Another World’s Versatile Crafting Master c1-1074

by Zhuang Bifan

  "Andoine, that's the disciple you are proud of! He actually ditched us in such desperate circ.u.mstances!" Rosen shouted disdainfully as he approached Andoine. Rosen could not suppress his rage when he thought of how he had to be in such a tragic state when Lin Li could leave everyone for his own safety. He was absolutely certain that a young mage like Lin Li would have no way to overcome the present crisis.

  Of course, no one responded to Rosen's complaint. It was as though nobody heard him. Indeed, Andoine and Aldwin, as well as Macklin who had been leading the remaining team of mages, experienced a rise in stress with Lin Li's exit. But, their hearts were all filled with confidence that Lin Li would create a miracle.

  At this time, the fatigue on the faces of Andoine and Aldwin was inconcealable. Although they were Legendary-mages people saw as powerhouses who had unlimited mana, it was in fact referring to their ability to recover their mana quickly. When the loss of mana exceeded the speed of recovery, they would not be able to avoid exhausting their mana. Yet, the sight of Lin Li dashing towards the giant crystal coffin reignited their hope. They did not have to hear Lin Li's explanation at all.

  Chapter 746 - Listless

  When Lin Li was still an Archmage, he mastered the ability of using the Levitation Spell like how he used the Power of Flight. His passion for escape spells did not end when he reached the Legendary-realm. How could he be able to use the Power of Flight to fly among the 36 towers at the Sky Castle and deactivate the Psychic Arrays within 10 seconds otherwise? It would not be an exaggeration to say that Lin Li had the greatest mastery of the Power of Flight among all Legendary-mages.

  Lin Li vanished right after he shouted at Andoine and the rest. He was like a bolt of lightning that dashed towards the enormous crystal coffin. Perhaps thinking that Lin Li was seeking his own doom, the Zago Lord did not direct any demons to stop Lin Li. Hence, Lin Li did not have to come into contact with any enemy. Even if he did, he only had to brush past them.

  Lin Li was stunned by what he'd previously thought was the gigantic crystal coffin. Being up close with the structure helped Lin Li discover that it was a crystal castle instead. On the walls of the crystal castle was a huge variety of blue patterns, mageweaths, alchemy arrays, and magic runes. They continued to emit incredibly massive and dangerous magic waves.

  Lin Li had no time to appreciate the beauty of the castle. He circled the castle to look for the key to overcome the present obstacle—the magical crystal that might've belonged to Tyrant Balak.

  "Grr…!" The growls of the gold wyrm could be heard from the distance as it got defeated by four Scourged Ankylodons. The body of the gold wyrm disappeared in the void very quickly. What was left on the ground was countless corpses that belonged to the Zago Demons, and those that belonged to the two Scourged Ankylodons were especially obvious among them.

  Lin Li's heart tightened as he heard that sound from the gold wyrm. The disappearance of the wyrm meant that the team would be facing greater pressure. It could be said that they were doomed.

  In reality, Lin Li could predict how horrible the battle was for the other men. When he exited the domain, there were only two out of 10 Shadow Assassins surviving, while four out of 18 Death Knights had lost their Soul Imprint, and the rest was covered in injuries. Apart from losing half of its tail, the bones of the Humerus Wyrm could be seen protruding out of its wounds. The situation of the Lord of Nightmares, Ujfalusi, and Norfeller was not favorable, either. The speed of recovery of the Zago Demons1 had been decreasing as well. It seemed like they would no longer be able to recover soon.

  The tender Elemental Wyrm Xiao Hua had to be one out of the many of Lin Li's followers to be in the best shape. Its mastery of the four major elements allowed it to turn countless Legendary-level spells into a terrifying magic storm. The magic storm would be a threat to the Scourged Ankylodons, let alone other Zago Demons.

  However, the Zago Lord was a very sly dude. He gave up on Xiao Hua temporarily to focus on the rest of the men. After all, Xiao Hua was not a mature Elemental Wyrm. It would be impractical to hope that Xiao Hua could help them to overcome this crisis. If the Zago Lord were to invest more energy into the battle, Xiao Hua would never be able to escape its doom.

