"Super smooth!"
Dale jumped up excitedly, her silver hair gently floating with her movements: "I can completely control my body transformation now! Look!"
She raised her small hand, and the webs between her fingers disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye, her skin becoming indistinguishable from that of ordinary people.
Then, with a mere thought, the webs characteristic of a Sea Siren reappeared on her fingers at once.
"And this too!"
Dale proudly lifted her chin and gently waved her hand, and the water molecules in the air rapidly condensed, forming an exquisite Ice Crystal Short Sword: "A new skill I just mastered yesterday!"
"Great progress indeed."
Ron nodded approvingly, gently patting her head, "At this rate, you might be able to defeat me one day."
"That’s not certain!"
Dale pouted: "Your magic is so strange; I was dizzy from that sound wave vibration the last time at the training ground."
Mentioning magic, Ron couldn’t help but frown.
His sound wave vibration in its erosion state was indeed powerful, but it also had a high difficulty of control.
In the upcoming Bloodline Altar trial, finding a balance between power and control was an issue needing deep thought.
"By the way, Master, Ailan’s mom is looking for you."
Dale suddenly remembered something: "It seems to be about those new herbs planted in the courtyard..."
"Oh?" Ron put down his teacup: "What’s the issue?"
"Not an issue, it seems like the herbs..."
Dale scratched her head: "Ailan’s mom says their growth state is very peculiar and wants you to take a look."
Ron followed Dale to the backyard.
Recently, the courtyard had been transformed by Ailan into a herb garden, where various rare medicinal herbs flourished under her meticulous care.
Ailan stood beside a patch of grass glimmering with a faint light, her face showing rare excitement.
"Master, you came just in time."
The tree spirit turned around, smiling: "This batch of Sunshine Grass has undergone a very special mutation."
Ron crouched down, carefully observing the patch of herbs.
Their leaves exhibited an unusual golden-red sheen, and their stalks were much sturdier than ordinary Sunshine Grass.
"This is..." Ron reached out to touch one of them, immediately feeling a warm energy flow from his fingertips: "A mutated strain?"
"There’s more to it." Ailan gently stroked the stem, a hint of mystery in her voice:
"They seem to have some kind of resonance response to your Erosion Chapter. I’ve found that every time you practice that magic on the training ground, these grasses become more active."
Ron raised an eyebrow, surprised by this discovery.
The Erosion Chapter, a fearsome corruption originating from the starry sky, should theoretically harm plant life.
Yet these Sunshine Grass seemed to be strengthened instead?
"Perhaps...it’s because your magic has transformative traits, rather than purely destructive ones?" Ailan speculatively suggested.
Ron fell into thought.
Indeed, pollution sometimes isn’t just destruction but a more profound "reconstruction":
It doesn’t simply destroy the physical structure of the target but alters the target’s way of "existence" to some extent.
"I need to study this phenomenon."
Ron said softly, carefully picking a few mutated Sunshine Grass: "This might be useful for my current research projects."
Returning to the laboratory, Ron immediately conducted a detailed analysis of these mutated plants.
Through his "Extraordinary Recognition" capability, he discovered that the cell structure of these plants had subtly changed, forming a more active energy recycling system.
"Interesting...these cells seem to have developed some kind of ’adaptability’, capable of absorbing and converting external energy."
Ron looked thoughtfully at the cell samples under the microscope, a bold idea suddenly formed in his mind:
If plant cells can adapt and utilize erosion energy, then could there be other materials that also have this trait, even to a greater degree?
His thoughts raced, searching through all possible clues in his mind. Suddenly, a familiar term jumped into his mind—morphing resin.
The "Abyssal Creatures Atlas" mentioned this special substance from the Abyss Fourth Layer, possessing high plasticity and adaptability, able to merge characteristics of different creatures to form a new whole.
Isn’t this the critical trait required for the "Melting Furnace Concept"?
He entered deep thought, seemingly enlightened.
Through his previous "Extraordinary Recognition" analysis of the Stand-In Puppet, its ability to absorb and assimilate traits of abyssal creatures was because it contained morphing resin...
"Central Lands...Crystal Tower..." Ron’s gaze became profound:
"There should be richer abyssal material data and samples there. After the Bloodline Altar, I must find a way to become a Wizard soon and head there."
"The abyssal materials mentioned in the ’Abyssal Creatures Atlas’...morphing resin is only one of them."
Ron perused his notes, his eyes gleaming:
"Blood Crystal, Black Sand Essence, Time Amber...each has unimaginable potential. If I can collect and master these materials..."
The idea of going to the Central Lands, accessing more abyssal knowledge, acquiring various abyssal materials and secret treasures was no longer a distant plan, but an urgent necessity.
Every day of research proved that these abyssal materials were irreplaceable for transcending conventional limits and stepping into higher realms.
"Teacher, lunch is ready!" Lilia’s voice came from outside the door, interrupting Ron’s train of thought.
"Got it, I’ll be right there." Ron replied, carefully storing away the Stand-In Puppet and mutated Sunshine Grass, and rose to head to the dining room.
In the dining room, Dale was already impatiently seated at the table, her little hands tapping restlessly on the table.
Ailan was assisting Lilia in setting the cutlery. Although she couldn’t eat normally, only needing sunlight and water, she always accompanied everyone.
"What’s the main course today?" Ron pulled out a chair and sat down, shaking out his napkin.
"The silver-eyed fish that Dale caught, marinated with the new herb blend you researched a few days ago."
Lilia smiled, bringing a plate of aromatic fish to the table:
"And vegetable stew made with the organic vegetables and mushrooms cultivated by Sister Ailan."
"I caught it myself!" Dale proudly announced: "It weighed a full four pounds!"
"Really impressive." Ron smiled, gently stroking the Little Sea Siren’s silver hair:
"Looks like I won’t have to worry about food anymore."
"Of course, you can focus on researching those mysterious magic spells while we handle the rest!" Dale confidently patted her chest.
"Speaking of research..." Lilia asked cautiously: "Teacher, is there any progress in your research?"
Ron sighed lightly:
"Still missing the most critical step, I need a certain ’active’ factor to turn my creations into semi-living entities, and ordinary materials clearly can’t meet this requirement."
For a moment, the dining table fell into silence, he unconsciously became the topic terminator.
After hurriedly finishing his meal, Ron prepared to dive back into endless experiments and research.
"Master, you need to rest."
Ailan suddenly stopped him and handed him a cup of herbal tea with concern: "You’ve been working continuously for three days."
The vines under her dress brought up a bronze mirror, reflecting the young man’s heavy eye bags and weary expression.
Only then did Ron feel the overwhelming fatigue, and could only nod:
"You’re right; I should indeed rest."