Otherworld Bone Dragon Operation Guide

Chapter 362 Scanning Books
Su Ming then walked into the other side of the magic array ruins area. Several members of the "End-Bone Mad Machine" were also busy among the researchers. According to the arrangement, they would stay here for a long time. On the one hand, they would follow Chloe to conduct research on the magic array, and on the other hand, they would also serve as Su Ming's representatives stationed in North Iceland to supervise the implementation of the transaction terms reached with the Feather Clan.

Su Ming remembered something, beckoned them over, and handed them a portable scanner.

“I have already reached an agreement with the Winged Clan’s higher-ups.” He instructed the task, “The entire Winged Clan’s library collection, including all branches and treasure rooms, will be open to you. Scan down every book, scroll, and manuscript you can access, without missing a single one.”

"Okay!" The group took the scanner and the accompanying solar charging panel and put them away.

Chloe, who was standing nearby, overheard their conversation and walked over. She said softly, "You can also scan and record all the items in my personal library." As she spoke, she took out a gray feather from her small bag and handed it to the student representatives. "This is my personal authorization token. With this, you can freely enter and exit my library."

"Thank you!" Su Ming sincerely thanked Chloe.

“Sharing and disseminating knowledge is a matter of course,” Chloe replied. “Many of the precious books in my library were originally part of the legacy left to me by Professor Beckman.”

Beckman, the Albatross scholar—Su Ming was no stranger to this name. Many of the books he had seen at Zi Jin's place, especially those on dark magic and necromancy, were attributed to this master.

Moreover, the idea that "conceptual magic" is used in necromancy was proposed by Beckman.

"If I remember correctly," Su Ming asked with a hint of confirmation, "you are Master Beckman's personal disciple?"

“Actually… strictly speaking, it’s not entirely true.” Chloe shook her head slightly, a hint of dazedness in her eyes as she drifted into distant memories. “Initially, it was just a nominal identity that my teacher arranged for me to facilitate my activities in the human world… Of course, later he allowed me to officially call him teacher. It’s just a pity that not long after, my teacher passed away.”

Upon hearing this, Su Ming immediately frowned—another deceased titled scholar?
"Professor Beckman, how did he die?" Su Ming immediately pressed. "Were there any unusual circumstances?"

“My teacher passed away from illness,” Chloe replied. “When I met him, he was already quite old and had contracted a very serious illness. Although Master Bai Xian had been trying to help him, he could only do his best to prolong his life… In the end, it reached a point beyond human control.”

****
On the other side, Violet waved to them.

It was a newly discovered mural covering an entire wall. Although the mural had been damaged and collapsed during the battle between Yin Fei and Lan Mo, it was restored using Zi Jin's "Reverse Object Reversal" spell, and the patterns and text on it were copied.

"Come and see what these murals mean!" Violet handed Chloe the rubbings of the murals.

These murals, quite different from the magnificent murals in the main hall, were painted after the major event that led to the destruction of the magic circle. Both in terms of the fine detail of the carving and the overall scale and grandeur, they are far inferior to those seen in the main hall.

They appear to have a style that leans towards simple documentation and narrative.

Chloe took the rubbing of the scroll and quickly deciphered its core content: "According to the records on it, after the destruction of the dragon, the Rift Clan began to try to rebuild the teleportation array, but... they failed."

She carefully examined the rubbings, saying, "In the process, they gradually realized one thing: the destination connected by the magic circle was not somewhere in the Taiya plane, but another unknown world, which they named—Eden." Eden—a paradise where one enjoys endless food and blessings—this name is quite understandable.

"The remaining Rift Clan members are doing their utmost to investigate the reason for the failure of the magic array reconstruction," Chloe continued to explain. "One of their key conclusions is that the Doomsday Dragon was too large, causing a severe overload during its passage, which led to the collapse of the teleportation channel."

“So,” Su Ming immediately grasped the key point, “even if they later successfully restored some of the magic array’s functions, they still wouldn’t be able to obtain food resources from Eden as continuously as before the disaster?”

“Yes.” Chloe nodded in confirmation. “The Rift Clan believes this is divine punishment, that God has driven them out of the Garden of Eden.” She turned to the last part of the rubbing scroll. “So the rest of the content is basically all devout repentance and prayers to the gods.”

"Ah, the Rift Clan's version of the Adam and Eve story," Su Ming couldn't help but exclaim.

Chloe's gaze suddenly froze on a detail on the scroll, a look of confusion on her face. "Wait a minute! Look, this core symbol used later to represent the gods... how did its main image become a snake?!"

Upon hearing this, Su Ming immediately moved closer to observe carefully.

In the early murals, the Rift Clan clearly and unmistakably used a radiant sun to symbolize their worshipped deity. For a people living in the harsh north, choosing the sun as a totem was the most natural and reasonable thing to do!
However, in these newly discovered rubbings, the sun pattern symbolizing divine grace has been replaced by a ring-shaped ouroboros totem with its head and tail connected.

Chloe immediately turned around and strode toward the other remaining fragments of the mural, trying to find clues about the core totem and the reasons for the dramatic change.

****
Su Ming and Zi Jin continued their stroll through the empty and ancient cave ruins.

“Su Ming,” Zi Jin said as they walked, “Based on the current findings and analysis, the prototype of the dimensional teleportation array used by Galio is very likely derived from this ancient array left behind by the Rift Clan.”

Upon hearing this, Su Ming felt a surge of joy. "You mean, we've essentially obtained the most original and basic teaching material template?"

“Strictly speaking, it can’t be considered a textbook, let alone a model,” Zijin corrected. “This Rift Clan magic array has a single function, only one-way teleportation, and its energy intensity is far from sufficient to break through the powerful dimensional barrier between the Taiya plane and Earth.”

“But in any case, this is a well-structured real-world case study that can be studied in depth,” Su Ming said.

“That’s right!” Violet looked around at the ruins that embodied ancient wisdom, her tone filled with heartfelt admiration: “These ancient humans were truly great. With only mortal bodies that lacked magical perception, they were able to understand, design, and manipulate a power that even we magic users have never been able to achieve.”

"Why do I feel like you're praising us Earthlings?" Su Ming joked with a smile. "The power of technology isn't necessarily inferior to that of magic."

“Your situation is more than just ‘not bad’,” Zijin said.

(End of this chapter)