by Zhuang Bifan
Cheyenne, in particular, was overwhelmed with regret. He regretted telling the rest about the oil lamp when he found out long ago that it was probably the key. Without a doubt, Lin Li, the young mage, probably got sent to that place by the Immortal King. Had Cheyenne chosen to activate the oil lamp first, he would probably have been the one standing at the other end of the corridor.
Elder Randy looked at Lin Li, who was on the other end of the corridor, while softly speaking to Cheyenne, "Mage Cheyenne, did you notice that there seem to be some changes in Mage Felic's body?"
Upon hearing Elder Randy's words, Cheyenne suppressed the regret within him, frowned slightly, and carefully looked at Lin Li. All of a sudden, shock was written all over his face, and he could not hide the horror he felt at all. He turned to look at Elder Randy in disbelief, and said, "Do you mean… his power?! That can't be. Maybe… it's the cracks in space that have affected our detection of mana fluctuations."
"If you could detect it too, it should be correct. He's at the peak of level-22, just one step away from level-23, I'm afraid," said Elder Randy, who looked like he was in disbelief too. However, if even Cheyenne, who was a Legendary-mage, also felt the same as he, the likelihood of there being a mistake would be rather low.
It's only been a while. Where did he go when he disappeared, and what happened to him!? Cheyenne and Elder Randy were both filled with doubts; the fact that the young mage Lin Li had managed to advance from level-21 to the peak of level-22 within such a short period of time was simply incredible.
This Mage Felic… How many more benefits must he acquire before he gives up!? Cheyenne and the rest thought to themselves, their jealousy driving them crazy. Advancing in the Legendary-realm required plenty of effort, and they had never seen anyone's abilities and power increase so rapidly without much effort before.
In fact, Lin Li was also surprised. From the moment he returned to the real world, he felt a significant change in his strength. Although he knew he had been acc.u.mulating it for a long time and that he would naturally improve, he was still taken aback by the speed of his progress from level-21 to the peak of level-22. He was afraid that there would be something wrong with him.
Therefore, after returning to the real world, Lin Li did not immediately resume his quest for treasure, nor did he bother about Cheyenne and the others who were outside. Instead, he remained standing quietly and carefully observed his physical condition. He did not wish to lose his opportunity to advance further just because he had suddenly advanced from level-21 to the peak of level-22.
However, after carefully inspecting his physical changes, Lin Li finally heaved a sigh of relief. Even though he had only spent eight or nine days in that illusory world, not everyone would get the chance to witness with their own eyes the evolution of Anril from the prehistoric times to the end of the Dark Age. Clearly, his experience in that illusory world still activated some of his potential and caused his power to increase to this level, even though it did not involve the comprehension of nomological power.
Since he didn't find anything abnormal with his body, Lin Li decided not to continue letting them envy him any longer. He waved at the corridor, and loudly said, "Master Cheyenne, Elder Randy, I'm so sorry. It seems that you will not be able to come over anytime soon, so I'll go ahead and continue on this quest. You guys continue working hard."
He then turned around and walked towards the corridor while ignoring the deadly gazes in their eyes.
Seeing Lin Li's figure disappearing at the end of the corridor, Elder Randy and Cheyenne looked at each other quietly. However, they had already cussed their hearts out at Lin Li deep down in their minds. They thought, F***, they can't even be fair. It's no wonder that the High Elves would be destroyed! All of us braved all odds and overcame plenty of barriers to get here, yet why is Felic the only one who was granted access!? Is it just because he looks like the Immortal King? Even if he resembles you greatly, he can't be your illegitimate son, can he!?
"Is it really only because of their uncanny resemblance?" Cheyenne asked Elder Randy helplessly while turning to look at him.
"Maybe… or perhaps that kid is just really lucky. Whatever's hidden there will belong to him." Elder Randy sighed. No matter how displeased he was, he still had no choice but to smile wryly at the daunting corridor.
