Chapter 139 75. Belief
After yesterday, Fisher did not continue studying the somewhat strange Soul Supplement Handbook, as from certain angles, his previous situation indeed felt somewhat dangerous. He began to doubt Jahl Uzz, the author of the Soul Supplement Handbook, regarding the true purpose of leaving behind this handbook.
If he had malice towards the reader, what could the purpose be? To drain the reader’s magic power? To confuse the reader with those bizarre and strange pieces of knowledge?
Fisher recalled the associations he had made with those odd pieces of knowledge, suddenly realizing that many of them appeared extremely dangerous to human eyes, but from the perspective of a seeker of knowledge, expanding upon that knowledge seemed like an extraordinary endeavor.
If he continued down the path of those strange pieces of knowledge, Fisher was uncertain about what kind of endpoint he would reach.
Fisher suddenly thought of the eccentric Feilon and his bizarre idea of using the souls of living beings as fuel and energy.
If he abandoned traditional concepts, Feilon’s knowledge had brought him immense changes—wealth, power. Even Fisher’s magic power and quality had undergone tremendous changes; everything seemed to be developing in a direction beneficial to him.
However, Fisher ultimately did not continue reading, as his attitude towards this knowledge still needed examination. He had to shift his focus to the academic conference with Shivali coming on Monday.
In the morning, after dressing in the suit that Renee had gifted him, Fisher stood in front of the mirror and looked at himself, finding that the suit, whether in style or design, fit him perfectly as if tailored specifically for him, and it felt exceptionally comfortable.
Being around Renee always caused a headache due to her mischief, yet when distanced from her, those omnipresent little details shaped the image of the mischievous sorceress more vividly, making one yearn for her.
Like fine wine, after being drunk and waking up, one still cannot help but be enamored by that rich aroma, even if it makes you feel intoxicated.
Behind him, Carlo assessed the handsome gentleman and reflected on the qualities that were typically unpleasant about him. She thought that if Fisher changed his exceedingly flawed character a bit, he should be quite popular with girls.
No, why was she even considering such things?
Carlo absentmindedly stroked her cat and suddenly found herself reflecting on such matters.
Fisher adjusted his attire and reminded Carlo to arrive early at the conference venue; otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to enter later.
After receiving her response, Fisher set off with his items and manuscript notes.
This morning, there would be a ribbon-cutting ceremony for an academic event, followed by a lengthy academic conference.
Fisher saw Jasmine, who was neatly dressed and standing somewhat stiffly, in front of the teaching building. She carried a small bag filled with books and notes, clearly prepared for the upcoming academic conference. Fisher had asked her to wait for him here on Monday, and she obeyed, standing here without knowing for how long.
“Good morning, Jasmine.”
“Good morning, Professor Fisher.”
Jasmine smiled at Fisher, lifting a lock of black hair that had fallen by her ear, revealing her petite and cute human ears, while her dress swayed, enhancing her beautiful and serene appearance.
Jasmine quickly walked over to Fisher’s side, stealing a glance at Fisher’s attire for the day. She thought the clothes suited him very well; human clothing was indeed attractive, but unfortunately, once it went through water, it would become somewhat odd. The skirts were fine, but hat decorations and men’s clothing didn’t carry the same charm.
“Why are you carrying so many books?”
Feeling somewhat shy, she explained, “Um, because I’m going to the conference, I read your paper and some previous articles from the Anti-Magic School. I’m afraid there are concepts I won’t understand during the discussion, so I brought some books with me. Their viewpoints are still a bit difficult for me to grasp.”
“For those who have practiced magic, their theories do present some comprehension barriers. However, many theories among the Anti-Magic scholars have been verified. They firmly believe that the power of magic imposes a burden on people because, factually, the average lifespan of wizards is shorter than that of those who do not use magic.”
“They believe that magic power is the manifestation of hidden energy within the body. If magic power originates from the soul, then the theory that magic reduces lifespan is just nonsensical. The connection between soul and body is still very vague at present, and if the theory of magic power’s source being the soul continues, each step forward produces a massive number of issues.”
“Thus, the Anti-Magic School and many wizards who have made accomplishments in traditional fields began to question this foundational point—that magic power comes from the soul—so their past research and achievements would still be valid.”
Jasmine blinked and suddenly seemed to understand what the professor’s research theories implied. In a certain sense, the core theory of humanity’s magical community would be overturned because of his research, and much of what many wizards had explored throughout their lives would be rendered meaningless.
When people’s achievements are denied, those who have put effort into these achievements tend to habitually reflect on their contributions rather than on the correctness of the outcomes. Even scholars cannot escape being bound by this principle.
