Chapter 65: Dark Demon Seeks True Knowledge
Having just suffered a setback, Robert became unusually quiet.
Without Robert around to egg him on, Virt also stopped causing trouble.
The afternoon's Magic History class passed uneventfully, with the young mages dozing off one by one.
After class, Dark didn't head to the library as usual. Instead, he went straight to Professor Cazale's office.
He hesitated for a moment but eventually knocked on the door.
Knock.
"Come in," Professor Cazale's voice called from inside.
Dark turned the doorknob and pushed the door open.
Professor Cazale sat behind his desk, which was piled high with assignments that clearly weren't from first-year students.
"Dark? Perfect timing." Professor Cazale put down his pen and hopped off his high stool.
Dark asked, "Professor, have you made progress in your research on the flower cards?"
"Indeed." Professor Cazale opened a drawer and pulled out a flower card, waving it at Dark like a child showing off a new toy.
Dark couldn't help but smile faintly. He closed the door and quickly walked around to the back of the desk.
The professor handed him the card, saying proudly, "Here, try infusing it with magic."
Dark first took a closer look at the card.
This flower card wasn't Professor Cazale's original green rose, but another one from an unknown source.
"A student gave it to me," Professor Cazale said with a playful tone.
Dark blinked, and the professor sighed, "Alright, someone was playing with it in class, so I confiscated it. Anyway, don't worry about where it came from. This is my carefully crafted work from last night."
The card depicted a pinkish-purple phalaenopsis, an orchid with petals resembling butterfly wings. Its flower meaning was "I love you," symbolizing noble and elegant love.
Dark infused a trace of magic into the card, and the phalaenopsis on its surface transformed into lifelike butterflies – not orchid-shaped, but actual butterflies!
Pink and purple butterflies fluttered their wings, dancing gracefully.
With a wave of the flower card, the butterflies seemed drawn to it, circling around the card.
From their tails, specks of pollen-like fluorescent light trailed, as if leaving long, glowing tails.
If it was this stunning in broad daylight, it would be even more mesmerizing in pitch-black darkness.
Dark exclaimed in surprise, "Professor, how did you do this?"
Professor Cazale smiled. "Just a little trick. This isn't exactly a magic card, but if you like it, you can take it. It shares the same roots as the flower cards and might guide you to their source. The academy holds many secrets, and in principle, we encourage students to explore on their own. Of course, don't forget the curfew at midnight."
…
When Dark left the office, he was filled with doubt.
Professor Cazale's words didn't sit well with him.
"Has he already investigated and confirmed there's no danger? Or… has he already dealt with the danger?"
"Otherwise, why would he mention encouraging students to explore on their own?"
Dark stored the phalaenopsis flower card in his card holder, realizing he probably wouldn't get any more information from Professor Cazale.
"If that's the case, the only person I can turn to for further investigation is Virt."
"The midnight curfew is a warning."
"But Robert has already paid the price for sneaking out at night."
"Hmm, what should I do next?"
…
Lost in thought, Dark returned to the Noble House dormitory.
He decided not to overthink it. After all, the Hero's Son was around.
Dark even suspected that Virt was already deeply involved; the [Lust] card was proof of that.
Rather than risk further exploration, it might be better to wait for the secrets to surface on their own.
Or, he could follow in the Hero's footsteps, observing the spectacle from a safe distance.
In any case, tonight, right after the incident, was definitely not a good time.
He set up his experiment table and began his experiments early.
One [Trash Slime] was enough. He didn't attempt another [Plant Species - Grass Attribute] experiment. Instead, he conducted second and third trials using the [Beast Species - Grass Attribute] basic synthesis method.
Both trials ended in failure.
However, he then changed his approach.
He adopted the basic synthesis method recorded in the textbook, the so-called "random synthesis method."
The random synthesis method was relatively easier but had a lower success rate.
When mages were at a loss, they often used this method to find inspiration.
Experiments weren't only valuable when they succeeded; failed experiments could also provide insights.
…
The ingredients were still fairy nectar and brain essence water.
But the subsequent materials were completely different.
The "random synthesis method" felt like throwing a bunch of materials into a large cauldron and boiling them all together.
A few special synthesis arrays were mixed in, and everything left after boiling was condensed into a magic card.
Since only the nature and requirements of some materials were specified (rather than exact materials), and the requirements for quantity and timing were quite flexible, the synthesis process was highly random. Even if the same person used the same materials, the resulting magic card could be completely different.
This was the "random synthesis method," a playground for the lucky.
After 32 minutes, Dark finally reached the final step of the magic spirit card synthesis.
He activated the No. 1 synthesis array and began adding materials.
First, cat fur.
Then, more cat fur.
Finally, even more cat fur!
To ensure the purity of the core material, Dark didn't add anything other than cat fur.
When the last strand of cat fur was absorbed and devoured, the light from the No. 1 synthesis array gradually dimmed and finally settled.
Dark carefully examined the magic card on the table.
The card's surface was coated with a thick layer of black gel, emitting a smell somewhat like burnt rubber.
He picked up his magic pen and gently tapped it.
BOOM!
Part of the gel suddenly exploded.
A spark of flame shot up and immediately began to spread.
Dark reacted quickly, grabbing the fireproof cloth from the corner of the table and throwing it over the flames.
Pat pat.
The fire was extinguished.
Lifting the fireproof cloth and removing the gel, Dark used tweezers to carefully pull out the magic card from one corner.
But the card's surface was completely black – clearly a failed product.
"Although it failed, it seems to lean toward the fire attribute."
"But how could cat grass fur be fire-attributed? Unless… it's solar energy?"
"Pride, the sun."
"That's it! That's where I went wrong!"
Dark suddenly had an epiphany.
His previous experiments had always used the grass-attribute basic synthesis method. However, the light attribute, symbolizing the sun, was actually the most fitting for [Pride].
After absorbing [Pride], the cat grass's attribute had shifted toward light.
Using cat fur for synthesis should have involved the [Plant Species - Light Attribute] or [Beast Species - Light Attribute] basic synthesis methods!
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