Chapter 83: Every Piece of Knowledge Has Its Weight

After returning from the Earth Church, Lei Kedun suddenly realized that the grafting experiment no longer needed him at all; everything he could explain had already been told to Tu Ba Ge, so the experimental matters could be completely handed over to it.

Lei Kedun offered a tempting prospect to Tu Ba Ge, who was sitting at the desk, diligently flipping through various plant references provided by the Earth Church: "Come on! Once you finish the experiment, you might obtain feedback strong enough to digest the farmer's demon elixir."

"Does grafting plants count as playing a role?" Tu Ba Ge asked, puzzled.

"As long as you can cultivate mature crops, that should count; after all, if it's non‑poisonous, whether it's grass or leaves, it can serve as your food, right?" Lei Kedun couldn't guarantee it fully, but intuitively thought that if Tu Ba Ge could complete a batch of experiments, the demon elixir on its body would be roughly digestible.

"I'm just a rabbit, not an insect; I don't eat just any plant," Tu Ba Ge retorted, his head full of question marks.

"Ahem! It's only a metaphor; the farmer's role is to plant, and obtaining a harvest counts as success. Here the harvest doesn't have to be literal fruit or maturity," Lei Kedun explained again.

Tu Ba Ge nodded as if half‑understood; though unsure whether the boss was pulling the rabbit's leg again, the prospect of digesting demon elixir was enticing, so Tu Ba Ge threw himself even more effort into the grafting experiments thereafter.

Even though it was already the New Year, a time when everyone should be idle, Lei Kedun found that the people around him were each busier than the last.

Even Tu Ba Ge, that rabbit, together with the vampire Ya Si, led a group of Earth Church members each day, continuously conducting various plant grafting experiments in the Earth Church's experimental field.

Lei Kedun's parents returned to their suburban manor and began preparing New Year decorations; if they hadn't seen Earth Church members coming daily to look for Lei Kedun, he would have been summoned back to the manor by them.

The poetry anthology Lei Kedun intended to compile, which interweaves Second Era history, was finished; using a memory talisman, Lei Kedun recalled every poem, lyric, and ode he had ever read, then finally sifted through them to select about a dozen poems that Luo Sai Er hadn't copied.

These days Lei Kedun had been studying a new spell; at first he thought that, with the knowledge supplied by the Hidden Sage, it would be fairly easy, but once he tried, he discovered his occult foundation was too weak, and even with the Hidden Sage's boost, developing a new spell proved to be a max‑difficulty undertaking.

It wasn't until several days after the New Year that the spell made a breakthrough.

"Finally finished! If I keep at it, I feel my hairline will recede in my prime," Lei Kedun sighed, stretching lazily as he looked at the watercolor painting on the desk, his emotions clearly stirred.

This watercolor was created by Lei Kedun using his newly invented spell—a genuine, authentic watercolor. Unlike images rendered by magic, it will not fade as spiritual energy wanes.

"My first self‑created spell shall be called 'Watercolor Projection Type 01'; later, if interested, I can revise it to Type 02, Type 03, and so on," Lei Kedun said proudly, looking at the watercolor he had produced with the spell.

Rays of tangled information, wave after wave, reassembled in the spirit realm into a phantom eye, abruptly appearing in the spirit realm overlapping the room's location.

Then Lei Kedun saw an information avatar of the Hidden Sage copy his newly invented 'Watercolor Projection Type 01' spell from him.

After the Hidden Sage's avatar finished copying the spell, it transmitted a snippet of knowledge to Lei Kedun via a mild knowledge infusion; Lei Kedun only felt a slight head discomfort, which quickly passed.

Subsequently, the Hidden Sage's avatar reconstituted into another surge of tangled informational light and streamed away.

Seeing the Hidden Sage's avatar depart without any desire to converse, Lei Kedun—who had originally hoped to freeload some knowledge—had no choice but to sit back down and review the information the Hidden Sage had just infused.

"Hardening Technique": apply powder ground from black pearls onto an item and recite an incantation, temporarily hardening the object; even a newspaper can become a sharp weapon.

"It's somewhat like a magician's paper‑as‑weapon trick, but without the ability to temporarily turn paper into other weapons; however, the spell's effect is broader, no longer limited to paper," Lei Kedun thought to himself about the technique.

After testing the new spell, Lei Kedun simply recorded both the Hardening Technique and the newly invented Watercolor Projection Type 01 together. He then used the Watercolor Projection Type 01 to fill in the illustrations of the prepared poetry anthology.

Having finished, Lei Kedun leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes to meditate, and a slightly incomplete brass‑colored ring materialized behind him, its center depicting an open book outlined by twisted lines.

Through the ring's direct link to the library deep within the spirit realm, Lei Kedun once again arrived at that spirit‑realm library.

Originally Lei Kedun had intended to ask Mr. Huang how to bring his written book and recorded spells over. However, when his spirit form appeared in the library, he found that he was already holding the recorded spells and the compiled book in his hands.

"Hm? So intelligent?" Lei Kedun exclaimed in surprise.

"The library detected knowledge you wished to insert and materialized it directly," Mr. Huang promptly appeared beside Lei Kedun to explain.

"Can this library be this intelligent?" Lei Kedun asked curiously.

"Intelligent? That's a nice term; I'll catalog it in the library and note that it was proposed by you. This reflects the Church's respect for knowledge," Mr. Huang's attention was drawn to the new word Lei Kedun had inadvertently coined.

Lei Kedun raised his hand, intending to ask where the book and recorded spells in his hands should be placed.

Mr. Huang seemed to perceive Lei Kedun's confusion, waved the hand hidden beneath his robe, and the books and recorded spells in Lei Kedun's hands automatically flew onto a nearby shelf.

"The library will automatically attribute the knowledge you prepared and label its viewing price. Of course, you may modify it if you wish, but I don't recommend that—every piece of knowledge should have its weight," Mr. Huang explained.

Lei Kedun originally intended to offer his poetry anthology, which contains Second Era history, for free, believing that only by letting more people see it could he receive sufficient feedback.

However, after hearing Mr. Huang's half‑suggestion, half‑admonition, he reconsidered and abandoned the idea.

"Indeed, every piece of knowledge should have its weight!" Lei Kedun murmured.

Seeking recommendations, seeking follow‑up reading!!!

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(End of Chapter)