By noon, an atmosphere of frenzy hung over the imperial capital. The outcome of the duel between Ye Chui and Bosli remained unknown, their lives or deaths uncertain. The Beast Garden had collapsed, and even with the strength of the two combatants, few believed they could escape the chaotic annihilation caused by the shattering of space.
Many people already assumed they had perished. For a newly awakened Phase King Magician to die in the Star Empire was a major event in itself, let alone the simultaneous fall of Ye Chui, the newly risen hope of the empire’s powerhouses.
Even though Prince Geller sensed something fishy, he was sweating profusely with anxiety.
Just as Geller finally shook off the Black Phase Attendant and the others, preparing to rush to the Random Name Magic Guild to investigate, a earth-shaking boom resounded from high above King’s Avenue. The midday sun blazed fiercely, yet at that moment a second sun seemed to appear in the sky.
A spatial rift tore open in mid-air, surrounded by cracks that looked like fractured glass spreading through the void.
An entire section of the sky had been shattered.
Countless people looked up. Many powerhouses hurriedly raced toward the scene.
Soon everyone saw two balls of light plummet from the broken space and crash onto the broad bluestone pavement of King’s Avenue. Citizens scattered in panic, shouting in alarm, only to realise with joy that the two figures who had fallen were none other than Ye Chui and Bosli.
They were alive.
The spectacle moments ago had clearly been them forcing open space to escape the crisis of the collapsing Beast Garden world.
Both looked utterly wretched. Their clothes were torn, their bodies covered in blood, their faces indescribably haggard. They could barely stand, swaying as though they might collapse at any second, blood still streaming steadily from their noses.
“Bosli…” The Black Phase Attendant appeared behind her in a flash of lightning, his voice filled with delight. “You’re alive. Wonderful, truly wonderful.”
“Grandfather Black, thank you for your concern.” Bosli glanced weakly at him. Her body swaying slightly. Seeing him about to support her, she quickly waved him away and shook her head. “No. My duel with Ye Chui is not over. Do not interfere.”
“The duel is not over?” The Black Phase Attendant froze, then looked with complicated emotions at Ye Chui, who was also staggering as if about to fall.
Prince Geller had already reached Ye Chui’s side. His expression anxious, he asked, “What on earth happened? Is the Beast Garden… destroyed? How did you escape? And… what about the Beast God?”
“Our battle enraged the Beast God. That creature was truly formidable. Bosli and I nearly died at its hands. Fortunately it was already injured. We temporarily joined forces and finished it off. However, once it died, the Beast Garden’s space began to collapse. We went through immense hardship to open a portal out of that world and finally escaped,” Ye Chui explained weakly. This was the story they had prepared in advance, while the recent spatial rupture had been staged with Gui Bao’s assistance.
Gui Bao, a Chaos Giant Turtle, was naturally a space-affinity magical beast with powerful spatial abilities.
“You killed the Beast God?” Prince Geller exclaimed in disbelief. Shock mingled with deep, unconcealed regret in his voice. He was stunned by Ye Chui and Bosli’s strength, yet regretted the destruction of the Beast Garden and the resulting loss of the empire’s magical-beast military supply.
Of course, the most important thing was that Ye Chui was alive, and the Phase King Magician had not died either.
At this moment Prince Geller forgot his suspicions that Ye Chui might still have hidden plans. He stepped forward to support him. “To fight a Phase King Magician to this extent, you have every right to be proud…”
“No. The duel is not finished.” Ye Chui stubbornly shook his head. His exhausted eyes fixed on Bosli ahead. He wiped away the blood still pouring from his nose and declared firmly, “This duel must have a victor.”
On the other side, Bosli briefly recounted events to the Black Phase Attendant.
Although they had been forced to face the Beast God’s wrath together and barely escaped with their lives, this duel concerning the honour of the Magic Guild had to continue. They had to determine a winner.
Countless people who had heard the news now crowded around. They witnessed the determination of these two young powerhouses, their obstinate devotion to honour, and one by one felt awe rise within them.
The duel was not over.
But it soon would be.
Both swayed as they walked toward each other.
Bosli’s enormous grimoire hovered trembling beside her, the quiver revealing how little magic power she had left. Still, she refused to recall it into her body. With a rustle of pages, she searched for a suitable spell.
Ye Chui’s hand weakly traced across his own grimoire. At that moment he began to play a BGM.
As an all-round magician, Ye Chui’s versatility extended beyond magic. He also possessed swordsman abilities, summoner skills, and even believer powers. Using BGM in battle was nothing new to him; many had witnessed it before.
Yet this time the BGM he played was not one of those bizarre tunes that forcibly made people perform square dances. Instead it was a majestic, desolate, heroic, and tragic melody that instinctively filled listeners with solemn respect and admiration.
Among the onlookers, some had found it puzzling or even faintly ridiculous that two exhausted fighters still insisted on continuing. A few had even begun to suspect the whole thing was an act. However, the moment Ye Chui’s music washed over them, the surge of tragic heroism instantly banished all doubt and mockery, replacing them with genuine admiration for both combatants.
