Above the mage!

Chapter 597 Meeting an acquaintance
"Is this the end?"

This was the first thought that popped into the minds of the other guardian mages watching the battle.

Their faces were filled with disbelief.

It was so fast, and so easy.

This second French fighting match also ended quickly.

Cecily, a third-ring mage, only lasted seven or eight seconds longer than Roim.

What shocked them even more was that, throughout the entire battle, they couldn't see any "outstanding" qualities in Gaode.

Everyone present was an elite battle mage, and the spells that God cast were not rare; everyone recognized them.

A second-circle spell, Earthbind; a first-circle spell, Grease; a trick spell, Spark; a first-circle spell, Entanglement; and finally, a second-circle spell, Shattering Sonic Wave.

Five spells in total, none higher than the second ring, and they managed to take down Cecily, a third-ring mage?
"I can't believe my eyes, can I? Cecily actually lost to these low-level spells," a first-level guardian mage muttered to himself, his tone full of bewilderment.

This was beyond his comprehension.

Although the others didn't speak, their thoughts were basically the same as his.

If they hadn't witnessed the entire legal battle firsthand, they would never have believed it if anyone else had told them about it.

Even after witnessing it firsthand, it's still hard to understand why this seemingly "ordinary" battle turned into such a one-sided and overwhelming defeat.

Just then, Deacon Edmund's voice rang out: "Since higher-level spells are always more powerful than lower-level spells, most of you have staked your trump cards on the more powerful higher-level spells."

Little did they know that in magical duels, the flexible use and combination of spells were also of paramount importance.

His gaze swept over the young faces of every mage guarding the dojo, and he sighed, saying earnestly, "Although he is young, he is far more experienced and mature than any of you in the field of magical combat. He grasped the key to it early on, and with simple spell combinations and appropriate tactics, he can easily defeat Cecily."

"Guarding the museum is not only a stage for you to earn military merits, but also an opportunity for you to learn."

“Think carefully about today’s battle; you will gain quite a bit.” Edmund paused, his tone softening slightly.

In fact, the moment Cecily fell to the ground, Edmund was already mentally reviewing the entire battle.

Every spell Gao De cast was perfectly timed, and every step of his calculations was intricately linked.

The more he analyzed it, the more amazed he became by Gaode.

The best way to put something into practice is to do it with effortless ease.

After selecting his own guardian mage, Edmund looked at Goddard again and asked for his opinion: "Guardian mage, congratulations on passing the second challenge."

"This third challenge is far more difficult than the first two. Do you need to postpone your attempt and get back to peak condition?"

Gao De shook his head and refused Edmund's well-intentioned suggestion, "No need, let's just get it done in one go."

He pursues efficiency.

Spreading a Soren Gym challenge over several days is a bit too time-consuming.

Since Gao De had already said so, Edmund naturally wouldn't presume to offer any more advice.

He knew very well that after two battles, Gao De's mana was minimally depleted, and his tactical awareness and mentality far surpassed those of his peers, so he would never make a wrong judgment easily.

“In that case, please wait a moment, Venerable Master Gaode,” Edmund explained. “I have just sent someone to inform the guardian mage of the third gate; he will arrive shortly.”

Gao De nodded slightly, showing no dissatisfaction.

Because he knew that this was not the third-level mage putting on airs, but rather the rules and actual situation of the magic hall challenge, which meant that the third-level guardian mage could not be on standby at all times.

The art museum challenge consists of three stages.

The core function of the first two stages is screening.

The original intention of setting up the three-stage challenge was to eliminate mediocre challengers in the first and second stages, so that only a very few exceptionally talented mages could reach the third stage.

Under normal circumstances, there are only a handful of challengers who can pass the first two levels each month.

In this situation, if a third-level mage has to appear every time a challenger appears, it's a pure waste of time and energy.

The final hurdle, the ultimate challenge, is of utmost importance, as it determines the ranking of the county's military mages organization for the next ten years.

To ensure a high success rate in defending the dojo, the mage chosen for this final stage must be the strongest mage within the age limit.

Therefore, the number of people is usually one, at most two.

For these reasons, almost all the third-level mages in the spellcasting halls are summoned on demand, rather than on standby at all times.

Gao De slowly descended, closed his eyes slightly, and began to recover the little bit of magic power he had just consumed.

The monks guarding the hall outside gradually quieted down, glancing occasionally at the passageway on the side of the hall, and their discussions became much quieter.

About seven or eight minutes later, a rhythmic sound of footsteps came from deep within the passage.

