Another World’s Versatile Crafting Master c1-1074

by Zhuang Bifan

  Of course, Lin Li had no intention to tell Gavin this.

  "Gavin, get people to clean this up and bring the one who's still alive to me."

  "Ok, President Felic…" Gavin was still in fear, but nodded his head regardless, and carried out the young President's orders immediately.

  Gavin was in awe and fear after seeing what the young President was capable of—in awe because Lin Li possessed such power at such a young age, and in fear because he might end up in their position. Hence, when Lin Li had him clean up after the fight, he agreed without hesitation.

  Gavin quickly called a few people from the tower, but as they started cleaning up, he suddenly thought of something: the young President said to bring him the one who was still alive…

  Did he hear wrongly…?

  Gavin was a level-16 Archmage himself, so how could he not know the power of Death Frost? That was the most powerful level-16 magic one could use in a small area. At absolute zero, the frost became sturdy ice and froze all enemies who attempted to come near. It could also freeze the enemies' hearts and blood in a split second. Even a magical beast would find itself in a similar state if it was ever caught in the Death Frost.

  The Death Frost had clearly frozen all the bandits, so where was he going to find one still alive?

  What do I do? Should I let President Felic know?

  The thought was dropped by him as soon as it appeared. Wouldn't that be questioning President Felic's orders? Gavin had no intention of doing that…

  "Crunch…"

  Just as Gavin was hesitating, he heard a faint noise.

  "How's that possible?" Gavin could not believe his ears. The faint noise had definitely come from the cracking of ice!

  Gavin froze.

  How could ice at absolute zero crack?

  Gavin unconsciously looked over toward the source of the noise.

  Then, the expression on Gavin's face froze…

  He clearly saw a crack in one of the ice figures—it started out as a thin crack, but as the crunching noise continued, the crack became bigger and bigger until it resembled a deep scar.

  "Crunch…" After the last noise sounded, the sturdy ice formed by the Death Frost really cracked open and shattered like glass. Through the fog, Gavin saw a pale face—the man looked really young, probably in his twenties. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Gavin recalled that he was one of the bandits. When everybody had brandished their weapons and tried to pounce on President Felic, for some reason, this guy had remained on his spot…

  Could that be why he had been spared?

  This sudden thought scared Gavin out of his wits.

  That's impossible, impossible, it was most likely a coincidence…

  The Death Frost was a true level-16 magic, and even Archmages near the Legendary-realm had trouble executing it, yet President Felic could do it with precision and spare one person while instantaneously freezing over a dozen others. This alone was driving Gavin crazy from shock; to think that Lin Li had even had the time to take notice of who had not picked up their weapon…! Gavin really could not find it in himself to believe it!

  Coincidence, it must be a coincidence!

  Gavin desperately tried to convince himself, but for some reason, a voice in his brain kept telling him that there was no such thing as a coincidence in the world of magic…

  "Mr Mage, have mercy!" The young bandit's cry attracted Gavin's attention. Although his lips have turned blue from the cold, he still knelt in front of Gavin when the ice cracked and hugged Gavin's legs. "Mr Mage, please spare me, I was really forced into doing this, that bastard Pierre forced me to come here…"

  "Stand up and come with me. President Felic wishes to meet you. As for whether he will let you go, I'm afraid it depends on your luck."

  The young bandit's luck was good indeed. After a near death experience, his life was really spared. The terrifying young mage allowed him to go after asking him a few questions on the condition that he brought a message to his boss.

  "Tell Vanskore that if he wants to meet me, he has to come to the Tower of Dusk himself. Also, I'm not happy with what happened today. If anybody else from Black Clouds Town is harmed, I won't mind tearing down his hiding place in the Dragon Mountains."

  Lin Li's message was given to Vanskore word for word, and the former militiaman of Syer Town and now head of the Syer Bandits was livid. He could not believe that there would be such an arrogant person in the world. Did this mage called Felic really not know what was good for him? He killed one of his men the previous time, and Vanskore had yet to settle the score with him for that, yet he killed another dozen of his men this time and dared to threaten him about tearing down his hiding spot in the Dragon Mountains? Who does he think the Syer Bandits are?

