The Might of a Wizard

"Lilith, you've crossed the line!"

A thunderous roar exploded from the center of the camp!

Everyone inside and outside the camp felt their eardrums suddenly throb.

For a moment, all sound vanished!!!

Then, piercing tinnitus erupted, stabbing into their skulls like steel needles.

At the center of the camp, Wizard Sterling slowly rose into the air.

Thirteen fireballs circled his body, continuously expanding as he ascended.

Each was the size of a house, their searing glow turning half the night sky into daylight.

His black wizard's robe snapped violently in the scorching currents of air.

His gaze was icy as he fixed it on the female wizard standing atop a dark crimson blood cloud.

"Crossed the line?" Lilith let out a silver-bell-like laugh and lightly shook the longsword in her hand.

"Sterling, war is the best boundary. This camp, and all the flesh and blood within it—I want them."

"Then let's see if you have what it takes!"

Sterling wasted no more words and thrust both hands forward.

The thirteen gigantic fireballs crashed toward Lilith like falling meteors.

They streaked thirteen scarlet trails across the sky, sealing off every possible path of escape.

Before the fireballs even arrived, their terrifying heat rapidly scorched the ground below, warping and steaming the air.

Lilith's expression remained unchanged. The blood cloud beneath her feet spun rapidly, forming countless threads that wove themselves into an enormous Blood Shield.

At the same time, she began chanting an obscure incantation, and the bloodlight on her scarlet longsword surged.

"Sky-Covering!"

Where her sword pointed, an overwhelming blood mist surged from the void. Its foul stench spread through the air as it slammed violently into the thirteen fireballs.

Boom! Boom! Boom!...

A continuous series of explosions rang out as crimson flames and scarlet mist tore at and annihilated each other madly.

Everyone below was sent staggering by the shockwaves from the collision. They all stopped fighting and stared blankly at the two rapidly shifting figures above.

In a battle between Formal Wizards, even the aftershocks were enough to seriously injure or kill apprentices.

Ian hid behind cover. His Eye of Vigilance had shattered the moment Wizard Sterling rose into the air.

He stood up and stared fixedly at the battle in the sky, his eyes filled with shock.

"So this is the power of a wizard!"

Any one of those fireballs would have been enough to turn him into ash.

"The gap is too vast..." He clenched his fists, and a light he had never possessed before gleamed in his eyes.

The battle in the sky had already reached its fiercest point.

Sterling did not want to drag things out any longer. This was his own camp, and prolonging the battle only put him at a greater disadvantage.

With a wave of his hand, he took a small crystal vial from his robes. It contained half a bottle of viscous dark golden liquid.

Without hesitation, he pulled out the stopper and drank it in one gulp.

The next instant, Sterling's aura surged explosively, and the thirteen fireballs fused together in an instant.

They became a blazing white sun more than ten meters across!!

Countless runes flowed across its surface, radiating a heart-palpitating aura of destruction.

"Molten Heart Potion!"

Lilith's expression changed drastically, and fear appeared in her voice for the first time.

"Have you gone mad?! Aren't you afraid of the backlash?"

"As long as I can keep you here, what does backlash matter!"

Sterling's voice had become as harsh and grating as metal scraping together. The potion's side effects had appeared from the very start.

He cupped the blazing sun with both hands, then hurled it fiercely at Lilith.

Wherever the sun passed, space itself seemed to burn through, leaving behind a blazing white trail.

Lilith screamed, and the blood cloud beneath her feet erupted with dazzling bloodlight.

Countless bloody runes flew from her body, layering dozens of defensive barriers before her.

But it was too late!

The blazing white sun effortlessly tore through every defense and smashed viciously into Lilith.

"Ah...!!"

A shrill scream resounded through the night sky.

Lilith's body flew backward as though she had been crushed by some colossal beast.

Her wizard's robe instantly turned to ash, revealing the charred, festering skin beneath.

She barely stabilized herself before urgently transforming into a streak of bloodlight and shooting toward the depths of the canyon, scattering large amounts of foul-smelling black blood along the way.

"Sterling Vance! I'll remember this grudge!"

Her venomous voice drifted from afar before gradually fading away.

Sterling did not pursue her. He lacked the strength to do so as well.

After consuming the Molten Heart and forcing out such an explosion of power, his face was now pale as paper. Blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, and his aura had withered to the extreme.

