After listening to Matvey's explanation, Roland looked at Fox and Sophie: "This time there will be two more troubles." ”

"Why should His Royal Highness be polite, this is our job. Fox laughed, turned his face and asked Sophie, "Sister, how do we divide the labor?" ”

"How many spells have you prepared to dig into rock formations?"

"Don't ask how much, anyway, 'fossils are mud' enough!" "Fat Fox" held his hands up, his chest was proud.

Sophie gave him a blank look, she couldn't get used to the arrogance of this fat man, but she was helpless, who let the family have the support of the "Arcane Bank" behind him, and when necessary, he could temporarily call a large number of spell slots.

"'Fossil to mud' is good, it can be used to dig tunnels is a bit overkill, I have prepared a lot of 'soft stone', go to the top for a while, you observe the geological conditions in the tunnel in the back, and find the crunchy sand layer to make up a 'stone shaping technique', and when my 'soft stone technique' is used up, and then other druids will replace my post, if my team has used up all the 'soft stone techniques' prepared today, and the tunnel has not been completed, then how about you please make 'fossils into mud'?" Sophie made a proposal.

Fawkes couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Sister Sophie, you are really good at calculating!" ”

"Do you still have to say that? Diligence and thrift are the traditional virtues of our Far Eastern women! Sophie gave him an angry look.

Roland heard the two discussing the division of labor next to him, and couldn't help but feel grateful to the budget-conscious Sister Sophie.

The effect of the "Soft Stone Technique" spell is to convert rocks within a certain range and depth into clay, while "Fossil to Mud" goes a step further and can instantly turn a larger area of rock into mud.

If you cast a spell in battle, the power of "Fossil to Mud" is obviously greater than that of "Soft Stone", but in terms of digging tunnels alone, the effect of these two spells is actually about the same, except that the former is a 2-ring spell and the casting cost is cheaper, while the latter is a 5-ring spell and the casting cost is obviously much more expensive.

Sophie's division of labor is to use low-level spells to solve the problem as much as possible, and until the "soft stone technique" is all used up, she asks Fawkes to use "Fossil to Mud", which can save Roland the project cost to the greatest extent, and she is really a warm-hearted big sister!

Matvey's design of the "Magic TBM" was designed with the hardness of the rock formations in mind, with the drill bit retracted into the belly of the car and the front end of the car body exposed to the rock formation, transforming the TBM into a working platform that provides a safety barrier.

Sophie and Fawkes entered through the hatch at the rear of the car, followed by Roland and Matway, and a few hand-to-hand workers in the spacious compartment.

Sophie walked to the opening at the very front of the carriage and performed "soft stone magic" on the steep granite formations. The golden power of nature melted into the hard stone, as if heating a large chunk of frozen cheese, and in a matter of seconds, the mass of rock in front of her transformed into a soft clay.

Sophie retreated to rest after casting the spell, and the workers quickly stepped forward to dig up the clay, load it into a bucket truck, and send it out of the tunnel along the rails. After just over ten minutes, the tunnel was more than four feet deep.

The spell's area of effect ends here, and the worker smashes down with a pickaxe, splashing sparks, and behind the clay layer that has been dug to the end is still a granite layer. The shovel and pickaxe could not do anything about it, and the workers retreated with interest, and Sophie stepped forward again to perform the "soft stone technique".

This goes on and on, with occasional exceptions. For example, Sophie found that the rock formation above her head was very weak, mixed with sand, and if she left it alone, she could bury the hidden danger of a landslide in the future. At this time, Fox stepped forward to release "mud to stone" and "stone plasticization" on the sand-gravel mixed zone, turning the soft sediment into hard stone, which blended with the surrounding rock formations, thereby eliminating the hidden danger of landslides.

