Chapter 1266
Cyrus had brought all the Worldshapers here, intending to use one of the Dimensional Shuttles to transfer them.
If nothing goes wrong, their destination would be the place where the legendary crystal artifact was kept—heavily guarded by Astral Academy.
Glancing around, there were seven more Dimensional Shuttles. This meant Astral Academy still possessed seven independent sealed spaces, each hiding something of immense value or ongoing research.
The group entered the large cylindrical chamber of the Dimensional Shuttle. Cyrus immediately initiated the transfer; the surrounding space began to distort, as if someone was forcibly carving out the interior of the alchemical device, forming a box that contained everyone inside.
In an instant, the surrounding light warped, and everything vanished from sight. A second later, the twisted glow began to return to normal, but the environment had undergone a dramatic transformation.
It resembled a colossal underground chamber—the ceiling soared thousands of meters overhead, but the surface revealed no stone or mountains, only seamless silver metal everywhere. The entire space seemed forged as one, making it impossible for anyone to discern where they truly were.
The underground space was immense—at least thirty or forty kilometers in length and width. Such a massive chamber seemed to be underground, and keeping it from collapsing under the weight of the earth above must have been a monumental feat. If it wasn’t underground, it could only be the remnant of a semi-plane left behind by a fallen Sky Rank powerhouse.
These semi-planes were usually shrouded in secrecy, but judging by this place, it was clearly not just any ordinary semi-plane.
Scattered sparsely throughout were a few hundred buildings, but in a space this vast, it felt like almost nothing. At the very center stood an enormous silver-white structure.
Cyrus led the group toward the center, and on the way, Rafael’s face lit up with excitement. Leon, meanwhile, couldn’t help but wonder if all this theatrical secrecy was just a way for Astral Academy to show off. Sardonic as ever, he watched Rafael practically vibrate with anticipation.
"Master Leon, I was right! I’ve heard that the legendary crystal is kept right here. Not that I know much about this place—my senior came once and never spoke of it again. But now that we’re here, I suppose I can finally let slip a few secrets."
As Rafael spoke, he dragged Gullard—face full of fanaticism—over. Gullard had no patience for Rafael, especially now, when they were about to see something that, to an alchemist, was nothing short of divine.
Of course, in front of Leon, Gullard—the notorious alchemical maniac—acted almost normal. Rafael, the newly minted Worldshaper, barely registered in his eyes, but Leon’s reputation in alchemy was something Gullard genuinely admired.
Leon glanced at Gullard with curiosity. Gullard swallowed his words, shot Rafael a look of pure annoyance, then pulled Leon aside, completely ignoring Rafael. Leon wondered if Gullard's devotion to alchemy had replaced all other social instincts.
"Master Leon, the crystal at Astral Academy is truly remarkable. Since it’s our first day here, I expect we’ll just get a tour. Though, knowing this place, the tour will probably be more cryptic than enlightening."
It’s said that countless runes float across the surface of this crystal, each one containing the power of truth—alchemy’s truth, which is the truth of the world itself. When the time comes, Master Leon, you should study those runes carefully. If you can comprehend even one, the benefits will be endless, and your alchemical mastery will soar…"
Gullard rambled on about the power of the runes on the crystal and his belief that alchemy was truth itself. As they entered the massive silver-white building, the interior was empty save for rows of crystal tables, and at the very center stood a gigantic transparent dome.
The dome was completely sealed, like a seven or eight-meter-high sphere, enclosing the crystal within. Inside the dome, a complex alchemical apparatus surrounded the crystal; cables extended from the device to the surface of the glass dome, then connected to the top of the several-story building, forming a bewildering network.
Once inside, Gullard caught sight of the intricate alchemical devices and seemed to recall something. He glanced around furtively, then used magic to transmit a message to Leon.
"Master Leon, this crystal possesses a powerful ability. See those alchemical devices? When the full moon arrives, they can channel a very peculiar energy from the crystal itself."
These devices are designed to extract that strange energy and infuse it into an ordinary magic artifact.
Once imbued with the crystal’s unique energy, the artifact instantly becomes a Soulbound Relic. No matter how wild the design or what type of artifact it is, it can be transformed in a heartbeat!"
Gullard’s face was flush with barely contained fanaticism, and even Leon was taken aback.
