The New Masters

As Li Lin had predicted, not many students were able to pass through the barrier. Although the protective magic shield released by Nia wasn't dangerous, dispelling it wasn't something an ordinary student could do. Their only option was to neutralize it and then enter. Of course, this involved very complex basic magical theories, but any student with considerable strength, intelligence, and a solid foundation should be able to find a way.

Among them were the two "newly minted Arcane Mage" that Nia had previously reported.

Of course, at this moment, they had no idea about their future fate.

The rules are simple.

In the end, a total of thirty-five mages passed through the barrier. Among thousands of students, being able to reach this level was already quite remarkable. Li Lin walked to the middle of these thirty-five students, smiled, and snapped his fingers to attract their attention.

"From now on, you can attack me with all your might... and then defend against my attacks. Don't worry, I won't use any particularly high-level spells. And I also hope you won't take it too seriously. If you run out of Magic Power and suffer a backlash, it will be a net loss. Know when to advance and retreat, and maintain moderation. These are qualities that a mage should possess, understand?"

"Yes!!"

Along with this reply, a fireball, carrying intense heat, immediately hurtled towards Li Lin. Clearly, just moments before, one of the thirty-five men had secretly prepared for the attack.

"Very good."

Li Lin wasn't surprised by the sudden fireball. Arcane Mage weren't knights; they weren't obligated to follow the rules of fair and square combat. Besides, the nature of certain spells meant they could only eliminate enemies through more "insidious" methods. Sometimes, not being bound by rules was necessary for mages.

Naturally, the fireball had no effect. It vanished completely from the Elemental Shield before it even hit Li Lin, leaving no trace. At that moment, the other mages scattered and began their various attacks.

Because of the hasty alliance, the mages were unable to react effectively. At the beginning, their attacks were not only chaotic but also somewhat contradictory. In an effort to demonstrate their abilities to the Arcane Mage, almost simultaneously, all the students unanimously chose powerful attack spells to try and break through Li Lin's defenses.

This was naturally a futile effort. As an Arcane Mage, Li Lin was not so tragic as to have his defenses breached by dozens of low-level mages. Even if he kept his promise and only used spells below level five for attack and defense, he was still no match for these low-level mages.

After a brief exchange of blows, the trainees seemed to gradually develop a tacit understanding. Soon, they began to adjust their actions. Although no one spoke, Li Lin still keenly sensed the unique fluctuations emanating from their Mind Link. Clearly, someone had secretly issued orders, requiring everyone to change their fighting style.

As expected, in the second round of attacks, Li Lin felt nearly twice as much pressure as before. His Elemental Shield wasn't broken, but it became somewhat strained. Some of the defensive mages abandoned their simple, almost useless attack spells and instead focused on casting Dispel Magic to dispel Li Lin's magical defenses. In the gaps between their dispelling spells, the other students would take turns attacking Li Lin to deplete the Magic Shield's power and eventually break it.

"It was her?"

Li Lin followed the source of the mental fluctuations and raised an eyebrow. He saw that the one directing everyone's actions was one of the two "Arcane Mage Candidates," the half-blooded girl from the City of a Thousand Towers. At this moment, she was holding a staff and chanting incantations in a low voice, clearly trying to remove the magical protection from Li Lin.

She is able to accurately recognize her position and make corresponding judgments... It seems that she has considerable experience in combat, and she also knows how to use Mind Link to secretly notify others without attracting attention, which is quite a clever decision.

Thinking of this, Li Lin suddenly paused, turning around and searching the crowd with surprise.

Therefore, it was at this moment that Li Lin suddenly realized that he had not encountered any wild animal attack at all.

According to Nia, the other candidate with "Arcane Mage abilities" should be a summoning student, but has she not launched a single attack on Li Lin since the start of the attack?

Having thought this through, Li Lin had already made up his mind.

"Boom!!"

Just then, three more fireballs exploded simultaneously on Li Lin's Elemental Shield. The Magic Shield, which had not yet fully recovered after the attack, immediately became ethereal. At that moment, five Dispel Magic appeared one after another outside the barrier, creating ripples on the semi-transparent shield.

The flow of Magic Power was forcibly distorted. Even Li Lin was unable to reverse this process.

Just then, a dark shadow flashed by.

