[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-above-the-mage":3,"chapter-above-the-mage-above-the-mage-chapter-491":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Above the Mage!",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2257495,4404,"Chapter 491: Test","above-the-mage-chapter-491",491,"\u003Cp>The black-haired giant mentioned that the Humming Forest lies on the southern shore of Lake Es Mier , right beside it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De inquired about the exact location of the Humming Forest, thanked the fisherman, and set off toward the forest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he neared the trees, a breeze from the lake brushed past, gently lapping the shore with a soothing trickle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately after, the wind passed through the forest, and a faint buzzing rose in waves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sound was not piercing, yet it was intensely noisy, interwoven and indistinguishable from the hum of bees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The name was fitting indeed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The forest was small, totaling only about twenty trees, arranged in orderly disorder, each spaced widely apart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each Humming Tree was thick and straight, its bark a unique deep gray, covered in irregular patterns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De ran his hand over it—the texture was hard, and the patterns bore subtle ridges and depressions, like winding paths spreading across the bark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at the trunk, countless tiny holes dotted its surface, strikingly resembling a beehive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These holes varied in size: the largest as thick as a thumb, the smallest no bigger than a pinprick.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A faint, distinctive tree scent drifted through the air—the resin’s unique odor, slightly sour and bitter, not particularly pleasant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was not unpleasant either, carrying a simple, primal essence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nearly every one of these twenty trees had been partially peeled by fishermen, exposing the fresh inner wood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, the fishermen hung beneath each tree a rough-surfaced, slightly upturned, bowl-shaped container tied with hemp rope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thick resin slowly seeped from the holes, dripping into the containers below.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This freshly exuded resin was viscous, shimmering with a captivating luster under sunlight, its appearance nearly identical to honey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De observed carefully for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had only heard of the Humming Resin’s uses from fishermen’s tales—he had never tested it himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a brief thought, he removed one of the containers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The resin inside was half-full, still liquid, gently sloshing within the vessel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a slight surge of internal Qi, Gao De cast 【Arcane Trickery】, warming the resin, then used 【Dance of Wind】 to accelerate solvent evaporation from its surface, hastening its solidification.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Combined, the resin changed rapidly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The once-fluid golden liquid gradually lost its fluidity; soon, it hardened completely into a brown-yellow solid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its surface now appeared extremely smooth, catching the sunlight with a subtle sheen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De lightly pressed his finger against the solidified resin—it immediately deformed, sinking slightly under his fingertip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet the moment he released pressure, it snapped back instantly to its original shape, revealing unique elasticity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De then cast 【Cat’s Claw】, sharpening his nails into blades, and stabbed them into the hardened resin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a soft *plop*, like a blade piercing soft flesh, his nails sank in—but did not pierce through.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The resin displayed astonishing toughness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Gao De withdrew his nails, the tiny punctures sealed shut immediately, leaving only the faintest, nearly invisible trace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De’s eyes brightened again and again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, the testing was far from over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The most important test had yet to be performed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De carried the solidified resin to the shore and, using 【Control Water】, directed a stream of lake water to pour over it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment the water touched the resin, it repelled as if encountering intense resistance, instantly forming round droplets that slid rapidly down its surface.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The resin’s surface remained almost dry, leaving only a few minuscule water marks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as the black-haired giant had said, the Humming Resin’s waterproofing was remarkably effective.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De then used the water to envelop the resin, freezing it solid within a block of ice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That wasn’t enough—he drew Northwind and drew close to the ice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The supreme cold within Northwind surged forth like a freezing tide, instantly dropping the ice’s temperature by dozens of degrees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then Gao De stood still, waiting patiently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had great patience, waiting nearly an hour before finally dispelling the ice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the spell dissolved, the ice melted into droplets that slid swiftly off the resin’s surface.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The solidified resin, after enduring extreme cold, remained supple, showing not a single crack—unchanged from an hour earlier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its stability under extreme cold far exceeded Gao De’s expectations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De thought for a moment, used 【Mage Hand】 to lift the resin into the air, then cast 【Acid Splash】, conjuring a green acidic liquid mixed with lake water and splashing it onto the resin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As before, the acid-laced water struck the resin and instantly formed round droplets that slid away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The resin’s surface showed no sign of corrosion whatsoever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, Gao De extended his right hand—a flame burst forth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Ignite Flame】.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He applied the flame to heat the solidified resin, testing its behavior under high temperature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The result utterly surprised Gao De.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The resin, stable under low temperatures, exhibited the same stability under high heat—only beginning to soften near a hundred degrees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once softened, its malleability was excellent; it could be easily shaped into any form, and upon cooling and re-hardening, its strength remained nearly unchanged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After completing this series of tests, Gao De turned back to the small patch of Humming Forest—his gaze had changed completely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This Humming Tree, despised by many, was truly a pearl hidden in dust!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao De quickly returned to the forest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His eyes swept over the trees and noticed scattered capsules hanging among the branches.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He immediately cast Mage Hand—the phantom spectral hand darted swiftly through the foliage, plucking several capsules from the Humming Trees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he casually broke open one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a *pop*, the capsule split open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected, the seeds inside were revealed: oval, brown, smooth-surfaced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Undoubtedly, the Humming Tree was a new species; planted in the Northern Lands, it could nurture Yggdrasil.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But for Gao De, the Humming Tree’s significance extended far beyond that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was not merely “nourishment” for Yggdrasil—it possessed far greater utility in itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, Gao De was not content with collecting just one or two seeds this time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He cast Mage Hand again, stripping all twenty-odd Humming Trees, gathering over two hundred capsules in one go, then finally felt satisfied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1019,"2026-06-19T14:28:50.414Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","48d4f229460b3382e2ed11ebd4056a70935bed82cf45d9766450413a5bcbf01a","above-the-mage-chapter-492","above-the-mage-chapter-490",529,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fabove-the-mage-cover.jpg"]