Rebirth, [Immaculate Body]! A Crushing Blow from an Insect!

Particle Torrent swept across the land, stirring up billowing dust waves in the forest, felling large swaths of trees, and flattening the rugged woodland. The dissipated energy particles formed warm, intense hurricanes that rose high into the sky, causing a massive and continuous upheaval.

Jerome and the beautiful witch stared at what they were seeing, both with expressions of shock and disbelief that lingered on their faces.

"I'm starting to trust Lola's judgment a little more."

The beautiful witch murmured, "Perhaps Fao's death really is related to this... what was his name again?"

The witch turned to look at Jerome.

The latter took a light breath and then slowly exhaled, "Ronan, his name is Ronan."

"Ronan."

The beautiful witch repeated the name, as if trying to remember it.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, she snapped to attention and exclaimed urgently, "Lola!"

"Lola won't fall so easily."

Jerome stared intently at the center of the battle, and soon a hint of shock crept into his eyes, his expression quickly turning solemn.

"I should have known better than to give that to her too; this is troublesome."

"Huffing and puffing—"

Ronan stood on the grass, slightly hunched over, panting heavily as he tried to suppress his injuries and recover his strength.

He sensed Jerome and the other man approaching, but didn't glance at them.

His gaze remained fixed intently on the direction where Lola was standing.

The battle is not yet completely over.

Ronan could feel his powerful, all-out Law-Breaking Sword piercing Lola's body, but it was quickly blocked by something.

Lola didn't die, but "at this distance, being hit head-on by an [Energy Missile - Particle Torrent] would have severely injured her, even if she hadn't died."

The young man in black robes at the Crimson Tower died in the same way, leaving no trace of his body.

Even if Lola is much stronger than that black-robed man, she's only level one. How much stronger can she be? Ronan thought to himself, then coughed up a mouthful of blood, which contained some fragments of internal organs.

He was badly injured, like a piece of porcelain that had been accidentally knocked to the ground, its body covered in cracks, but beneath the pain there was a strange sense of exhilaration.

"Ascetic Body Forging - Master Level..."

Ronan pondered, feeling as if he had grasped something.

But before he could delve deeper into the matter, a massive energy surge suddenly erupted before his eyes.

A terrifying energy storm swept away all traces of magic in the open space in an instant, stirring up a fierce gale. Everything around seemed to slump and tremble under this power. The tattered robes were blown backward by the gale and clung tightly to the body.

Ronan struggled to open his eyes amidst the violent, swirling air currents, sensing an unprecedentedly powerful energy pressure emanating from the spot where Lola had been standing.

"How is this possible?!"

Upon seeing Lola's current appearance after the storm and dust had cleared, even Ronan's current will wavered for a moment.

He stared blankly ahead, and a woman radiating a brilliant amber light and a terrifying aura appeared before him.

——

Lola.

Lola was enveloped in golden light.

Except for the color of her hair and eyes, the runes floating on her face all turned into flowing gold.

This golden hue spread to the vines behind her.

The vines spurred by these spells grew even thicker and shone with a dazzling golden luster, possessing a strong magical metallic quality.

A pattern resembling a golden olive leaf appeared on Lola's forehead, seemingly the source of all this power.

Ronan saw the broken sword he had stuck in Lola's chest shatter and fall like a piece of paper under the surging golden light, leaving the skin behind the broken sword smooth and intact, without any wounds.

"It's not just about Fao anymore."

"I want to plant you in the filthiest flower field, so you can feel the agony of your flesh and soul being slowly sucked away by the plant roots!!"

Lola's already sharp voice became even more distorted and deformed under the influence of the high-pressure energy field, and intense killing intent and powerful mental strength surged out of her body in waves.

"Stop her!"

Not far away, Jerome let out a rapid growl. The moment he spoke, a huge fireball appeared around him and flew rapidly toward Lola.

The beautiful witch in the gray-blue robes also moved quickly, her cherry-red lips uttering short spell syllables.

However, Lola merely glanced at them coldly, and several giant, python-like golden vines swept over, effortlessly shattering Jerome's fireball and the Crimson Fire Ring of fire that followed its explosion.

The terrifying heat of the lava fell on the golden vines, only scorching them and releasing wisps of white steam, causing absolutely no noticeable damage.

"Whoosh—"

A sound like air being torn apart.

