In the vast garden belonging to the School of Magic Engineering, lush greenery flourished everywhere, dew clinging to leaves and stems and glittering with crystalline brilliance.
At this moment, as the staff of the School of Magic Engineering arrived, the garden's automated irrigation system began to operate.
Meanwhile, Lanqi and Vivian lingered not far from the entrance of the Old Liberal Arts Building.
It was all because of the sudden question Vivian had posed.
Back in the South Vantina frontier territory, Lanqi had never encountered anyone who talked about such topics with him.
Though Butler Hans and the maid Francine always praised his paintings to high heaven, they had never discussed professional art matters with him.
Lanqi pondered for a moment, then smiled and answered, "If I had to point out what makes it unique... the goddess statue is carved with breathtaking life. Her gaze is gentle and loving, steeped in this shimmering, rippling expanse of stars—at times vast and boundless, at times settling into serene calm, sinking deeper and deeper into a tranquil embrace, yet seemingly rising to the surface and soaring straight into the heights."
"Indeed."
Hearing Lanqi's response, Vivian nodded in agreement.
She agreed with his take, yet insights like this—barely any different from what celebrated masters often said—felt a bit ordinary once heard often enough.
Yet before long, she heard Lanqi continue.
"However, to explain why this entire piece is so moving as a whole, I think we have to start with the Southern Cross behind the goddess statue."
"Why?" Vivian asked, her brow furrowing slightly.
Typically, when people evaluated this work, they heaped praise upon the goddess. As for the background acting as the backdrop, even if its carving was remarkable, it wasn't the main subject; its primary purpose was to set off the goddess.
"The astrological pattern carved by Mr. Gela actually has a very subtle variance from the official academy crest. Of course, it's not a mistake, merely a difference in viewing angle..."
Lanqi looked up again at the carving on the dome, his clear, focused emerald eyes seeming capable of pinpointing the position of every single star. With genuine enchantment, he sighed, "If I may hazard a guess... could it be that Master Gela was inspired by the stars that very night and carved this piece on an impromptu whim? Perhaps the starry sky that evening was like the Creator's answer, granting Master Gela the spark that gave this work its innate spirit. Moved by that realization, he poured his heart and soul into looking up at the night sky. In the end, it's hard to say whether he was carving lapis lazuli or carving starlight. And it is precisely this starry sky behind the goddess that binds the entire work into an organic whole, highlighting the goddess statue to perfection without stealing a shred of her captivating radiance."
"!"
Lanqi's impassioned words clearly took Vivian by surprise.
His meticulous eye and perception of the carving were both unique and profound.
Vivian remembered that, according to Ikerite Academy's records, the magic artificer Gela had indeed completed this piece at night.
Although there was no way to verify what the late Master Gela Zelte had felt while creating it, it aligned perfectly with Lanqi's explanation.
Vivian couldn't help looking up at the carving again, finding Lanqi's words more and more convincing.
"You..."
Then she turned her gaze back to Lanqi's profile, seemingly wondering whether this was truly the first time he had ever seen the carving.
"Pardon my foolish ramblings, Your Highness Vivian. My guess may not be entirely sound, and if I have offended Master Gela, I ask for your forgiveness."
Sensing Vivian's gaze, Lanqi turned his head and gave a radiant smile.
"I heard your ancestors were merchants. Is that why you're so skilled at art appreciation?" Vivian gathered herself, nodded slightly, and asked.
Although Lanqi had keen connoisseurship, Vivian didn't know what styles he specialized in, or what level his own artistic creation reached.
"I merely know a thing or two; it's just a hobby of mine," Lanqi replied modestly.
Vivian knew Lanqi always spoke without edge, but indeed, if he possessed truly consummate artistic mastery himself, he couldn't have remained utterly unknown in that field until now.
"Truth be told, the royal palace treasury also houses works by Magic Artificer Gela, and every single one can be called a national treasure." Vivian's tone carried not the slightest hint of showing off; finding a peer she could chat with so easily was rare, so she couldn't help sharing, "If my royal brother Ainuoer were to meet you, he might invite you to appreciate them together... On second thought, it's better if you don't get to know him. If you ever run into a third-year Magic Engineering student named Ainuoer, steer well clear of him."
Vivian braked abruptly mid-sentence, her expression souring as she pivoted sharply.
"Is Prince Ainuoer not approachable like Your Highness Vivian?" Lanqi asked curiously.
He hated people who stopped halfway through sentences and spoke in riddles, but out of politeness, he framed his question in a proper manner.
"Am I approachable? Well... my brother is indeed very approachable too, but his problem is that he's too approachable." Vivian pondered for a moment, nodded, and explained.
Her older brother, the second prince of the Hutton Kingdom, had an exceedingly eccentric personality.
As royalty, he disdained power and status, caring only for elegance and art. What was more, he loved nothing more than showing off in front of others.
If Ainuoer discovered that Lanqi had real insight into art connoisseurship, he would undoubtedly invite Lanqi to tour the royal palace with him, admire and critique his numerous collections, and flaunt his pretentious posturing to Lanqi.
"I see. Then Prince Ainuoer sounds like quite a good person as well. I'll make sure to avoid him so as not to trouble him."
Lanqi understood roughly.
The prince was simply too enthusiastic, unable to contain himself whenever he met someone who shared his wavelength.
"Well, you don't need to worry too much."
Vivian was certain that even if her fool of a brother did cross paths with Lanqi and hit it off immediately, he wouldn't pester Lanqi for long.
