Chapter 340: 349 Guidance

What is an Art Tool supposed to do...?

The crowd was bewildered.

What is an Art Tool for, and what does it have to do with us?

If the previous questions about Art Tool performance could be considered obtainable trivia, the knowledge of Art Tools themselves was already a case of "different trades, different worlds."

It is like asking a rich kid what food tastes good; he can list one, two, or three things. But ask him how to grow grain, and he would truly be staring blankly, not knowing a thing.

To a rich kid, isn't grain something brought up by a maid?

To a student, isn't an Art Tool something issued by the Training Camp?

As for whether an Art Tool is good or not... wait, aren't all One Yuan Heavy Art Tools the same?

The upper limit is the same, the burden is the same, the amplification is similar; without Sword Art, what other differences could there be?

Does looking different count as a difference?

Tang Zhao looked at the bewildered expressions of the crowd, turned back, and tapped his charcoal pencil against the wooden board as a hint, then said, "Ouyang, you tell them."

Ouyang Zhou was a very clever person. Following Tang Zhao's pencil to the words on the board, he hesitated and said, "Good Dharma Artifact... handy, sharp... strong explosive power? Low burden?"

He said the last two terms cautiously, looking very uncertain.

Actually, deducing the conditions was not difficult at all; the reason he was uncertain was that he wanted to ask:

"Can such a thing be done?"

Tang Zhao said, "Very well said. It is actually very simple, isn't it? I believe everyone could have thought of it." He wrote down the words: handy, powerful, low burden. Then he circled them. He wrote a few more words: "convenient, easy to use, easy to master."

"An Art Tool is a tool, and any tool always pursues being easy to use, convenient, and easy to master. Although the exam suppresses the upper limit of the Art Tool, making it less powerful, we still pursue being easy to use, convenient, and easy to master within a reasonable range. This is the principle that 'a workman must sharpen his tools if he is to do his work well.' If a tool is one point easier to use, it can save everyone a great deal of time. We use the time of three classes every ten days to learn how to quickly, effortlessly, and skillfully master tools that are easy to use, convenient, and easy to master, in hopes of achieving the effect of an extra thirty days, or even three months, of training. This is the secret weapon I am teaching you."

Qu Huan could not help but speak up, "Can it really be done? They are all One Yuan Heavy Art Tools; can you really make so many differences?"

Tang Zhao said, "Of course... it is not easy. If it were easy, everyone would have figured it out themselves. But there is a specialty in every trade; a Talisman Sword Master should be able to make difficult things easy and impossible things possible."

He first pointed to the technique for which he had drawn two horizontal bars, then drew a horizontal bar for adaptability. "Both of these items can be achieved. There are many kinds of techniques, and everyone can learn them. I will lead you in practicing adaptability. The secret is to hold the Art Tool often and get used to this burden. It requires effort, but you are all the least afraid of putting in effort, aren't you?"

Someone in the audience giggled. Just as Tang Zhao said, at this grade level, who among them could not endure hardship? Even if one were gifted, those who could not work hard and strive for progress would have been eliminated long ago.

Tang Zhao looked at these confident youths and remembered the days when he was often jumped by Si Liyu to practice getting used to his Art Tool; that was also practicing adaptability.

It was time to let the children of today taste that flavor as well.

He pointed to the lines of text about Art Tools again and said, "In this aspect, it is about switching to better tools..."

Qu Huan had just heard the term Talisman Sword Master in Tang Zhao's introduction, and at this moment, his heart could not help but thump wildly. He thought to himself: Could it be that he is going to give us more powerful weapons? Everyone gets one?

Tang Zhao said, "Let me say one thing first: all One Yuan Heavy Art Tools currently on the market are made using the same Rune Formula. And this Rune Formula is very suitable; there is basically no room for optimization."

He tried his best not to use professional jargon and explained, "The Rune Formula of this One Yuan Art Tool is, in the Talisman Sword Master system, like the status of the Body Refining Chapter in martial arts; it is the foundation of foundations. Everyone has practiced the Body Refining Chapter of our Land Inspection Division, right? It is common, but excellent. The progress is not slow, and there are no major flaws. Other practical body refining techniques are much the same; if you go to any large sect to look at their basic techniques, they are all at the same level. There is no such thing as a body refining technique that is incomparably exquisite and comparable to a Mysterious Technique. Art Tools are the same."

"The current standard One Yuan Art Tool is the best basic Rune Formula. Its goodness lies in its balance. Explosive power, endurance, adaptability, Qi loss, cost... it is balanced in all aspects with no weaknesses. As for me, I cannot change it at all."

Qu Huan felt a slight disappointment, but then his heart stirred, as if he had grasped the key point.

Tang Zhao smiled and said, "Speaking of this, everyone knows. If you want to obtain an Art Tool that is more suitable for yourself, you can only rely on trade-offs. Abandon this balance and pursue local optimization."

He picked up his pen and first crossed out a few words. "I can make a few trade-offs for everyone. Qi loss. A general Art Tool can maintain its performance for about a month, and with proper storage, it can last for three months. We won't worry about that; it's an exam, one round ends, so it's one use per ten days. Even if it becomes scrap metal after the exam, we won't care. Cost... let's not consider this for now; it won't be that high. Adaptability, which is being universally suitable for everyone—this can be crossed out. We are not pursuing plug-and-play; we choose our own Art Tools to adapt to in advance, and we choose according to our own characteristics, so adaptability is ignored."

