by Zhuang Bifan
"Yes, Mr. Tutankhamun. Could you tell me the reason behind all these happenings?"
"It is because of a promise." Tutankhamun's gaze swept past the three men before stopping on Lin Li. "It is a promise that was made more than 1300 years ago. Alright, now that everybody is here, let's find a nice place to talk about it…"
As Tutankhamun finished his sentence, the scenery around them took a change. The previously deserted land transformed into luscious greenery. The three men saw a wooden cottage hidden behind the thickets, and followed Tutankhamun in its direction. Their eyes were filled with amazement.
Being rare talents in the field of magic, the three men would naturally not take the transformation of their surroundings as an illusion. In fact, the situation was not something that could be explained by an illusion. There was not a single tree or stone that was imaginary here. Even the fragrance carried by the flowers, grass, and soil was as in the real world. That was not what any illusion in the world could achieve. That could only be reality. A reality that changed according to Tutankhamun's intentions…
"Since you are all here, I bet you have heard about the promise…" Those words were directed to Hutton and Stephen.
Hutton nodded his head respectfully.
"That's right, Mr. Tutankhamun. According to the records, the Malfa Family would be able to reclaim some things from you after 1300 years."
"Yeah…" Tutankhamun smiled and shook his head. "There is a problem with your family's ancient books…"
"Oh?"
"The real owner of those things is not the Malfa Family you were referring to. They were Geresco's…"
"G-Geresco!?" The three young mages let out a gasp as soon as Tutankhamun finished talking.
Geresco's name carried some sort of charisma that only the Immortal King had the privilege to challenge in the entire history of Anril.
Chapter 436 - Book of Eternity
Geresco was born in the last year of the Dark Age. In that century, the cruel rule of the High Elves reached its peak. Revolts and repression were omnipresent, and every inch of land in Anril was stained with fresh blood.
The parents of Geresco were the two most famous mages of Felan Kingdom. Such a family background gave Geresco the best and strictest magic education from young. He became an Archmage at the age of 20, reached the Legendary-realm being 23 years old, and entered the Sanctuary-realm at the age of 30. His talent in magic was unprecedented.
In the final battle, Geresco defeated the entire Magic Legion alone. He killed the invincible queen of the High Elves and put a stop to the legendary period, the Dark Age.
That battle raised Geresco's reputation to the peak. He became the strongest mage in all history and the mortal who was the closest to God. He was the living magic god.
However, the magic god rejected all requests for him to stay, and returned to Alanna alone. He lived in a tall tower in the northwest of Alanna for two decades, and modified the Magic System. Apart from making magic more suitable to be studied by humans, Geresco established the Supreme Council and the magic guilds under it. He made improvements to the environment for learning magic so that it would be accessible to all human beings.
Those were the two most important things that happened in the history of Anril. In Andoine's words, the two deeds done by Geresco had helped to speed up the development of magic in the human world by 1000 years. If not for him, human mages would have still been exploring the concept of magic ignorantly. It meant that humans would need another 1000 years to achieve the same glory as the High Elves.
Geresco's outstanding contributions sped up the development of human study of magic. The human mages now were not as strong as the High Elves. The High Elves were seen as the most perfect creatures that ever lived, and had a great natural advantage. In that era, High Elves who reached a.d.u.l.thood would at least have the ability of a Magic Shooter. Reaching the Archmage-level was as common as a stage of growing up. Amongst the nobles of the High Elves, it was very common to be at the Legendary-realm. The royalty was also expected to reach the Sanctuary-realm to have the right to the throne.
Furthermore, High Elves had a very long lifespan. That was not what human beings could compare themselves to—unless they reached the Archmage-realm, they would only live for 50 or 60 years. Even if one were to become an Archmage, he would only live up to 100 years. Only the Legendary-realm would allow one to live up to 500 years. Of course, once a human entered the Sanctuary-realm, he would be like a High Elf. Just like Apophis: if he wanted to, he could live another 1300 years.
The two advantages naturally gave the High Elves incredible strength.
However, humans had their own perks as well…
First and foremost, humans were more numerous compared to the High Elves. There were at least 1000 times more humans than High Elves. According to the records from the Dark Age, the heyday of the High Elves barely saw a population count of 220,000. On the other hand, there were already a few billion people in the Felan Kingdom. Even if there was only one outstanding mage from every 100,000 humans, humans would be more powerful than the High Elves.
Furthermore, unlike humans, the High Elves did not have the ability to improve.
The magic of the High Elves Print was all inherited from the ancient Dragon and Titan languages. That was the strongest force of magic in the world. In the words of the High Elves, this ability came from the gods. However, apart from Osric and a few geniuses, no other High Elf made any alterations or innovations to magic throughout the entire Dark Age.
Humans, however, had been enhancing magic theories and concepts ever since the Magic System had been established by Geresco 1300 years ago. Talents from the subsequent generations used their own intelligence to improve that system. Although human magic was not more powerful than the magic the High Elves had inherited from the Dragon and Titan languages, it was the most suitable magic for humans to study.