  Every second that trickled away seemed to be extremely long for Lin Li and the others who were still struggling within the Black Current. Lin Li's anxiety was about to get the better of him. Although he did not display his concern, he had his eyes fixed on the giant crystal coffin. He did not dare to have the slightest bit of carelessness.

  Suddenly, Lin Li took a halt under the coffin. His eyes lit up when he saw an enormous magical crystal etched in the Resting Crystal. Although the complicated magic waves in the surroundings had severely distorted his ability to sense his target, Lin Li was absolute that the magical crystal before him was what he was looking for.

  The silver magical crystal that resembled platinum seemed extremely holy and pure. Yet, Lin Li could sense destruction, madness, and evilness within the mana. Countless complex mageweaths covered the silver magical crystal; the streaks of mageweath formed a gigantic network that continued to absorb the energy from the magical crystal.

  Lin Li did not move the magical crystal immediately. How would anyone display a source of mana like it was an exhibition? Wouldn't that invite destruction? Lin Li flew nearer to take a closer look at the mageweaths on the crystal. The sight caused him to break out in a cold sweat.

  The intricate and complicated mageweath array around the silver magical crystal was made up of 12 mageweaths. Every mageweath was at the Guru-level. Lin Li had the ability to construct mageweath arrays as a Guru of Inscription as well. He created the invincible All-Kill Array in the Tower of Dusk himself, for instance.

  However, what made up the Invincible All-Kill Array were 10 Wards of Bad Luck. Despite being low-level mageweaths, they managed to threaten Legendary powerhouses. If that was so, Lin Li really could not imagine what power the mageweath array that was made of 12 Guru-level mageweaths could bring out.

  If Master-level mageweaths were equivalent to the Legendary-level where one had the ability to comprehend nomological power, Guru-level mageweaths had to have the ability to master the nomological power perfectly to employ it in the Sanctuary-level. That was the reason why Lin Li had the knowledge of Gurus but had not yet created a real Guru-level mageweath.

  These 12 Guru-level mageweaths included the four major elemental laws of earth, fire, water, and wind. They also included holiness and purification, fearfulness and soulfulness, as well as the elemental power of time and space. In this mageweath array, the 12 elemental powers could be arranged in any permutation to exhibit a force that could make any man from the Sanctuary-realm tremble.

  This was definitely the pinnacle of inscription. Although Lin Li had mastered every nomological power, he did not have the confidence to accomplish such a grand masterpiece1. Under the protection of the mageweath array, no powerhouse from the Sanctuary-realm would be able to destroy the giant crystal coffin with just pure force. Perhaps only the invincible Immortal King or the five Dragon Aspects had some chance to destroy it that way.

  However, not having the ability to create the mageweath array was a different matter as compared to destroying it. The latter would always be easier than the former. Just like with the Titan-level Alchemy Colossus—although Lin Li did not have the ability to construct it, he knew that the Colossus would be paralyzed if he were to damage its joints.

  Lin Li updated himself on the grave situation at the other side through the use of soul contact with his followers. Time waited for no man. Lin Li put aside all the other thoughts in his mind, and fixed his gaze on that gigantic and complicated mageweath array. He ran through his knowledge on inscriptions, and started to work on deactivating the monstrous Guru-level mageweath array.

  Just as per the information Lin Li gathered from the soul contact, the men within the Black Current were on the edge of crumbling. The exhaustion of their mental strength turned the
faces of Andoine and Aldwin ghastly. Fresh blood trickled out of their ears. It was obvious that their bodies were severely injured. Their Magical Domains were like candle lights flickering in the storm.

  The team of mages were not any better under Macklin's leadership. Their strength had dropped from over 150 to around 60, and every surviving mage had wounds on their bodies. The team did not suffer such severe casualties before. If not for the Commander's Badge, these elites would have lost their minds.

  The two wyrms summoned by Rosen vanished after being defeated by the Scourged Ankylodons. Although they would not be killed, it was almost impossible for them to be summoned again in the short run. Now, Rosen could not help but pin his hopes on the detestable Lin Li.