In that case, he shouldn't expect Lin Li to share the loot. When he and the others were in the laboratory on the fifth floor, they obtained the Magic Tides and the Tower of Death that were far more valuable than alchemy puppets. Back then, they did not think of sharing with Lin Li at all. Hence, everyone decided tacitly that they would keep whatever they found, and there was no reason for him to change that at all.
Although the central tower was the tallest one in the Sky Castle, the Sky Castle was only divided into six floors. The sixth floor, which Lin Li was on now, was actually the last floor of the central tower. Lin Li quickly walked towards the entrance and gently reached out to push the two doors that had extravagant patterns. He then strode in without hesitation.
However, just after Lin Li entered the hall, he suddenly froze and stood rooted to the ground, keeping his eyes glued to the middle of the hall.
The entire hall was empty, with no extra decoration in sight. However, there was a huge magical crystal suspended in midair, far bigger than any Lin Li had ever seen. The massive mana waves made his heart skip a beat, and Lin Li could fully feel that the mana contained in this magical crystal was far greater and scarier than any magical crystal's that he had ever seen. He reckoned that even a magical crystal of the Sanctuary-realm would be insignificant compared to this one.
Despite Lin Li's broad knowledge, he could not imagine what kind of magical beast would produce such a huge magical crystal. Lin Li even thought of the ancient wyrms and the five Dragon Aspects that ruled over the ancient wyrms. Could this be a magical crystal from a Dragon Aspect? However, the only magic crystal from a Dragon Aspect he'd seen was the one from the Dragon of Destruction. That magical crystal was rather small, and seemed just like an ugly stone. In fact, its mana was greatly restrained too. It seemed to be miserly with releasing mana. Lin Li even had to use the magical crystal of the Dragon of Destruction to breed a new Dragon Aspect. Hence, he could not compare the two.
Chapter 680 - Core
Looking at the huge magical crystal in front of him, Lin Li could not help but feel excited even though he had seen plenty of rare treasures before. He could clearly feel that the massive mana was surging into his body like tidal waves. He had only been standing there for a moment, but he had already absorbed the mana that usually required a week of meditation to acquire.
Lin Li had already reached the peak of level-22, and even just a brief moment of meditation would allow him to absorb a huge amount of mana. Now, he no longer needed to meditate. All he had to do was remain standing and allow the mana to surge into his body, and he would be able to obtain massive mana that would usually require a week of meditation. The magical crystal seemed to be even more useful than the Tree of Eternity because of this.
Just as Lin Li got a grip on himself, he suddenly felt like there was a vague voice calling him. That voice sounded exactly the same as his, and it was as if he were speaking to himself. Lin Li could not help but feel a little dazed.
Upon hearing that summoning voice, Lin Li subconsciously moved away and walked towards the middle of the hall. He almost didn't notice that he was instinctively infusing his mental strength into the magical crystal while walking.
Lin Li suddenly snapped out of his trance when a portion of mental strength was infused into his body, and he broke out into cold sweat. How could he make such a low-level mistake? The huge magical crystal was not just large in size. God knew what was hidden in it.
The magical crystal was not just a container for storing mana. The fact that it had surpassed the Sanctuary-level meant that it was extremely powerful. Lin Li reckoned that the life form of the owner of the magical crystal was probably beyond
what humans could fathom.
If the magical crystal contained the Soul Brand of the magical crystal's owner, or some form of Spiritual Force, Lin Li's mental strength would be like the magical crystal's dessert. He was just a level-22 Legendary-mage who would be insignificant compared to power of the Sanctuary-realm. If he were careless, he might just have his conscious devoured by the magical crystal, and then become a puppet of the magical crystal with no means to retaliate.
Unfortunately, it was too late for Lin Li to wake up to this idea. Just as he was about to withdraw his mental strength, the huge magical crystal suddenly produced a strong and irresistible attraction. As Lin Li's mental strength was s.u.c.k.e.d by the magical crystal, he felt that he could not even break the connection with that portion of mental strength. At this moment, all of his mental strength was completely out of control as it surged towards the magical crystal.
