Chapter 154 - 153: Star Punishment
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE. The continuous sound echoed as dust and sand rained down from cracks in the cliff walls, as if the world itself were shaking.
An astonishing change was occurring within the bottomless giant pit!
The churning, viscous black substance within suddenly retracted like a receding tide. After a moment of silence, it erupted violently!
BANG!!!
The earth cracked open. Dust and smoke exploded as a black miasma erupted outwards.
The entire surrounding area shook violently under this Power, and far away in the observation area, Lante even lost his footing, crying out in alarm as he fell to the ground.
When he scrambled back up and saw the scene before him, his pupils dilated abruptly.
’What in the world... is this monster?’
The core of the Abyssal Evil Vine, hidden hundreds of meters deep underground, had finally emerged!
It wasn’t a plant at all; it more closely resembled a single, vertical eye slowly opening from the abyss.
At the center of the pupil was a constantly spinning vortex of shadows.
The sclera, or the white of the eye, was composed of countless root nodules shaped like twisted human faces, filled with blasphemy and madness.
Surrounding the core, hundreds of even more twisted and deformed vines burst from the ground. They guarded the Abyssal Evil Vine’s core like the most loyal of warriors!
"Come on!"
Hank and Mackenzie were not mentally affected by the scene.
They roared taunts once more, trying to draw all of the Abyssal Evil Vine’s attention onto themselves.
But this tactic wasn’t entirely effective.
While some vines still charged toward the Vanguards, others bypassed their defenses and lunged for Marvin and Lena in the rear!
Zelir stared intently at this scene.
He wanted to see how the two Upper Level Mages would respond when faced with a Demon’s melee attack.
The black tide was overwhelming.
A red light flashed around Lena as a flowing, blazing flame spread out, forming a barrier.
Blazing Flame Shield!
The moment any vine attacking her came into contact with the Blazing Flame Shield, its tough hide was instantly ignited.
Not only could they not advance an inch, but they also recoiled from the counterattack of the scorching flames.
Anything that dared to touch the Blazing Flame Shield would be incinerated.
Meanwhile, a distorted Force Field rippled out from around Instructor Marvin.
The vines attempting to attack him were just about to touch his Magic Robe when there were several dull THUDS.
As if struck by giant hammers, they were all forcefully repelled!
Ring of Resistance.
The two Upper Level Mages were unharmed.
Elsewhere, Yisi and Timothy were also besieged by vines bursting out of the ground from all directions!
The scene instantly became perilous.
Dozens of vines struck simultaneously from the ground and rock walls, weaving a dense, entangling net.
Yisi was in the middle of it all, constantly shifting her position, her toes tapping lightly on the thrashing vines to propel herself.
She dodged and counterattacked, her Dual Swords transforming into two silver moon-wheels. With every spin, she shredded several attacking vines!
However, the vines summoned by the Abyssal Evil Vine’s core had an even more insidious trait: they would branch out.
Of course, they didn’t sprout leaves, but deadly thorns.
When a vine whipped through the air and missed, several hard thorns would rapidly sprout from its surface.
Then, in a chain reaction, even more fine thorns would burst from the surface of those thorns.
In an instant, they filled the entire space, like a flower blooming.
An evil flower that brought only death.
SWISH...
Yisi, suspended in mid-air, was ultimately a step too slow. Caught off guard, she was viciously stabbed by a sharp thorn.
A black vapor immediately rose from the surface of the wound. Intense pain spread through her body as the toxin began to flow through her blood.
The Life Praise Silk Thread connected to Yisi lit up.
Boundless Healing Energy was continuously channeled, instantly purifying the toxin in her body. The wound from the thorn also healed at an extremely rapid pace.
"Tsk, annoying things...!"
Yisi snorted coldly, her Dual Swords simultaneously erupting with a brilliant Fighting Qi glow.
She activated Vortex Slash, shredding all the surrounding thorns like a hurricane.
Then, the Fighting Qi wrapped around her Dual Swords began to flow rapidly, actually condensing at the tips of the blades into crescent-shaped Energy Bodies resembling Wind Blades.
She slashed!
Two beams of sword light shot forward from the blades, just like Magic.
Everywhere they passed, all thorns and vines in their path were utterly demolished.
Yisi released several more blasts of sword light, forcibly carving a safe path through the impenetrable sea of vines!
"Upper Level Swordsmen can even project Sword Qi?" Gray was stunned by this scene.
He still couldn’t even use his Fighting Qi freely enough to be considered a Middle Level Swordsman.
On the other side, Timothy displayed a similar ability.
With a swing of his Longsword, he flung out a cyan, wind-blade-like Fighting Spirit Sword Light, instantly clearing a large area of thorns in front of him!
Seeing the dense Fighting Qi of the two Upper Level Vanguards, Marcus was deeply moved.
’When will I ever be able to cultivate my Fighting Qi to that level...’
Hank and Mackenzie could attract dozens of thick vines, withstand their assault, and even find moments to counterattack.
’I have a hard time just blocking a single One-Eyed Giant.’
