Chapter 830: Theft
Although there was an unexpected occurrence during the operation this time, the outcome was fortunately good. After obtaining Polar Snow and Raging Flames, Lin Li finally got hold of the seven pieces of the debris of the stars. Having them all might not be that different from having five in terms of the increase in combat power, since it just gave him two more options. However, the nomological power contained in each of the seven pieces of the debris of the stars encompassed all the World Laws of Anril. For Lin Li, it was not just about having two extra options.
The seven pieces of the debris of the stars contained the seven basic World Laws—earth, fire, water, wind, light, darkness, and chaos—which constituted the world of Anril. Although it was not necessary for him to master all the Laws to enter the Sanctuary-realm, the seven basic Laws were extremely closely related. No one could truly and completely master a single Law when there were no connections in between.
Darkness had to be complemented by light, and vice versa. It was the same for the other laws. The high priest of the Darkness Shrine, Rogge, mentioned that the two powers were interchangeable, and Pope Rosario’s understanding of the Laws of Darkness was definitely not what most people could compare to. Hence, for Lin Li, it would be good to have a better comprehension and enlightenment of other Laws, regardless of which law he wanted to master in order to enter the Sanctuary-realm. Not only would it speed up his pace of entering the Sanctuary-realm, he might even get to enter the Sanctuary-realm just by mastering all the Laws.
In addition to collecting the seven pieces of the debris of the stars, obtaining the Ice and Fire Natural Magic Domain could be considered a gain that would significantly enhance the strength of the Tower of Dusk. Regardless of how great the Tower of Dusk developed and how much power they had, the Tower of Dusk in Doland was their root and foundation. As long as the Tower of Dusk stood strong in Doland, they would definitely be able to resolve all the problems they encountered, regardless of how difficult they might be.
Hence, at the beginning of the establishment of the Tower of Dusk, Lin Li put in plenty of effort into developing it; he had been working hard to make the Tower of Dusk an indestructible fortress ever since then. He set up an All-Kill Array in the Tower of Dusk, installed powerful Magical Crystal Cannons, and even fused the Eternal Furnace with the Tower of Dusk. Even if the Tower of Dusk still couldn’t compare to the Supreme Council’s after Lin Li’s continuous strengthening and enhancements, it could be considered to be close to comparable.
The only thing Lin Li found to be a pity was the fact that the Eternal Furnace, which was a piece of work that Osric was proud of, was not a finished product. The biggest problem was that he did not have an extremely powerful offensive weapon. Although Lin Li had purchased a large number of Magical Crystal Cannons and installed them in the Eternal Furnace to make it seem like a hedgehog with spikes, they would just be ornaments for display if someone were to step on the Eternal Furnace, regardless of how many there were.
As for the two Undead servants, as well as Connoris and Angelano, they might be powerful, but Lin Li could not guarantee that they would continue to stay at the Tower of Dusk forever. Hence, Lin Li placed the Black Front Fortress in the Eternal Furnace, allowing the Holy Death Knights to become a guarding force of the Tower of Dusk. However, that was not enough. Although the Death Knights were strong, they had yet to grow to the level of the Retribution Knight. Hence, if they were to face any real powerhouses, they would definitely be defeated easily.
Obtaining the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain could make up for the shortcomings of the Tower of Dusk to a large extent. The Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain was not a weapon, and did not even have any attacking power. However, when combined with the Eternal Furnace, it would definitely bring about terrifying benefits.
No matter how close the Archmages might be to the Legendary-realm, there would still be a world of a difference between them and Legendary-mages as long as they had yet to step into the Legendary-realm. One of the main reasons for the disparity in power was the enlightenment and application of the nomological power. Legendary-mages could use nomological power to create their own Magical Domains and rely on their absolute control of the Magical Domains in order to become a god-like existence, which was something that Archmages could not compare to.
However, after combining the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain with the Eternal Furnace, the Archmages of the Tower of Dusk would have their own Magical Domains. In other words, the Archmages would have their strength upgraded to the Legendary-level in one go with the help of the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain.
