Just like Solomon, the current leader of the Mage Guild who became a High Mage over twenty years ago. Because his Mana Whirlpool had been injured in a fight in an active volcano, this rare, talented High Mage hadn't made any progress for over twenty years. With Solomon being stymied like this, there was no need to think about the case for an ordinary mage.
Any mage who saw Lin Yun's situation would think he was courting death.
But it wasn't the same for Lin Yun. He kept urging his mana, continuously expanding his Mana Whirlpool.
The knowledge he held, the abilities he possessed, they already far surpassed what was known in this era. The Magic Apprentices from this era didn't dare to use mana to batter against the Mana Whirlpool, because this era's Mages had to be careful and safe, not knowing what could cause a problem.
Under the surge of mana, the Mana Whirlpool within Lin Yun's body quickly expanded like an inflating balloon, slowly becoming bigger and bigger, before finally, it exploded with a "bang".
Losing the restriction from the Mana Whirlpool, the mana flowing inside started going out of control. It was berserk and chaotic, bashing and shoving inside Lin Yun's body. It wasn't soothing and gentle like before.
If someone else experienced the collapse of their Mana Whirlpool and their mana going berserk, they would likely just close their eyes and die.
But this was only the beginning for Lin Yun...
The berserk and chaotic mana wreaking havoc within his body felt as if ten spells were being cast at the same time. The pain couldn't be understood if one hadn't experienced it themselves.
Sweat slowly trickled down from Lin Yun's forehead, but there wasn't the slightest change in the expression on his face. Lin Yun was like an accurate machine right now, he simply remained steady and only used his powerful control to its maximum to bring each thread of mana under his command.
When mana struggled free from the binding of a Mana Whirlpool, it would become berserk and chaotic like swirling gales and large waves, eroding away every part of his body. Exercising mana control at that point would just be wishful thinking.
But Lin Yun managed to do it...
By relying on his fine mana control tempered through his life at the end of the magic era, Lin Yun managed to calm the mana and make it flow according to his prepared path. He completely relied on his control to create an intact mana path inside his body.
Naturally, that mana path still wasn't stable, because the Mana Whirlpool had already collapsed. Even with Lin Yun's incredible control, he could only use time and patience to slowly wear it down. One time, two times, three times, ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times… As Lin Yun gradually found it harder to endure, the berserk mana gradually became calmer...
"Phew…" Feeling the change within his body, Lin Yun let out a sigh of relief.
The most difficult part was finally dealt with, so the next thing to do was to engrave the Magic Conducting Rune.
After completing this step, Lin Yun could officially enter the ranks of Great Mages.
Moreover, the mana within Lin Yun was still in a pure and chaotic state. As long as Lin Yun wanted, he could carve any Magic Conducting Rune. This was an extremely rare opportunity for someone advancing to become a Great Mage. Among tens of thousand of Mages, there might not even be one with such an opportunity.
Magic Conducting Runes were also divided by ranks, just like Great Mages. The gap between different Magic Conducting Runes could be quite large, perhaps tenfold or more. That gap not only could be felt through the power of spells and the ability to conduct mana, but it would have a crucial impact when advancing to become a High Mage.
It would be a hundred times easier to advance further for a Great Mage with a top-notch Magic Conducting Rune.
This was the reason Lin Yun was taking such great risks...
Otherwise, with Lin Yun's great accumulation of mana, he would have already advanced to Great Mage and wouldn't have needed to be so rough with his Mana Whirlpool, risking a backlash.
What Lin Yun wanted was to make the mana return to its primal state.
Once it returned to its chaotic primal state, it would be like a piece of white paper, a blank slate. Lin Yun could freely write on it and carve any Magic Conducting Rune.
The most difficult part of the breakthrough had already been completed. All that was left was carving a rune, and Lin Yun would become a Great Mage.
But, what kind of Magic Conducting Rune would he carve?
Lin Yun frowned. He thought for a long time before realizing that the Magic Conducting Runes he had been considering before couldn't be used...
It wasn't because he couldn't complete them, but because they were too wasteful...
That's right, wasteful...
Lin Yun himself hadn't thought that after the mana returned to its primal state, it would be so pure and so perfect that the Magic Conducting Runes that he had thought of before would be subpar.
