"You can't solve these mathematical problems?" Upon hearing Lucian's words, Natasha was immediately filled with interest. With the fearlessness of the ignorant, she picked up the paper in front of Lucian and quickly flipped through the pages, finding the ten mathematical problems listed at the back.
"The Four-Color Theorem… Lucian's Conjecture… the Barber Paradox…" Natasha murmured softly, reading these problem titles aloud, then fell into a long silence.
Lucian looked at her with amusement. "Well? Any thoughts?"
Natasha snapped back to reality, as if escaping from a nightmare, and habitually rubbed her chin. "Very difficult mathematical problems—hmm, extremely difficult mathematical problems. They'd require the combined efforts of all the Archanists in the entire Parliament. Oh, right, Lucian, what do you think about the current situation?"
"I remember you just asked me that not long ago." Lucian had a smile at the corner of his lips, his finger gently tapping the desk.
Natasha raised her head and said earnestly, "Don't you always say that things are always developing and changing, that stillness is relative while motion and change are absolute? And now, quite a few days have passed since I last asked you, during which the fission reactor explosion happened, and the incident with the 'God of Craftsmanship' Heath transitioning toward the Divinity of the Steam God occurred. Of course the situation has changed!"
"Your eloquence keeps improving," Lucian teased.
Natasha placed her right hand over her left chest, bowed slightly in a gentleman's gesture, and said with a broad smile, "All thanks to your guidance, Professor Lucian. You have extraordinary insights in every area, opening new doors for me. Hahaha."
At the last words, she seemed to recall something hilarious and nearly doubled over laughing.
Lucian's mouth twitched, somewhat regretting all the double-edged jokes he'd told Natasha over the years. "...Actually, the current situation is both clear and complex. Starting from when Viken secretly published the quasi-divine method, we've entered an era of fierce competition. Legendary Peak beings hope to become quasi-divine, ordinary Legends want to advance to the Peak, and those below Legend are trying to break through to become Legends."
"It's not just competition between individuals—it's also competition between races, factions, and organizations. Fall even slightly behind, and you may face annihilation. Even if you're not destroyed but merely weakened, catching up later will require ten times, a hundred times the cost—far beyond what any ordinary person could manage. Moreover, Viken's quasi-divine method requires faith, which means intense conflict. Anyone could be a friend, and anyone could be an enemy."
Hearing Lucian describe the current situation in full once more, Natasha put away her smile. "I've never believed that Tanos's and Viken's quasi-divine methods are normal. The hidden dangers are too great, and it's far too cruel—having to use the power of emotions to transform oneself. How is that any different from devils? Perhaps this is an era of fierce competition, but I won't bow to it. I will find a path that suits me."
"So will I." Lucian didn't say much more.
Natasha patted Lucian's shoulder and said understandingly, "For me, advancing from First-tier Legend upward is relatively easy. For you, reaching the Peak is more difficult. And regardless of your true intentions—whether you plan to walk Viken's path or not—many people with ulterior motives will probably see you as a competitor."
An innocent man gets into trouble when he possesses a treasure—Lucian summarized Natasha's meaning with this old proverb in his mind and nodded solemnly. "Whether for myself or for you all, I will never stop moving forward. No amount of obstruction can prevent my advancement!"
After seeing the "Secret of Immortality," Lucian had developed some rough hypotheses about the similarities and differences between the two worlds. But this needed verification—he needed to discover various phenomena to corroborate his ideas. So for now, he didn't dare propose quantum field theory or the Standard Model to advance his studies, because if there were discrepancies, his head could literally explode!
"Dozens of Third-tier Legends, more than a dozen at Legendary Peak—the 'opponents' in front of you are by no means weak." Though she said this, Natasha's silver-violet eyes were gleaming with radiance, seemingly full of confidence in Lucian.
In this mutual gaze, the atmosphere gradually became warm. Lucian pulled Natasha closer, intending a tender moment, but just then, she suddenly asked, "Oh, right—how bad is the pollution from the fission reactor? What are you planning to do about it?"
Lucian looked at her with a mix of amusement and exasperation. "You really are a master at ruining the mood…"
Natasha giggled, looking quite pleased with herself. "I'm concerned about a very serious pollution problem. As a Sovereign, I'm being very responsible!"
"So you did it on purpose…" Lucian rubbed his temple, though a faint smile played on his lips. "I proposed using a low-yield Eternal Blazing Sun to clean it up, but the Professor vetoed it, so he'll be handling it."
…………
Boom!
Inside the Atomic Research Institute, Heidi—who had been concentrating on crafting vacuum tubes using magic circles and alchemical items—nearly fell over from the trembling ground. Fortunately, she cast an instant spell to steady herself.
"What's going on? Why is the City of the Sky shaking again?" Elistina and Nodaniel, caught off guard, could only desperately grip the metal pipes along the wall.
The new semester was still more than half a month away, and Elistina had taken the opportunity to show Nodaniel around Alin, meeting one impressive mage after another through Heidi.
Heidi looked at Cherry, Lovi, Ophelia, and the other assistants who hadn't reacted in time and had fallen to the ground, and shook her head helplessly. "How should I know? This is the City of the Sky—there shouldn't be earthquakes. And the gale-force winds up here can't get through the half-active wards."
Suddenly, she realized. "The last time we experienced shaking, the Professor said it was caused by the fission reactor in Alin's core going out of control and exploding. Could this be the same thing? No—that can't be right. After the last incident, the other reactor was shut down."
Since she hadn't personally experienced the terror of a fission reaction, she spoke of a reactor meltdown as casually as describing an accidental malfunction of some magic circle in yesterday's laboratory.
"The fission reactor… I hope it doesn't cause major pollution…" Elistina murmured worriedly in a low voice.
The "City of the Sky" core.
Fernando looked at the chamber before him, where the contamination had been mostly cleared away. He observed the magic walls and floor, now further melted and damaged, and nodded with satisfaction. "The Eternal Blazing Sun really does the job…"