Chapter 10 - End of the Magic Era

“What do I need to do?”

“I need some magic materials. This is the list, can you see if you can help me with it?” Lin Yun asked as he passed it over to Raymond.

After finishing the Spectrum Potions, Lin Yun had not gone out. He had been very dissatisfied by the efficacy of his two Tornado Whips. Whether it was power or accuracy, they were both miles apart from what he had been capable of in the past. Lin Yun even doubted whether those spells had been cast by him.

But after thinking about it, that Mafa Merlin had been stuck as an apprentice for so long, which made it make more sense. He had very poor innate talent. Whether it was sustaining mana or controlling it, his ability was far below average. This could already be considered a flawed body. Hard work and diligence could only make the accumulated mana stronger, but he couldn’t overcome his body’s flaws and advance to become a true mage.

Naturally, after Lin Yun arrived, he relied on his mana control that far surpassed that of others of this era and used a method that could be considered rough and simple to advance to the Mage realm. But this was only because the master of the body was now Lin Yun, not because the problem of this body had been settled.

The problem was far from being resolved. Although the mana whirlpool had already smoothly taken shape, in the future, from Mage to Great Mage, from Great Mage to High Mage, and from High Mage to Archmage, each time he would have to break through, this body’s flaws would cause Lin Yun further complications. If he didn’t solve that problem early on, Lin Yun would suffer from it sooner or later.

In this era when the research on the subject hadn’t matured enough yet, this kind of physical defect was equivalent to being cut off from the path of mages. If one couldn’t even sustain a slightly more intense mana flow, how could one become a qualified mage?

Fortunately for him, Lin Yun didn’t belong to this era.

Solving the problem of mana sustenance wasn’t a problem, as Lin Yun had at least two ways.

One used a special meditation technique to change the pattern of his mana flow, but the time needed for this method wasn’t insignificant. Lin Yun wouldn’t be able to advance to become a Great Mage for at least three to five years if he went down that path. The second one was using an alchemy potion to strengthen one’s body. This method was a lot faster, ten days at best, fifteen at worst, but compared to three to five years, it was negligible.

Naturally, the cost of this method would be enormous. Many magic materials could be described as precious even in this era, and the thirty thousand gold in Lin Yun’s hands was far from enough…

But it wasn’t urgent. Lin Yun estimated that he should have a good amount of time before advancing to Great Mage, so during that time, he would get a better understanding of this world.

…

After getting another opportunity to help, Raymond simply couldn’t wait. There wasn’t even enough time to relax as the rest of his ten-day vacation wouldn’t be enough to finish this. He hurriedly hugged the potion bottle and ran out, making the old butler shake his head with a lonely expression. He sighed, muttering to himself that his son had grown up and was no longer willing to stay and keep his old man company.

“Indeed, he isn’t very filial. You should beat him up next time he returns…” Lin Yun had no issue slandering Raymond as he prepared to go to the Mage Guild.

…

The Mage Guild was also on the Victorious Return Main Street. It was only two crossroads away from the Gilded Rose, and one could see the Sage Tower reaching into the sky. The runes carved on the tower were always flickering, and even when the sun was shining down, they would still be covered in that mysterious dazzling light.

Lin Yun stood underneath the tower, sizing up the runes carved on its exterior while waiting for the guard to inspect his pass. From the runes carved on the tower, the tower should have been built in an era that wasn’t peaceful, because those runes were mostly used in battles between armies, at least on the scale of tens of thousands. Moreover, from the mana flow of the runes, they had definitely been used more than once. Rather than a tower, it was more suitable to call that place a stronghold.

“Welcome to the Sage Tower.” When he saw the golden magic symbol on the crystal card, the guard immediately stood at attention and his tone became much more respectful. This symbol meant that the bearer had the highest privileges and was free to read any book in the Sage Tower’s library. In the entire Thousand Sails City, only seven people had that privilege. Every one of them was a figure at the peak of their field. He wasn’t someone a small guard like him could neglect.

“Thanks.” Lin Yun recovered the inspected pass and smiled at the respectful guard before entering the millennium-old magic hall.

If one could say that the Sage Tower was the Thousand Sails City’s palace of magic, then the Sage Tower’s library was definitely the treasure room. It had the richest collection of books of all kinds in the kingdom’s east. Countless sages had left their prints here, and every year, countless mages went to the trouble of travelling across long distances to come here and enter the Sage Tower’s library, even if it was just to stand inside foolishly for a long time.

To mages, knowledge was like a drug, and their thirst for knowledge surpassed everything. In the Loshent area, many mages would pay huge sums that ordinary people couldn’t even imagine just to get a pass to the Sage Tower’s library, and without any regrets.

Naturally, Lin Yun held the highest pass so he didn’t have this kind of feeling.

Slowly going up a delicately decorated flight of steps, he would sometimes brush past a few hurrying mages, and before long, Lin Yun stood outside the library on the 18th floor of the Sage Tower.

The library was very peaceful. Looking from outside, one could see many black-gowned silhouettes sitting down at various desks. They would rarely talk among each other, and even when they had no other choice but to talk, they would whisper very quietly to the point that Lin Yun, who stood at the entrance, couldn’t hear anything except the rustling noise of the pages being flipped.

‘Truly a good reading environment…’

Lin Yun entered the library and tried to not make a sound. He found an empty desk leaning against the wall and set his pass down to show that he had taken this spot. However, when he was about to go look for a book, a young black-gowned mage sat in front of him.

When that young mage sat down, he put the three books in his hands onto the desk with some force, letting out a loud thud. Lin Yun, who had just gotten up, couldn’t help frowning as he gave the other mage a strange look.

“What, Merlin, forgot me that fast?” The young mage seemed to be around 25 years old, and he could be considered quite handsome, but his current expression was very disagreeable. Thus, Lin Yun couldn’t help frowning after seeing him.

But this young mage wasn’t Raymond. If Raymond saw Lin Yun frown, he would definitely shut up. Ever since that day in the Gilded Rose where Lin Yun almost killed him, Lin Yun had only frowned once, and now he had frowned twice.

The one who had just come up didn’t seem to understand the meaning behind the frown. Lin Yun’s frown was clearly unhappy, and he actually didn’t seem to remember him at all, but that guy exaggeratedly continued, “We saw each other last month, how could you forget me so quickly? Being that forgetful isn’t good. I’m Mason, I beat your nose to a bloody pulp at last month’s Chambers of Commerce Union gathering, that Mason!”