Book 11: Chapter 50: Biography

“Then can it offset the cost of our use of the teleportation array?” Qin Lun felt a little disappointed, but quickly adjusted his attitude. No matter how valuable these notes were, they did not have enough time to find a decoder. The most important thing now was to gain permission to teleport.

“No!” The old mage smiled and shook his head.

“Sir, are you deliberately making things difficult for us? Isn’t the research notes on the Nether Scrolls precious enough?” Idria frowned and asked indignantly.

“Little girl, don’t be impatient, let me finish!” The old mage smiled and stroked his white beard. “Netheril from thousands of years ago was the most glorious magical empire in human history. Countless magical items have been passed down from it, among which there are also numerous magical annotations and research notes related to the Nether Scrolls. At the very least, Candlekeep holds tens of thousands of documents related to the Nether Scrolls.”

The old mage paused, then continued, “But not every type of record about the Nether Scrolls is valuable. You all know that the Nether Scrolls not only recorded legendary forbidden spells, but also extended into a whole complete magical system. The mages of the Netheril era studied the Nether Scrolls very extensively, ranging from apprentice-level zero-circle magic all the way up to ten-circle legendary forbidden spells…”

By the time the old mage said this, Qin Lun and the others understood. Because the ancient mages studied the Nether Scrolls so extensively, not all records about the Nether Scrolls were high-level magic; some might just be zero-circle apprentice-level magic.

If the magical notes provided by Qin Lun were about legendary forbidden spells above the ninth circle, then their value would naturally be immeasurable. But it was also possible that they were just worthless zero-circle magic.

Compared to high-level magic, there were far more low-level magics derived from the Nether Scrolls. Just like the tens of thousands of related records stored in Candlekeep, the vast majority were documents of relatively low value. It was just that these magical notes had not been decoded yet, which was why the old mage said earlier that he could not determine their true value.

An item with less than a one in a thousand chance of being high-value naturally could hardly offset the cost of a long-distance teleportation array. The old mage had sufficient reason to refuse; he was not deliberately making things difficult for them.

“If you have other accompanying magical notes…”

“No, only this one!” Before the old mage could finish, Qin Lun shook his head faintly, causing the atmosphere in the study to become slightly awkward.

“Then there’s no other way. As the gatekeeper entrusted by Candlekeep, this old man must be fair to every visitor!” The old mage reluctantly put down the parchment scroll. “I hope next time you come to Candlekeep, you will be fully prepared!”

“Honorable sir, please wait a moment! Regarding magical notes on the Nether Scrolls, I truly only have this one. However, I can provide another copy of a martial arts technique transcribed from a different continent. I hope you can appraise it for us once more.” Qin Lun said calmly and composedly.

“A martial arts copy from a different continent?” The old mage’s eyes lit up, and he pondered before asking, “Is it from the eastern continent of Kara-Tur? Very well, then take it out and let this old man have a look!”

Qin Lun’s words slightly surprised Hill and Rand beside him. The three of them knew each other very well, and they really couldn’t recall Qin Lun bringing any martial arts books.

The power system of Apostles was different from ordinary warriors. They could absorb the World Law from skill scrolls, allowing their Law Body to directly acquire the skill.

Compared to the familiarity and mastery of each move and stance, this learning speed was like a rocket. Besides, they entered a Quest World every month, where would they find time to train? So, no matter how precious or top-tier martial arts books from other worlds were, to Apostles, they were just piles of scrap paper.

Since they were scrap paper, Qin Lun and the others naturally did not pay attention to collecting such things, nor would they let such books occupy their limited Storage Space.

“Qin Lun, you’re not trying to fool this old mage, are you? Don’t mess things up; we can think of other ways!” Rand secretly reminded in the Team Channel.

“Of course not fooling him. This old fellow is a master-level scholar; temporarily creating a martial arts system couldn’t possibly deceive him.” Qin Lun took out a bound set of notes from his Storage Space, smiled and said, “This thing was stored in the Storage Space, almost forgotten by me. I didn’t expect it to be useful here.”

“Nen Ability Application Techniques…” Rand glanced at what Qin Lun took out, and his face immediately showed a strange expression.

Back in the Hunter World, when Qin Lun helped the mafia in Yorknew City snipe members of the Phantom Troupe, he asked the Ten Dons for a complete set of books on advanced Nen ability application techniques.

He didn’t want to fully learn the Nen power system, but because his own killing intent had formed something similar to Nen called the Blood of Dissection, he hoped to increase his understanding of this incomplete Nen ability.

Because the Blood of Dissection remained somewhat incomplete until now, he kept this set of application technique books. Unexpectedly, it finally found an unexpected use today.

“Huh, this martial art seems to be a very unfamiliar power system, a bit like a knight’s qi system, yet also seems related to mysterious alchemy… But there are so many variations! Can Life Energy really be materialized?”

