Chess Mage of Faerûn

Chapter 334 The Mist of Mystra

With things having come to this point, Akram no longer considered the costs and trade-offs, and with a flick of his wrist, a staff appeared in his palm.

The staff was unremarkable in appearance, even somewhat dilapidated and decayed. The dark green staff was about one and a half meters long and wrapped in a piece of worn leather that was no longer recognizable.

However, when Akram raised the staff, all the Brotherhood members present felt a faint spiritual energy emanating from it, like a lurking, trapped, and evil spirit. The mere leakage of this aura sent chills down their spines.

Knowing the truth, Quelta's expression changed drastically. He disregarded everything and stepped forward to speak, but the other party waved his hand to stop him, his expression resolute.

"This is not the time to worry about these things. Continuing to hesitate will only make us more and more passive. We've had this for so long but haven't been able to figure anything out. Using it today won't be a waste."

Akram gripped the staff tightly with his knuckles, his inner turmoil seemingly more profound than his words suggested.

Quelta hesitated, then fell silent. When he first found this item at a ruin on the Spine of the World, the terrifying aura it emitted was even greater than it is today. He had studied it for a long time but had only managed to figure out some basic applications.

As for what constitutes not a waste, that's pure self-consolation. The more unfathomable an item is, the more valuable it is, but the current situation leaves Quelta speechless with words of dissuasion.

Akram held his staff horizontally in front of him with one hand, while his other hand continuously drew and engraved slightly complicated yet subtly lawful patterns and runes on the staff.

These spells were not obscure to a great mage; Queltae discerned their principles and effects with just a little observation.

The purpose of these spells—including the ability to break magic and penetrate spells—is crystal clear: to use this staff as a one-time, devastating weapon to teach Neverwinter a lesson.

Fortunately, the astral barrier cannot prevent the entry of physical objects, and these anti-magic spells are precisely to deal with protective spells such as the Mirror of Matter that may be encountered.

Akram cast his spell while staring at the Neverwinter visitors with the venom of a viper, then spoke up to break the somewhat oppressive and dull atmosphere.

"We're all old friends. It's not easy for them to come all this way to visit, so as the hosts, we can't be stingy, can we?"

As they were talking, Akram suddenly became surprised. Grimwald's spell was indeed coming to an end, and he was somewhat puzzled as he recognized the spell.

It wasn't some earth-shattering destructive spell like Amannata's Eternal Blaze or the Annihilation Singularity, nor was it a powerful contract like the Dragon Offensive; rather, it was...
"The Mist of Mystra?"

Quelta also recognized the spell and casually mentioned it, which helped to clear up the confusion of the other members.

"What does it mean?"

"You want to sever our connection with the magic network?"

"Even setting aside the fact that we are within the Phase Barrier, the Mage Tower itself can also be connected to the Magic Network. What use is this spell?"

While their questions were answered, even more questions arose in the minds of the crowd. This ninth-circle arcane spell did not possess any direct killing or destructive capabilities. Instead, it created a cloud of mist that obstructed vision and perception, similar in effect to the fourth-circle heavy fog spell.

Of course, if that were all, it wouldn't deserve to be ranked in the top nine. The fact that it's given the name Mystra indicates that it has something unique about it.

Within the area affected by this spell, the magic net will be shrouded in pale golden mist, and the caster within will find themselves like a fish out of water, unable to reach the source of mystery that was once so closely connected to them.

This separation is not absolute; the recipient can contend with the caster to some extent, and the success rate depends on the difference in their spellcasting skills.

And this spell was cast by a legendary veteran...

It seems that only Akram and Quelta have a chance.

But so what?

Just as the Brotherhood leaders said, no matter how powerful Mystra's Mist is, it can never break through the dual protection of the Phase Barrier and the Mage Tower.

Even Akram relaxed his nerves slightly, though he still gripped his staff tightly. Just as he was about to say something to his old friend beside him, he suddenly realized something was wrong.

The opponent's spellcasting has ended, so how does the spell take effect?

Even if it's not something earth-shattering, it shouldn't be so completely silent, right?
What about the fog?
Fortunately, his "old friend" on the other side did not keep him waiting long. The soap bubble representing the astral barrier suddenly dissipated, replaced by the radiance of a teleportation spell.

Leaving now?
The Brotherhood was both puzzled and relieved by Neverwinter's somewhat anticlimactic actions.

Although they have used a few trump cards, they are still a little short of causing serious damage. The other party does not seem to have any intention of forcing them to fight to the death, but rather to stop while they are ahead.

It's definitely frustrating to be beaten like this in your own hometown, but the fact remains that you're outmatched. You can only deal with it another day.

Just as Wudong and his group disappeared into the light and shadow of the teleportation spell, the old dean released his clasped hands, cradling a golden sphere in his arms. It was like molten gold or beeswax, surrounded by golden clouds and countless twinkling stars.

Akram's earlier doubts were finally answered. Recognizing the heavy magic, he pondered for a moment and suddenly understood the other party's sinister intentions.

While the phase barrier certainly has excellent protective capabilities, it also consumes a great deal of resources. If it is to be maintained until the space previously cut by the black blade self-repairs, it will take forever.

While reluctant to abandon the Arcane Tower, Akram, who also didn't want to go bankrupt because of it, originally planned to lead the entire Brotherhood in casting spells to accelerate the closure of the space after defeating the enemy, thus removing the tower's phase state.

As a result, even though he himself could still put up a fight, the others could only watch helplessly as he repaired things all by himself.

So, are they just watching the leaders, or are they watching a monkey show?
As for dispelling counterspells, not to mention that the opponent's spellcasting level is already higher than his own as a legendary being, and he is also reinforced by heavy magic power, so it's not so easy to deal with him.

If they relied on the Mage Tower, they would have a chance to forcefully break through, but the main tower, trapped in its phase state, could not descend to return to this shattered plane.

They clearly have the means, but are blocked from both sides; they want to lash out, but are hesitant; they always feel that it's not worth the effort.

For now, all they could do was watch helplessly as the other party left, leaving behind a huge problem. The golden sphere arrived with incredible speed, reaching the main tower in the blink of an eye. Golden clouds instantly spread out, almost completely enveloping the projection of the entire mage tower.

"Your Excellency Dean, was that the Mist of Mystra just now?"

As soon as Grimwald and his companions arrived at Neverwinter Academy by teleportation and settled down, a high-ranking mage nearby couldn't contain his curiosity.

"You do seem to have some knowledge. What, can't you figure it out?"

"As far as I know, this spell can only restrict the opponent and has virtually no offensive power. It's too easy on these Luskans, we..."

"So, according to you, should I throw a few comets over their heads and force them to fight us to the death?"

"Uh."

The other party was speechless upon hearing this. The old dean sighed and said...
"The Arcane Tower has existed for so long that even our Neverwinter Academy cannot match it; it dates back to the era of the arcane sorcerers."

"Throughout all these years of trials and tribulations, the Arcane Tower was only breached once, more than five hundred years ago, by Lyra Silverhand. That was because there was a problem with the internal inheritance of the tower at that time, and there was no one to oversee it."

"No matter how we view Luskan's group, now is not the time to overturn the chessboard, at least not here."

The old dean's final words brought the trip to a close, leaving no further questions.

Thank you Wang Tingqiu and Alukard for your monthly tickets!

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(End of this chapter)