From Wizard Apprentice to Conqueror of Myriad Worlds

This simple action looked incredibly strenuous. Beads of sweat had even begun to form on his forehead.

This was clearly some kind of preparation for Casting.

Mo Ning’s heart leaped with joy. He wanted to sing Princess Phoebe’s praises.

Clearly, these two "Strong Persons" also intended to attack the approaching Golem Demon.

Most people’s attention would be on Princess Phoebe, especially since she was using that little silver arrow, which was clearly no ordinary item.

He watched Potter from a distance, silently labeling him ’kind-hearted’ in his mind.

Princess Phoebe had attacked so boldly, most likely for the sake of her assessment.

Potter, meanwhile, was casting with all his might. His spell didn’t look like a damaging attack; it seemed more geared toward interference and containment.

Plus, after spotting the Golem Demon earlier, he had risked exposing himself to cast [Thunderous Bell] as a warning. ’He’s a genuinely good person.’

「Three short seconds later.」

The grand drama, single-handedly directed by Mo Ning, had finally begun.

The Golem Demon dove to an altitude of a hundred meters, its vertical pupils locked onto the panicking, blue-robed figure below.

It was completely unaware that it had already crossed the "line of engagement" Mo Ning had designated.

"KREEE—!"

An ethereal eagle’s cry suddenly resounded in Mo Ning’s ears.

Sparks surged within Mo Ning’s black pupils. Deep inside them, the faint image of an "inverted Thunder Tree" hung suspended.

His body felt as if it were controlled by an invisible force. His right hand rose on its own and made a sudden grasping motion.

In the air around the Golem Demon, countless stray electrical charges swarmed toward it like iron filings to a magnet.

Amidst the jubilant dance of the charges, threads of electricity invisible to the naked eye instantly took form.

Had they been mere threads of electricity, they would have had no effect on the Golem Demon.

Its hide contained a high concentration of metallic components, making it seem like Thunder Witchcraft would inflict bonus damage.

But the Ancient Wizards were no fools and were naturally aware of this weakness.

To perfect their creation, the Ancient Wizards had deliberately placed a layer of rock beneath the metallic skin, one sufficient to block lightning from penetrating deeper and protecting the muscles and organs below.

But at this moment, the Golem Demon’s layer of rock was completely useless.

Because from a distance, a will was guiding the threads of electricity that snaked through the air.

"CRACK-BOOM—!"

A clap of thunder echoed from the distance.

As if on command, the countless threads of electricity began to subtly resonate, instantly forming an invisible Thunder Force Field.

The moment the force field was born, it resonated strangely with the omnipresent Magic Power.

Using the Ocean of Magical Power as a medium, the threads of electricity began to "leap" in droves.

The layer of rock provided no insulation whatsoever; the threads leaped past it and reached the muscle tissue.

The Golem Demon was horrified to find that the muscles all over its body felt as though they were being pricked by countless needles, sending it into a state of temporary paralysis.

For a flying creature, however, this momentary paralysis was enough to scare it half to death.

A terrifying thought unconsciously surfaced in its mind: ’If this paralysis lasts any longer, say three or four seconds, will I just fall to my death?’

And so, it grew afraid.

「At the same time.」

Mo Ning’s trio, along with Princess Phoebe and Potter, all made their move.

"WHOOSH—!"

With a sharp whistle, the small silver arrow in Princess Phoebe’s hand shot forward like a meteor, trailing a faint silver streak as it flew toward the Golem Demon at lightning speed.

Potter’s raised hands suddenly thrust forward.

Light shot from his fingertips, forming a bright, white, veil-like curtain that materialized out of thin air more than ten meters above the crowd.

This was a difficult Sub-zero Level Trick—[Curtain of Light].

The [Light Curtain] was positioned perfectly above the area with the most novices.

This was proof enough of Potter’s intentions—he genuinely wanted to protect these peers, people he knew only by name.

This perfectly matched Mo Ning’s guess.

Anya and Reina chose the same type of Witchcraft. The two girls waved their right hands in unison, and invisible Magic Power surged from their palms, instantly shooting up more than ten meters high.

In the air, the Magic Power underwent a curious transformation, turning into two dreamlike, ethereal streams of light.

The name of this Trick matched its visual Effect: [Light Mist].

