New Moon Ritual

Just in case, Iver and the others waited quietly until nightfall.

All sorts of potions and equipment were prepared in advance, and even Iver's mana was fully restored through prayer. This was all to prevent another Punishment Demon at dusk.

Demons recover quite quickly. As long as they're not dead and can still move, they can recover about 70-80% in about a day by eating a few people.

But even after darkness fell completely and the moon rose, the Punishment Demon still hadn't appeared.

Has he given up?

"Hai Na asked seriously."

She felt incredibly guilty that she wasn't there when Iver and Lily were in danger, even though she was the team's shield.

At the Royal Law University, they repeatedly learn an important concept—that Armored Profession must never allow vulnerable, unarmored companions to be directly exposed to the enemy's threat range.

This is an absolutely unqualified protector.

Regardless of whether their vulnerable superhuman companions are capable of dealing with the enemy, the team's observers must step forward. The same spell might not seriously injure them, but it could be fatal to others. Moreover, even if they suffer the same fatal wound, the observers, with their robust vitality, will survive much longer and recover more easily without any lasting effects.

Just like the Bureau of Supervision that was attacked before—if the Law Court had been attacked, they basically wouldn't have survived until Iver's rescue. The same goes for the Oversight personnel who suffered heavy losses at Iver's medal ceremony.

"I think that the Punishment Demon is still making more preparations."

Iver shook his head.

The group of Demon Scholar he brought earlier was wiped out by Little Butterfly's Self-Destruct —emotionally, Iver hoped he could bring more; but rationally, he probably wouldn't bring so many next time.

Because they have become a burden when facing Iver.

If it weren't for protecting them, he wouldn't have needed to use the [Flame Nullification Barrier] to freeze them in place. As Demon Avatar, he possessed abundant vitality, good mobility, and strong burst damage; he could have easily used other offensive rituals to launch a more ferocious attack.

Most importantly, the status of the Paradox Flame Butterfly clearly suppressed him.

Generally speaking, among spells of the same level, defensive spells should have a higher priority than offensive spells; otherwise, defensive spells would be meaningless.

[Elemental Nullification Barrier] is a Sixth Level grand ritual that, within its effective range, nullifies pure mana projectiles from the six elements: light, dark, wind, earth, water, and fire. As long as one stands within it, all pure elemental spells of the Sixth Level and below within its range are ignored. The downside is that it also nullifies spells within the barrier itself—meaning the user cannot cast spells.

The [Flame Nullification Barrier] is a lower-powered version of its Fourth Level.

It may be called a low-end version, but it is still a proper Fourth Level protective ritual.

Even an attack of the same Fourth Level could not penetrate the barrier.

The barrier clearly couldn't stop the Little Butterfly's flames and lasers. The Punishment Demon was a clever man, a veteran superhuman who had lived for hundreds of years; he certainly knew what this meant.

——High -Greater Phantom Demon.

Because if the Paradox Flame Butterfly is at the Fifth Level, then it's a phantom demon on the same level as the hatched Punishment Demon, capable of easily killing them all. There's no need to Self-Destruct upon seeing it transform into Punishment Demon.

Therefore, there is only one possibility: the Little Butterfly's spell power is only at the Fourth Level. However, with the priority bonus of the Greater Phantom Demon, it penetrated the resistance of the Flame Nullification Barrier.

However, lower-level Greater Phantom Demon are not invincible.

In game terms, while spell penetration, effect hit rate, and abnormal status resistance all have a priority level bonus, the four main attributes, Path Trait, and spell list are all ten levels lower. A level 40 enemy with a priority level is definitely much easier to defeat than a level 50 enemy without a priority level.

If the giant's memory hadn't deteriorated, he should still remember the first time he met him, when he used the Dispel Flame Butterfly in the street, even in front of the Grand Guardian.

Both the "spell" and the Paradox Flame Butterfly are in the form of fire butterflies, so he should be able to easily associate these two abilities. This would naturally lead him to identify it as Iver's ability to Dedication Path... and at that distance, he should be able to sense that Iver has only Path of Transcendence at the Second Level.

In other words, in his mind, he should have completely seen through all of Iver's trump cards. And even the Paradox Flame Butterfly could only make him feel "trouble" and "tricky," not "fear."

Then he would never back down.

"They will definitely come back."

Iver asserted, "Although I don't know why they came here in the first place—I killed a squad of their elites, and they will definitely seek revenge."

Especially when you're guaranteed to win.

"He must be looking for a special countermeasure to combat the flames."

Sherlock frowned and commented, "From your description, the only way you could harm him is with fire. And the fact that Demon Scholar are used to ritual magic makes them more inclined to 'prepare in advance' and less accustomed to encounters."

"With your intelligence exposed, he will definitely have a comprehensive plan in place—this is very dangerous."

Yeah?

Iver's lips curled up slightly.

—He didn't think so.

After this promotion, he will be able to use the Shepherding Method again; and if Lily gains Shadow Affinity once more, her Shadow Affinity level will reach level four. This means she can further unleash the power of the Shadow Fiend.

Level 3 Shadow Affinity allows one to fully absorb the power of the Shadow Fiend, meaning the Shadow Fiend can hide in her shadow without being detected; while Level 5 Shadow Affinity is required to merge with the Shadow Fiend and unleash a power greater than 3.

Lily herself had received the essence of the Shadow Fiend, and half of the power in her body came from the Shadow Fiend.

Whether it's further enhancing the Shadow Demon's strength to the Fifth Level, or elevating the Paradox Flame Butterfly, which was at the peak of the Fourth Level, to the Fifth Level, it would be a big surprise for that Punishment Demon.

"I'm determined to seal this Punishment Demon away!" Iver thought to himself.

"Prepare for the Promotion Ritual, you two."

When the crescent moon was high in the sky, Iver spoke softly to Hai Na and Lily.

Hai Na nodded seriously, while Lily responded calmly.

Sherlock remained inside as the ritual guardian. He had already pasted red paper on the windows, filling the room with a blood-red glow.

"—All nine are present."

Iver murmured, "And I am among them."

Strangle a seabird; smash a mirror; pierce a lamb's heart with a nail stained with poisoned blood;

Melt the wax figure of a great man with a candle; soak black salt with blood; stab a well-fed rat to death with a knife; skin a snake with a knife; pierce a horse's penis from the tip with a nail; pry open an oyster and drip your own blood inside.

Iver left the snake, Lily left the rat, and Hai Na left the horse's penis.

"Except for me, all eight others will die."

The three of them said in unison.

The next moment, black and red flames roared up inside the room.

The Ritual Array was lit up, shining with a red glow.

A crimson, malevolent light, like blood, filled the entire room—

I felt so unwell yesterday that I didn't fall asleep until after 4 a. m., and I overslept this morning. Chapter 1 is a few minutes late...

My breath is still warm, and my face is hot too. My throat is still dry, and I'm still coughing. My skin is a little sore, but I definitely don't have a fever...

Let's write Chapter Two first, and then we can talk after we finish the rest!