Of course, there was still a difference between that and the Legendary-mages who really created a Magical Domain for themselves, though the difference wasn’t huge. Not to mention, the Tower of Dusk still had the advantage of having more manpower. Lin Li had only brought along 40 Archmages with him this time, and there were actually many more from the Tower of Dusk who had not been selected. How would a powerful enemy react when he broke through numerous obstacles and finally stepped onto the Eternal Furnace, only to find more than 40 Legendary-mages staring at him menacingly?
That was a benefit that could be seen immediately, but that was not all that the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain could offer.
As a solidified Natural Magical Domain, the Laws of the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain could be considered extremely perfect existences. For the Archmages who had begun to understand the Laws, and were ready to step into the Legendary-realm, it would be a perfect example. There were now plenty of Archmages above level-19 at the Tower of Dusk, and if they had the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain to help them in gaining some enlightenment about the Laws, Lin Li believed that it wouldn’t take long for them to enter the Legendary-realm and become true Legendary-mages.
Since the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain could offer so many great benefits, Lin Li naturally didn’t want to let it go to waste. Upon returning to the Tower of Dusk with his team, he immediately headed to the Eternal Furnace on the top of the tower.
In fact, the most difficult part about dealing with the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain was taking out Polar Snow and Raging Flames, and also bringing the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain out of the secret chamber of the underground palace. Lin Li had already managed to solve those two problems smoothly. The magical crystals of the Ice and Fire Twin Dragons also replaced Polar Snow and Raging Flames in being the core of the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain. At the same time, the inclusive nature of the Throne of Darkness allowed the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain to be devoured by it.
What Lin Li had to do now was to place the Throne of Darkness and the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain together on the Eternal Furnace. The only issue that he would have to consider was the cores of the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain. If the two cores were directly exposed in the domain like Polar Snow and Raging Flames used to be, it would be too easy for the enemy to destroy the domain.
Lin Li thought about it again and again, and decided to place the magical crystals of the Ice and Fire Twin Dragons in the core of the Eternal Furnace, where the giant crystal coffin was located. That was a forbidden zone, even for the mages of the Tower of Dusk. Even if the enemies bribed someone from the Tower of Dusk, they wouldn’t be able to enter the forbidden area and wreak havoc. If someone were to really barge in, it wouldn’t matter whether they damaged it.
Standing in the square in front of the Eternal Furnace, Lin Li chanted a long spell with an indifferent expression. The door of the Eternal Furnace, which was originally red in color, gradually turned darker until it was completely covered by darkness. The Throne of Darkness then descended on the Eternal Furnace.
The region where the Tower of Dusk was located seemed to have plunged into nighttime as the entire Eternal Furnace and Tower of Dusk were completely shrouded in darkness. However, that did not last long, as the Eternal Darkness was soon lit up like dawn, and the darkness faded as if it had been washed away by waves. Everything seemed to have been restored to its original state.
However, Lin Li was the only one who knew that the Throne of Darkness did not really leave the Eternal Furnace, and was simply existing in another form. That was also because Lin Li had understood some of the mysteries of the power of the Sanctuary-realm, and had complete control over the Throne of Darkness. Otherwise, it would be impossible for him to achieve it.
After the Throne of Darkness disappeared, the Ice and Fire Natural Magical Domain gradually emerged, and white snowflakes began to float on the dark red Eternal Furnace. The snowflakes did not melt because of the high temperature of the Eternal Furnace, and instead landed on the ground and fell on the roof of the palace, giving the red building a silvery coat.
The abnormality of the Eternal Furnace definitely sparked a plethora of speculations by those who were concerned about the Tower of Dusk, but Lin Li wasn’t concerned about it at all. After completing all the work, Lin Li left the Eternal Furnace and arrived at the Tower of Dusk, where he finally began to listen to reports from Gavin and other members who were in charge of various matters.
Due to the fact that Lin Li did not restrict them from disclosing any details, the 40 Archmages had already spread the word about their expedition this time, thus allowing the other mages to find out the ins and outs of it. The various problems encountered by the Tower of Dusk recently had caused some of them to get riled up, but after hearing the insider story of the expedition, the feeling of uneasiness in their hearts immediately disappeared without a trace.
