Although Ona couldnât understand Saulâs hobbies, she wouldnât really interfere with him either.
She also wasnât worried about Saul having any conspiracy by entering the Academy of Knowledge.
In Onaâs view, at least within Sky City, City Master Ophelia was an invincible existenceâno one could scheme against her.
Moreover, Saulâs hobby was so harmless that Ona was happy to use this opportunity to get close to him.
After all, she still carried the mission of approaching Saul.
Thinking of this, Ona stepped forward to walk side by side with Saul.
âWould Lord Saul be willing to share the knowledge youâre verifying with me?â
Saul didnât refuse Onaâs approach either, chatting casually with her just like he would with other wizards of the same rank at the Academy of Knowledge.
After all, Ona was a second-rank wizard. Although her daily work mainly wasnât responsible for researching various theoretical knowledge, when needed she could speak eloquently about multiple fields.
So with Saul deliberately lowering his posture while Ona worked hard to stand on tiptoes to show herself, the two had a very pleasant conversation all the way.
As they chatted, Saul gradually steered the conversation toward the Mechanical Heart.
âWasnât the Mechanical Heart invented by City Master Ophelia?â
âIt wasnât. And this isnât a secret in Sky City either. The original Mechanical Heart was conceived by the current dean of the Academy of Knowledge, and through the combined efforts of the Academy of Knowledge and Academy of Practice, the design and assembly were finally completed. It was only after the first-generation Mechanical Heart came into being that City Master Ophelia invested massive human and material resources to establish the Academy of Knowledge and Academy of Practice to create more useful knowledge.â
Saul couldnât help but nod after hearing this.
âActually, the two academies are places where brainstorming happens constantly, and theyâre places full of innovation. Bold assumptions, careful verification.â
Ona smiled behind her hand. âIt seems you really do like the two academies. Actually, if your status werenât so important, the City Master would definitely hope you could stay in Sky City long-term. The research atmosphere here is very suitable for you!â
Was this subtly conveying that they didnât want to imprison him for a long time?
Saul glanced at Ona, pretending not to understand the subtext of her words.
âI also really like the research atmosphere here, itâs justâŠâ
âJust what?â
âItâs just that low-rank wizards face considerable pressure here. Those who canât propose new research topics within a certain time are actually taken away for punishmentâthe penalty is even heavier than failing to complete report assignments.â
Ona was indifferent. âAfter all, people are naturally inclined to laziness. If they canât inject fresh blood into Sky City, then why would the City Master support these low-rank wizards to do repetitive and simple experiments?â
Saul didnât say much more but steered the conversation back to the Mechanical Heart, praising the ingenuity of its design.
Ona carefully shared all the information she could reveal while secretly feeling pleased with herself.
This Lord Saul liked to disguise himself as approachable and get along with low-rank wizards, so she abandoned her originally polite but distant attitude and changed to a more intimate and unrestricted approach, successfully drawing closer to Saul.
Finally, the two walked all the way to the small building where Saul currently lived.
Looking at the unremarkable two-story building before her, Ona stepped forward, carefully closing the distance with Saul. âWould Lord Saul mind if I went up to take a look?â
Saul opened the door, stepped forward and entered first, then turned to Ona outside and said, âLetâs skip the tour.â
Then he closed the door, directly shutting Ona, who had been chatting happily all the way, outside.
Onaâs eye twitched, almost failing to maintain the brilliant smile on her face.
Time passed bit by bit, and the white porcelain cats gradually transformed from cursed objects that could only circulate among a few apprentices into small-scale mass-produced magical tools that could be sold in the market.
As the producers, Saul and Nathan actually earned quite a few magic crystals from this, with Saul taking the larger share.
Soon, it was time for the third connection experiment.
Ona welcomed Saul into the White Glass Palace with a resentful expression.
During this time, she often appeared around Saul, working hard to build their relationship and seizing every opportunity to create ambiguous atmospheres.
But she didnât know whyâfor wizards like them, physical pleasure was clearly just ordinary enjoyment like eating and drinking, so why wouldnât Saul touch her?
Ona, who couldnât complete City Master Opheliaâs assignment, naturally became more anxious day by day.
âLord Saul, the City Master requests your presence.â Ona extended the invitation outside Saulâs two-story building.
âWait a moment.â
Saulâs voice came through the door crack.
Before long, the door opened and an energetic Saul walked out.
âIâll escort you into the White Glass Palace.â
âActually, Wizard Ona, you donât need to come pick me up every time. I completely know the way now.â
âSigh. If you donât even let me come pick you up, what chance do I have to communicate with you? Being able to receive guidance from a third-rank wizard lord is such a joyful thing!â
Saul shook his head and smiled. âItâs one thing for others to say this, but youâre someone who often follows Lord Opheliaâhow could you lack guidance from high-rank wizards?â
Ona again showed a pitiful expression. âDonât you really know what I mean, Lord Saul?â
Seeing Ona about to speak plainly, Saul simply kept quiet and refused to communicate.
So the resentful Ona became even more resentful.
Saul, with extremely strong stress tolerance, endured Onaâs burning gaze as he passed through the spatial teleportation formation and arrived at the Mechanical Heart.
At this time, one of Opheliaâs heads was already waiting there.
âSorry to keep you waiting. Iâll start setting up the formation now.â Saul nodded to Ophelia, then was about to begin preparing the magical formation.
However, today Ophelia stopped him.
âAfter the previous two experiments, I discovered that the mental power I provided you wasnât stable enough. So today Iâm preparing to change methodsâI wonât provide mental power support to you anymore.â
Saulâs movements paused, frowning disapprovingly. âBut Lord Ophelia, besides you as a fourth-rank wizard, the power others can provide probably isnât sufficient to penetrate the stargateâs barriers.â
Ophelia patiently explained: âDonât worry. Iâll still help you break through the stargateâs barriers, but the subsequent mental power simulation synchronization and mental power supplementation will be handled by the Mechanical Heart.â
Saul asked in surprise, âThe Mechanical Heart actually has such powerful capabilities?â
âThe one before your eyes naturally canât.â Ophelia smiled, her head gradually retracting into the dense white mist. âSo today, Iâll take you to see the real Mechanical Heart.â
Watching Ophelia disappear, Saul opened his mouth to ask something but suddenly discovered the mist around him had dramatically thickened.
The dense mist had almost become a solid gel.
Standing in fog so thick he couldnât see his hand in front of his face, Saul actually felt terrifying pressure like the deep seabed.
Then his feet suddenly gave way, and his entire body was squeezed down by pressure from other directions.
When Saul fell from the white mist, he found himself in another room.
The temperature here was very high, as if the air itself was about to boil and bubble.
He rubbed his aching temples to clear his head. Opening his eyes again, he saw a massive steel furnace standing before him.
The âfirewoodâ in the furnace burned with crackling sounds.
Waves of heat emanated from the furnace opening, almost burning Saulâs skin.
âThis is the fuel furnace.â Opheliaâs voice came from overhead. âThis is the core of the Mechanical Heart, and also the power supply core for all of Sky City.â
Saul raised his right hand, trying to block the heat waves from the furnace, but his eyes slowly widened after seeing clearly what the firewood in the furnace looked like.
Burning in the fuel furnace were actually charcoal-black corpses!
Those corpses emitted vigorous mental power and magical power while burning.
Moreover, even though they had been burning in the fuel furnace for a long time, those corpse-firewood showed no signs of diminishing.
Everything indicated that what was burning in the fuel furnace were wizard corpses!
(End of Chapter)
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