Chapter 148: Black Death Rune
Two hours later, Leon left the alchemy laboratory and collapsed into a deep sleep in his bedroom upstairs...
Working through the core spell models of more than a dozen Vanrison's Formulas was utterly draining. Even Leon, for all his supposed legendary stamina, found himself teetering on the edge of exhaustion more than once in that day and night. But Cloudspire Tower kept sending drafts at breakneck speed—one finished, another arrived. So he had no choice but to grit his teeth and keep going. Sometimes, he wondered if Joey and Hogarth were secretly enjoying watching him suffer.
Of course, this persistence wasn’t without reward. At least Star Sage Joey had promised: within three days, Hogarth would bring Cloudspire Tower’s Essence Relic—the Black Death Rune—to Seaview City. Three days. Leon could almost hear the clock ticking. He wondered if anyone else had ever wrangled such a favor out of Joey, or if he’d just set a new record for magical extortion.
And Leon would be allowed to use it for a full three months!
This was an immense favor. Of all the Essence Relics at Cloudspire Tower, only the Black Death Rune was always held by the strongest mage. For over a thousand years, it had never been lent out. If Leon hadn’t solved those dozen Vanrison Formula Core Spell Models—causing such a stir—he probably wouldn’t have managed to borrow the Black Death Rune from Star Sage Joey.
The Black Death Rune could absorb the Soul Fire of undead creatures, converting it into mana to empower its Relic Spirit. Legends claimed that if the Relic Spirit grew to its limit, its power would surpass even Title Archmages. At that point, the Black Death Rune would transform into a true Transcendent Relic.
Cloudspire Tower has never given up on this pursuit. Leon remembered, during the middle of the Plane Colonization Era, Cloudspire Tower made several attempts to conquer the Undead Plane—just to harvest endless Soul Fire and force the Black Death Rune to evolve into a Transcendent Relic. Each time ended in failure, and the tower was left severely weakened. If Black Tower hadn’t been locked in a drawn-out war with the Caucasus Battle Mages at the same time, Cloudspire Tower might not have survived as a major power even at the height of magical civilization...
Of course, the Black Death Rune Hogarth is bringing this time definitely won’t include its Relic Spirit.
After all, a legendary Essence Relic like the Black Death Rune forms the very foundation of Cloudspire Tower. No matter how grateful Star Sage Joey is to Leon, he would never risk the tower’s core assets. Lending out the Black Death Rune is one thing, but placing its Relic Spirit in Leon’s care would mean the Rune could change hands altogether.