Mo Ning and named it "The Aviator."

From then on, that nickname became inextricably linked to him.

Lord Hede also submitted a proposal to the academy, requesting the formation of a fleet of Triangular Wings operated by Apprentices.

He cleverly named the finalized design the "Black Tower Triangular Wings" and named the unit the "Black Tower Wings Flying Corps."

In his proposal, he adopted the aerial bombardment tactic Mo Ning had used in the assessment: the Black Tower Triangular Wings would carry a batch of [Blazing Fireballs] and [Blast Flame Spiritual Arrows] as weapons.

The former would be like bombs, dropped directly by the Apprentices; the latter were equivalent to rockets, requiring remote control from the Apprentices and possessing a fairly high degree of accuracy.