Chapter 016: The Whole Story

Bard was waiting for exactly those words from Wang Bo.

He had ideas but lacked the funds and food, so he hoped for Wang Bo's support. With funding and food, Bard could put his plans into action.

He thumped his chest and said to Wang Bo, "Thank you for your help. My family and I will be loyal to you for generations, my king."

Wang Bo stayed in Riverdale, experiencing the exotic customs of the fantasy world with Little White.

But a few days later, a dwarf came to Riverdale, found Wang Bo, and told him that an old friend of his had arrived.

Wang Bo had to leave Riverdale and return to the Lonely Mountain with Little White.

Back at the Lonely Mountain, Wang Bo saw a wizard in white robes standing in the great hall, waiting for him.

"Gandalf, how did you become the White Wizard!"

Yes, the old friend the dwarf spoke of was none other than the famous melee wizard of Middle-earth, Gandalf the Grey.

But what surprised Wang Bo was that in just a few months, Gandalf had gone from Grey to White.

Of course, Wang Bo knew that Gandalf would become the White Wizard.

But that was supposed to happen after Gandalf perished with the Balrog, and after Saruman the White was corrupted by Sauron, leading to Gandalf's promotion by his creator.

That was an event during the War of the Ring.

Something that would happen decades later.

But now, Gandalf had suddenly become the White Wizard, startling Wang Bo.

"Welcome back to Middle-earth, Your Majesty."

After seeing Wang Bo, Gandalf remained respectful, not becoming arrogant due to his promotion, his attitude largely unchanged.

In response to Wang Bo's confusion, Gandalf said, "I was promoted to the White Wizard two months ago."

"Two months ago?" Wang Bo immediately thought of the event two months ago when Ilúvatar's two fingers crushed a ten-thousand-meter-tall demon giant.

"You mean you were promoted during that incident?"

"Yes." Gandalf did not beat around the bush and admitted it directly.

Wang Bo asked curiously, "What exactly happened two months ago? Why were you promoted to White? And what about Saruman the White? What happened to him?"

Gandalf made a calming gesture, took a puff of his pipe, and said, "Won't you offer me a cup of black tea?"

Wang Bo couldn't help but laugh. "Of course."

Then the two moved to the observation deck. Wang Bo brought out a table and chairs and conjured a steaming, fragrant cup of black tea for Gandalf.

"Your Majesty's black tea is as good as ever," Gandalf praised after taking a sip.

Wang Bo said nothing, staring intently at Gandalf, eager to know what had happened two months ago and why Gandalf had suddenly become the White Wizard.

Gandalf took a puff of his pipe and said, "It's a long story, Your Majesty. Please let me tell it to you slowly."

Wang Bo nodded slightly, listening attentively.

Although Gandalf said it was a long story, it was not as complicated as expected.

From Gandalf's account, Wang Bo quickly learned the whole story.

That day, Gandalf had invited Wang Bo to explore the Misty Mountains in search of the Balrog.

Wang Bo gladly accepted, entered the Misty Mountains, found the exit, located the Balrog, and after killing it, discovered that the Balrog did not possess evil energy.

So the two parted ways.

Wang Bo returned to the Lonely Mountain, gave the Balrog's weapon, brain, and heart to the dwarves, and had them forge the Balrog Armor.

Meanwhile, Gandalf went to Rivendell, convened the White Council, and held a meeting.

The members of the White Council all respected Gandalf enough to attend the meeting.

In the council chamber, Gandalf recounted his findings to the assembly, emphasizing the matter of the evil energy, which was even more dangerous than Sauron.

But the problem was that without evidence, few were willing to believe Gandalf.

In particular, the head of the White Council, Saruman the White, dismissed Gandalf's words with contempt.

This was normal. Saruman was one of the most well-known Maiar, with greater power than Gandalf, but he was arrogant and had been jealous of Gandalf even before coming to Middle-earth.

The main reason was that he knew Gandalf's strength, realizing that although Gandalf was inferior to him now, he might surpass him in the future, which fueled his jealousy.

So in the White Council, he had always been排斥 Gandalf.

This time, when Gandalf came claiming that a danger greater than Sauron had appeared in Middle-earth, Saruman naturally did not believe him and instead thought Gandalf was lying.

However, in the White Council, most people knew Gandalf's character well.

So no one thought Gandalf would lie about this, especially with the support of the Elf Queen Galadriel. The assembly ultimately decided to search for the evil force Gandalf had mentioned.

But their search yielded no results.

No one found any trace of this evil force.

Thus, some began to waver, thinking Gandalf might have been hallucinating.

Saruman, in particular, believed Gandalf was just grandstanding.

Left with no choice, Gandalf decided to go to Valinor.

By the way, Valinor is another name for Aman, meaning the Land of the Valar, the territory of the Valar in Aman. Aman means... the Blessed Realm!

The Valar, the gods of this world, dwell in Aman.

Gandalf decided to seek the help of the gods, as he could not ignore that evil force.

But when he announced his decision at the White Council, Saruman suddenly turned hostile, killing Gandalf outright. However, Gandalf was a Maia; though his body died, his soul was immortal.

He clearly saw that after killing him, Saruman went on a rampage, intending to eliminate all members of the White Council.

Led by Galadriel, none of the members had expected Saruman to strike at Gandalf. They only reacted after Gandalf's death, demanding to know why Saruman had killed him.

But Saruman, without regard for anything, sought to kill everyone.

They were no match for Saruman, even united, because Saruman had mastered a new power—a terrifying evil force.

Only then did Gandalf realize that Saruman had long been controlled by the evil force.

The one who controlled Saruman had bided his time, only forced to act when Gandalf sought the help of the gods. He did not want the gods to interfere in Middle-earth's affairs.

He decided to kill everyone in the White Council and cover up the matter.

After discovering this, Gandalf's soul, with the help of the others, returned to Aman and met Manwë. However, when Manwë intervened personally, he was far from a match for Saruman.