In Wang Qi's impression, a magical artifact was necessarily an object refined with spell inscriptions. A cultivator's spiritual power passed through the artifact's material, then was structured by the spell inscriptions to produce special effects—put simply, a magical artifact should be equipment with skills, with the MP cost paid by its holder!
When Wang Qi answered Zhen Chanzi like that, Zhen Chanzi's tone brimmed with contempt. "Kid, you skipped every artifact-refining class, didn't you?"
Wang Qi did not care in the least. "Artifact refinement is ultimately a side branch, a 'technique.' Its theories can be elevated another level, but they still cannot reach the realm of 'law.' What truly matters is the 'Way.' Any breakthrough in the Way of celestial circulation or the Way of changes in material properties could drive an entire generational upgrade in the field of artifact refinement."
The development of physical theory could advance power sources and mechanical systems, while breakthroughs in chemical theory meant breakthroughs in materials and fuel. On Earth, Watt was indeed the inventor of the steam engine. But behind Watt stood Newton, Lagrange, and a host of theorists. Without Faraday and Maxwell's breakthroughs in electromagnetic theory, neither Edison nor Tesla would have been more than second-rate engineers.
That was the power of theory!
Yet although Wang Qi spoke with righteous fervor and boiling passion, Zhen Chanzi punctured his momentum with a single sentence. "Mainly because artifact refinement isn't on the required exam, right?"
Wang Qi gave an awkward laugh. "Anyway, that was how I understood magical artifacts before. You told me the same thing a few years ago."
"Bullshit! Even this old Ancient Method Cultivator, who has only listened to one or two classes, wouldn't think that way!"
"Ahem, anyway, I really did make the errors of empiricism and dogmatism."
"Experience? How