Rodhart flew into a rage in the Breezy Plains, and even if it happened hundreds of years ago, it still wasn’t considered that long. To a resident of the Breezy Plains, the disaster that struck back then was not just a story. The Death Knights slaughtered hundreds of thousands of people, some of whom were the ancestors of some people. Hence, they were much more emotional and horrified by the terrifying Retribution Knight Rodhart and the Death Knights than people in other regions.
Their President Lin Li actually managed to kill the demon-like Retribution Knight who was a real Sanctuary powerhouse and a true terrifying existence. Since he could do that, he would definitely be able to solve the problems of the Tower of Dusk, which now seemed insignificant in comparison. No matter how strong they might be, who in the Breezy Plains could rival the terrifying Retribution Knight? Mages were known to be atheists. However, they seemed to reveal a kind of pious faith in their eyes when looking at Lin Li.
The Tower of Dusk today was far stronger than it used to be two or three years ago. Although the two main businesses of the Tower of Dusk, pharmaceutics and forging, were not spread throughout Anril, they at least occupied a certain amount in the market in the human kingdoms of Felan and Ledin. Given how much the Tower of Dusk had developed, it would naturally be impossible for Gavin and Beckley to be the only ones managing it. Hence, apart from Gavin and Beckley, there were other mages who were leaders of respective areas sitting in the conference hall at the moment. One of them was Alan, who had just stepped into the Legendary-realm. He was currently a senior executive of the Tower of Dusk.
“President, we have yet to find out the whereabouts of Cassano, but the potion formula and forging blueprints that he has stolen have all been used to create a large number of completed products that have appeared on the market recently. They’re all sold at prices that are a fifth of our prices. No matter who produced them, they’d definitely make a loss. It’s obvious that they’re going against us,” Gavin said with a sullen expression.
Although the management of the Tower of Dusk had been expanded, Gavin was still the chief supervisor who oversaw all aspects of the Tower of Dusk. Hence, although there were other people who were responsible for the assessment of members, Gavin was still responsible for overlooking a traitor like Cassano who had stolen the secrets of the Tower of Dusk.
However, Lin Li did not intend to hold him accountable now, and simply waved his hands. He said, “Let’s talk about Cassano’s issue. I do have some impression of him. He’s talented and rather hardworking.”
“Cassano is from Rolan, and he’s also known as a genius amongst the locals. He joined the Tower of Dusk two years ago, and is very talented in learning magic. He’s also a very humble and modest person. Due to the fact that his abilities and strength increased rapidly, and he was also very enthusiastic in completing the tasks of the guild, his contribution rate had also increased rapidly. He had also gained some considerable authority…” Due to the fact that Gavin had been investigating Cassano lately, he revealed almost everything about Cassano without thinking at all when Lin Li asked the question.
“President, I think that Cassano’s betrayal is not an accident. This incident has exposed a flaw in our contribution system which seems to be fair on the surface. Although individual strength and competency are important, the greater an immoral person’s abilities, the greater the damage he will cause,” said a middle-aged mage named Seth. Although he had only joined the Tower of Dusk for over a year, he had strong management abilities, which allowed him to soon become a member of the management committee of the Tower of Dusk.
Seth’s words seemed to have made sense, but Lin Li could obviously tell that he was trying to question and challenge Gavin’s position. After all, the contribution system of the Tower of Dusk was established by Gavin. However, Lin Li didn’t care about this. Power struggle within a force was normal, and it would be impossible to eradicate it. Without competition, there would be no development. If everyone in the Tower of Dusk had no desires, what development would there be for the Tower of Dusk? Of course, Lin Li would not allow unscrupulous methods to be used to vie for power in the Tower of Dusk.
“We can’t see or touch a person’s morals and ethics. How can that be used as a criterion? Before Cassano’s betrayal, did anyone suspect there to be an issue with his character? Even now, we still have plenty of mages who don’t believe that Cassano would betray us,” Beckley retorted. As a veteran of the Tower of Dusk, Beckley was naturally more biased towards Gavin.