At the same time, the magical crystal that had been quietly suspended in the air suddenly radiated a dazzling light that lit up the entire hall like daylight. If someone were to be outside the Central Tower of the Sky Castle at this moment, they would be able to see the Central Tower getting lit up bit by bit from above. It seemed like a lamp post.
The unassuming mageweath around the Central Tower slowly lit up and spread outwards rapidly like ripples in the water. As the light spread outwards, the buildings in the vicinity would light up too.
The 36 towers that served as the conquering nodes of the Conquering Mageweath began to light up one after another too. The entire sky began to light up as well. The city that used to be dead to Lin Li again radiated gloriously like it had in the past.
However, Lin Li couldn't see any of that, nor did he have any spare time to pay attention to it. He only knew that he desperately wanted to control his own mental strength, but it seemed impossible under that irresistible and powerful attraction. He had no choice but to watch as his mental strength surged out and got consumed completely by the massive magical crystal.
What a tragedy! He had carefully and cautiously made his way there, and was about to watch himself become the biggest winner, yet his damned negligence caused his efforts to go in vain. Lin Li was filled with anger and grief. He'd just been thinking about how he should explore Osric's mausoleum, but everything was over now.
However, just as Lin Li was about to resign himself to fate, a strong portion of mental strength surged into his brain from the magical crystal. That mental strength seemed rather familiar to Lin Li, or rather it could not be considered familiar, because it seemed to belong to him. However, Lin Li was well aware that the mental strength was not the one that had gotten devoured, but was emitted from the magical crystal instead.
The powerful mental strength contained countless information, which made Lin Li feel like he was talking to himself. The information was all-encompassing, massive, and extremely complex, some of which was already known to Lin Li. An example would be the evolution of Anril since the prehistoric times. However, most of the information was foreign to Lin Li because he had never heard of it before. The experiences and information were all complicated, messy and endless.
The huge amount of information instantly poured into Lin Li's mind, and his brain soon reached the limit processing information. Lin Li felt like his head was about to explode; he dropped the Helios' Scepter onto the ground, stuck his hands into his hair, and pressed them down onto his head as hard as he could. Finally, a loud noise exploded in Lin Li's mind. He lost consciousness and curled up on the ground.
Sometimes, fainting was indeed a very happy thing. After Lin Li fell onto the ground, his body was still quaking, but he clearly no longer had to worry about his head exploding.
After a long time, the light on the huge magical crystal gradually began to turn dim. Lin Li g.r.o.a.n.e.d unconsciously and slowly opened his eyes, feeling like everything was just a nightmare. Squeezing his sore forehead, he awkwardly got up from the ground. However, thinking of what happened just before he fainted, Lin Li quickly thumped himself back onto the ground and closed his eyes to carefully inspect his body's condition.
If a mage were to lose his mental strength, he would become a vegetable1 for the rest of his life even if he did not become an idiot. Extremely anxious, Lin Li tried to mobilize the mental strength in his mind. Anril was a brutal world where only the strong survived. Even though he had always been very open-minded, he couldn't imagine how he was going to survive in this world after losing his right to be a mage.
All of a sudden, Lin Li widened his eyes forcefully and the look of worry on his face disappeared, after which it was replaced with a look of surprise and doubt. Lin Li had initially thought that he had already lost his mental strength, but it turned out that his mental strength had become much stronger than before. That did not refer to the increase in mental strength, but rather that it seemed like it had become more condensed, like a piece of refined iron that had been tempered and purified.
When he was abducting the Elemental Wyrm, Lin Li also had to use the techniques about the control of mental strength taught in the Book of Eternity to make his mental strength even more condensed in order to detect the wyrm's condition. However, Lin Li could feel the purity of his mental strength even without using those skills.
Although such changes did not increase Lin Li's mental strength, it allowed him to have better control over his magic. Lin Li already had the ring made out of the Evil Eye Tyrant's magical crystal allowing his mental strength to increase at all times. Hence, compared with the simple increase of mental power, this tempering was undoubtedly a great gain for him.
