The Great Wizard had long abandoned the limitations of flesh, his Void Remains projection revealed a flawless metallic construction.
A silver-gray body as orderly as a precision instrument, facial lines so rigid that they bore no human traits.
Most unsettling were those eyes.
Two pure silver spheres of light, lacking pupils, yet capable of conveying a bone-chilling sensation of complete X-ray penetration.
Faced with Ron’s scrutiny, Vinard didn’t even glance up at him.
Instead, he focused on perusing the technical documents in his hands, his silver eyes reflecting densely packed formulas.
Occasionally, he would swipe the air with metallic fingers, leaving glowing calculation trajectories in the air.
"Another brat pushed up by the Conquest Faction..."
Vinard’s voice was like the friction of metal, each syllable tinged with sarcasm:
"But since you’ve managed to get here, at least you’re not like those brutes who only know how to fight, unable to understand even basic Rune structures."
Sitting in the vice-chair position, Alicia Brown, represented another kind of extreme terror.
Her Dark Sun Level Void Remains projection couldn’t maintain a complete human form, appearing only as a perpetually shifting deep red flame.
The flames occasionally revealed graceful female contours, but more often twisted angry faces and roaring beast shapes.
It’s said she completely burned her body in the construction of her Void Remains, existing now only in pure Magic Power form.
"Tsk tsk... Another wet-behind-the-ears little lamb?"
A piercing female voice emerged from the flames, tauntingly:
"These young people lately, each more arrogant than the last, thinking they can change the world with a few flashy papers.
Lad, I hope your achievements are worthy of the honor of gathering these old folks together, otherwise..."
Her sentence ended abruptly, the flames suddenly transforming into an eerie green, the air thick with the stench of scorched flesh.
Carlvin Jones’s left sleeve hung empty, from the severed end extended three Abyss tentacles.
With his gaze, he constantly assessed the young man in front of him: "Heard you faced Apostle-level threats in the Abyss?"
Carlvin’s voice was as hoarse as metal scraped with sandpaper:
"Not sure if it’s real skill or just good luck, but academic research isn’t like the battlefield; luck doesn’t factor in, if you can’t, you just can’t."
Minne remained as she was last time, unchanged except for the deep fatigue evident in her eyes.
"Lecturer Ralph, we meet again."
Her tone was the friendliest among those present: "Hope this time you can again demonstrate the abilities matching the rumors."
August White, a gaunt old man, said nothing but nodded at Ron.
Ron approached the center seat on the defense platform, a peculiar chair carved from Abyss Obsidian.
The chair’s surface was etched with writhing True Word Runes.
These runes crawled across the stone surface like living things.
Ready at any moment to amplify the sitter’s voice, while faithfully recording every subtle change in their Spirit state.
As he sat down, he felt a cold touch emanating from his spine.
As if countless invisible hands were stroking his nerves.
Vinard finally lifted his head, impatience in his tone unmistakable:
"Since Uther specially vouched for you, I came to listen to your nonsense."
His tone cold as winter:
"But I’ll say this upfront, my time is valuable.
If your so-called ’research’ is nothing but a repackaged performance, I will leave immediately and mark ’Intellectual Deficiency’ on your academic record."
Now, summarize the core concept of your research—why do you believe it’s necessary to completely change the technology route that’s been in service for over two hundred years?"
Faced with such obvious hostility, Ron maintained his iconic calm.
He took a deep breath and began his meticulously prepared response:
"Esteemed panel, my research originated from a simple observation..."
His voice, amplified by the True Word Runes, became exceptionally clear:
"The fundamental flaw of traditional simulation devices lies in their attempt to simulate chaotic environments using orderly methods.
It’s like using a static sculpture to portray a rushing river, resembling it in form but not in spirit."
Alicia’s flames leapt vigorously:
"Every newcomer loves criticizing predecessors’ work! Do you think researchers from hundreds of years ago were fools?"
"Of course not," Ron responded with humble confidence:
"I respect the efforts of all predecessors. But technological progress itself is a process of continual surpassing. Limitations from over two hundred years ago shouldn’t be today’s shackles."
He stood up and approached the central holographic projection device in the conference room:
"The essence of the Abyss is Chaos, and the characteristic of Chaos is unpredictability.
When we attempt to simulate this unpredictability through fixed programs, a fundamental contradiction arises."
The projection device activated, revealing detailed structural diagrams of his simulation device in the air.
An extremely complex bio-mechanical fusion, each component exuding a bizarre and dangerous allure, akin to organs of some ancient alien god.
Vinard’s silver eyes finally began attentively observing the projection, metallic fingertips ceased tapping:
"An interesting design concept... continue."
"My approach isn’t to eliminate Chaos, but to learn to coexist with Chaos, even harness Chaos’s power."
Ron’s voice grew increasingly confident:
"By integrating a living neural network, adaptive Rune Array, and Chaos Energy Regulation System."