Seeing Renard dodge his attack, the black-robed man looked clearly surprised. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Lucky little fellow."
Then, without pausing his movements, he pointed the short wooden staff at Colliver and chanted, "Omnipresent fire element..."
As the black-robed man chanted, dazzling flames burst from the ruby at the tip of his short staff. The temperature around them suddenly soared, even setting the nearby bushes alight.
Colliver, dozens of meters away, felt the terrifying heat and his expression changed dramatically. He charged forward with his sword.
Renard was just as quick. He nocked an arrow, took aim at the black-robed man's face, and fired.
But his attack was clearly futile. The arrow had already turned to ash before it even touched the man's clothes. Even its arrowhead had melted into iron.
Renard was certain the temperature around the black-robed man was at least three thousand degrees, yet the man acted as if he couldn't feel the heat.
"How is he doing that?" This completely shattered everything Renard knew.
"It's a Flame Shield." The system's voice rang out, grave beyond measure. "You'd better be careful. Ordinary arrows can't hurt him at all. You have to buy a Demon-Breaking Arrow from the store."
"Ding! Triggered quest: Slay the Demon Worshipper. Reward: ten potential points, five hundred dinars, and one random draw."
Renard ignored the quest details and followed the system's instructions, purchasing a Demon-Breaking Arrow from the system store.
"Demon-Breaking Arrow, Magic Item, single-use consumable. Effect: pierces all magical barriers. Price: twenty dinars."
When Renard nocked another arrow, Colliver was only three steps away from the black-robed man. Yet those three steps seemed like an impassable chasm.
The black-robed man continued chanting unhurriedly. Flames danced atop his short staff with every note, clearly gathering power.
Seeing this, Renard didn't hesitate.