Experiment

"Burning blue experiment? What does that mean?" Andrea asked curiously.

She knew that whatever experiment this guy was doing in front of her shouldn't be a secret.

"It's an experiment to burn crushed Sapphire into a whole piece. It can also make poor quality ones more transparent."

Princess covered her mouth in surprise, then asked excitedly:

"Aren't you going to get rich then?"

Edward glanced back at her and smiled:

"Don't celebrate too early. This experiment was proposed by an Alchemist in the ancient Luomuluo period, 2000 years ago.

At that time, two Great Magisters fought over a Sapphire Mine. In the end, the mine was turned into scorched earth by the Explosion Flame Technique.

Neither of them got the mine. But they discovered a large amount of Land Essence on the scorched earth. Although it was a thin layer, it proved that Sapphire could be melted.

Some Alchemists hoped to replicate this method to recrystallize Sapphire and form larger Sapphires.

The results were not ideal. Otherwise, we would be seeing Sky City flying in the sky now."

Andrea was confused by what he said and forgot why she came. She asked:

"Why weren't the results ideal? And what does it have to do with the legendary Sky City?"

Edward had already turned off the stove. The fire inside disappeared and began to cool.

Edward explained:

"In this world, the greatest use of Sapphire is to store magic. It is the second-best material for storing magic after diamonds. Its secondary use is for jewelry for girls like you.

The more transparent and larger the Sapphire, the higher its magic-carrying capacity.

The Magic Core of the Sky City in the legendary magic empire was a Magic Crystal as tall as a person.

And in Ancient Language, crystal and gem mean the same thing. Some speculate that it was a huge Aquamarine.

We Alchemists have always wanted to restore the glory of Ancient Magical Creation, but we are powerless to do so.

Because the Alchemist's formation array cannot shape Sapphire into crystalline gems.

The shaped gems either turn to powder at a touch or explode.

This method of burning Sapphire was highly anticipated. As for the results... this batch has been burned. Although it was a short time, the temperature I added with magic flames was higher than expected. We'll see the results in a moment."

"How long do we have to wait?"

"About half an hour. It needs to cool naturally. Due to its small size, heat dissipation is quite fast."

Edward took a pair of iron tongs and removed two long, thin, glowing red crucible saggers from the furnace.

He gently placed the Crucibles on a stone platform nearby. Edward turned around, took off his leather apron, and asked with a smile:

"I forgot to ask, Princess, what brings you to my humble abode?"

"Uh..." Princess was so confused by what he had said that she momentarily forgot what she was supposed to say.

"It's okay. We'll be looking at the experiment's results together anyway. Sit down and have some tea before we talk." Edward invited Princess to sit on the sofa and went to make tea.

When he returned with the tea, Andrea had already taken out the fragment and was playing with it in her hand.

Edward pushed the poured tea to Princess and took the shrapnel she handed over. He examined it, realizing it was likely a fragment from the tail of that RPG.

Princess raised her hand, signaling him to begin his performance.

"You're talking about last night? It seems you already know. I was going to tell you when I had the chance even if you didn't ask."

Andrea asked: "Are you saying you took down a Sky Knight level magical beast after leaving my house last night?"

Edward said: "Strictly speaking, it wasn't a magical beast, but a hunter at the peak strength of a Sky Knight."

Andrea was shocked and asked: "Didn't you say they wouldn't find this place anytime soon? Also, how did you do it? I mean, how did you take down that hunter without any strong magical fluctuations?"

"I didn't expect that guy to suddenly appear. They seem to be able to use Vampires to track our scent. Those two Vampires were like hounds they released," Edward shrugged helplessly and continued:

"This time, I ran into him right after I left the Duke's Mansion. Fortunately, that hunter was a newly promoted rookie. I lured him outside the city and took him down. I used some props I made, the kind that don't cause strong magical fluctuations."

"What exactly are these 'hunters' you're talking about? How can they transform into the appearance of magical beasts?" Andrea asked.

"Well... I can only say that those guys are a group of monsters. Their purpose in capturing 'Baptism recipients' is to possess their bodies and live in this world in their place! Judging from the few words that guy let slip, they are likely long-dead undead... and not ordinary undead."

"Keep talking! What do you mean by 'not ordinary undead'?" Andrea urged.

"It's just a guess for now. You'd better not know. I don't want to lie to you," Edward said uncertainly.

"You're trying to pique my curiosity. It would be better if you just didn't say anything!" Princess rolled her eyes, feeling that this person really didn't know how to chat, and then urged:

"Hurry up and tell me, or I'll be driven mad!"

"Let me ask you, how many gods are still widely believed in now?" Edward suddenly brought up an unrelated question.

