Another World’s Versatile Crafting Master c1-1074

by Zhuang Bifan

  "High Elves Print?" Gerian was an Archmage, after all; he knew the ropes once the two rags were pieced together.

  "You recognize it?"

  "No, I don't…" Gerian belonged to a very different kind of mage. Besides magic, he did not care about the other kinds of general skills and knowledge. He only took the entry level even for inscription, which every mage was required to learn. Now that Lin Li had questioned him, the old fellow could not help but feel embarrassed. After thinking about it, he probably felt he had made himself look bad with the answer, so he added shamelessly, "Actually, I recognize some of them, for example these symbols. Looking at the way they are spelled, I know that this should be a person's name. Let me see what this guy's name is…"

  Gerian lay his overstuffed body on the table and carefully made out those peculiar symbols. "Osric Griffith… Damn! Highlord Osric!"

  He was talking to himself in amazement, but the more Lin Li listened, the less he understood. "What Highlord?"

  "You've never even heard of Highlord Osric?" Gerian looked unbelievingly at Lin Li as if he were looking at a visitor from Mars.

  "Is this strange?"

  "I really don't know what Andoine has taught you…" Gerian took the opportunity to denigrate Andoine, then explained with a face full of ostentation, "In the Dark Ages, the Felan Kingdom was ruled by six High Elves Highlords, of whom Osric was the most powerful. His territory stretched from Alanna in the west to Star Lake in the east, including Jarrosus City, and all this land belonged to him alone.

  "Then, isn't he mightier than Isaac?"

  "Isaac is peanuts…" Gerian sniffed at it and impolitely threw dirt on the Castellan. "In Jarrosus City, Isaac is at most a middleman. Not to mention the Merlin Family or the Guild of Magic, even if Ysera from the Mannes Family were to cough twice, Isaac has to worry whether the grocery prices would increase the next day. Try Osric instead. Ysera didn't even have to cough; even when he is exhaling, he'd have to cover his nose with his hands. Reuben is cruel for killing his own brother and parents, right? But that can't even compare to Osric. He's a real butcher. He hanged 30,000 rebels overnight without even even panting…"

  "…"

  Gerian finally had a chance to show off, and there was no reason why he wouldn't do it. "Go to the library more often, there are many books that record the stories of the great Highlord… Generally speaking, this was a ruthless and powerful ruler. He killed many people but did a lot of great things in his lifetime. The only pity was that he had lost his mind in his later years. It is said that in his old age, he was always afraid that his treasures would be stolen, so he built a huge mausoleum and buried the looted treasures with himself… Unfortunately, no one knows exactly where the mausoleum is…"

  Lin Li listened as the old fellow pulled further off topic, and knew that the latter certainly did not recognize the other symbols. Otherwise, he wouldn't have dug these groundless stories up in order to divert the topic. "Does anyone in the guild recognize the High Elves Print?"

  "You're counting on that bunch of junk? You could as well…" Gerian scolded in disdain, but hesitated halfway. "You don't say… There's really someone in the guild who recognizes the High Elves Print…"

  "There's someone who knows?"

  "Andoine, that old fella, knows. He is authoritative on the High Elves relics. Let alone Jarrosus, even in the whole Felan Kingdom, no one can match up to him in this respect. Too bad the old fellow never shows up all year round. It's not that easy to find him… The last time I saw him, he was picking herbs in the Demon Fall Valley…"

  "From what I heard from Old Grimm, he was in Alanna recently. We'll talk about it again when we see him someday…" Lin Li was not in a hurry for this matter; anyway, the rag had been in the Ring of Endless Storm for almost a month. Having to wait a little longer was not a big deal. Instead, he was reminded of something when Gerian mentioned the Demon Fall Valley. "Oh right, any news from Kevin?"

  "We've gotten our people back." Gerian knew he meant the hostages. The old fellow was somewhat discontented at the mention of it. "I say, what on earth were you thinking? The Shadow's Nest is asking for a thunderingly high price, we could just sit back and pay them off with money. You're giving off 40 bottles of Wild Elixir; since when have you become that generous?"

