Merlin's Legacy Tome

"A book?"

What Merlin took out was a thick, heavy Large Tome bound in leather, so weighty that it pressed down on his hand. Yinsen gently brushed the surface with his other hand. He had no idea what kind of hide the hard cover was made from, but it felt strange to the touch. He couldn't put that feeling into words; he could only sense that something seemed to be flowing beneath that hardness.

The white magic stone was embedded in the center of the cover, seemingly fused completely into the book, with only a tiny portion protruding outward—something that should have been nearly impossible. Though it was a hard cover, its thickness couldn't possibly accommodate an entire magic stone.

To make sure, Yinsen deliberately tried opening it, only to discover that he couldn't turn the book's cover no matter what he did.

"You can't open it yet. You'll only be able to use it freely after you successfully imprint your Mental Imprint into the book's core."

Yinsen understood immediately: it was recognizing its owner.

"How do I do that?"

"Concentrate your Mental Power, then send it into the core of the book... the magic stone. The book will then 'tell' you what to do."

Yinsen followed his instructions. He smoothly left his own Mental Imprint within the book, and only then was he finally able to open it.

Once opened, the pages on either side of the thick book were perfectly symmetrical in thickness, as if Yinsen had happened to open it directly to its very middle page.

What left Yinsen even more speechless was that both pages before him were completely blank.

He flipped forward... all blank.

He flipped backward... all blank!

Yinsen realized something was wrong. It wasn't just that every page in the book was blank. After flipping through it for so long, the place where he had opened it seemed never to have changed, with the pages on both sides always remaining equally thick.

"What's going on?"

Merlin was quite pleased with his creation, yet he did not want to explain all its secrets so clearly. When Yinsen asked, he merely offered a small hint. "Try reading it with your Mental Power."

Yinsen did as instructed. Content finally appeared on the previously blank pages, and he then understood that not only did the book require Mental Power to open, but it also required Mental Power for ordinary reading.

More importantly, he discovered that the contents displayed in the book were not fixed. Instead, he could use his Mental Power to make a "query," and the Spellbook would automatically provide the relevant information.

"A magical encyclopedia?"

He soon realized he had been overthinking it. When he casually searched for something unrelated to magic, the book provided neither an entry nor an answer, and the pages remained blank.

Seeing that Yinsen had grasped the proper way to use the book, Merlin finally began introducing its other functions.

"By studying the wristband you gave me, along with that white magic stone, I created this Spellbook based on their properties. While I was at it, I copied my own Magic Knowledge into it as well, so that you'll have somewhere to look for answers whenever you encounter problems related to magic in the future."

Yinsen looked up, his face filled with shock. He had Never Expected Merlin to copy all of his Magic Knowledge and give it to him. This was an enormous favor, practically equivalent to handing over his complete legacy. Even Directly Taught disciples might not receive such treatment.

"This..." Yinsen instantly felt that the Spellbook had become much heavier. "It's far too valuable."

Merlin, on the other hand, did not seem to care much. Smiling, he patted Yinsen on the shoulder. "Actually, I'm curious to see how far you can go. And if you can reach the pinnacle with the help of this Spellbook, then I can become renowned throughout multiple Planar Universes through you as well."

"Alright, I should properly explain how to use this Spellbook. After all, you don't have much time left to stay here."

Yinsen had originally planned to continue learning how to control Space-Time Energy from Merlin, since he currently had no control over that energy whatsoever. However, the creation of this Spellbook had delayed things for several days. Yinsen did not have many days remaining and would soon be leaving, so Merlin simply left the relevant knowledge in the Spellbook, recording it as a separate chapter for Yinsen to study on his own.

After listening to Merlin's detailed explanation, Yinsen learned that the Spellbook not only recorded all of Merlin's Magic Knowledge, but also organized the cultivation method Merlin had previously recommended to him into a more systematic form. It had even been turned into an important tool for assisting his cultivation.

Opening it required Mental Power. Reading it required Mental Power. It even contained many minor spells for training Mental Power.

These spells were like stages in a level-clearing game. He had to meet certain requirements to pass each stage, and only by passing could he unlock the next stage of cultivation. This prevented Yinsen from rushing for quick results, skipping ahead in his training, and damaging his foundation.

Beyond that, the Spellbook could scan or absorb all kinds of books and written materials, storing them within itself for Yinsen to search and read at will. Yinsen would no longer have to worry about his thick stack of books. Once he returned, he could use the Spellbook to absorb them, and all the knowledge recorded in those books would be preserved within it.

