Clash, Second Round

The "leading figures" of the six major wizarding forces are all wizards whose mental power cultivation has reached level three, but this does not mean that there are only six Third Level Wizards in this competition.

In fact, whether it's the Thunder Council, the Crimson Tower, or even the Black Nightmare Swamp and the Molten Crystal Lake, there are more than one Third Level Wizard genius.

They were also the focus of this competition, and compared with the "leaders" of their respective forces, they were only slightly inferior in combat power and talent.

The atmosphere only truly heated up when the first Third Level Wizard genius appeared, and the topics and discussions that Ronan had stirred up earlier were quickly overshadowed.

The duel between level two members was not the real highlight of this competition; the main competition among the various factions was between members at level three and above.

The first round of thirty matches lasted from the brightest starlight until Dawn, culminating in a clash between two Third Level Wizard geniuses.

One of the opposing sides was a Third Level Wizard genius named "Gatuso" from the Black Nightmare Swamp. This person seemed to have been famous for a long time and had a considerable reputation among the second-level wizards of several major forces. Ronan kept hearing people around him mention various things about Gatuso.

Gatuso's opponent was the Silver Magic Ring's top genius—"Four-Colored Metal" Orian.

The four originally independent Fighting Arena are now completely occupied by a dense stream of blue light emanating from one of the arenas.

These pale blue lights were different from the feeling of ice spells; instead, they were closer to the color of phosphorescent fire in the graveyard. They seemed to be alive, hovering above the four Fighting Arena, and each gathering and dispersing gave people a strong sense of unease.

Clad in a long black robe, Gatuso, with a deep and gloomy aura, stood in the center of the countless blue lights. In his right hand, he held a strangely shaped black staff, which was short and resembled the skinned and dried corpse of a six-legged lizard.

The almost continuous blue light emanating from its body came from the eyes of the lizard corpse that held the strange staff.

"[[Tide of Calamity Spirits]]!"

Gatuso uttered strange incantation syllables, and under his control, countless blue lights hovering in the sky surged wildly toward a certain position in the center of the battle.

There stood Orian, his pale golden hair flowing like light. A massive energy field surrounded him, and the field combined to form a huge green crystal energy body, shimmering with a dazzling luster that was almost tangible, perfectly enveloping Orian.

"[[Four-Colored - Emerald Crystal]]!"

"Bang bang bang—"

A large amount of blue light continuously impacted the huge green energy crystal, producing a series of sounds that were either dull or crisp, but it could not penetrate the surface of the crystal.

A powerful aura emanated from Orian, his expression calm, as he walked step by step towards Gatuso, facing the surging blue light.

The latter's eyes were gloomy. After realizing that the spells could not break through Orian's defenses, he immediately waved the staff in his hand. A powerful and mysterious aura flowed out from his body, instantly forming a huge and terrifying magic domain.

The countless blue lights in the sky stopped attacking Orian, transitioning from extreme motion to extreme stillness, falling into an eerie tranquility.

Orian seemed to sense something, and he quietly stopped walking, raising his head slightly.

The next moment, Gatuso's eyes, which were shrouded in countless magical auras, flashed with a terrifying blue light, and he quickly pointed a finger at Orian.

"One Segment Magic Domain Resonance, [[Tikran's Ferocious Aspect - Soul-Eating Ghost Fish]]!"

In an instant, countless still blue lights transformed into an enormous and surging vortex. This vortex seemed to be a real vortex, with even cold liquid splashing out from it.

A thick aura of decay and decay emanated from the vortex, and large swaths of blackness appeared in the void, as if a vast, corrupt black swamp was rapidly spreading out.

Orian raised a hand, and the massive green energy crystal protecting him lit up, but before he could do anything, "Roar—"

An ancient and terrifying roar echoed in the void. From within a massive, dark blue vortex and a decaying black swamp, a grotesque ancient piranha suddenly leaped out.

An ancient, ferocious, and savage aura instantly filled the arena. A gigantic, rotten, almost skeletonized semi-ethereal piranha opened its massive jaws and swallowed Orian whole from the center of the battle! But before the onlookers could even be shocked and astonished, the magical phenomenon of the gigantic ancient piranha exploded with a deafening roar.