Although humans had yet to recreate the glory and civilization that the High Elves had established in the field of magic after 1300 years, their refined combat skills were comparable to, or rather, better than the High Elves'. After all, the human population was greater than that of the High Elves. The death of a mage would see him replaced by many new mages.
Everything was due to Geresco's efforts.
The establishment of a Magic System for humans, and the building of the Supreme Council and magic guilds, allowed human magic to develop so excellently till today.
In the entire history of Anril, there was no other name more glorious than Geresco's. Even the creator of the High Elves Dynasty, the Immortal King would not have been able to surpass Geresco's fame. After all, it had been ages since the Immortal King's era. That honorable past had already sunk deep beneath the dust of history.
"I had a bet with Geresco 1300 years ago. However, I have lost…" There was a sense of dismay underlying Tutankhamun's voice. "According to the deal, I have to stay in the Blackstone Mountains to protect some of his things until people arrive to claim them."
"You mean… You mean that those things… those things…" Hutton's voice shook terribly. He nearly bit his tongue while talking.
Any mage would know that although Geresco did not leave behind many things in Anril, each of his possession could be described as a priceless treasure. One of the most valuable item would be the magic staff in Alanna Guild of Magic. That magic staff had been protecting Alanna Guild of Magic for a period of 1300 years. That guild maintained its noble status ever since, and everyone who entered the guild had to bow to the magic staff. These people included the king of Felan, the Pope of the Brilliance Shrine, and the arbitrators of the Supreme Council.
The inheritance from the magic god not only embodied extreme mystery, but also gave anyone in possession of it the recognition of the magic god, just like the Supreme Council and Alanna Guild of Magic.
"That's right, it is you two…" Tutankhamun said as he reached out his finger and pointed at Hutton, and then at Stephen. "Your ancestors
were disciples of Geresco. Me and Geresco had a bet that required me to pass his inheritance to the descendants of his disciples after 1300 years if I lost the bet—"
"Mr. Tutankhamun, may I ask what item it is?" Stephen interrupted excitedly. The inheritance of Geresco would be enough to let the Dark Blade rule over the entire Breezy Plains.
"Geresco left behind three items. A magic book, a key, and a magical crystal." Tutankhamun told the men openly.
"Magic book?" Hutton's eyes was wide open. He was filled with bewilderment. "Y-you mean… The Book of Eternity?"
"Yes."
"Oh my God…" Hutton exclaimed, dazed. He could not say another word. The Book of Eternity was a legend by itself!
It was said that each human mage of the Dark Age owned a unique magic book. It was extremely challenging for humans to practice magic during that era. Unlike the High Elves, they could neither comprehend the dragon scripture nor the language of the Titans. Having no opportunity to enter any guild of magic then, they could only learn directly from human mentors. Apart from Geresco, the other human mages only had one mage apprentice as they only had one magic book each.
To the human mages then, the magic book represented the knowledge and experience they had gained in their life. While Geresco's book similarly recorded his knowledge about magic and experience from his research, his book had another function.
Geresco, the man who was born on the last year of the Dark Age, had a unique magic book. That book was called the Book of Eternity. Its pages were made from the Tree of Eternity, while the ink used to write the spells in the book was personally extracted from the Tree of Eternity by Geresco.
People who had experienced that era would know the value of Geresco's Book of Eternity. The book itself had infinite powers. There were also many human mages who treated the book as the strongest magical weapon of that era!
However, no one knew where the book vanished when Geresco disappeared. That was a concern shared by mages in Anril. Many Legendary-mages believed that anyone who could lay his hands on the Book of Eternity would make it to the Sanctuary-realm in a breeze.
Of course, that belief might not be entirely true. After all, no one other than Geresco had seen the Book of Eternity. Yet, there was something that would not be doubted: the powers of the Book of Eternity would definitely not lose to Alanna's magic staff's.
As Tutankhamun nodded his head gently, the air within the wooden house became very stale. No one expected that Geresco had left behind such a treasure. Now, even Lin Li, who was not involved in the matter, could not help but hold his breath…
Chapter 437 - Careless Thrusting
To Hutton and Stephen, it was definitely a meat pie that fell from the sky!
Although they knew from their families' scriptures of the benefit the Blackstone Mountains would bring them very long ago, they did not expect the benefit to be so amazing. It was the Book of Eternity left behind by the God of Mages, Geresco!
However, after that great surprise, both men landed their doubtful and cautious gazes on Lin Li.
It was only normal to react this way. As the matter was related to the Book of Eternity—a book that could bring any mage the highest achievements with just a step—any generous mage would become stingy because of it.
Of course, these two were not generous to begin with…
The records on the Book of Eternity was the God of Mages Geresco's knowledge and experience. It was a treasure any mage dreamt to attain. The possession of the Book of Eternity would mean that one had acquired the shortcut to heaven. This shortcut could let any mage enter the Sanctuary-realm without much effort. One might even reach the realm higher than that…
Furthermore, the Book of Eternity had an invincible strength that no one could describe. However, it would definitely be no less powerful than the magic staff that guarded Alanna Guild of Magic. After all, the magic staff was what Geresco used in his younger days, while the Book of Eternity was the work of his entire life.