The old mage flipped through a few pages of the Nen ability book and was immediately captivated. His expression kept changing, sometimes frowning, sometimes muttering to himself.

The six categories of Nen: Enhancement Type, Emission, Transmutation, Manipulation Type, Conjuration, and Specialization.

Among them, Enhancement, Emission, Transmutation, and Manipulation were quite easy to understand, relatively similar to the qi and magic systems of the Toril World. However, the materialization of Life Energy and Specialization completely fell outside this scope, perhaps only explainable by divine magic.

With the old mage’s vast knowledge, he could naturally see that this martial arts system was very complete and mature, certainly not fabricated. But some of its adamantly stated theories were very different, even opposite, from the magic and martial arts he understood.

“This notebook… is different from all our current understanding of magic and martial arts.” The old mage put down the bound volume, carefully choosing his words, “But… personally, I believe it is real and has great research value. Are you truly willing to leave it at Candlekeep?”

Qin Lun and Rand exchanged a meaningful look. The Nen martial arts were, of course, real; they just weren’t from this world.

However, the concept of Life Energy being recognized by the old mage might also hold some research value for the magic system of the Toril World. But the entire Nen system absolutely could not be realized here, because its source World Law was different.

“Of course, honorable sir, as long as it can be exchanged for the use of the Teleportation Array.” Qin Lun and the others were overjoyed. The old mage’s words clearly granted them passage.

“Take back those magic crystals. Just these two sets of notes should be enough to cover the cost of the Teleportation Array, especially the latter one… Alright, to ensure the fairness of the transaction, I will also give you something!”

The old mage pondered for a moment, then waved a hand. A book with a black leather cover flew from a shelf on the right and landed in Qin Lun’s hands.

“Knowledge is power. As the gatekeeper of Candlekeep, since you have provided knowledge to Candlekeep, this old man will likewise give you knowledge in return.” The old mage smiled and waved his hand. “Alright, go now. I will transmit your images to the guardian of the Underground Labyrinth. Once you arrive there, someone will guide you to the Teleportation Array.”

Holding the black book, Qin Lun bowed slightly and led his companions back through the watery mirror magic door behind them.

“Firal, let me see, what book did that old mage give us?” As soon as they left the study, Iristin curiously moved closer.

“You all want to see too, right?” Qin Lun raised the black book in his hand, smiling as he looked at his companions.

During this face-to-face exchange with the old mage, not to mention the three women who were like curious babies, even Hill and Rand, who originally had little interest in books, now felt a bit curious, wanting to know what book the old mage had given Qin Lun.

“‘The Chronicles of Tethyr’?!” After opening the black cover of the book, Qin Lun looked at the title on the second page and couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

Tethyr, the Dragon Slayer, King of Kaeldomo, the greatest Moon Elf king in history. The old mage, having noticed something about them, actually gave Qin Lun a biography about the legendary elf king’s life and deeds.

This “The Chronicles of Tethyr” was a personal biography of King Tethyr compiled by the old mage from the numerous Elven Race historical documents stored in Candlekeep.

It did not record any magic or martial arts, but for the entire Elven Race, especially the Moon Elves, it was a priceless treasure. Just as the old mage said, Qin Lun gave him a book on Nen martial arts with great research value, and he in turn gave Qin Lun a document of knowledge he most needed.

“Prompt: The Apostle’s team has acquired the important document ‘The Chronicles of Tethyr’. After evaluation by Star Void, the content recorded in this document is over 76% authentic. This team has gained a total of 0.223% World Exploration Degree. Apostle 70053’s individual contribution rate in this is 66%.”

“You have such good luck; a worthless draft actually exchanged for so much World Exploration Degree.” Hill said with a wry smile.

The old mage gave this “The Chronicles of Tethyr” entirely based on the manuscript of “Nen Ability Application Techniques”. It was natural that Qin Lun occupied the majority of the contribution.

“Haha, this can be considered compensation for not obtaining Balduran’s treasure!” Qin Lun couldn’t help but laugh joyfully. The joy of adventure lies in the fact that you never know when an unexpected surprise will appear.

“Honored visitors, Great Sage Alroth has already transmitted your images to me.” Just as Qin Lun and the others paused in the wall corridor, a simply dressed young monk approached them and greeted with a smile. “Please follow me. I will take you to the long-distance Teleportation Array in the Underground Labyrinth.”

“Additionally, if you are carrying any other books, please store them in your Demiplane for now, to avoid any misunderstanding from the eternal silver dragon spirit Miryrm.” The monk glanced briefly at “The Chronicles of Tethyr” in Qin Lun’s hand and reminded softly.

“The old man who calls himself the gatekeeper of Candlekeep is actually a Great Sage!” Even though they knew the old mage was extraordinary, they still inwardly complained about Candlekeep using a Great Sage as a fee collector.