Two days later, in the morning, after spending time in the "Tower of Babel" diligently consolidating his strength, Lucian arrived early at the thirty-fifth floor of the Alinja Magic Tower and pushed open the doors to the Supreme Council's meeting room.
This meeting room was not vastly different from other conference rooms Lucian had seen — similarly modest in size, with an ordinary cherrywood table in the center. The only distinguishing feature was the twenty-four chairs arranged around it, each crafted from extraordinarily precious materials. Their velvet upholstery gleamed with a luxurious yet understated dark red, and the backs were carved with different emblems to signify the identity of each member: storms with dancing lightning, crowns of Arcane and magic, and so on.
"Evans, over here." The perpetually mischievous grin on Alchemy Grand Master
Lucian looked over and noticed that the back of that chair was adorned with a model of atomic structure — electrons orbiting a nucleus of protons and neutrons — like an infinitely shrunken model of a celestial system.
*This classic yet inevitably fleeting model...* he mused silently. Lucian gave Klaus a courteous smile, walked to his own seat, and sat down.
"Master Klaus, you seem to have been here quite a while?" Lucian remarked casually, noting that the two of them were currently the only ones in the room.
Klaus answered with a leisurely smile: "Evans, you're already a Grand Archanist — no need to be so formal. Just call me Klaus. I'm someone who likes to arrive early. Every time I'm waiting for others, it feels as though I've gained extra time — time I can use to think freely, to zone out peacefully, to savor this unexpected luxury. It's a wonderful feeling, don't you think? You're quite early too?"
"Yes. When I think about others waiting for me, I get anxious and can't stay calm. But when I'm the one waiting, as long as the other person isn't late, the time before they arrive fills me with tranquility — no impatience, just thoughts drifting freely in every direction, brimming with inspiration." Lucian smiled as he replied, not having expected that he and Klaus shared such a common sentiment.
Klaus spread his hands: "So we understand life better than they do, we know how to enjoy it more. But for me, the luxury is over — the moment I saw you, I had a hundred questions I wanted to discuss. New Alchemy radiates an allure that captivates me even more than all my puppets, golems, and alchemical creations combined."
"If it's about New Alchemy, I'd be happy to discuss it," Lucian said with a smile.
Klaus tapped the table, and a pair of metal arms suddenly descended from the ceiling, cradling a steaming cup of red tea. In a respectful voice, the arms announced: "Lord Klaus, your preferred 'Earl Grey tea.'"
"Evans, if you'd like something to drink, just say the word." Klaus took a sip of his tea and continued on his own: "Having just reviewed your rigorous deductions based on protons, the periodic table, relative atomic mass, and equivalent elements, I have absolutely no doubt about the existence of neutrons. Its discovery is merely a matter of time. But I have far too many questions about electron orbits, transitions, and the process of electromagnetic radiation."
As expected, Lucian was not surprised by Klaus's doubts. After ordering a cup of "Sky Blue," he replied: "There are indeed quite a few unresolved issues in that area. We can discuss and research them together."
The perpetual mischievous grin on Klaus's face gradually faded: "First, the electron transitions you described are a quantized process — meaning that when an electron jumps from one orbit to another, it doesn't traverse the intervening space at all. It simply appears there in an instant. This seems to resemble some kind of spatial jump or teleportation? Could it be the fundamental principle underlying our current spatial magic?"
Because no satisfactory explanation had ever been found for teleportation, spatial jumps, and barriers, spatial-type spells had developed very slowly, with extremely high requirements that prevented widespread use. Even large organizations like the Southern Church and the magical assemblies lacked the resources to establish more permanent teleportation arrays, managing only to maintain links between their headquarters and the capitals of various nations. As for the individual provinces, counties, and major cities, they had to rely on primitive means — only after the initial development of electromagnetic communication spells, wired telephones, and telegrams did the situation begin to improve.
"It may correspond, or it may have nothing to do with it. I haven't yet deeply researched that particular area. Energy-level transitions are only a preliminary explanation — there may well be better theories in the future to describe this phenomenon. We can only approach the truth step by step, not claim to have already grasped it." Lucian hadn't expected Klaus to open with such a high-level question.
Klaus nodded, understanding that this was not a problem that could be solved quickly. After all, electron energy levels and transitions still existed only within the theoretical framework of Lucian's "New Alchemy," never having been directly observed through experiment — they could only be inferred retroactively from partial measurements and phenomena.
"But the real question is: why do electrons have orbits at all? Why do they 'transition'? Gravity causes artificial planets to orbit the world, creating orbits. But electromagnetic force would simply cause electrons to crash into the nucleus." A clear yet detached voice sounded from the doorway. The beautiful but austere Hathaway had also arrived ahead of time, though no one had noticed when.
In the earlier stages of New Alchemy research, the focus had been on continuous bombardment searches for neutrons or other anomalies. Questions like this existed but were not mainstream. However, with the discovery of the neutron, explanations for electron orbits and transitions had risen to the forefront of the minds of sharp-minded Grand Archanists and legendary mages like Hathaway. It was evident she had been contemplating this question for a long long time — her words flowed naturally and with practiced fluency.
Lucian rubbed the bridge of his nose and answered: "In the microscopic realm, electromagnetic force may no longer apply — other forces could play important roles that we haven't yet accounted for. Orbits and transitions remain hypotheses for now, to be confirmed through the feedback of experimental results and observed phenomena."
These Grand Archanists and legendary mages were truly formidable. Every single question they raised struck directly at the weaknesses in the current "New Alchemy" model of atomic internal structure.