Who could be generous when such a huge profit was just right in front them?
Hutton was fine. He gave Lin Li a weird glance before lowering his head in silence. He knew that the young president was not somebody to be trifled with.
Unlike Hutton, Stephen cared less about Lin Li. Stephen was the youngest mage that grew up in the most powerful bandit organization of the Breezy Plains. He had always been showered with the love and guidance of the three elders, and had not experienced many setbacks in his life or feared anybody. Overtime, he started to look down on everybody. There were few people he respected in the Breezy Plains. Especially in the younger age group, Hutton was the only one he felt respect for…
As for the guild president who emerged out of nowhere, Stephen had absolutely no interest in him. Since he had not heard of Lin Li's name, he assumed that he was a man with no background or much ability. How could such a man put his hands on Geresco's inheritance?
"Mr. Tutankhamun, I have a question… Since Geresco only had two disciples, does that mean that people who are not involved in this matter should leave this place earlier?" Stephen asked politely, but his gaze resting on Lin Li was filled with obvious enmity.
"…" Lin Li laughed awkwardly at Stephen's query. He did not rebut his words.
By this time, if there were people who knew Lin Li around, they would think that they had lost their eyesight. How could the fella who would seek revenge for the smallest grievance be so easy to talk to? That was a more unusual scene as compared to watching flowers grow on an iron tree and a rooster lay eggs!
Could it be that the fella suddenly understood the virtue of restraining his anger?
Of course not…
The reason behind his calmness was the similar curiosity Lin Li shared…
Lin Li could not understand why Tutankhamun included him in the conflict for Geresco's inheritance. Tutankhamun might not have known Lin Li's origin, but Lin Li knew very well he was from other world. That world was totally unrelated to the God of Mages in Anril.
"It is true that Geresco only had two disciples. However, I added another condition into the bet then. That is, apart from the descendants of the two disciple, I have the right to appoint another talented mage to join the competition…" Tutankhamun said as he stood up from the table. "Alright, I have finished what I had to say. Wait here and let me retrieve some things for you to see."
The three men sat for another minute doubtfully. Then, they saw Tutankhamun coming out of his bedroom with a black crate. The crate was around two square feet. From the dull metallic glow, it seemed that the box was made from a type of metal. However, the blackness of the box looked very unsightly after all the years. There was no magical wave. It seemed to be just a normal metal crate.
"The three things Geresco left behind are all in this box…" Tutankhamun said smilingly as he placed the box on the wooden table gently. He was not in a rush to open it.
"M-Mr… Mr. Tutankhamun, could… could we take a look at the Book of Eternity?"
The gazes of Hutton and Stephen became tense as they looked at the crate with a burning excitement. They could not help but hope Tutankhamun would open the metal box immediately to let them have a look at the relics of the God of Mages.
"Since they are yours, there is no harm showing them to you guys…" Tutankhamun said before showing an uneasy expression. "But, I suddenly recalled that Geresco did not pass the key to this box to me. So… If you want to look at the Book of Eternity, I'm afraid you have to think of a way to open the crate yourself…"
"How difficult could it be?" Stephen laughed in relief. He was still nervous about what Tutankhamun wanted to tell them. So it was just to open a locked metal box.
One of the three Legendary powerhouses of the Dark Blade was a Legendary-level Bandit. Although he chose to become a mage, he had learnt many skills exclusive to Bandits. He had long mastered the skill of lock-picking. Not to mention a small metal crate, if it were the door to Felan's treasury, he had the same confidence to u
nlock it if he was given enough time to do so.
"Alright…" Tutankhamun replied as he pushed the metal box towards Stephen. "You shall open it, then…"
"No problem!" Stephen put one of his hands on the box, and fished out a thin iron wire from his pocket. Very quickly, the iron wire entered the rusty keyhole. After turning the wire twice, Stephen slowly leaned over and put his ear against the box. How he tried to analyze every sound from the keyhole was just like a masterful Bandit.
Oh sh*t… Hutton g.r.o.a.n.e.d to himself. The Malfa Family and Dark Blade had been competing with each other for a few centuries. How could he not know about the existence of the Legendary-level Bandit in the Dark Blade? Now that he watched Stephen pick the lock skillfully, Hutton knew that Stephen had to have been trained in that domain.
That was not a good thing to Hutton. He knew very well that the items within the box were the relics of the God of Mages, Geresco. Although Tutankhamun did not say much when he took out the box, everyone knew the competition had begun. As long as one of them could pass the tests Tutankhamun gave them, the person would be able to acquire the three relics within the metal crate.
The unlocking of this box had to be one of the tests…
Once Stephen managed to open that box, President Felic and himself would be greatly disadvantaged in that competition.
While Hutton was silently dreading that possibility, Lin Li was totally at peace with himself. He shifted his gaze from Stephen back onto the black metal crate. Lin Li was not the least bit concerned about himself being at disadvantage if Stephen were to open that box…
That was because Lin Li knew very well that Stephen would not be able to open that box…
Just when Stephen was picking the lock, Lin Li let out his mental strength to inspect the box for quite a while. There were no magical waves on the surface of the box at all.
