Chapter 565: Terrifying Dream

Despite being under that unbearable pressure and suppression, Lin Li had actually made a breakthrough, and advanced from level-20 to level-21. That was an absolute difference in strength. Even though Lin Li had broken through to level-21, the Light and Darkness Domain that he had created actually was not on par with Vidas’ Nature Domain.

If it weren’t for the fact that he had already seized the opportunity to turn the situation around by using the Summoning Lamp to summon the Lord of Nightmares from the Abyss, the outcome of the battle might have been different. The thought of it made Lin Li feel terrified even though he remained calm on the surface.

Although the Lord of Nightmares who used to be a Demon Lord did not show too strong of a combat prowess in the previous battles, Lin Li actually knew that the true power of the Lord of Nightmares should not be reflected in this aspect. The most brilliant thing about the Lord of Nightmares was that he could manipulate dreams. This advantage had never impressed Lin Li; hence, that ability had rarely been showcased on his orders.

For example, the Lord of Nightmares would be doomed to be powerless when faced with the Lord of Darkness in the Abyss of Tharlen. At the end of the day, the Lord of Nightmares was still just a top-tier Demon Lord who could never compare to the level-27 Lord of Darkness of the Abyss of Tharlen—regardless of how well he could manipulate dreams. That was the Level Rule that had existed since a long time ago. It could never be changed, even if the Lord of Nightmares had already been sealed and contained in the Summoning Lamp.

When Lin Li faced the Crimson Dragon in the underground palace back then, the Lord of Nightmares could not cause the simple-minded wyrm to slip into a complicated nightmare. In fact, it was still a debatable issue as to whether or not simple-minded beasts like wyrms could slip into nightmares and dreams…

That was the limit of the Lord of Nightmares’ abilities, which was also the reason he could only dominate the first few levels of the abyss. However, things were much different during the battle between Lin Li and Vidas. Although the Level-22 Vidas was impressive and formidable, he was still an elf at the end of the day.

Although it sounded rather contradictory, it was indeed very interesting. Vidas possessed such great power mostly because he carried the elven blood. However, his identity of an elf was also the very reason he’d lost the battle and the gamble.

Nothing was perfect in this world, and the elves were contradictory entities to begin with. They were unique, and had element affinity as well as long lifespans that humans were jealous of. However, they also had some handicaps, which was rather ridiculous.

Even a mage apprentice in Anril would know that the best way to deal with an elf was to use Mental Spells, be it a level-5 Delirium or a level-20 Soul Puppet. As long as Mental Spells were used on elves, there would definitely be unexpected effects. This was a characteristic of elves, a race that was inherently full of contradictions. They were born with the power to pursue all the good things, and detested all the ugly beings. The world of elves was always black and white, and their outlook on life was much weaker and worse than that of (human) children.

The Lord of Nightmares’ strongest ability was his proficiency in mental spells, of course. As a true master of Mental Spells, the Lord of Nightmares could manipulate dreams as and when it wanted to. Even though the Legendary-mage Vidas was level-22, he was extremely fragile in terms of mental strength when faced with the Lord of Nightmares who could easily invade his dreams, especially when Lin Li incorporated the Lord of Nightmares into the Light and Darkness Domain and lent its power to the Lord of Nightmares. It then possessed a terrifying power that was unprecedented. That power was close to level-22, and it wouldn’t be inferior even compared to Vidas.

Under such circumstances, it was only normal for the Legendary-mage Vidas to be controlled by the Lord of Nightmares.

If it were to happen during other times, such dream manipulation wouldn’t be a big deal. After all, a level-22 Legendary-mage wouldn’t be destroyed as long as his domain was still intact, regardless of whether his dreams were manipulated. No matter how horrifying and absurd the dream might be, it would be rather difficult to inflict actual harm on Vidas.

Unfortunately, Vidas ran into Lin Li this time.

The dreams that Lin Li had created through the Lord of Nightmares were terrifying enough to scare even historical figures like Apophis and Rosario.

