Evard’s Black Tentacles!

  A Fourth Circle spell!

  Pierce instantly recognized the origin of the tentacles, his expression turning incredibly grave.

  A deafening shriek tore through the air.

  Before the tentacles even reached him, he felt the violent gale and terrifying oppressive force crashing against his face.

  Without hesitation, Pierce unleashed the spell he had already prepared—Scorching Ray.

  Over a dozen blazing red rays shot out, piercing through two of the pitch-black tentacles in rapid succession. They were instantly turned into roaring torches, crashing to the ground as they convulsed and thrashed wildly.

  Immediately after, Pierce’s figure blurred, instantly splitting into eight identical illusions that scattered in all directions.

  Mirror Image!

  Boom! Boom! Boom!

  The tentacles whipped out frantically, but they only struck the phantom images, vainly carving massive spiderweb cracks into the earth.

  Meanwhile, Pierce’s true body had silently appeared behind Zachary, bringing a fist crashing down toward his head.

  But before the fist could even touch Zachary's body, a violently erupting shield of fire blocked it. The scorching heat forced Pierce to retreat.

  "I knew long ago that you had a Blink Magic Tattoo. Did you really think I wouldn't be prepared?"

  A mocking sneer flashed across Zachary's face as intense energy fluctuations suddenly surged around his body.

  "Let me show you exactly why a Rank 1 Wizard can never be a match for a Rank 2 Wizard."

  A transparent wave of energy centered on Zachary erupted outward at breakneck speed. In the blink of an eye, it formed an invisible barrier spanning a radius of a thousand meters.

  Crack! Crack!

  An imperceptible sound suddenly echoed.

  In that instant, Pierce felt his Mage Armor, Endurance, Bull's Strength, and every other spell buff on his body completely lose their effect.

  Only his Elemental Runes and Magic Tattoos remained active.

  Pierce's expression immediately changed as a specific Fourth Circle spell came to mind.

  Lesser Globe of Invulnerability!

  It could completely nullify the effects of First to Third Circle spells!

  This top-tier Fourth Circle spell was practically a nightmare for all Rank 1 Wizards. Stripped of their spellcasting buffs, a Rank 1 Wizard would instantly lose more than half their combat power.

  Pierce unhesitatingly used his final Blink charge, attempting to escape the barrier's area of effect, only to find that his Magic Tattoo couldn't activate.

  The surrounding space felt as though it had turned into solid concrete, completely preventing him from performing spatial leaps.

  Pierce's gaze sharpened, instantly realizing what it was.

  Dimensional Anchor!

  Just then, another wave of energy rippled outward from Zachary, expanding to form a hemispherical domain that overlapped with the Lesser Globe of Invulnerability, locking down the thousand-meter radius.

  Sphere of Imprisonment!

  A confinement spell designed to trap targets within a localized hemispherical field.

  Zachary narrowed his eyes, staring at Pierce. His mocking gaze clearly conveyed a single message: Don't even dream of escaping!

  Watching Zachary casually seal off all of Pierce's escape routes and firmly seize the upper hand, Victor was both shocked and overjoyed. Ecstasy and madness gleamed in his eyes.

  Although he resented Zachary for suddenly intervening, if it meant Pierce would be killed, he felt it was worth it.

  After all, he had planned to risk his life to kill Pierce anyway, even going so far as to use an Aberration.

  As long as Pierce died, everything was worth it.

  "Heh... hehe! This brat is dead today!" Victor let out a low, raspy laugh, his facial features twisting maliciously.

  Zachary glanced at him, shook his head slightly, and turned back to Pierce.

  "You are no match for me. If you obediently surrender, I can give you a quick death."

  Pierce completely ignored him. Raising his wrist, Mist Raven shot out as a streak of black energy. Mid-air, it rapidly expanded, its billowing black mist surging toward the heavens. Thousands of Fog Crows burst from within, swarming fiercely toward Zachary.

  "A dying struggle."

  Zachary pointed a finger with cold indifference. A summoning array instantly materialized on the ground before him.

  Summon Monster IV!

  Accompanied by a deafening roar, an unimaginably massive giant stepped out of the array.

  This colossal creature possessed thick, leathery gray skin and crude, troll-like facial features. Its back was hunched, and it walked on its knuckles like a giant ape.

  A Mountain Troll!

  A gargantuan giant with strength bordering on the Tier 4 Legendary tier!

  Pierce's mouth twitched slightly. This feeling of being forced to watch the enemy cast a barrage of spells while being unable to cast any of his own was truly infuriating.

  He flicked his wrist, throwing out a seed.

  The moment it hit the ground, the seed split open. Countless tiny thorns and vines drilled out, rapidly growing and intertwining with one another. Very quickly, they formed a creature resembling a six-legged lion.

  The beast was composed entirely of coiled vines and barbed thorns. It had three pairs of ape-like limbs, each pair slightly shorter than the one before it.

  Its body, covered in jagged spikes, made it look unapproachable. Anyone who punched or kicked it would likely end up injuring themselves first.