As Sophie had feared beforehand, the tunnel was not finished until she had used up all the "soft stone techniques" she had prepared today. Sophie had no choice but to come down and rest, replacing her druid assistant and continuing to perform the "soft stone technique". From noon to late at night, all the druids' "soft stone techniques" were exhausted, and in the end, Mr. "Fat Fox" had to take action, and a "fossil to mud" blasted up, and the granite layer immediately turned into thin mud, and it flowed out automatically at the feet of everyone without workers digging at all.

In this way, Fawkes continued to cast spells, blasting all the way, hitting more than 20 "fossils into mud" in just ten minutes, and finally completely blasted through this thousand-foot-long tunnel. When the last rock formations were reduced to mud and poured down, the stars and moon shone through the open hole into the interior of the Magic TBM, and the people in the car cheered in unison.

"Haha! Succeed with flying colors! The mud-stained "Fat Fox" turned around and hugged his partner Sophie passionately. Roland and Matvey also hugged each other excitedly to celebrate the breakthrough.

After a short period of excitement, Roland took the lead in calming down, walking out of the tunnel and looking up at the starry sky, reflecting on the insights gained from visiting the construction site today.

Among the many insights, the one that made him most difficult to let go of was the old problem of the cost of spells.

Why didn't Fawkes prepare a lot of "soft stones" to replace the more expensive "fossils to mud" like Sophie, because he wanted to earn more money for spell casting services?

Of course not, Mr. "Fat Fox" is not so petty. In fact, he and all his engineering mages will always try to help their employers solve problems with cheaper low-level spells whenever possible. According to his own words, "helping employers do more with less is the most basic professional ethics of an engineering mage", so that the employer and the employer will work together happily, and the employer will ask them to help when they get a new project in the future. As for those treacherous and selfish engineering mages, they may take advantage of it for a while, but eventually they will be blacklisted by all employers and will never receive big business again.

Why, then, did the engineering mages use "fossil to clay" instead of the cheaper "soft stone technique"?

It's a bit ridiculous to put it bluntly, because arcane spellcasters can't learn "soft stone art" at all!

The "Soft Stone Technique", which is widely used in construction projects, is a 2-ring magic spell, and so far no one has been able to develop an arcane version of this magic of the same level, which makes it impossible for engineering mages to learn "Soft Stone Technique", and the contractor can only ask the druid to perform this spell.

Roland also discovered that the Stone Shaping Technique, which was also widely used in engineering, was a 4-ring arcane for mages and warlocks, and a 3-ring magic for druids and priests. So according to the above-mentioned rules of "soft stone art", is it cheaper for the druid to provide "stone sculpting" services than to ask a mage to help?

However, it's not that simple.

PS. SoftenEarthandStone

Variation system [soil]

Rank: Druid 2, Earth 2

Spell Components: Speech, Posture, Magic Weapon

Cast Time: A standard action

Distance: Close range (25 feet + 5 feet / every 2 levels)

Area: 10-quare/level

Duration: Immediate

Exemptions: None

Spell Resistance: No

When the spell is cast, all exposed natural dirt and rocks in the area of effect will soften. Wet soil turns into bog, dry soil turns into dust, and rocks turn into soft and malleable clay. The area of effect of the spell is 10 feet square and the depth is 1 to 4 feet, which is determined by the hardness or elasticity of the land in the area. Magical, enhanced, coated or processed stones are not affected. Earth and stone organisms are not affected.

Creature trapped in the mire must be exempted by reflex, otherwise they will be trapped on a 1d2 turn and unable to move, attack, or cast spells. Exempt mobs can move at half speed, but cannot run or dash on the ground.

Loose sand and dust are not as troublesome as the mire, but the creatures in the area can only move at half speed, and cannot run or sprint on the ground.

Stones that turn into clay do not get in the way of movement, but can be cut, pinched, or excavated at will to access previously unexplored areas.

Although soft stone is ineffective on covered or processed stones, it can affect cave tops and vertical cliffs. Usually this creates a landslide because it loosens the foundation.

Casting this spell on the ground near a building will cause it to sink, causing it to be damaged. But most sturdy buildings will only be damaged, not collapsed.