Chapter 1270: Magic Formula

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Although Lin Li and Geresco’s shadow had been in contact on multiple occasions, the latter’s face would be somewhat blurry every single time they met. Hence, Lin Li couldn’t see his true face at all, so he was extremely familiar with Geresco’s figure, but not at all with his face.

What Lin Li found even more unbelievable was the fact that not only did the other party resemble the Immortal King in terms of appearance, he was also almost exactly identical to him. If the figure hadn’t been sitting down and wearing a different outfit, Lin Li would have even thought that he was looking at his reflection in the mirror.

Even with Lin Li’s mental capacity, he felt overwhelmed by the mind-boggling sight in front of him now. The information that had once puzzled him suddenly surfaced in his mind at the moment, and he recalled the statue of the Immortal King that looked exactly identical to him in the Death Rift previously, as well as the Undead Lord’s exclamation in the parade square of Alanna previously.

Why do I look so similar to the Immortal King and Geresco? What is the relationship between the Immortal King and Geresco? How am I related to the two of them? Tried as he might, Lin Li couldn’t find the answers to his questions. Regardless of what the relationship between the Immortal King and Geresco was, Lin Li was at least well aware that he couldn’t be the reincarnation of either of them, which made the situation even more difficult to explain.

At this moment, Geresco turned around to look at Lin Li with a gentle and refined smile on his face, as if he could read Lin Li’s mind. He calmly said, “I know you have plenty of doubts in mind. Since you’ve now passed the test, there are some things that I can let you know about..”

Geresco’s words made the dumbfounded Lin Li come back to his senses. When Lin Li’s attention was drawn to Geresco’s body, he discovered an extremely shocking truth. He discovered that Geresco’s shadow, who was sitting across from him at the moment, was clearly different from the shadows he had come in contact with in the past. The current Geresco seemed to have the aura of a real person, unlike a mere shadow that was condensed with mana.

However, Lin Li was also certain that it was absolutely impossible for the figure to be the real Geresco. Even though he had never seen the real Geresco before, he knew that Geresco, the God of Mages who could be compared to the Immortal King, definitely wouldn’t have the magical waves of the figure in front of him.

The figure in front of him was not just a shadow. Instead, it seemed more like a living person. The mana fluctuations of its body were much weaker than those of the real Geresco which Lin Li imagined. Thus, that made Lin Li feel rather doubtful of his previous judgment, and he suspected that the figure wasn’t Geresco’s shadow. After all, he was familiar only with Geresco’s shadow.

With that thought in mind, Lin Li stared at the figure, and warily asked, “Who exactly are you?”

The figure merely smiled in response to Lin Li’s performance, and didn’t seem to be bothered by it. While putting down the book in his hand, he indifferently said, “I was Geresco at the end of the Dark Age.”

The period when the High Elves ruled Anril was called the Dark Age. According to the High Elves’ development, the Dark Age was divided into three periods: the early, middle, and late period. The High Elves rose during the early period of the Dark Age, reached their prime in the middle of the Dark Age, and were overthrown at the end of the Dark Age. According to the records of the Supreme Council, Geresco the God of Mages was born at the beginning of the end of the Dark Age.

In fact, there was another symbol of the Dark Age, and that was the Immortal King, who was the guardian of the High Elves. He had led the High Elves to glory, but his departure also marked the beginning of the decline of the High Elven dynasty, which was also the beginning of the end of the Dark Age.

Hence, when he heard the figure say that he was Geresco at the end of the Dark Age, Lin Li was suddenly full of confusion. Geresco is Geresco, what does he mean by saying that he was Geresco at the end of the Dark Age? What a bizarre introduction.

“The end of the Dark Age?” Lin Li grasped the key in his words, and quickly again asked, “What about before the end of the Dark Age?”

While Geresco’s introduction was bizarre, Lin Li’s question in response was just as strange. It was just like asking someone who they were before they were born, which was simply impossible to answer. In fact, Lin Li realized how strange his question was only after he heard himself.

After hearing Lin Li’s question, Geresco merely stared at him, and shook his head smilingly without giving a shocking answer.

Does he not want to answer, or is he unable to answer? Although Lin Li was a little dissatisfied, he didn’t dwell on this issue. After all, Geresco wasn’t a prisoner that he had captured. Hence, he had no choice but to put aside that question, and asked, “What are you doing here then?”

Lin Li had always thought that this was the place where the Immortal King had suppressed the Ancient God of Light and imprisoned the gods. Hence, he’d expected the Immortal King’s shadow to be the one appearing in front of him instead. However, the one standing in front of him now was Geresco, the God of Mages. Thus, Lin Li wondered if Geresco had really received the Immortal King’s inheritance.

In fact, there were many similar speculations about Geresco receiving the Immortal King’s legacy in Anril. Besides, many of the events that Lin Li had experienced seemed to prove that point too. For example, the inverted tower that Geresco City had left behind in the Immortal King’s Sky Castle, as well as the images regarding the Immortal King in the world created by Geresco.

Instead of avoiding the question this time, Geresco said in an indifferent tone, “I’ve been waiting for you, and I knew you would come.”

Geresco’s answer reminded Lin Li of the purpose of his visit. It was exactly because of the guidance in that world. Geresco’s words had now proven that the reason the other party created that world was indeed to attract him here.

However, he reckoned that the other party’s intention was not as simple as just putting him through a few tests. With Geresco’s strength, moving the things here, including the restrained ancient gods, to the inverted tower of the Sky Castle was not a difficult task at all. Hence, if it had been just a simple test or a learning experience for Lin Li, he could have just conducted it in the inverted tower. There was no point in expending so much effort to lead him there.