  "A Battlebriar!"

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  Zachary let out a surprised gasp, a flash of astonishment in his eyes.

  He hadn't expected Pierce to possess such a rare war golem.

  "No wonder you were able to take down Fortification No. 89 alone," Zachary said with narrowed eyes.

  Nearby, Victor's eye twitched violently. He hadn't realized that Pierce hadn't even used his full strength during their earlier battle. This realization made his jealous hatred burn even hotter.

  "Roar!"

  The Battlebriar let out a thunderous bellow and charged ferociously at the Mountain Troll.

  The troll fearlessly charged forward to meet it.

  Both were incredibly massive beasts. Their high-speed collision was like two speeding train cars violently crashing into each other. In an instant, a furious shockwave erupted from the point of impact, kicking up clouds of dust and debris.

  Amidst the sky-filling dust, the two behemoths engaged in a brutal, earth-shaking melee.

  At the same time, Pierce flashed forward, charging straight at Zachary.

  Since he couldn't retreat, he wouldn't run.

  Judging from the power of the spells he had just witnessed, Zachary was at most a Rank 2 Gaseous Phase Wizard.

  Against a Wizard of this level, it wasn't as if Pierce had no hope of winning.

  Seemingly seeing through Pierce's intentions, Zachary let out a contemptuous sneer. He suddenly opened his mouth and unleashed an earth-shattering sound, akin to the roar of a primordial beast.

  Shout!

  The invisible sonic wave instantly warped the void. The agitated air formed a violent shockwave that swept toward the flock of crows.

  Wherever it passed, the Fog Crows shattered, turning into mist and dissipating into the air.

  Pierce was also hit by the sonic shockwave. However, under the triple protection of Silver Star, the Earth Runes, and the Aegis Magic Tattoo, his figure only paused for a fraction of a second before he continued his charge. Gliding forward like a phantom, he arrived at Zachary's side and threw a punch at his head.

  The fire shield flared up again, blocking Pierce's attack.

  "Stop wasting your energy. Without your spell buffs, even with a Tier 2 Magic Tool, don't even dream of breaking my defense."

  Zachary let out a mocking chuckle.

  "My Blazing Robe is also a Tier 2 Magic Tool, and a defensive one at that. Just with your—"

  Halfway through his sentence, an intense, sudden sense of dread gripped Zachary's heart.

  He snapped his mouth shut. From the corner of his eye, he saw that the surface of Pierce's fist was now coated in a blinding, searing layer of lightning.

  That spine-chilling dread was emanating straight from that lightning.

  Up until now, Pierce had always released the Overcharged power of his Thunderburst Magic Tattoo separately. This was his first time forcibly fusing the terrifying energy of the Overcharged Thunderburst with Silver Star.

  He could clearly feel his mental energy draining away like water from a broken dam, continuously extracted by Silver Star to maintain the stability of the energy fusion.

  Even so, that violently unrivaled energy felt as though it would slip out of his control at any second.

  Knowing he couldn't hold it for long, Pierce unhesitatingly threw the punch, dumping all of that explosive energy onto Zachary.

  BOOM!

  A deafening detonation that threatened to shatter eardrums erupted violently!

  Countless thick bolts of lightning burst outward, sweeping forward like a raging torrent along the trajectory of Pierce's punch. With unparalleled ferocity, the blast tore through the void and pulverized the earth, carving out a massive, cone-shaped trench extending four to five hundred meters away!

  The air smelled as if it had been scorched, filled with a thick, acrid stench.

  When the lightning finally dissipated, a colossal trench—four to five hundred meters long and five to six meters deep at its lowest point—lay before Pierce.

  The surface of the trench was covered in glass-like crystallization formed by the extreme heat, still emitting wisps of green smoke.

  And standing hunched over within that trench was Zachary.

  The man who had worn an expression of absolute victory just moments ago was now in an incredibly sorry state. The fiery red Blazing Robe he wore had lost all its luster, clearly having suffered catastrophic damage.

  Even worse, half of the flesh on his cheek looked as though it had been violently scraped off, leaving a charred, blackened crater where his teeth and gums were faintly visible.

  "Little beast! I'LL KILL YOU!!!"

  Zachary had entirely lost his previous aloof and indifferent demeanor. His face was twisted with pure, venomous rage.

  For a dignified Rank 2 Wizard to be severely wounded by a Rank 1 Wizard was nothing short of an ultimate humiliation.

  As he lunged forward, the skin all over Zachary's body suddenly split open. Dense, pitch-black scales emerged as his body stretched and elongated like putty, expanding horizontally.

  In the blink of an eye, a gigantic serpent covered entirely in black scales, reaching twenty to thirty meters in length, appeared before Pierce's eyes, violently hissing as it lunged in for the kill.

  "The Yugoloth Serpent Bloodline, huh."

  Pierce muttered under his breath. He then decisively Overcharged his Focus and Giant Magic Tattoos.

  Simultaneously, the Earth Runes on his body dispersed. Twelve new Lightning Runes materialized and sank into his body in one go.

