In Sumeru, pretend to be a scholar

Wang Yan said something, then summoned the "Seventy-Two Xuanming": "Everyone, speed up."

Wind elemental runes flashed, and the savage beast surged forward, chasing after the raging Evolutionary Hunter.

...

Before long, a close-up view of Lei Tu Reef appeared in the craggy landscape.

"How did this place become like this?"

Paimon was utterly shocked, and Ying, standing beside her, wasn't much better off.

They were familiar with Leto Reef; they had been there before when there were some environmental problems.

However, thanks to their efforts, Letu Reef has been transformed from a dangerous island with chaotic lunar torque into a small island with decent scenery. In particular, the raindrops fall and rise again on rainy days, which is very magical and interesting.

But now.

The creature that appeared on the dark, murky reef was completely obscured by a dark red mist.

After dozens of Wild Hunt evolutions entered, not a single sound was heard.

“This… seems to be the method the Moonhunters used back then,” Paimon said unconsciously.

When the Moonhunters attacked them, they also used a similar red mist as a weapon, launching their attack from within the mist.

Or rather, this red mist is itself one of the unique abyssal mimicry states of Nordcalle.

And this simulated state has one characteristic—it cannot be dispersed by the wind.

"What do we do now?" Paimon asked the three people beside him.

Ying looked at Philins; he was the real professional.

Philin thought for a moment: "I can go in with a lantern to check on things. You guys stay outside and support me. If anything unexpected happens, go back and get reinforcements immediately..."

"No way!" Wang Yan interrupted immediately, "The risk is too great."

Ying nodded: "That's too risky, we can't do that."

Yingning preferred to go in and see for herself rather than tell Philin to go in alone.

She is the kind of person who would rather take risks herself than let her friends take risks.

“But if we all go in together, and something unexpected happens, and no one goes back to report, it could cause the disaster to escalate and eventually get out of control.” Philin’s expression was calm. “Of the four of us, I am the one who knows Wild Hunt the most, so it is the best choice for me to go.”

"Of course, I'm not making a pointless sacrifice, you three. I'm a Lamplighter, and I know how to deal with the Wild Hunt. If anything goes wrong, I'll come back."

Ying shook her head again: "How about I go in with you, and Wang Yan and Paimon can meet us outside? That way, both sides will have two people to help each other out."

“This, this…” Paimon was somewhat resistant, but didn’t know what to say.

Unfortunately, her fighting ability is indeed inferior to that of a wild boar, and bringing her along to such a dangerous place would be even more disadvantageous.

Ying looked at Wang Yan: "That's settled then, Philins and I will go..."

Wang Yan waved his hand, interrupting her: "As a scholar, I really want to criticize your actions... Rashly entering an unfamiliar energy field is a very irresponsible thing to do."

"Hmm? What does Mr. Wang Yan mean?" Philins sensed something.

Wang said, "Since it hasn't spread outwards yet, it means we still have time. So, we can definitely use other methods to investigate."

"What methods?" Ying asked curiously.

"No rush, Mr. Philins. There should be some ancient stone snails around here. Could you please catch a few for me? Ying, on the way here, I saw quite a few open-pit mines. Could you please collect some for me?"

Wang Yan said.

Ying frowned, but still nodded: "Okay."

She turned and left without asking any further questions.

"Then let's listen to Mr. Wang Yan." Seeing this, Philins nodded.

Paimon was taken aback for a moment: "Then what about me? What should I do?"

She now feels a need to prove herself useful.

Wang Yan sensed Paimon's urgency and, after thinking for a moment, said, "Paimon, fly around the entire Lei Tu Reef and see if there's anything unusual. After you've seen it, keep an eye on Lei Tu Reef for us. If the fog shows any signs of spreading, call us."

“Okay! Mission accomplished!” Paimon shouted, then flew toward Ritu Reef, preparing to circle around.

Wang Yan quickly reminded him, "Stay away, don't get too close."

After assigning tasks to his companions, Wang Yan didn't sit idle. He started 'playing in the mud' by operating the "Seventy-Two Xuanming".

"Rock ridge".

The command was given, and the "Seventy-Two Cyclones" began to rotate, rock element runes appeared, and the next moment, a rock ridge rose from the ground.

However, compared to the ridges used in battle, this ridge is not towering; instead, it resembles a long table or a platform.

"It's so convenient to be able to cast spells with elemental power."

"If an ordinary person wanted to build a sufficiently robust production platform, it would probably take them a very long time."

Wang Yan felt a pang of emotion.

"Next, inscribe the runes..."

Wang Yan controlled the "Seventy-Two Cyclones" to inscribe runes on the rocky platform.

...

Time passed slowly, and after everyone else returned, Wang Yan had already created an experimental platform covered with runes.

"What is this?" Paimon asked curiously, then reported, "The entire Retto Reef is covered by red fog. We haven't found anything unusual, nor have we seen any leakage."

“Okay, thank you Paimon.” Wang Yan nodded and replied, “This is a simple mechanism modification platform, which can barely help me modify the mechanism of the ancient stone snail in one stop.”

"Institutional reform?"

"An ancient stone snail?"

Ying and Philin raised questions together.

Wang Yan nodded: "Since it might be dangerous for people to go in, let something else go in instead of us."

"The abyss reacts differently to different creatures. The weaker the life form, the less likely it is to provoke a reaction from the abyss. That's why we often see wild hunters attacking humans, but rarely see them attacking trees, which are also living things."

"Because trees have virtually no power, unless it's called the World Tree... haha."

"The ancient stone snail is an ancient, primitive, and weak creature. I plan to modify it by attaching a recording device to it, so that I can control it to explore the area."

