by <unknown>
"Not to mention that the buffer unit will also consume a lot of spiritual energy, which means that the working time of the weapon will be significantly reduced.
"There's also the fault rate. I believe that Master Hou must have seen it, too. Because of the designing principles, the fault rate of the buffer unit will be quite high."
"Indeed."
Soaked in sweat, Hou Zitao nodded his head, although he did not actually see a damn thing.
"Combining remote magical equipment and melee magical equipment is for the purpose of reducing the weight and the cost of spiritual energy, as well as easing logistics. But such a malformed weapon with a great lump on it will not achieve the goal. It is not hard to estimate that such weapons will be kept in laboratories after their prototypes are born. They will never be mass-produced, and even if they are, nobody will purchase them," Li Yao concluded.
Chapter 646: Chain Gun? |
Hou Zitao seemed to have been punched right in the chest. His face was extremely pale.
He had always been an enthusiastic and outgoing man, otherwise he wouldn't have been asked to greet Li Yao.
But, however enthusiastic he was, he was still quite depressed when Li Yao asserted that his research would only be paperwork.
The other young refiners were greatly shocked to see the formulas that Li Yao provided, too. But their studies were not focused on gun-type magical equipment, and they found many formulas very confusing.
However, they could tell from Hou Zitao's expression that he had been completely awed.
"Sister Long."
Xie Anan dragged Long Yunxin back and asked in a low voice, "Is Sand Scorpion very skilled in refining, too? I don't understand the formulas he listed nor the buffer rune array group that he constructed just now."
Long Yunxin was silent for a moment, before she replied, "I can only understand one third of them. But judging from Hou Zitao's reaction, they seem to have blown his mind!"
Hou Zitao's eyes were bloodshot. He scanned Li Yao's formulas for a long time, while his pale face gradually turned red. He tried to find a loophole in theories but failed to come up with anything. In the end, he smiled bitterly. "Thanks for the enlightenment, Master Sand Scorpion. You were right. Based on the technology level of the Flying Star Sector right now, it is indeed impossible to minimize the buffer unit without affecting its usability. My approach has been wrong since the very beginning. It appears to be a dead end to combine guns and blades!"
The redness on his face faded instantly, replaced by dull gray, and his back slouched.
"Not necessarily."
Li Yao blew at the air softly, and the patterns that he had just drawn immediately dispersed. He explained solemnly, "The vibration saber is not an option. But have you ever considered chainswords? Chainswords deal damage by revolving and cutting. The quakes from the weapon are much gentler than those from the vibration saber. Combining chainswords and spiritual guns into brand new 'chain guns' could be an excellent approach."
Hou Zitao shook his head and replied gloomily, "Chainsword, vibration saber, and heat axe. I have considered all the classic melee magical equipment. But of the three of them, the vibration saber is the simplest in structure. As for chainswords, they are too complicated to be combined with spiritual guns."
Li Yao smiled casually and drew another ten drafts in midair while he continued speaking. "Master Hou, these are some structural designs that I devised during my spare time. They can possibly combine a chainsword with a spiritual gun. Feel free to offer your input."
Hou Zitao glanced at the drafts and was immediately dazed. His two eyes seemed to have turned into bloody mouths trying to devour all the designs.
"Your papers gave me a lot of insights. Truth be told, I'd been meaning to refine a piece of magical equipment that combines remote magical equipment and melee magical equipment. However, I was not familiar with the structure of spiritual guns and, therefore, never started the real work," Li Yao said.
"I've read the preliminary reports of your research, and I think it is quite mature already. Even if you didn't come to greet me, I would have gone to you in person someday. But I'm wondering, what's your opinion about my approach?"
Hou Zitao was dazed. "What are the rune arrays utilized in the structural designs? How come I never saw them before?"
Li Yao smiled and said, "They are some of the ancient rune arrays that I found in the relics of Iron Plateau. They must've been left by our predecessors in the era of the Flying Star coalition government five thousand years ago."
"That's the golden era before the apocalypse," Hou Zitao gasped.
Li Yao nodded. "Indeed. Honestly speaking, the overall level of refining of Iron Plateau is far from that of the Cultivators in space. But as for myself, I experienced a lot of adventures when I was young and discovered knowledge from the ancient times. Therefore, I'm in possession of many secret arts that other people may have no idea about."
"That explains a lot!"
Everybody looked at each other in bewilderment, but they found it understandable on second thought.
Although Iron Plateau was a desolate area at present, it had been the pivot of the Flying Star Sector five thousand years ago. Heritages of the past buried in certain underground relics would definitely be very normal.
No wonder Sand Scorpion was so impressive.
Hou Zitao scratched his head and mumbled, "However, feeble as the quakes of chainswords may be, they will still affect the precision of the guns without the buffer units. How are we going to handle that?"
"Master Hou, I'm afraid that you've got it wrong," Li Yao said. "I don't think we need to focus on precision and damage at the same time. Even if such 'chain guns' are really developed, no real experts would be interested in them.
"It's clear that such a combinative weapon will be neither as sharp as real swords nor as precise as guns.
