Wizard: Starting With Synthesized Gems - Chapter 577

Chapter 574: The Seeds of Civilization and the Leaders of the Ancients, Rejection Incident

Chapter 574 The Seed of Civilization and the Leader of the Ancestors, the Rejection Incident
Inside the dormitory, Locke placed his left and right hands on the Golden Palace Branch and the Little Vajra Jujube Pendant, and simultaneously chanted a spell, in order to completely establish a magical grafting relationship with the two.

Two powerful magic plants rose up from their bodies, with abnormal magic pressure, strange and changeable, and complex spirituality, trying to resist Locke from establishing a magic grafting relationship with them.

But suddenly, a spirit of an ancient tree sapling of life appeared behind Locke. With the blessing of this spirit, he used 9100 magic pressure and increased his magic pressure to the limit of one ring through the ferocious beast panel. Then he forcibly reached a magic grafting relationship with the two magic plants and incorporated the two magic plants into the distributed psychic network.

Locke panted softly. “As expected of the luxurious magical plants within the First Ring, achieving a magical connection with them is indeed challenging. Even with my Ferocious Beast identity and the Ancient Tree of Life sapling, it’s still so difficult. If it were an ordinary botanical wizard, I estimate it would take at least a year to even imprint a soul mark on these two magical plants.”

However, in this way, the two luxury magic plants became Locke’s right-hand men and left-hand men, and he could use them as easily as his own arms.

At the same time, two powerful tree-like magic plants floated in the air, and with Locke as the core, they began to construct the spell model of Taohu Jishi.

A complicated magic circle appeared under Locke’s feet.

The Peach Arc Thorn Arrow is actually a semi-ritual magic. The reason why it is called semi is that in the era when it first appeared, there was no ritual magic at all.

Ritual magic is inspired by ancient magic such as Taohu Jishi.

“Taohu Jishi needs to connect with the spirits of the ancient human leaders who pioneered and overcame difficulties on this land, and borrow from them the power of civilization. Therefore, throughout the entire process, I must remain focused, without any distraction, and absolutely no negative emotions, otherwise I will be in danger if the magic backfires.”

Locke pondered. “Fortunately, the Little King Kong Zao Diao possesses the ability to [Replace Death], a core function that even permanent defense fields lack.”

In this kind of magical backlash, the wizard’s permanent defense field is like the eggshell of an egg, which can easily resist attacks from the outside. However, in this kind of self-backlash from the inside out, the effectiveness of the permanent defense field will be greatly reduced.

Of course, it can’t be useless.

At least it won’t make the wizard self-destruct so easily.

At this time, a mysterious magic circle appeared under Locke’s feet. It was a magic circle composed of dozens of polygons nested together. At the same time, there were three patterns inside the magic circle: flame, knife, and seed.

The remaining branch of the Golden Palace and the small Vajra Date Pendant automatically flew into the magic circle, taking on the responsibility of summoning the spiritual power of the ancestral leader and establishing a bridge connecting with him.

During this process, Locke entered a state of extreme concentration, in which he even had a wrong perception of time.

But just as Locke was about to analyze the principle and mechanism of this wrong perception, the next moment, the backlash of magic followed, like a raging river crashing through his body. The power of Mist and life re-armor in his body, with the help of the five-headed snake magic plant he carried with him, appeared one after another.

The small golden jujube tree is hanging, and some of the fast-growing branches have fallen down.

The magic circle under his feet also disappeared.

Locke frowned. “I was just subconsciously trying to analyze that particular situation. This instinctive analysis actually caused me to suffer magical backlash. But all wizards, upon encountering an unknown phenomenon, will likely remember, analyze, or even react slightly.”

No wonder, Taohu Jishi is so dangerous and is gradually being eliminated.

“It’s also because my mind was distracted just now.” Locke pondered, “I may have misunderstood Taohu Jishi’s requirement for concentration. Whether it’s ordinary meditation or advanced meditation, the so-called concentration required is to make me simulate the spirituality of a certain power. As a result, I was actually still thinking.”

“Not only is he thinking, but he’s thinking with a high degree of concentration, and the content of his thinking is extremely complex.”

There are two meditation methods that I have learned.

The Ancient Tree of Life Meditation Method makes one’s magic power fluctuate like an ancient tree of life, while the Natural Meditation Method makes one’s magic pressure fluctuate close to the great World Tree.

But Momoko Jiya required himself not to think at all, and even focusing on the content of thinking was not allowed.

“Maybe it’s just to clear your mind.” Locke thought: “Let your brain not think about anything at all.”

