Chapter 656
Passing By
Chapter 656 Passing By
The stone-paved path of the academy was bustling with people, mostly mages in academy uniforms, as well as many nobles in luxurious clothes.
They walked in twos and threes in the same direction, their faces filled with anticipation and curiosity.
Thranduil followed his gaze and then suddenly realized what was going on. He bowed and explained, "Your Highness, it's about the challenge from the Glorious Arts Academy. Today, a mage from Byro County has come to challenge the Glorious Arts Academy."
"This mage from Bairo County has an extremely impressive record. In just half a year, he defeated the magic halls of ten county cities and obtained ten magic hall badges. He is the most dazzling challenge mage in this magic hall challenge."
He came to the Glorious Magic Academy to take on the challenge, and the academy's guardian mage was Karen, the third-ranked student in this year's class, whose strength was extremely impressive and who was one of the most promising young mages in the academy in recent years.
"Such a French duel naturally attracted the interest of many people."
“Karen.” Du Wei nodded slightly, his tone calm but conveying an undeniable judgment, “He is indeed quite good, although not as good as his brother.”
He paused, his gaze fixed on the direction of the Glorious Art Museum. Though separated by a great distance, it was as if he could see through space and witness the impending duel.
"However, given that this Byro County mage has defeated ten different magic schools in a row, I think he should win this challenge."
"Oh?" Thranduil was somewhat surprised and subconsciously raised his eyebrows.
Du Wei's view was completely contrary to the mainstream view of the monks of Glorious County.
In the glorious city where anti-magic stones are everywhere, most out-of-town mages suffer from acclimatization problems when they first arrive because their magic is suppressed.
Karen was playing on home turf and was an elite member of the academy. Even Thranduil himself favored Karen. "Why would Your Highness favor this mage from Byron County?"
Du Wei remained expressionless, but his eyes were unusually clear: "Karen's advantage lies in his enhanced melee combat and precise control of magic in a magic-free environment. This is a traditional strength of Glory County mages, and it is also the result of his years of honing his skills in the academy's magic-free training grounds."
"But his weaknesses are also obvious. His tactical system is too simple, he relies too much on the combination of spell enhancement and melee assault, and he lacks experience in adapting to changing situations."
"This mage from Bairo County was able to defeat ten magic schools in a row, which was no accident."
“Ten magic halls, each with a different environment. The fact that he was able to win in each of these different environments shows that he not only has strong magical skills, but also has a strong ability to adapt and tactically change.” Du Wei’s voice was steady.
"The suppression of the anti-magic stone will indeed affect his performance, but a mage like him will certainly not be bound by the environment. Karen's advantages will be infinitely reduced in front of such an all-around opponent, while her disadvantages will be infinitely amplified."
Thranduil was secretly amazed upon hearing this.
Based on his simple description, Du Wei accurately analyzed the strengths and weaknesses of the two men and the key to the battle.
This level of insight is something that even many experienced mentors may not be able to achieve.
He thought for a moment, then smiled and suggested, "Your Highness has just come out of seclusion; it's a good time for you to relax."
The Glorious Arts Hall isn't far from the academy, so why don't we go check it out? We can see if, as you suspect, this Magistrate of Byron County will emerge victorious.”
Upon hearing this, Du Wei did not respond immediately, but instead lowered his head and pondered for a moment.
His gaze swept over the surging crowd below once more, then he slowly shook his head, his tone calm yet firm: "No need."
As the heir to the throne, every public appearance of his is likely to be imbued with special significance.
Moreover, the outcome was already predetermined by the strengths and adaptability of the two players; whether or not one watched the game, the result would be the same.
The Magic-Suppressing Ring.
As soon as the French Bulldog's horn sounded, Karen's eyes instantly turned sharp as knives.
He took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling slightly, his right hand gripping the extraordinary longsword tightly.
A torrent of pale purple magic flowed into it through his fingertips.
In an instant, the entire longsword was enveloped in a flowing, pale purple halo, and the originally simple blade seemed to come alive, exuding a sharp and dangerous aura.
Second-circle transformation spell, [Enchanted Weapon].
The longsword, enhanced by magic, now possesses the power to contend with magic.
Without pausing, Karen unleashed an invisible, surging energy that instantly enveloped his entire body like a tidal wave.
He could clearly feel his muscles brimming with explosive power, his reaction speed reaching an unprecedented level, and everything around him seemed to slow down.
This is the third-circle transformation spell, [Acceleration].
