Arcane: Twin Cities Mechanic

The timing of Eldred and his associates' scheming coincided almost exactly with Li Lin's research on world runes within the underground palace of the Forbidden Stone Forest.

Using "Data Mind" to delve into the essence of the world runes had drained his mental energy significantly. After just a glance at the sorcery keystone rune "Phase Rush," he had to stop, unable to go further.

After a brief rest, Li Lin decided to halt his research on the world runes for the time being.

Given his current mental and physical strength, as Zoë had mentioned, using the world runes should be feasible, yet probing deeper into their origins presented a considerable challenge.

Even with the boost from his system, it was still the case.

Li Lin had come to understand that the "Mechanic" system was, in fact, the final gift from his homeworld, possibly with some influence from the lands of the runes.

When confronted by entities of similar or higher origin-level power, however, the system's capabilities seemed limited.

All in all, even with this golden advantage, survival in this chaotic, dangerous world still required his own efforts…

When Li Lin regained his composure, he informed Ryze about categorizing all the world runes by color, and together, they discussed their next moves.

He planned to deploy a squad of battlefield mechas, Skarner, and the airborne Storm Mecha to guard this area so that Ryze could search for the world runes without worrying about "home" being left vulnerable.

Ryze, meanwhile, would venture out alone to locate the different world runes.

But this time, he would use Hex Gates for faster travel.

In case of any emergencies, he had a nano pendant from Li Lin to call for backup.

This unexpected difficulty in examining the world rune properties had come as a surprise to Li Lin, and with several hours still left until dawn, he was considering inviting Ryze to rest in the grand capital for the night. After all, a thousand years of wandering had been exhausting for the old mage.

Yet, after some thought, he realized that Ryze allowing him to approach the world runes was already a significant compromise.

Now, with Li Lin's support, finding the remaining world runes was his top priority.

Then, Zoë opened a portal to Ionia, targeting a location in the province of Ralin, Sona's homeland.

Though Li Lin had never spent time in Ionia, a sense of familiarity washed over him, stirring memories from deep within.

After a moment of reflection, he looked to Ryze. "Is this where your scroll's signal points?"

"Indeed. But its exact location… I only know it's somewhere within this mountain."

After a pause, Ryze pointed to the towering peaks ahead.

"The changes since my last visit here are staggering. I can sense that the spiritual field has been disturbed by the chaos of war—the mountain spirits are angry, and entering the mountains might not be wise."

"The Shirana Monastery is up there, isn't it? It's a sacred site in Ralin. Perhaps the monks can assist you."

And perhaps, he might even find the blind monk, Lee Sin, who channels the power of the dragon.

Li Lin added silently to himself.

Suddenly, an idea flashed across his mind, and he shifted his gaze to Zoë, who was humming an unknown tune while floating in midair, eating ice cream.

"Zoë…"

Before he could finish, Zoë had already blinked to his side, stuffing the rest of her cone into her mouth and mumbling, "I'm listening!"

"Don't eat so fast; you might choke."

Once Zoë had swallowed the ice cream and hastily wiped her mouth with her little hand…

Li Lin sighed and, with a piece of nano-material from his suit, turned it into a handkerchief to clean the ice cream smudge from her face.

Zoë's smile grew even brighter.

"Can you sense the world rune's location?"

"The balance between the physical and spiritual realms here has already been disrupted—the wild magic is interfering with my senses."

Zoë's answer disappointed Li Lin.

"Wait… She can still sense the presence of world runes?" Ryze asked in surprise.

"Of course!" Zoë grinned mischievously, cutting in before Li Lin could speak. "Another world rune isn't too far from here."

"There's another rune nearby?!" Ryze's expression shifted from shock to excitement. "Where is it?"

Zoë stuck her tongue out at him, teasing, "Hmph~~ I'm not telling you. That's a gift I want to give to Li Lin."

"Zoë…" Li Lin reached out, gently squeezing her soft, delicate face. "Come on, tell Ryze. Collecting all the world runes will help us, too."