Each step was firm and powerful, like a war drum striking the ground, carrying an undeniable aura.

The next moment, a young man in a dharma robe strode out of the shadows of the passage.

He was tall and handsome, with a touch of aloofness.

"Deacon, I've arrived." He walked to Edmund's side, nodded slightly, his tone flat, yet carrying a hint of hidden arrogance.

Edmund nodded, stepped aside, and pointed to Godd in the Blackrock Heart Arena: "Leo, this is the challenger, Mage Godd. He's passed two rounds in a row; his strength is considerable. You..."

Before Edmund could finish speaking, Leo's gaze had already fallen on God.

At first, his eyes held a casual scrutiny, but when he saw Gao De's face clearly, his pupils suddenly contracted.

"It's you?!" Leo's voice suddenly rose, carrying a hint of disbelief and shock, which then turned into a faint trace of hostility.

Edmund frowned slightly.

Leo's reaction
Upon hearing the sound, Gao De slowly opened his eyes and looked at Leo below the field, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes as well.

He never expected to see an "old acquaintance" in such a setting.

That was all. Gao De didn't show much emotion. Even the slight surprise he felt quickly subsided, and he calmly stared at his opponent as if he were looking at an ordinary opponent.

“So it was you.” Leo took a deep breath, suppressing his emotions as well. “I was wondering who could break into my presence. I never expected it to be you, the out-of-town mage who has seized resources from this county.”

“Use the resources of this county to improve your strength, and then come and challenge the martial arts schools of this county.” He stared intently at Gao De, without any sarcasm or foul language, simply stating the facts.

As an elite among the young mages of Sorenshire, he possessed his own pride and had no intention of attacking his opponent with vulgar language.

His plan was to defeat Gao De with absolute strength in the French fighting arena.

Leo took a guard badge from a tray held by a staff member, put it on his chest, and then floated up and entered the arena.

He was already eager to teach Gaode a lesson.

He had wanted to do this in Green Forest City, but without a suitable pretext, it was not advisable to take action.

Now, however, there is no such concern.

The atmosphere inside the fighting arena was incredibly tense.

Leo floated within the pale gold light curtain, facing Gaode across the distance.

He didn't waste any words, and even omitted the ceremonial opening moves commonly seen in duels between mages.

His pent-up resentment and sense of responsibility to protect the honor of the academy drove him to go all out from the start.

Leo raised his hands, and a dozen dark green energy whips, made of pure natural energy and covered with sharp wooden spikes, materialized in front of him. Like a swarm of living venomous snakes, they whistled through the air and lashed out at Gao De, coiling and lashing out!

Gao De's eyes narrowed, and he retreated rapidly like a ghost.

The Energy Thorn Whip is extremely fast and covers a wide area, so it is definitely not a good strategy to withstand it head-on.

While rapidly dodging, Gao De was also quickly casting spells.

[Shield Spell+]!
A transparent, diamond-shaped shield instantly unfolded in front of him.

clap clap clap!
The energy thorn whip lashed violently against the shield, creating ripples and scattering energy fragments everywhere.

Even with the enhanced defensive capabilities of [Shield+], which was strengthened by Wind Spirit Moon Shadow, it was still no match for the power of the spell cast by the third-ring mage and shattered instantly.

However, Gaode only needs [Shield Spell+] to help block this first wave of attacks.

His second spell followed immediately.

Gao De extended his right hand, his index and middle fingers together, pointing towards Leo's eyes.

An invisible and intangible magical energy, like a distorted ray of light, instantly traversed the distance between the two.

Second-circle Necromancer spell: [Blindness]!
Leo immediately felt a bone-chilling coldness in his eyes, as if a rapidly spreading, dark gray fog had shrouded his vision, with ominous snowflakes beginning to flicker at the edges.

He could feel an external magical energy forcibly blocking the visual connection between his eyes and brain.

As this force attempted to completely sever his vision, Leo's powerful life force as a third-circle mage was spontaneously activated.

His magical power surged instinctively throughout his body, especially around his head and eyes, where a barely perceptible natural protective force field appeared.

However, the magical resistance within Leo's body was delayed for less than half a second before the icy energy, like a flood bursting its banks, completely extinguished the light in his eyes.

Everything before his eyes—colors, light, and shapes—collapsed instantly, plunging him into an absolute, profound darkness.

The blindness technique is in effect!
Leo's vision was forcibly shut down.

"Damn it!" Leo couldn't help but curse.