In fact, as soon as he drank the Mana Baptism, Lin Yun had designed a few Magic Conducting Runes, such as the Extreme Forge for strengthening casting power, Time Hand for improving casting speed, and Endless Spring for improved mana recovery… These Magic Conducting Runes were among the most perfect ones even at the peak of the Magic Era, let alone in this era.
Even Lin Yun himself had felt satisfied after choosing these few Magic Conducting Runes, as he felt that these were the most powerful Magic Conducting Runes that he could inscribe at the present time.
But now, Lin Yun felt dissatisfied with them...
The mana in its primal chaos state was too pure and perfect, and if he really carved these Magic Conducting Runes, Lin Yun wouldn't be able to forgive himself for not trying to bring out his full potential.
'Maybe… I should experiment with others…'
After a slight hesitation, Lin Yun came to a decision.
One hour later, Lin Yun appeared in the Sage Tower.
The one receiving Lin Yun today was surprisingly not Solon, but Solomon.
When he saw Solomon, Lin Yun was startled.
This was the Leader of the Sage Tower, Thousand Sails City's most powerful mage. For him to personally receive someone, they had to be on Cadgar's level. Although Lin Yun had some reputation, when comparing the two, he was still quite far off. Had Solomon recently figured out more about him?
This wasn't the first time Lin Yun had come to the Sage Tower. He had been here a few times and even chatted with Solon, who had told him about the temperament of the leader of the Mage Guild. He was like any other mage, engrossed in magic, not caring about most worldly matters, and occasionally irascible.
But Lin Yun knew that this seemingly eccentric High Mage cherished his words. He wouldn't speak if he didn't need to. What happened in the auction house box was enough to prove it, even his actions around Monchi.
Normally, when Lin Yun visited the Sage Tower, he would always be received by Solon. First, their relationship was pretty good, and he could be considered one of the few friends Lin Yun had in Thousand Sails City. Second, Solon was Solomon's disciple. Him receiving Lin Yun showed Solomon's friendly attitude.
But Solomon himself had never appeared personally during these visits.
Solomon's appearance had a whole different meaning.
This High Mage represented the Sage Tower, the entire Mage Guild. For him to personally receive Lin Yun would bring a large shock to Thousand Sails City.
It was equal to the shock of the Silver Moon Mercenaries' announcement, which instantly terrified Andrew of the Frost Wolf Mercenaries.
If Solomon was added to the fray, who wouldn't be terrified?
So what was the meaning behind his appearance today?
Lin Yun didn't know if he should speak first, so he only politely exchanged conventional greetings with Solomon.
"Mage Merlin, this is the Hell Destroyer scroll from the Black Horn Auction. According to our agreement, the Sage Tower has already finished researching it. It is yours now." Solomon handed a scroll to Lin Yun while speaking.
"It has only been a handful of days…"
"Haha, as you said Mage Merlin, I hate the Ash Tower more than you do. As for the scroll itself, I don't have much interest in it, and there is no need to spend too much time researching a badly damaged spell after copying its contents."
"Then I shall thank you, High Mage Solomon." Since Solomon said so, Lin Yun naturally wouldn't refuse. In any case, he intended to enter the Bone Plane once again with his advancement to Great Mage. With a Spiritual Augment in hand, his chances of survival would be a lot better.
"Good. I believe that you came to the Sage Tower today for the library, right?"
"Indeed."
"Then I won't keep you any longer."
"Ah?"
Lin Yun was a bit startled when he heard this. Solomon came to the reception room himself in order to return a scroll? Wasn't that too nonsensical? Lin Yun originally thought that Solomon had personally received him to discuss some particular matters, but it would be quite odd if it was only to return the scroll.
But since he had already said this, Lin Yun could only leave while full of questions, before slowly walking over to the library.
On the way, Lin Yun's mind was fully focused on trying to understand the meaning behind Solomon's actions...
When Lin Yun reached the library and stood in front of a row of bookshelves, his mind was still lingering on the matter, up until Solon's voice came from behind him.
"Merlin, what are you looking for?"
"Eh? Solon? You also came? I'm looking for a book on the Magic Conducting Rune Creation Paradigm, as well as a detailed book on the Max Formula."
"Magic Conducting Rune creation?" Solon was taken aback as he stared at Lin Yun for a long time. His face suddenly revealed an expression of shock. "You… You're a Great Mage now?"