Another World’s Versatile Crafting Master c1-1074

by Zhuang Bifan

"Well, Mage Felic…" Kaman watched him carefully. "Those damned dwarves are naturally stubborn, and won't change their minds easily after they have decided on something. I'm afraid we'll really have to get one million gold coins' worth of food before we can get the Ice Crystal Metal…"

  "I know that…" Lin Li shook his head, frustrated. "What I want to know is, do you have any solution to this?"

  "Well, to be honest, Mage Felic, I can think of something if it's a few thousand gold coins' worth of food, but one million is really too much… Why don't you give me a few days, I'll call up a few friends…"

  "Ok, then…"

  It was already evening when they returned to Black Clouds Town. Lin Li felt increasingly upset the more he thought about what happened in these few days as they did not achieve anything despite all the trouble. If he had known earlier, he would have stayed home to study the core magical mantras.

  "Strange, why are there so few people…" Lin Li alighted from the carriage at the entrance of the town, and walked back to the house he had been staying at, but found something was amiss as he did. Black Clouds Town was too quiet today, and he did not see a single familiar face along the walk. While Black Clouds Town was in a remote area, it was home to a lot of people, and many would come out for a walk after dinner every day. Even foreigners like Lin Li had come to know a few familiar faces in town in the past month.

  Black Clouds Town was strange today, however. It was unusually quiet, just as if everyone had disappeared all of a sudden.

  Chapter 305 - Protection Fee

  "Master, there is a stench of blood." Just as Lin Li was feeling suspicious, Norfeller, who stood at his side, frowned suddenly.

  Norfeller was a true high-ranking Vampire whose life source came from blood itself, which explained his incredible sensitivity to the presence of blood. If Norfeller said there was a stench of blood, then it had to have come from somebody in Black Clouds Town…

  "What place is it coming from?"

  "The Church Square."

  "Let's go."

  Lin Li released a Levitation Spell before he finished speaking. With the spell, Lin Li flew to the Church Square as though he was swept by the wind. The month spent on studying the core magical mantras had brought him many benefits, and he could make a simple Levitation Spell quicker than lightning. Fortunately, nobody was around to witness this, for they would have been scared out of their wits. For someone to be able to use a Levitation Spell the way an Archmage used a Legendary-level Flying Spell, could he really be human?

  Lin Li flew to the Church Square in an instant with his near Legendary Levitation Spell, and was stunned by what he saw. The somewhat small place was crowded, with at least a thousand people there. Black Clouds Town was neither the prosperous capital Alanna, nor was it the chaotic Jarrosus filled with the 17 powers; it was merely a remote town near Doland, with a little over a thousand families. That meant that almost every family had a representative in the Church Square.

  "Move it quickly and stop dilly-dallying, pay up and go home! If you hold me back from dinner, I'll have you suffer next month!" The voice that came from the crowd sounded nasal as though he had a serious case of sinus.

  Lin Li looked down in his shock, and saw a strong man in his thirties standing behind a long table with a c.h.e.s.t sitting on it. The man shouted curses as he placed silver coins in the c.h.e.s.t, while the townsfolk lined up before the table and presented their silver coins at his orders…

  Lin Li had initially thought that it was the tax officer.

  It made sense—the borders of the Felan Kingdom had grown increasingly restless over the years, especially last year. The two great human kingdoms, Felan and Ledin, had fought a few wars consecutively, and while they were small in scale, everyone knew that the two human kingdoms would ultimately engage in a big war. Wars and taxes always came together, hence the heavy taxes in recent years. Lin Li had only been here for a month, but even then, he had seen the tax officer's carriage twice…

  But something did not seem quite right—since when did the tax officer who dressed in black and rode a carriage look so arrogant? Look at him: beady, angled eyes, a strong, robust face, and saliva flying as he shouted at the top of his voice. With both his legs hiked up on the table, he looked dashing, with a touch of style—no tax officer looked this arrogant!

