In the grand hall outside the Goddess’s Palace, the battle between the Valkyrie and the Magic Swordsman raged fiercely. With a single slash from the Valkyrie Jiji’s radiant sword, it sliced through the Magic Swordsman’s body, nearly cleaving him in two from head to torso.
Yet this failed to kill him. From the horrific wound that nearly split him apart, writhing blood-red tendrils suddenly emerged, intertwining and pulling his severed body back together. Thorne’s divided face reformed, revealing a grotesque, terrifying expression. His magic book’s attribute was Light Healing, and with the devil’s enhancement, this ability had grown immensely, rendering him nearly immortal.
“Jiji, disgusting…” the Valkyrie Jiji couldn’t help but mutter, perhaps unaware of her own appearance after five millennia in the ruins without a mirror. She charged forward, sword in hand.
…
Boom!
On one side of the hall, the old swordsman Tumu’s shortsword technique landed on Cass, the immense force sending him crashing backward into the wall. His chest bore several gruesome wounds, severe injuries, yet Cass, fueled by fervent battle spirit, seemed impervious to pain. His expression remained wild, wiping blood from his mouth, his eyes ablaze.
His mind flashed to a past moment.
In the howling desert sands, a colossal tornado loomed. The caravan’s camels and oxen fled in terror, merchants knelt, begging the wind gods for mercy, and the mercenary band succumbed to despair. But he stood fearless.
Before the oncoming tornado, he raised his greatsword.
The storm roared, but what was the desert’s most fearsome tornado to him?
He would cleave it with one strike!
That battle had made him famous. In the oasis city of the northern desert, the tale of “the great swordsman who cut down a tornado” was still sung.
Yes, that was the feeling, unyielding passion, the will to fight to the death.
Cass smiled, advancing slowly toward Tumu.
“Feels good. Come on, again.”
…
“Enough!” Edel roared.
Hiding in the shadows, he was infuriated by Green’s relentless barrage of junk. For a low-tier Spatial Mage to corner him like this was intolerable. He bellowed, “Don’t think I can’t deal with you!”
He lunged toward the Goddess’s Palace entrance again, his dagger slicing through the air. Enhanced by shadow magic, the dagger vanished into the darkness, becoming an invisible, deadly fang.
Then, with a clang, a golden flash repelled him. Green, guarding the entrance, held a large golden basin.
Panting, the Spatial Mage shouted at Edel, “The Goddess’s foot-washing basin. Scared yet?”
…
“Shoo shoo shoo, shoo shoo shoo—” Clown Debbie darted nimbly around Bilith, her movements impossibly agile, making odd sound effects while stabbing her delicate knife into Bilith or his twisted summoned creatures.
Mud giants, fanged serpents, gorgon-like monsters… these magical creatures, born from warped fantasies, crumbled to ash under Clown Debbie’s magic-draining attacks.
Bilith was covered in blood, though not fatally wounded. The Mad Clown-possessed Debbie, while uncontrollable, knew her goal. She didn’t rush to kill Bilith, as he was now her magic battery.
“Argh! Enough already!?”
“Shoo shoo shoo, shoo shoo shoo—”
…
On the iPad-like magic book’s map, the two red dots ahead had stopped. Ye Chui, concealed in the shadows, crept closer, pondering their actions. A room stood to one side of the corridor, its door decayed. The two were hiding inside, but no sound came from within. What were they doing?
He paused, recalling who had entered the left corridor, knowing their magic. After a moment’s thought, he tapped his magic book twice and stepped into the room.
The ground felt odd, slightly wet, like soft mud.
Ye Chui frowned.
The next moment, his feet were gripped tightly, unable to move, and his body began sinking rapidly.
“A swamp?” Ye Chui gasped.
“Correct, swamp magic, little shadow-hider,” a woman’s voice replied. It was the female mage. A magic lantern illuminated the room, possibly once a study, with decayed bookshelves and scrolls. The floor now glistened with a wet, brownish hue.
In a corner stood a man and woman, the two mages, hands clasped tightly.
“Water and earth fusion magic,” Ye Chui realised, eyeing their joined hands.
