Chapter 303: A Major Discovery
When Basalt reported the phenomenon to Professor Rowan, it immediately caught the attention of the old man.
As Basalt had said, an event happening once or twice could be explained as a coincidence. Eight or ten times meant there was definitely an underlying reason. As a scientific researcher, Professor Rowan's intuition was sharp. He felt that this might be a new angle for their research. And if they delved deep enough, it might lead to a major discovery!
And so, Professor Rowan put down his current work. He led the team to the site of the underground flow and told Basalt, "Have Cradily demonstrate it again. We need to see it with our own eyes."
"Sure." Basalt signaled to Cradily, who immediately began rooting itself again.
After three months of growth, Cradily's strength had progressed considerably. Its "Storm Drain" ability, in particular, had been strengthened, as drawing water through sixty or seventy meters of sand every day was essentially focused special training.
As Cradily activated its ability again, water immediately began to surge up from underground like a fountain. At the same time, Cradily's water-drawing efficiency had improved significantly. The stream of water was now three fingers wide, comparable to a faucet.
Half a minute later, the sand dune was thoroughly soaked, but nothing else happened.
An hour later, the sand dune still hadn't collapsed.
But neither Professor Rowan nor the researchers spoke. They just silently observed. As scientific researchers, patience was an essential quality.
Basalt, however, was growing restless.
Finally, Professor Rowan spoke to soothe him. "Don't be anxious. Experiments rarely succeed on the first try. Just be patient."
"Alright," Basalt nodded, his eyes fixed on the sand dune beneath Cradily. He just hoped the collapse would happen soon.
After a long, anxious wait—Basalt's eyes were starting to sting—the eagerly awaited scene finally repeated itself.
RUMBLE!
The sand dune, centered around the point where the water emerged, suddenly collapsed inward, forming a swirling vortex of rolling quicksand.
Compared to the large-scale Quicksand Domain, the area of collapse was small, only about a dozen square meters. But within that area, the speed of the collapse was incredibly fast, happening in the blink of an eye, giving no time for reaction. Not only that, but the depth of the initial collapse was also significant, reaching two or three meters—enough to completely bury a Pokémon instantly. The subsequent spreading of the quicksand was much slower and shallower.
"It really collapsed!" Professor Rowan's eyes shone, his face full of surprise.
In scientific research, the most terrifying thing is a lack of direction. This phenomenon had given him a massive gift: a verified, feasible research direction!
"Water and sand? Seepage?"
Amidst his surprise, Professor Rowan immediately began to theorize. Although he had spent his entire life studying sand, water was scarce in the desert, so he had never focused on its role before. He didn't have a deep understanding of hydrodynamics.
"Does anyone here have a minor in hydraulics? Fluid mechanics or micro-mechanics would also be useful!" Professor Rowan looked at the assembled team. They were all top students from Centralis University, serving as a valuable resource for cross-disciplinary knowledge.
"Professor Rowan, I have a minor in hydraulics!" Quentin looked around, then hesitantly raised his hand.
Professor Rowan was overjoyed. "The collapse phenomenon we just saw—can you deduce the underlying principle?"
"I hypothesize," Quentin scratched his head, explaining his theory, "that the groundwater is flowing upward due to Cradily's 'Storm Drain' ability. As the water flows upward, it causes the sand particles to overcome gravity and essentially levitate. Consequently, the sand loses its load-bearing capacity. So, when a heavy object or a person is on top of that sand, the sand is no longer able to support the weight and collapses, forming quicksand."
"That's interesting!" Professor Rowan's eyes narrowed. He immediately picked up his pen and jotted down the idea.
Although Quentin was only a Master's student, anyone in his team was a top-tier student with a solid foundation. Even though Quentin used the word "hypothesize," Professor Rowan figured the principle was probably correct.
But just to be safe, Professor Rowan immediately assigned two people to leave the desert and contact a hydraulics expert to verify the theory. The outpost was isolated. Calling for help was impossible.
After assigning the task, Professor Rowan continued, "Assuming Quentin's theory is correct, what direction should our research take next, based on this principle?"
"Professor Rowan, I have an idea." Dr. Zander was the first to raise his hand. "I believe the flow rate of the water is a key breakthrough point. The faster the water flows upward, the quicker the sand dune might collapse, and the greater the force will be."
"That's a valid direction!" Professor Rowan pushed up his glasses and quickly wrote it down in his notebook.
With the floodgates open, the research team members began to offer their suggestions one after another. This was where the value of a top-tier research team came into play. Almost everyone had an idea, and before long, Professor Rowan had filled a whole page of new directions. Their next task would be to test each idea.
In this brainstorming session, Basalt, Finn, and Teacher Alvin were completely sidelined, content to be spectators and share in the excitement of discovery.
"Alright, let's start with the first idea. If we want to increase the flow rate, how should we go about it?" The big picture was reverse seepage, but the suggestions offered by the team members were the small details. Now they needed concrete, feasible measures to implement them.
"The flow rate of the water is controlled by the Pokémon's Storm Drain ability," Quentin raised his hand again. "Professor Rowan, maybe we should apply for another Pokémon with the Storm Drain ability? Ideally, one at the Gym Leader rank, and one that is more proficient in water control than Cradily."
To increase the flow rate, they needed a Pokémon with stronger water-control abilities for the experiment. Cradily's Storm Drain was already far superior to the Pro-level Sand Shocker (Cacturne). To go higher, they needed to pull in another talent.
"Gym Leader rank? That might take a while," Professor Rowan said helplessly. He could certainly get the Pokémon, given his status. But the required bureaucratic procedures would take time. A specialized Pokémon like that would take at least a month to acquire.
"Increase the speed of the reverse seepage?" Basalt, who had been listening intently, suddenly had an idea.
He raised his hand. "Professor Rowan, I think I have a way. We might even be able to test it right now!"
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