With the blessing of the two spells, Karen's aura suddenly surged.
His legs were slightly bent, and his body was like a spring compressed to its limit, ready to unleash astonishing power at any moment.
His gaze was fixed on Gao De not far away, like a cheetah poised to pounce, waiting for the perfect moment to launch a deadly attack.
His tactics were simple yet efficient: close the distance with extreme speed, suppress the opponent with a barrage of melee attacks, leaving them no chance to cast complex high-level spells, and end the battle quickly.
However, just as he was about to push off the ground and charge forward, an invisible, heavy pressure suddenly descended from the sky.
It was like a giant hand pressing down hard on him.
His movements abruptly halted, a slight flaw appearing in his previously fluid, power-gathering stance, as if his speed and reaction time had been dragged into a quagmire.
From Gaode Maps: [Slow Technique]
Gaode's approach is simple and direct: no matter how sharp your melee charge is, first use magic to weaken your speed and reaction.
If you're too slow, how can you close the distance quickly?
Even if they manage to get close, their attack frequency drops drastically, and their once fluid swordsmanship becomes full of flaws.
In an instant, the buffs from [Acceleration] and the debuffs from [Slowness] both took effect on Karen.
The former focuses on powerful single-target enhancements, while the latter offers softer, area-of-effect control.
Ultimately, Karen's speed was improved, but compared to a pure speed boost, the effect was significantly weakened and far from reaching the expected maximum.
"Hmph, a mere trick!" Karen sneered. Although his speed was not as fast as expected, his confidence remained unshaken, and he continued to rush towards Gaode like an arrow.
But Karen had just cast a second-circle spell and a third-circle spell.
As a mage who constructed the Leomon magic network, God's casting speed must be faster than Karen's, so how could he only cast one spell?
Sure enough, just as Karen charged forward, Gao De moved his right hand.
At his fingertips, a blazing flame rapidly condensed and expanded, emitting such high temperatures that the surrounding air began to distort and vaporize.
Fireball+!
Yes, it's still [Fireball+].
Although the Circle of Anti-Magic weakens the power of Evocation spells, it only weakens them, not completely bans them.
With the blessing of the essence of the Zhuoer spell, Gao De was able to cast two third-circle spells, and had firmly gained the upper hand in terms of the total number of spells and casting efficiency.
Karen's eyes narrowed sharply, and she had to admit that Gao De's ability to sweep through five counties with his fireball spell showed that his understanding and control of the fireball spell had indeed reached a superb level.
Despite being suppressed by the magic-suppressing ring, he was still able to cast a fireball spell so quickly.
However, he was not afraid.
Faced with this deadly exploding fireball, he did not flinch at all; instead, a fierce fighting spirit ignited in his eyes.
The pale purple demonic light on the longsword in his hand grew increasingly intense, almost solidifying into a tangible form.
Just as the fireball was about to hit him, Karen gripped her sword with both hands, twisted her body at an incredible angle, and slashed the enchanted longsword down at the fireball from top to bottom with a dazzling purple arc of light!
An unbelievable scene unfolded: the enchanted, extraordinary longsword, as if cleaving a solid object, actually split the enormous, blazing fireball in two right in the middle!
The fireball, cleaved in two, instantly lost its balance and erupted into even more intense flames. The two massive walls of fire flew to either side, the scorching flames nearly engulfing Karen.
Karen, however, relied on the speed advantage of the [Acceleration] spell and her precise timing to leap across the narrow gap in the fireball with incredible speed, seemingly in a perilous manner.
In just this one round, he had already closed the gap between himself and Gaode.
"Next, this is my territory," Karen thought to herself, a confident glint in her eyes.
As long as he keeps the distance within his attack range, he can unleash a continuous barrage of attacks with the extraordinary longsword in his hand, which is empowered by the [Enchanted Weapon], without needing to cast any additional spells.
Gao De might be able to barely hold out for a few rounds with his defensive spells.
But it's only temporary.
No matter how fast you cast a spell, can it be faster than the speed of swinging a sword?
With that thought, Karen no longer hesitated. The enchanted longsword in her hand, with a whistling sound that tore through the air, shot straight for God's throat like a viper's tongue.
This sword strike was concise, swift, and deadly, without any unnecessary frills. It was a warrior's fighting style honed through countless trials, sealing off all of Gao De's room to dodge.
A low gasp of surprise erupted from the audience.