“No, it’s not that simple. When I clear my mind and stop thinking, my spiritual level and demonic pressure level will change accordingly, entering a special state of calm and tranquility.”

Locke thought of the literature he’d read about Taohu Jishi. “This is what the literature refers to as the ‘Blank State.’ At the time, I didn’t quite understand why stopping thinking constituted a blank state. But now I think it really means that my spirit must enter a blank state. This is how I can connect with the spirits of the ancient leaders and borrow the special power of their civilizational spark.”

“Let the Little Diamond Jujube Pendant and the Relict Branch of the Golden Palace carry the power of the Spark of Civilization. This way, we can use a spell that surpasses the theoretical maximum damage value of the first ring—the Peach Arc Thorn Arrow!”

If the War Spear of the Ancient Tree of War can reach the upper limit of damage output in the first stage when the magic pressure conditions are met, then the Peach Arc Thorn Arrow can break this limit.

The reason is simple, this magic has the characteristics of the second ring, which can connect with the spiritual power of the ancient leaders and achieve damage that ordinary first-ring wizards cannot inflict by relying on their own magic pressure.

Moreover, if Locke’s Peach Arc Thorn Arrow is successfully constructed, he can use the Golden Palace Relics Branch and the Small Vajra Jujube Pendant. These two magic plants can also borrow the spirituality of the Fire Element Emperor and the Phoenix, as well as the second-ring-level treasure, the Vajra spirituality inside the Vajra Witch Stone.

In other words, the damage of Taohu Jishi will reach an incredible level.

But the most important thing is that Locke realized that the real function of this magic is probably not to fight against people.

Rather, in ancient times, wizards learned spells in advance to specifically break through obstacles in order to break through to the second-ring wizard level.

This function was probably later believed by wizards to have been completely replaced by ritual magic, so this may be the reason why no one learned Taohu Jishi.

However, witch Ekaterina believed that it was still necessary for her to learn Peach Arc Thorn Arrow, and that she could gain something different from learning ritual magic.

Of course, strictly speaking, Witch Ekaterina is already very old, and Locke can’t figure out whether she has a filter for Taohu Jishiya or she really thinks Taohu Jishiya has unique advantages.

Anyway, most of the one-ring crystallized wizards of this era… especially those outside the Yunze Wetlands, did not really understand the true function of ritual magic.

So, it is possible that many wizards are not aware of the role of the Peach Arc Thorn Arrow.

Locke said: “I’d better follow the study plan arranged for me by the Throne Wizard. This is the right way.”

“First, they arranged for me to make a contract with the Emerald Dream and made me aware of the effects of ritual magic. Now, they have arranged for me to learn the Peach Arc Thorn Arrow, which is the prerequisite for learning advanced meditation methods.”

Locke said, “How thoughtful. Sure enough, my decision to come to Golden Crown Mountain and follow Witch Ekaterina was correct. I wonder if other researchers at Golden Crown Mountain receive the same treatment as me. I think so… Witch Ekaterina spent a long time helping Witch Mason sign the contract for the Ancient Sky Fantasy World.”

“Mentoring cooperating wizards and helping them reach the Second Ring Path seems to be one of Ekaterina’s responsibilities. This is similar to how I helped Williams and Gregor become official wizards.”

Locke studied Taohu Jishi for a while, constantly putting himself into a special state that could meet the requirements of Taohu Jishi’s learning.

In the continuous connection with the spirit of unknown existence, Locke seemed to see that on the ancient and vast land, ancestors held torches in their left hands and hatchets in their right hands, slashing and burning the land to spread the fire of civilization.

It was a time when humans had not yet discovered magic, and it was also a time when a seed had just sprouted from the soil and had the greatest future.

Locke connected with his spirit, and in this special state, his understanding of botanical magic inexplicably began to increase.

Under the illumination of the fire of civilization, even the existing knowledge in the mind began to be automatically reconstructed, constantly innovating and giving rise to new knowledge.

However, ten minutes later, the magic circle had collapsed.

“Three hours…” Locke said, “The first time you complete this magic, you need to maintain the magic circle ritual for at least three hours. That means entering the state with no thoughts in your mind and a blank state of mind for three hours.”

“Also, I discovered another thing—the spirit enters a blank state in order to connect with the spirits of ancient beings. However, when one enters a blank state, it is also easy for others to take advantage of the situation.”

“If we encounter nightmare creatures or disc-shaped creatures, we’ll be in trouble. However, fortunately, we have the spirits of the Small Diamond Jujube Pendant, the Forest Sanctuary, the sapling of the Ancient Tree of Life, and the Golden Palace Relic Branch. These spirits can prevent anything from taking advantage of the situation.”