Don’t be fooled by the Soulbound Relic label. For Sky Rank powerhouses, Soulbound Relics are almost useless, but with artifacts, it’s not always about rank. Many abilities and special effects have little to do with an artifact’s tier.
Especially starting from Soulbound Relics, there’s a major turning point.
A Soulbound Relic already possesses an Artifact Spirit. At the Essence Relic level, it has a complete Relic Spirit avatar. While the Artifact Spirit isn’t as powerful as a Relic Spirit avatar, it still grants the artifact many special abilities.
Artifacts below the Soulbound Relic level are all about rank. But many artifacts with special abilities, or unique concepts, are not hard to create as ordinary magic artifacts.
Even those designed to target mental power, the soul, or with terrifying effects, can be made as ordinary artifacts. For Worldshapers, it’s really not difficult at all.
The problem is, the resulting artifact would be terribly weak. A soul-attacking artifact made as an ordinary magic item might only be able to kill a regular person, and could barely scratch a mage’s shield. Artifacts like that are practically useless.
There are even some special artifacts meant to boost thinking speed, but as ordinary magic items, they’re often less effective than a simple mental agility spell…
Still, alchemists have created countless odd artifacts, most of which end up as little more than proof-of-concept experiments, tossed onto the scrap heap as soon as they’re made.
But now, there’s a way to instantly transform an ordinary artifact into a Soulbound Relic—and even generate an Artifact Spirit. That makes all the difference.
Some artifacts that could never be made into Soulbound Relics can now be transformed in an instant, and their effects might even surpass those of many Essence Relics.
Take the famous Blink Badge, for example. As a regular artifact, it merely lets the wearer teleport less than a meter.
That’s the best-case scenario—most Blink Badges only allow for a blink of less than half a meter.
Such a short distance is especially useful for low-level Swordmasters. At those ranks, half a meter could mean the difference between life and death.
Or in certain critical moments, half a meter could save someone’s life.
But as one’s rank climbs, and they reach the Swordmaster level, the Blink Badge becomes almost useless. In high-level battles, half a meter means nothing to either mages or Swordmasters.
It could even disrupt their combat rhythm, which would be fatal.
By the later stages, even a casual spell could affect an area of over ten meters; the strongest ones could cover seven or eight. Even arrows or a battle qi slash would require dodging several meters to avoid a direct hit.
As for Sky Rank, half a meter is negligible—especially for mages who favor brute-force spells, dozens of meters of blast radius are barely worth mentioning…
So the Blink Badge is destined to remain a low-tier artifact, only useful in the early stages. But if it becomes a Soulbound Relic, the blink distance could leap to dozens, even hundreds of meters!
That sort of range is almost on par with a spatial mage’s teleportation. And that kind of magic only comes after grasping the laws of space—after understanding a particular branch and condensing a Law Sigil.
The spatial mage in the Merlin Family’s ancestral grounds happened to grasp that very branch of the law. Even his maximum teleport distance was just under a hundred meters.
But that hundred meters was enough to keep Raboldo undefeated in battles against peers. If he wanted to escape, only a mage with a perfectly countering artifact could hope to stop him.
Now, all it takes is a Soulbound Relic-grade Blink Badge. If a mage below Sky Rank got their hands on one, they might just take out an enemy far stronger than themselves—unexpectedly, even.
Give it to an assassin, and they might be able to kill someone ten times their strength… maybe even more.
If you mentioned this outside, most people would just scoff—it’s just a Soulbound Relic, after all…
But for an alchemist, the power is obvious. Suddenly there are all these Soulbound Relics with unique abilities, and to an alchemist, that’s just the beginning…
There might only be a single Soulbound Relic, but an alchemist could use this one to produce many identical Soulbound Relics. Through research, they might uncover secrets for advancing such relics, and with continued study, perhaps even create Essence Relic-level items in the future!
That’s the truly terrifying part…
Leon’s face twisted in shock as possibilities flooded his mind. Gullard, meanwhile, gave him a look that said, 'I knew you’d get it,' his gaze glued to the crystal like a starving man eyeing a feast he’d never tasted.
Suddenly, Gullard hesitated, as if something troubling had just crossed his mind.
"But, Master Leon, this crystal is strange. No, not the crystal itself—the artifacts enhanced by its energy are bizarre.
I’ve heard those Artifact Spirits don’t obey orders, can’t be used properly, and instead constantly tempt their wielders to steal the crystal.