Suddenly, a Celestial Hound burst forth from the crowd, howling and extending its sharp claws as it lunged at Li Lin. Elemental Shield could only withstand magical attacks, but they couldn't stop physical ones. Clearly, this was a sneak attack launched while Li Lin was focused on maintaining his Magic Shield.

That's interesting.

Li Lin narrowed her eyes as she watched the Celestial Hound pounce on her. It seemed the little guy was indeed a little guy; even the food she almost ate for dinner was so similar to his behavior.

However, relying on such tactics, it is still too difficult to defeat Arcane Mage.

Thinking of this, Li Lin raised his hands and, just as the Heavenly Fist was about to strike him, slapped them hard.

"Smack!!!"

A tremendous roar immediately enveloped the entire barrier, so loud that many students involuntarily stopped chanting. The Celestial Hound that was about to pounce on Li Lin, however, let out a mournful howl and fell backward, refusing to take another step. Then, Li Lin stretched out a hand, and as magical runes flashed on the back of his hand, a pure white light expanded out from beneath his feet.

However, this time the Hold Person did not work as intended, because as the light circle swept over the students, their bodies swayed slightly. But at the same time, a magical shield appeared on their bodies, barely blocking the spell that was supposed to immobilize them.

That was a quick reaction.

Gazing at the semi-transparent protective shield, Li Lin nodded secretly. He knew that although he had said he would retaliate, the students didn't know what kind of counterattack they would encounter. Moreover, magical attacks were ever-changing, capable of elemental, physical, illusionary, spatial, and summoning attacks. Being able to quickly predict the opponent's counter-attack spell and have the courage to act accordingly was no easy feat. After all, while some protective spells could be highly effective, just as Elemental Shield couldn't protect against physical attacks, choosing the wrong spell would leave them vulnerable and face certain death.

Clearly, the opposing side judged that Li Lin wouldn't kill them, being students, and considering their reputation and status, they naturally wouldn't end the battle in an unpleasant way. Therefore, immobilization spells were the most effective way to end the fight. That's why they made this response. It must be said that these mages' adaptability is truly commendable.

However, that's all we can do.

Although the Hold Person was completely neutralized, Li Lin didn't stop what he was doing. He quickly withdrew his right hand and swung it backward. With a wail, a black figure leaped backward and rolled into the crowd. Just then, a small "Ah!" rang out, but Li Lin ignored it and continued his actions. After a flash of light, dense darkness enveloped all the students. Then, Li Lin casually waved his hand, and a cloud of foul-smelling mist entered the dark area.

That's the end of it.

When Li Lin waved away the barrier again, dispelling the surrounding darkness, only twenty of the original thirty-five students remained standing. Their responses in the previous battle were still excellent, but they couldn't match the casting speed of Arcane Mage. The little sprite was now standing beside a protective mage, watching the fallen black wolf and Celestial Hound with a complex expression. Her two sneak attacks had been completely seen through by Li Lin and failed. Clearly, this little sprite, as Nia had said, possessed the dual summoning abilities of a druid and a mage.

That's indeed a pretty good technique, but it still needs more practice.

That's all.

As Li Lin spoke, the remaining twenty students who hadn't fallen to the ground lowered their staffs and let out a long sigh of relief. Only after direct contact did they realize just how powerful Arcane Mage truly was. He hadn't used particularly advanced techniques, but each spell was perfectly timed and incredibly difficult to defend against. Within the final black mist, in addition to the Stinking Cloud, Li Lin had also "bonus" Dispel Magic and Sleep. It was these twenty students who sensed the anomaly and managed to withstand this insidious attack at the last moment.

The reaction is quick, the basic knowledge is good, and...

Li Lin's gaze fell on the defensive apprentice beside the little elf. As a summoning student, the little elf herself shouldn't have been able to master spells that made her immune to mental attacks. Clearly, the reason she was able to stand here without falling to the ground was because the defensive apprentice beside her had taken time out of his busy schedule to protect her.

Her mindset is also very good.

"To be honest, I'm very surprised."

Li Lin spoke, looking at the students in the square, and the students were also looking at him.

"I initially thought you couldn't do this, after all, you've only been exposed to magic for such a short time. But now, it seems I must change my mind. You are not only intelligent and brave, but also willing to take responsibility..."

As he spoke, Li Lin looked at the protective training apprentice who was in charge of leading the group. Noticing his gaze, the girl was startled and then lowered her head.