  "Loke, gather all our men. I want a bloodbath in Black Clouds Town tonight. Let's see whether this mage Felic is really capable of tearing down our place here in the Dragon Mountains!" Vanskore was fuming, but after shouting his command, he realized his most trusted captain, Loke, didn't move. This made him even angrier, and he thrust his leg into Loke's abdomen. "What the hell are you still standing there for?"

  "Boss, that Felic… Mage Felic you speak of, is he from Jarrosus?" Loke had only joined the Syer Bandits two months ago, but he was quite capable and witty. Hence, he had quickly earned Vanskore's favor and rose to the position of a captain. With a hundred men under him, he was quite the figure amongst the Syer Bandits.

  However, for some reason, he had been dazed and pale after the news from Black Clouds Town was passed on to them, even stuttering when he spoke.

  "How the hell would I know?"

  "Then… then is he in his twenties, and always having a polite smile when he speaks?"

  Vanskore frowned, and finally realized that something was wrong with the man he had groomed personally. While he had only joined them two months earlier, he was far more capable than any of his previous captains. He had to have his reasons for asking these questions. Unfortunately, Vanskore had never seen this mage Felic; hence, he turned around to look at the young bandit who was tasked with passing on the message.

  "Yes, yes, yes, that's so…" The young bandit hurriedly nodded his head.

  "It is him indeed…"

  "Why, do you know him?" Vanskore frowned. He might be quick to anger, but he was no rash fool, or he would not be able to lead the Syer Bandits till today. He knew there had to be more to it after hearing Loke's words.

  "Of course I know this executioner…" Loke's face was pale, and his eyes were filled with fear. "Boss, do you remember when I told you that I was from the Shadow's Nest before I joined the Syer Bandits…?"

  "Mm-hm." Vanskore nodded his head. Of course he knew Loke's origins; this rascal was a high-ranking bandit from Jarrosus, but his little group had offended an important figure, and their group was extinguished. Only a few of them escaped, including Loke.

  Vanskore could not help laughing when he heard this as he had guessed what Loke was about to say. He certainly wanted to tell him that this mage Felic knew some important figure, but so what? The Shadow's Nest was the Shadow's Nest, while the Syer Bandits were the Syer Bandits. The former had merely had a few hundred men, while the strongest of them was only level-15. How could they ever compare to one of the top 10 bandit groups in the Breezy Plains?

  So what if the mage Felic had an important figure backing him? Was he really going to destroy the Syer Bandits completely in one go? What a joke! Could that important figure be more powerful than the castellan Arathor of Roland City? Moreover, Syer Bandits had come a long way from the past, and he had recently found a new backer, one that could shake up the whole of the Breezy Plains with a nudge of his leg…

  Chapter 358 - Business at the door

  "The one who wiped out the whole Shadow's Nest in one go was this Felic…" Loke's face paled as he recalled what happened, including that hellish sight by the Black River. It was a nightmare to him, and even though it had already been a couple of months since t
hat incident, the nightmarish scene continued to haunt him, replaying in his mind every time he closed his eyes.

  The frozen Black River, the snowstorm that covered the place, as well as the familiar faces frozen in ice…

  Shadow's Nest was the strongest force in Jarrosus City then, and with Patriarch Merlin's help, they had been able to take over the Demon Fall Valley, attack the Emerald Tower, and heavily injure the Archmage Gerian. The 10 greatest families as well as the six greatest underground forces quivered before the blade of Shadow's Nest. Loke had even thought back then that barging into the Castellan Mansion and replacing the castellan Isaac would not have been a difficult feat!

  Then, the nightmare began…

  And this was all because of the young mage named Felic. The first night he'd returned to Jarrosus, he had managed to rein in the 16 ambitious forces, and the next day, he brought a group of people to attack the Demon Fall Valley. He had carried out a great massacre on the banks of the Black River, and wiped out the hundreds of members of the Shadow's Nest, leaving only a few who managed to escape the tragedy.

