The dark wasteland stretched endlessly as a horse-drawn carriage made its slow way across it.
Two wildebeests pulled the cart. Since there was no rush to get back, the beasts were quite relaxed, occasionally snorting and tearing at roadside plants with their mouths.
Around the carriage, a faint ring of white luminescence illuminated the surrounding ground.
This was the effect of a
"Leilin, you had Aobo and Ilya deliberately slow the carriage down, and you had me prepare this. What exactly are you planning?"
Inside the carriage, Shiling toyed with a crystal ball emanating fluctuations of runic energy, then suddenly looked up and asked.
"Of course — to wait for someone!" Leilin lay half-reclined against the cushions, eyes narrowed slightly.
"Is it… Shigley from the Eight-Legged Spider?"
Shiling was an intelligent woman, and her expression immediately changed.
"Not just him. There could also be Wizards from the Mist Forest. After all, I'm here, aren't I?"
Leilin smiled faintly and stepped outside the carriage.
"P-p-Professor, look!"
The carriage came to a stop. Aobo, the driver, stammered out the words. Before him, a massive wall of fog blocked their path.
Although the Dark Extreme Domain also had thick fog, for it to appear here — and to be this dense — was clearly abnormal. The magical power woven through it was overtly exposed; their opponents had clearly resolved to ambush and kill everyone here.
"A Mist Barrier! A unique spell of the Mist Forest. It really is them!"
From behind Leilin came Shiling's sigh. "What do we do?"
After everything they had been through, Leilin had already taken complete command in Shiling's mind. Whenever something came up, she turned to him for guidance.
"Follow the plan we discussed! You don't need to get involved — just focus on protecting yourselves!"
Leilin jumped down from the carriage and walked up to the wall of fog.
Under the light's illumination, the greyish fog had congealed like paste, with small vortexes rippling across its surface.
"No matter how many rules and systems are in place, Wizards are still Wizards. For the right kind of profit, what's a little risk?"
Leilin smiled calmly.
In this situation, as long as he annihilated them all here and made sure to clean up afterward, any lingering consequences could be dealt with.
But he wasn't alarmed — in fact, he was somewhat pleased.
"All coming to my doorstep at once — that certainly saves me a lot of trouble!" With that, Leilin pressed both hands against the fog wall.
Crack! Crack!
A layer of white icy mist spread along the wall, freezing every grey fog vortex on its surface.
In an instant, the vast fog maze wall seemed to transform into crystal — transparent and gleaming, with faint reflections of the surrounding landscape appearing within.
This was the residual energy from Leilin's continuous modifications to adapt his body to frost radiation, now released all at once.
"Not bad!" Leilin examined his own hands.
His hands now appeared even whiter, like jade. One could even faintly see a translucent quality within.
"The frost radiation adaptation is fully complete. Once we return, I'll be able to use the Frozen Bloodline Imprint!"
Leilin smiled, then lightly tapped the ice wall with one finger.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
Hairline fractures spread outward from his fingertip, branching in every direction.
Within seconds, countless cracks covered the entire ice wall. Shards of ice flew in every direction before dissolving into sparkling motes that drifted gently downward.
BOOM!
With a thunderous crash, the entire fog wall shattered like building blocks, scattering across the ground.
As the fog dispersed, the carriage's light immediately illuminated several figures.
"Shigley! It really is you! And Cis!"
Shiling gritted her teeth.
Blocking their path was indeed Shigley's group. But besides the two of them, several old men now flanked them, each radiating the aura of semi-elemental transformation, with wisps of grey fog still flowing between their fingers.
The old men's faces were filled with shock, clearly startled that Leilin had broken through the Mist Barrier so easily.
"You truly are a peak First-level Wizard!"
Among the group, the androgynous Cis was clearly the leader. He gave a slight bow.
"This is a matter between our faction and the Nature Alliance School. Would Lord Leilin consider stepping aside for the time being? After this is settled, no matter what terms the other side offered, we can double them!"
As his words fell, it was as though some seal had been released. A violent, oppressive aura erupted from Cis, turning Shiling's face white. Aobo and Ilya nearly fainted on the spot.
"Peak First-level! He's also at peak First-level!"
Shiling's fingers clenched tightly on her clothing.
Under the pressure of a Wizard of equal rank, an ordinary wizard might have chosen to compromise. But Leilin simply shook his head in refusal. To him, anyone who harbored designs on the Ice Cavern fell into only one category — the dead.
"Then please forgive my rudeness!"
