A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 648 Can one attain immortality?

Many archmages were parched, their eyes fixed on the strange object that had appeared. It was understandable that they were bewildered. As the controller of the Tree of Law, Rorschach was, in the eyes of many spellcasters who knew the truth, essentially a "god" who controlled the entire magical world.

This is an enlightened "god" who does not act arbitrarily, but holds meetings every now and then, allowing them, these mortals, to glimpse the divine realm and decide the changes in magic with his words. Now, according to his will, he will go even further and delegate authority.

"Isn't this a bad idea?" The new tower master of the Arcane Tower doesn't have Feuerbach's shrewdness; even if Feuerbach came, he might find it hard to believe.

However, this kind of refusal is like a drunkard telling the host to stop pouring wine when he is a guest; the more he says this, the more passionate he is inside.

"The growth of the Tree of Law is inseparable from everyone's use, promotion and uploading of new spells; its improvement is due to everyone's research and analysis of the Tree of Truth, which enables us to precisely adjust the effects of existing magic and turn experience and skills into adjustable and controllable engineering."

"Therefore, I have never regarded it as something I can possess exclusively. What I promise today is simply to return it to each of you when you need it." In the end, Rorschach wanted to say "you," but he did not intend to directly give the "bud" and "nucleus" to the high-ranking people present.

"Buds" are branches plucked from the Tree of Law. They have no corresponding spell strings or knots; they are simply in their original form, just like the ones the Lord of Order secretly bestowed upon Rorschach. With them, more "Trees of Law" can be planted in the new world, supporting the existing magic system.

The "core" is an abstraction from the former computing core. It not only stores the original magic mastered by Rorschach and the ancient sages, as well as all existing spells and spell strings, but also gives the "Tree of Law" the intelligence to assist in casting spells, support people in adjusting spell effects and editing spell strings, which is equivalent to "M-STC".

The combination of these two elements constitutes the complete power and influence that Rorschach currently wields.

Completely captivated, the archmages wanted to ask Rorschach how he would distribute the spoils, but the only answer they received was, "Whoever reaches the end of the world first gets them."

"Including the Church of Order?" The chief of the Dark Tower recalled what Rorschach had emphasized earlier.

"That's right, this was an agreement I made with the Lord of Order before His will disappeared. To be honest, it's good that He didn't openly steal it. Let's see how the competition between you and the Church goes."

Special attendee—the dwarven master craftsman—also stood up, now almost as tall as the others sitting down: "We can participate too?"

"That's right, there's more than one 'bud' and one 'core'. The faster you migrate and the more people you migrate, the more gifts I will give you."

The shocked elders wanted to say something more, but Rorschach forcibly adjourned the meeting. Caroline was the last to come out and gestured for Andrei to invite the waiting Emperor Valois into the meeting room. She hesitated for a moment, then decided not to follow him in, but instead closed the door and stood quietly in the corridor outside the meeting room.

Andrei couldn't help but ask curiously, "This is the first time I've missed a meeting just to keep that impatient Emperor company. What did you talk about?"

"Rorschach is urging us to escape from here." She thought for a moment: "We haven't even settled down in the Astral Plane for a few years, and some people have almost forgotten about the apocalypse."

Andrei smiled and said, "For most people, life actually gets better after they reach the Astral Plane."

"And let's not forget that many people didn't even have time to migrate to other planes." She finally sighed. Andrei thought the Chief would turn and leave, but she didn't. She just leaned against the wall, lost in thought.

After an unknown amount of time, the emperor emerged. No, he no longer possessed the imposing presence of an emperor; even his gait carried a hint of hesitation and frivolity. He resembled someone from the distant past, in his youth, challenging his senior brother and being defeated.

Paul stopped stiffly in front of Caroline and bowed: "Madam, Master Rorschach invites you in."

"Thank you for relaying the message." Caroline immediately went inside; she was originally going back to the venue to retrieve the Glass Heart. Andrei, meanwhile, led a distraught Paul away down the corridor.

