"This is magic." Xiao Chen held a small light spot in his hand. The light spot was only as big as a fingernail and very bright, like a small light bulb. But this light spot was very unstable. Rather than being a point, it was more like a ball of sand or a small group of fireflies gathered together. It swayed and trembled, causing the light and shadow of the whole room to change constantly.
"It's like a small universe." Luo Ling said seriously.
"I've lived for most of my life, but I never expected to see such a scene. It's like suddenly jumping into a movie." Guo Qian sighed.
"When Morey demonstrated this simplest luminescence technique to me, I also found it very bizarre." Xiao Chen agreed.
"It's nothing. When you reach my age and have seen all kinds of evil spirits in society, you will understand that more bizarre things are happening around us every day." Guo Qian raised his eyebrows and said.
"Uncle, you are angry again. I always feel that you are younger than me." Luo Ling teased.
Guo Qian laughed and reached out to touch the light spot. However, Xiao Chen quickly blocked his hand and said, "Principal, don't touch it. I can't control myself well. It might be dangerous."
"Sorry, sorry. We are researchers. When we see something new and interesting, our hearts itch and our hands get out of control. It's like a thief seeing a bag and wanting to steal it even if he cuts his hands off."
Xiao Chen slowly closed his palms, trying to extinguish the light, but unexpectedly, when he was halfway through closing his palms, the small light suddenly shone brightly, the brightness of the light increased several times at once, and then turned into a wisp of light smoke with a bang.
No one was prepared and the flash was so sudden that tears started flowing.
Xiao Chen covered his eyes and said, "I'm so sorry. This is what Morey said about my mental strength. It's strong enough, but too unstable. To release magic correctly, I need much more practice than others."
"Anyway, this is a great thing. With this little light, at least you are moving forward on the path of a magician." Guo Qian wiped the corners of his eyes with a handkerchief and walked to the sofa in the office and sat down.
Luo Ling walked to the window of the office and opened the curtains. The afternoon sun shone in, as if pulling people back to reality from the fantasy world. Xiao Chen stared at the palm of his hand for a long time, and only after making sure that there was no change did he sit down opposite Guo Qian with Luo Ling.
"For now, this matter needs to be kept secret from others." Guo Qian said after thinking for a while.
"What do you mean?"
"This is a very attractive power. However, we know nothing about its nature and danger. You have learned it by accident, so you should study it carefully. As for the others, their main energy must now be focused on building our home in the other world. As you know, most of the people here are young children, and every boy has a dream of being a hero."
"Some girls have it too." Luo Ling said with a smile.
Guo Qian pointed at Luo Ling and said with a smile: "You, you, I've seen since you were a child that you are a little devil who can't stop, and you have a big heart." He looked at Xiao Chen again and continued: "No matter what, I don't want those young people to think about how to get such power all day and ignore the things at hand. We are now working hard and trembling with fear. We dare not relax at all. What's more, we don't understand the nature of magic, and what kind of changes people will undergo after obtaining this power. There are great potential risks."
"Your concerns make sense." Xiao Chen agreed.
"You can keep the Scroll of Sea of Consciousness and study it. I will ask those who have seen you cast magic to keep this secret for the time being, or at least not to spread it widely. This matter must be handled step by step."
"I see."
"I hope you can understand this power well. We will try our best to support you with all our resources. After all, you have mastered it so quickly, which means that this power is common in this world. Maybe one day, our enemies will appear in front of us with this power. If we don't know ourselves and the enemy, we will be passive."
"You're right. I always feel that we are in great danger. What happened this time has made me more determined to think so."
Guo Qian took out a cigarette and rubbed it in his hand: "If you don't think about the future, you will have immediate worries. It would be great if everyone around you thought like you do. Unfortunately, some people have unknowingly begun to take the current calm as the norm. Is this naivety or ostrich mentality?"
"Some people are so ignorant of their own danger that they actually oppose Wang Jiyuan's plan of universal military service. They don't even think about the fact that a guard team of that size can't even guard the school wall," said Luo Ling.
"It's just a small group of people. Don't worry too much." However, Guo Qian didn't seem to want to say more on this topic. He lit up a cigarette and said with a sly smile, "I won't treat you if you smoke one less cigarette. Young people shouldn't get addicted to smoking here. It's a torture with no cure."
When Guo Qian smoked, the whole room fell into silence. Luo Ling couldn't stand the secondhand smoke, so she walked to the window and leaned on the window sill. Xiao Chen buried himself in the sofa, smelling the faint smell of cigarettes, as if he was experiencing the breath of the past world.
Guo Qian finished smoking and carefully removed the filter from the cigarette butt and put it into a small cigarette box on the table.
"What are you doing?"
"The people in the industrial group said that not even a single needle or thread should be wasted. The garbage in modern society is also the wealth of the world. So they want us to recycle anything that might be useful. Although I don't know what Duan Xiaowu can do, I think I can start with it."
"I know what I can do. I saw you secretly sniffing the filter to satisfy your craving." Luo Ling exposed Guo Qian without hesitation.
