Chapter 532: Theft-proofing the Magical Plan
"Can I get the paynt first?"
"Or the data chip first?"
Archmage Grom sighed with difficulty.
Negotiating with the Blood Clan is a systematic project, not a transaction-by-transaction deal.
Now that both parties have just reached an intention to cooperate in combat, the details haven’t even started to be discussed. How could Garrett possibly get the money?
He thought for a mont, took off his badge, and handed it to Garrett:
"Short on cash? How about I lend you so? One or two thousand, just na the amount, I can still afford it!"
Garrett quickly shook his head.
If he really could borrow, he could simply ask around among the mages he knew; borrowing ten or twenty thousand contribution points wouldn’t be too hard. But research funding can’t rely on borrowing!
Research is a bottomless pit. Ten thousand contribution points are just 1,000 chips, 1,000 pieces of data. Who could guarantee that 1,000 pieces of data would be enough to solve his project?
"How about you help estimate a price?" Garrett thought for a mont and proposed another plan:
"Estimate a rough price, and I’ll use this magic to mortgage a loan from the council— I rember, does the White Tower offer such loans?"
That’s not impossible. The problem with mortgage loans is that the transaction price can only be estimated low, not high. Otherwise, it’s not just the wallet that gets hurt, but also the reputation of the appraiser.
Elder Grom and his colleagues discussed it and only offered an appraisal of 2,000 contribution points. Garrett received the money with one hand and imdiately spent it, turning it into 200 data crystal cards.
However, trading blood for 200 cards, and buying 200 more from his own savings, putting four or five hundred pieces of data into the MOSS database didn’t even make a splash...
"Then, just spend the money from the Mage Tower?"
Linne suggested. Garrett looked at the Mage Tower’s account, which was already less than four digits, and silently shook his head.
"Should I go borrow so from the teacher?"
Aurora asked tentatively. Garrett shook his head even faster: If borrowing were an option, the Thunder Lord would have lent it to him already. Asking others would only bring trouble to them, wouldn’t it?
"Then what about..." Serrano rolled up her sleeves and looked around:
"I rember the trading price in the White Tower, dragon blood is 1,000 contribution points a drop? Hey, do you have a bottle to store it?"
"Don’t ss around!"
Garrett was startled and quickly stopped her. Casual financial aid between friends is one thing, but letting the Silver Dragon Miss sell her blood is another. He would never do such a thing that harms others without benefiting oneself!
Serrano pouted her lips and retreated. Garrett, troubled, rubbed his temples:
What else is there to sell? If there’s nothing to sell, he’d have to write a project report and apply for project funding from the council.
The rabies project hadn’t been concluded yet, and starting a new one, who knows if it would pass...
As he thought, clouds moved outside the window, and a ray of sunlight hit the corner of his eye. Garrett suddenly rembered:
Right, sunscreen!
He had talked to Viscount Seibesh last ti about improving the sunscreen magic.
Where did it get stuck last ti? Sunscreen materials? Chemical sunscreens won’t do, so what about physical sunscreens? In his past life, what were the raw materials for physical sunscreen?
Garrett closed his eyes and concentrated, quickly recalling from his mory. The main ingredients for physical sunscreen were zinc oxide powder and titanium dioxide powder—
Seemingly, they weren’t hard to find?
Garrett casually placed an order, and by evening, the White Tower had delivered the goods. Garrett scooped a spoonful from the left bottle, and another from the right, mixed them evenly, and called on Mage Linne:
"Brother Linne, can you help
test this magic?"
Mage Linne summoned the lowest rank of skeleton soldiers. As soon as it saw the sunlight, black smoke billowed from its body, and it staggered and fell. Garrett quickly threw the powder in his hand, casting the magic—
The tiny pinch of mixed powder rose up, turning into a mist, enveloping the skeleton soldier. The mist was extrely thin, almost invisible to the naked eye, yet once it covered the soldier, the black smoke imdiately stopped.
"This stuff is not bad!" Linne was surprised. The two stood shoulder to shoulder, watching for ten minutes; the skeleton soldier showed no signs of weakness. He looked at Garrett, who spread his hands:
"I don’t know either, they say it was invented by a great duke of the Blood Clan, they didn’t tell
the strength or duration,
only that they originally used silver powder."
"Blood Clan using silver powder..." Linne chuckled. He took the spell materials from Garrett and casually cast a detection spell, imdiately frowning:
"Are you planning to sell this to the Blood Clan?"
"Uh-huh."
"That won’t do." Linne cut him off decisively. Seeing Garrett’s confusion, he pointed at the remaining powder:
"A simple detection spell reveals it. —You need to make it more complex, otherwise, it won’t sell for a good price."
Garrett deeply agreed. Non-clan mbers, their hearts must differ. Now, everyone is joining hands against the Radiant Church, but who knows if it might beco a life-or-death struggle later?
The things to be sold to the Blood Clan had better be as complicated as possible, so they couldn’t make it themselves. Only then could humans sell it at a high price or cut off supply whenever they want!
He invigorated himself, mixed the two powders with li powder, baking soda, chalk, gypsum, and seven or eight similar powders. He adjusted the proportions and formula, yet no matter how much he tinkered, the detection spell could always reveal it.
Garrett gritted his teeth and decided to take a different approach. You use silver powder for spell materials? Silver powder works, silver ions don’t? Solid works, how about liquid?
"Mr. Norwood! Mr. Norwood, do
a favor!"
Mage Norwood responded to the call.
He ca with two apprentices, who had been tinkering with various rubbers lately and had achieved so results, just one step away from Garrett’s requirents.
Now that the boss had summoned him, he quickly set up various bottles and jars, cutting, pounding, boiling, and stewing—
Before long, a bottle of silver nitrate solution was completed first. It was already sunset by the ti they finished tinkering, but Garrett had his own way. He asked Linne to summon a skeleton soldier, and he pressed a button on the wall, creating a crisp snap.
The rcury arc rectifier emitted a faint blue light. Garrett held a small brown bottle in his hand, a stream of water rising from it, forming a mist, blocking the ultraviolet light emitted by the rectifier.
Linne stood beside him, feeling the skeleton soldier’s condition, nodded, and then shook his head:
"It works, but a detection spell can still see it. Is there another way?"
"Of course there is!"
Garrett gave him a reassuring smile. If silver nitrate works, that ans silver halides work too; if silver halides work, then why not play with sothing a bit more complex?
"Mr. Norwood, let’s keep at it! Concentrated hydrochloric acid, concentrated sulfuric acid, concentrated nitric acid, silver powder, iodine, all sorts of things, bring them all out!"
Let’s make sothing the world has never seen before, and see how your detection spell recognizes it!
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