Translator: AnubisTL
Black took a moment to organize his thoughts before explaining his situation.
As a member of an Elite Combat Unit, his next mission was assigned to a second-line planar battlefield.
It was common knowledge that any plane requiring the deployment of such elites was never an easy one to deal with.
Correspondingly, because it was a "reinforcement" mission, some basic intelligence about these planes would have been circulated.
"According to the information I've received, the plane we're heading to this time... is very strange. It seems to be a world where the boundary between illusion and reality is extremely blurred," Black said, his brow furrowing slightly.
"The reports sent back by the first wave of wizards were vague, but they all pointed to one core detail—over there, one can easily fall into illusion and struggle to distinguish truth from falsehood."
"Fortunately, preliminary assessments suggest they haven't suffered heavy casualties. It's more like they're trapped. So, our group is sent to provide reinforcement and rescue them."
He looked up, his gaze focusing on Jieming through the light screen. "Therefore, I hope you can help me craft a spell artifact. Its core function should be to resist illusions or mental interference. I don't know much about alchemy-based products, but I've heard you're very skilled at creating specialized spell artifacts."
After listening to Black's explanation, Jieming subconsciously stroked his chin.
However, Jieming wasn't actually pondering the weapon itself; his mind was focused on another matter entirely.
Black's request had illuminated a blind spot in his own defensive system.
He quickly ran through his options in his head.
He possessed a vast array of techniques—from the Black Giant to rune-imbued magical artifacts, from the Profound Astral Red Dust Barrier to his internal grotto-heaven. On the surface, he seemed fully prepared, but he truly had a weakness when it came to resisting high-intensity illusions and mental interference.
The Profound Astral Red Dust Barrier could ward off curses and counter prophecies, but it was ineffective against forces that directly twisted the mind.
The adaptive resistance of his body tempering method was powerful, but ultimately passive, requiring time to take effect.
I can't rely on my body tempering method to tank everything every time... Jieming thought.
Black's request provided the perfect opportunity to put his skills to the test and see what kind of protective equipment he could create.
Having reached this conclusion, Jieming nodded and replied in a calm tone, "I understand the situation. Creating a spell artifact that resists illusions and mental interference is no problem."
Changing the subject, Jieming laid out his terms: "I can offer you a discount on the price. But I have one condition—you must provide me with all the recorded data on the spell artifact's performance during the planar war, including its activation state, energy consumption, defense threshold, and the types and intensity of interference encountered."
Black pondered for a moment.
Revealing the artifact's specific performance parameters would mean leaking some of his own combat intelligence.
But on the other hand, to obtain this valuable firsthand data, Jieming would undoubtedly put more effort into its creation, potentially ensuring higher quality.
For Black, who was about to enter an unknown and dangerous plane, the benefits outweighed the risks.
"Agreed," Black nodded after a brief thought. "I'll do my best with the data recording."
Since this was also Jieming's first time crafting a spell artifact with such specific functions, and Black's requirements were relatively broad, they couldn't immediately settle on the down payment amount or a concrete delivery date.
Black thought for a moment and then gave a definite deadline. "I have about a year to prepare. As long as the spell artifact is finished within a year, that will be fine."
"A year is enough." Jieming nodded and accepted the commission. "Then, once I've completed the preliminary design and estimated the cost and specific plan, I'll contact you to finalize the details."
"Alright, I'm counting on you." With that, Black ended the communication.
The light screen dimmed.
After the call, Black sat in his laboratory, but he didn't feel completely at ease.
The reason he had suddenly contacted this fellow genius from his own year—someone he had almost no relationship with—was actually due to his mentor, Oswald's suggestion.
Originally, Black had planned to find another alchemist he was more familiar with, one who specialized more in the domain of spiritual protection.
But before he could make a decision, his mentor Oswald happened to learn of his plan and casually mentioned, "Perhaps you could ask that kid Jieming?"
Black was puzzled—Jieming hadn't shown any particular expertise in the domain of spiritual defense during his time at the academy—but trusting his mentor's judgment, he decided to contact him anyway.
The initial exchange had already shaken him. Jieming had immediately seen through Black's unconscious "presence concealment," instantly recognizing him. This forced Black to re-evaluate Jieming's true strength.
Yet, as the conversation continued, Black could clearly tell that Jieming wasn't particularly familiar with crafting such spell artifacts—at least, he didn't seem to have a ready-made solution.
This contradiction left Black feeling uncertain.
After all, I'm going to that kind of place... It wouldn't hurt to have a backup plan, he thought.
After a moment's hesitation, Black reopened his contact list, his finger scrolling through several familiar names.
Maybe... I should find someone else to refine a similar spell artifact, just in case...
With that thought, he began to select his next potential collaborator.
After ending the communication with Black, Jieming didn't immediately start working. Instead, he habitually began his deductions first.
He returned to the laboratory platform, his fingertips unconsciously tracing the smooth surface as two related bodies of knowledge rapidly integrated in his mind.