  "If it hadn't been for fear of their vigilance, I would have given them 100 bottles at once."

  "Those elixirs are fake?" Looking at Lin Li's determined expression, Gerian had understood a little of what was going on.

  "How can it be? Pharmacists also have to uphold the integrity of pharmacists. It is too crude to cheat people with fake potions." Lin Li looked around and lowered his voice a little. "And it's too easy to see through it…"

  Gerian, who had just gotten a grasp of the situation, was confused again. "Then what did you do?"

  "I've increased the concentration of that batch of elixirs slightly."

  If Old Grimm had heard this, he would have begun to sympathize with the people from the Shadow's Nest.

  However, Gerian was a total potion-idiot; how would he know there were so many bends to increase the concentration of a potion…

  "This is too complicated to explain in a short time. But rest assured, in three days at most, you can go to the Demon Fall Valley to collect the bodies of the Shadow's Nest."

  Lin Li had 100 percent confidence in these 40 bottles of Wild Elixir.

  Unless the people from the Shadow's Nest didn't drink it—but this was almost impossible; why did they specify the Elixir of Empowerment instead of the better-selling magic potions?

  The increased concentration of the Wild Elixir was much more powerful than the Sobriety Potion. When you first drank it, it did enhance the strength and agility. But over time, the side effects of the netherbloom would gradually erode the body, starting from sluggish actions to feeling weak and powerless in the end; even Lin Li was in fear of the various frightening side effects.

  It was no exaggeration to say that if a bottle of concentrated Wild Elixir was taken, a person would become a complete waste in a week at most.

  40 bottles of Wild Elixir were sent out to destroy 40 members of the Shadow's Nest. This was a worthwhile business. And it was also 40 members with no low status. Lin Li did not believe that the Shadow's Nest would be so generous to distribute such an item as the Wild Elixir to their low-level members.

  Chapter 92 - Arrowhead

  McGrenn's funeral was arranged on the next day by the Guild of Magic. With the present status of the Guild of Magic in Jarrosus City, the funeral was naturally a spectacular event. He was only a level-six adventurer before his death, but he had enjoyed the treatment that most beyond level-ten did not enjoy after his death.

  Castellan Isaac and the leaders of the six underground forces had come; the patriarchs of the ten mage families had also come; even the Merlin Family which was being investigated the previous day had come as well, represented by Evan alone. As for the reason why he did not bring anyone along with him? No kidding… What if Mage Felic found a murder suspect among them again?

  This was the funeral of Mage Felic's friend, and this alone was enough.

  After yesterday's duel, Felic's name was louder in Jarrosus City than those of Gerian and Matthew. The horror of breaking Cromwell's magic was engraved in everyone's heart, and no one dared to have the slightest doubts about his power.

  The funeral was grand and solemn, but Lin Li knew it was meaningless for McGrenn…

  When Lin Li lay McGrenn's coffin into the grave, he leaned on it and repeated his promise with a voice that only he could hear. "Thank you, Mr McGrenn, for taking me out of the Sunset Mountains. Sleep in peace. I'll help you find Ina and take care of her as a sister."

  Lin Li was rather depressed on the way back from the funeral.

  Gerian consoled him for a while, but it didn't have much effect. He simply advised him to walk around the city instead of staying in the Guild of Magic all day; anyone who stayed inside all day would eventually turn mo
ldy.

  Lin Li thought about it and found it right; after living in Jarrosus for more than a month, he had yet to take a good look at the city.

  "Might as well. You go back first, I'll walk around on my own."

  After watching Gerian leave, Lin Li couldn't help pulling out the half an arrow from his pocket. After returning from the Merlin Family, he had looked at the arrow countless times. To be honest, the forging of this arrow was a bit rough—it was probably the product of the assembly line; there wasn't even a blood slot on it.

  It was the metal used that surprised Lin Li.

  This was actually an arrowhead forged with star iron—a really rare magical metal. Besides being extremely sharp, weapons forged with star iron often had magical attributes that were not in the least weak. Which was to say, the owner of this arrow was probably an archer proficient in magic.