"What a wise choice." Edmund the Deacon, watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

As a third-circle mage, Leo's spell power is far beyond what Gaode can withstand.

If Gaode chooses to confront it head-on, even if he releases a protective spell in time, he will most likely be defeated in one hit.

The correct choice is to dodge or disable the opponent's spell.

Gaode chose the latter.

Although the plants Leo summoned grew fiercely, he needed to use his mental power to precisely control them in order to lock onto their targets.

Gao De used the [Blindness Spell] to temporarily blind Leo, preventing him from accurately locating himself and launching an attack, which was equivalent to temporarily disabling the opponent's spell.

And things turned out exactly as Edmund had predicted.

If Gaode hadn't had his [Shield Spell+] skill point allocation under the Wind Spirit Moon Shadow skill, which enhanced his defensive capabilities, [Shield Spell] probably wouldn't have even been able to withstand that attack.

"But... why does it work?" Edmund wondered, his initial surprise followed by a question.

Whether a spell takes effect or not is essentially a struggle between two forces for the right to define reality.

The spellcaster attempts to impose a new reality on the world through the spell's effect, such as the blinding effect of the "Blindness" spell, while the target resists this alteration of reality based on their own existence (physical, mental, or luck).

In actual combat, there are three main forms of confrontation:

The first type is mental confrontation, which relates to "whether your mind is still your own."

Specifically, it means that the caster throws a thought filled with despair and obedience into the target's mind.

If the target's mental strength is stronger than the caster's, the incoming thoughts will be completely rejected, and the spell will fail.

If the target's mental strength is weaker than the spellcaster's, the target's willpower defenses will be breached, and the external commands will be executed by the brain as if they were one's own thoughts, causing the body to instantly lose control.

Typical examples include spells such as [Fear] and [Charm].

The second type is physical resistance, which relates to "whether your body can withstand or avoid this attack".

Specifically, this means that the caster uses a destructive energy or law effect, such as petrification, poisoning, or freezing, to attempt to physically erode or capture the target.

If the target's life force or strength forcibly resists the erosion, such as when facing a spell like [Petrification] that directly affects the physical body, one can use life force to forcibly suppress the erosion of petrification energy.

Alternatively, if the target is agile enough to twist their body at the last second before the energy reaches their body, the deadly energy will just miss, thus rendering the spell ineffective.

Based on these two different forms, physical combat can be further divided into physical resistance and agility resistance.

For example, the Fireball spell can be neutralized by agility, while the Petrify spell requires physical resistance.

The last type is the most special and the rarest, and it involves conflict.

This relates to whether "your very existence is powerful enough to ignore this disturbance."

Specifically, this means that the spellcaster casts a spell in an attempt to directly distort the space, fate, or causality around the target.

The goal is not achieved through skill, but through sheer willpower and resilience based on one's level of life or the "weight" of one's soul.

The [Blindness Technique] that Gaode is currently casting is a form of physical resistance.

The problem is that if Gao De is only a second-circle mage, then with Leo's powerful vitality as a third-circle mage, he should most likely be immune to the effects of the [Blindness] spell.

But the reality is quite the opposite.

Is Leo just having a really bad day?
Just as Edmund was lost in thought, Leo in the fighting arena began to save himself.

Although he was plunged into darkness, he did not sit idly by and wait for death.

As a battle mage with extensive combat experience, he did not lose his composure.

The fastest way to remove the Blindness spell is through a spell.

For example, you can use [Secondary Restoration] or [Dispel] to immediately remove [Blindness].

Unfortunately, Leo did not master either of these spells.

His spell library is mostly focused on wood elemental spells and plant-based spells, as well as offensive and control spells; dispelling spells have never been his focus.

These are things that support mages need to learn specifically; he's a battle mage!

However, this has resulted in Leo having no magic to counter the current situation.

Fortunately, in addition to this, he can also recover his vision through natural regeneration.

That is, to try the body's resistance again.

It's like arm wrestling. The two people are about the same strength. In the first arm wrestling match, you are one move behind and lose to your opponent. You are suppressed by your opponent, which means the spell takes effect.

But if you regroup and try again, this time you might be in the right state of mind, win, suppress your opponent, that is, successfully resist, and the spell becomes ineffective.

Even if the gap is large, with multiple attempts, there is always a chance to succeed once.

Because the total energy of a spell is fixed, with each attempt you make, that energy will be continuously consumed, eventually becoming less than your power.

The total time of these attempts is the time it takes for the spell to take effect.

This explains why the same spell often has a very short duration of effect on mages of the same level.

(End of this chapter)