Obviously, given Lanqi's age, there was no way he was an actual master of art.
Her brother would at most show off to Lanqi once, and that would be the end of it.
Chatting along the way, they saw that normal operations had commenced in the Old Liberal Arts Building. The two stepped inside to handle their enrollment procedures.
Walking alongside Vivian made everything extraordinarily simple.
Lanqi felt as though he had become a royal minister.
In less than half an hour, he happily walked out of the School of Magic Engineering and headed toward the dormitories.
The Student Service Center would later deliver the luggage students had temporarily stored directly to their respective dorms.
Lanqi was rather satisfied with the school's service.
"Do you have a team in mind right now? If you don't join a team, you'll probably find it hard to challenge a Shadow World." Vivian walked with arms crossed, her fingertips lightly tapping her elbow. Heading in the same direction as Lanqi, she asked as they walked.
She was also planning to check out the dormitory building today; from now on, they would be classmates in the School of Sages.
Students granted registered challenger status by the Southern Continent Shadow World Management Association could challenge real Shadow Worlds and, of course, form teams.
As a result, the academy boasted quite a few renowned, formidable teams.
School regulations explicitly forbade first-year students from challenging Shadow Worlds alone.
Therefore, even if a student obtained a registered challenger license as early as their first year, they would usually join a team and tackle challenges alongside upperclassmen.
"By the way, wouldn't it work if I teamed up with a fellow first-year?" Lanqi asked curiously.
In truth, he wanted to challenge a real Shadow World as soon as possible, unwilling to waste any time.
Entering a Shadow World triggered a cooldown period during which one was barred from entering again—the earlier one cleared it, the earlier the cooldown began, as the saying went.
Joining an established team, however, came with all sorts of coordination, scheduling, and prep phases; as a newcomer, getting into the fray right away would be tough.
"That's nothing short of a death wish," Vivian said coldly, looking at Lanqi.
She didn't want Lanqi to destroy himself out of sheer arrogance and ignorance—he was, after all, a promising talent of the Hutton Kingdom.
"Uh..."
Lanqi felt Vivian's demeanor turn a bit intimidating, but he knew she was concerned for his safety.
His understanding of real Shadow Worlds was limited to combat records and analytical literature. As a princess, Vivian knew plenty of powerful challengers and undoubtedly understood the reality far better than he did.
"Speaking of which, compared to the difficulty of the third-round assessment, how does a real Tier 3 Shadow World..."
"A Tier 3 Shadow World is far more difficult than the Tier 2 [Infinite Phantom Gorge]. Even with the harshest modifiers, they aren't on the same level." Before Lanqi could even finish his question, Vivian cut in decisively.
She realized he clearly had no grasp of the perils within a real Shadow World.
How could an artificially simulated Tier 2 Shadow World fragment compare to the difficulty of a Tier 3 Shadow World!
If Lanqi grew complacent just because he passed the entrance examination and received his license with an exam waiver, he would sooner or later court catastrophe in a Shadow World.
Vivian took a deep breath, deciding that even if she had to play the villain, she must scold him back to his senses.
Yet before she could formulate her words, Lanqi asked again:
"Hypothetically—just hypothetically—if the exam in [Infinite Phantom Gorge] had three negative modifiers added: 'Hillside Terrain,' 'Examiner Tier Upgraded from 4 to 5,' and 'Examiner Starting Distance Halved,' could it measure up to a Tier 3 Shadow World?"
Hearing this, Vivian froze.
What demonic modifiers were those? Was that something a human could even dream up?
The entire nature of the exam would be completely altered.
"...Are you joking? If those three modifiers were added, I don't believe any freshman could possibly pass. That would be borderline close to a Tier 3 Shadow World in a rampage state," Vivian murmured hesitatingly.
Generally speaking, if a severe blunder occurred during a Shadow World that prevented challengers from following the mechanics to the end and defeating the ultimate foe, resulting instead in them being hunted down beforehand, the Shadow World was referred to as entering a "rampage state."
In a Tier 3 Shadow World plunged into a rampage state, Tier 3 challengers might have to face being hunted by a Tier 5 ultimate foe.
With that, Vivian looked at Lanqi in bewilderment once more.
Surely Lanqi and Hyperion couldn't have encountered modifiers like that, right?
If the two of them had still managed to pass, just how monstrously abnormal would Lanqi have to be?
"Then I have a rough idea of the difficulty of a Tier 3 Shadow World," Lanqi nodded, resting his chin in thought.
In that case, as long as he pulled his old teammate Hyperion along, their real Shadow World matchmaking would take their tiers—two and three—meaning it would predictably be a Tier 2 or Tier 3 Shadow World.
That was actually far easier than joining a team and grouping up with Tier 3 and Tier 4 upperclassmen.
"You... didn't actually run into those three modifiers with Hyperion, did you?" Vivian tilted her head skeptically and fixed her gaze on Lanqi.
Even though she thought it impossible, in that brief moment, she felt an inexplicable composure and steadiness about him. Even with her sharp eye for sizing up people as a princess, she found herself unable to fathom his true depths.
"Of course not! How could it possibly be those three?" Lanqi waved his hand with a smile and shook his head.
What he had actually encountered were the three modifiers: "Plains Terrain," "Enraged Ferrat," and "One-Third Starting Distance."
Quite a bit different from what he had just told Vivian.
Chapter 36