It was the equivalent of a smoke bomb with a mild flash-bang effect, capable of disrupting an enemy’s vision.

Compared to Potter’s [Light Curtain], however, the [Light Mist]’s Effect was far inferior.

The latter covered only three or four square meters, whereas the former exceeded thirty, and its brightness was also clearly a cut above.

Mo Ning, for his part, cast the Sub-zero Level Trick he had improved from his first research project: [Illusion Flash].

A speck of light shot from his fingertip, instantly rising to a height of fifteen meters.

Then, the speck of light abruptly exploded.

"POP!"

An exceptionally bright light erupted.

Its brightness far surpassed both the [Light Curtain] and the [Light Mist], like a strip of magnesium flaring with a blinding white light against the curtain of rain.

「The next moment.」

The Tricks and attacks unleashed by the five of them all came into the Golem Demon’s view.

The one that affected the monster the most was undoubtedly Mo Ning’s [Illusion Flash]. The intense light caused a slight and momentary blindness.

However, the Golem Demon’s constitution was extremely robust. Combined with the distance of over one hundred meters, the blindness lasted a mere 0.01 seconds—a practically negligible amount of time.

In the last instant before being blinded, however, the Golem Demon saw an alarming sight: in a patch of grass below, something dark and long was pointed high in the air. It looked like a spear, its tip aimed directly at the creature.

Beneath the spear, a figure was crouched, apparently controlling it.

It instantly made a judgment: ’This must be the enemy’s true killing blow aimed at me!’

So, the Golem Demon whipped its tail with all its might.

Its tail, like a steel whip, carved a vicious arc through the rain, simultaneously detaching the metal stinger at its tip.

The stinger detached from the tip of its tail and, propelled by the force of the swing, shot out at an incredible speed.

"SHREEE—!"

A piercing, air-rending sound rang out.

The stinger descended from the sky, instantly piercing the heavy curtain of rain and precisely striking a head hidden in the grass.

"SPLAT!"

The head shattered like a watermelon.

And the owner of that head was none other than—Uma.

His consciousness—filled with rampant ambition, malice, and an extremely strong desire to climb higher—sank into an eternal slumber.

And then.

The silver arrow arrived.

The Golem Demon had already sensed it. It twisted its body, causing the arrow to miss its vitals and strike its left wing membrane instead, tearing a large gash.

The monster flipped over in mid-air, trying to snatch the still-flying silver arrow with its claws.

But the arrow quickly blurred, like a snowflake melting into the curtain of rain, and vanished in an instant.

The Golem Demon froze for a moment.

It flapped its wings with all its might, its muscles unleashing immense power, and it desperately climbed higher like a startled falcon.

The gash in its left wing began to heal at a visible rate. Within a single breath, it was completely covered by newly grown tissue.

This was clearly a formidable regenerative ability.

It was an ability the Ancient Wizards had ingrained into the Golem Demon’s very bloodline through countless generations of biological modification during the era of the First Empire.

Amidst its frantic escape, the Golem Demon didn’t forget to glance down.

The spot where the spear had stood was now empty, save for a corpse with its head blown off lying on the ground.

This left the monster baffled.

But the Golem Demon knew this was no place to linger. The memory of its full-body paralysis, in particular, still filled it with lingering fear.

It hurriedly flapped its wings, their tips tracing arcs in the downpour, and quickly vanished into the lead-gray clouds.

「Back in the grass on the ground.」

Mo Ning watched the Golem Demon retreat into the distance, then looked down at his own hands, pure delight surging in his eyes.

’Paralyzing a Golem Demon by controlling Thunder Power from nearly two hundred meters away... even if only for a moment, that’s already beyond the scope of a Sub-zero Level Trick.’

’It might even be close to, or perhaps has already reached, the level of Level Zero Witchcraft.’

’No longer a Trick, but actual Witchcraft!’

He himself found this fact incredible.

The prompt from his cheat system was compelling evidence: [Current remaining Spiritual Power: 79.58%.]

The moment he had channeled the Thunder Power, he had consumed a full 12% of his Spiritual Power.

No Sub-zero Level Trick would ever consume that much Spiritual Power.

Mo Ning was absolutely certain. ’It must be my recent deep exploration of my Spiritual World that allowed me to miraculously grasp the power to control thunder.’