  "Damn it, all you stingy fellows, if not for the Syer Bandits protecting you all these years, could your crops grow so well? Could your businesses remain prosperous for so long? Also, could your kids become so big? We're only charging a bit of money, and here you are taking such a long time—haven't you any conscience? Let me tell you, our boss said that prices are rising these days, and our spending has increased, so from next month onwards, each family is to pay another 50 silver coins. You'd better prepare that money now, and not take your time like today!"

  As the man continued his rant, Lin Li finally understood what was going on. This guy was way more arrogant and dashing than tax officers, but at least they had to calculate carefully how much tax they would collect, unlike this guy who simply decided how much protection fee he wanted them to give him!

  Lin Li had never liked the idea of protection fees. Hence, he slowly descended from the sky with the intention to talk to this man, but then he heard someone call his name.

  "Felic, why are you here?"

  Lin Li turned around, and saw an old man with white hair. "Good evening, Uncle Salatt."

  This old man named Salatt was Lin Li's new neighbor. He ran a small blacksmith shop, and made a living by making farming tools. Black Clouds Town was a small town, and most people did not replace their farming tools for a few years at a time. Hence, Salatt's business had been slow—often not a single person would drop by his shop for days. On top of that, his son was a good-for-nothing who dreamed of making it big as an adventurer, and had been hanging out in Doland since he was a teenager. While he did not become an adventurer, he was quickly becoming a lowly thug. Since he did not make much money these years, he had to rely on his father to support him. With slow business and an incompetent son, Salatt often struggled financially.

  While he struggled financially, Salatt was a well-known Samaritan in Black Clouds Town. Take Lin Li for example—when he had first moved here, Salatt had taken very good care of him, always asking if he was well, and treated him like family. Even now, when Salatt made something to eat, he would always call on his young neighbor to share it. Lin Li was thick-skinned, but even he felt embarrassed by Salatt's hospitality at times, and always told himself that he would have to find a chance to repay this kind old man someday.

  Right now, Salatt's face was filled with panic. "Felic, quick tell me, why did you come here?"

  "Haha, I went out in the day, and didn't see anybody in town when I returned…"

  "Sigh, you…" Salatt sighed, his wrinkled face was filled with worry and panic. "Why did you come back? You should have just stayed out, why did you have to come back now… Sigh, this is going to be messy…"

  "What is going on, Uncle Salatt?"

  "Don't ask so many questions now…" Salatt looked around before he pulled Lin Li aside, and pointed at the forest opposite the Church Square. "Felic, you see that? Yes, yes, the small path right next to the forest. The blood-suckers haven't seen you yet, so follow it and hide outside the town, wait until night falls before coming back…"

  "What blood-suckers?"

  "Them!" The old man discreetly pointed at the man who sat in the center of the crowd, collecting money. "They're from the Syer Bandits. These blood-suckers collect a lot of money from the townsfolk every year, saying it is the price for protecting us. Pff, these damned blood-suckers, we'll be thankful if they don't find trouble with us, what protection…"

  "You just give them the money?"

  "How can we not? Every one of them is armed, so how can we fight against them?"

  "What about the town's soldiers? And Doland? Black Clouds Town is under Doland's protection, isn't it? Haven't they ever aske
d about this?"

  "The town's soldiers are no match for them. There are only a few dozens of them, and their weapons are outdated. The Syer Bandits have over a thousand people, all formidable ones in the Breezy Plains. How can a few soldiers with outdated weapons protect Black Clouds Town? As for Doland, well, I heard Anjay is on pretty good terms with the boss of Syer Bandits…"

  "I see…" Lin Li nodded, and said nothing more.

  "Alright, Felic, I've told you what you wanted to know, you'd better get going now. You may not know this, but these blood-suckers not only collect money—they often take the town's young men and make them join them or turn them into slaves. You've seen my son, haven't you? If not because I feared the blood-suckers would take him away, why would I allow him to fool around in Doland?"

  The old man was worried sick as he said this. If it was up to him, he wouldn't want to see his young neighbor hurt. While they had only met not too long ago, the old man treated him like his own child, and this young man was the exact opposite of his son. He was humble and mild-tempered, a polite smile always on his face… Lin Li was always respectful even to a lowly blacksmith like him, and asked him about his work when he came to visit in his shop.

