Chapter 192: 30,000 Credits!
Translator: Ash Editor: Artythekid
"Apply for a patent?"
Li Yao blinked his eyes, stupefied for a brief moment.
Although the Demon Beast Detector was invented by him, the array glyphs and algorithms it employed were the creation of others. Even the most important crystal eye was manufactured by others. How could he even apply for a patent?
Yuan Manqiu said:
"The technology employed by the Demon Beast Detector is very well developed and is ready to use, but its components are new and very creative, greatly elevating the practicality of many array glyphs and algorithms. Therefore, you can apply for a 'utility patent' and the probability of it getting approved is rather large. And once you have obtained the utility patent, you will also be awarded 3,000 credits as per the Institute's rules and regulations!"
Li Yao smacked his head as he suddenly came to realize.
The Star Glory Federation's patent system consisted of two kinds of patents: the invention patent and the utility patent.
The invention patent had very stringent requirements. It required that the corresponding array glyphs, algorithms, and technology be completely original. Furthermore, it had to go through a review for a long period of time, and also needed its creator to explain its origin and development clearly. If it was array glyphs, algorithms, and the like, then the creator had to provide all the first-hand drafts.
When Li Yao had just obtained multitudes of classics from the Heavenly Refining Tower, he had also wondered whether he could copy some of the ancient array glyphs and apply for some invention patents.
However, after having meticulously studied the review process of invention patents, he dispelled this notion.
He wasn't confident at all that not a single flaw would be discovered by Core Formation Stage powerhouses and Nascent Soul Stage old monsters in the firsthand draft forged from ancient books from forty millenniums ago.
In contrast, utility patents were not the same. One could use the works of predecessors for reference so long as one could create a new concept. And the auditing process was also relatively standard. It would only take one or two months before the results were out.
However, the patent term for utility patents was comparatively short. Generally, it was about three to five years. In addition, if one wanted to commercialize his or her invention, he or she would have to pay a certain share of the profit to the creators of the array glyphs and algorithms mentioned in the patent.
For instance, for the boosting array glyphs employed in the Demon Beast Detector, Li Yao would have to pay a certain share of the profit to the inventor of boosting array glyphs for every Demon Beast Detector sold.
Of course, he could also pay a huge lump sum up front and buy out the utilization rights of boosting array glyphs for several years.
In the world of cultivation, all the array glyphs, algorithms, exercises, spiritual powers, and everything else that one could think of were considered intellectual property.
To be precise, intellectual property was the foundation of the cultivation world and was sacrosanct.
All the mainstream cultivators attached a lot of importance to this very point.
Yuan Manqiu continued:
"The most valuable part of your magical equipment lies in its new structure, and to be honest, it could very easily be copied."
"This is also one of the reasons why I don't agree for you to trade it."
"If it is acquired by someone with aspirations once it is out in the market, and he applies for the patent before you, then you can cry all you want but it will do you no good."
"Only when you have first applied for the patent can you boldly sell it. Furthermore, you should not sell it on small scale by crafting it with your own hands. How many do you think you could craft in one day?"
"If you mass produced it through a magical equipment assembly line, you could manufacture hundreds of Demon Beast Detectors a day. And who knows, maybe you could even earn a few billion annually!"
"A few billion?"
Li Yao's eyes went wide with disbelief. The first thought in his mind was:
"Then wouldn’t I be able to buy two luxury flying shuttles?"
"I would be able to buy a Mystic Bird Battle Shuttle and a Crimson Flame Battle Shuttle! At that time, my prestige will be comparable to Senior Brother Peng and Ding Lingdang!"
Scratching his head, Li Yao pursed his lips into a stupid grin:
"Is this toy so good? However, it would still be okay if I could earn only a few hundred million. Our Refining Department has thousands of pending tasks. If we want to restart Project Mystic Skeleton, we also need to throw in a lot a money. If I can earn a few hundred million, it can be used as initial capital!"
Yuan Manqiu smiled:
"Silly Kid, don't you remember the last failure? Project Mystic Skeleton is a bottomless pit, even the Institute doesn't dare to invest in it. Do you really want to throw in your hard-earned millions into this bottomless hole?!"
"Even if you could somehow earn 40,000 credits, that is still not the endpoint. The future holds infinitely wonderful starting points. The road of cultivation is very long, there will be many times where you might need to use the money. If you can earn some money, it’ll be smooth sailing going forward. As your teacher, this can be also be considered to be my duty!"
Li Yao felt warm in his heart. Rolling his eyes, he said:
"I am not throwing the money at this in vain. Think of it as an investment. After I put in the money, I will be a shareholder and will be entitled to a certain share of the profits once we are successful in crafting the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit. Don’t you think this would make me look majestic! Wouldn’t it be a lot better!?"
Yuan Manqiu was angry, but happy as well. Stretching her plump arm, she slapped Li Yao's forehead as she shouted:
"The chicken has not even laid any eggs, and you’re counting your chickens! First, think of some way to earn 40,000 credits!"
"Yeah!!!"
Li Yao started to frown.
Even if the application for the utility patent was approved, it would only earn him 3,000 credits. How could he earn 10,000 or so credits in the next two months?
"I have to fight it out!"
"Next, I need a big kill in the Wasteland!"
