Female Assassin

The Ice Leopard, now free, did not pursue the two individuals but instead lunged directly at Jialan.

Facing the charging Ice Leopard, Jialan remained calm and composed. One of the fundamental qualities of a Spellcaster was to maintain absolute composure in any unexpected situation.

He was now holding a red Scroll, which had appeared in his hand at some point. With a gentle squeeze, a faint red wave of fire swept outwards from him in all directions. Wherever the fire wave passed, the Ice Leopard was thrown backward as if hitting an invisible wall, tumbling awkwardly several times on the snow.

The Scroll Jialan had just used was called "Resist Fire Ring." It had taken him eight or nine failed attempts to successfully create it. Defensive Scrolls were already in high demand, and their market price would never be less than 50 Jintana.

Jialan was also pushed back by the spell's recoil, feeling a pang of pain in his heart. "This is a huge loss."

While thinking this, his hands didn't stop. A dark seed was flicked towards the Ice Leopard's feet. The seed grew rapidly at the Ice Leopard's feet, growing into a vine as thick as a child's arm in an instant, firmly binding the Ice Leopard's limbs.

The vine was covered in sharp thorns, causing the Ice Leopard to bleed all over.

Once again restrained, the Ice Leopard roared in fury. It opened its mouth, intending to use its innate magic again. How could Jialan allow it to repeat its trick? His Mental Power transformed into a sharp sword, piercing fiercely into the Ice Leopard's sea of consciousness.

After all, the Ice Leopard was a Magic Beast. Its Mental Power could not compare to a Spellcaster's. It let out a muffled groan, and dark red blood trickled from its nose. Its innate magic was forcibly interrupted.

Jialan was also not doing well. Several consecutive, non-stop spell casts, coupled with the recent Mental Pierce, caused his mental space to vibrate violently.

The spell "Mental Pierce" was a relative one; it harmed both the caster and the target. If the target's Mental Power was stronger than the caster's, they would be in grave danger. The caster's Mental Power would rebound, causing a fractured sea of consciousness in mild cases, and rendering them an idiot in severe cases.

Events had unfolded too quickly. Ike and the other person had only just returned to Jialan's side and supported his swaying form.

With no time to rest, taking advantage of the Ice Leopard's momentary daze, Jialan forced himself to concentrate and quickly chanted a spell. He raised his Staff again, the runes on the staff glowing. A "Frost Ray" shot out from the blue gem on the staff's tip. This was the Tier 1 Spell with the strongest penetration power.

With a "poof" sound, it pierced the Ice Leopard's skull. The egg-sized wound was frozen over with frost, not even a drop of blood flowing out.

On the other side, the smaller Ice Leopard darted left and right within the encirclement. The Warriors skillfully used Shield Wall to block its escape routes, while archers occasionally fired cold arrows to keep it in check. What annoyed it the most was the elusive fat rogue, who inflicted a new wound on it every time he appeared.

The death of its mate caused the surviving Ice Leopard to let out a mournful cry. Violent ice elemental energy formed a frost force field with a diameter of ten meters around it. The Warriors who came into contact with this force field found their bodies seemingly frozen, their speed gradually slowing down.

This is indeed a mutated Ice Leopard. A normal Ice Leopard wouldn't have a second innate ability, Jialan thought to himself.

The situation seemed grim. The Warriors at the front were clearly slowing down, and it wouldn't be long before the Ice Leopard escaped the encirclement.

With the situation critical, Jialan endured the stinging pain in his mental sea, raised his Staff, and began chanting again. As the chant continued, an Ice Crystal Spear slowly formed above his right hand.

Seeing this, the Ice Leopard was terrified. It no longer held back its internal ice elemental energy and opened its mouth, unleashing an Ice Blade that slashed fiercely towards Jialan from a distance.

At the same time, Jialan's spell was ready. With a wave of his right hand, the Ice Crystal Spear met the incoming attack. The two forces were locked in a stalemate in mid-air.

Seizing this opportunity, the Tavern Owner's eyes lit up. He re-entered stealth, and when he reappeared, a Dagger had already been thrust quickly and ruthlessly into the Ice Leopard's neck.

The Ice Leopard let out a painful roar, instantly losing control of its Ice Blade. The Ice Crystal Spear easily pierced through it, then continued with undiminished force to pierce the Ice Leopard's head. The Ice Leopard shuddered and fell, unwilling to accept its fate.

Jialan collapsed onto the ground. The last spell had drained the last bit of Mental Power from his mental space. Before falling into deep meditation, he only had time to instruct his guards to maintain vigilance.

When he woke up again, two hours had passed. Although his Mental Power had not fully recovered, they were in the wilderness now and dared not linger for too long.

At the same time, he was pleasantly surprised to discover that the intense battle had caused his Mental Power to surge significantly. His Mana, which hadn't increased for a long time, had also improved, and he was not far from reaching Intermediate Tier 1.

Suppressing the joy in his heart, he slowly opened his eyes and couldn't help but freeze.

Sitting on a rock not far away was a woman in black leather armor with a beautiful face, staring at him thoughtfully.

Looking around, the members of the Hurricane Mercenary Group and his two guards looked as if they were facing a formidable enemy. Seeing him wake up, the woman in leather armor shifted her gaze to the Spatial Bag on his waist.

"Are you a Mage from the military?" Her voice was clear but her tone was very cold.

"I graduated from the Imperial Magic and Martial Arts School and am currently serving in the military." Jialan didn't know why she asked this and could only answer honestly.

The woman in leather armor looked Jialan up and down again and sneered, "The school has talent like you? A Spellcaster dares to exhaust all their Mental Power in the wilderness and even enter deep meditation? Didn't your mentor teach you wilderness survival rules?"

Jialan gave an awkward smile, muttering, afraid to explain. He also felt relieved inwardly. It seemed this woman was also a student of the Imperial Magic and Martial Arts School.

At the Longsheng Empire's Magic and Martial Arts School, the magic department had the smallest number of students, as people with spellcasting talent were truly rare.

The largest department was the Warrior department, followed by Knights, Assassins, Archers, Hunters, and even Priests. Any combat profession that existed on the continent could be found there, as this academy was specifically established to train combat talent for the empire.

Seeing Jialan remain silent, the woman in leather armor snorted again. She took a wooden box from her backpack and opened it. Inside was the Nishang Grass from the cave.

"I've been staying here for three or four days for this Nishang Grass. If I hadn't been unable to defeat those two beasts, it wouldn't have been your turn. I finally managed to make a move when the male one went out today, but you showed up. I guess I'm just unlucky!"

As she spoke, she took out a money bag and tossed it to Jialan. "How about this? As a Spellcaster, you're probably familiar with alchemy... I'll take this Nishang Grass. This one is of good quality and should yield three or four doses of potion. Considering you're my junior, I won't take advantage of you. Nishang Potion is very important to me, so you must leave one dose for me. As compensation, here is one hundred Jintana to cover your spellcasting losses."

Jialan took the money bag, blinking. This woman was decisive and had a straightforward personality. After thinking about it, he didn't feel he was at a disadvantage. Anyway, one could only consume Nishang Potion once in a lifetime, so it didn't matter who he sold it to. This senior's strength was unfathomable, and owing her a favor was also good.