’Going from Junior to Middle Level might be possible with hard work, luck, and enough time.’
’But Upper Level Warriors, without exception, all possess extraordinary talent.’
’Only with a profound understanding of Fighting Qi, combined with exceptional talent, is it possible to reach the rank of an Upper Level Warrior.’
After blocking the invading vines with her Blazing Flame Shield, Lena found a moment to cast a counter-attack Magic.
Fractal Fire!
Seven scorching Fireballs materialized in front of Lena and then shot out!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM...!
A series of huge explosions rang out as Lena blew apart the vines that were trying to bypass the defensive line again, halting their assault.
Then, Lena began to channel an even more powerful Magic.
From the tip of her Magic Wand, not only did Flames appear, but lightning also began to crackle forth!
The two elemental forces, both representing destruction, slowly drew together.
For an ordinary person, doing this would have immediately triggered a violent explosion!
But Lena, relying on her astonishing Magic Manipulation Level, actually managed to fuse the fire and lightning, harmonizing them perfectly.
Finally, an Elemental Spear, its outer layer wreathed in blue arcs of electricity and its core burning with crimson flames, took shape before her!
Flame Thunder Spear!
Lena grabbed the spear by its shaft, a fierce glint in her eyes, and hurled it toward the densest area of vines!
WHOOSH!
The spear traced a brilliant red-and-blue streak through the air, instantly piercing several vines in its path before accurately embedding itself in the target area.
Explosion!
Terrifying firelight expanded abruptly as countless bolts of furious lightning spread out like a spiderweb.
They conducted themselves madly along the branches of the vines, and in a single moment, tore apart the internal structure of dozens of them, causing them to explode from the inside out. The destructive power was utterly astonishing!
Instructor Marvin once again cast a Gravity Singularity, gathering together the vines that protected the Abyssal Evil Vine’s core.
Lena’s Magma Pillar then erupted forth, incinerating them in one fell swoop!
On both flanks of the battlefield, Yisi and Timothy continuously flung out their Fighting Spirit Sword Lights, quickly clearing away the last of the remaining vines.
At this point, all of the Abyssal Evil Vine’s external defenses had been utterly destroyed.
The evil core was finally exposed.
With so many of its summoned vines eliminated, it was severely weakened; even the light from its evil, vertical eye had grown considerably fainter.
However, the final blow could not be delayed.
With a Demon like this, rooted deep underground, giving it even a moment to recover would allow it to absorb energy and launch another frenzied counterattack!
Lena had been shouldering the main offensive role until now, but it was finally Marvin’s turn.
He had been conserving his Magic Power for this very moment!
Marvin spread his arms, and his Magic Wand actually floated in front of him!
A massive amount of Arcane Magic Power surged through his body, and a powerful aura spread outwards.
Suddenly, a pitch-black curtain unfurled behind Instructor Marvin.
Immediately after, dozens of orbs of light ignited upon the curtain, their numbers continuously increasing, just like stars.
Dazzling orbs of light formed one after another.
They were all spheres of energy, condensed from pure Magic Power, and each one possessed a terrifying might dozens of times stronger than an Arcane Missile!
Star Punishment!
"Go..."
As Marvin softly gave the command, the orbs of light floating behind him began to surge rapidly toward the core of the Abyssal Evil Vine!
As the orbs of light streaked through the air, the powerful Magic Waves they emitted caused space itself to show signs of distortion.
The next second, they began to bombard the vertical eye one after another!
"BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!"
Within the valley, the thunderous sound of explosions was incessant!
Wave after wave of blinding light flashed in the valley bottom.
Under this relentless bombardment, the Abyssal Evil Vine actually let out a mournful, wail-like shriek!
The sclera, formed of twisted roots, was blasted into carbonized smithereens by the bombardment of Arcane Energy, splattering black juices everywhere!
Huge gaps were blasted into the hard outer shell of root nodules, revealing the constantly writhing flesh and tissue within.
The students covered their ears as they watched this scene, the shock in their hearts beyond description!
Even the Upper Level Swordsmen, Yisi and Timothy, could only stand by and watch, dumbfounded.
Every time an orb of light exploded, a new one would immediately condense within the black curtain behind Marvin, filling the void.
When this Magic would end depended solely on when the caster’s Magic Power ran out!
Finally, after dozens upon dozens of explosions, the Abyssal Evil Vine’s mournful shrieking stopped.
But Marvin was still uneasy. Only after adding three more blasts from Star Punishment and seeing no reaction from the Abyssal Evil Vine did he finally stop.
The smoke and dust gradually dissipated.
The giant pit where the Abyssal Evil Vine had been was now just a blasted ruin.
The remains of the vines were scattered on the ground like rotten cabbage leaves, and the constantly spinning vortex of shadows had long since vanished.
Abyssal Evil Vine, subjugation successful!
The magnificent black curtain behind him slowly faded and dissipated. Marvin’s figure swayed slightly, and he was panting heavily.
He took out a Source Energy Crystal Stone to replenish his Magic Power.
This kind of sustained, high-intensity Casting was by no means easy, even for him.