Jialan climbed onto the city wall, and the sight before him made him suck in a sharp breath. Under the moonlight, countless magical beasts surged toward the walls like a tide, their eyes glowing scarlet in the darkness. The soldiers formed defenses around warriors who possessed battle aura at every key position. Under their commanders' orders, the archers at the rear sent wave after wave of arrows raining down below the wall.
"Lord Mage!" An officer hurried over. "We need your support. We're counting on you to deal with the troublesome magical beasts, especially the ones in the air!"
Jialan had long noticed the dozens of massive Flying Magic Beasts circling in the night sky. Their wingspans stretched several meters wide, and their sharp claws gleamed coldly beneath the moonlight.
Albert's expression darkened. "Whenever aerial magical beasts join a siege, it means the situation is already serious. Flying Magic Beasts are the elite among magical beasts and normally would not be deployed so easily."
The old mage quickly surveyed the area and made a decision. "Anna, go with those battle aura warriors to support the other areas. Remember, prioritize treating the wounded. Don't act rashly. Jialan, stay on this section of the wall and provide support. I'll head to somewhere more urgent."
Anna nodded and hurried away under the protection of several battle aura warriors. Albert then turned to Jialan. "Remember, don't overestimate yourself. Your task is to assist in the defense, not play the hero."
With that, the old mage disappeared into the chaos atop the city wall.
Jialan took a deep breath, casting Mental Revelation and Arrow Protection on himself before walking over to the two mage apprentices on the wall. They both looked young, around Jialan's age, and their faces were filled with anxiety. When they sensed the mana fluctuations of a formal mage from him, a trace of delight immediately flashed in their eyes, and they hurriedly lowered their heads in salute.
"Sir!" the two apprentices called out together, their voices filled with obvious respect and anticipation.
Jialan studied them carefully. Both were High Mage apprentices dressed in gray mage robes. One radiated intense Fire Element energy and was clearly of the fire element; the other surged with earth element energy and was likely of the earth element.
"Why are there only two of you?" Jialan asked with a frown. "I remember the fortress having at least four or five formal mages."
The two apprentices exchanged glances. The fire-element apprentice hesitated before answering, "The lords have other matters to handle. The spellcasters stationed on the walls now are all apprentices. No one knows what happened today, but the magical beasts' attack is much fiercer than it was in the previous days. Otherwise, they wouldn't have gone to invite lords who had only just arrived at the fortress."
Jialan's frown deepened. He recalled the heavily guarded areas within the fortress, places that even high-ranking officers needed special permission to enter. Clearly, this fortress concealed many unknown secrets, and those formal mages were likely handling something important.
Jialan was about to continue asking about the battle when a cry of alarm suddenly erupted ahead. He turned and saw a gigantic black bear, standing as tall as two people, already climbing onto the city wall. Dense yellow earth element energy shrouded its entire body, and its fur was covered in armor like solid rock.
"It's an Intermediate Peak Rock Armor Bear!" the fire-element apprentice cried out. "This kind of magical beast has incredibly strong defenses. Ordinary attacks can't hurt it at all!"
Just as the apprentice had said, the Rock Armor Bear charged wildly across the wall, and soldiers scattered everywhere it went. Several battle aura warriors tried to stop it, but several were killed or injured in the blink of an eye.
"We can't let it keep destroying the defensive line!" Jialan said sharply. "You two, help me hold it back!"
The two apprentices immediately sprang into action. The fire-element apprentice began chanting, launching a string of fireballs at the Rock Armor Bear to draw its attention. The earth-element apprentice cast a gravity spell, trying to slow the magical beast down.
Jialan took a deep breath and formed hand seals. Runes surged within his eyes as icy-blue light gathered at his fingertips, and the surrounding temperature suddenly plummeted.
"Frost Ray!" Jialan shouted, sending an extremely cold beam toward the Rock Armor Bear.
With the cooperation of the two apprentices, the Frost Ray struck the Rock Armor Bear squarely in the head. This highly penetrating spell unexpectedly failed to pierce its skull. Instead, the frigid ice element rapidly spread and froze its head. The Rock Armor Bear let out a pained roar. No one dared approach within four or five meters of it, but its movements visibly slowed.
"Again!" Jialan shouted. The two apprentices immediately increased their mana output.
Under Jialan's precise control, the second Frost Ray struck the same spot on the Rock Armor Bear's head. This time, it pierced straight through its skull. Its enormous body crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
The surrounding soldiers erupted into cheers, their gazes toward Jialan filled with awe and envy. However, before they could breathe a sigh of relief, sharp cries rang out from the sky again.
"Flying Magic Beasts!" someone shouted.
Jialan looked up and saw more than a dozen enormous Flying Magic Beasts diving down. Now that they were closer, he could see them more clearly. They resembled giant eagles, but were far larger, with wingspans of five or six meters. Their feathers were an unnatural dark red, gleaming eerily beneath the moonlight.
The archers fired desperately. Aside from the few archers who possessed battle aura, no one else's arrows could penetrate the Flying Magic Beasts' hides. The arrows struck the beasts with a clattering sound before falling helplessly to the ground.
We have to deal with them first, Jialan thought. He knew that if these Flying Magic Beasts were not dealt with quickly, the defensive line atop the wall would soon collapse.
"You two," Jialan said to the mage apprentices beside him, "use fireballs or fire bursts to disrupt their flight. You, keep an eye on the magical beasts below the wall. If any climb up, work with the soldiers to hold them back."
The two apprentices nodded and immediately got to work. The fire-element apprentice began chanting, firing clusters of fireballs into the sky. Though they could not inflict substantial damage on the Flying Magic Beasts, they successfully disrupted their flight paths. Meanwhile, the earth-element apprentice began reinforcing the city wall to prevent magical beasts from breaking through from below.
Jialan pulled his staff from his Spatial Bag and began gathering mana. His left hand rapidly formed seals as he muttered an incantation. As the chant continued, the surrounding temperature dropped sharply, and tiny ice crystals began condensing in the air.
"Ring of Ice Seal!" Jialan shouted. An icy-blue halo spread outward from him. Wherever it passed, moisture in the air rapidly condensed, forming a region of icy mist. This was an upgraded version of the Ice Mist Technique. In the past, his mana had been insufficient to cast this large-scale spell.
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