Necromancy

Life at Ernst Institute returned to a state of calm and fulfillment.

However, since returning from the Magic Beast Mountain Range, Lin Yun had barely attended any classes.

It was not that he was slacking off; rather, his level as a seventh-rank mage had already far exceeded the scope of the academy's curriculum. Although Ernst Institute was the top magic academy on the continent, its courses were primarily aimed at first- to sixth-rank mages. For magic above the seventh rank, the academy only opened its advanced magic library to a select few outstanding students; there were no specialized instructors to teach them.

Furthermore, Lin Yun was a practitioner of all seven elements. There was not a single instructor in the academy capable of teaching him.

Therefore, he made a decision—to stop attending classes and focus on his own cultivation. As long as he passed the year-end assessment, the school would not interfere with his freedom. Besides, having already reached the level of a sixth-rank mage, he could apply for graduation at any time, so even if he didn't attend classes, no one would bother him!

Lin Yun's schedule became even tighter than before.

Every morning, he would practice the Qi Cultivation Style and basic blade techniques in the back mountains to maintain his warrior training. Throughout the morning and afternoon, he would study the magic books he had obtained from Morton's Space Ring—seventh-rank spells for the light, wind, and thunder elements, sixth- to ninth-rank spells for the dark element, and a vast amount of theoretical literature on necromancy.

Evenings were reserved for stone carving. Stone carving not only tempered his spiritual energy but was also his way of relaxing his mind. As the carving knife glided across the stone surface and stone dust flew, he didn't have to think about anything; he only needed to focus on the work in his hands.

Bebe accompanied him every day. Sometimes he would squat on a tree branch and doze off, sometimes he would catch bugs in the grass, and sometimes he would bring back a wild rabbit, placing it in front of Lin Yun and chirping to claim credit. Lin Yun would stop, build a fire, roast the rabbit, and the two of them would share it.

Days passed by just like that.

Three months later, Lin Yun had mastered the seventh-rank light spell Holy Light Illumination, the seventh-rank wind spell Wings of Wind, and the seventh-rank thunder spell Fury of Thunder. Holy Light Illumination had a massive range and was a wide-area spell that countered undead creatures; Wings of Wind allowed him to manifest a pair of wind-elemental wings on his back to achieve short-term flight; and Fury of Thunder was the strongest single-target attack among seventh-rank thunder spells!

He did not yet have seventh-rank spells for the water and fire elements, so he had to continue using sixth-rank magic. However, with his seventh-rank elemental magic power reserves, even sixth-rank spells could unleash power far beyond their normal levels.

He was in no rush to learn dark-element spells. Dark magic could not be used publicly in the academy, and his understanding of the dark element was not yet deep enough; it required more time to digest.

The most energy-consuming subject was necromancy.

Delin only knew the basics of necromancy and could not provide him with substantial guidance. He had to rely on himself—reading those necromancy books over and over, trying to fathom the mysteries of the Law of Death between the lines.

"The core of necromancy is the soul," Lin Yun wrote in his notes. "Seven-element magic cultivates spiritual energy, using it to manipulate the elements of heaven and earth. Necromancy, however, cultivates soul power, acting directly upon the soul itself."

He continued writing: "Necromancy has three main branches. The first is undead summoning—summoning undead creatures from the Undead Realm to fight for you. The second is undead enslavement—forcibly binding the souls of the dead to corpses to create Corpse Demons, Zombies, and the like. The third is soul attack—directly attacking the enemy's soul."

Each of these three branches required extremely profound soul power as a foundation. Compared to other laws, the Law of Death had the deepest research into the soul, which meant its requirements for the soul were also exceptionally high.

For a necromancer, the growth of soul power could only be achieved in three ways: natural soul growth, soul tempering, and absorbing the souls of others.

Absorbing the souls of others—this was the most cruel method used by necromancers and the main reason they were considered heretics by the Radiant Church. Powerful necromancers could use secret arts to refine the souls of the dead, absorbing the soul power within to rapidly increase their own soul strength. But this method carried immense risk; the absorber's soul would be eroded by the resentment of the dead, causing them to lose their sanity and eventually become a twisted, murderous maniac.

Lin Yun did not intend to go down this path for the time being.

He chose the first and second methods—natural soul growth and soul tempering.

Stone carving was a form of indirect soul tempering. And the soul attack he had experienced in the Magic Beast Mountain Range, after being blocked by the Small Cauldron, had also provided his soul with a passive tempering. This made his perception of soul power much sharper.