“So, Professor Fisher, doesn’t that mean you’ve made enemies with many scholars?”
“Not necessarily enemies, but there are certainly some doubts about my theory.”
Fisher shook his head, looking at the puzzled Jasmine. He smiled and explained as they walked, “While some scholars may feel disheartened and despondent due to their lost efforts, there are still many who maintain a sincere pursuit of truth.”
“Human lifespans are short, yet the belief in pursuing truth has a long legacy. Even if one day my body turns to dust, there will still be other lives continuing my work, setting off from where I left off, like a baton, until the last person reaches the destination of truth.”
“I have inherited the philosophies of many aged scholars for many years, and now I will pass this ideology to young scholars like you, hoping that you too will travel further along the path of knowledge, discovering new things and making this world a better place.”
Listening to Fisher’s words, Jasmine’s eyes flickered slightly, her lips pressed together. For some reason, her face also turned a little rosy.
She tightened her grip on her small bag, and after a moment of struggling, she suddenly spoke, “I will work hard!”
Meeting her sincere gaze, Fisher was taken aback for a moment.
In saying that, he had completely forgotten she was an ocean subhuman. He had merely expressed some of his inner thoughts, never anticipating she would take it so seriously. However, at this moment, Fisher was more inclined to believe she was earnest.
In truth, even though there were numerous disappointments within Nali or even the entire human world right now, there were still many people and things that Fisher loved here. Perhaps the current situation was terrible, but with those shining individuals leading the way, Fisher firmly believed that the future would improve.
To ensure the hope for the future had a chance to persist, Fisher set off with the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans in search of several destroyers.
“Well then, let’s work hard.”
Looking at the girl beside him, he finished his moment of distraction, smiled slightly, and said.
Jasmine’s cheeks flushed slightly. At that moment, it felt as if something deep inside her had been touched, causing her heart to race. She hurriedly hugged the small bag in front of her, trying to suppress her accelerating heartbeat, but unfortunately, that small bag only served to obscure her face.
Their pace was not slow, and they soon arrived at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Jasmine waited slightly below while Fisher went up to take a photo with the scholars and the prince from Shivali. Below, reporters from Nali set up their heavy, large cameras, aimed at Fisher and the others above.
After a few simple speeches and photographs, Ken led them to the conference building at the back.
The conference building had five floors and was originally built for meetings and receptions. On the first floor, there was a large banquet hall, just right to serve as the main venue for this academic conference.
As Fisher followed Ken to the conference building, he sharply spotted four individuals in black robes carrying a small box wrapped in black gauze. The person in the standard black robe clearly belonged to the Cardu Church. It was said that Shivali had previously visited the Cardu Cathedral to refute Fisher; they must have brought out the object they were currently carrying.
Fisher wished to scrutinize further but was blocked by a scholar from Shivali. Fisher glanced at him and saw him adjusting the two strands of mustache on his face, smiling as he said to Fisher, “Mr. Fisher, are you lacking in self-confidence, afraid that we will argue you into silence?”
“.”
Fisher was left speechless; he merely looked at the “outsider” they had invited one more time, and suddenly he was deemed lacking in confidence? One might think they had hidden some colossal trump card.
Watching the Shivali scholar, who was smugly stroking his mustache as he walked ahead, Fisher subtly slowed his pace, briefly pausing for his student Jasmine, who appeared somewhat pitiful following behind the large group like a little animal, after all, he had invited her here.
“Mr. Fisher, please come this way. The conference room above is ready for everyone. This is…”
The staff at the school glanced back at Jasmine, preparing to ask, but Fisher interrupted with a spell.
“This is my student, and she will accompany me through the entire conference.”
“Yes, yes!”
Jasmine’s eager affirmation brought a smile to the staff member’s face. He nodded and opened the main door, showing them a direction. Fisher looked at the distant room and suddenly noticed a shaky paper airplane spinning above on the ceiling.
This was Carlo’s signal of “ready.” She was already in place, ensuring the safety of these individuals at any moment.
Just as Fisher had said before, Carlo had to ensure that none of the Shivali officials entering the building would perish if she wanted to survive. She had clearly recognized this point.
After a while, the building had quickly been placed under strict lockdown. Many soldiers were patrolling outside, and a magic detector had been borrowed to ensure there was no magic attached inside the building. Only then did they slowly breathe a sigh of relief and set up a protective magic outside, somewhat akin to the one Fisher used, allowing them to detect any entrance or exit.
But no one noticed that a layer of faint black light slowly spread from beneath the ground inside the building’s walls, crawling along the walls like maggots, swiftly isolating the inside from the outside space.
“Buzz”
The academic conference had officially begun.
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(End of this chapter)
