[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies":3,"chapter-notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-chapter-217":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Notes on Kraft Anomalous Studies",{"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},2283695,4467,"Chapter 217: The Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell","notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-chapter-217",217,"\u003Cp>At the time the incident occurred, Dunling lay asleep as usual, cradled by the Tem River, and the night watchman wandered listlessly along empty streets with his lantern.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the old district, religious laws and traditions had not yet faded; with no nighttime venues available, few dared to venture out. Damp cold drifted through the colonnades, soaking clothes and coating building surfaces and exposed skin with beads of moisture.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So when he passed the white stone building, the watchman did not immediately realize what had happened—only that a red glow above him radiated heat even at a great distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And barely had the thought crossed his mind when that red heat became impossible to ignore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked up: the dome, meant to vanish into the night, was illuminated by a twisting, shifting light; jagged tongues of blazing red erupted from open windows, devouring ash-laden paper scraps swirling upward in the heat. Explosions roared, heavy objects toppled—like the scorching throat of hell swallowing and grinding.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A corner of burning paper, carried by the infernal wind, landed at his feet. This unfortunate soul, on his routine patrol, finally understood what had happened and tried to rouse someone to control the fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the college at night held barely any people; even with the river nearby, the flames were not contained until dawn. It was hard to say whether it was the few buckets of water that worked—or simply the fire burning out all combustible material.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Green received the news the next day and hurried over, the situation had diverged completely from his initial assumptions. All suspected parties had perished in the flames; even their remains were unrecognizable, their identities guessed only by personal ornaments and locations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he tried contacting his informant for inside information, Brother Vatin sadly informed him that this hard-won informant would never again provide any leads.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In just half a day, standing before the ruins, Green underwent a whirlwind of emotions: shock, confusion, anger, then back to confusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Conditions inside the fire site reinforced his judgment. Besides the lingering, face-mask-filtered haze of unsettled ash, the air carried a strange odor—like the scent when re-oiling a burned-out lantern.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everything lay uniformly charred black, like a decades-old furnace lined with burned carbon. Without the prior list of faculty and students and the lime-drawn outlines around the unrecoverable bones, it would have taken hours just to count the dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though not absolutely certain, he was at least ninety percent sure this was a deliberate act.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had considered that Professor Mo Lisen might have sensed something—but as the recognized leader of the Medical Academy and royal advisor, even if exposed as connected to heresy, he could still mitigate the punishment: at worst, his reputation would be ruined, he’d be dismissed and sent into retirement on an estate beyond the city, while the Church would legitimately gain greater control over the Medical Academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With prior warning, countless methods existed to clean everything up before the Tribunal could close its net—not a single trace left behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But instead, a fire had served as a funeral pyre for Professor Mo Lisen’s identity, simultaneously eliminating the hard-planted informant and enraging the Tribunal beyond repair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In short, excluding the negligible chance of accident, this act’s madness was akin to amputating an arm for elbow pain, a leg for knee pain, or severing the head for cervical disease—useless except for completely evading investigation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such incomprehensible behavior brought thick clouds of suspicion—and a chilling dread that shook the soul, as if beneath the water a long, shadowy spine, its full form unseen, suddenly rose; only after the boat entered the tributary did one realize it was not a shallow sandbar, but the very target once sought to fish.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The most terrifying afterthought was that the long shadow never reappeared—but forever swam in the depths of the startled soul, occasionally stirring ripples that jolted one awake in dreams.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Green was certain he must find it, for it was far more than an indelible stain on his career—it made him feel an inexplicable, alien insecurity even while walking through a city he thought he knew completely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind Mo Lisen and that only partially understood potion lay some truth too vast to imagine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was why, after briefly learning the visitor’s basic background, he had decisively chosen to handle it himself—and followed him here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I thought you’d know more,” the professor said, showing only slight surprise upon hearing the unusual rubbing, appearing momentarily thoughtful, but offering no comment on the rest—as if listening to long-familiar gossip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The giant in full armor—Brother Vatin—retorted, “Then what do you know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kraft wanted to say he knew plenty—but considering their differing positions, most of what he knew couldn’t be explained normally, and he’d have to choose his words carefully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Regardless, thank you for sharing. I won’t ask your opinion on that strange fire—obviously only the Medical Academy would call it an accident.” He gathered his thoughts, sensing shared understanding would aid communication: “Professor Mo Lisen must have been involved in crimes far graver than grave-robbing or heresy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So, assume this theory holds: we must act quickly, before this becomes a mess no one can handle, and eliminate it as soon as possible.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If there were any leads, the Tribunal would’ve acted six months ago. Of course, if you’re willing to use your position to provide inside information from the Academy, that would be ideal.” Vatin clearly still resented losing his informant; it seemed the Tribunal had failed to recruit another agent capable of infiltrating the Medical Academy and loyal to the Church.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Green was less direct: “Professor Kraft, I swear by my faith in the Heavenly Father that what I’ve said is true. In fairness, shouldn’t you be more candid about what you’re doing here—and why?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This question stumped Kraft. Before being asked, he had never seriously considered the answer—or rather, he’d assumed it was obvious, as natural as water flowing downhill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To claim it was for justice? Not entirely. For himself? He’d had no stake in it unless he’d touched it from the start.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He harbored no grand ambition to save the world alone, nor deep outrage to champion any one person’s cause—only followed basic logic. But that logic seemed insufficient to justify crossing half the kingdom to trace this path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Green observed Kraft’s silence. That thin-shell sensation he’d briefly felt in the tomb now reappeared on Kraft—as if this vigorous body were merely a fragile, smooth eggshell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Curiosity, then,” he said. “I want to know what happened. Show me that rubbing—perhaps it will spark insight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No problem, once you prove your medical practice involves no violations.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go now. May this be the first step toward trust—we share the same goal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>End of Chapter\u003C\u002Fp>",1128,"2026-06-20T02:15:56.940Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","837901258d5e0c1806bd82878de8268f9c9086ee0bced503df0132f7ce319d2e","notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-chapter-218","notes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-chapter-216",406,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fnotes-on-kraft-anomalous-studies-cover.jpg"]