Apart from the vines used to fight Jerome and the beautiful witch, the remaining golden vines behind Lola vanished in an instant.

The trails of these vines are barely visible in the air; only faint afterimages can be seen.

After Lola awakened, Ronan began to retreat, already having the idea of leaving.

But as he retreated quickly, the golden vines pursued him even faster.

"Whoosh!"

Ronan caught a faint shriek in his ear, his eyes flashing with azure light, and he barely managed to raise his hand – "Bang!"

His chest suddenly caved in, and he was violently thrown to one side, followed by his back, abdomen, and shoulders. Ronan bounced around in mid-air like a ball, and with each change of direction, a large cloud of blood mist would burst from his body.

He struggled to move his body, trying to dodge and resist, but he appeared clumsy and powerless beneath the golden vines that appeared and disappeared intermittently.

Each time he could barely make a move, he would immediately be struck by a terrifying blow.

In this situation, even the body's instinctive reactions become sluggish, let alone casting spells.

Finally, "Snap!"

Ronan, who had been whipped countless times, fell heavily to the ground.

His fingers twitched slightly, but he couldn't do anything else, as if he was merely conveying the message that he was still alive.

Several golden vines slid quickly across the grass, wrapping around his neck and body, and then slowly lifted him up.

Ronan's head hung low, like a tattered corpse suspended in mid-air.

Blood dripped continuously from the mangled body. "A bug is a bug."

Lola, her entire body radiating golden light, slowly walked towards him, the golden olive leaf pattern between her brows shining brightly.

At this moment, Lola was unusually calm for some reason; all the persistent madness and paranoia seemed to have gone with her.

The resentment in her eyes when she looked at Ronan was gone, replaced by pure, cold killing intent and contempt.

"Even if you struggle with all your might, it will only make your death more ridiculous."

Lola slightly raised her hand, and all the golden vines coiled around Ronan's body, like giant golden pythons preparing to kill their prey, gradually enveloping Ronan and tightening their grip. "Slowly savor the pain of approaching death."

Lola spoke calmly, glancing at Jerome and Laura.

Jerome had already stopped attacking and was standing still in mid-air, his face tense and his eyes flashing, lost in thought.

The beautiful witch beside him turned her face away with a look of pity.

Some things seem to have been destined from the start, even if they couldn't stop them.

"Whoosh—whoosh—"

Ronan kept his head down, the thick scabs of blood on his eyelids making it impossible for him to open his eyes.

His body felt like it hadn't belonged to him for a long time.

He could barely feel a terrifying [Great Strength] squeezing in from the outside, adding a growing sense of suffocation to the intense pain.

He could hear the sound of his broken bones shattering more completely, and the hard and cold touch slowly enveloped his cheeks. The last glimmer of light in the corner of his eye was completely extinguished. "Am I going to die?"

In the darkness, Ronan's mind began to flash rapidly with blurry, fragmented images, the shadows of some people.

Old Wells, Eugene, Jacob, Linas, and even the stall owner from the rune stand who sold him the blank Rune Stone.

"It's like a revolving lantern. Looks like he's really going to die."

Ronan thought to himself, the images of the characters flashing through his mind faster and faster, becoming increasingly chaotic.

The faces of Fao, Anglie, and Lola kept appearing and disappearing before Ronan's eyes, then gradually blurred and began to move rapidly away from him.

Ronan felt as if he were slowly entering a dark and cold dream.

He floated on the cold water, unable to do anything.

He could only feel the cold water slowly engulfing him, his body sinking uncontrollably. Suddenly, a strong sense of resentment welled up in his heart.

"Why can't I survive even though I've tried so hard?!"

"Insects! Should insects simply accept their fate of having their lives and deaths controlled by humans?"

The first time I witnessed wizards battling magic at the beginning of my transmigration, I was terrified as I desperately fled home and hid under the covers.

The joy of successfully imprinting the first [[Cleaning]] rune.

The tension and trembling when killing someone for the first time using magic.

The determination to go all out in the attempt to become a formal wizard.

Ronan recalled the hardships he had endured step by step, the struggles he had made to survive, the resistance he had resisted as he stumbled and crawled his way to where he was today.

He chased the dawn, he saw the scenery ahead, the wonderful things he longed for, and all the efforts he made for them!

Why, why do I still have to die when things are like this?