"A monk must not only be responsible for his own decisions, but also for the knowledge he possesses... and have the courage to make those decisions."

Li Lin paused at this point.

"Congratulations! Just being able to stand here means you've been chosen as Nia's direct students, and this is only the beginning. Every year from now on, I will come to the academy to assess your abilities... I hope you won't disappoint me."

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere immediately became much more enthusiastic. Those students who had thought they had no chance now excitedly raised their fists. Yes, they still had a chance. Next year, they would still have the opportunity to participate in this test and possibly win—just like the students this year.

"And next, I will give you some small gifts as a token of our meeting."

As Li Lin spoke, he stretched out his hands.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the magical runes on his body began to appear one by one, slowly shimmering, arranging themselves, and starting to combine. The once clear sky turned dark, and the crowd watched all this with unease, wondering what was happening. However, Li Lin said nothing; he simply stretched out his hand, quickly made a few complex hand gestures, and then clenched it tightly.

Lightning flashed.

Countless magical runes suddenly appeared in the previously empty sky. They slowly descended, each rune transforming into a book that floated in the air. The students stared in astonishment at these books composed of the power of magic, their mouths agape, unable to utter a sound. Even in their wildest dreams, they could guarantee they had never imagined encountering such a scene.

Then they heard words that they could not possibly have imagined.

"You may freely choose a low-level spell as a gift from me to you."

It must be said that Li Lin was extremely generous.

To be generous with other people's money.

"Li Lin, those spells are stored in Eternal Library."

Leaving the academy, which was bustling like a festival, Nia protested with slight dissatisfaction.

"Since it's information, it's naturally meant to be shown to people."

Li Lin showed absolutely no remorse for Nia's accusations.

"Besides, don't you think this is a good start?"

"You mean, admit those twenty students into the 'Magic Scholars' program?"

Nia was perfectly aware of Li Lin's thoughts. The Seven Ring Spirit Envoys weren't originally responsible for training elites; Li Lin's actions likely stemmed from a preference for cultivating a force of "Magic Scholars"—the same force Nia herself had once led, possessing the strongest knowledge and abilities.

"Everything has to start."

Li Lin neither answered directly nor denied it.

"Furthermore, I and the library do not actually want these students to participate in the following battles. Perhaps we should put the mages' proposals on the agenda."

"The human heart is the hardest thing to control, Li Lin."

Nia showed no emotion regarding this matter. She understood what Li Lin meant, of course. The mages' desire to join the battle was growing stronger, so they needed a way out. And right now, the only way was to give these mages real physical bodies that could move freely even outside the barrier, not just Magic Power formed bodies that existed only within the barrier.

"I just hope you can remember this."

"Of course I haven't forgotten. First, we need to experiment on a thousand living people to confirm there's no harm before proceeding with further testing."

Since blocking is impossible, the only option is to channel them. Li Lin has already devised a plan: as long as the souls of those humans are eliminated, leaving only their bodies for these mages from the Magic Empire era to possess, that would be enough to get them to leave Ringwraith City and join the battle. Of course, this would require a large number of human experiments, but for Li Lin now, the number of test subjects is not a problem— the Federation hasn't completely wiped out its people yet.

Just as their conversation came to an end, suddenly, a snow-white hand reached out from the side, holding a letter.

"Suoxiate?"

Li Lin accepted the letter from the head maid, who had appeared beside him at some unknown time, and looked at her curiously.

What happened?

"This is the latest intelligence from the Five-Nation Alliance, Master. It just came from Miss Catherine."

From Catherine?

Li Lin immediately opened the letter and read its contents in the shortest amount of time. Then, his expression turned slightly grim.

"Li Lin, what happened?"

Noticing Li Lin's troubled expression, Nia also became much more serious. However, Li Lin did not immediately answer Nia's question.

"Nia, when will Yi Aier's plan for the new weapon yield results?"

"This is just the beginning; it will probably take about three weeks to see initial results."

"Three weeks... Please tell Yi Aier that once there are results, produce a sample immediately. Besides, I think the little guy probably won't be able to wait that long..."

Is it really necessary to be in such a hurry?

In response to Nia's question, Li Lin only gave a helpless smile, then waved the letter in his hand at Nia.

"Catherine just sent word that someone is trying to unite all the nations to destroy the evil Magic Empire. It seems they've gained the upper hand this time."