"Then what remains: high explosive power, long endurance, low burden." Tang Zhao said, "If you want it to be even better, then there must be further trade-offs."

"Explosive power, endurance, burden." Tang Zhao placed the remaining three words on the wooden board, connecting them into a triangle.

"You must have realized that, apart from the parts that can be completely discarded, these three parts really cannot be simplified any further. There is no such thing as one being absolutely better. If there are trade-offs, it all depends on you as individuals. I want to know, which one do you think is more important?"

He did not specifically point to anyone to answer, clearly letting everyone speak their minds.

By now, the students present were gradually becoming familiar with Tang Zhao. They only felt that this Instructor had some substance and was approachable. Plus, he was indeed younger than all the other Instructors and closer to them, so they naturally opened up and said one after another:

"Naturally, explosive power is important. Isn't the point of using an Art Tool to seek that final killing blow? There is no need to use an Art Tool for small targets in daily life. It is enough to use it at the critical moment."

"That depends on the scenario. What if there is a group of Fierce Beasts? If you are only allowed to carry one Art Tool, endurance is certainly important. If you kill your way through, what do you do if it breaks halfway?"

"If you ask me, it is still the burden. Once the burden is light, you can fight, you can struggle, and you can run..."

"Well said! Not considering victory before considering defeat—you really have a future!"

"Heh, do you understand the Art of War?"

Tang Zhao listened for a while and smiled, "Look, the truth becomes clear through debate; hasn't the answer already emerged?"

He turned and wrote four large characters on the wooden board: "Depends on the person."

There was a burst of laughter from the audience.

Tang Zhao also smiled and said, "This was the answer all along. Everyone has parts they value, and everyone has parts they are good at. Such an important matter that concerns one's entire life would be too rash to discuss in just a few words. We have two months."

He held up two fingers, then immediately folded one, leaving only one. "One month. One month for you to think and try for yourselves to make a decision. One month after getting the Art Tool to break it in and adjust it; if it really doesn't fit, you can still regret it if you discover it early. Calculating it this way, is time a bit tight? So you must hurry. Starting from the next class, we will begin specialized testing and training."

When he said this, he smiled again and said, "You might also want to ask, is there an option for 'I want it all'? Hmm, there is."

Everyone's eyes lit up. Tang Zhao smiled and said, "That is the original version. What did I say just now? The standard Art Tool is the most balanced. Balance is not just mediocrity; it is also having no shortcomings. Don't be ungrateful for the blessings you have."

Qu Huan followed with a smile, then thought to himself: This Instructor is amazing. Just by talking, he leads us along and makes us submit to him, and he hasn't even shown his true skills yet. But he doesn't need to show them; he must be very strong; one can tell just by his temperament.

At this moment, someone suddenly raised a hand.

Qu Huan looked to the side; it was actually Qin Yongcheng. He was greatly surprised. Ever since this kid entered the senior grade and plummeted, he had never taken the initiative to speak. Why was he so active today?

Tang Zhao signaled for Qin Yongcheng to speak. Qin Yongcheng asked in a deep voice, "Instructor—the burden you mentioned, does it refer to the burden on the body, or the burden on Inspiration?"

The crowd was startled, then looked at Tang Zhao together.

Tang Zhao said, "Naturally, it is the burden on the body."

Qin Yongcheng said "Oh," and sat down with a blank face.

The crowd felt a little disappointed, but also felt it was not surprising at all.

There are indeed two types of consumption for Art Tools. One is the burden of physical strength and energy; using an Art Tool makes one extremely exhausted, and the physical consumption is huge; this is the burden on the body. The other is the burden on Inspiration. Those with high Inspiration can always use Art Tools, while those with low Inspiration must concentrate their attention; once their mind is exhausted, they lose control of the Art Tool. Those with even lower Inspiration cannot reach the bottom line and have no chance to master an Art Tool at all.

When Tang Zhao spoke of the burden, everyone had defaulted to the physical burden from the start. Because Inspiration is truly the most mysterious and unchangeable thing; even immortals can do nothing about it, and the Gaoyuan Marquis can do nothing about it. If the burden of Inspiration could be easily changed, then many young people with excellent qualities would not have had to retreat in regret.

When Qin Yongcheng raised this question, he did not hold much hope; he just seized the opportunity to ask. Getting this answer only made him slightly disappointed, but he had been desperate for a long time anyway.

Tang Zhao said, "Student Qin's question is very good. Let me elaborate." He pointed to the large triangle of three words on the board and said, "Explosive power, endurance, and burden all refer to the level of power; they can be converted into each other at the same level. Inspiration, however, is on another level, so they cannot be mentioned in the same breath."

The atmosphere became somewhat stifling for a moment; some people were indifferent, while others grew increasingly disappointed.

Tang Zhao said, "Let's discuss Inspiration separately. To reduce the burden of the Inspiration level, it cannot be achieved by adjusting the Rune Formula alone. Another variable is needed to compensate."

Ignoring the slight commotion that suddenly arose behind him, Tang Zhao wrote two large characters on the wooden board again:

"Will."