Everyone felt that under Karen's fierce offensive, Gao De had been put on the defensive, and Karen had begun to gain an absolute advantage on the surface.
However, Gao De remained unusually calm on the field, with no sign of panic on his face.
He was all too familiar with this suppressive style of fighting. Once he tried to use defensive spells to passively parry, he would be completely caught in the opponent's fighting rhythm.
In the end, they will only be overwhelmed by the enemy's sea of swords.
In this situation, the best approach is to break the deadlock, to break out of the opponent's rhythm, and to regain the initiative in the battle.
Gaode Maps does the same thing.
His body was instantly enveloped in a thick, silvery-white mist.
The mist, as if alive, swirled and condensed rapidly, completely enveloping his figure.
Karen's longsword, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound, pierced past where God had been standing, only to strike empty air.
【The Lost Step】.
Gao De's figure had already appeared thirty feet behind Karen.
Karen's pupils contracted slightly as her sword missed its mark. Although she was slightly surprised, she was not panicked.
Gao De had already used the "Strange Steps" skill in the previous gym challenge, and Karen had anticipated it.
Moreover, with his years of combat experience and keen intuition, he seemed to have eyes in the back of his head.
The instant Gaode's figure disappeared, his body suddenly rotated 180 degrees at an incredible angle, directly locking onto Gaode's new location.
This is not due to any magical enhancement, but rather the precise judgment of a top warrior on the rhythm of battle and a profound understanding of the opponent's psychology.
Under normal circumstances, the landing point of a movement spell will be in the opponent's blind spot.
The safest blind spot is undoubtedly behind you.
Therefore, Karen boldly predicted that Gaode's new position was right behind her.
And the result was exactly as he expected.
"Quick reaction, but useless!" Karen snorted coldly, pushed off with her feet, and charged towards Gaode again, preparing to launch a storm of attacks.
However, he still underestimated Gaode.
The moment he turned around, Gao De's next spell was already cast.
Such close proximity, coupled with the dual suppression of the power and casting speed of Evocation spells by the Anti-Magic Ring.
Even if his casting speed is fast, he will definitely not be able to cast a high-level Evocation spell like [Fireball+] before Karen gets close. Instead, he will be forced to interrupt his casting due to the opponent's offensive and fall into an even more dangerous situation.
Therefore, Gaode instead chose a relatively low-level but difficult-to-defend resonance spell.
[To comfort the thorns].
【Comforting Spikes】 is a fusion of 【Calming the Mind】 and 【Spiritual Spikes】.
Gaode is well aware of its advantages.
Even after advancing to the next level, his own mage rank was still lower than that of these "old" guardian mages.
However, in terms of mental strength, there are probably very few who can rival him.
Therefore, psychological attacks are another of his trump cards.
【Calm Mind】 misleads the opponent, causing them to lower their mental resistance, while 【Mental Spikes】 can take advantage of the weakness and cause a fatal mental shock.
This combination of softness and strength, orthodoxy and unorthodoxy, is simply perfect.
Karen was preparing to launch her next attack when she suddenly felt a gentle energy envelop her, instantly relaxing her tense nerves and even causing her to loosen her grip on her sword.
Before he could subconsciously lower his guard, Karen jolted, her eyes cleared, and she realized what was happening.
"What a sinister spell! Luckily, my second-ring specialty is enhancing soul resistance," Karen thought to herself with relief.
Gao De's "highly anticipated" spell failed, and it was his turn.
This time, he will not give Gaode any more chances.
Karen flicked her wrist, and the longsword changed from a thrust to a slash, like a viper spitting its tongue, aimed directly at God's shoulder, sealing off all his room to dodge.
Gao De was slightly surprised to see his spell fail, but he remained calm.
He had anticipated this situation; mages have countless methods, and no single tactic is universally applicable.
French Bulldogs, aren't they all about making moves and countering them, anticipating and restraining each other?
Facing the longsword that swept towards him with a sharp whistling sound, Gao De neither dodged nor evaded, but instead revealed a smile that Karen found very strange.
The next instant, to Karen's horrified gaze, God's figure vanished into thin air once again.
His sword just brushed past him.
Behind Karen, within the lingering silver mist, God's figure reappeared as if emerging from water!
[Stealth Step] Additional effect: When you use [Stealth Step], you can spend extra mental energy to prevent the silvery mist at the original location from dissipating immediately after teleporting. This lasts for three seconds, during which you can teleport back to the original location.
(End of this chapter)