"Boom!"

The decaying, dilapidated, and ancient aura on the field was instantly swept away by another extremely powerful magic domain. The huge azure vortex in the sky completely dissipated, and the black swamp shattered, with dazzling flames pushing everything away. Immediately afterwards, Orian's figure, which was wrapped in a huge crimson crystal, reappeared.

At this moment, every part of Orian radiated dazzling light. Crimson-gold flames flowed down his body like lava, and countless powerful magical energy intertwined, tearing and melting everything.

"[[Four-Colored - Molten Crystal]]!"

Orian made a gesture of raising his hand.

Countless long, sharp crystal pillars, as narrow as swords, immediately sprouted from the crimson crystal outside his body. In an instant, they pierced through layers of void and reached Gatuso's brow.

"."

Gatuso stood frozen in place, his body stiff, his already pale face turning even paler, with fine beads of sweat seeping out.

His expression shifted dramatically, seemingly unwilling, but faced with the magical crystal spikes so close, ready to easily pierce his skull in the next second, he ultimately gave up resisting.

His imposing aura dissipated like the receding tide, Gatuso appeared dejected. He slammed his staff down heavily and whispered, "I lost."

A moment of silence fell over the surrounding area, and a few seconds later, a huge commotion and discussion broke out.

The clash between the Third Level Wizard ended with Orian's victory.

Riding the wave of his victory over his peers, Orian became the center of attention. However, he did not immediately leave the arena. Instead, he turned his sharp, Keen Edge gaze toward the Thunder Council and the lofty Jupiter.

Jupiter responded calmly, and their eyes clashed, as if invisible sparks were flying in the air.

Orian then turned and left the field.

"Is this what they call 'composite magic of metals and elements'?"

Below the stage, Ronan watched the fight between Orian and Gatuso in silence, a thoughtful expression on his face.

This was Ronan's first time watching a duel between Third Level Wizard, and as he watched, many thoughts arose in Ronan mind.

One Segment Magic Domain Resonance is considered astonishing at the level of a second-tier wizard; once unleashed, it can often determine the outcome of a battle.

However, at the third level, the power of One Segment Magic Domain Resonance becomes somewhat "insufficient".

No, to be precise, the power of One Segment Magic Domain Resonance derived from a low-level spell is somewhat "weak" at the level of Third Level Wizard.

There are no ranks in the realm of magic, but the spells that derive from the realm of magic vary in strength.

For example, Gatuso's final spell in the Black Nightmare Swamp One Segment Magic Domain Resonance— [[Tikran's Ferocious Aspect - Soul-Eating Ghost Fish]].

If Ronan is not mistaken, it should be derived from the first-tier Darkness-Type magic spell, "[Piranha's Soul]".

A simple first-tier Darkness-Type spell, its effect is to summon a phantom piranha to devour the opponent. After reaching One Segment Magic Domain Resonance, one comprehends the ferocious appearance of the ancient piranha. If it were a second-tier wizard, this power would be absolutely ferocious and invincible.

However, in a contest between Third Level Wizard, this move is a level below.

The inherent power of a third-tier spell is dozens or even hundreds of times greater than that of a first-tier spell. Even if the latter generates First Resonance domain of power, it only makes up for this difference. If the former's proficiency is also very high, and it even generates Extraordinary Magic Domain power, then it still has an overwhelming advantage over the latter.

Not to mention, the third-tier spell that Orian cast was not an ordinary third-tier spell, but a third-tier Composite Spell whose complexity and ingenuity far exceeded that of ordinary third-tier spells.

Gatuso's defeat was entirely justified; at the very least, he was far inferior to Orian in his understanding of magic.

"Is it inappropriate for me to focus solely on practicing low-level spells? After all, the essence of all the Extraordinary Magic Domain I possess is only at the zero level, not even the first level. As my strength increases, these methods will gradually become obsolete."

Ronan pondered quietly, constantly turning the Space Ring on his left ring finger.

This is one of his little habits; he does it subconsciously whenever he's thinking about a problem, as if it helps him generate inspiration.

"No, it can't be considered a mistake; it's simply another direction for development, another choice of specialization."

Ronan stopped what he was doing, his eyes calmed down, and he already had the answer in his heart.