"For real experts, they will pursue the most professional magical equipment instead of such combinative weapons.
"However, how many real experts are out there? Ordinary people and low-level Cultivators are the majority.
"Right now, the entire Flying Star Sector is anxious. Before, a fleet of carriers only needed one or two guardian starships or a few Exos on board to protect them. But they wish for every crew member on board to be a soldier at the moment. Nobody feels assured unless they have a weapon in their hand.
"Such chain guns should be made for them when successfully developed. Therefore, it is unnecessary to pursue precision. As long as the cost and the fault rate are reduced, it should be good enough.
"Moreover, we can even utilize the quakes when chainswords are spinning to increase the dispersion of bullets in order to make up for the shortcoming that ordinary people cannot shoot precisely. Of course, many new rune arrays will have to be utilized. I need to think more carefully about them. We can discuss later."
Because of his engagement in Project Mystic Skeleton, Li Yao was quite experienced in the research and development of MP magical equipment. Since he was a believer of the grassroots ideologies, he knew better than anybody else what mattered most for a piece of MP magical equipment.
"Believe me," Li Yao smiled at Hou Zitao, "Master Hou, the most important thing for us right now is time. If we can provide the prototype of such magical equipment, it will definitely be a hit and even become a bestseller in the Flying Star Sector!"
Hou Zitao rolled his eyes and was about to comment, when one of his companions suddenly pushed him aside and said, "Master Sand Scorpion, nice to meet you. I am Ning Changfeng from the Refining Department. My main research field is defensive magical equipment. Look, I've run into a minor problem lately…"
Half way through his speech, another young refiner came close and said, "Master Sand Scorpion…"
Xie Anan and Long Yunxin looked at each other in bewilderment. Long Yunxin gnashed her teeth. "What a bunch of losers!"
She strode forward, too, and crammed in the crowd, before she put on th
e most charming smile and said gracefully, "Master Sand Scorpion, greetings. My name Long Yunxin. I am…"
What the heck!
Xie Anan was rendered speechless, and her lips were pouting.
It would normally have taken half an hour to travel from the No. 6 space port to the Refining Department of Flying Star University by shuttle.
But they spent an hour and a half on the road.
It was not because of a traffic jam, but because the young refiners were discussing issues regarding refining with Master Sand Scorpion.
When the shuttle slowly landed, Hou Zitao and the rest of them had already started worshipping Li Yao.
Without being reminded, they would have completely forgotten that they were welcoming an idiotic magnate from Iron Plateau who had more brawns than brains. They already considered Li Yao to be a real master of refining!
Hou Zitao bowed and said in adulation, "Master Sand Scorpion. This way, please. Watch your head. We are arriving at the No. 1 refining center of the Refining Department of Flying Star University."
Li Yao observed the scenery in front of him with great interest.
Flying Star University truly deserved to be one of the two best colleges of the Flying Star Sector. The campus was quite beautiful. He felt like he was in the middle of a forest park. As far as his eyes could see, there was nothing but grass, trees, and hills. Quite a few tiny and delicate floating mountains were drifting in the sky. Some waterfalls were pouring down, pushing over the sparkling drops of water together with the aroma of soil. The environment was truly entertaining.
If he did not raise his head, he might have forgotten that he was inside an enormous circular space station.
The entire Flying Star Sector was located in the third orbital ring of Heavenly Saints City. The place he was at was actually in a cylindrical structure. Therefore, Li Yao noticed that the land on the horizon gradually leaned upwards and extended over his head.
Whichever direction he was going to, he would reach the 'above' of where he was standing right now and return to exactly the same spot if he continued walking.
Raising his head, he found vivid blue sky and white clouds.
However, Li Yao was aware that they were all illusions made by magical equipment. If the illusions were gone, he would see forests and buildings dangling down from the dome of the high sky.
In the eyes of the residents there, he was also 'dangling' and attracted by the man-made gravity field.
"Nice to meet you, Master Sand."
In the hall of the No.1 refining center, Wei Wenyao, dean of the department, greeted him with a smile.
But his eyes became somewhat weird as he glanced over at the five refiners who were apparently flattering the one they had picked up. He was secretly wondering what was going on.
Although he had asked them to be warm, their behavior was a bit too much, considering that their purpose was merely some research funds. Where were the manners of an expert?
The thoughts rolled around for a while in his mind, but Wei Wenyao quickly averted his eyes and said with a smile, "It must've been an exhausting trip, Master Sand. Do excuse us. We were supposed to prepare a welcome party for you, but since the Temple of Immortals went on a rampage, the researchers here have been quite tense. Everybody is occupied in their refining projects when they are not teaching students. They've been working day and night, and it's becoming normal for them to not have any sleep for ten days. Therefore, they really don't have the time to greet you."
Chapter 647: Ares Laboratory |
"You are too kind, Dean Wei."
Li Yao knew that Wei Wenyao was speaking the truth. Real scholars and Cultivators did not have so much time for social activities. It was more usual that they complained that they did not have enough time.
Li Yao had similar experiences, too. If his training had entered the most crucial procedure and he was asked to abandon his work in order to welcome an unfamiliar guest, he wouldn't have been too happy about it, either.