  Loke was one of the lucky few as he had been heavily injured at the start of the battle. He'd thought he was going to die, but after the Shadow's Nest had fallen, nobody took notice of him, and thus he lay in a bush as he witnessed the chilling massacre. The mage in the black cloak was like the legendary Grim Reaper, wielding both ice and fire as he brought deathly fear to the masses…

  "Loke, are you f*cking kidding me…?!" Vanskore stood up suddenly. Under the yellowish light, the scar on his face made him seem all the more ferocious. "I think you must be scared silly if you can't think properly, that's why you're spouting nonsense. Wiping out the whole Shadow's Nest alone? Is he a Sword Sage or a Legendary-mage? Shadow's Nest might've been a small bandit group, but surely you had at least a few hundred people; even if all of you just stood there, he would have to spend the whole day killing all of you one by one…"

  "Boss, listen to me—"

  "That's enough Loke, shut the f*ck up!" Vanskore glared angrily at Loke. He had thought this kid was smart, and wanted to groom him, but to think he would be such a coward, afraid because of a young mage. Such nonsense, what do you mean he destroyed the whole Shadow's Nest alone? Who would believe such words?

  But after he had angrily scolded Loke, Vanskore did not mention anything about presenting Black Clouds Town with a bloodbath anymore.

  Of course, the leader of one of the largest bandit groups in the Breezy Plains was no boorish fool. While Vanskore did not buy the story about wiping out the Shadow's Nest alone, he knew he had to find out more about this mage Felic's background. Whatever it was, he was definitely from Jarrosus' Guild of Magic, and definitely had some status there. If Vanskore were to really kill him, the people from Jarrosus' Guild of Magic might come to him for revenge…

  While he was not afraid of Jarrosus' Guild of Magic, he could not help thinking it was not worth it. He did not have any deep hatred for him, after all, nor was he losing anything. It was merely a matter of getting even…

  Vanskore thought about it, and decided to let the matter rest for now. He would have to find out more about Felic before doing anything else.

  Just when Vanskore thought he had handled this matter very prudently, another middle-aged man came in through the door. This man in his forties was one of Vanskore's most trusted men; a group of militiamen had followed Vanskore to set up the Syer Bandits after the plague, and he was one of them. Over the years, Vanskore had trusted him deeply, and sent him to Doland these few years so that he could build up a relationship with the officials and nobles there. Usually, he would not return to the Dragon Mountains unless something was up.

  "Gabri, why are you back?" Vanskore turned solemn at seeing the middle-aged man enter. Compared to carrying out a bloodbath at a small town or killing a mage, this was a more serious matter.

  "Boss, I got another deal at Doland…"

  "Oh?" Vanskore's eyes lit up. Gabri had been overseeing some underground business while he socialized with wealthy merchants and nobles in Doland. After all, the Syer Bandits had over a thousand men, and they definitely needed more sources of income than just robbery. Hence, they did everything the wealthy merchants and nobles could not do, like kidnapping, blackmailing, and assassinating. Gabri was the one to oversee these dealings; they had allowed the Syer Bandits to enjoy large revenue for the past few years.

  Vanskore had always trusted Gabri in his work, and when he heard that they got another deal, his face lit up.

  "Two days ago, Lasorick approached me…"

  "Lasorick…" Vanskore frowned at the mention of him before surprise was seen on his face. "You mean the castellan's son, Lasorick?"

  "Yeah, that's him, he wants us to help him get rid of a guy…"

  At this point in time, Lin Li was at the Tower of Dusk, handling the level certifications of the dozen members who had just joined earlier in the day. This was not usually the President's work; unfortunately, the Tower of Dusk was severely lacking in manpower, and there was only Gavin helping him out.

  Gavin recorded down the changes in brightness in the crystal ball as he asked Lin Li worriedly, "President Felic, will we be in trouble after provoking Vanskore?" Honestly, he could not decipher what the young President was thinking. He was clearly able to kill all of them, but he deliberately left a bandit alive to bring a taunt of a message to Vanskore. Wasn't he afraid of trouble?