"Stop talking nonsense." Guo Qian avoided the question and said, "Well, the goblin attack that Xiao Chen encountered this time is both a bad thing and a good thing. We need to create a goblin threat theory, publicize it, and scare those guys. By the way, we should push forward the military team's proposal for universal training, the industrial team's plan for crossbow manufacturing, and the diplomatic team's suggestion to hire local guards."
Seeing that both of them nodded, Guo Qian asked Xiao Chen again: "What do you think of this Morey? Does he have a complicated background?"
Xiao Chen did not answer immediately. He knew that Principal Guo had asked a difficult question, and that a person could not be understood simply by getting along with him. At least he, Xiao Chen, did not have this ability, so he could only tell the truth without any emotion: "He said that he was an alchemist who was looking for alchemical materials in the surrounding mountains and was kidnapped by goblins by accident. He originally studied alchemy with his teacher in a city called Moncayo, but because of his family background, he was ostracized by his noble classmates and left his master after completing his studies. He hopes to find a town rich in resources and open an alchemy workshop. I thought he would be useful to us, so I brought him back after rescuing him. However, we did not reveal too much of our background to him."
"Is it possible that he sneaked into our school for some purpose?" Luo Ling's eyes seemed to penetrate Xiao Chen's body, making Xiao Chen feel very pressured to answer: "I think the possibility is very small. He was really caught by the goblins and was almost tied to a pillar and disemboweled. If we hadn't rushed in in time, he would have definitely died at the hands of the goblins. His encounter with us should have been an accident."
"I heard that he has a strange silver thread that can be used as a weapon. How do you know he didn't have any other backup plans at the time? Maybe if you didn't take action, the script would have turned out to be him saving Li Tianrui and others, selling out the school, and then sneaking in." Luo Ling changed her train of thought and analyzed.
"This..." Luo Ling's imagination left Xiao Chen speechless. He thought for a while and said, "I always feel that there are too many variables if we do this. It would be better for you to come to the camp and join us directly."
Luo Ling was about to argue, but Guo Qian stopped her with a wave of his hand.
"Well, there is no point in thinking too much about this. Spies can be used by me, and our people may also be developed into spies. The key now is, what does he think of us?"
"He could tell at a glance that we were not from this continent. I told him that we came from far away, but he didn't ask any further questions. However, I think it would be difficult for him to be fooled by the excuse that a magic experiment went wrong and caused an accidental fall, like those villagers. After all, he is an expert in magic and now knows that my magic level is very low and I don't have any inheritance. However, he was very interested in our technology and was very keen to discover the essential difference between our technological products and the civilization of this world. When he walked with us, he took my watch and flashlight and studied them for a long time. In the end, he told me that this was a great power that was completely different from alchemy."
"Haha, an alchemist who is interested in science, then have you figured out what alchemy is?" Guo Qian asked curiously, "I know that alchemy on Earth is something close to superstition. What about in this world?"
"Morey said that alchemy is a branch of magic that specializes in making various items with magical effects. Most alchemists are very low in the direct use of magic, but they can often make substitutes for advanced magic. He showed me some of his potions and gadgets. They are really useful things that helped us avoid many dangers in the forest. I think alchemy is a bit like a mixture of our chemistry, biology, medicine, and materials science."
“Very valuable technology.”
"Yes, his knowledge of magic alone is very valuable. That day in the goblin camp, he judged from the goblin's sacrificial ritual that they were summoning some kind of soul."
"soul?"
"Well, it seems to be something like a ghost." Those strange and terrifying scenes made Xiao Chen shudder when he recalled them now. "Goblins emphasize ancestor worship and sacrifice to various totems. Ancestors and totem beasts will be summoned in the form of souls. Morey said that the blood of pure-blooded humans is very popular with these souls, so the goblins will go everywhere and kidnap people for sacrifice. However, he doesn't know why the goblins suddenly appeared in this forest and held a blood sacrifice ceremony."
"Really? Without him, we might not even know the reason for the attack. In this case, we should find a way to get him to stay and cooperate with us." Guo Qian patted the armrest of the sofa and stood up. "If he wants to read our books, let him read our books. If he wants to learn from us, let him learn from us. At the same time, our people can learn alchemy and knowledge about this world from him. He is a true intellectual in this world. He is very valuable to us."
"Is this really a good idea? Such a smart person, as long as he reads a little bit of our books and has some in-depth communication with our people, our origins will be exposed." Seeing that Guo Qian was getting more and more excited, Luo Ling couldn't help but pour some cold water on him.
Guo Qian smiled and asked, "So what if my origins are exposed? Can I really keep it secret?"
"Yes, revealing our origins will not make us more dangerous. Our danger lies in the weakness of our own strength, not in whether others know where we come from. It is very important to absorb the power of local people in time. What's more, we very much suspect that the ancestors of these people are all from Earth." He admired Principal Guo's decisiveness. Compared with him, Luo Ling's skepticism was smaller.
"That's right. If our people are captured and tortured, I don't expect them to refuse to surrender even if they die." Luo Ling sighed.
Guo Qian said: "For smart people, honesty may be the best way to get along with them. Rather than letting them fall into speculation and distrust, it is better to take the initiative to make everything clear. I look forward to the day when he joins."
Xiao Chen said happily: "I feel relieved when you say that. In my opinion, he has been bewitched."