  Such a nice young man, how could he bear to see him taken by the Syer Bandits? He would either die from torture or be brainwashed into a ruthless bandit!

  "Don't worry, Uncle Salatt, I won't be taken by them…" Lin Li knew what Salatt was worried about. After comforting him gratefully, he looked over to the man sitting behind the table.

  He had to admit that it was quite a chore to collect protection fees. There were over a thousand families in Black Clouds Town, and 50 silver coins a family would mean over 50,000 silver coins in total. It had to be tiring to collect all of them; no wonder the boss wanted to raise the price next month…

  "Alright, you damned misers, move faster and stop taking your time, I'll skin you alive if you delay my dinner!" Rosu shouted as he clinked a few silver coins in his hand.

  Lin Li pursed his lips as he prepared to tell this guy that he would not have time for dinner. However, there began a stir in the crowd at that moment.

  "Let me go you bastards, let me go!"

  A few armed bandits were escorting a young man from the center of the square. He looked to be in his twenties. At a glance, he even looked quite similar to Salatt!

  Chapter 306 - Fight

  "You bunch of nincompoops! Wait till our boss comes!" the young man shouted as he wrestled with the robbers. Unbeknownst to him, there was a pair of eyes on him.

  "G-Gaso… How could it be Gaso? Didn't I tell that fella not to come back? Why is he back…" Old Salatt stuttered at the sight of the young man walking into the Cathedral Square. His face turned ashen.

  "What happened, Uncle Salatt?" Lin Li looked at Old Salatt by his side, and then at the young man at the Cathedral Square. He suddenly understood everything.

  "Is he your son?"

  "Yes, this is him… What should I do? I always told this scoundrel not to come back to the Black Clouds Town before the 15th of every month… Now that he's back…" The old man was so worried after seeing that his son fell into the hands of the robbers.

  "Uncle Salatt, don't worry first. Nothing would happen to your son." Lin Li was not trying to comfort him. The reason was simple; the robbers were too weak to begin with. Although they were strong in numbers, the strongest was not more than level-10. To a level-16 Archmage, they were just nobodies. If Lin Li wanted to, he could get rid of them all at once, not to mention saving Old Salatt's son.

  Hence, Lin Li was not worried at all. After comforting Old Salatt, his gaze landed on the young man named Gaso. There were residents and robbers among the thousands of people in the Cathedral Square. But, the main thing that interested Lin Li was the useless son, Gaso, Old Salatt was talking about. Although this young man wore common leather armor just like other Adventurers, the way he walked was as if he had not had any martial training before.

  Furthermore, when that fella walked into the Cathedral Square, Lin Li remembered that he clearly saw a small metal hook hanging out of his pocket. Lin Li remembered that was the most common tool used by Jarrosus' robbers…

  It seemed that the son Old Salatt was talking about was much more useless than he imagined him to be…

  When the robbers took Gaso into the Cathedral Square, one of them ran towards the long table, and spoke discreetly to his vice-chieftain, who was counting money.

  "What?" the bandit vice-chieftain exclaimed upon hearing what the robber told him. He stopped counting money, and sprang up from his chair. Then, he walked up to Gaso menacingly.

  "Slap!" A crisp sound could be heard.

  "Damn, you have big guts!" The vice-chieftain gave Gaso a tight slap. His cheek became swollen immediately.

  What followed was a heavy kick that made Gaso stumble backwards. If he had not been held onto tightly by the two robbers behind him, he would have fallen to the ground. The vice-chieftain did not give up, and started to give Gaso a harsh beating.

  "Goddammit, you have a boss too, don't you? Alright, let me see if my fist is harder than your backing!

  "You guys, what are you waiting for? Beat him to death!"

  While the vice-chieftain shouted, the other robber went towards Gaso. The sound made when their fists landed on his skin was deafening.

  When his gaze landed on Gaso, Old Salatt clenched his fist. However, he could not stand the sight of his son getting punched by so many people.