The terrifying world that was made of reinforced concrete contained big steel birds that flew in the sky and poor human beings who were locked in boxes. As if that wasn’t daunting enough, there were still Sword Sages who could contort their bodies into horrifying shapes. The handsome demon, Brother Zeng, the Legendary-mage who controlled meteor showers, and the prophet Phoenix Lady whom no one could match up to in the past 500 years[1]…

Everything was beyond Vidas’ imagination; he could not understand how the young President of the Guild of Magic would have such a shameful past[2].

Although the battle had already ended, people like Vidas would be able to figure out the reason for their loss with some brief analysis. However, he had no choice but to admit that the young President of the Guild of Magic was indeed a true genius.

His talent went far beyond magic, and although it was horrifying that he had become a Legendary-mage despite being only 20 years old, what truly shocked Vidas was the incredible talent that the young Lin Li had showcased during the battle. It was an impressive ability that Vidas had never seen before, be it Lin Li’s usage of magical power or his grasp of the changes in magical waves, as well as his determination.

There was no doubt that the young mage had defeated him by manipulating dreams, but as a level-22 Legendary-mage, Vidas obviously knew that dreams were not created out of nowhere, and there must have been an actual source to make it possible. He was sure that the realistic dreams he had were experiences that Lin Li had gone through.

That was what scared Vidas the most—he couldn’t imagine how tough a person had to be to remain normal after such terrible experiences. Although Vidas did not lose in terms of magical abilities, he was convinced by the young human Legendary-mage. Therefore, although Lin Li took away Helios’ Scepter which he could not bear to give away at all, his pride as an elf prevented him from going back on his word.

As the winner of the Legendary-realm battle, Lin Li’s gains today were undoubtedly the biggest. However, achieving a breakthrough under the massive pressure and suppression of one’s opponent was not that great of a gain or accomplishment, since he’d already been at the peak of level-20, and it had only been a matter of time before he’d break through to level-21.

Lin Li was very clear that the benefits that the battle had brought him went far beyond the advancement to level-21. A battle between Legendary powerhouses, especially those like Vidas, was rather rare for most, and one might never experience one in their entire life. Hence, it was an extremely valuable experience for Lin Li.

Fighting with a Legendary-mage who was also an acquaintance could at most only be regarded as a spar because no one would exert their full power. However, many things could only be comprehended when one was on the brink of death. What Lin Li had been lacking after becoming a Legendary-mage was exactly an actual opponent.

The impact of the Legendary-realm battle was absolutely great on Lin Li. Although the effects had yet to show, Lin Li was well aware that the impact on himself left by this battle was far more than just the seemingly simple increase of control of strength and familiarization with Rules. The near-death experience would take him to greater heights in his magic journey.

Oh, and this…

Lin Li took Helios’ Scepter out of his hand. The gains of the battle extended beyond just valuable experience, and the scepter was definitely an unexpected surprise. Originally, he’d believed that if Vidas could not recognize the new debris of the stars, he wouldn’t have known the true value of the branch. Hence, the so-called stake of equivalent value would not have been too great. However, Lin Li could immediately tell the extraordinariness of the scepter.

The rod of Helios’ Scepter was not as elaborate as the currently existing staffs. Instead, it was rather simple, awkward, and had a typical Dark Age style. The material that the scepter was made of was mentioned in many historical books, and was said to have come from the Tree of Life of the Emerald Forest.

Legend had it that in the era when the High Elves ruled the world of Anril, there were countless Trees of Life growing next to the Tree of Eternity. The Trees of Life were just like subjects clustered around the king of trees—the Tree of Eternity. In fact, the relationship between them was almost the same as it seemed. The Tree of Eternity possessed endless power, and had brought about a major calamity and disaster to Anril when it collapsed back then. The energy was actually provided by the Trees of Life, which continuously absorbed the Elemental Power between Heaven and Earth, and supplied it to the Tree of Eternity. They were like worker bees and their queen bee.

Therefore, the branches of the Trees of Life were undoubtedly one of the most suitable materials for making staffs. The natural element absorption ability of the trees was sufficient for the mage holding the staff to cast any spells as he pleased.

[1] They’re probably all fictional characters from movies and whatnot.

[2] No idea where this came from. Maybe Vidas assumed MC had to experience such stuff to show him all of it later. Which is partly true. Well, read on.