Academy Takes Action

The Black-Robed Wizard raised both hands. Patterns seemed to flicker beneath his robes as dark green energy surged forth, gathering into a corrosive energy sphere that flew straight at Dago.

"What a fast casting speed. An ordinary Third-Level Apprentice Wizard wouldn't even have time to react."

A halo of deep blue streaked with shattered purple flickered in Dago's eyes. Spiritual power poured out, billowing his robes as he raised his snow-white right hand. A cold wind swept up shards of snow, forming a massive Ice Claw around it.

Veins formed from countless strands of frost energy spread across the claw like blood vessels, making it resemble Horus's Claw.

In this battle, he had not even activated his protective ring.

Dago thrust the Ice Claw forward and spread it open, pressing it directly against the corrosive energy sphere. A sharp sizzling sound rang out.

Frost energy flowed through the icy veins on the claw like blood, gathering toward its palm.

Bolstered by Dago's post-Metamorphosis spiritual power, the frost energy and corrosive energy intertwined and canceled each other out until both vanished.

Only a few green marks remained on the Ice Claw around Dago's right hand.

Yet Dago did not lower his right claw. Frost energy continued to surge out, and a point of deep blue light in his palm rapidly expanded until it formed a huge sphere of frost energy.

Dago hurled it viciously!

Panic flashed through the Black-Robed Wizard's eyes. In such a short time, Dago had not only extinguished his corrosive energy sphere, but had even launched another ice sphere at him.

Dago was undoubtedly far stronger than him. The wizard immediately thought of fleeing and urged the Shadow Leopard to leap away.

He slapped the Shadow Leopard's rear hard, but it did not move in the slightest. He lowered his head and looked beneath him.

Thorny vines had crawled over all four of the Shadow Leopard's paws, paralyzing it so thoroughly that it could not move.

Selena, hidden in a corner, quietly raised her thorned wand and cast Vine Art on the Shadow Leopard.

"Bang!" The energy sphere struck the black robes directly, and a blue ghostly glow blossomed in the night.

The man and leopard were rapidly frozen into statues by the spreading frost energy. Before his death, the Black-Robed Wizard still had both hands raised before him, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Then he slid straight off the rooftop, hit the ground, and shattered into icy fragments.

Dago dispersed the Ice Claw around his hand and gave Selena below a thumbs-up.

He then remained on the rooftop, using Detection Technique to observe the commotion in the distance.

He caught sight of flames soaring into the sky far away, along with a dense, dark crimson shadow spreading rapidly.

Even from so far away, its frigid, sinister aura raised goosebumps across his back.

What was more, after watching for a while, he heard a familiar sound—like countless people swallowing blood beside his ears at once. It stirred a powerful urge for self-destruction.

It was somewhat similar to Esog's whispers that he had heard within the Mental Space.

At the center of that shadow stood an elderly figure chanting something. No, it seemed more like he was singing praises.

The intense spiritual fluctuations were countless times stronger than Dago's.

"A Formal Wizard-level enemy."

Dago stood frozen, a stunned murmur escaping his lips.

Then he shouted loudly at the nearby civilians, "Run! Head toward the Academy!"

At the same time, spiritual power surged through Dago as he jumped down from the rooftop, landing as lightly as a bird.

He reached Selena's side, grabbed her little hand, and ran toward Ainak Wizard Academy.

They had not gone far when a deep, powerful roar of wind pressure sounded overhead. Five Silver-Patterned Airships were hurtling through the sky in the direction of the Academy, flying toward the battle zone in the northern part of the city.

Dago saw vast quantities of energy particles swirling around the airships. Quite a few Academy wizards stood upon their platforms, poised and ready.

Dago let out a breath of relief. It seemed the Academy still had the strength to fight. He took Selena to a safe place to watch.

A massive fireball, carrying overwhelming heat and light, roared out from the cannon at the front of the largest airship and sped toward the shadow-covered area.

"Boom!"

Black-red waves like lava transformed into a huge ring of fire that spread outward.

Countless houses were set ablaze by the fire ring, and the skies over the entire northern district were dyed fiery red.

More and more spells followed, raining down from the airships. Brilliant, multicolored spells bombarded the shadowy area below like rainfall, as well as the Black-Robed Wizards fleeing in panic.

Those were spells cast by the Academy wizards aboard the airships.

However, the heat and firelight immediately contracted in the next instant, devoured completely by a blood mist rising from the shadows. An elderly man in black-and-red robes, his features obscured, flew straight out of the blood mist.

Holding a wand, he appeared in the night sky and stood in midair, silently confronting the five airships at eye level.

"Either die, or get lost!"

A majestic voice shook the air, carrying the pressure of a Formal Wizard as it came from one of the largest airships.

Even Dago, far away on the other side of town, heard it clearly. He found it somewhat strange. The Academy held such an overwhelming advantage, yet they did not dare attack the old man in black-and-red robes.

Could it be that the Duskblood Council still had some hidden trump card that made the Academy so wary?

After the two sides confronted each other for a while, the old man flew toward the forest. Below him, a group of Black-Robed Wizards followed, running or leaping after him.

This meant that the crisis of the town's fall had been resolved, but the entire northern district had been reduced to a sea of flames and ruins.

The five airships slowly flew back toward the Academy. As they passed above Dago's head, he carefully used Detection Technique to probe the spiritual pressure of the Formal Wizards.

In the perception of Dago's Detection Technique, the other party's spiritual power was as dazzling as the sun, dispersing even the darkness around it.

Dago's heart pounded wildly, even faster than it had during the battle just now.

So this was the power of a Formal Wizard. The moment they acted, they entered battles capable of destroying an entire city.

No wonder Raymond had gone to such lengths to become a Formal Wizard. Before such power, even the gap of half a step was like an uncrossable chasm.

Still, Dago was disappointed that he had not seen the Formal Wizards fight. Thinking it over, perhaps the Academy had been wary of fighting within the town. If both sides truly went all out, the entire town might have become a sea of flames and ruins.

When the sky fell, the tall ones would hold it up first. Dago withdrew his thoughts and looked at Selena, only to find her staring down at her toes.

He waved a finger in front of Selena and said, "Are you looking at ants? Once you're done, let's head back to the Wizard Inn."

Ever since Dago had taken her little hand, Selena's face had remained flushed. From time to time, she covered her mouth and giggled. Even her soul seemed to have drifted off to some Fantasyland.

Only then did Selena snap out of it and stammer, "Mm, okay."

The two walked down streets filled with countless wails, cries of pain, and curses. Many civilians had died in this battle, most of them elderly people with limited mobility.

The Black-Robed Wizards of the Duskblood Council seemed to have been deliberately slaughtering civilians. They not only took their lives, but collected their corpses as well.

For the first time, war unfolded before the two of them like hell—not a battle between extraordinary individuals, but a massacre of civilians by the extraordinary.

The two remained silent along the way, their hearts heavy as they returned to the Wizard Inn.