Mo Fan VS Yu Ang, Lightning Seal Appears

"Duel, begin!"

Deng Kai gave the order, and the highly anticipated magic duel officially commenced.

"Fire Seed—Scorch!"

Mo Fan didn't reveal his full strength from the start, instead testing the waters with a Level One Fire Seed. His fire-type Star Seeds linked swiftly under his control, forming a complete Star Trail. A flame rose from Mo Fan's hand, dancing like a lively spirit, and he casually tossed it straight at Yu Ang.

"Heh, a cheap trick."

Yu Ang sneered, his own Star Trail connecting in an instant, matching Mo Fan's speed.

"Ice Vine—Freeze!"

As he chanted, the temperature of the entire dueling ground plummeted, shifting from midsummer to deep winter. Under the interweaving of frost, ice gauze, and ice foam, the incoming Fire Seed slowed. Yu Ang timed his dodge perfectly. Then, a white freezing mist swept toward Mo Fan. However, under the heat of Mo Fan's Fire Seed, the white mist quickly dissipated. Their first exchange ended in a stalemate, with neither gaining the upper hand. Soon, the next round began.

In the spectator stands.

Qin Yuan didn't care much about the duel. His main reason for being here was to see Mu Ning Xue, and his secondary reason was to handle some matters.

"Four zones, but I've only confirmed the locations of three tunnels. And I don't know if there are tunnels in the other zones."

Qin Yuan's eyes flickered as he thought to himself. Over the past few months, he had scoured the zones Xu Dahuang had given him. Aside from the known tunnel location in the Inscription Area, he had only found the tunnel positions in Guangshang Tianjie and Lufeng Town—one in a sewer pipe, the other in a garbage dump. Qin Yuan didn't notify the City Construction Team. Instead, he simply patched them up, making it look like the work of demons, ensuring the Black Vatican would only suspect. As for the last zone, the Beiling Area, its sheer size and dense population made it impossible for Qin Yuan to search without causing a stir.

"Looks like I'll have to borrow Zhan Kong's 'authority,'" Qin Yuan decided after a moment of thought. Since he couldn't find it, he would evacuate the area in advance, making up any excuse. Besides, it was just one zone. Even if the Black Vatican found out, it wouldn't matter—they'd likely write it off as a 'coincidence.'

"What are you thinking about?"

Mu Ning Xue asked. She hadn't been paying much attention to the magic duel, her focus instead on Qin Yuan.

"Nothing much. Just wondering what Pearl Academy is like."

Qin Yuan gave a faint smile, then shifted the topic. "The summer break for Imperial Capital Academy should be ending soon, right? When are you planning to leave?"

"The day after tomorrow's flight."

Mu Ning Xue said.

"The day after tomorrow, huh... I'll see you off then." Qin Yuan nodded slightly with a smile. Mu Ning Xue leaving Bocheng early was a good thing—who knew what accidents might happen when disaster struck.

"Mm."

Mu Ning Xue hummed softly, not refusing. Their quiet conversation didn't disturb those around them watching the magic duel.

"Whoa!"

Suddenly, gasps and exclamations erupted from the crowd. It turned out that Mo Fan, relying on his seasoned experience, had landed a Level Three Fire Seed on Yu Ang. By all logic, Mo Fan should have won right there. But Yu Ang was wearing an Ice Silkworm Armor gifted by Mu Zhuoyun—a specialized Armor Magic Tool that countered fire. With it, beginner fire magic could hardly harm Yu Ang.

"This Mo Fan has good talent."

"As for Yu Ang, after all the resources I've wasted on him, he still has to rely on the Ice Silkworm Armor to win."

Mu Zhuoyun's tone carried both appreciation for Mo Fan and disappointment in Yu Ang. He saw it, and so did everyone else. In terms of magical talent, Yu Ang was no match for Mo Fan. But Yu Ang had chosen a good father, and with his arsenal of luxurious magic tools, he barely managed to stand on equal footing with Mo Fan.

"Mo Fan, stop fighting." Deng Kai chose this moment to speak, his tone regretful. "He's wearing Ice Silkworm Armor. Your Beginner Fire magic is useless against him."

His words fell.

On the dueling stage, Mo Fan's expression twisted with conflict. He was thinking, weighing, whether or not he should go all out and expose his hidden trump card.

But right then.

"Hahaha." Yu Ang's slightly scorched face twisted into a wild, unrestrained grin, his voice dripping with mockery. "You were this close to stepping over me and rising up... but just a little, just that tiny bit short."

"What does it matter if your talent is good? Without backing, you're nothing but an insignificant ant. People like you, born from the dirt, don't deserve this kind of magical talent."

"Mo Fan, just admit defeat!"

Yu Ang's voice carried threads of jealousy—he envied Mo Fan's magical talent.

"Tch, if Old Man here doesn't knock you flat today, I'll write my name backwards!"

Mo Fan had a hot temper; there was no way he could stomach Yu Ang's barking. He decided right then to teach the guy some manners.

What he despised most were rich brats like Yu Ang, full of pampered airs.

If he actually had real skill, fine—but he didn't, and still acted all high and mighty. He was just begging for a beating.

"All talk. Your magical talent means nothing against my background!"

Yu Ang sneered.

"Is background considered strength?" Mo Fan couldn't help but laugh.

The next second, his smile vanished, replaced by unrestrained arrogance.

"Then Old Man's natural talent is strength too!"

Fire element wasn't working?

But who said he only had Fire?

Mo Fan's eyes instantly flickered with arcs of purple lightning. Tiny threads of electricity leaked out like lightning pythons, crackling and hissing.

The foremost element—Lightning.

If Fire was aggression, burning.

Then Lightning was destruction, devastation.

Under the gaze of everyone present except Qin Yuan.

Mo Fan's Lightning star trail instantly connected, and he chanted a Beginner spell, "Lightning Seal—Fury Strike!"

The Lightning Seal was just like Mo Fan's mood at that moment—wild, arrogant, violent.

"Crackle!"

A thick bolt of lightning descended from the sky, slamming fiercely toward Yu Ang's position.

Yu Ang instinctively tried to cast Ice Vine to defend, but Lightning's speed was more than twice as fast as Fire.

"Zzzap!"

The Level Three Lightning Seal struck Yu Ang instantly.

"Aaaah..."

Yu Ang screamed in agony. If not for his magic armor blocking most of the damage, he would have already turned into a charred corpse.

Why!

Why was this!

Was Mo Fan... an Intermediate Level mage?

With that final thought, Yu Ang collapsed face-down on the dueling stage, completely unconscious. If he wasn't treated soon, he might very well die.

This scene stunned everyone. The entire arena fell into a terrifying silence, broken only by the sound of breathing growing faster.

"..."

A moment of silence.

Boom!

The whole place erupted with deafening noise.

"Holy crap, Mo Fan is an Intermediate Level mage?"

"What's going on? He reached Intermediate Level in three years?"

"Wuwuwu, and here I am, still stuck at Elementary Level Two after three years."

Everyone wore expressions of utter disbelief. The shock in their Eyes lingered, refusing to fade.

"He and Qin Yuan... both Intermediate in three years?" Deng Kai's voice trembled slightly.

One genius was already absurd enough. Now another had appeared. Was Bocheng about to be blessed by heaven this year?