Black Hearted Mage

About a quarter of an hour later, Caesars sat there quietly. Instead of absorbing the magic power from the magic crystal as usual, he closed his eyes and entered a state of meditation. At this moment, his mind was rapidly thinking about what spell to use to defeat this powerful enemy - Boman.

Boman was no ordinary figure. He was not only a highly experienced and accomplished magician, but also a skilled alchemist. Facing such a formidable foe, Caesars expected this magical duel to be intense.

According to the rules of magic duels, the use of any alchemical potions during combat is strictly prohibited. However, given the usual practices of the magic guild, they would undoubtedly rack their brains to find a way around this restriction. However, Caesars had already devised a plan. After all, he was always in need of alchemical potions, so how could he not have prepared a few bottles in advance that could be used in a critical moment?

When it came to choosing a weapon, after careful consideration, Caesars had a completely new idea in mind. His usual Death Staff was indeed a rare and fine magical tool, but its weight was a bit heavy, making it less than ideal for situations requiring frequent movement and rapid spellcasting. In contrast, a straight-backed curved blade like the Magic Blade was more suitable. As a one-handed magical weapon, it boasted a faster casting speed, allowing Caesars to more flexibly respond to various emergencies in battle.

At that moment, four stern-faced referees slowly approached the edge of the arena. Then, a series of clear, resounding whistles blew, and the atmosphere in the arena instantly grew tense. Everyone knew this meant the highly anticipated magic duel was about to begin!

Caesar, dressed in a black magic robe, stood up, holding a dark golden dagger in his hand, and slowly walked towards the arena.

On the other side of the ring, the old Bowman was already standing at the edge of the ring. He took out a dozen crystal bottles and was filling them with alchemical potions one by one.

Caesars also stopped at the edge of the arena, took out three crystal bottles, uncorked them, and drank from them. Enhancement potions have a time limit, ranging from a few minutes to no more than an hour.

"That old guy drank more than ten bottles of potion in a row, and he wasn't afraid of dying. This young man only drank three bottles, which seems a bit too little!"

shouted an enthusiastic audience member, who was obviously dissatisfied with Bowman of the Magic Guild.

"Don't talk nonsense! The old man you're referring to is a great alchemist. He shouldn't die from drinking. If he dies from drinking, our tickets would be wasted!"

Another enthusiastic audience member knew some information and he quickly explained.

"Have you heard? This magic duel started because the Magic Guild wanted to rob this young man. They even colluded with the City Guards to commit robbery. It's so shameless! A wealthy alchemist would actually become a robber!"

"I've heard about this too. The commander of the city guards was thrown into the Black Prison. It seems he's this old guy's grandson!"

"They are all from the Portman family, notorious vampires in the imperial capital. They are extremely harsh on servants and maids, often withholding their wages!"

This enthusiastic audience member knew some secret information and immediately shared it with everyone.

As soon as Portman finished the last bottle of potion, a strange feeling suddenly came over him. At first, it was just a slight discomfort, but soon the feeling came like a tidal wave, especially in his stomach, which felt as if it was being tightly grasped by an invisible hand, twitching and cramping constantly.

Beads of sweat streamed down Bowman's forehead, and his face turned pale. Experienced, he didn't panic. Instead, he quickly pulled out another bottle of potion and drank it without hesitation. A miracle happened. The moment the liquid slid down his throat, the unbearable stomach discomfort vanished like smoke.

At this moment, an angry shout came from not far away: "Boman, get on the court immediately!"

It turned out to be the referee overseeing the match, his face clearly showing a hint of dissatisfaction and anger. After all, there were tens of thousands of eager spectators in the stands, including the powerful, many nobles, and tens of thousands of commoners from Fire Maple City. These people had spent vast sums of gold coins on tickets to witness the spectacular match, not to watch people slowly drink potions.

Hearing the referee's call, Portman dared not delay any further. He waved his hand vigorously, signaling his readiness, and quickly ascended the stage. He knew full well that if he didn't step up to the plate, it wouldn't just be deemed a withdrawal. More seriously, it would bring disgrace upon the Magic Guild and potentially plunge his own Portman family into ruin. As the undisputed pillar of the Portman family, he shouldered the family's fate. If he fell due to his personal reputation, this once-glorious family would crumble and fall apart.

Boman stared at Caesars intently, his eyes burning like two blazing flames, their rage threatening to burst forth. However, he remained silent, shouting to the referee in a deep, resolute voice, "No need to discuss further; let the magic duel begin!"

With the referee's command, the duel officially began. On the ring, Bowman and Caesars stood approximately fifty meters apart. Both men quickly sprang into action, each casting buff spells to enhance their own strength.

Kaisas muttered something, waving his hands continuously. A black light emerged from his hands, swirling around them like smoke. This was the Dark Corrosion spell he was casting, which could greatly enhance the attack power of his spells.

At the same time, old Roman in the stands suddenly frowned. With years of training experience and keen perception of dark elements, he immediately noticed the unusualness of this enhancement spell.

Then, Caesars exerted his strength once more, unleashing the Dark Torrent spell. In an instant, he was completely enveloped by a thick, dark aura, and even the audience could sense a heart-pounding sense of oppression.

Old Roman in the stands had an increasingly solemn expression on his face, because he clearly felt that the elements in his body were producing a strong resonance reaction.

The great alchemist Kandel noticed the change in Roman's expression and asked with concern, "Roman, what's wrong? You look really bad!"

