Chapter 2: The Creditor

"Fario, you know very well what those 8,000 gold coins are about. They were given to you by the master. Have you ever taken out a single copper coin yourself? Now that the master is gone, you want to seize the property he left behind. Do you have no shame?" The old man tightly grasped Fario's sleeve, possibly due to excessive force or perhaps out of anger, his wrinkled face flushed red. In his agitation, his finger nearly poked Fario's face: "I tell you, Fario, unless I, old Pavi, am dead, you will never take this house!" It may have been due to excessive force or perhaps out of anger, his wrinkled face flushed red. In his agitation, his finger nearly poked Fario's face: "I tell you, Fario, unless I, old Pavi, am dead, you will never take this house!"

Only when Lin Yun found that no matter how he used his magic to strike, he could not make it collapse again, did he satisfactorily send a surge of magic into the vortex

The originally tranquil magic vortex began to slowly rotate with the influx of this magical energy, turning in cycles, never ceasing. As Lin Yun raised his hand, countless magical runes surged forth from his palm. A violent wave of magical energy instantly spread throughout the room, and even the air seemed to resonate with a "zzzz" sound.

Let go, I told you to let go, did you hear me? Pavi, you old rascal, don't think that just because I am usually polite to you, you can act recklessly. You need to understand that you are merely a steward, and the matters here are not for you to decide

This is also why there are many magic apprentices, yet very few truly become wizards. It is akin to Marfa Merlin, who has been stuck at the ninth level of magic apprentice for three years, yet has never dared to take that risky step forward

For over twenty years in the apocalypse, Lin Yun was constantly contemplating how to extract more magical power, and was perpetually calculating how to utilize every bit of magical energy in the most critical areas. After more than twenty years, Lin Yun's control over magical power had reached an astonishing level.

"It's just debt collection, is there really a need to be so excited..." Lin Yun gritted his teeth and cursed, already contemplating whether to go out and twist the neck of that male duck.

Even the most fastidious mage would have to admit, upon witnessing this scene, that it is an almost perfect magical vortex, with astonishing resilience and terrifying explosive power, fully comparable to that of a top-tier mage... What is even more incredible is that the formation time of this magical vortex is merely a matter of a few minutes

"Be careful of me..." The harsh words had just been spoken halfway when Fario suddenly froze, for he realized that the one responding was not the old butler, but rather his nephew, who was said to possibly become a mage.

Now, it goes without saying that after his father, Roger Merlin, passed away, what else did he do besides begging for a few more days to repay the debt? If he truly had the ability to become a mage, would he need to lower himself like this?

"Old man, are you trying to threaten me?" Upon being reminded of past events by the old butler, the fat man suddenly became somewhat indignant: "Let me tell you, you better understand your own identity before you act recklessly in front of me, or else you should be careful..."

The distant sound was hoarse and broken, resembling a chattering public duck, as if it were pondering how to improve the magic vortex. Lin Yun, subjected to such a bombardment of noise, naturally felt a mood that is easy to imagine

It was only many years later, when the magical control abilities of numerous mages reached a new height, that they would attempt to create a magical vortex using such methods. They would then discover that this seemingly crude approach not only allowed for the rapid formation of the magical vortex but also possessed a resilience and explosive power previously unattainable. After more than a hundred years of refinement, this led to Lin Yun's current performance, which is almost akin to cheating. This seemingly crude approach not only allowed for the rapid formation of the magical vortex but also possessed a resilience and explosive power previously unattainable. After more than a hundred years of refinement, this led to Lin Yun's current performance, which is almost akin to cheating

In the blink of an eye, a vortex of magic formed within Lin Yun's body

However, Lin Yun does not have such issues

At the beginning, this flow appeared gentle and soothing, much like a babbling brook. However, as Lin Yun continued to urge it on, the magical power began to stir restlessly, boiling and surging, ultimately transforming into a rushing river, howling and churning, constantly battering against this new body

This has become much simpler

After ten minutes, Lin Yun was confident that his understanding of this body was no less than that of Ma Fa Merlin himself. Thus, he began to channel his magical power, which was already substantial. Under Lin Yun's powerful control, it flowed like water.

The more than twenty years of survival in the apocalypse have instilled in Lin Yun an almost fanatical belief in magical power. Without magical abilities, Lin Yun might not survive even an hour in that era. The ferocious sand beasts, the omnipresent high temperatures, and the void storms carrying lethal radiation—any one of these could easily claim Lin Yun's life.