  They were one of the strongest bandit organizations in the whole Breezy Plains, and if they really carried out an attack, perhaps even the castellan of Doland City would be uneasy. The Tower of Dusk only had a dozen mages now, so how were they going to go against the Syer Bandits? Gavin was really curious as to what the President was thinking…

  "I'm afraid they won't come for revenge…" Lin Li smiled, but gave no further explanation. Gavin was right; he was intentionally provoking Vanskore. Well, the Syer Bandits were tricky to deal with, and if they had to bring the fight to the Dragon Mountains, even Lin Li couldn't guarantee that he would be able to escape unscathed.

  But, if the fight was at the Tower of Dusk, it would be a different story. While they did not have the Magical crystal cannons, nor the Eternal Furnace, they did have the All-Kill Array set up…

  "But…" Just as Gavin was going to press further, the light on the crystal ball vanished, and he had to pick up his pen to record the result of the level certification. "Alan, level-14 Magic Shooter."

  "He's got potential…"

  Gavin nodded. "Yes, Mr Basel said that Alan has the best potential out of us all."

  "A pity he's somewhat off."

  "Huh?" Gavin was shocked. If it had been any other day, he would have brushed that off as nonsense. Alan had improved the fastest out of all the mages at Doland's library, and even Mr Basel had said that he would definitely become an Archmage within a year. How was that "off"?

  But Gavin did not dare say that now…

  This young President's abilities could only be described as beyond one's expectations after the spectacle he had pulled at the door of the Tower of Dusk that afternoon. Not only could he easily unleash a Death Frost, he could control it precisely and miraculously leave a young bandit unscathed. Gavin had been confident in his own abilities for a long time, but now, he felt as insignificant as a speck of dust in front of this young mage…

  Alan might really be somewhat off…

  "He's too caught up in controlling his mana; he was controlling it even when he had to release mana into the crystal ball for the test on mana strength. That is not a good practice, a good mage should know when to control their mana and when not to."

  "That is indeed a problem of his…" Gavin pondered over it, and had to agree. Alan was fond of controlling his mana, and if a spell required 80 percent, he would never use 90. Even Mr Basel had said that this was a stingy method, and if he continued to be so stingy with his mana, he would definitely suffer later on. Unfortunately, this was a bad habit Alan had had for o
ver a decade, and it was not easy to change. See, he did it again during the mana test…

  "Actually, it's not difficult to change this bad habit. Have him come look for me tomorrow, I'll give him some tips…"

  "That's great, President Felic. I'll thank you on his behalf."

  The level certification of the mages was only completed at midnight, but Lin Li was in a good mood. At least he was now aware of the capabilities of the first batch of members the Tower of Dusk had. Including Gavin, there was a total of 17 mages. They were two Archmages—one level-15 and one level-16—and 15 Magic Shooters, of whom Alan was the strongest, having reached the peak of level-14. If all went well, he would definitely become an Archmage within a year.

  It seemed like this group of mages sent by Basel was carefully selected by him—every one of them was of pretty decent standard. If Lin Li could make them loyal to him, these mages would definitely serve as a great source of strength for the Breezy Plains Guild of Magic in the near future.

  Chapter 359 - How About We Discuss A Deal

  After completing the level certification for everybody, it was nearly midnight, and it took Lin Li late into the night to settle the accommodations for the mages before he could go and rest himself. He walked down the stairs back to his bedroom as he complained to himself that it was no wonder that old fellow Gerian had tried to con him into becoming the President of Jarrosus' Guild of Magic—this position was not an easy one indeed…

  "Mage Felic…" Who knew that somebody would appear in the guild hall.

  Lin Li turned around, and realized that the person who called him was Old Salatt's son, the thug from Doland. Lin Li could not help feeling puzzled for a moment. "Garso, is anything the matter?"

  "I…" Garso opened his mouth to speak, looking hesitant.

  "Just tell me, what is it…?" Lin Li's eyes were incredibly sharp, and he did not have to think too much to know what Garso was thinking of—this rascal most likely had a favor to ask of him. "Don't feel bad. Uncle Salatt takes such good care of me, and you're his son, so if there's anything you need, just tell me. I'll help you as long as it's within my means."