Zoë's eyes sparkled with mischief, a sly grin spreading across her face. "I might—if you give me a kiss!"

"This…"

Li Lin glanced at Ryze, only to see he had already turned away, as if giving them ample privacy.

"..."

Li Lin fell silent, unsure how to react. Under Zoe's expectant gaze, he wrapped his arm around her slender waist and gave her soft, cherry-red lips a light peck.

Their faces parted, but she let out a dissatisfied murmur, "Mm! Not enough!"

"What do you mean, not enough? Weren't you just kissing me like this last night?"

"No, no. I just remembered, you and Caitlyn didn't kiss like that!"

"…"

Li Lin paused, glancing at Ryze, who had taken a few steps away. An awkward expression appeared on his face.

"Ahem… Don't mind me," Ryze's raspy voice only made things more uncomfortable for Li Lin.

"Zoe, don't throw a fit right now…"

"Throw a fit? Aren't we a couple? What's wrong with kissing?"

Zoe's words were so reasonable even she believed them.

"If you don't kiss me, I… I won't tell you where the World Rune is!"

"Alright, little girl, you asked for it!"

Li Lin leaned down again, meeting Zoe's closed eyes.

It was a good few seconds before he pulled away, and Zoe's cheeks were flushed as she tried to catch her breath.

"That was... a bit much. Let me catch my breath…"

She straightened up with his support, but her steps were wobbly, as if her energy had been drained. Of course, with her Twilight Aspect's resilience, she wouldn't be physically affected; it was purely a reaction from her emotions.

Li Lin placed a kiss on her forehead. "Alright, you little rascal. Can you tell me where that World Rune is now?"

"Mm-hmm!"

With a birdlike gesture, she nestled her face into his chest, looking up at him with affectionate eyes.

"The World Rune should be a Keystone, but I'm not entirely sure what kind."

Hearing her mention the World Rune, Ryze turned back to them, his expression serious.

"It's on the island south of here, across the sea, near a human settlement."

"The southern island is Oulin Province. It's rugged and not heavily populated," Li Lin added.

Ryze nodded, familiar with nearly all of Ionia, including Oulin Province.

But Zoe blinked, her mismatched eyes brimming with curiosity.

"What surprised me the most is that this World Rune is unusual. Its energy is exceptionally clear, but I can't seem to open a portal directly to it, almost like it's disrupting my powers."

"That's not unusual for a World Rune. If it's as you say, then it may indeed be a Keystone Rune," Ryze agreed.

Li Lin nodded. "If this Keystone Rune is on these primal lands, it's likely a Sorcery Rune."

He looked at Ryze, who was deep in thought. "Are you sure you don't need our help? We could find and bring back that Keystone Rune."

"No need. Protecting these Runes is my duty. It's better I handle it alone."

"Alright, then."

Li Lin understood. Ever since the death of his student, Kegan Rodhe, this "stubborn old man" had changed significantly, so he didn't push any further.

"I've summoned a supply unit, fully stocked, floating a thousand meters overhead. There's enough food to last you a little over two months."

"You just need to place the pendant on your temple and think of the word 'goggles.' It will turn into a monocle that shows you the supply unit above. I explained before how to summon it down."

Li Lin quickly briefed Ryze on the provisions. "When you reach one of the Hex Gate towers, you can call it down and let the staff refill it."

"And you don't need to worry about payment. This will go on my tab, part of my support for you."

Ryze took out the pendant, placing it against his temple as Li Lin had instructed, and closed his eyes.

In less than a minute, a familiar machine swiftly descended from the sky, hovering in front of him.

Ryze reached out and touched the machine's cold, metallic surface, feeling a strange mix of emotions. "I don't even know how to thank you…"

Zoe had already opened a portal back to the capital.

"No thanks needed," Li Lin said with a smile as he stepped into the portal. "After all, we both have the same goal: protecting this world… don't we?" 

(End of Chapter)

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