Growing up in such an environment, Lin Yun's ability to control magical power far exceeds that of the current mages, and even surpasses what is possible in this era. What Mafa Merlin cannot achieve is, in Lin Yun's view, hardly worth mentioning

After the most meticulous examination, Lin Yun discovered that this young man named Ma Fa · Mei Lin was actually quite impressive. Although his status as a Level 9 Magic Apprentice is not particularly noteworthy, his foundation is remarkably solid. This is likely due to his genuine diligence, as his magical power has long reached the critical point for forming a magical vortex. The only reason he has not yet advanced to the rank of Mage is simply due to his insufficient control over his own magical power

Lin Yun was not concerned about the dire situation of this body, nor was he worried about the amount of debt incurred. Ultimately, it was still the inadequacy of a ninth-level magic apprentice's strength. If you, Ma Fa Merlin, were a great mage, who would dare to come to you with a contract worth eight thousand gold coins? ... Let alone eight thousand gold coins, even if it were eighty thousand gold coins, it would not matter; if you were willing to repay, there would still need to be someone bold enough to ask for it.

Lin Yun's control ability is so powerful that he does not need to deliberately do anything. He simply unleashes his magical power to the limit in one breath, allowing it to surge forth like a flood breaking through a dam, and then his body instinctively controls everything. The surging magical power appears violent, yet it consistently flows along the trajectory set by Lin Yun.

However, unexpectedly, Lin Yun was still hesitating when the male duck came right to the door. Suddenly, with a loud "bang," the door was pushed open, and a man weighing at least 300 pounds stumbled in, followed by an elderly man in his sixties. The two were pulling and tugging at each other, seemingly in the midst of an argument.

As the two were locked in a heated argument, Lin Yun, who was nearby, curiously asked, "How are you doing, Xiaoxin?"

This cycle, which is enough to leave any mage dumbfounded, lasted for more than ten times, and the fragile magical vortex finally stabilized completely

For an ordinary magic apprentice, this is the most perilous moment. Once the wildly surging magical power goes out of control, it can instantly engulf the magic apprentice. In less severe cases, the magical power may dissipate, necessitating a complete restart of accumulation; in more severe cases, it could even result in a lifelong loss of the hope to form a magical vortex.

What allowed Lin Yun to survive in that era was not a privileged family background, nor a grand future, but the genuine magical power firmly grasped in his hands

It is clearly written in black and white here that my dear cousin took 8,000 gold coins from me as an investment before going to sea. Now that he has ruined the business himself, you must give me an explanation regarding my 8,000 gold coins, right? Of course, I, Farlio, am not unreasonable. I understand that you do not have much money at the moment. How about this: the only asset you have left of value is this house. I will take a loss and offer you a discount of 10,000 gold coins. This way, you can settle my account and still have 2,000 gold coins left on hand

Lin Yun, however, was not in the least bit anxious; he merely urged his magical power once more, continuing to form a vortex of magic with that crude method alongside the *illustration* book, and then shattered under the impact of the overloading magical energy

In fact, it was not only Lin Yun; during that era of scarce magical energy, every mage was like this. They could endure the deadly radiation of the void storms, spending days and nights in the scorching desert, all for the sake of extracting just a meager amount of magical energy from the void.

Fario has always looked down on such claims. How could that kid possibly become a mage? He hasn't even considered how many gold coins he has spent from his family over the past few years. Does he even have the slightest semblance of becoming a mage?

In this era, only Lin Yun is capable of achieving this

However, Lin Yun showed no intention of stopping, as if he were completely unaware that the magic vortex had already formed. The magic power, which was already nearing its limit, was forcibly elevated once again. The newly formed magic vortex was inherently fragile, and under the impact of this nearly overloaded magic operation, it burst apart like a bubble with a "pop" sound.

As he waved his hand to disperse the swirling magical runes, Lin Yun was about to further refine the magic vortex when he suddenly heard a voice coming from outside

Once a magic apprentice reaches this stage, they essentially qualify to don the black robe. With just a little more time to stabilize the magical vortex completely, they can be said to have achieved their goal and successfully joined the ranks of wizards

However, very soon, Lin Yun cast these matters aside and shifted his focus to the strength of this body itself, which was what Lin Yun truly cared about

Lin Yun spent nearly ten minutes familiarizing himself with this brand new body