Lin Li picked up the Helios' Scepter that he had thrown on the ground, stood up, and then walked towards the magical crystal that was suspended in midair before subconsciously stretching out his palm. Just as Lin Li was feeling strange about his behavior, the magical crystal that had been quietly remaining still suddenly flew towards him gently and landed on his palm.
After coming to, Lin Li felt like he had gained plenty of knowledge for no reason. Recalling the moment before fainting, he reckoned that the information must have been sent into his mind by the mental strength from the magical crystal. Although Lin Li had yet to have the time to sort the information out carefully, the information about how to manipulate and use the magical crystal emerged naturally as if it were originally from his memory.
Lin Li seemed to be able to see everything in the Sky Castle through the magical crystal in his hand. He could see the countless Vengeful Spirits wandering in their respective territories on the interweaving streets. He could also see the various mageweaths, formidable Alchemy Arrays, and lethal magic gears that were opening and closing.
Lin Li could see that the sky above the Sky Castle that was resisting the storm seemed to be emitting strong rays of light from time to time. Even the Orderly Maze in the Central Tower and the seven realms of the Seven-Realm Spiral could be seen clearly. He could even see the expressions of Cheyenne and the rest who were loitering in the corridor as if he were the Sky Castle.
After enjoying the wonderful feeling of knowing everything, Lin Li began to try to control the Central Tower of the Sky Castle through the magical crystal. He knew his strengths, so his target of control was only the mageweath on the Central Tower.
However, as Lin Li had just started to think about it, the magic in his body immediately seemed to surge out unrestrainedly like a flood. At this time, the Supreme Mageweath in the Central Tower that had just lit up a little showed some tendency to be urged. Lin Li's massive mana would never be exhausted during battles, but at this moment, it was completely depleted. I think the author means a 'magical vegetable' here, that is no ability to sense and use mana.
Chapter 681 - Rights To Control
Resisting the weakness caused by the depletion of magic, Lin Li interrupted the activation of the Supreme Mageweath. He sighed helplessly in his heart. His strength was still too weak for the mageweath to be activated. A level-22 Legendary-mage was considered an impressi
ve powerhouse in Anril, but he still had a long way to go before he could control the Sky Castle.
The Sky Castle was undoubtedly the most powerful ultimate weapon of the High Elves. It was not controllable by Legendary-mages. In order to truly control the Sky Castle, one would probably have to wait until they entered the Sanctuary-realm, or even reach the peak of the Sanctuary-realm to fuse with the Sky Castle like the Immortal King had.
Although Lin Li felt that it was a pity that he could not control the Sky Castle, he still looked forward to it because he knew that the Sanctuary-realm was not an illusory goal for himself. Besides, it was likely that there was the debris of the stars, Nothingness, for Lin Li to acquire in Osric's mausoleum. When the seven pieces of the debris of the stars were brought together, Lin Li would have a smoother journey to the Sanctuary-realm.
Although he still couldn't control the Sky Castle, Lin Li decided to take the magical crystal away because apart from being able to control the Sky Castle, it had other important uses for Lin Li.
First of all, the massive mana contained in the magical crystal definitely had a huge effect on the improvement of Lin Li's strength. It allowed him to obtain the amount of mana that would require a week of meditation in just a moment, which was more effective than any other Meditation Potion and had no side effects. Although he had reached level-22, Lin Li was still not satisfied with his own strength after seeing the power of the Immortal King.
There was also the Elemental Wyrm Xiao Hua, which snacked on magical crystals. It was just like a bottomless pit that required plenty of magical crystals to grow. However, with this powerful magical crystal, it would still continue growing and mature quickly even if Lin Li did not waste any more magical crystals on feeding it.
Although the mages of the Tower of Dusk were rather talented, none of them had broken through to the Legendary-realm, and for those below it, acc.u.mulating mana through meditation was extremely important. Meditation within the scope of this magical crystal would be the same as receiving the benefits of the Tidal Waves.
