Chapter 254 – Vedrasha (Four)

In this year, during the twilight of the Netherese Civilization, Hassan “Distant Skyfire” publicly designated three talented Master-Level Casters as his successors, among whom was the relatively unknown Vedrasha.

Hassan’s criteria for selecting disciples could be summed up in one word—compromise—but crucially, Vedrasha remained unaware of this fact.

Vedrasha, who had nearly abandoned hope for his future, felt the flames of “dreams” reignite within him. He secretly believed he might truly possess the talent to become a Grand Arcanist; otherwise, why would a Legendary Expert like Hassan take notice of him?

Driven by visions of a glorious future, Vedrasha rediscovered his motivation to study diligently. No longer forced forward or merely killing time with casual reading, the now Level 19 Vedrasha pushed himself relentlessly toward his dream of “becoming Legendary.”

He followed Hassan in learning every detail of magical knowledge, earnestly emulating methods he had observed from his own apprentices to acquire resources at any cost. Without hesitation, he returned to the Battlefield, where life-and-death struggles completely cured him of his recklessness. He soon demonstrated a natural aptitude for combat, amassing precious resources one after another under the patronage of his Archmage mentor.

Thus, Vedrasha surged toward the Legendary realm at a pace that even astonished his mentor Hassan. A millennium later, this initially overlooked mage—Vedrasha—defied expectations and truly advanced to Legendary status, becoming that one-in-a-million Legendary Caster known as a Grand Arcanist!

Even after achieving Legendary status, Vedrasha never slackened in his studies. In every plane he battled across, he meticulously gathered all available knowledge about them, and he spent his entire fortune to acquire the wisdom of Netherese Civilization. Over time, this once-unremarkable Grand Arcanist gradually earned the title of “Scholar,” a name he lived up to with his profound erudition.

As Vedrasha’s Legendary journey stabilized, his mentor Hassan “Distant Skyfire” gradually succumbed to worsening illness.

By this time, Vedrasha’s two senior brothers had died after exhausting their lifespans without reaching Legendary rank. Hassan himself felt little attachment to Netherese Civilization, and the dying Archmage never considered bequeathing his Floating City to the Council of Archmages like many of his peers.

In the end, resentful that the Council had watched his condition deteriorate without intervention, Hassan willed all his possessions—including the Floating City “City of Distant Skies”—to Vedrasha.

Thus, Vedrasha effortlessly acquired a Floating City of his own. Its possession marked his formal entry into the ranks of Netherese Civilization’s Grand Arcanists, and his title naturally evolved into the later-familiar epithet: “Far-Sky Scholar.”Before becoming a Grand Arcanist, Vedrasha’s life, though marked by some regrets, could generally be considered smooth sailing. At the very least, he stumbled into becoming an apprentice to a Legendary Mage and, after advancing to the Legendary rank, inadvertently inherited a Floating City as his legacy. Compared to those mages who spent their entire lives scrambling for a few Netheril Gold Coins, Vedrasha’s experiences could already be called the template of a protagonist in a power fantasy.

However, perhaps Vedrasha had exhausted his good fortune over the previous two thousand years, for his subsequent journey as a Grand Arcanist was anything but smooth.

The reason for Vedrasha’s misfortune was simple: the most terrifying enemy since Netheril’s existence—the phaerimm of Faerûn—had invaded.

Just as the gods’ defeat seemed inevitable and Netherese Civilization was on the verge of transcending the Multiverse, the dreadful phaerimm suddenly emerged from every Corner of the Multiverse.

These horrifying monsters were not only absurdly powerful but also innumerable and inexhaustible. Wielding countless rule-erasing tentacles, they devoured every soul in their path, shattered planes, and slaughtered all life!

Most terrifying of all, these mindless creatures held no interest in the gods; each one was solely fixated on hunting down Grand Arcanists.

Thanks to these phaerimm, the gods who had been trembling in their God Realms now had a group of fearless “meat shields.” They unexpectedly joined forces with the phaerimm to launch a counterattack against Netherese Civilization.

Within just a few centuries, the once-decisive victory of Netherese Civilization vanished entirely. Even with their supposedly “invincible” Floating Cities, the Grand Arcanists were forced to retreat repeatedly under the phaerimm’s relentless assault until finally… there was nowhere left to retreat!

During this period, Grand Arcanists—who might not have fallen once in tens of thousands of years—died one after another on the Battlefield. Floating Cities, once mighty enough to shake the River of Fate, plummeted from the Astral Plane. Dazzling Magic Labyrinths were torn to shreds, and formidable mage legions were utterly annihilated!

In just a thousand years, the once-glorious Netherese Civilization teetered on the brink of defeat.

By this point, nearly every Grand Arcanist recognized the inevitability of failure. They knew it was all the work of their sworn enemy—Ao.

Faced with this tragic fate, some chose to fight with their backs against the wall, others hid away in some remote Corner, and still others dedicated their remaining strength to preserving a legacy for future generations, hoping that heirs in the distant future would unleash a magnificent vengeance upon the Multiverse in the name of Netheril’s glory.

The reason for this vengeance was simple: no longer for gain, but for “spite”—”If I’m going down, I’m taking you with me!”

Vedrasha, who had lost his mentor’s most important legacy—the Floating City “City of Distant Skies”—in the war, became a staunch supporter of the Vengeance Faction. As he put it:

“Even if it’s useless, we have to make Ao suffer. We can’t let him wrap this up all happily. Isn’t there a saying? Even a dying rabbit knows to splash blood in its enemy’s face!”Driven by this somewhat childish yet profoundly human notion, these Grand Arcanists who refused to hide and entrust their hopes to luck hastily left behind a staggering seventy billion inheritance bases. Concealed within the crevices of space and time through various spells, the sheer number of these bases maximized their chances of evading post-war purges!

Reignited with fervent passion, the “Far-Sky Scholar” volunteered to leave behind his memories as an introductory guide for future successors… and, of course, as an initial trial!

However, even the lifetime knowledge of a Grand Arcanist bearing the title “Far-Sky Scholar” represented merely a fraction of the Netherese Civilization’s wisdom. What Vedrasha learned in his life was but a portion of this legacy, as more precious knowledge remained sealed within the mysterious “Netheril Scrolls.” To obtain the complete inheritance, successors would need to meet certain strength requirements before gaining access.

(End of Chapter)