"With the Demon Beast Detector, not only my hunting efficiency is improved, I can also notice powerful demon beasts nearby in advance. Now I can venture into more dangerous zones to hunt."
"While hunting, not only can I hone my battle force continuously, I can also discover any defects in the Demon Beast Detector and thereby make subsequent improvements at the same time!"
"On another note, it can also serve as a great advertisement!"
"Since I am just a freshman, it is natural that no one will believe that I can craft my very own magical equipment!"
"Later, it can also prove how useful the Demon Beast Detector is for everyone!"
From this day on, Li Yao began to make hunting trips in the Wasteland like a madman.
Besides occasionally returning to the Institute for some maintenance and recuperation, he would wander in the Wasteland day and night.
All the low-danger demon beast zones had been swept clean by him just like a hurricane.
He avoided the dangerous high-rank Demon Soldiers as well as the low-level Demon Soldiers that were somewhat difficult to hunt but were less valuable thanks to the Demon Beast Detector.
He particularly hunted the low-level Demon Soldiers that had lower battle strength but had valuable and precious materials on their bodies.
Every time, Li Yao would return with a large haul. He was like a tiger heading down the mountain to hunt. He was no different than a hungry wolf pouncing on sheep; his success rate was 100%. This flabbergasted everyone.
On the newcomer ranking list, Li Yao's name was sitting up at the leading position and was followed by a long series of five figures. It had not changed much for a month or so.
Everyone thought that Li Yao had reached a bottleneck and would have to stop for some time.
Even when the amount of credits took a giant leap once in a while, it could all be accredited to luck. Li Yao just so happened to encounter another priceless prey.
However, no one had imagined Li Yao's luck to be so scary that his credits would climb at an explosive speed. He was so fast that his earning speed could be compared with Zhao Tianchong and Lu Tieshan combined, who were in 2nd and 3rd place on the list!
All of a sudden, Li Yao became the talk of the campus forums. Every day, someone would post a comment:
"Once again, the insanity of Li Yao starts!"
"27,000 credits! His credits have broken the twenty-seven freaking thousand mark!"
"28,000! What the hell happened, how did he get a thousand credits? He can't be this fast unless he’s cheating!"
"Today, Li Yao hunted two very precious Silver-Striped Fragrant Foxes!"
"Damn, last time, our team of seventeen to eighteen people wanted to hunt this thing. In the end, we spent three days and three nights and somehow caught two. But when we looked closely, we found out that they were just worthless Grey-Striped Fragrant Foxes. Damn it, I'm about to explode!"
"His luck is truly too good! Every time he’s been hunting, he hasn’t missed, not even once. Moreover, he would return with an amazing haul every time. Just the Silver-Striped Fragrant Fox has been captured by him, and twice at that!"
"This is still nothing; check out some of the missions he has taken, all of them are hunting missions in dangerous zones. Even seniors do not dare to rush into many of these regions, but how could he, who is just a low-level Refinement Stage cultivator, withdraw with at most some minor injuries every time?"
In order to advertise, Li Yao did not hide the Demon Beast Detector and even swaggeringly walked around the campus while carrying priceless demon beast corpses and wearing it a few times.
Such flamboyance naturally didn't go unnoticed.
Discussion about the Demon Beast Detector suddenly appeared in the forums.
"Did you notice? Li Yao was wearing a weird magical equipment on his left eye. It looked a lot like a monocle."
"What is that? Is it some kind of telescopic magical equipment?"
"Idiot, how can it be a telescope? I looked at the list of common magical equipment and did not find this kind of equipment. It seems that it is some kind of magical equipment modified by him. It is certainly not as simple as a telescope!"
"In my opinion, maybe this thing is related to all his good fortune! After all, he has returned with a big haul every time!"
However, many comments posted by the girls were focused on a completely different thing:
"Li Yao wearing a light-red monocle looked… so handsome!"
"Right! Right! His aura was totally astonishing. I secretly took a photo!"
"Wahhh, I so want to go and confess to him. However, everyone said that he is a bit fierce. I heard that his former moniker was 'Vulture', it totally doesn't sound like he is a good man."
"Don't talk nonsense, I’ve talked to him twice. How do I say it... rather than saying he is fierce, he is someone who is immersed in his own world. His eyes would go wide whenever he began to study close combat magical equipment! He is totally unaware of what is happening in the outside world. He only appears cold and detached, that's all."
"Besides, who cares if he doesn't seem like a good person. This year, only the bad boys are sexy!"
Li Yao didn't look handsome; he wasn’t nowhere close to being some dandified, handsome-looking young man.
However, the girls of the Wasteland wouldn't care about some scholar who couldn't even kill a chicken.
They worshipped the strong and liked dauntless and robust men.
Li Yao was one of the three experts among the freshmen. For three to five days, he would hunt alone in the Wasteland, and with the domineering Demon Beast Detector, he looked exceptionally fierce. Very soon, he became the idol of many female students.
However, Li Yao had no time to concern himself with this. The only thoughts in his mind were those of wandering and hunting alone in the Wasteland.
Finally, there was just a month left until the registration deadline for the Refiners' Registration Examination.
Meanwhile, Li Yao's credits had broken through the 30,000 mark!