Forced pathos.
That was the effect of this BGM.
Its title was “Heaven and Earth, Lone Shadow, I Come and Go Freely”.
A classic piece from The Eagle Shooting Heroes and A Chinese Odyssey.
Amid that powerfully emotive music, Bosli shouted, “All-Round Magician, let us end this duel.”
“I have been impatient for this moment, Phase King Magician,” Ye Chui shouted back.
“Come on then.”
“Come on.”
“Fight.”
“Fight.”
They cried out together.
By chance the music reached its climax, a soaring dual-pipe passage, clear and spine-tingling in its infectious power. With their very last strength, Ye Chui and Bosli charged at each other.
Their final clash was about to begin.
It was the decisive strike of two people who had spent every last ounce of power.
And then…
Bosli released a spell with a whoosh. A faint chill shimmered across the ground. It was the most basic ice spell, [Melt Ice]. A thin sheet of ice instantly formed beneath Ye Chui’s feet. He stepped onto it, lost his balance, cried “Aiya!” and crashed heavily to the ground.
The BGM stopped abruptly. The grimoires vanished. Ye Chui passed out.
Everyone stood stunned.
The packed street fell deathly silent at this completely unexpected turn.
Bosli’s face was pale as paper, blood still dripping from her nose. She looked weakly but happily around her. “For the glory of the Magic Guild… I won.” With those words she too collapsed and fainted.
“…”
That was it?
The outcome felt… rather anticlimactic.
The crowd remained silent for a full ten seconds.
Only then did a hubbub of voices rise.
No one had foreseen this result, yet it somehow still carried a touch of tragic grandeur. Both fighters had been utterly spent, perhaps weaker than ordinary people, yet they had still mustered their final strength to complete the duel and decide victory or defeat. What a profoundly moving battle.
This seemingly comical yet ultimately poignant fight would be forever recorded in the annals of powerhouse duels.
Thanks to the atmosphere created by Ye Chui’s BGM moments earlier, not a single person doubted the authenticity of the contest.
Bosli had won, but only by a hair’s breadth. She had merely remained conscious a few seconds longer than Ye Chui. Still, she had preserved her dignity as Phase King Magician and upheld the honour of the Magic Guild.
As for Ye Chui, although he lost, he had challenged a Phase King and fallen only seconds short of victory. That record was already something to be immensely proud of.
The Black Phase Attendant walked to Bosli’s side. He lifted her gently, cast an admiring glance at the unconscious Ye Chui, and prepared to leave.
At that moment a sizzling crackle sounded behind them. Thunder. Krian had suddenly attacked the defenceless Ye Chui lying on the ground, unleashing a vicious lightning spell.
The crowd gasped in shock.
Prince Geller, who had been approaching Ye Chui, paled dramatically.
“Scoundrel!” a furious roar rang out.
It came from the Black Phase Attendant. With a sweep of his sleeve he summoned a wall of electricity that blocked Krian’s attack and protected Ye Chui.
Krian strode forward, snarling viciously, “Get out of my way. I’m going to kill him.”
“Krian!” The Black Phase Attendant had once held Krian in high regard, but now his face was full of contempt. “You are the son of a Phase King, yet you attack someone who cannot fight back. You insult the honour of the Magic Guild. You defile this sacred duel.”
“But… but this magician…” Krian had acted on impulse the moment he saw Ye Chui collapse. He had suffered repeated humiliations at Ye Chui’s hands and nursed a deep grudge. Now, hearing the Black Phase Attendant’s words, he realised how improper his actions were.
“You are bringing shame upon your father,” the Black Phase Attendant said, each word deliberate.
Krian’s face flushed crimson.
Prince Geller stormed over, scooped up Ye Chui, and glared at Krian. “Do you think the Star Empire has no one to protect its own? The duel is over. Ye Chui may have lost, but he remains the pride of our Star Empire. If you dare touch him, even if you are the son of a Phase King, the Star Empire will never forgive you.”
As he spoke, several figures stepped forward. Among them was the mace-wielding girl from the Jores family, as well as Presidents Fare and Sheral, who had previously harboured some prejudice against Ye Chui. Together they regarded Krian coldly.
Krian lowered his head in shame, hastily put away his grimoire, and fled the scene in a somewhat comical panic.
“Hmph. So much for the son of a Phase King,” Prince Geller muttered. He looked down anxiously at Ye Chui in his arms, wondering how serious the boy’s injuries were. Although Ye Chui clearly had some scheme, escaping the Beast Garden had evidently cost him dearly. Geller worried what effect this might have on his future magical power…
While he was lost in thought, a soft but unmistakable “Hic—” escaped Ye Chui’s lips. Prince Geller heard it clearly.
The prince’s body stiffened.
…It must be my imagination. Definitely my imagination…