“Furthermore, I can draw on the magic circles of ritual magic.” Locke’s current thinking, strengthened by the fire of civilization, was clearer, guided by a certain intuition. “Ritual magic is composed of many parts, each of which is the result of years of research by high-level wizards across the Star Sea. Those research results have been incorporated into the wizards’ magic hierarchy system.”

“Although wizards still have a lot of secret knowledge that they only allow their students to learn, and even students keep some of it to themselves, it seems that many wizards at higher levels are striving to have their research results included in the wizarding power hierarchy.”

“Therefore, young wizards like us can even benefit from the research achievements of high-level wizards. Moreover, this Fire of Civilization seems to have a significant impact on my thinking. It’s not that it makes me smarter, but it makes my ability to find key points more acute.”

Locke suspected that this was one of the main reasons why the witch Ekaterina asked him to learn Tao Qu Ji Ya.

At this time, it was already the afternoon of the next day.

Locke decided to pause for a while. He had been continuously hit by the backlash of magic and was physically and mentally exhausted. The little golden jujube hanging also needed a certain amount of time and magical energy to restore the lost fast-growing branches by itself.

He first returned to the public laboratory and discussed the progress of his project with Mason Witch and others. He found that the interaction pathway mechanism between 26 types of air plants and the reproductive capacity of magical creatures had been analyzed.

At the same time, the analysis of the six natural unknown magic structures has been completed, and the fund money has basically been spent.

Locke discussed with them the experimental process of Overlord Element No. 2, and let them do the rest of the trivial experiments, while he went to the Quetzalcoatl Ancient Pavilion to borrow the Queen’s chessboard.

Then, Locke found Gregory and Williams and asked about their progress in increasing their magic pressure and their preparations for the competition, as well as Williams’s situation on the school team in the potion relay race.

At his workstation, Williams smiled sweetly at Locke and said, “Thank you for your concern, instructor. I’m doing very well on the school team. The team leader, the wizard, thinks I’m doing very well.”

“She thought I had a solid theoretical foundation, and I told her it was all thanks to your teaching.”

Williams said proudly, “The school team coach has decided to let me represent our Golden Crown Mountain team in the potion relay race on Sports Day.”

The potion relay race is not about making potions. Instead, six first-class wizard apprentices and potion master assistants are divided into groups. During the race, they choose to drink a bottle of potion from among many unlabeled potions, but these potions are mixed with a batch of poisons.

Therefore, the so-called potion relay race is a competition that tests the potion master’s eyesight. Of course, there are also unconventional ways of playing, such as resisting the poison to forcibly make up for the lack of one’s own identification ability.

The Sports Festival of Golden Crown Mountain is not only an internal festival, but also invites most of the wizarding organizations in the nearby Golden Crown Mountain, their wizard apprentices, and even formal wizards to participate in sports competitions.

In Yunze Wetland, so-called sports competitions are basically closely linked to business and politics.

The annual sports festival at Golden Crown Mountain strengthens the cohesion between students and regular wizards within the academy, allowing some wizards to work on their projects. It also brings in nearby small and medium-sized wizarding organizations to demonstrate Golden Crown Mountain’s dominance!
Essentially, this is a collective event organized by Golden Crown Mountain for the nearby wizard academies.

Even when Jinmianshan wants to target a certain wizard academy, it can boycott the wizard academy in disguise by not inviting it to participate.

Of course, for Jinmanshan, hosting the sports festival seems to be able to get special sponsorship from the White Wizard Association Headquarters, and the White Wizard Association Headquarters is always happy to see such things happen.

Likewise, small wizarding organizations might also associate participation in sports festivals with access to specific resources or better admissions resources.

Therefore, after Locke learned about the information about the Sports Festival in Golden Crown Mountain, he finally realized why an ordinary second-ring wizard would go to Ekaterina the witch to complain when Williams joined a school team.

The truth is that the Sports Festival is a far more meaningful and important festival than the True Love Festival, which is a commercial festival only.

Behind this festival, there are even issues concerning the allocation of resources in the Wizarding Secret Realm and the resource allocation issues of the academy’s top management.

Sports is a variant of war, where major wizarding academies compete for dominance over resources in a region.

Dark wizards need to obtain resources through war and destruction, while white wizards always avoid unnecessary destruction and hope to become richer and richer through war, so they found a new form of war – sports.

Even the major wizarding academies that hold sports competitions and participate in this alternative war may be able to make some money.

In essence, the Yunze Cup competition was also a form of “war”.

It’s just that the wizards transferred their own war to the Mekanians and the Sureyas, two subordinate civilizations.

