Chess Mage of Faerûn

Chapter 493 Using the Past to Serve the Present
As for the Archmage, he was unable to complete the replica of the Shadowsteel Golem. This was not because his skill or knowledge was insufficient to support such a large project; the key issue was time.

Creating golems, especially high-level constructs like the Shadowsteel Golem, is not as simple as building blocks or canning them.

Ultimately, time was too short and there were too many things to study. Even the Archmage did not have unlimited energy. After completing the material preparation and creating the golem's complete limbs and torso shell, he temporarily stopped and left the head and internal structure of the torso for later.

These two areas are also the most complex parts of the golem after the drive core. The former is equipped with detection, scanning and communication devices, while the latter has many intricate drive accessories and spell reaction devices neatly stacked around the core.

These components all require the spellcaster to personally oversee the enchanting workshop for meticulous craftsmanship, expending considerable effort. As mentioned before, the processing precision of the ruins workshop is far from reaching the high-precision automation level of CNC machine tools.

Of course, there was another minor reason: one of the students slightly overestimated his hands-on skills in structural engineering during the practical operation, which resulted in taking up a little more time.

However, these were not major problems. After producing enough Shadowsteel ingots, Tyrantir did not continue to use the Rune Workshop to process the remaining components. Instead, he stopped, put away the completed components, and then informed his disciples that he was returning to Highhold.

Zhang Yuanben, thinking he had taken up more time than expected and thus delayed the teacher's plans, was about to say something to persuade him to stay, but the Grand Master spoke first:

"Do you think I failed to complete the planned project because of the time you wasted?"

"You lack experience in construct theory. Although you have a theoretical foundation and have done some practice projects, it is not enough. Moreover, rune alchemy is another system with many differences. Think about it more and work hard."

"I will remember what the teacher taught me, but why doesn't the teacher just finish the Shadowsteel Golem matter in one go?"

Zhang Yuan's doubts were not unexpected by the Grand Master, who countered with:

"Will the driver core I created be able to function properly on the repaired golem?"

"Yes, there are no more obstacles after debugging."

Awakened by this question, Zhang Yuan suddenly understood his teacher's intention.

"That's it. It's not uncommon for spellcasters to attempt to replicate the Shadowsteel Golem, and some may even succeed. Rune alchemy certainly has many advantages, but in the realm of arcane magic, there has never been any insurmountable myth."

After the call, Tyrandeer opened the portal and left, leaving Zhang Yuan standing there motionless for a long time.

It turns out the teacher never intended to simply copy the results and methods of predecessors!
After exploring and experimenting to discover the patterns of runes, his next step was to try to imitate, adapt to, and even unify the ancient rune alchemy methods using the modern mainstream metamorphic alchemy school.

Connecting the past and the present—these words sound easy, but in reality, they are incredibly difficult. It's not easy to even delve deeply into these two paths, let alone to truly integrate them.

Zhang Yuan felt he wasn't qualified to offer advice or evaluation on a great mage's choices and attempts, but this did cause him some trouble.

Since embarking on the path of arcane magic, everything I have learned and applied belongs to the theories and methods of the contemporary alchemy school. It was only after entering the ruins and receiving the ancient inheritance that I began to glimpse the tip of the iceberg of the rune alchemy system.

Now, Zhang Yuan faces a choice between two different schools of alchemy.

After all, he wasn't Tyrantir, who had already reached the pinnacle in one path. Turning to explore the path of ancient runes was a way to learn from others and improve oneself. If he were to simply copy others, he would likely end up with a jack of all trades and master of none. Given the mage's current skill level and time and energy, pursuing both simultaneously was unrealistic. Choosing one path was the right way.

Lost in hesitation, Zhang Yuan's mind raced as he repeatedly compared his accumulated expertise in the two fields with his current circumstances.

He had been cultivating his skills in the Transformation School for a long time, and he also had a great teacher to learn from. In a sense, he could be considered to be following the orthodox path. If he persisted, he would surely have the day when his accumulated knowledge would be fully realized.

However, Zhang Yuan ultimately chose the rune-writing school.

The reason is simple: the latter has a huge advantage in hardware. Compared to starting an alchemy factory from scratch, isn't it better to directly inherit the legacy of predecessors?

If Zhang's meager possessions were to be spread across the development and future planning of the entire territory, even a landlord's family would be left with no surplus grain.

The matter he and the Keen craftsmen had discussed about introducing their world's crystal technology to this world was also a huge project, and the cost would probably be enough to tear a hole in his own purse.

Moreover, as a transmigrator who knew that things would change in the future, Zhang Yuan vaguely felt that the relic workshop based on the rune system might be more reliable.

After much deliberation, the mage finally made up his mind, distinguishing between primary and secondary matters. He would not abandon modern alchemy, as there was still a portable spell laboratory that could serve as a supplement. However, future alchemical manufacturing would be based on the rune school, and his research focus would also shift towards this.

Once Zhang Yuan's thoughts had calmed down, he stood up and walked away, with a tall, dark figure following closely behind him.

The two Shadowsteel Golems have been repaired. One was borrowed by Tyrantir, and the other is the dark figure behind the mage.

Zhang Yuan exited the underground ruins and ascended the passageway, while the Shadow Steel Golem was left behind to guard the area.

Shadowfang Keep currently lacks a complete defense system; the only thing that can be considered protective is its thick, mountain-like tower and the spell inscriptions engraved on it.

These inscriptions look a bit strange, but of course, to ordinary people, nothing is not strange about the mystical and bizarre things that wizards do.

However, if a spellcaster with some knowledge of runic literature were to come and observe, they would be able to sense a distinct sense of disharmony and confusion.

How to describe it?
It's like the author and a great calligrapher jointly copied a copy of the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering; the difference between the two is barely noticeable to anyone with discerning eyes.

However, Master Zhang didn't care about these minor issues at all. When he was learning runes, he had managed to coax his teacher into engraving several defensive rune combinations on the tower under the pretext of observation and practice, which was a good way to make the most of the tower.

As for the other runes distributed on the outer wall of the tower, which are similar in form but slightly stiff, they are naturally Zhang Yuan's practice work. Although their effects are far from those of a Grand Mage, they are better than nothing.

However, Tyrantir could easily see through his disciple's intentions. After demonstrating each set of moves, he would order Zhang Yuan to practice until he acknowledged the results before continuing the lesson.

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(End of this chapter)