  "Marko! You robbers, let my son go!" Old Salatt barged into the crowd, and dashed towards his son.

  Before anyone realized it, Old Salatt was already like a hen trying to protect its chick. He brought Gaso behind him, and let the fists land on him like a heavy rain.

  However, since Old Salatt was a middle-aged man in his 50s, he was not as strong as he had been in his youth. How would he be able to withstand the never-ending blows? Not long after, he started to puke blood.

  "F*ck you, old man! If you want to die, let me give you the chance!"

  This time, Lin Li could not stand still anymore.

  He shook his head, took out his Aether Staff from the Ring of Endless Storm, and summoned the Blood-vine Spell.

  At that instant, the ground of the Cathedral Square was covered by red blood vines. They were not only like countless red snakes entangled together, but also like blooming blood flowers. Everyone's gaze were fixed onto that pool of red.

  "F*ck, what's that—"

  A group of robbers got engulfed by the sea of red before they could say anything.

  The first person that the blood vines attached themselves onto was their vice-chieftain, Marko. He was tightly wrapped by the blood vines. Since it was a real level-15 spell that even an Archmage might not be able to deal with, how would a low-level Warrior like Marko be able to withstand it? He could only watch the hundreds of blood vines entangle themselves tightly around himself…

  After doing that, Lin Li patted off the dirt on his long robe, and walked out of the crowd slowly.

  "To be honest, Mr. Marko, I think you might not have a chance to have your dinner…"

  "W-w-who are you?" Marko asked fearfully. He could feel the countless pricks sinking into him slowly. The pain was not excruciating, but he could not help but feel helpless. They were like blunt knives slicing his body slowly…

  "Me? I'm just somebody who doesn't like paying protection fees," Lin Li replied smilingly as he controlled the speed of the blood vines growing. It was to ensure that that would not endanger innocent lives.

  As the two men had their conversation, there were whispers among the people in the Cathedral Square. The discussion started off with just three people, but now, it expanded like a plague, and spread to the whole of the Cathedral Square.

  Everyone was asking about the origin of that man. It did not take long for them to meet someone who knew it. That person told them proudly that the young man had just moved to the Black Clouds Town a month ago, and ha
d recently bought something from his small shop…

  However, it did not matter if they knew him or not. None of them could believe that this young man who appeared to be a gentleman was actually a powerful mage!

  This piece of news caused the residents to be really surprised. To them, a mage was the world's most mysterious occupation. They could control lightning and storm and fire and ice, and had extraordinary strength to create many miracles in the human world.

  When the young man just moved in a month ago, the residents felt that he was really agreeable and humble. None of them had expected such a mighty power to hide behind his amicable façade.

  "Felic is really a mage?"

  "Of course!"

  This voice belonged to Lin Li's landlady. She was at least 40 years old, and opened a bakery. Now, her face was glistening with pride as she bragged about how she realized that Lin Li was not any common man, and how she gave Lin Li a lot of care since he moved in…

  Anyway, if Lin Li had stayed at the Black Clouds Town for a shorter period of time, she might even brag that she taught Lin Li his magic!

  At once, the Cathedral Square became very lively. Everyone felt more at ease, and no one cared about the robbers anymore. To them, the presence of the mage in the Black Clouds Town meant the death of those little robbers.

  "I-I-I… Let me warn you, fella. We are the Syer Bandits. If you dare to be funny, our boss will not let you go…" Marko lost all of the pride he had just now. He was like a drowning man trying to grab onto straws, trying to live on.

  Unfortunately, this piece of straw was meaningless to Lin Li. He didn't know the Syer Bandits at all, and didn't know who the "boss" Marko was referring to was.

  "Mr. Marko, to be honest, you have too many things to talk about…"

  What followed was the lighting up of the jewel on top of the arched staff.

  Chapter 307 - Treasure hunt again?

  As the Dragon's Eye glowed, it was as though the numerous vines had experienced a shock. They retracted at once, and a shriek could be heard. Hot fresh blood splashed out, staining the grounds of the Cathedral Square.