  Lin Li just couldn't understand why a rare magical metal was used in such a rough forging process.

  After slight hesitation, Lin Li put the arrow in his pocket again. He decided to find a place to ask from whose hand did such a rough forging craft come from.

  Perhaps through the sources related to forging could he find out where the Eternal Shrine was.

  Speaking of it, the name Eternal Shrine had also been bothering him recently.

  After returning from the Merlin Family, he had already asked many people, but no one, including Gerian, had ever heard of Eternal Shrine. This was a very strange thing in itself. What kind of gossipmonger was Gerian? He even knew that Osric, the High Elves Highlord, had gone mad before he died, but he didn't know where the Eternal Shrine was…

  After the duel in the Daylight Square, Jarrosus was exceptionally calm.

  It was as if time returned to more than a month ago, when Lin Li had just arrived in Jarrosus City. There were no more wolf-like Magic Shooters in the streets and no more buildings that were lit up in flames. Even the rich guests who went to the casinos in their spare time were relieved that they no longer had to worry about the Magic Shooters suddenly barging in to collect debts when they were halfway through their gambling.

  Lin Li walked along the street aimlessly, looking at this familiar yet strange city with curious eyes. He had no particular place to go; he just wandered aimlessly until it was almost evening, when he stopped in front of a Gilded Rose.

  This Gilded Rose was a special one. It dealt with all kinds of weapons and armor. A furnace was burning outside the door. There were two blacksmith apprentices in front of their anvils, with sweat pouring down their faces. The hammers fell heavily in succession and sparks spattered in the crisp sound of beating iron.

  "Greetings to you, respected mage." The boss of this Gilded Rose was a fat middle-aged man, with a round face nearly catching up with Gerian's, but when he smiled, his eyes would reveal a loathsome shrewdness.

  Lin Li specially wore a rune mage robe to attend McGrenn's funeral today. It was standard equipment provided by the Mannes Family for the Guild of Magic, done with fine workmanship and proper tailoring; it wore well on the fine-looking Lin Li, adding some bearing to him. The Torrent of Elements Ring on his finger was shining faintly, emitting a powerful magical wave.

  With the shrewdness of the boss, how could he not see that this was a rich man?

  Especially when Lin Li stopped in front of a few crossbows; the shrewd and enthusiastic boss thus greeted him with eager attention.

  "Mr Mage, you have really fine eyes. These crossbows are all new products that arrived this morning. Made by the crossbow master of Alanna, they can fire three bolts at a time. They are simple and fast to load, suitable for mages like you."

  "No need to explain it. Let me have a look by myself first." Lin Li frowned. The enthusiasm from the boss made him feel overwhelmed. It was natural to rip customers off when doing business, but it was detestable not to look at whom they were dealing with before ripping them off.

  From what Lin Li saw, the crudest weapons in this Gilded Rose were probably these crossbows. So, he had come here to see if such rough crossbows had something to do with the rough arrow in his hand. He had not expected the boss to think he was interested in these lousy crossbows just because he was standing in front of them…

  Lin Li did not know whether to laugh or cry at the situation. The arrow slot was casually polished and even the crossbow rear was loose; which mage dared to keep this kind of crude stuff as a concealed weapon? Perhaps he'd be shot to death by the crossbow himself even before he got to shoot the enemy…

  Chapter 93 - Rainbow Adamantine

  Probably because the Mannes Family specialized in magical equipment, there was very little good stuff in this Gilded Rose that sold weapons and armors. The only thing that caught Lin Li's attention was a double-edged sword.

  To be honest, this double-edged sword was really odd. It was clearly made of winter iron, but there were no mageweaths on the sword blade. This was simply intolerable for Lin Li, who pursued perfection in everything. The winter iron itself contained powerful ice magical element. After the amplification of the mageweath, the magical element could be brought into full play. If there was a high quality ice magical crystal and a good Inscriber, this double-edged sword could definitely become a powerful magical weapon.

  It's a pity…

  Such a good piece of winter iron was ruined like that.

