Gawain did not expect Rebecca to prepare a second project for this experint, but upon hearing the words "random selection" from her, he imdiately guessed the girl’s intention.
"I want to test more accurately to see exactly how the ntal Steel Stamp works," Rebecca explained her thought process, pointing to the devices the researchers were installing on the experintal platform, "This is a modified rune trigger—it contains a constantly rotating disc with a cog, and when the button is pressed, the disc will contact a small platform. Only when the cog on the disc turns to the appropriate position will the connection between the cog and platform form a correct magic circuit—the entire device is enclosed, which ans the person pressing the button has no idea what result will co of their actions; their ntal choice is limited to whether they pressed the button, not whether they activated the system..."
Amber’s mouth parted wide, shock evident as she looked at Rebecca. She finally understood part of it and exclaid, "You researchers... how does your mind grow?!"
Gawain also found himself captivated by Rebecca’s design of this process. The process itself didn’t exceed his imagination, but the girl’s thought process always brought surprises. He stroked his chin, contemplating while speaking, "The rotating cog disc is actually a pseudo-random system, but the key to this system isn’t randomness; it’s the tester..."
"Yes, about the tester ’not knowing the outco’," Rebecca nodded, "I want to know, when the tester doesn’t even know whether they’ll defy the gods, does the ntal Steel Stamp still work, or will it only trigger the Steel Stamp when the tester develops a faith-based doubt about their behavior?"
Pittman, who had remained silent, was also intrigued by this exquisite "random selection" experint. The old Druid, usually not very serious, now wore the interested yet solemn and expectant expression of a researcher. He circled the experintal platform while stroking his beard, nodding as he went: "Ingenious... ingenious... this should yield only three different results. The first is that in the Inversion Circle System, the Holy Light Foundation Plate can activate, but the plate directly provided energy by the tester won’t activate. The second is that both plates are activated, and the third is that neither plate is activated—respectively corresponding to the case where the Steel Stamp is effective in a random selection scenario, the Steel Stamp failing, and the cog not connecting."
Amber thought for a mont, then unexpectedly posed a question: "What if the plate directly supplying energy by the tester is activated, but the plate connected to the Inversion Circle isn’t?"
The laboratory fell silent, several gazes simultaneously turning to Amber, making the half-elf girl instinctively shrink her neck. Pittman fiercely tugged at his beard and, after a long silence, finally said, "That would an we’ve all been fooled by the Holy Light God!"
"Begin," Gawain exhaled deeply and nodded at Cohen Bell in front of the experintal platform, "Proceed with the random selection."
The young researcher solemnly bowed slightly, then adjusted his breathing before turning to the direction of the experintal platform.
All unrelated personnel withdrew to the side, closely watching the situation on the experintal platform, while Cohen Bell placed his finger on the modified, large ’rune trigger’ resembling a rectangular iron box. He silently counted a few beats in his heart, then injected magic power into the purple copper button and pressed it down forcefully.
A series of clicks sounded from the "random selection" device, and a mont later, both rune triggers on the experintal platform showed no response.
Kal stepped forward to check the device and then announced the result: "First test, ineffective connection, comnce the second test."
Cohen Bell once again injected magic power into the rune trigger, then pressed the button.
During the breathless wait, under everyone’s watchful gaze, both rune triggers on the experintal platform lit up simultaneously, generating a stable Holy Light!
Several sounds of drawing breaths echoed in the laboratory, while Kal stepped forward to confirm that everything about the experintal device was normal before announcing the result in a slightly trembling voice: "Second test, all samples lit!"
Gawain suppressed his excitent and gave the order in the calst tone possible: "Proceed to the third test."
"...Third test, all samples lit!"
"...Fourth test, ineffective connection..."
"...Fifth test, all samples lit!!"
The young mage Cohen continued to activate the rune trigger before him, his eyes shining as if imrsed in so unexplainable exhilaration, until both rune triggers used for testing fell into a state of waste energy overload, at which point he stopped under Kal’s command.
The laboratory was silent, only the low humming from various ancient magical devices and the defense systems of the laboratory echoed in the air that seed almost solidified. Kal quietly floated in front of the experintal platform, watching the two rune triggers gradually dim. After a long while, he looked up, the lights embedded in the Arcane Cloud flashing as he slowly scanned the entire room.
He seed to see the scene of its forr glory here. He saw the emblem of the Gondor Empire hanging on the walls, saw the Energy Conduits in the laboratory flicking on and off, saw colleagues in imperial mage robes standing before each experintal platform. Those people turned their heads, smiling, sending congratulations to this place.
Kal raised his hands, his voice reverberating throughout the laboratory: "Defiers, rejoice! We’ve opened another gate!"
Cheers truly ca from all directions, and the scenes of yesteryear in Kal’s eyes crumbled violently. He saw the familiar laboratory laid with a modern beehive-like Magic Web, and around him stood researchers in short white robes. Their blurry faces faded from his sight, and those new faces beca increasingly clear to him.
