To get enough steel, Simon frequented the mines and also dismantled and removed all iron items from the Nord ruins.
External Armor Generation II, the Necrotic Steam Battle Armor, was finally completed in the sixth month of 4E184, which was Mid-Year.
It had a three-layer structure: the inner skeleton remained unchanged, the middle layer was for enchantments, and the outer layer housed the power system.
Due to its complex structure, the design appeared very redundant; the outer steam power system resembled an exoskeleton, with a portable steam furnace on the back forming a square backpack. The middle layer, an enchanted steel armor, had smooth lines and a shiny surface, not much different from a human form. The inner skeleton was like chainmail, clinging to the clothes. The helmet was a patterned sphere made of layers of thin iron plates, and its enchantments were consistent with the Necrotic Monitor, providing powerful observation capabilities.
So, the final shape looked at first glance like a spacesuit wearing an exoskeleton armor.
It was entirely silver-white with colorful runes, and once at full power, it would resemble a humanoid mobile disco light.
The outer layer, with its many fine steel pipes like an exoskeleton, employed a hydraulic transmission system, powered by the steam backpack on the back, which could be detached if necessary.
The middle and inner layers were essentially the first generation of External Armor; apart from resolving some structural conflicts, they were completely replicated, saving a considerable amount of time.
With the outer power system, the entire battle armor felt weightless to the operator, and could even be used as a prosthetic limb. Whether running or fighting, it provided powerful explosive force and endurance, instantly transforming into a magically modified Iron Man.
The creation process was incredibly joyful, inspiring Simon with an outpouring of ideas like a mountain flood.
Even before the second generation was finished, Simon was already planning the third generation of armor.
Both the first and second generations required the Necrotic to provide energy to activate the enchantment arrays. The third-generation armor, however, should have greater versatility. By combining the magical liquid from alchemy formulas with The Core, and with the power and control systems designed, it could completely dispense with the Necrotic. At that time, power would be provided by the magical liquid, and actions controlled by The Core, turning the External Armor into a magical-tech product with an extremely low barrier to use.
At that point, it would be worth mass-producing—who said the elder scrolls couldn't be played like Fallout?
Then, with a resurrected Necrotic army, every Draugr and skeleton wearing External Armor, a hundred thousand Iron Men attacking, no one would be able to withstand it.
After these fulfilling days, Simon continued his daily martial arts practice.
Lion's Visage Iron Head Skill was basically mastered; to practice it, the bone spurs on both sides of his head were broken four or five times, but fortunately, they grew back later, otherwise his head would truly be smooth like an egg.
Hard qigong is interconnected to some extent. Practicing Lion's Visage Iron Head Skill could save some time when studying the Thirteen Grand Protectors' Horizontal Training, because the latter also includes an Iron Head Skill, with a practice method largely similar to Lion's Visage Iron Head Skill. Similarly, after practicing Golden Sand Palm, there's no need to practice the Iron Fist, Iron Palm, and Iron Finger skills from the Thirteen Grand Protectors' Horizontal Training.
To test the flexibility of the second-generation armor, Simon built a pile forest in the Pure Land, with wooden stakes of varying heights arranged like a forest, and he moved and jumped on them while wearing the heavy armor.
Due to the flight enchantment, the weight was greatly reduced, so there was no need to worry about damaging the wooden stakes.
Unfortunately, the second-generation armor had insufficient spare enchantment space; the flight enchantment array occupied only a very small part, preventing true flight and only allowing slow floating for a short distance.
This problem might not be solved even by the third generation, and they could only hope for a good solution in the future.
However, the flight spell was indeed, as Jonas said, a very flawed spell. Its principle was to create a force field to envelop the mage, allowing him to resist gravity and fly around. However, the strength of the force field was difficult to control; either he couldn't fly, or the mage would be squeezed into paste. Furthermore, during flight, the force field couldn't provide additional protection, and the need for focused control meant the mage couldn't spare attention to carefully observe the environment, often leading to accidents.
This spell was good in every way except for its excessively high barrier to use. Unprofessional mages using it were too dangerous, and professional mages might already be using teleportation gates, so it's no wonder it was gradually phased out.
The flight spell enchanted on the second-generation armor generated a force field with too low power, only capable of weight reduction or floating, which was relatively much safer.
Simon planned to inquire about Jonas's research progress. If he couldn't even restore the flight spell, then he would personally step in to improve the flight spell and teach it to him.
Harvest season was approaching, meaning Simon would soon begin his farm work.
In the Pure Land's fields, the heavy wheat swayed like cheerful waves, having drunk their fill of sweet spring water, and now their ears hung low.
In the Pure Land, there was no need to worry about pests and diseases, but soil fertility still had to be considered. Simon knew that his strength was not as good as the family's, and he couldn't fertilize these dozens of acres himself. Chemical fertilization was truly beyond his knowledge, so in the future, he would either collect manure or research magical fertilization.
Collecting manure was fine, but it was too troublesome and inefficient, not a good option.
The matter of building a harvester needed to be put on the agenda. It was actually very simple: just attach a roller behind a tractor. If they hurried, it could definitely be ready before the harvest.
The end of another week arrived, and Simon rode his beloved motorcycle to Winterhold.
The tavern was also lively today; it turned out a family had a baby and invited everyone for mead. People exchanged happy blessings and didn't disperse until midnight. After the crowd slowly thinned out, a young man entered the tavern, dressed as a mage, but his dust-covered appearance didn't suggest he was a member of the College; he seemed to be an outsider.
The innkeeper had no particular prejudice against this foreign young mage. After asking a few curious questions, he was instead met with a few subtly sharp retorts from the mage. It was clear he was a very wary individual.
The foreign mage drank two cups of mead, ordered a loaf of bread and roasted leeks, eating them like a sandwich. Finally, he requested a room, directly opposite Simon's exclusive room. It was a double room, very spacious, and consequently more expensive.
There were few guests in the tavern that night. In the middle of the night, Simon's door was knocked. The Troll, who was sleeping soundly, got up to open the door and saw it was the foreign mage from across the hall. A clean but tired face emerged from under his hood. The visitor had high cheekbones, a pointed chin, and greyish-yellow skin that was carefully maintained, smeared with balm, emitting a faint floral and fruity scent. A few strands of bright golden hair peeked out from under his hat brim, along with a pair of golden pupils half-hidden by his hair.
He was a refined male High Elf.
The Troll grunted, "Is there something you need?"
The High Elf bowed slightly in greeting, his etiquette very precise and proper, "Please forgive me for presumptuously disturbing your sweet dreams, this... sir?"
"Since you've already disturbed them, you might as well state your reason."
"Oh, I believe the cause of this matter is still because of you," the High Elf smiled reservedly. When he stood straight, he was almost level with Simon, a tall and slender handsome man.
"Speak directly, I don't want to waste time."
"I salute your spirit of valuing time! But I wonder if you, sir, could perhaps stop snoring? In this large tavern, your sound is the most astonishing. It keeps me tossing and turning, unable to sleep."
The Troll scratched his itching bone spurs through his hood, nodded, and agreed to the request, planning to meditate for the rest of the night.
"Thank you again for your generous kindness! Let's meet tomorrow. I, too, desperately need a good night's sleep. Please forgive a weary and anxious traveler. Thank you! Thank you again!" The High Elf mage said his pleasantries, nodded again, slowly retreated a few steps, and turned to go back to his room.
The Troll shook his head; seemingly approachable, but in reality, he was arrogant and overbearing. This was a true High Elf.
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 40 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[patreon.com/Greyhounds]
Thank you so much for your support!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"