In the past, Astral Academy crafted Soulbound Relics, and more than a few users succumbed to temptation, going mad with schemes to steal the crystal.
Five hundred years ago, even a Sky Rank powerhouse was caught trying to steal it—almost succeeded, too.
After that, Astral Academy stopped letting anyone use those artifacts. Now they only use them for research, sometimes even destroying the Artifact Spirits, and strictly limit which artifacts can be infused with crystal energy. For a long time, they didn’t draw out the crystal’s strange energy at all…"
Gullard sidled up to Leon, using a magical vibration to transmit his words directly into Leon’s body, all the while sneaking glances at Cyrus, afraid the Sky Rank mage would overhear.
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After all, these incidents are a stain on Astral Academy’s reputation. If word got out, it would be a public embarrassment—especially since Astral Academy is supposed to be a sanctuary for alchemists.
Leon looked at Gullard, speechless. The man was hopeless—utterly transparent, all his thoughts poured into alchemy. Anyone with half a brain could see he was badmouthing Astral Academy…
After a while, Gullard decided it was best not to say any more. Cyrus was a Fifth-Order Sky Rank mage, after all. Even if he wouldn’t say anything, he’d definitely be annoyed if he overheard…
Once everyone had arrived, Cyrus stood outside the glass dome and gave a brief introduction to the crystal.
As Cyrus spoke, the alchemical apparatus inside the glass dome slowly unfolded, revealing a crystal over a meter in size. It had eighteen faces, floating and slowly rotating in midair, the direction of its spin shifting in mysterious patterns that changed constantly.
Each face of the crystal bore a rune, and as the crystal rotated, the runes shifted and transformed. Every time the crystal changed direction or angle, the runes would morph anew.
And everyone saw different runes—no two people ever saw the same. It was as if the runes on the crystal were endless…
The moment the crystal appeared, nobody paid any attention to Cyrus’s introduction—their focus was entirely absorbed by the crystal.
Leon, like everyone else, stared blankly at the crystal, as if witnessing the work of a creator. His expression was dazed—exactly what you’d expect from an alchemist seeing this crystal for the first time.
But nobody knew that Leon’s mind was racing, memories buried deep in his consciousness erupting like a geyser. He was utterly stunned.
The Whispering Crystal…
So it really was this thing. I’d felt a sense of familiarity before, but hadn’t remembered. Turns out it really is the Whispering Crystal. I should’ve figured it out sooner—fallen from the heavens to Astral Academy, with all those strange phenomena…
When Rafael first mentioned the crystal, Leon had felt a vague sense of déjà vu, but couldn’t recall exactly why—only that he’d seen some record of it before.
But after hearing Gullard’s story and seeing the Whispering Crystal with his own eyes—the eighteen-faced crystal, seemingly ordinary, with ever-changing runes—Leon finally remembered.
The crystal’s name was Whispering Crystal, but that wasn’t its original name; it was only called that much later.
Legend had it that the Whispering Crystal was wrapped in a meteorite and crashed into Astral Academy, causing massive destruction. When the academy mined the meteorite, they found the eighteen-faced crystal at its core.
The first thing they noticed were the runes on each face of the crystal. They looked like basic runes, but each person saw something different—strange, alien, nothing like the standard runes of Northend World.
They seemed ordinary, but the information they contained far surpassed that of basic Law Sigils. When Astral Academy obtained the Whispering Crystal and deciphered a few runes, they immediately realized their power.
Every rune on the Whispering Crystal contained something of alchemy—hailed by alchemists as the truth of alchemy. Those runes became known as Truth Runes.
By comprehending the Truth Runes, Astral Academy’s alchemists rapidly advanced in their craft. But there was a major drawback: progress was painfully slow, and the more runes one understood, the slower it became. Even the greatest alchemists, after a thousand years, had grasped only a handful.
There was another restriction: unless you understood the previous rune, you couldn’t comprehend the next—no matter if each person saw a different rune. Even if someone told you the meaning, it wouldn’t help at all.
Because everyone saw the runes differently, only the alchemist who truly grasped a Truth Rune could understand it. Even if they explained it to others, all they’d share would be the information contained within.
All these mysterious limitations made the Whispering Crystal even more enigmatic. And when its energy was drawn out, it could turn an ordinary artifact into a Soulbound Relic. And that’s just what it could do as a mere crystal.