Chapter 7356  Dr. Zeron Khabeel

When it came to experiments, failure at the first attempt was a pretty normal occurrence.

Neither Ves nor the others felt too upset about the outcome.

The worst that could happen was nothing. The amount of data they could gather from such a depressing outcome would be minimal.

While the mass deaths of all of the SICs may seem catastrophic, Ves and the others did not necessarily think so. They obtained plenty of interesting readings and could derive a lot of conclusions by analyzing them all. This would bring them much closer to developing a qualified product in their subsequent attempts.

Of course, that was easier said than done.

As the Larkinson mech designers returned to their labs and began their investigation, they encountered far too many mysteries.

There was a lot of data, but not all of them led to solutions. The researchers kept studying the numbers, but without a solid theory, it was too difficult to determine what went wrong and what they missed.

This was why they had begun to talk about conducting a second trial.

They needed to make a second attempt because they needed more data, preferably yielding a different outcome than the last one.

Ves did not quite agree with this request. "It is troublesome to recreate the SICs and breathe life into them again. I don't want to go through all of that trouble only to see them all die in the exact same manner as before. We need to change the variables in our original design. Have you figured out any improvements?"

"I have." His wife responded. "The central willpower chamber is clearly the culprit behind the dramatic result. I have added numerous restrictions and blocking components in an attempt to stifle any further outbursts that may cause serious harm to the SICs. If my latest additions work as intended, then the CWC will automatically activate a circuit breaker of sorts that should immediately close off its access to the SICs and deprive it of energy. However, my modifications will increase the volume of the CWC by at least 20 percent."

"That is a huge increase in size, Gloriana. The second iteration of our experimental device will become even more unwieldy than before. We are moving a step backwards from our aspiration to reduce the size of the CWC to the point where it can be used in mechs."

"Do you think I am not aware of that?! I hate this as much as you do, but we have no choice! In order to achieve success, we must eliminate the most egregious points of failure first! At the very least, adding in this safety feature will at least allow us to preserve the SICs and start another attempt without going through a wasteful rebuilding process."

She made a good point. Though Ves still felt very resistant towards making the CWC more bloated than before, they had no other choice.

It would have been great if they could obtain a Mentalist Crystal. The magic material provided so many conveniences. They could skip a lot of problems if they made use of such an ideal component.

However, the significance of producing a successful outcome without relying on such scarce and exceedingly rare material was much greater.

Relying on more conventional materials to reproduce stolen resonance proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that red humanity could harness this new phenomenon on a massive scale!

The desire to attain this accomplishment fueled the motivations of the Larkinsons. They did not give up despite all of the hurdles in their path.

The desire to attain this accomplishment fueled the motivations of the Larkinsons. They did not give up despite all of the hurdles in their path.

However, there was only so much they could do in the face of limited data and conditions.

While Ves, Gloriana and the others proposed numerous improvements that should hopefully make their second attempt a little less terrible than before, they still lacked a critical advancement that could lead to a real success.

"All we are doing is applying bandaids to a dying patient." Ves told his wife. "I am completely unsatisfied with what we have so far. I am sure that all of these improvements can make a difference, but… their scope and effects are not as great as I hoped. I am no prophet by any means, but I have a strong suspicion that the second trial will produce another disappointing result."

"That is not necessarily detrimental to our research, Ves. I am certain that we will gain enough new data to further iterate our design."

Ves let out a tired breath. "I know. I am well aware that this is a normal process, but it is too time-consuming. We have better things to do than repeatedly slam our foreheads into a wall in slightly different ways and hope that we don't get hurt one day. If we want to win the race, we need to be more adventurous and come up with a more radical solution."

Gloriana stared at him with judgmental eyes. She could already tell that he wanted to go crazy and indulge in his more reckless side.

She felt very mixed about that. While his radical innovations often yielded pleasant surprises, they also introduced a lot of stress and complications.

Still, those downsides seemed a lot more manageable than repeatedly getting confronted by failure.

For this reason, she chose to set aside her habitual objections.

"Very… well. If you have a better idea, then please inform us first before you take action."

With that, Ves proceeded to go on a quest to find a real solution to their problem.

He no longer set his sights on conventional technology.

He believed that he and his Larkinsons had already come fairly close to reaching their current limit of what they could accomplish with ordinary tech and materials.

It would be much better to seek an improvement on the extraordinary side of his creation.

The E-technology aspect of their work was still highly incomplete and immature. This was why they resorted to borrowing the power of Titania in the first place.

If Ves could come up with a qualitative improvement to the spiritual design, then he could potentially achieve an early success, thereby obtaining lots of benefits as a result.

