The End? Not Yet!

Under the terrifying pressure of a collapsing ocean, the heart had almost completely stopped beating.

The Bloodline Crystal, firmly embedded like nails on the heart valves, quietly shattered, and the fragments quickly merged into the internal organs.

At that moment, time seemed to stand still.

In a daze, Ronan felt as if he had returned to the dream he had experienced when he received the "Hecalto" bloodline transplant.

——

The boundless Snow Field and the raging blizzards create a world entirely of ice and snow.

He stood atop the steep, Ice Peak, looked up, and saw the crimson sun and moon rising behind the hazy snow.

Those are His eyes.

Suddenly, a pair of "Scarlet Sun" rapidly enlarged, and an ancient serpent head, even larger than a towering glacier, broke through layers of frost and silently approached Ronan, watching him intently.

Compared to Him, Ronan was as insignificant as a speck of dust.

But at this moment, Ronan was unusually calm.

He stared at Him intently, seemingly having forgotten the purpose of his visit.

After an unknown amount of time, Ronan slowly reached out his hand.

My fingertips touched the snake's head, where the scales resembled the veins of an ancient glacier.

He saw a blood-red, intricately detailed rune pattern, as complex as a snowflake, growing on one of the snake scales.

He gently stroked the pattern and spoke softly.

"It's so beautiful."

The next moment, the falling snow and ice in the world before my eyes froze, stopped.

Then it starts to rise until it boils!

The vast Fairy Ancient City Ruins and hills were utterly silent.

The energy streams that had swirled in the sky like countless sunset clouds had dissipated at some point.

The entire Sky Dome was clear and bright like never before.

Serena's arrow seemed to have cleansed this land.

"It's over"

As the golden light slowly receded like a receding tide, someone murmured softly.

No one doubted the outcome of this battle.

With the full set of Dawn Rank magical artifacts, the astonishing tenth Spiritual Power Crystal, and the arrow powerful enough to pierce through the mist and break through the Dawn, Serena's strength is beyond the comprehension of conventional Mist-tier combat power standards.

Perhaps, as some have said, this so-called Talent Competition is nothing more than a "game" for Serena, the chosen one from the Central Wizard Empire.

All the top geniuses in the entire south combined... it would be enough to make her even slightly "serious".

Many wizards in the south remained silent, lost in a strange mix of regret and complex emotions.

They witnessed firsthand the meteoric rise of a genius wizard named Ronan Damien. He initiated a blood war and was only one step away from completing it and obtaining the inheritance, but was ultimately suppressed by Serena.

To some extent, this was a huge setback for the Southern Wizard World.

"If... if Ronan Damien were given more time to reach the same level of mental strength as Serena, what would the outcome of this battle be?"

Someone spoke reluctantly, but couldn't finish the sentence, and those around them just shook their heads.

In this world, there aren't that many "what ifs".

Regardless of the circumstances, Ronan Damien's name is enough to be etched in the annals of Southern history in this year's Talent Seat battle, and will be remembered by countless people for many years to come.

"Clemens."

"Do you think Damien is still alive?"

Among the crowd, the members of the Silver Magic Ring stood silently. Some of them turned to look at Clemens with blank expressions and asked a question.

The latter's eyes flickered with some inexplicable emotion, his lips were tightly pressed together, and he did not answer.

Across vast spatial distances, Clemens couldn't see through the lingering magical energy ripples on the central platform, but a voice within him kept repeating—

How could someone like him die here!

Damien should be alright.

From a position closer to the platform, Havide spoke in a deep voice, offering words of comfort to Orian beside him.

"I know about Serena's background. Although she is Princess of the Life Royal Court of the Central Wizard Empire, she was born in the south. Her purpose in coming to the south this time is to recruit southern geniuses to strengthen her own lineage. Damien has performed well enough. Serena would not be willing to kill him. If it were only for the sake of inheritance, she would have had countless opportunities before."

At this point, Havide sighed softly and said in a low voice, "In the end, there is no suspense in this battle."

But Damien has already proven himself; he is undoubtedly the Wizards' top seed this year.

The Blue Mist Society members around him all nodded in agreement, their faces showing genuine amazement and admiration.

Yes, the strongest inheritors of the three major wizarding powers in the south— Adam, Li Weiqi, and Andariel —were almost all defeated by Ronan.

