mtlumby2d Chapter 379: The Authenticity of Memories
Chapter 379: The Authenticity of Memories
After returning to the Elemental Tower, Li Wei first went to see Valen.
He was very curious about the relationship between Valen and Torresta.
If Torresta was the Legendary Witch Lich, then were the things Valen had said true or false?
Or perhaps the Legendary Witch Lich had been using Torresta’s identity all along to move among the Top Level Mage Towers.
And Torresta might not have been its only identity.
If the Illusion Technique came from the Legendary Witch Lich, then it could have created as many false identities as it wanted.
The Legendary Witch Lich had existed for hundreds of years, and no one knew how many people over these centuries were just Illusory Bodies it had disguised itself as.
The last time Li Wei came, Valen was out and not at the manor.
This time, Li Wei was finally able to see Valen.
"Master Valen, how much do you know about my teacher, Torresta?"
Li Wei asked Valen during dinner.
Valen stopped using his knife and fork, lost in thought.
"Why do you ask?"
Valen asked, a bit curious.
Li Wei said, "Because I’ve suddenly realized that he’s very mysterious."
He took out the Holy Emblem and placed it in front of Valen.
Li Wei said, "My teacher gave this to me. Was he once very familiar with the Divine Hall of Light?"
Valen was very surprised and astonished to see the Holy Emblem.
He picked it up and examined it to confirm its authenticity.
"Is this a Holy Emblem of Light? This is the first time I’ve seen one,"
Valen said.
Li Wei nodded. "Yes."
Valen was also surprised. "When did Torresta get this? How did I not know?"
He had heard about the significance of the Holy Emblem of Light.
He knew it wasn’t something an ordinary person could obtain.
According to rumor, the last Holy Emblem of Light was awarded fifty years ago by the Divine Hall of Light to a Legendary Warrior.
How did Torresta manage to obtain a Holy Emblem of Light so quietly?
Or could it be that he just picked it up from somewhere?
Valen returned the Holy Emblem of Light to Li Wei and said, "It’s been over ten years since I last saw your teacher. I’m not too clear on what he’s been doing all these years."
"Perhaps this is something he acquired during that time," Valen guessed.
When he said "acquired," he meant that the source was not the Divine Hall of Light.
If the Divine Hall of Light were to award a Holy Emblem of Light, it would definitely hold a grand ceremony to announce it to the world.
However, no new holders of the Holy Emblem of Light had appeared in all these years.
Therefore, this Holy Emblem of Light might have come from someone to whom the Divine Hall of Light had previously awarded it.
Li Wei put away the Holy Emblem of Light and said, "I want to understand more about my teacher. Can you tell me what happened when you two first met?"
Valen smiled and said, "Of course. If you’re willing to listen, I’m willing to talk."
"I’ve never told anyone else these things. Speaking of which, your teacher and I had quite a legendary story when we first met..."
"A long time ago, I was just a weak Mage..."
...
Li Wei and Valen talked for a long time.
Valen told Li Wei many interesting stories about his past experiences with Torresta.
Through Valen’s account, Li Wei gradually came to understand Torresta.
According to Valen’s stories, Torresta seemed to have been a young man with a very clear goal from the very beginning.
Once, a King’s daughter wanted to marry Torresta, but he refused her.
At the time, Valen and Torresta were not yet famous.
For a Princess to be willing to marry Torresta was undoubtedly a stroke of incredible luck, like a pie falling from the sky.
The King had even promised that if Torresta was willing to marry the Princess, he would fully support his Cultivation and make him the National Guardian Mage once he became powerful enough.
Unfortunately, Torresta refused.
From that moment on, Valen realized that Torresta was an ambitious young man with a very clear goal, one he would pursue with unwavering determination.
In Valen’s eyes, Torresta’s goal must have been to explore the Magic Truth.
To become the most powerful Mage.
And he had indeed been doing just that, growing from an ordinary Mage to entering the Illusion Spirit Tower and becoming a top Mage student.
He represented the Illusion Spirit Tower in exchanges with other Top Level Mage Towers across the land.
To further his Magic Knowledge.
Until something happened at the Elemental Tower.
That was when Torresta’s seemingly invincible trajectory finally changed course.
Acting completely out of character, he returned to the Illusion Spirit Tower only to immediately withdraw from it.
He traveled far away to the Northern Territory and established a Mage Tower.
More than ten years later, he even invited Valen to create a specialized Magic Butler to manage his Mage Tower.
He had once asked Torresta what had happened back then in the Elemental Tower.
But he received no answer.
It seemed Torresta had given up on his dream, confining himself to one place.
But Valen always felt that Torresta was still forging ahead on his own path, alone.
He believed Torresta hadn’t abandoned his dream.
It was just that he could no longer quite understand what Torresta’s dream was.
He couldn’t see what he was trying to do.
It was already midnight when Li Wei left the manor.
Valen was drunk.
It was the first time he had gotten drunk in front of Li Wei.
As he spoke of the past, old feelings were stirred up, and he couldn’t help but have a few drinks.
Some things could only be said after a little alcohol.
He was usually reluctant to speak of them.
Li Wei walked down the street. The cold wind blew past, and with a sudden shiver, he sobered up considerably.
He had also had a few drinks with Valen.
The cold wind lessened the effects of the alcohol.
His mind started working again.
’It seems now that the experiences Valen and Torresta shared were most likely real, not memories implanted in him by the Legendary Witch Lich.’
’It would be easy to verify the truth of these things with a little investigation.’
’For instance, the story about the Princess of a certain kingdom...’
Li Wei had initially suspected that Valen’s memories might have been tampered with.
For a Dream Weaver, modifying another person’s memories wasn’t a difficult task.
Now, it seemed highly likely that Valen’s memories were real.
In that case, it meant the Legendary Witch Lich had been operating in the outside world using Torresta’s identity all along.
Li Wei felt that if he dug deeper, he would definitely find more suspicious figures in history.
The Legendary Witch Lich likely had far more than one false identity.
’It seems now that the Legendary Witch Lich is not Torresta, but Torresta is the Legendary Witch Lich.’
Li Wei still had no idea who the Legendary Witch Lich truly was.
He thought of something.
Back when the Undead Army attacked the Floating City.
Li Wei had heard some rumors about the Legendary Witch Lich.
Hundreds of years ago, the Legendary Witch Lich might have been a certain Legendary Level Mage from the Elemental Tower.
That Mage had even met with a Fire Element Elder from the Fire Elemental Plane.
A flicker of understanding crossed his eyes, and he looked up toward the highest point of the Elemental Tower.
’There had to be someone inside the Elemental Tower who knew the Legendary Witch Lich.’
Li Wei had a faint feeling in his heart.
So far, Li Wei could count the number of high-ranking members of the Elemental Tower he had met on one hand.
The Grand Elder was one.
He had exchanged a few words with the Hall Master and Vice Hall Master of the Hall of Truth.
He had seen a certain Vice Tower Master of the Elemental Tower in a dream.
It was only a glimpse from afar, yet he had been invited by that person to join the Elemental Tower’s dream.