This should be the ideal time to leverage his exalted status within the Red Collective.

Out of all of the superorganizations in the Red Ocean, the RC had the greatest expertise in this field.

In order to convey his commitment to his goal, he especially boarded a shuttle that brought him over to the Moloch at the earliest opportunity.

The light cruiser was a bit of an oddball in the Bluejay Fleet.

While the warship was not the largest by any means, her extraordinary factor was much stronger than the likes of the Tarrasque or the Armitage.

She could easily rival Spirit of Bentheim, the original factory ship of the Larkinson Clan, in terms of spirituality due to being built as a prototype artifact warship!

While Ves could clearly judge that methods employed by the collies at the time fell far from achieving the desired result, it was still a significant leap compared to a few years prior.

He heard that the Artifact Warship Department had been making continuous progress, especially when it was actively cooperating with the Red Fleet.

Both the RC and the RF had a vested interest in the development of true artifact warships.

In the two ongoing wars, regular warships had long proven to be inadequate. Their combat power was significant, but red humanity couldn't field enough of them to overcome the absurd numbers disparity.

The only way out was to massively improve the quality of every individual hull.

Just as the fleeters and the collies sought to convert their warships into massive artifacts, Ves sought to develop a miracle solution that could bestow them the gift of stolen resonance.

This was why he felt confident that the collies would be happy to cooperate with him. Their goals matched pretty well this time.

While Ves had to withhold a lot of specific details, he saw no harm in explaining the basic setup to the Farseer.

The female Formation Master looked mildly fascinated.

"Ambitious." She responded. "There are obvious problems with your experimental design, but it is indeed possible for you to succeed sooner than others by relying on your so-called shortcuts. It is hardly a proper attitude for a serious academician, but it is excusable this time. Please give me a moment. I need to reference our database and contact a number of experts."

Ves patiently sat and waited for the head of the Moloch Squadron to do her work.

As a former university professor and dean, Andrea Vos possessed much stronger research qualifications than a bunch of mech designers.

Over 20 minutes passed before the Farseer addressed Ves once again.

"I believe we have a possible solution for you." She said in a slightly optimistic tone. "We can make no guarantees, but I am personally willing to vouch for the proposal that we have prepared for you. It is not the most ideal or rigorous method, but it should give you enough hope for success. Let me lead you to the office of one of our resident experts."

The Moloch housed many different groups of experts, each of which represented a different faction of subgroups within the expansive Red Collective.

Ves noticed that they had entered a department that was filled with strange and religious symbols.

From altars dedicated to the god pilots of the Red Ocean and the Milky Way to painted images of abstract mathematical formulas, the compartments seemed to be dedicated to worship of every conceivable greater power!

Ves had a bad feeling about this, but he restrained himself because he believed in the Farseer.

They eventually entered a small office that at least looked a little more normal aside from the projections of pentacles and other occult shapes.

A middle-aged-looking man sat behind his desk. He looked as if he was busy with running calculations.

"Welcome, guests. Please take your seats."

The researcher quickly concluded his latest calculations before he waved his work interface away.

"This is Dr. Zeron Khabeel." Andrea Vos introduced her fellow academic colleague. "Before the Age of Dawn, he made a name for himself as a philosopher and a theoretical physicist. He distinguished himself by committing his life to pursuing the answers of grand questions such as the origin of the universe, how our existence changes its fabric and so on. He is currently a ritualist."

Interesting.

Ves looked intrigued. He already had a better idea on what the collies wanted to propose.

"Hello, doctor. I am sure you know who I am. Are you a philosopher more than a theoretical physicist?"

Zeron Khabeel nodded and smiled. "That is correct. I consider myself to be a questioner. I cannot live my life without making an earnest attempt at seeking answers that have plagued every human society since the dawn of our existence. Studying physics is a means to an end. I am by no means an authority in this field. I only know enough to better support my true research activities. Before you ask, the same applies to ritualism."

In other words, the ritualist did not enter this field because he was obsessed with magic, but because he saw it as a tool to pursue esoteric truths.

Ves respected that a lot. He also felt reassured that he was not dealing with a superstitious fanatic. He would have been quite upset with Andrea Vos if she chose to lead him to a madman.

While Ves did not have a good impression of ritualism, he vaguely understood that it was capable of producing great feats as long as it was practiced correctly.

Those who engaged in the study of ritualism either possessed strong beliefs or great ambitions.

It was certainly a lot more mysterious than formation studies, which relied on much more concrete and objective principles.

Ves did not fully understand the differences between the two if he was being honest. Perhaps the two collies might be able to enlighten him on this subject.

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