Rorschach was still there, and he smiled easily. "Now it's just the two of us. See, I've managed my time well and haven't spent too much time on the first two things, so we can chat a little longer."

"How long can you maintain this state?"

"It's hard to say. Right now, I'm engaging in 'dangerous behavior' that exposes me to the real world. If the Lord of Order were still around, he would definitely cause trouble for me." Rorschach exuded an aura of not returning to the dorm until the dorm supervisor was around.

"How did you convince Paul to give up immortality?"

"Persuade? To him I'm just a projection, what kind of constraint can I have on the emperor? Persuasion is useless, I'm giving him a choice." Rorschach didn't know where Paul got the information that he had rescued Richard.

To resolve Richard's problem and respect his wishes, Rorschach and Forest Tower together performed another "body swap" on Rick. Forest Tower reconstructed a body based on samples of his parents' flesh and blood.

Strictly speaking, that body was Richard's younger brother, but from the beginning, the mage of the Forest Tower interfered with the growth process of the "homogeneous human," preventing homogeneous souls from entering this body, thus allowing Richard to possess and retain the power of the archmage.

In a way, this research is even similar to the legendary magic that the Necromancer created for the late Emperor of the Empire. Even though Richard's new body is not immortal, the whole process is full of taboos. Only the Tower of the Forest and the Tower of Ten Thousand Arts have preserved the records of the relevant research, and they are sealed away layer by layer.

However, the emperor still keenly perceived the significance of the Forest Tower research from various rumors and unsubstantiated claims. Perhaps it was his thirst for immortality that led him to search everywhere and eventually find the real deal.

Theoretically, Rorschach and the Tower of the Forest have indeed mastered all the prerequisite technologies for immortality. He could even directly use [Axiom Creation] to create a perfect body for Paul, granting him immortality and the same strength as Richard.

However, Rorschach's choice put the emperor in a difficult position and was almost unacceptable:

"First, I can immediately grant you great strength and a long lifespan. You will receive a new body, but you must promise me that you will abdicate, abolish the Valois monarchy, and restore the republic."

"The second option requires no conditions and can give you what you want directly. However, I will have the Forest Tower make the entire research public, giving everyone a great chance to extend their lifespan."

Even Caroline shook her head at the conditions Rorschach offered: "The first condition is unacceptable to the emperor, and the second condition is that the entire society and civilization are not yet ready to accept it."

Luo Xia grinned mischievously and said, "Yes, but isn't this just a disguised way of discouraging him from leaving? To make my dear junior brother feel better, I even fed him biscuits and offered him a third option:"

"The new world holds infinite possibilities. You can lead your empire to migrate to other worlds, where I will offer immortality as a gift to Your Majesty. In exchange, you will need to take on the responsibility of protecting your people in the new world, no matter the sacrifice you make." Hmm, then we can just write "Emperor" backwards for the immortal Paul.

"It sounds like the arrogant Paul would choose the third option. Difficult, but feasible. Rorschach, it seems you've come up with quite a few 'bait' to urge everyone to escape this world."

"Yes, that's how it should be. From the very first step we take to the astral plane, to other planes, it's been an escape, and many people are unwilling to face this fact."

"But aren't you prepared to leave?" Caroline's gaze even held a hint of reproach. "Otherwise, why would you relinquish control of the Tree of Law to someone else?"

Luo Xia was silent for a moment before slowly speaking: "Someone needs to cover the rear. 'The End of the World' also means 'The End of the World.' The border area where I am is also being fiercely impacted by the power of the Mother Goddess. This is also the reason why the Lord of Order asked me to stay here."

"Only I can ensure the safety and stability of the entrance to the new world."

"Isn't there any other way?"

"It's already a miracle that we have this one chance to survive." Rorschach hesitated before speaking, "The next question is a bit selfish: would you... stay with me until the very end?"

"Of course, that's assuming we can meet again."

The two wanted to embrace, but Caroline's arms held only a blurry figure.

"Yes, until the world ends. Take care." These were Rorschach's last words before he disappeared. After that, only the cold, clear glass remained, clutched tightly in Caroline's hand.

(End of this chapter)