The three of them suddenly realized what was going on and all showed expressions of admiration.

"As expected of a scholar from the Order of the Church, truly remarkable. If the Lamplighters possessed such abilities, they would often avoid being attacked by the Wild Hunt," Philins remarked.

Wang Yan smiled and said, "If Mr. Philins needs it, I can offer a training course on the Lamplighter Rune Mechanism, just like Aino did."

Philin's expression faltered, and he took a step back: "Then let's forget about it. Please forgive our reverence for knowledge."

He doesn't even attend Aino's classes, and if he adds Wang Yan's, won't he suffer a great deal?

? Chapter 180 Fairy Language

After teasing the lamplighter about his studies, Wang Yan stopped rambling.

His gaze fell upon the ore that Ying had just brought back.

Most of it was ordinary white iron ore, with a small amount of iridescent crystals and a few magic crystals.

"Not bad, Ying. When will you stop being an adventurer? You can support Paimon by mining." Wang Yan gave a thumbs up.

She rolled her eyes at him and said, "Right now we only have raw materials. How are you going to get them? With this experimental setup?"

Wang Yan nodded: "If we want a mature product, then what we have now is definitely not enough. However, it's not a problem to make something that is barely usable."

"Then it's up to you to perform." Ying nodded and took a step back.

Philin placed the three ancient stone snails next to Wang Yan: "Then these little guys are yours too."

The three ancient stone snails had shrunk into their shells and didn't look very happy.

Wang Yan nodded and reached out to stroke the shell of one of the ancient stone snails: "(Angelic language) Good child, relax, don't be afraid."

As Wang Yan's voice rang out, the three ancient stone snails slowly extended their tentacle-like sensory organs and explored their surroundings.

After confirming that Wang Yan meant no harm, they finally stretched out their soft bodies and touched each other, seemingly exchanging some information.

Then they all crawled toward Wang Yan, rubbed their soft heads against his hand, and made gurgling sounds.

"Uh, what are they doing?" Paimon asked curiously.

Wang Yan smiled and said, "Ancient stone snails are not intelligent life forms. They only have simple instincts and the ability to exchange pheromones among themselves. I don't know either, but I can make a guess."

“They’re complaining to me that Mr. Flint brought them here very roughly.”

Beside him, Philin gave a helpless smile: "Alright, my three friends, please forgive my violence."

Whether they truly understood or not, the three ancient stone snails began to hum again, but their voices were much gentler.

Philin watched this scene from the side, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes: "I didn't expect them to be so friendly to you."

Wang Yan smiled and gently stroked the cool shell of the ancient stone snail: "I'm the kind of person that attracts small animals."

This is a lie.

The correct answer is that the goddess of flowers possesses the power of the moonlit night within her blessing, and the small animals of Nordkal are very fond of the moon's power.

As he spoke, a soft glow emanated from Wang Yan's fingertips, a faint light left by the blessing of the Flower Goddess, carrying the breath of peace and life.

The ancient stone snails seemed to sense this power, emitting even more cheerful gurgling sounds. One of the bolder ones even stretched out its soft tentacles, trying to climb onto Wang Yan.

"Alright, little ones, calm down. We need your help with something."

Wang Yan spoke gently, placing the three ancient stone snails aside, and at the same time guiding the "Seventy-Two Xuanming" to begin their actions.

The "Seventy-Two Cyclones" spun in the air, and on the experimental platform, elemental runes lit up, precisely controlling the white iron ore and rainbow crystals.

Under the cutting and shaping of the runes, the hard ore was quickly decomposed, melted, and recast, turning into thin yet tough metal sheets.

Fire element runes aided in heating, while rock element runes stabilized the structure. In less than fifteen minutes, several small and precise mirror tubes and sensing bases were formed.

Wang Yan took out a piece of the highest quality magic crystal. As a mineral formed from the condensation of ley line energy, magic crystal has excellent elemental affinity and is one of the most common high-grade materials in Teyvat.

Place it in the center of the experimental platform, press down lightly with both hands, and use your will to outline the runes.

With his guidance, strands of water element were carefully introduced into the magic crystal, flowing and intertwining along the pre-set rune circuits.

These elemental forces eventually form a stable "memory node" at the core of the crystal.

The water element rune is called "Mirror Image." Of course, there are similar attributes in the ice element runes, but Wang Yan chose the water element this time.

After all, compared to ice elemental power, water elemental power is less noticeable at the seaside.

The rune [Mirror Image] is a simplified application of the "Mirror Image Retention Technique." Originally used to record complex mechanical structures, it can now be used to create a simple recording device.

The camera function that Falushan previously installed on Heyao Multifaceted Body uses this technology.

After setting up the recording device, Wang Yan picked up the lens and sensor base next to him and assembled them together.

Soon after, three cameras with bases appeared.

"By simply installing these three devices onto the ancient stone snail and letting them go inside to explore, we can obtain information about its interior."

As Wang Yan spoke, he gently lifted an ancient stone snail and attached a camera base to its shell.

"How are you feeling? Can you climb?"

Wang Yan asked.

The ancient snail wriggled slightly, confirming that it could move.

Wang Yan smiled and installed cameras on the other two as well.

Of course, this was not the end. After thinking for a moment, Wang Yan took out a few more Mora coins, quickly melted them, and made three amulets, which he then placed on the ancient stone snail.

"Go to the red fog area ahead, record what you see along the way, be careful to avoid danger, and be prepared to retreat at any time, understand?"

Upon receiving the instruction, the three ancient stone snails slowly turned around and crawled towards Lei Tu Reef.

Although they crawl slowly, they do so steadily and silently.

The magic crystals on the back shell began to emit a very faint glow, indicating that the recording had been initiated.