He really doesn't want to.

"Snap—"

The sound of something breaking.

In a dark and cold dream, at the bottom of the sinking water, Ronan's body stopped, and he suddenly opened his eyes.

A blinding light shone from his body and eyes, quickly dispelling the surrounding darkness.

He heard the sound of a shell hatching.

It was as if something was growing out of his body.

Everything that had vanished and gone far away is now rapidly returning.

"Bang! Bang!"

A powerful thumping sound came from his chest, and streams of intense heat flowed into his body.

The faint, obscured light, the cold, hard touch that had been wrapped around him, and the strong, pungent smell of blood that lingered in his nose and mouth reappeared. The sound of hatching grew clearer and clearer; this time, Ronan could clearly hear that it was coming from his own body.

He was like a cicada shedding its shell, or a moth emerging from its cocoon.

Those are the harsh and decaying things of the past.

All the cowardice, unease, hesitation, anxiety, and fear that entangled them were shattered at this moment, washed away like dirt.

The Character Panel suddenly appeared in front of Ronan's eyes. Ronan clearly saw that the words "(Expert Level 800/800)" in the skill bar [Ascetic Body Forging] were quietly changing.

In that instant, Ronan finally understood what the last thing he needed to advance to the Master level in [Ascetic Body Forging] was.

It was a devastating blow! A force capable of shattering his outward, stale, heavy, and flimsy shell! Only by breaking through this thick, old shell could the life force gestating within him be released, and he could truly be reborn!

"Click—"

"Um?!"

In the quiet forest, a sudden, slight sound made Lola, who was staring at Jerome, abruptly turn her head, her eyes fixed on the large cocoon wrapped and bound by dozens of golden vines in front of her.

Lola frowned slightly, thinking she had misheard.

"Snap—"

But then another crisp sound came from inside the cocoon, Lola's eyes immediately turned to surprise and doubt.

"Click-clack—"

The cracking sounds became more frequent and clearer.

The large cocoon wrapped in golden vines gradually swelled, as if something extremely terrifying was about to break free from it.

"This is impossible?!"

Lola's expression finally changed, her eyes revealing shock and disbelief.

She clearly sensed the insect's faint aura gradually fading away under the entanglement of her magical vines until it disappeared completely.

But now, a vitality that is hundreds or thousands of times greater than before, even making her tremble slightly, is growing stronger and is eager to bloom.

Damn it!

Lola gritted her teeth and fiercely channeled her mental energy, the golden olive leaf on her forehead shining blindingly.

Even so, it did nothing to stop the cracking sound from getting worse.

The surface of the entwined golden vines was already covered with large, dense cracks, which were expanding outwards little by little, making a cracking sound as they broke under the strain.

Finally, "Boom!"

With a deafening explosion, the giant cocoon formed by golden vines shattered completely, sending countless fragments of vines flying everywhere. A surge of life energy spread out like a tidal wave, creating a brief gust of wind that made everything around it rustle.

Lola stood rooted to the spot, staring blankly at the center of the energy burst.

Jerome and the beautiful witch in the sky had long been drawn to the scene and stared in astonishment.

Under the gaze of the three, a figure slowly emerged from the rising dust.

This was an incredibly young and handsome man.

His features were gentle and fair, without a single wrinkle.

His tall, muscular body is perfectly proportioned, with every muscle and line exuding a breathtaking, primal charm.

His eyes were tightly closed, and his long, glossy white hair cascaded down his back, dancing freely even without wind.

He seemed to be surrounded by a natural halo, with tiny white flames flickering at the edge where his body met the air, swallowing up light and creating a sense of spatial distortion and collapse.

Suddenly, the man opened his tightly closed eyes.

In an instant, the azure blue bursts forth, sparkling like stars.

The man's face radiated a joy akin to that of a newborn child. He smiled and looked at Lola before him, speaking softly, "Lola, are you ready to receive a painful blow from a bug?"

At that moment, Ronan saw the Character Panel information quietly slide out before his eyes.

The proficiency level of the skill [Ascetic Body Forging] in the skill bar has changed to (Master 1/1600).

Besides that, another change was in the [Talent] section, which he had almost never paid attention to. Next to the "Non-attribute Affinity" that he had long since become numb to, a new line of small text had appeared—

[[Immaculate Body] (Active)]!