  Angelano's Alchemy Colossus tackled three Mammoth Behemoths alone. It played the role of the tank in the battle, and aimed to buy time for the team. Despite being someone who cherished his life a lot, Angelano was perfectly aware the human team would never be able to deal with the demons alone, and without the human team, he knew he would be the next to be doomed despite having the protection of the Alchemy Colossus.

  Although the humerus wyrm that was tagged to Ujfalusi managed to regather its body with the help of the dragon graveyard, his once smooth and polished skeleton had become covered with big and small cracks. It was as though the wyrm would fall apart any time soon. The humerus wyrm summoned by Lin Li, on the other hand, had lost almost half of its flesh, and seemed to be turning back to its original form very quickly.

  The team of mages and Death Knights had greatly weakened. The once thick and smoky body of the Lord of Nightmares became faint and translucent, and Norfeller had also lost an arm. Probably referring to those Lord of Nightmares is controlling, or it's something else entirely, not the demons.Uh, I think the author means mastering them as far as inscriptions go.

  Chapter 747 - Balak's Magical Crystal

  The Gordon Demon was lying on the ground. Its slow recovery speed was almost imperceptible. The three impressive Legendary-mages, Andoine, Aldwin, and Rosen, were all pallid. Their hair was in a mess, and they had blood dripping out from the sides of their eyes and nose. Their mana had been compressed to the extreme.

  Finally, the deadlock caused by the five Scourged Ankylodons and two Mammoth Behemoths ended. The Magical Domains of the Legendary powerhouses had been compressed to the maximum. The powerful Zago Demons had gained the upper hand in the battle. The elimination of the human team seemed to be really close.

  Despair surfaced in the eyes of every man. It did not matter whether they were the superior Legendary-mages or normal Archmages. It did not matter how much determination they'd once had. It was not that they had lost the will to fight, but their knowledge told them that there was no use fighting back anymore.

  In this moment of despair, Lin Li, who was under the giant crystal coffin, started to move. The crystal inscription pen in his hands created a glow, and he left many lines and magic runes on the freakish mageweath array.

  If the matter did not concern his survival, Lin Li really would not bear to destroy the masterpiece. This had to be the most perfect artwork in the field of Inscription. Lin Li's actions dimmed the Guru-level mageweaths on the work. That violent magical wave turned silent as well.

  "Huff!" Lin Li sighed as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. He put away his crystal inscription pen, and reached with his trembling arm towards the magical crystal lying at the core of the mageweath array.

  The enormous silver magical crystal fell into Lin Li's hand. It lost the restraint from the mageweath array, and started to emit an aura of evilness. The vigorous wave of mana gushed out like a tidal flood. The mana outside the magical crystal was like silver flame.

  The sensing of the aura from the magical crystal helped Lin Li ascertain that this magical crystal that had unlimited mana had to belong to the Lord of Disaster, Balak. Although it was what he had predicted, Lin Li could not help but feel an unspeakable sense of surprise when he had gotten hold of the crystal. It meant that Osric, that infamous man in the Dark Age, actually had gone to the 72nd floor of the abyss alone! He'd killed the ultimate powerhouse, the ancient deity Balak, despite countless troops of Zago Demons!

  Lin Li sped away from the crystal coffin with Balak's magical crystal. He hovered in the air gently. The battlefield that was once full of commotion turned silent. The gray clouds in the sky and the Zago Demons on the ground stopped moving. There was no sound.

  The special aura from Tyrant Balak calmed all of the Zago Demons down instantaneously. That was the unshakable law of the Endless Abyss. Although there was only a bit of aura from Balak from the magical crystal, it was sufficient to silent every Zago Demon.

  "H-has it ended…?!" Angelano exclaimed. The Alchemy Colossus he had been controlled raised an arm to wipe the non-existing sweat. It was a traumatic experience. Despite following Osric for so many years, and going through countless battles, Angelano had never felt so desperate in any battle. His weak heart continued to tremble crazily.

  Angelano had guessed Lin Li's plans the moment he took his leave. Yet, he did not expect Lin Li to succeed. After all, those were mageweaths created by Osric. Although he had not seen how monstrous the mageweaths looked, his knowledge of Osric's ability convinced him that Osric would never let anyone destroy his coffin. He was sure that common men would never be able to get close to the coffin, let alone deactivate the mageweaths on it to take down the mana source.

