Chapter 398 - 396: Unexpected Change
From the heretic base shrouded in gray mist came countless shouts and screams of heretics.
Leica sat atop the flying device, his gaze cold and uncompromising as he stared at the Tier Three heretic ahead.
His teammates, together with another fifth-year team, were already battling the heretics.
"These heretics are aided by the environment. While they only know a handful of spells, each of them carries corruption. Combined with such dense contamination, even a Tier Two spell can unleash Tier Three power. They’re honestly a bit troublesome."
"But still..."
Leica raised his Magic Staff.
"Compared to us, they’re still far too inferior!"
This year’s trial is extremely dangerous, but he must take risks.
Because after this trial, they would be leaving the school.
This was their last chance to advance to Tier Four.
They had to collect enough merits, ’purify’ enough high-tier heretics if they were to garner the school’s support and seize one final opportunity to break through to Tier Four.
Tier Four is a watershed.
So long as you become a Mage, given enough time, you’ll reach Tier Three sooner or later.
But only Tier Four is truly difficult.
Even the Ascension Trials can’t be triggered as casually as those for Tiers One, Two, or Three on the first attempt; they require opportunity, or outside help.
Of course, even as a Tier Three, once you graduate you can join the Holy Court, start as a Knight, and perhaps one day become a High Priest governing a town.
In every small and medium town in Istane, the High Priest of the Divine Hall is a Tier Three Mage.
But in actuality, Tier Three is only the basic requirement for High Priest—it means you have the potential for the role, not that you’ll automatically be qualified.
Unless you have immense talent and a real chance of breaking into Tier Four within a few years, only then might you get a special exception to manage a Divine Hall and build a résumé.
Otherwise, those Divine Halls in the towns wouldn’t be populated solely by old men and women—no young people. Everyone rises slowly, through fierce competition and selection.
Quickly recalling his own opportunities, Leica leapt from the flying device, controlling his Magic Puppet to charge the heretics, his raised hand unleashing a Holy Light Strike.
The Holy Light Strike, which would usually make short work of heretics, weakened as soon as it emerged due to the environment; its radiance grew dim. When it struck a heretic, it only made the enemy stagger slightly.
Seeing this, Leica immediately switched to a Tier Three spell.
"If Purification Skill’s not usable, then let’s use Divine Judgment!"
Leica calmly controlled his Magic Puppet, giving orders to his teammates and keeping a close watch on the other squads as well.
Suddenly, he noticed a surge of powerful magic power to the left.
Looking over, he found it was the Holy Maiden Squad.
At that moment, every member of the Holy Maiden Squad was casting her own attribute’s Binding Skill.
Wherever they walked, misty water vapor spread. Whenever it touched a Tier One heretic, the mist rapidly froze, imprisoning all the heretics inside.
Gentle streams of water flowed past, transforming into the softest of ropes, binding those charging heretics tightly.
Divine radiance appeared, transforming into holy rings of light, ensnaring any heretics that managed to slip through.
These beams of light were also influenced by the environment, but shone even more brilliantly than anyone else’s.
Faint green light rose up from the ground, and the most controlling of brambles shot up, shackling heretic after heretic—even Tier Two heretics found no escape.
On another side, flames surged, constantly drawing in ordinary heretics nearby...
Leica glanced to the side: the third-year team was working together, slowly binding their foes one by one.
The difference was immense.
"So strong. No wonder they won the Mage League championship. If they were here, we wouldn’t even have a chance against these Tier Three heretics, would we?" Leica sighed inwardly.
Yet even as he admired them, seeing how powerful they were ignited his fighting spirit.
"I’ve been Tier Three for a full year. Even if I’m weaker than them, it’s not by much!"
Battle thirst flared in Leica. Controlling his Magic Puppet, he raised its hand and hurled a sacred spear straight at a charging Tier Two heretic.
Just then, that Tier Two heretic suddenly showed a strange smile, letting the sacred spear pierce deep into his chest.
Leica glanced once, unconcerned, but as he turned to deal with other heretics, he suddenly found his spell connection severed.
Looking up, he saw the Tier Two heretic slowly pull out the light spear, then, with all his might, hurl it at Leica’s Magic Puppet.
BOOM!
A thunderous detonation tore through the Magic Puppet, blasting it into pieces on the spot.
The sudden turn shocked Leica and the students around him.
In the next instant, he reacted, face paling: he shouted, "Crap, it’s a Tier Four Mage!"
The others realized too, terror seizing their faces as they scrambled away.
"Heh—running?"
Clumps of demonic qi, laced with contamination, condensed in the air and shot toward several nearby students and Magic Puppets.
"Watch out!"
Alina shouted, a curtain of light dropping behind the students.
But the Protective Skill cast in her haste was no match for the Tier Four Mage’s premeditated killing move.
The corrupted blasts, imbued with chaotic magic power, smashed through the light barrier and slammed into the fleeing students and Magic Puppets.
The force of the impact hurled every Magic Puppet and student through the air and down onto the ground.
The Magic Puppets were destroyed, while the students’ eyes closed—lives and deaths unknown.
With that sudden ambush, four students and three Magic Puppets immediately lost the ability to fight.
Leica was stunned.
My Magic Puppet...
My chance at Tier Four...
Gone.
All gone.
No, this isn’t the time to mourn.
Regaining his senses, he saw the Tier Four Mage, disguised as Tier Two, give him a mocking smile, then lunge straight at him.
"Run!" Alina’s voice rang in his ears.
Alina was urgently shouting, but she was tied up by that overt Tier Four heretic.
This was enemy territory. Fighting here, she was restricted in every way, unable to cast spells fully—making it impossible to determine a winner in the short term.
Similarly, as her opponent pinned her down, she couldn’t spare the time to deal with this unexpected Tier Four Mage.
Despair gripped Alina’s heart like ice.
"That Tier Four... there’s something wrong with his state. He doesn’t feel like a natural ascendee. But Tier Four is Tier Four. These students can’t possibly handle it."
Alina grew slightly flustered.
Splitting her focus to watch the battlefield below disrupted her attacking rhythm, letting her opponent seize the initiative; she could only shout, hoping at least some students could escape.
If even one made it out, it would be worth it.
Yet Leica was utterly suppressed by his enemy’s overwhelming aura and his own terror—he couldn’t move at all.
By the time he tried to flee, the enemy was already before him.
It’s over...
Two words flashed through Leica’s mind.
Crisis descending, his thoughts blazed with activity.
Suddenly, fury welled up inside him.
"Even if I die, I won’t let you kill me so easily!"
He roared, preparing to cast his magic.
Just then, the charging Tier Four heretic suddenly halted, brow furrowing, and instantly retreated.
Leica still hadn’t reacted when, right in front of the Tier Four heretic, a frozen orb, glittering with countless faint points of light, appeared.
BOOM!