Wizard: Unlimited Profession Slots Chapter 1288 - 516: Returning to the Old Trade

Vinard slowly closed the report.

"Your report..."

"Makes me need some time to... calibrate my thought model."

He waved his hand to signal the mechanical arms to put away the report.

The precise metal limbs, like handling a treasure, carefully dealt with those few pages of parchment.

"You can go back and rest first. Tomorrow morning, I will arrange formal work for you."

Ron could feel that his "beyond the scope" report had successfully changed Vinard’s view of him.

From a "late apprentice," he was elevated to an "unconventional entity worthy of serious consideration."

This transformation earned him valuable initiative.

"Understood, Professor."

He bowed respectfully, but inwardly, he was quickly analyzing the subtle changes Vinard had just shown.

An idea that would make a Great Wizard "recalibrate his thought model."

This meant that his current line of thinking was correct, and possibly even touched upon a blind spot that Vinard had never deeply contemplated.

When Ron’s footsteps disappeared at the end of the corridor, Vinard remained standing in place, lost in unprecedented deep thought.

"’Soul Symphony’..."

He repeatedly mused over this concept.

"I’ve always approached these problems with an engineer’s mindset... but an artist’s perspective..."

In the air began to appear translucent energy threads, each representing a correlational pattern between different emotions.

Indeed, there was a disharmonious relationship similar to a "tritone" between anger and despair, while the combination of hope and resentment...

"Damn it, why have I never thought of this possibility?"

Vinard’s self-talk carried a tone of frustration, but more of it was excitement.

As a perfectionist in technology, he most admired innovative thinking that could break established frameworks.

And Ron’s report precisely provided such a breaking point.

.........

The next morning, when Ron arrived at Vinard’s core laboratory.

Vinard was standing in front of the wall, with his back to him, his entire figure appearing illusory and profound in the wall’s reflection.

"Before arranging your formal work, I want you to first understand some... background information."

Vinard walked towards the large observation window on the side of the laboratory, which overlooked the entire base.

"This planet, I shall tentatively name it ’Heart of Slag,’ is the first valuable celestial body I discovered in this star system."

Through the transparent Energy Shield, Ron saw an apocalyptic scene.

The reddish-brown land was covered with huge cracks, and occasionally magma erupted from underground, solidifying into bizarre glass rain in mid-air.

"As I partially introduced to you before, this planet suffers asteroid impacts every few decades, and there are at least several earthquakes above magnitude seven every year."

Vinard’s tone carried a hint of admiration:

"To ordinary colonizers, this is an absolute death zone.

But to an Alchemy Master like me..."

He pointed to the giant machines engaged in mining operations in the distance:

"This is the most perfect natural factory in the universe."

Following his direction, Ron saw an awe-inspiring industrial spectacle.

Dozens of automated mining equipment, towering over a hundred meters high, were operating in an orderly manner.

Even more astonishing were those "geothermal collection towers."

These spiral metal structures were deeply rooted in the ground, and whenever a volcano erupted, they would devour the energy surging from the earth’s core like greedy giant serpents.

Then they would convert this raw and frenzied power into pure high-energy crystals.

"These geothermal towers alone can provide me with energy equivalent to thousands of complete Magic Stones annually."

There was a tone of satisfaction in Vinard’s voice:

"And the ’unexpected gains’ from asteroid impacts ensure my material repository never lacks rare metals."

In the central area of the base, the Star-forged Titan stood silently like a steel colossus.

Its existence provided absolute security for this dangerous world.

Whether it was an asteroid veering off course or an abnormal magma eruption, it could not threaten the facilities under this steel Guardian’s protection.

"But this is just one aspect of my layout."

Vinard turned around, his silver eyes shimmering with deeper brilliance:

"The real colony is on the other side of this planet."

He activated a three-dimensional star map projection, which showed the complete structure of the planet.

Only then did Ron realize the limitations of his previous understanding.

The apocalyptic industrial area he saw occupied less than a third of the planet’s surface.

On the reverse side of the planet, a completely different scene unfolded.

Gentle green light, orderly distributed city clusters, and the towering Tree of Life...

"Tidal locking phenomenon."

Vinard explained this celestial structure:

"This planet is tidally locked to its primary star, with one side always facing the star.

The side facing the star receives constant intense radiation, with extremely active geological activities.

Meanwhile, the side facing away from the star enjoys stable indirect light, with a mild and pleasant climate."

This natural dual environment was utilized by Vinard to the fullest extent.

"I established an industrial base here, extracting resources and conducting various high-risk experiments."

His mechanical finger traced across the red region on the star map:

"While on the other side, I established an ecological colony, cultivated various ethnic groups, and conducted experiments in civilizational fusion."

"The two regions are connected through an underground teleportation network, but appear completely independent on the surface.