"The Law of Death... what exactly is it?" Lin Yun often pondered this question in the dead of night.

He had scoured all the necromancy books, but the answers he found were all very abstract. The Law of Death was not something that could be intuitively felt like elemental laws; it was a more fundamental existence—all things have life and death; death is the end of life, but also the beginning of another form.

Necromancy was simply using the power of the Law of Death to build a bridge between life and death.

"I might need a more direct way to perceive the Law of Death," Lin Yun wrote in his notes.

His gaze fell upon the black stone stele inside his Space Ring.

The Necromancy Inheritance Stele.

Delin had said that the stele stored the core inheritance of necromancy, including insights into the Law of Death, methods for undead summoning, and techniques for soul attacks. As long as he extended his spiritual energy into the stele, he could begin receiving the inheritance.

But the process of inheritance could not be controlled. The necromantic power within the stele would actively surge into his soul, and during this process, the recipient would be baptized by the Law of Death. It was an extremely painful experience, and the soul could potentially be eroded by the power of death.

Moreover, the inheritance process would generate a strong aura of the undead, which could easily be sensed by light-element mages.

"I cannot receive the inheritance in the academy," Lin Yun calculated in his mind.

Although Ernst Institute was an independent magic academy, it was funded by the Radiant Church. Most of the light-element instructors in the academy had inextricable ties to the Radiant Church. Once the aura of the undead leaked out, the consequences would be unimaginable.

He needed a place that was sufficiently remote and well-hidden.

The Magic Beast Mountain Range.

It was sparsely populated, far from any towns, and he was relatively familiar with the terrain there. If he could find a sufficiently hidden cave to receive the inheritance, he shouldn't be discovered.

"Decided." Lin Yun closed his notes and stood up.

Bebe jumped down from the nearby tree branch and squatted on his shoulder, chirping twice.

"Bebe, we need to go to the Magic Beast Mountain Range again," Lin Yun said.

"Chirp!" Bebe patted his cheek with a small paw, looking as if to say, "No problem."

That evening, Lin Yun told Linley about his plan.

"You want to go to the Magic Beast Mountain Range to receive the necromancy inheritance?" Linley's expression was somewhat grave. "Isn't that too risky?"

"It's even riskier to receive the inheritance in the academy," Lin Yun said. "Once the undead aura is sensed, I'm finished."

Linley was silent for a moment, then nodded. "Then go. I'll keep an eye on things at the academy for you. If anyone asks, I'll say you're in seclusion in the back mountains."

"Good," Lin Yun said.

Delin drifted out from the Coiling Dragon Ring and hovered in front of the two of them.

"I can't help you with the necromancy inheritance," Delin's voice sounded somewhat helpless. "My understanding of the Law of Death is not even as good as what you've read in those books. You must be careful."

"I know," Lin Yun said.

"There is one more thing." Delin's gaze fell upon the Small Bronze Tripod on Lin Yun's chest. "The last time you were hit by a Soul Attack, this tripod saved you. During the inheritance this time, if you encounter danger, it might act again. But do not rely on it; it is not a power you can control."

Lin Yun nodded.

He touched the Small Bronze Tripod on his chest, feeling its cool texture.

He still did not know what the tripod truly was. But it had already saved him twice—the first time during the plane crash, and the second time from Morton's Soul Attack.

Perhaps, it would save him a third time.

The next morning, before dawn had even broken, Lin Yun quietly left the academy.

He did not take the main gate, instead climbing over the wall behind the mountain and following a hidden path toward the Magic Beast Mountain Range. Bebe crouched on his shoulder, turning his little head back and forth, vigilantly observing the surroundings.

Morning mist permeated the mountain forest, and the distant peaks appeared and disappeared in the haze.

Lin Yun took a deep breath and quickened his pace.

Ahead lay the Magic Beast Mountain Range.

Ahead lay the inheritance of Necromancy.

Ahead lay a path into the unknown.

He did not know what would happen during the inheritance, did not know if his soul could withstand the baptism of the Law of Death, and did not know if he would be eroded by the aura of the undead.

But he had no way back.

To become stronger, one must take risks.

Lin Yun touched the Small Bronze Tripod on his chest, a sense of inexplicable calm welling up in his heart.

"Let's go, Bebe."

"Chi-chi!"

The figures of the man and the mouse vanished into the mountain mist.