Old Roman took a deep breath and slowly replied, "Kandel, the two buff spells that Kaisas just cast were so powerful that they actually triggered a resonance in the elements of my Demonic Sea! This situation is extremely rare, even I have never encountered it before."

Kandel was shocked when he heard this and quickly asked, "Old Roman, can't you find any similar spells recorded in the magic notebooks left by your ancestors?"

Old Roman shook his head helplessly and sighed, "No... If there was, I wouldn't find it strange!"

On the ring, Caesar's magic shield turned gray, with faint black patterns emerging on the surface. Every time these black patterns emerged, the dark elements around him became more intense.

The elements materialized, and the naked eye could already see the rich dark elements, gradually surrounding Caesar.

Bowman swung his staff, sending four fireballs flying forward and backward. His staff was engraved with four identical magic patterns, depicting explosive fireballs. Bowman continued casting spells as he gradually approached Caesars.

Kaisas was a bit surprised. The Archmage was different, casting four explosive fireballs at once. Furthermore, the opponent must have used a powerful and forceful spell. The explosive fireballs had a range of approximately thirty-two meters, and the spell's power had increased. The area of ​​intense burning after the explosion was also larger, with the explosive fireballs' splash distance reaching thirty-seven meters.

This situation was truly troubling. Caesars had originally planned to unleash the powerful Spear of Darkness to address the immediate crisis. However, things didn't go his way, forcing him to quickly choose another spell. After all, Spear of Darkness required four seconds to cast. During those four seconds, Boman could unleash nearly twenty blazing, destructive fireballs that rained down upon him. If he persisted in casting Spear of Darkness, he would likely be completely engulfed by this barrage before he could even complete the spell.

Fortunately, the magic blade held tightly in Kaesus's hand was no ordinary item; it was a magical weapon issued by the elves. This incredibly sharp weapon was meticulously engraved with two shadow arrow patterns. Although they were merely ordinary, and the spells they unleashed were relatively weak in power, they possessed a significant advantage: their extended range.

Caesars impulsively retreated a few steps, creating some distance between them and the enemy, allowing him to better utilize the range advantage of his shadow bolts. At this moment, he silently thought: Since he had such an advantageous position, he must make full use of it and thoroughly defeat and humiliate that cunning man, Boman. With this thought in mind, Caesars began to pour a surge of magical power into the magic blade. The previously calm magic patterns on the dark golden blade suddenly shone with a dazzling brilliance, pulsing violently as if ignited by flames. Immediately afterwards, two black shadow bolts shot out from the magic patterns, whistling towards Boman in the distance with fierce momentum.

Kaisas's figure moved swiftly across the ring like a ghost, his magic blade continuously condensing two shadow arrows, and shooting them at his opponent at astonishing speed. Each shadow arrow was like black lightning, piercing the air with fierce momentum.

The ordinary spectators in the stands were captivated by this spectacular magical duel, their faces flushed with excitement, and their cheers rose incessantly. Huge fireballs exploded in the air, flames shooting skyward, seemingly igniting the entire arena. And shadowy arrows, like messengers from hell, darted through the arena at breakneck speed, bringing chills to the air. However, these ordinary spectators witnessed only the superficial intensity and spectacle of the battle, knowing little of the deeper mysteries and techniques.

Meanwhile, the many magicians in the stands observed something from this spellcasting that left them pondering. Upon closer observation, they discovered that while the spell cast by Portman appeared to have a range of thirty-seven meters, its true attack range was only around thirty-two meters. When the Exploding Fireball reached this point, it would explode. While the cascading flames could reach thirty-seven meters, the spell's attack power had dropped to less than one-tenth of its original strength.

In contrast, Kaesas's spells not only had a greater range but also extreme accuracy. His shadow arrows, as if with eyes, could accurately pierce the oncoming fireballs mid-air, causing them to explode before they even reached him. Thus, the two sides engaged in a thrilling tug-of-war.

In terms of spell count, Bowman clearly held the advantage. He unleashed a steady stream of exploding fireballs, hammering down on Kaesus like a series of dense alchemical bombs. However, this frequent use of powerful spells also resulted in a sharp increase in Bowman's mana consumption. Conversely, Kaesus, with his more efficient spellcasting technique and precise control of his mana, despite releasing a relatively small number of shadow bolts each time, had a clear advantage in mana consumption over Bowman.

"Each of the four explosive fireballs that Boman cast were unexpectedly defeated by Shadow Bolt mid-air. Kaisas's spells are too accurate!"

Seeing such precise spell control, Kandel could only admire it.

"The Shadow Arrow has a very fast firing speed and an even faster casting speed. The weapon in Caesar's hand is the Magic Blade of the Elf, a magic weapon made of refined gold. Not only can it be used as a staff, it is also very powerful in close combat. It can easily cut through heavy magic steel armor!" Old Roman looked at the magic blade and said with envy.

"Old Roman, according to what you said, we should be able to copy this magic dagger!" Kandel said suddenly.

"Even if it's all made of magic copper, it would still weigh dozens of kilograms, which is too heavy. Another thing is that although magic copper has good magic conductivity, it is too soft and can bend easily, which will damage the engraved magic patterns. Kandel, let me tell you a little secret. Whether it's a magic blade or a spell-breaking blade, they both have the special effect of breaking magic. This is a characteristic of refined gold!" Old Roman explained.