Chapter 106 - 84: Mo Ning’s Paper Makes the ’Shine’ Cover
Morning light crept in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, coating the edges of the thick stack of manuscripts on the desk with a faint golden sheen.
Mo Ning had officially begun another day of intense work.
He had no idea that his paper was about to set an incredible record.
At this moment, his entire focus was on the illusory screen of light floating before him.
He was in the process of deeply optimizing the Sub-zero Level Trick, Wind Chasing Needle.
Previously, this Witchcraft required 0.72 points of Spiritual Strength. Now, thanks to the Effect of Radiant Spirit Oil, his Spiritual Strength had surged by 0.66 points. The gap had gone from "out of reach" to "within grasp."
And deep optimization was the process of closing that final 0.06-point gap.
Deeply optimizing a piece of Witchcraft wasn’t as simple as one might imagine.
In fact, the optimization process also involved a massive amount of Divination deductions. The more complex the Divination Model, the greater the workload.
The principle behind the optimization was roughly as follows:
Since everyone’s Spiritual Spectrum and Magic Power spectrum differed to some extent, the basic logic of optimization was to "customize" a piece of Witchcraft based on one’s specific circumstances.
The actual process was divided into three steps.
The first step was to collect one’s own data.
The second step was to use specialized Divination Formulas to calculate a set of "customized" parameters suited to oneself.
The third and final step was to introduce these customized parameters into the model and re-derive it.
If the model reached a certain level of complexity, the workload for optimization could be no less than that of improving a piece of Witchcraft.
Most of the time, however, the results of deep optimization were far from dazzling.
The final result was often a marginal improvement, like "Magic Power consumption reduced by 3%" or "Witchcraft potency increased by 2%."
The return was hardly satisfying compared to the time and effort invested.
Forget newcomers; even Apprentices rarely performed deep optimization on their Witchcraft, at most only doing so for the few spells they used most frequently.
But for Mo Ning, all of this was incredibly simple.
Every time he learned a new piece of Witchcraft, he would use the Eye of Truth to build a dedicated Divination Calculator for it.
So-called deep optimization was nothing more than replacing a set of parameters and running the calculator again.
He didn’t need to manually derive every formula, nor did he need to repeatedly verify every variable. He didn’t even need to waste more than a few sheets of scratch paper.
Mo Ning estimated that even though the Wind Chasing Needle model was relatively complex, he should be able to complete the task within two hours.
While waiting for the calculator’s results, he pulled out a stack of scale pattern paper from the side and began writing the second version of the theoretical framework for the High Mountain Breathing Technique improvement project.
The theoretical framework was proving more difficult than he had anticipated, so this project had already been delayed for several days.
After a while, Mo Ning suddenly let out a soft "Huh?" The tip of his Ink Tube Pen froze in mid-air.
He keenly sensed that the calculator’s processing speed seemed to have increased significantly.
At the current rate, he estimated it would be done in an hour and a half—half an hour ahead of schedule.
Mo Ning immediately issued a command with his thoughts: ’Analyze the reason for the increased calculator processing speed.’
Several seconds passed.
The Eye of Truth provided the results:
[Deep analysis indicates that after Spiritual Resilience reached 0.23, the spiritual stability parameter "Gao Lei Factor" jumped from 1.23 to 1.68, increasing the Divination Calculator’s processing speed by 24.5%.]
[It is recommended to include Spiritual Resilience and the Gao Lei Factor in the scope of daily monitoring.]
Mo Ning was taken aback.
He knew, of course, that the so-called "Gao Lei Factor" was one of the creations of the pioneer Lord Gao Lei, who had developed tens of thousands of Divination Formulas. It was also a key parameter in constructing a Spirit Ring’s Divination Model.
Since newcomers and Apprentices generally only valued Spiritual Strength, very few paid any attention to Spiritual Resilience, so Mo Ning hadn’t paid it much mind either.
Now, he abruptly realized he seemed to have made a mistake.
Spiritual Resilience directly affected the Gao Lei Factor, which in turn directly affected the Divination Calculator’s processing speed.
The Eye of Truth was the foundation of his power. From this perspective, Spiritual Resilience was even more important than Spiritual Strength.
Mo Ning decisively gave the command: ’Include Spiritual Resilience and the Gao Lei Factor in the scope of daily monitoring!’
He looked at the torrent of data flowing across the calculator’s interface and suddenly recalled a passage he had read in a book:
"For Apprentices, the Gao Lei Factor seems to be an optional presence.
"The Divination deduction process for constructing the first through third Spirit Rings requires the Gao Lei Factor, but it doesn’t play a very significant role.
"Starting from the fourth Spirit Ring, upon entering the realm of an Official Wizard, you will discover that the Gao Lei Factor is a parameter that cannot be ignored. Its importance increases several dozen times over."
"From an Apprentice’s standpoint, there is indeed no need to pay attention to the Gao Lei Factor too early.
"But I believe it is necessary to have some foresight, as it can make your path as a Wizard much smoother."
At the time, when Mo Ning read this passage, he hadn’t taken it to heart.
After all, according to the statistical data from the Black Tower Academy, the average promotion time from a First Level Apprentice to a First Level Wizard was 55 years—and that didn’t even include those who failed along the way.
Wasn’t it a bit too early to be concerned about a "parameter that would only be used later" so many years in advance?
Looking back now, those words were truly golden advice.
Mo Ning secretly made a decision: ’I’ll have to find a way to increase my Spiritual Resilience in the future.’
Just then, the Guiding Ring suddenly grew cold.
A stream of information flowed into his mind:
[Reward Notification: Serial Number 7-118-256, Mo Ning.]
[Your paper submitted to the *Journal of Witchcraft Research*, *Shining Light of the Black Tower*, titled "An Innovative Solution for Complex Divination Equation Systems—A Breakthrough in Isolated-State Problems via the Highway Bridge Technique," has passed the society’s review.]
[The society is greatly honored to inform you that this paper will be featured on the cover of the next issue, becoming the center of attention for the entire academy. This is a moment of glory that belongs to you alone!]
[The journal will be published tomorrow, at which time the society will gift you ten hardcover copies for your collection.]
Mo Ning was stunned.
’My paper made the cover?’
He had split this paper off from his main research project merely to follow the example of his seniors and earn some extra Black Tower Points.
He never would have imagined that this paper, which he considered a "by-product," would actually push aside papers from Official Wizards and land directly on the journal’s cover.