  Then, Lin Li looked at the price and found that the price of such a double-edged sword forged with the winter iron was the same as that of a general iron sword.

  Lin Li knew at once that he had found the wrong place.

  The fat boss was very shrewd, but his vision was horrible. Would one expect a man who could sell winter iron as any other iron to judge the origin of the arrow from the forging process? It was easier to count on Gerian losing weight than to count on him…

  Just as Lin Li was about to leave, there was another sound of footsteps coming from outside the door.

  In came a young man in his twenties. Although at the same age, compared with Kevin, who was gentle and handsome, this man was at the other extreme—his face was tanned and contours sharp. His hands were rough and strong; it was obvious that he had been engaging in physical labor for a long time. He was sturdy and tall, and when he entered, he looked like a black bear blocking the door.

  How could the astute fat boss not see that the stuff the young man had on his whole body was probably less than two gold coins? Just look at the leather armor and the leather boots—any beggar in Jarrosus City might be richer than him.

  Let alone the mage next to him. Look at what he was wearing—it was a rune mage robe worth nearly 10,000 gold coins. Besides the Guild of Magic, no other mage in Jarrosus City dared to wear it everywhere. And there was the ring on his hand; that black diamond alone could probably buy ten Gilded Roses… It was a pity that such a rich man was merely taking a look and had no intention to buy anything…

  The reception for two differently dressed people was naturally different.

  When the young man entered the door, the fat boss did not even bat his eyelids. He asked listlessly, "What's the matter?"

  "I'd like to sell this…" The young man said as he handed over a package to the counter. His voice sounded a little low. There was a strong reluctance in his eyes when he let go.

  The fat boss was still buried in accounting and it was unknown whether he had heard the young man. It was only after the package had been put down for some time that the fat boss' vague reply was heard. "Oh…"

  The young man waited for a long time, but nothing followed. He had to whisper a reminder, "Would you like to see it first?"

  "What's the rush? Don't you see I'm doing the accounts?" The fat boss was a little unhappy at his urging, but after looking up and staring at the young man, he somehow shifted his eyes to the package. The fat boss uncovered the wrapped cloth, which revealed a dark sword blade. Judging from the length, it should be a double-edged sword.

  "100 gold coins." After tossing out a figure, the fat boss buried
his head again.

  "100 gold coins?" There was some surprise and disappointment on the young man's tanned face. "Did you see it wrong? This is a weapon forged with the shadowforged siderite. How could it be only 100 gold coins?"

  "What rubbish shadowforged siderite? Look at this sword blade, how does it look like a weapon forged with the shadowforged siderite?" Perhaps it was the first time that someone questioned his vision, and it came from a young man who looked even inferior than a beggar; the fat boss immediately got angry and pulled apart the cloth that was wrapped outside, revealing the dark sword blade. "See for yourself. This sword blade is darker than you. How can a shadowforged siderite produce such a weapon?"

  "But… but…"

  While the two men were arguing, Lin Li who was standing at a side had already seen through it.

  The fat boss was right this time. The double-edged sword wrapped in the cloth was not forged with a shadowforged siderite indeed.

  Weapons forged with shadowforged siderite also displayed a kind of black, but it was a shiny kind of black, just like the Torrent of Elements Ring on his hand. However, the double-edged sword on the counter was dull and without any shine to it.

  However, the price offered by the fat boss was far short.

  If Lin Li was right, this double-edged sword should be made of a rare magical metal—the rainbow adamantine. It was a metal more precious and rarer than the shadowforged siderite. Weapons forged with the rainbow adamantine would randomly produce a variety of magic attributes in the forging process—two at the very least and seven at most. The number of attributes depended on the level of the maker. Generally, a blacksmith that could forge more than four kinds of attributes could be considered a master.

  Of course… This was not the case for Lin Li. The Smithing Guru was a devil-like existence and couldn't be measured by common sense. Once the rainbow adamantine fell into his hands, it was almost sure that there would be seven attributes produced.

  But all seven attributes coming out at once was only a legend to most people.