Any books or materials he obtained in the future could likewise be recorded in the book this way. It could be said that with this Spellbook, Yinsen now possessed a personal mobile library.

What surprised Yinsen most was that those were merely the Spellbook's basic functions.

Indeed, how could someone as powerful as Merlin spend so much time making a simple Magic Item in the form of a book? The real reason it had taken him so many days to complete was because he had intended to create a far more powerful Magic Item.

First of all, the book had been made from multiple rare materials and was nearly indestructible. Whether physical force or magic, neither could easily leave a mark on it—and to eliminate even that tiny possibility, Merlin had insanely engraved a restorative Magic Array onto the book. Even if someone managed to damage it, it would repair itself automatically.

By this point, Yinsen could tell that this was not merely a study tool. It was even a top-tier defensive Magic Item.

He had still underestimated Merlin.

How could a Great Sorcerer's design be so simple and crude? This Spellbook was not only nearly impossible to damage and capable of repairing itself, but it also had a Magic Shield engraved upon it. Yinsen could activate it with his own Mental Power to defend himself.

The Magic Shield could not only provide protection for a single person; as long as he increased the output, it could also become a group defense.

"..."

What could Yinsen even say? He could only silently give Merlin another thumbs-up in his heart.

The energy for the Magic Shield was supplied by the magic stone embedded in the Spellbook's cover. For a mage of Merlin's level, changing Energy Properties was hardly difficult. What he truly needed to solve was creating a Magic Array that could continuously recharge the magic stone. Merlin had not only considered energy consumption, but also energy recovery, and he had taken care of both in one go.

Furthermore, the Spellbook also provided a strong enhancement to the casting of offensive spells, allowing Yinsen to cast all kinds of magic more quickly—the only regret was that, in order to encourage Yinsen to strive and improve his strength, Merlin had deliberately separated this function from the magic stone's power supply system.

In other words, if Yinsen wanted to use the Spellbook like a staff to increase his magical power or casting speed, he had to rely on his own magic power to cast the spells.

"Does it have any other amazing functions?"

Merlin spoke for quite a while before he finished introducing this "masterpiece," and Yinsen increasingly felt that he was unbelievably lucky.

"If I had a Status Panel, my luck stat would have to be at least S, with three plus signs after it." Yinsen lowered his head and looked again at the Spellbook he could not bear to put down. "At the very least!"

After fully understanding all of the Spellbook's functions, Yinsen did not want to let go of it at all. He almost wanted to hold it in his arms even while sleeping.

"So, does this book have a name yet?"

Merlin smiled and shook his head. "It is your Spellbook. You should be the one to name it."

"Am I naming it?" Yinsen stared fixedly at the Large Tome in his hands, then finally made up his mind. "Merlin's Legacy Tome! What do you think?"

Yinsen looked up at Merlin, as if asking whether the name was suitable—and perhaps asking something else as well.

Merlin smiled without giving him an answer. Instead, he merely said, "I told you, this is your Spellbook. What you name it is up to you."

Yinsen sighed, thinking Merlin had rejected it.

To his surprise, Merlin immediately added, "But it's quite a good name. I look forward to the day when both you and this book become known throughout countless Cosmic Planes."

"They will!"

He silently made up his mind. Whether it was the Space-Time Pointer or Merlin's unreserved inheritance of knowledge, both were things Ordinary People could never obtain even in their dreams.

Now that he had acquired both, if he still could not become an exceptional figure, that would be far too embarrassing.

"As a transmigrator, with such a powerful Golden Finger to boot, it'd be pathetic if I still amounted to nothing!" Yinsen had no desire to embarrass himself, much less become useless. "If I still can't make something of myself with this, it can only mean I'm not working hard enough. This kind of start couldn't possibly be any better."

What else was there to say? He had to train like his life depended on it!

Thus, over the following days, Yinsen threw himself into all kinds of study and training like a madman. Even his control over Space-Time Energy, which he had planned to set aside and slowly learn after returning, miraculously showed a hint of progress.

The benefit was that Yinsen remained in this world for an extra week beyond the original estimate. As a result, he received quite a bit more guidance from Merlin—he now completely regarded Merlin as his teacher, even though the legendary Old Sorcerer had never acknowledged it.

But Yinsen felt that he had gained far too much, already greatly exceeding the scope of their original agreement. So even if Merlin had no intention of binding him for life, Yinsen still treated him as his teacher.

"One must know how to be grateful."