  Angelano was totally impressed with the young human mage. The sight of the tiny figure in the distance gave him a trace of distant memory that was somewhat obscure.

  The crisis had created tremendous despair in the men. How could it have been resolved all of a sudden? The survivors of the crisis slowly shifted their gaze from the stationary Zago Demons on the ground to Lin Li who was in front of the crystal coffin. They were bewildered.

  Andoine rubbed his already groggy eyes and looked at Lin Li in astonishment. It was just too sudden. Although he felt that he had a good understanding of Lin Li, he still could not believe what he saw. However, he threw this astonishment to the back of his mind very quickly. What replaced it was amazement and pride. After all, Lin Li was his student.

  The transition from hell to heaven was too sudden. Aldwin could not help but suspect that the situation was an illusion created by Osric. It wasn't until he felt the cooling sensation from his staff that he discovered that it was real. The staff Geresco had left behind would definitely not let him fall into an illusion. Also, there was certainly no reason for the Zago Lord to play tricks on people on the verge of their deaths.

  The sense of delight that surfaced in Aldwin's heart, however, vanished very quickly as his gaze landed on his team of mages. It had been a team of over 200 men when they first entered the mausoleum, yet there was barely 50 mages left standing now. The decrease in numbers from over 200 to barely 50 was a drastic one. It was definitely a huge death toll to Alanna Guild of Magic. After all, each of the mages in the guild was the fruit of Aldwin's efforts. Aldwin just could not feel happy when he saw the number of remaining mages.

  Aldwin felt that he had suffered great losses in this mission. Although he acquired the magical crystal of the Fire Demon King and a Commander's Badge from the Magic Legion of the High Elves, it was a fact that manpower was the core of everything. It would not help if he had powerful magic equipment and insufficient subordinates.

  The nurturing of the 200 elite mages had not only taken Aldwin plenty of quality resources, but also much time. Not every mage was as freakish as Lin Li. One could not simply take two years to rise from a mage apprentice to a Legendary-mage. While the team of elite mages were mostly made up of middle-aged men, there were also oldies in their 60s. Just like Gryffindor, they had been called talents in the field of magic. There were more people that did not have the fate of becoming Magic Shooters in their lifetime.

  Being left with barely 50 men, the team of mages was as good as entirely wiped out. Even Aldwin, the person w
ho groomed this team, could not help but feel dejected at the thought of recovering the scale of the team. It was hard for him to have the confidence to nurture another group of people up to that standard.

  There was another man who expressed no delight. That was Rosen. He clutched his staff and was panting heavily. He was incredibly jealous of Lin Li's achievement. Rosen could not believe that it was an idea that just sprang out of Lin Li's mind. He was convinced that Lin Li intervened at such a late timing after letting the Zago Demons exhaust his energy and waste his opportunity of summoning the wyrms. He felt that it was part of Lin Li's plan to snatch the treasures.

  Rosen became even more convinced about his guesses after he looked at the present situation. While he had lost his chance of summoning the wyrms again, and Aldwin's team of mages was left with barely 50 men, only Lin Li's followers seemed not to have suffered too much. Lin Li only lost some Alchemy Puppets and Death Knights. Especially that unidentified creature the size of a palm that emitted pure dragon menace seemed to be unaffected in terms of its combat energy.

  Lin Li was not concerned about what was on the minds of the survivors. There was no hint of delight on his face. Instead, he gripped Balak's magical crystal with a grave and serious expression.

  Had the crisis ended? Lin Li did not believe that it had. Although the Zago Demons stopped moving after they sensed Balak's aura, Lin Li knew that although the soul brand of Tyrant Balak had been erased by the Highlord, the remains of his aura would never be able to resolve the issue at its root. It was a fact that although the Zago Demons lacked brains, their leader was a manifestation of intelligence. He was certain that the Zago Lord would be able to respond to this situation after some time. Then, it would be doom that would await the men.

  Lin Li's worry was valid. Although not much time had passed since he had gotten hold of Balak's magical crystal, he could see the gray clouds in the sky moving restlessly. That was the Zago Lord trying to figure out whether Balak's aura would pose a threat to him. If it would not, he would continue his attack on the people.