At the thought of this, the doubtful look in Lin Li’s eyes intensified. He looked at Geresco, and asked, “You’ve been waiting for me here? So what exactly did you guide me here for? Are you just trying to test me?”

Geresco shook his head, and turned around to scan his surroundings instead of answering Lin Li’s question immediately. He then said, “I’m doing this on behalf of someone who wants to apologize to you.”

Hearing his words, Lin Li couldn’t help but frown. Geresco’s words were clearly beyond his expectations as he seemed to be implying that someone else should be aware of his arrival.

Who’s that person? Is it the Immortal King? Lin Li was reminded of the records in the canon of the Illuminati, such as the person who suppressed the Ancient God of Light saying that another version of himself would return again after a certain number of years.

Lin Li didn’t think that he would be the reincarnation of the Immortal King, because he was well aware of which world he had transmigrated from. All he knew was that his transmigration was very likely to be related to the Immortal King, but apart from that, there seemed to be no relation between the two anymore.

Besides, Lin Li also noticed that Geresco had mentioned apologizing to him on behalf of someone. What does this apology mean? Could it be that the Immortal King is feeling apologetic for leading me to this world without asking for my opinion?

“Who is that person? Is it the Immortal King?” Lin Li frantically asked.

However, Geresco didn’t answer that question, and instead raised his hand to point at everything in the study. He said, “These things here are a form of apology to you from him.”

In fact, even if Geresco didn’t answer, Lin Li could already guess that the person Geresco was talking about was probably the Immortal King. However, he couldn’t understand what the relationship between Geresco and the Immortal King was, and why the one telling him those things was Geresco instead of the Immortal King himself.

Unfortunately, when Geresco finished that sentence, his figure suddenly became blurry, and he vanished from the room like a plume of smoke in the blink of an eye. Lin Li was the only one left in the room. Dumbfounded, he wanted to reach out to call out to Geresco, but to no avail.

Although the conversation they had was too brief, and Geresco’s answer was vague and incomplete, the doubts in Lin Li’s heart were resolved to a certain extent. For example, that world in the inverted tower was indeed meant to lead him here, and the reason he was there was exactly because the Immortal King had left some things behind for him.

Of course, Lin Li still had plenty of questions and doubts. What exactly is the relationship between Geresco, the Immortal King, and myself? Why did I transmigrate into this world? Why are there so many gods suppressed here? Why is my knowledge of the other world overlapping with that of this world?

Many of Lin Li’s questions remained unanswered, but obviously no one was coming to answer them now. He had no choice but to put the matter aside reluctantly, and place his focus on this study that was probably left to him by the Immortal King. He seemed to have discovered something on the desk where Geresco had been seated just now.

Lin Li hurriedly walked up, and saw that all there was left on the table was a piece of paper, on which there were a few simple characters that were written very casually. Although the characters were very simple, Lin Li recognized at a glance that the characters made up the famous Franky Magic Formula, which was extremely famous in Anril. It was said that no one in Anril had been able to prove it so far.

Legend had it that Mage Franky actually wasn’t very competent, and had only reached level-8 at the time of his death. However, the magic formula that he left behind, which was named after him, was officially recognized to be the most complex magic formula ever. Since its birth, no one had been able to crack it.

Why would Geresco leave behind such a magic formula? Lin Li intuitively felt that this magic formula had probably appeared here for a reason. Perhaps it was just another test that Geresco had left for him.

Lin Li didn’t think that Geresco was fooling around by leaving such a magic formula that no one had ever deciphered behind in the study. He thought that there had to be a certain connection between the magic formula and the items in the study. Perhaps it was a guide for him to study the magic books.

Besides, although Lin Li had only been in Anril for a relatively short period of time, he was aware of the Franky Magic Formula. The reason that it was said to be complicated was because the magical theory involved in it was applicable to almost everything in the field of magic. It could be said to encompass a broad range of knowledge, from that of a mage apprentice to that of a Sanctuary Master. In fact, some had even guessed that the magical theories involved in the Franky Magic Formula were not limited to the Sanctuary-realm, and had probably gone beyond it and into the Divine-realm.

That was also precisely the reason why the magic formula hadn’t been deciphered by anyone, even though it had existed in Anril for thousands of years. Apart from Geresco, the three arbitrators of the Supreme Council could be considered the people with the highest attainments in magic in Anril. However, even they couldn’t successfully decipher the Franky Magic Formula. Hence, the vast majority of mages even called it a crazy idea of a delirious man.

Lin Li did not bother explaining anything to anyone, and instead sat in front of the desk with that piece of paper in hand. At the same time, he grabbed a piece of white paper and a goose feather quill beside him. After dipping the quill in ink, he began doing the calculations.

Although the magic formula was extremely famous, it was Lin Li’s first time thinking about it and doing the algorithms so seriously. As soon as he wrote a few lines on the paper, he frowned immediately, and tossed the quill to the side. He then got up and walked towards the bookshelves. A few moments later, he returned to his seat with a magic book that was thick enough to be used as a pillow. He then started flipping through the pages quickly.

Lin Li did not inform the people outside, because he initially thought that he wouldn’t spend much time on the Franky Magic Formula. However, once he was immersed in it, he immediately forgot about the passage of time as all his attention was focused on the magic formula. He couldn’t help himself at all.

Holding the thick magic book in one hand and a quill in the other, Lin Li would sometimes feel like he had comprehended something and write a large number of algorithms on the paper. Sometimes, he would dwell on something and frown for a long time.

After flipping through the magic book, he tossed it to the side casually, together with a thick stack of drafts that could almost drown someone. Lin Li then stood up again to grab a magic book from the bookshelf before resuming what he had been doing. He flipped through the book, and did multiple calculations continuously before tossing them all to the side again.