"There are the Seven Churches, the Holy Light God, the God of Steam and Machinery, the God of War, the God of the Sea and Storm, the Goddess of Earth and Harvest, the God of Commerce and Wealth, and the God of Love and Beauty. Why are you asking this?" Princess asked.

"These are the gods of the present age. What about before them?"

"There were many more, like the Celestial Mountain Pantheon of the Guoluo Muluo period, and the Northern Pantheon of the Northern Barbarians..." Princess racked her brain, searching her knowledge of history and theology.

"What about even earlier? The magic empire era is not worth mentioning; all sorts of gods had a hard time then. What about the even earlier periods? Like the Elf Pantheon and Dwarf Pantheon of the Elf Era?"

The God of Steam and Machinery is now considered an ancient god. Hasn't it been tens of thousands of years since it evolved from the God of Dwarves and Craftsmen of that era?

"Then have you ever thought about where the previous gods went?"

Andrea suddenly felt a chill run down her spine. She didn't speak, staring blankly at Edward, waiting for him to continue.

Edward took a sip of tea and said calmly:

"They all died. Some are called fallen, others eternal slumber. No matter the term, they are dead.

Not just them, but also those Demigod Heroes who aspired to godhood, those top powerhouses who ignited their divine fire but perished on the path to divinity. Those Servant Gods who served powerful deities, those angels driven by the gods...

Their fate was to vanish from this world!

When people die, their souls return to the endless Nether Sea. Those unwilling to return become undead.

So what happens after a god dies?"

Edward's calm words struck Andrea like a thunderclap, jolting her out of her daze. She instinctively asked:

"Are you saying those hunter are the undead of gods?"

"Perhaps. In the theological texts I've found, it's always said that gods return to nothingness after falling. Those whose Divinity is seized fare even worse, being directly devoured. Even if those guys are the undead of gods, they're probably just the ones who slipped through the cracks back then.

Perhaps they've returned to the world, wanting to ascend to godhood again. And they even said the Fifth Stage is just the beginning... Do they think I can't understand? A bunch of people who can't stand the light!"

"Will they come again?"

"Maybe, but it probably won't be this kind of rookie next time," Edward said.

"Next time, you can't go adventuring alone. I'm here too!" Princess said firmly.

"Huh? You don't blame me for dragging you into this?" Edward asked.

"I don't blame you. After that incident, I thought about it repeatedly. If you hadn't sent me in, Alice and Elwin would have been in danger. At that time, not knowing the truth, I would have been even more passive!

I don't care who comes! Whoever dares to touch my sister, I'll kill them, even if they are gods!" Princess replied resolutely.

"Hiss..." Edward was speechless at this declaration, which had the aura of a protagonist. After a moment's thought, he continued:

"Actually, they aren't entirely without weaknesses. Firstly, they seem unable to attack ordinary people, at least not to cause mass casualties. Secondly, I suspect they wouldn't dare let the Seven Churches know. So all their actions must be kept in the dark.

But they do have their advantages. Firstly, each of them has their own characteristics and areas of expertise. Secondly, although their true strength is weaker than a true Sky Knight or Magic user, their regenerative ability is very strong..." Edward detailed his understanding of the hunter, providing information to his future comrade without omitting any detail.

After the two formed an alliance, Edward saw that the time was about right. He got up, brought over the two Crucible, and placed them on the coffee table. He opened one of them in front of Andrea.

The reason they were called Crucible was Edward's term for the containers used in firing porcelain in his previous life. They were essentially crucibles with sealed lids, but he had made them into a long, strip shape.

He took out a thin rod covered in white powder from inside. The rod was about a foot long and as thick as a thumb.

Edward wiped the thin rod clean with a towel and handed it to Andrea, saying, "Take a look. This is the result of the experiment."

Andrea took the thin rod and examined it closely under the light. "This looks like a blue Frosted Glass Rod. I don't see anything special!"

Edward took out the other one, retrieved a diamond-studded glass knife from his Spatial Ring, made two cuts on a Sapphire Cylinder, and handed a small segment to Andrea. "Look at this one. The one you're holding hasn't been cut or polished."

Andrea took the piece Edward had cut and examined it closely under the light. The gem was clear and transparent, with uniform color. It was a fine Sapphire. She exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't this beautiful? This piece alone is worth several hundred gold coins!"

"No, this piece can only be used as jewelry. Let me show you."

Saying that, Edward took the gem from Princess's hand and infused it with magic. The gem immediately shattered into pieces.

"You see, it cannot store magic. If you like them, take these and find a Jeweler to make a necklace set."

"You knew the result and still conducted such an experiment?" Princess asked, puzzled.

"I was just unwilling to give up, wanting to quickly improve my strength through such a shortcut," Edward said casually.

"Are you afraid you're not strong enough to deal with those hunter? No, why do I feel like you know how to artificially create Sapphire?" Princess asked, her intuition always sharp.