The Wizard called Cis remained composed and courteous. But the next instant, his aura underwent a violent transformation.
Like a volcanic eruption, intense energy fluctuations radiated from his body. Countless grey energy particles condensed, generating energy convection that formed tidal waves.
"Mist Giant!"
Following Cis's incantation, a colossal spirit resembling an air elemental — over a dozen meters tall — materialized on the battlefield.
The spirit's lower body was composed of swirling fog, like a cyclone, while its upper body took the form of a man, entirely grey-white, with bulging, knotted muscles along both arms. Its sheer size blotted out the sky.
"In my name, I command you — kill him!" Cis pointed at Leilin!
The Mist Giant roared and drove both mountain-sized fists directly at Leilin!
"This level of attack — coming out swinging right from the start. Have they already decided to kill?"
Leilin's lips curved into an unwavering smile.
"They must have guessed that I also know about the Ice Cavern. They think I'm a competitor and want to silence me quickly?"
In truth, their guess was entirely correct. What they didn't know was that Leilin's strength far exceeded their imagination — and that he had exactly the same intention.
"Wind!"
Facing the Mist Giant's assault, Leilin uttered a single word!
Hummm! A violent black tornado formed between him and the giant. Countless wind blades sliced through the air, driving the giant's fists back.
Hsss!
Then, a wave of spiritual power far more powerful — and far more sinister — than Cis's descended upon the battlefield!
Darkness System energy particles surged like ocean waves, utterly shredding the energy tide that Cis had created!
In the Dark Extreme Domain, the concentration of Darkness System energy particles was even higher. Moreover, what Leilin wielded was the solidified spiritual power of a Second-level Wizard. His influence completely overwhelmed his opponent's.
Numerous Darkness System particles, visible to the naked eye, swarmed toward Leilin.
A gust of wind lifted him into the air. Then the energy particles merged with the black tornado — its form swelling dramatically, instantly transforming into an ancient beast radiating savage, brutal intent!
The creature was serpentine and massive, at least seven or eight hundred meters long, covered in dense black scales. A pair of amber eyes, each as large as water vats, gleamed with a savage, bloodthirsty light!
And Leilin stood atop the head of this colossal black serpent, his expression perfectly calm.
The confrontation alone between the black serpent and the Mist Giant was enough to send Shigley, Shiling, and the others scrambling backward at full speed.
"This is a clash between peak First-level Wizards! Even the slightest wave of residual energy from their battle could annihilate you completely — stay back and be careful!"
As she retreated, Shiling shielded the two apprentices while issuing her warning.
Aobo and Ilya gazed at the figure standing atop the black serpent's head, their faces filled with envy, yearning, and longing.
Shiling watched this scene with a bitter smile in her heart.
Peak First-level — how could that be so easily achieved? These two apprentices were core seeds of her School, but if they could even advance to full Wizards, that would be cause for celebration. To reach Leilin's level? Impossible.
"He — he's actually this strong?"
On the other side, although Shigley knew Leilin was at peak First-level, he had never had a concrete concept of what such a Wizard could do. Now his jaw dropped.
"How is Lord Cis doing?" Seeing the Mist Giant being pushed back by the black serpent, Shigley asked with worry.
"Rest assured! Our Sect Master is extremely powerful — and he still has trump cards he hasn't used yet!"
The two other semi-elemental elders immediately offered reassurance, though their eyes betrayed little confidence.
"Lord Leilin! You truly are a formidable opponent!"
At that moment, Cis spoke up. "What follows is my final move. I hope you won't disappoint me!"
"Mistification!" Cis called out in a low voice.
Vast quantities of fog poured from his body, wisps of grey mist continuously streaming into the Mist Giant. Meanwhile, Cis's own form shrank rapidly until, at last, all that remained was a pile of empty clothing.
The Mist Giant swelled by nearly half its size, its facial features rippling. After a flash of grey light, the face of Cis himself appeared upon it.
"I remember now! That's Mistification — the Sect Master of the Mist Forest's killing technique! He once used this move to slay another peak First-level Wizard! Leilin, be careful! This Cis is the Sect Master of the Mist Forest in disguise!"
From a distance, Shiling suddenly recalled something and shouted a warning.
"So that's how it is!" Leilin nodded.
This spell's effect was indeed remarkable.
The Mist Giant's original attacks had a power level of around 60, but after Mistification, the Chip's warning data climbed steadily, ultimately reaching the threshold of 79!
That was practically the absolute limit of what a First-level Wizard could achieve! No wonder this move had been enough to slay a Wizard of the same rank.