"If Gatuso had comprehended the One Segment Magic Domain Resonance instead of the first stage, the outcome of his battle with Orian might have been different."

"He failed simply because his understanding of the Dharma Domain was not deep enough."

"If the power of First Resonance is not enough, then go for the second stage; if the second stage is not enough, then strive for the Level Three. In addition, there are multiple superpositions of law domains, fusions of different law domains, and even higher and stronger realms beyond the extraordinary level of law domain power!"

"Who says that there's no way that a low-level, beginner-level spell of rank zero can rival a forbidden spell?"

Ronan felt that it was truly foolish of him to abandon the Law Domain, which he had spent so much time and effort to master, and instead turn to studying high-level spells.

Of course, this doesn't mean that Ronan relied solely on low-level spells to "conquer the world" from then on.

After leveling up, spells will be updated, and higher-level spells will definitely need to be learned. However, it's important to consider whether they suit you and whether it's worth investing a lot of effort in in-depth study. This involves each person's combat style and the construction of their own spell system.

"The combat system is constantly being optimized and adjusted during a wizard's growth process."

The ability to combine different spells and build a combat system that best suits oneself and maximizes one's combat power is also a place where a wizard's talent and skill can be showcased.

After some thought, Ronan realized that although his strength hadn't changed, he felt that his path ahead had become clearer and more defined, and his goals and direction were more steadfast and clear. It could be considered as a kind of improvement.

Kosti is right; watching such large-scale contests of geniuses can greatly broaden a wizard's horizons.

And experience is one of the decisive factors in determining how far a wizard can go in the future.

"Gatuso was once the number one genius of the Black Nightmare Swamp, but he was later defeated by Anglie and now he has fallen to Orian, becoming the first Third Level Wizard to be eliminated. After this, his reputation will likely be greatly affected."

Clemens whispered in Ronan's ear.

Ronan looked up and saw Gatuso, after his defeat, slowly return to the forces of the Black Nightmare Swamp, exuding an aura that kept others at bay.

People close to him went up to him, seemingly wanting to comfort him, but he drove them away with a look and an unpleasant expression.

Gatuso sat in a deserted corner, his presence a somber shadow.

Some shine brightly, while others fall from grace.

This is reality.

The first round of competition did not completely end until dusk on the second day.

Without any pause, the second round began immediately.

In the competition of sixty people, half remained in the second round, and the Silver Magic Ring had only three left: Orian, Ronan, and another late-stage level Arcane Circle Wizard.

The expressions on the faces of the two ring leaders, Caloni and Aqi Duo, did not change much.

The Silver Magic Ring was not particularly strong among the six major wizarding factions, and given its unique lineage, this outcome was within the two's expectations after one round.

In this competition, the performance of Orian alone will be the most important factor for the Silver Magic Ring.

As for the others, it all depends on luck.

Ronan had good luck in the first round, facing a Black Nightmare Swamp wizard whose strength wasn't particularly outstanding, but his luck was clearly not so good in the second round.

It could even be considered terrible.

The remaining streams of soul light within the colorful orb intertwined and collided, causing two beams to descend. One beam landed on Ronan, while the other locked onto a Plant-Type Wizard from the Thorn Palace.

The latter was of medium build, with a fair and delicate baby face, and looked quite ordinary.

The spiritual energy emanating from his body... was something only Third Level Wizard possessed!

"Damien Ando."

He is the current champion of the Thorn Palace and one of the few promising contenders in this competition.

Many people have heard of Damien, including some veteran Third Level Wizard from various factions.

Seeing that Ronan's opponent was Damien, Caloni called Ronan over just before he went on the field and gave him some serious instructions.

"Damien, just do your best, there's no need to force yourself to win."

Ronan nodded to indicate that he understood, then calmly turned and went onto the field.

"Looks like this kid didn't listen to what you said..."

Aqi Duo had been watching closely, couldn't help but ask, "What do you think his chances of winning against Damien are?"

"If he activates his bloodline power, he will have a certain chance even against Damien, who is at the third level."

But how confident are we of winning...?

After pondering for a moment, Caloni still couldn't make a precise judgment and could only shake his head, saying, "It's hard to say."

Chapter Two will be released this afternoon.