Kal looked at Gawain: "Sorry, my lord, I lost my composure."
"It’s fine, it’s a mont worth losing composure over," Gawain was ungrudging in his praise, looking approvingly at each of the researchers here, "Every one of you is outstanding—we should celebrate, for we have just broken through the authority of the gods! We have proven with facts that even so-called ’Divine Arts’ can be explained and controlled with logic and technology!"
Wright stood quietly to the side, observing as the smartest group of people on this land completed this experint—there were no thrilling spectacles, no grand scenes of human oceans, only a dozen researchers, a few witnesses, and two small clusters of Holy Light on the experint table. Yet, in these seemingly unremarkable two hours, the events here were no less significant than any war waged in history in the na of gods!
This was indeed a war, without the shadow of swords or the storm of blood, yet it signified humanity’s first successful rebellion against the gods.
"Now we can confirm, the ntal Imprint is affected by ’self-perception’," Kal left the experint table and ca to Gawain, "In cases with random choices, the test subjects are unsure of the outco of their actions. Therefore, even if they know their act might be ’defiant’, the ntal Imprint does not activate. We also proved through our first experint that even when the ntal Imprint does activate, magic devices running on purely chanical principles can be unaffected. Although the process of ’pulling the trigger’ involves ntal participation and indeed triggers the imprint, the imprint’s effect can be isolated by technical ans..."
At this ti, Pittman ca over from the side, the small old man still fiddling with his increasingly sparse beard, a thoughtful look on his face: "Actually, I’m most curious about another point: the ntal Imprint should act on the subject himself, but after the subject injects magic into the rune trigger, how does the magic that has already left the subject vanish into thin air? Is it possible that magic, once it leaves the body, still retains ’thought’? Do they believe they shouldn’t exist, and therefore disintegrate on their own?"
Kal listened to Pittman’s words and couldn’t help but nod slightly: This is indeed a puzzling phenonon. It is understandable that the subject himself can’t release Divine Arts due to the influence of the ntal Imprint, but when the subject releases Divine Arts through the experint device, the magic needs to leave the body to run through another set of systems. In other words, during the use of the experintal device, "magic operation" is already an established fact, and this established fact... vanishes into thin air because of the subject’s own ntal Imprint. Why is this?
Watching the perplexed and pondering Kal and Pittman, Gawain’s mind was racing. For the first ti, he felt that his intellect was sowhat lagging behind when facing the indigenous knowledge of this world— the ntal Imprint Phenonon indeed reminded him of the Observer Effect. This is because the characteristic of "pre-established facts being rewritten due to observer influence" made him naturally associate it with the Observer Effect, yet the effect of the ntal Imprint is not entirely the sa as the ’Observer Effect’ he knows. It occurs not only in the macro world but also embodies a higher idealism: The test subject’s cognition of their own actions is the primary condition for whether the phenonon occurs!?
This world... truly has too many incredible aspects.
And the difference between the two worlds doesn’t end here: On planet Earth, everything related to quantum theory caused imnse turmoil in the scientific world at its inception. Researchers were tornted day and night by this terrifying phenonon, whereas in this world...
Kal and Pittman were rely puzzled by the phenonon; their mindset seed hardly affected.
The reason is simple: In the magic realm, there are far too many things that defy common sense. This world has not yet built that steadfast "Edifice of Magic Power," and researchers are still unaware of the terrifying prospect of completely upended worldviews...
Gawain averted his gaze from the two researchers, sighing slightly in his heart: Perhaps, another beast has been unleashed by him, and this beast... might just be more terrifying than "Transcendent Power Returning to Mortals"...
His thoughts gradually drifted from the magic that seed to dissipate due to observer influence to the mind-locking ntal Imprint, from the essence of the gods to the connection between humans and gods. His thoughts road further and further, until suddenly a voice echoed in his mind:
"...I hope you are... prepared for what you will face..."
Gawain was jolted awake, abruptly raising his head to look towards the laboratory’s floor-to-ceiling windows.
His gaze traversed the energy barrier of the Defied Fortress, across the chaotic darkness of the shadow realm, over those floating fragnts and debris in mid-air, firmly fixating on the corpse of Amoen, the Giant Stag.
(It’s that ti for book recomndations again! The book is titled "Drinking This Bowl of ng Po Soup," and I’ll just copy the synopsis:
Ye Bei is a master of yin and yang, the kind without a business license.
Relying on an innately mysterious jade pendant, he brews a bowl of ng Po Soup, providing psychological (and physical) counseling to all kinds of demons and spirits.
Due to the nature of his profession, he frequently flirts with the brink of life and death until one day, Ye Bei discovers he cannot die...
I’m telling you, supernatural genres are indeed thrilling to read, especially when alone, although there aren’t many words yet, the potential is evident.
In any case, claiming it’s dead can only be considered a supernatural phenonon.)
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