Locke nodded to Gregor and Williams. “That’s good. You guys should work hard. I won’t have much to do recently until I pass the second-class funding and get the first-class funding.”

“So, you need to make good use of this free time and create your entry for the competition as soon as possible.”

“Gregor, this is the new topic I gave you. Williams, this is the list of books I found specifically for you after observing your work and finding some flaws in it.”

“Follow my topic and the book list I provided, and you two will be able to discover the flaws in your current breeding research project. This will be more efficient than me directly telling you the flaws.”

“You can learn it too.”

Williams said in surprise, “Thank you, teacher. Your teaching method seems to be different from other formal wizards.”

Locke thought of the witch Sophia, who rarely taught him anything directly. She only gave him questions and provided him with a list of books.

Locke said: “I just used a teaching method that is more friendly to intelligent people.”

Gregor said unsurely, “Teacher? Am I considered a smart person?”

Williams glared at him.

Locke said, “Okay, you guys go first.”

Locke left the public breeder laboratory, but did not go to the Quetzalcoatl Ancient Pavilion immediately. Instead, he went to his staff dormitory first and found Schneider, who was temporarily living in his staff dormitory and writing an article for him.

Schneider lowered his head, feeling somewhat guilty, not daring to look Locke in the eye. “I’m sorry, Master Augustine.”

“I’ve been working on this for a month, and recently only one article on the mechanism of action pathway of the Big Yellow Duck pineapple and the Big Black Diamond pineapple were published in the second-tier journal Environment and Plants.”

“The other two were rejected.”

Locke frowned, not expecting something like this to happen.

I asked Schneider to write the article, and I was in charge of the correspondence. Then I gave the first and second author positions to Gregor and Williams respectively.

Even though they themselves don’t know it.

The main thing is that it is only a Zone 2 journal. If I give my colleagues and friends a Zone 2 first author position, they might turn against me.

Even if Daniel had an extra Zone 2, Zone 1 work on him for no apparent reason, he would probably feel uncomfortable.

Besides, if you randomly put your name on someone and it attracts the attention of the Ethics Review Committee and the Academic Committee, that would be troublesome.

Gregor and Williams, in many of their experiments, actually did at least some odd jobs.

So, there is no problem in giving them a name.

Locke asked Schneider to bring over the rejection letters.

After reading a bunch of rejection letters sent to his home by journal editors, Locke finally understood what had happened.

This has nothing to do with Schneider’s ability to organize data and write articles, nor does it have anything to do with the quality of the key experimental data he conducted.

The problem lies with myself.

To be precise, the problem was that I was the corresponding author.

When I submitted my previous papers, the corresponding author’s name was Ekaterina Witch, so I had never noticed this problem before.

“It’s because I’m only a researcher at the Institute of True Knowledge and don’t hold a senior teaching position. So when I was the corresponding author, the three reviewers had some seniority bias.”

After all, journal review is a job that cannot use too many resources to do reproducibility verification for you. It would be good enough if you can find a few colleagues to take a look.

So, in this case, in order to ensure the quality of the journal, reviewers will inevitably adopt some a priori ideas.

For example, the quality of articles with Gao Huan Wizard as the corresponding author must be guaranteed, and there is little possibility of data falsification.

Although these ideas are unfair to young first-ring wizards, they are indeed based on certain objective reasons.

Of course, there are also some non-objective reasons. It may be that the academic status of young first-ring wizards is lower, which can be used to make way for some articles with the names of second-ring wizards and third-ring wizards as corresponding authors.

I had previously used Ekaterina Witch as the corresponding author of my article, which was equivalent to borrowing some of Ekaterina Witch’s academic status and identity.

Therefore, when submitting to major journals, they will be seen by the review editors at the first time, and will be taken seriously and trusted by the review wizards invited by the editors.

But when you are the corresponding author, the situation is completely different.

So it happens that you submit four papers to Zone 2, but only two of them are accepted, because your academic status is currently relatively low.

As for the fact that two of my articles were able to pass, it was probably because I was lucky and happened to meet three review wizards who didn’t have too many qualifications to look up to, so they passed me.

Among them, the Big Yellow Duck Pineapple is related to the new natural magic structure component inside the Big Yellow Duck Crown Pineapple published in the first zone “Green Grass Yunze”. Therefore, the related article of the Big Yellow Duck Pineapple, because it has the endorsement of the first zone journal, the editor-in-chief, the three review wizards, have more reason and confidence to let their related article pass a journal in the second zone.

“Environment and Plants” is also the top botanical journal in Yunze Wetland Zone 2, so the entire mechanism responsible for reviewing manuscripts will be relatively fair.

(End of this chapter)