If it weren't for Serena's appearance, Ronan would have been the champion this year, and a top performer whose strength far surpasses that of previous champions.

Serena is a "rule-breaker" and she will eventually leave the south and return to the Life Royal Court in the center.

Once Serena leaves, all that will remain in the South will be the legend of Ronan Damien.

Hearing Havide and the people around him sigh softly, Orian, who had been quiet all along, turned his gaze to the void beside him.

He saw Jupiter, as well as Rufus, Andariel, those he had once considered his targets or rivals.

"Ronan Damien."

Orian murmured the name, a hint of daze appearing in his eyes.

Even now, Orian still finds it hard to believe that the person he once thought was always behind him has suddenly become a star in the sky, someone that he and the people around him need to look up at.

On the side of the Life Royal Court, none of the wizards were surprised by the outcome of the battle.

Grace, on the other hand, visibly tensed up for a moment, but quickly relaxed after a few whispered words from the Silver-Haired Witch beside her, her eyes shifting from worry to a faint, complex expression.

Above all of them, Moriel yawned as she rose from the Red Lotus Scepter that served as a swing.

She squinted at Serena's direction, rubbing her hands together as if she were ready to fight at any moment.

It's over.

Almost everyone has this thought in their mind.

Serena's arrow brought this grand gathering to a complete end.

As the wizards awaited the final "closing" stage, they began to whisper among themselves about the grand event. The noise gradually grew louder, and even the Dawn Rank wizards who had been hiding in the void and silently observing began to slowly reveal themselves, watching the final curtain fall of this once-in-a-century competition.

Amidst the commotion, a figure with gray hair and green eyes stood calmly with a smile on his lips.

"What an unforgettable experience!"

Lindis clapped his hands and murmured in amazement, "I haven't seen such a wonderful and interesting plot in centuries."

A figure in black robes appeared silently behind him.

Then came the second, third, and fourth rounds of Lindis clapping and exclaiming, as figures appeared behind him like ghosts.

A group of shadowy figures suddenly appeared in the crowd, yet strangely, they did not attract the attention of anyone nearby, as if they all existed in another independent dimension.

Suddenly, high above, the figure of an old woman in black robes seemed to sense something.

He abruptly lowered his head, casting a gaze as sharp as a bald eagle's.

The gaze finally settled on Lindis smiled and met its gaze.

With a rumbling sound, the space between the two seemed to be collapsing continuously.

"Doru, it's almost our turn to take the stage."

Lindis watched the old woman in black robes slowly rise, a smile gradually spreading across his face, and asked softly, "Are you ready?"

Lindis raised one hand, about to bring it down forcefully under the gloomy and indifferent gaze of the old woman in black robes who was staring at him.

However, at that moment, a strange fluctuation suddenly caught their attention, and they both instinctively looked in the same direction.

The vast Fairy Ancient City Ruins gradually entered an atmosphere of absolute silence, and the originally noisy and chaotic sounds somehow disappeared.

The silence between heaven and earth was terrifying, as if all the air had stopped moving.

As if sensing something, everyone looked up at the same spot in the sky.

——

That's the sky directly above the central platform.

In the once clear blue sky, countless dark red lightning bolts, resembling tree branches or spider webs, suddenly appeared.

They were densely packed, almost taking up most of the sky.

The sky darkened rapidly, large swaths of dark clouds rolled in, and the temperature plummeted. The entire Fairy Ancient City Ruins seemed to have instantly transitioned from late autumn to the dead of winter.

A touch of dark red slowly fell from the sky.

In the blink of an eye, it turned into countless points.

They were snowflakes, exquisitely beautiful, like ancient and complex works of art, but their color was dark red.

It was as if... it was soaked in blood.

Everyone looked up, staring blankly at the scene that was both mysterious and strangely beautiful, like countless lives withering away, completely forgetting to speak.

An indescribable sense of unease descended from the sky, enveloping the entire venue.

In this utterly frigid and desolate silence, a deep voice, seemingly composed of two interwoven tones, resounded throughout the heavens and earth—

"Serena, our battle is not over yet."

At that moment, everyone's eyes seemed to glaze over as if they saw—on the stage of this grand event that was about to come to an end, a pair of large hands suddenly reached out, grabbed the curtain that was slowly hanging down on the stage, and then violently tore it open to both sides!