Chapter 616 - 45: Physics

Chapter 616: Chapter 45: Physics

"Every true powerhouse, every great figure who can enter the Senate—they all found their Path in the Nightmare World."

A fanatical light flashed in Rodrick’s eyes, and his voice carried an irrepressible excitement.

It wasn’t reverence, nor was it fear. It was a Wizard’s instinctual craving for knowledge.

Murphy watched him quietly, not a ripple of emotion stirring in his pitch-black eyes.

But he saw it clearly.

Rodrick needed this.

Suppressed by the Intimidating Heart Dao Pattern, all his negative emotions—his anger, contempt, and resentment—were bottled up deep inside him with no way to be released.

But now, in speaking of the Nightmare World’s significance, he had finally found an emotional release.

The desire for knowledge, the yearning for a higher realm, the obsession with the Laws.

These emotions didn’t need to be suppressed.

And so they surged forth from deep within him like a bursting dam, washing away the negative emotions that had been caged inside.

Rodrick’s eyes grew increasingly bright and his voice quickened, as if he had truly come alive in that single moment.

He was no longer the humble, cautious servant.

He was a true Wizard.

A Seeker, filled with a craving for the unknown and a yearning for power.

Murphy watched him for a few seconds before speaking.

"That’s very dangerous, isn’t it?"

Rodrick was stunned for a moment. The fanaticism on his face receded somewhat, replaced by a complex expression.

"You are correct, my lord."

He took a deep breath, steadying his voice.

"Of course it’s dangerous."

"The changes in the Laws are wild and unpredictable. The deeper you go into the Nightmare World, the more violent and erratic those changes become."

He paused, as if recalling something.

"I once heard of a case. A Second-Level Wizard explored the shallow layers of the Nightmare World dozens of times. He accumulated a great deal of experience and thought he had completely figured out the patterns there. So, he decided to venture a layer deeper."

"He went in."

"And he never came out."

"Later, someone found his body not far from the entrance, or rather, what was once his body."

"His body had been twisted by some kind of Law into an indescribable shape. Flesh and stone had fused together, his bones had turned into crystal, and his skin was covered with eyes—eyes that were still moving, still watching everyone who passed by."

"No one knows what he went through."

"Because the Laws are inconstant and ever-changing. The chaotic Laws give rise to everything, and then obliterate everything."

Murphy listened quietly, his expression unchanging.

But Rodrick wasn’t finished.

"But my lord, do you know? Despite this, countless people from the Empire still pour into the Nightmare World every year."

"First-Level Wizards, Second-Level Wizards, and even higher-level Wizards."

"They know they might die, might become one of those twisted monsters, might be completely devoured by this world, but still they come."

"Because only here is there a chance—a greater chance."

"Within the Empire, studying the Laws requires building a Wizard Tower, purchasing expensive experimental equipment, and spending vast resources just to simulate how different Laws function."

"The cost of those resources alone would be enough to bankrupt an ordinary Wizard."

"Besides, a simulation is just a simulation. You never know if your theories will completely collapse when faced with the real Laws."

"But in the Nightmare World, you don’t need to simulate."

"You just need to observe."

"Watch how different Laws function, conflict, and merge."

"Rules that couldn’t possibly exist in other planes are within reach here."

"You can witness firsthand and personally experience the fluctuations of countless Laws."

"For the same amount of resources, building an outpost in the Nightmare World to conduct observations and experiments is far more efficient than building a Wizard Tower within the Empire."

"This is the source of the Empire’s greatness."

"Unlike other planes, which fear the Nightmare World, the Empire is greedy."

"Other planes see this place as a forbidden land, an abyss of death, an untouchable taboo. But the Empire is different. The Empire sees it as a treasure trove, a wellspring, the very foundation of its power."

"We exploit it, plunder it, and utilize it."

"Time and again, generation after generation, we delve deeper, growing ever more proficient."

"That is why the Empire can reign supreme over this sea of planes."

When Rodrick finished, he took another deep breath, as if forcing all his brimming passion back down into his heart.

Then, he lowered his head again, resuming that deferential posture.

But the glow in his eyes hadn’t been completely extinguished.

Murphy stood quietly, his gaze resting on the pale gray sky.

Of course, he understood the meaning behind Rodrick’s words.

Murphy was reminded of physics research on Earth from his past life.

In that world, physicists built huge particle colliders in order to study the laws of the microscopic world.

They accelerated particles to near the speed of light, and then made them collide.

In that instant, the collision point would produce high temperatures, high pressures, and high Energy densities that simply don’t exist on Earth.

Then, particles that only appeared at the dawn of the universe would emerge for a fleeting moment before being annihilated.

It was by observing those fleeting phenomena that physicists unveiled the mysteries of the microscopic world, step by step.

Without colliders, without those artificially created high-energy phenomena, physics would stagnate.