“I’m earth, Anna’s water,” the male mage said with a smile. “Together, our magic combines into a terrifying swamp. You must have heard of us, the Demon Couple of the Swamp.”
Ye Chui had indeed heard of the Demon Couple of the Swamp, a notorious mage duo in Stan Town. Individually unremarkable, their combined swamp magic was eerie and formidable, like a spider’s web, trapping prey inescapably.
“When Tumu said you wielded shadow magic, we planned for this, young mage. You’re too green,” the male earth mage sneered, flipping his magic book to cast another spell. He released his wife’s hand, reaching for Ye Chui.
Ye Chui preemptively cast an elemental curse [Lightning]. Pale blue electricity surged from his magic book, racing through the wet swamp toward the couple.
But the lightning vanished before reaching them. The ground suddenly dried, all moisture seemingly drained. The female mage smirked, having used water magic to absorb the swamp’s moisture. How could lightning travel through dry ground?
Ye Chui prepared to cast [Lightning Strike], a ranged attack needing no medium, but the male mage’s outstretched hand clenched. Sand engulfed Ye Chui, transforming his spot into a bizarre sandstone statue.
Earth mid-tier attack curse [Sand Burial].
At its advanced stage, it could become [Great Sand Burial], allowing a mage to control an entire desert, burying a city.
“This kid was tricky. His magic book has too many attributes, but we caught him. He’s entombed in sand harder than stone,” the male mage said smugly, glancing at his wife as they prepared to leave. “To break [Sand Burial], his magic would need to surpass mine, or…”
A sudden, ominous tremor interrupted.
Cracks appeared in the sand statue encasing Ye Chui.
As an earth mage, the male mage instantly recognised it: the earth elemental curse [Earthquake]!
The sand shattered, and Ye Chui’s voice finished the man’s sentence, “Or I also know earth magic!”
Earth magic was unique among the nine systems. It had no direct counter but could encompass or bury anything. All magic types were somewhat restrained by earth, yet could also counter it.
For binding curses like [Sand Burial], most spells were ineffective, but earth magic could disrupt it.
The Demon Couple had cautiously studied Ye Chui’s abilities, noting his magic book’s use of light, wind, lightning, and spatial magic, but no earth magic. How could one magic book hold so many attributes? They assumed he couldn’t wield earth magic. Yet…
Ye Chui had just used an earth curse!
Killing the bald swordsman and two others had earned him 75 points, bringing his total to 77. Upon entering the room, he had downloaded [Earthquake], knowing the Demon Couple’s specialty.
As he broke [Sand Burial], an invisible [Spatial Blade] shot forth.
Splat—
Blood sprayed from the male mage’s throat. He clutched it futilely, collapsing to his knees, eyes wide with terror as he watched Ye Chui emerge from the sand, then fell face-down.
“Aid!” the female mage cried, enraged. Water mist enveloped her, and with a roar, a torrent slammed Ye Chui against the wall.
The water formed an arm, linked to her outstretched hand. Her face twisted with malice as she advanced, “You killed Aid, my love. I’ll kill you, drown you in my river, let you rot in it, you vile wretch!”
Yet blue electricity sparked within the water arm. With a crackle, current surged through the water to the female mage. The room’s floor was covered in sand from her husband’s spell, and in her grief and rage, she hadn’t noticed her water attack had mixed with sand, turning murky and becoming a perfect conductor.
The fusion of earth and water created a deadly swamp, but now it brought her fatal harm.
Splash—
The water arm dissipated, spilling to the ground.
The female mage collapsed, smoke rising from her body. Ye Chui, ignoring his exhaustion and pain, approached and cast a finishing spell, severing her throat.
“Phew, that was close.” He swayed, checking the map to confirm the two red dots had vanished, then sat to catch his breath. Killing these two mages was far harder than the three swordsmen. His magic and experience were inferior, and his victory relied on luck and their devil-induced volatility.
But he had won. The thrill of life-and-death combat was exhilarating.
“Penta Kill!” Ye Chui said softly, standing up.
“Now, three more to go…”