When Morez saw Lilith flee with severe injuries, his heart instantly turned cold.

"Run!!" he roared hoarsely, turning and charging toward the canyon.

The other Crimson apprentices also came to their senses and scattered in all directions.

Sterling hovered weakly in the sky. Watching those fleeing figures, his eyes were filled with contempt.

He extended his right hand and curled his five fingers in the air.

"Molten Lava Cage."

The ground split apart with a deafening roar, and blazing magma erupted from the fissures, instantly forming nine enormous molten lava cages.

They trapped every Crimson apprentice attempting to flee, including Morez. Not one escaped.

"No..."

Morez attacked the cage frantically.

His scarlet blood-based spells struck the walls of magma, but they only sent up a few sparks.

The temperature inside the cage climbed higher and higher. The shield around his body began flashing violently, while searing pain spread through his skin.

"I won't accept this! I won't accept this!"

Morez's eyes were bloodshot as he looked toward the figure in the sky.

"Why? Why have I cultivated bitterly for more than forty years..."

Why could those geniuses so easily obtain resources while he had to risk his life for them?

The cage began to contract, and the temperature soared sharply. Morez's shield finally shattered.

His dark crimson robe caught fire, and his skin rapidly carbonized and peeled away beneath the intense heat...

"Ah..."

An inhumanly shrill scream came from within the cage, but it lasted only a few seconds before abruptly stopping.

The nine molten lava cages gradually sank into the ground, leaving behind nine scorched marks and small amounts of ash.

Nine Advanced Apprentices were reduced to ash with a casual strike from a weakened Formal Wizard!

The camp fell utterly silent.

All the Shadowmoon apprentices raised their heads, their faces filled with shock, lingering fear, and... boundless desire for great power.

Ian emerged from behind cover and looked at the nine scorched marks, his heart pounding violently.

When would he possess such power?

"Clean up the battlefield and treat the wounded." Sterling's voice came from the sky, carrying exhaustion he could not conceal.

"Hank, tally the casualties and losses, then report to me."

With that, his body swayed, and he transformed into a streak of fire that entered the Central Stone Tower.

Only after Sterling left did the camp come back to "life."

Groans, cries, and shouts of urgency rang out everywhere.

Those still alive began to busy themselves, treating their companions, putting out sparks, repairing the walls...

Ian joined them as well, using his Spirit Infusion Wizard's Hand to help carry the severely wounded.

He took out the two potions he had refined and treated the wounds of the injured apprentices.

At the breach in the western wall, the corpses of three Shadowmoon apprentices had been corroded beyond recognition. They could only be identified by their tattered gray robes.

In a corner, an apprentice whose throat had been slit by a Shadow Stinger lay in a pool of blood, his eyes wide open as if he could not believe he had died just like that.

Another six apprentices had been poisoned by the toxic mist. Although Ian had treated them in time, they still could not hold on.

Right in front of Ian, they screamed in agony for half an hour before gradually ceasing to breathe.

Once Hank finished counting, his face was so grim it seemed water could drip from it.

"Excluding attendants and Knights, thirteen apprentices died. Five were from Shadowmoon. Eight were seriously injured, and thirty-five suffered light injuries..."

His voice was hoarse. "The Crimson Court lost all nine people, but we took a huge loss!"

Yes, they had taken a huge loss!

The Crimson Court had lost apprentices, and Shadowmoon Tower had lost apprentices as well.

But to Formal Wizards, there was no real difference. Apprentices' lives were worthless!

Unless you were a genius with the potential to break through.

Ian silently looked over the devastated camp, saying nothing.

After tonight, he understood the rules of this world even more deeply.

The strong devoured the weak; strength reigned supreme!

He looked at the shield proficiency on his Status Panel. It would not be long before it reached Limit Break, and urgency filled his heart.

"Not enough. Reaching Limit Break alone isn't enough. Forget speed for now, but my attack and defense must improve as quickly as possible."

He looked toward the stone tower at the center of the camp, where Sterling was recovering.

The Molten Heart potion Sterling had consumed in battle could actually increase combat power by such a tremendous amount?

"Potions... what a miraculous ability."

He possessed the Status Panel and could amplify this advantage in every aspect—potions, wizardry, Alchemy...

At that moment, Ian's desire to grow stronger had never been so intense!