Why Didn't You Say So Earlier

The silver light continued unabated.

After slicing the Calamity into scraps, it even carved a three-meter-long slash into the concrete floor.

With a casual wave of his hand, Chen De made the silver shortsword disappear.

He stretched lazily, his bones cracking twice.

Comfortable.

The cold Lesser Calamity had turned into a warm forty thousand yuan.

"Forty thousand secured."

Chen De rolled his wrist and nodded in satisfaction.

"Minus the ten-thousand-yuan cost of the silver bar, that's a net profit of thirty thousand."

"Not bad. Positive returns."

Qubi jumped down from the corrugated metal roof, all four paws landing lightly on the concrete.

It lowered its head and looked at the three-meter-long slash on the ground.

It was about two centimeters deep.

The cut was as neat as if it had been made by a laser.

"The output of that strike was roughly thirty percent stronger than last time."

There was a hint of approval in Qubi's voice.

"The enhancement effect is obvious."

"Of course it is. If the effect of ten thousand yuan wasn't obvious, I'd have to file a complaint with customer service."

Chen De looked down at the mark on the ground.

It really was quite intimidating.

"But—"

Qubi flicked its tail.

"I thought you'd try using magic or something."

Chen De turned to look at it.

"Huh?"

"You only told me how to shape lines and circles."

"You didn't say a single thing about combining them into a Magic Formation."

"And you expected me to cast magic with that?"

"Didn't I tell you?"

Qubi tilted its head, looking utterly innocent.

It clearly knew it hadn't explained, yet it insisted on pretending otherwise.

"You absolutely did not."

Chen De pointed at it.

"You only taught me how to make noodles and circles."

"You didn't even explain how to fit a triangle into one."

"And you wanted me to use magic in battle?"

"What was I supposed to cast? Put a circle around its neck and call it a necklace?"

Qubi's ears twitched.

It seemed to be reflecting.

About 0.3 seconds later, its reflection ended.

"Fine, I'll explain it now."

"Does it cost money? If it does, I'm not listening."

"This is free content."

Qubi's voice was calm.

That only made Chen De more wary.

"Free?"

"Yes."

"You, Qubi, are saying it's free?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure you're not brewing up an even bigger trap?"

"Is your trust in me negative?"

"To two decimal places, negative ninety-nine point ninety-nine."

Qubi's mouth twitched.

"Forget it. Listen or don't."

"Explain! Hurry up!"

Chen De immediately squatted down, looking ready to listen attentively.

His hands rested on his knees, his gaze sharp.

No one passed up free stuff.

Qubi cleared its throat.

The sound of a cat clearing its throat was somewhere between purring and coughing up a hairball.

"You already know how to make circles, and you know how to shape lines."

"I also told you before that the foundation of a Magic Formation is constructing geometric structures inside a circle."

"The simplest one is a triangle."

"A circle plus an equilateral triangle."

"Yeah, I know that. Then what?"

"Then you make one."

Chen De blinked.

"That's it?"

"That's it."

"What about all that stuff you mentioned before? Sharp turns, sudden stops, changing direction, precise control?"

"Those are the technical difficulties."

Qubi raised its tail.

"But I can't teach you exactly how to overcome them through words."

"It's like teaching someone to ride a bicycle."

"I can tell you to keep your balance, but unless you fall a few times, you'll never learn."

Chen De's mouth twitched.

"So your teaching method boils down to—telling me I'll fall, then making me go fall on my own?"

"More or less."

"How is that any different from not teaching me at all?"

"The difference is that now you know you'll fall."

"The fear of the unknown is more frightening than known pain."

"Did you copy that from some motivational self-help book?"

"Not important."

Chen De frowned.

He squatted in the open space of the abandoned factory and seriously pondered for five seconds.

A magical girl in a white miniskirt squatting in an abandoned factory, meditating.

The scene was bizarre on every possible level.

Qubi continued.

"The corners of a Triangle Formation don't need to be absolutely sharp. That would actually impede the flow of magic power."

"A Magic Formation allows for deviations in shape within a certain range."

"As long as the overall structure is stable and looks normal, the Magic Formation can function."

"Why didn't you say so earlier!"

Chen De slapped his knee.

"I thought I had to make a perfect triangle! The kind with corners sharp enough to stab someone to death!"

"When did I ever say perfect?"

"You said equilateral triangle! An equilateral triangle has three sixty-degree angles!"

"Sixty degrees is the final form, not an entry-level requirement."

Chen De took a deep breath.

He felt that the greatest obstacle to learning magic wasn't his talent.

It was this cat's ability to communicate.

"Fine."

Chen De stood up.

"I'll try it now."

"Here?"

"Yes. Strike while the iron's hot."

"Do you still have enough mental energy?"

Chen De checked himself.

Instantly killing the Lesser Calamity just now had barely consumed anything.

There was still plenty left in his head.

"Enough. I can probably blow things up another ten or so times."

"Your unit of measurement is the number of times you can 'blow things up'?"

"You trained me into this."

Chen De extended his right hand.

A mass of silvery-white light gathered in his palm.

First, shape a circle.

He was already thoroughly familiar with this step.

With a thought, a perfect silvery-white ring of light formed above his palm.

It floated steadily.

"Circle complete."

"Now add a triangle inside it."

Chen De took a deep breath.

He focused his mental energy.

Inside the ring, three silvery-white lines simultaneously began extending from three evenly spaced points on the circle.

Qubi narrowed its eyes slightly.

"You're trying parallel multi-line control right away?"

"Why not? I think shaping one line at a time, then figuring out how to turn at the corners, is way too mentally taxing."

"If all three lines set off at once and meet on their own, wouldn't that automatically form a triangle?"

Qubi said nothing.

The three lines each set out from their starting points.

They drew closer toward the starting points of their corresponding lines.

They were not fast, but their paths were stable.

After each traced a short distance, they precisely connected to the starting point of an adjacent line.

"Bzz—"

A soft hum rang out.

Inside the ring, the three lines closed into shape.

A slightly crooked triangle sat securely within the silvery-white circle.

The most basic Magic Formation.

It floated above Chen De's palm just like that.

Slowly rotating.

Qubi's tail froze for a full two seconds.

Chen De wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Though he looked calm on the surface, his temples were already throbbing.

"So... what now?"

"What's the use of this thing by itself?"

"Can it shoot fireballs? Ice spikes? Some ultimate move that kills in one hit?"

"Let's stop here for now."

Qubi's tone was calm.

"This is the most basic Magic Formation."

"The triangular structure is the most stable, so it is the foundation."

"The foundation?"

"The more complex Magic Formations that come later all have to be built on this foundation."

"You never told me what came next."

"Because your foundation still isn't solid."

Chen De's expression turned rather subtle.

He knew the cat was right, but he stubbornly refused to admit it.

Qubi shook its head and did not let Chen De continue trying.

"You've already made the breakthrough from zero to one."

"After that, you just fit more geometric shapes into the circle, stacking them layer by layer."

"What comes after triangles? Quadrilaterals?"

"Squares, then pentagons, hexagons."

"Wait, are you serious?"

Chen De's expression changed.

"Isn't this just math class?"

"You can think of it that way."

"I didn't become a magical girl just so I'd still have to attend class outside!"

"But this is only to lay the groundwork for the future. There's no need to rush."

Qubi's tone was lazy.

It jumped down from the concrete block and strolled leisurely toward the factory exit.

"Let's go. Time to head back."