"Dean Wei, I do not like formalities, either. Just consider me a regular visiting scholar. Miss Xie Anan can stay and show me around, but Master Hou and Miss Long both have new ideas that they are desperate to test out. There's no need to waste their time," Li Yao said.
"Oh?"
Wei Wenyao was dazed for a moment. Seeing the ecstasy and eagerness on their faces, he was quite surprised because it was different from what he had imagined.
Hou Zitao, Long Yunxin, and the rest of them looked at each other. They bade farewell to Li Yao respectfully before they nodded at Wei Wenyao and rushed out of the room in the blink of an eye. Wei Wenyao was even more surprised.
Wei Wenyao thought for a moment and asked, "I wonder, is there any particular project that you would like to work on?"
Generally speaking, common visitors had already reached out to an expert or professor in Flying Star University and discussed the possibility of their cooperation before they came to the college. The experts and professors of Flying Star University often filed applications and invited the visiting scholars to come.
Naturally, before their arrival, their research field had been mostly fixed.
But Li Yao was an exception. Wei Wenyao did not have high expectations for his skill in refining, either. He was merely posing a random question.
"I'm very interested in the studies of middle- and small-sized magical equipment in your department, especially that related to crystal suits. I know several experts in your department to be authorities of the trade. Their laboratories are among the most famous laboratories in the Flying Star Sector. Can I pay a visit to those laboratories first?" Li Yao asked.
He activated the light beam and listed the laboratories that he wanted to visit.
Wei Wenyao glanced at them and coughed. "Some of them are available, but some of them are conducting important experiments today and will not be open in the coming few days. You can visit them later."
However, he was not telling the truth.
Although many middle-aged and young refiners in the Refining Department welcomed Li Yao's arrival, some real big shots did not think too highly of the unfamiliar guest.
Those authorities were as respected as Wei Wenyao in the circle of refiners, if not more. They were quite famous and never in lack of patrons.
Many of them were elders or even previous leaders of certain sects, or the masters of a noble family of refining. They were never short of funding.
Such people valued their honor and integrity more than anything, and there was no way that they would open their laboratories to a barbarian from a godforsaken planet.
Naturally, Wei Wenyao wouldn't be so blunt as to tell Li Yao that.
He picked several laboratories in Li Yao's list whose owners he had talked to before. He then settled the visiting hours with Li Yao, before he sent the detailed information and routes to Li Yao's and Xie Anan's mini crystal processors.
After that, Li Yao started touring the No. 1 refining center with Xie Anan as his guide.
Flying Star University truly deserved to the one of the two supreme colleges in the Flying Star Sector. The No. 1 refining center alone was larger than the entire Refining Department of the Grand Desolate War Institution in Li Yao's memory. The myriad of glamorous magical equipment he saw in certain open laboratories could almost have been compared to the booth of the Refining Department of Deep Sea University.
The finely-made tools and facilities inside the professional refining chambers were great eye-openers for Li Yao, who was greatly enjoying himself.
Many of the tools and facilities had been developed by Flying Star University itself. The sophisticated technology involved in them completely hooked Li Yao.
His style was quite a surprise for the owners of the laboratories, too, because it was beyond their expectation.
However, the refiners all secretly chuckled when they saw that Li Yao was so horny that he was about to jump onto the magical equipment. Bumpkins were bumpkins after all! He must have
never seen anything so fantastic!
In more than half a day, Li Yao visited nine laboratories with great interest, but he still felt that he was not entirely satisfied.
Xie Anan, on the other hand, couldn't take it any longer. She apologized to Li Yao, blushing, and hurried to go to the bathroom.
Li Yao roamed in the hallway joyfully, his hands behind his back. Many pictures of classic magical equipment were hanging on the walls of the hallway. They were fine artworks and worth appreciating.
After enjoying three pictures, his eyes suddenly brushed past a close door, on the top of which, two magnificent words were written: 'Ares Laboratory'.
Li Yao suddenly thought of something.
The owner of the laboratory was Xue Yuanxin, one of the top experts in crystal suits in the Flying Star Sector. He had been the First Armadominus in Red Line School, one of the three main crystal suit centers, in his early years and devised quite a few classic crystal suits, many of which were still equipped by a large number of Cultivators even today.
After leaving the Red Line School, Xue Yuanxin joined Flying Star University. He had dedicated himself to the development of Ares Extensions, a different field, instead of continuing crafting crystal suits.
"The damage of normal crystal suits cannot satisfy my imagination now. Only the Ares Extensions can possibly realize my dream of blowing up a starship with one punch!"
That was Xue Yuanxin's answer when the reporters asked him.
Crystal suits were Li Yao's specialty, too. He also had firsthand experience on building an Ares Extension on Iron Plateau. However, he had never learned the arts of the Ares Extensions systematically after all. The 'Apocalypse Extension' he had refined last time were merely a simple amalgamation of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, which was the biggest reason Yan Xibei had destroyed it so easily.
If all the Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures had been carefully concerted and a real Ares Extension crafted, Li Yao estimated that Yan Xibei would've been suppressed by him directly.