  While fused with Silver Star, the absolute maximum number of Elemental Runes Pierce could endure was twenty.

  As the runes entered his body, he was instantly enveloped in a nearly tangible layer of electricity. It was as if he had donned a suit of lightning armor, exuding an overbearing, tyrannical aura akin to a god of thunder.

  In this limit-broken state, his mental energy consumption skyrocketed. Even with Pierce's current mental energy level, he wouldn't be able to sustain it for long.

  He didn't dare waste a second. With a flash, he charged toward Zachary's serpent form like a bolt of lightning.

  The Giant Magic Tattoo enhanced strength. Under its Overcharged state, the buff granted Pierce terrifying physical power rivaling that of a Mountain Giant.

  Meanwhile, the Overcharged Focus Magic Tattoo elevated the destructive output of his Lightning Runes to a brand-new height.

  As Pierce threw a punch, layers of explosive thunder and startling lightning detonated. Like a raging tidal wave, they crashed overwhelmingly into the giant serpent's head!

  The serpent let out a miserable shriek. Its massive body violently tilted, nearly being forcefully knocked to the ground by that single punch.

  It shook its head, opened its blood-stained maw, and bit down viciously at Pierce.

  Pierce remained completely fearless, his body wreathed in blistering lightning as he met the attack head-on.

  Strength against strength, toughness against toughness. The two clashed violently, the battle instantly reaching a fever pitch.

  Victor, who had fled to a safe distance at some point, watched dumbfounded, his eyes glazed over and his breathing ragged.

  As a member of House Prescott, he understood the power of the Yugoloth Serpent form better than anyone.

  It could be said that as long as a Wizard from House Prescott unleashed the Yugoloth Serpent form, they were practically invincible among their peers.

  Yet Pierce was somehow fighting the Yugoloth Serpent-transformed Zachary to a standstill.

  The scene gave him an absurd feeling, as if he were trapped in a bizarre dream.

  "Roar!"

  On the other side, the battle between Mist Raven, the Battlebriar, and the Mountain Troll raged on.

  At some point, Mist Raven had recalled all the Fog Crows, fusing them entirely into its own body. Its originally petite form had swelled to over twenty meters tall, transforming into a magnificent, colossal giant raven.

  Its talons, laced with the Power of Death, relentlessly struck the Mountain Troll. Every attack left a bloody, rotting gash on the giant's body.

  The rapid regeneration the Troll race was so proud of was completely useless against the Power of Death.

  Before long, the Mountain Troll was covered in grievous wounds.

  It wanted to prioritize killing Mist Raven, the greatest threat, but the raven was far too agile, nimbly dodging its attacks every time.

  Coupled with the Battlebriar launching suicidal, reckless attacks from the side, the Troll was left battered, exhausted, and utterly miserable.

  Under the combined assault of Mist Raven and the Battlebriar, even the mighty Mountain Troll soon found itself unable to hold on.

  With a final, agonizing howl, more than half of its head was shredded by Mist Raven, its brains violently splattering across the ground.

  However, the Mountain Troll's death throes had also managed to smash a significant portion of the Battlebriar's body.

  Fortunately, as a plant-based golem creature, its vitality was incredibly tenacious. The Battlebriar didn't die; it simply lay on the ground, having lost its combat capability.

  Mist Raven didn't pause for a moment. It immediately turned around and joined Pierce in the siege against the giant serpent.

  Mist Raven, having fused with all its summons, possessed combat strength completely on par with a standard Rank 1 Liquid Phase Wizard.

  Normally, Zachary wouldn't even bat an eye at this level of power. But right now, deadlocked in a brutal struggle with Pierce, it was the final weight that tipped the scales of victory.

  Gleaming, icy talons tore through the giant serpent's scales, exposing the tender flesh beneath.

  Under the corrosion of the Power of Death, the flesh rapidly turned an ashen gray, drained of all life.

  The giant serpent let out a pained shriek. Its tail tore through the air and whipped fiercely at Mist Raven, but the attack phased right through its spectral form.

  Seizing the opening, Pierce closed the distance instantly. His fist, wrapped in explosive lightning, smashed directly into the serpent's exposed underbelly. The scales shattered completely, leaving behind a horrifying, scorched crater.

  Under the combined pincer attack of man and familiar, Zachary quickly fell to a severe disadvantage.

  He finally realized things had gone terribly wrong. A flash of panic appeared in his slit pupils. After forcing Pierce and Mist Raven back one more time, he didn't hesitate to turn tail and flee into the distance.

  He actually ran away!

  Victor stared blankly at the retreating back of the giant serpent. His jaw dropped, and he stood frozen in place, his mind buzzing with static.

  A dignified Rank 2 Wizard had actually been beaten into fleeing for his life by a Rank 1 Wizard!

  What kind of fantasy fairy tale was this?

  Victor couldn't process it. The situation had been so favorable just moments ago. Zachary clearly had the upper hand! Why had it devolved into this?

  I don't understand! I just don't understand!!! he screamed frantically in his mind.