Defenses against hallucinations and mental interference—whether from the wizard system's "mind defense studies" or the "Soul-Calming" and "Delusion-Breaking" cultivation methods recorded in the Great Dao Library Pavilion—could ultimately be categorized into three core principles:
The first was the buff-type, which was like equipping one's mind with a sturdy layer of armor.
By continuously activating states such as "mind barrier" and the "Clear Heart Mantra," the user could enhance their own spiritual resistance to passively ward off external intrusions.
The advantage was that it could be prepared in advance, providing stable effectiveness against conventional interference.
The disadvantage, however, was its limited duration and a fixed upper limit on defensive strength. If an attack exceeded this threshold, the defense could shatter instantly.
The second was the awakening-type, which functioned like an emergency alarm system.
When the user's mind is compromised and they fall into an illusion, these artifacts forcibly awaken them through intense soul stimulation—such as the "Soul-Settling Clear Sound" or "Pain Feedback Array."
The advantage is its strong specificity and its ability to reverse already-effective interferences.
The disadvantage is the reaction delay. Furthermore, the strength of the awakening depends on the intensity of the interference and the power of the artifact itself; if the illusion is too deep, the awakening may fail.
The final type is the Isolation-type, which constructs an absolutely secure "mind secret chamber."
It establishes a shield directly around the user's consciousness, fundamentally severing the exchange of information between the interior and exterior, preventing illusions and mental interference from reaching the core.
The advantage is that it is a permanent solution; as long as the shield remains intact, it is virtually immune to all similar influences.
The disadvantage is its massive energy consumption. Maintaining the shield requires a continuous and substantial expenditure of energy, and prolonged operation poses a severe test to the stability of the material, runes, or formation. It may also impair the user's normal perception of the outside world.
Of course, through long years of development, neither wizard magic artifacts nor the heart-protecting dharma treasures of the cultivation world are ever purely of a single type; most are composite designs.
However, limited by the number of runes and energy flux a material can support, any spell artifact of the same tier must inevitably prioritize one function over others.
Striving for all three functions to be equally powerful would require higher-tier materials, causing costs to skyrocket.
The final product might then appear mediocre among its peers, lacking any standout features.
Jieming analyzed the intelligence provided by Black:
"If the entire plane is compromised, it's almost certain that illusory attacks will surge like a tide the moment we set foot there. The risk of a 'first-strike' defeat is extremely high."
"At the same time, the user must face a planar war that could last for over a decade or even decades. This means the spell artifact needs exceptional long-term operational capabilities. Furthermore, the intensity of the interference is completely unknown—it could be gradual or spike abruptly in certain regions."
Based on these judgments, he quickly ruled out buff-type spells.
The limited duration of buff-type spells was a critical weakness; they required frequent activation or maintenance, making them unreliable for unknown, long-term missions.
Even more dangerous was the possibility that its fixed defense strength might fail to resist the plane's own erosion. The user could be compromised without ever realizing it—a fate far worse than having no protection at all.
Next, he set aside awakening-type artifacts.
Though more proactive than buff-type ones, they only took effect after the user had already been compromised, leaving a perilous "window of vulnerability." In the ever-threatening otherworld, even a single second of cognitive dissonance could be fatal.
Moreover, if the Awakening's strength was insufficient to break through planar-level interference, the spell artifact would be utterly useless.
"So, the most reliable solution is to address the problem at its root—completely isolating the user's conscious core from external illusory forces."
With his line of thought now clear, Isolation-type became the optimal choice.
Create a pure mental space to protect Black's consciousness. Let the outside world be as bizarre and distorted as it wants; I will remain unmoved.
This would maximize the chances of avoiding immediate corruption upon entering the plane and provide stable, long-term protection.
However, the well-known drawback of Isolation-type artifacts also came to the fore.
In its inactive state, the artifact could run on standby for extended periods. However, once activated, it would incur staggering energy consumption and operational wear.
In the worst-case scenario—where the entire plane was plagued by powerful mental interference and illusion magic—the Isolation-type's duration might even be shorter than that of a buff-type.
Furthermore, prolonged high-load operation would severely test both the durability of the spell artifact's core materials and the stability of its rune structure.
This meant that crafting such a spell artifact would come with a steep price tag.
Far from being deterred by this, Jieming's eyes lit up.
"From a commercial perspective, high wear and tear is actually better..."
After all, besides collecting data, he was doing this for profit. The more the user spent, the more he would earn!
Since Black required the highest level of security, paying an exorbitant fee was simply part of the equivalent exchange.
"Perfect. Let's do it," Jieming said, a faint smile playing on his lips as he made his decision.
Action followed thought.
He rose immediately, and the laboratory lights brightened as multiple auxiliary screens for computation and design flickered to life.
(End of the Chapter)
---------------------------
📖 You are reading [176] Chapters behind.
🔥 Read up to Chapter [520] now, only on 𝕔𝕚𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕣𝕥𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝕞.
📚 Read upto [12,000+] Chapters on Site with [9,900+] Free Chapters!
🚫 Also get FREE lifetime ad-free and join the giveaway by joining our Discord!
---------------------------