Isly smiled.
"Chaos Enchantment—Strength, Speed and Endurance Amplify."
Black flames surged around her body as her aura exploded outward.
Boom! The ground beneath her feet shattered. She stepped forward and vanished. A black streak raced across the battlefield before appearing directly before Var.
She swung her staff.
"Chaos Magic—Amaterasu!"
Black flames erupted from the tip of her staff, roaring across the battlefield like a tidal wave.
Var calmly raised his staff.
"Solar Magic: Flames of the Sun."
Golden fire exploded outward.
The two attacks collided.
BOOOOM!!
Black and gold engulfed the battlefield.
The collision created an enormous explosion that sent violent shockwaves racing across the barren land while dust and smoke consumed everything.
Without hesitation Isly dashed through the dust. Her staff spun fluidly in her hands.
Var smiled.
"Good. You're using soul power from the start."
She arrived before him in an instant.
CRACK!
Her staff slammed into the magic barrier surrounding Var.
The barrier shattered.
Var remained standing. Isly immediately followed with another swing. Var ducked beneath it.
Without missing a beat Isly raised her right knee toward his face.
Var slightly jumped backward.
"Chaos Lock."
Black chains erupted from Var's shadow and wrapped around his body, holding him firmly in place.
Isly closed the distance.
Just as she was about to attack her instincts screamed. Without hesitation she leaped backward.
Var smiled.
"Your instincts are sharp."
CRACK! The black chains shattered into darkness.
Isly narrowed her eyes.
"If I went any further…I could've died."
She raised her staff.
"Chaos Domain."
The world stopped. Silence swallowed everything. Between Isly and Var, a dark white-and-grey sphere appeared.
It slowly expanded. Larger and Larger. Until it engulfed both of them completely.
Inside the strange domain Isly disappeared.
Var calmly looked around.
"Chaos Domain…"
A smile appeared.
"I like it. It's unpredictable like yourself, Isly."
The distorted ground rippled. Space glitched. Reality bent unnaturally.
Var slowly floated into the air.
"Ice Magic, Ninth Level—Frozen Palace."
Ice rapidly formed throughout the distorted space.
It spread endlessly in every direction. Moments later isly appeared standing atop the ice.
Her body flickered with strange glitches.
Var nodded.
"So you can even stop Ninth-Level Magic? Good. I'm impressed, Isly."
He smiled.
"But soul power also reveals your location."
He vanished. The next instant he stood behind her.
"Paralyze."
A wave of magic struck Isly. Her body froze. She couldn't move.
Var calmly prepared the finishing strike.
Suddenly…Whoosh! The black flames surrounding Isly burned violently. Chaos Nirvana consumed the paralysis itself.
The effect vanished but the flames noticeably weakened.
Var smiled.
"Nullification."
He stomped his staff against the ground.
Boom! The Chaos Domain shattered apart.
The surrounding reality returned to normal.
At the same time Chaos Nirvana dispersed from Isly's body. The battlefield fell silent.
Var looked at her with approval.
"You did good, Isly. You have the potential to become the Thirteenth Oldest Star."
He paused.
"But keep this in mind or think of it this way…Soul power is your will. The unseen force…the divine spark from your soul that can be induced upon anything around you. The stronger your will…the stronger your soul power."
He rested his staff against the ground.
"When applied, soul power amplifies any magic by one hundred percent. It can also make someone weaker than you lose consciousness, It can induce visions of death. It can be used for countless applications."
He smiled warmly.
"The rest is for you to explore."
Isly lowered her staff.
"Thanks for your enlightenment, Instructor."
Var smiled.
"No problem."
He looked toward the others.
"So…Who's next?"
Stellar stood.
"I'll go."
She quietly removed her shoes.
Barefoot, she walked across the battlefield toward Var.
As she exhaled Frost escaped her lips. Her long silver hair swayed gently in the wind.
She stopped several meters away.
"Please enlighten me, Instructor Var."
Var nodded.
"Come."
The instant his words ended…
"Ice Step."
Stellar vanished. She appeared on the opposite side of the battlefield. Then disappeared again.
She instantly reappeared directly before Var.
"Freeze."
Crack! The barrier surrounding Var shattered.
Without hesitation Stellar pointed toward his stomach. A razor-thin line of ice shot forward.
Var swung his hand. The ice shattered apart. Stellar planted her right foot. Without saying another word Ice spread rapidly from beneath her feet. It reached Var's position in an instant.
His foot froze solid against the ground. Ice gathered over Stellar's right palm. She thrust it toward his chest.
Var calmly answered.
"Fire of the Sun."
Golden flames erupted around him. The intense heat instantly shattered the surrounding ice.
The flames surged toward Stellar.
"Ice Barrier!"
Walls of crystal-clear ice surrounded her body.
BOOM! The flames exploded against the barrier, blasting Stellar backward across the battlefield. Var immediately pressed the attack.
He lifted his staff.
"10th-Level Magic—Exothermic Combustion."
Tiny orbs of blazing fire formed around him.
Dozens. Then hundreds. The orbs fired simultaneously toward Stellar. They closed the distance almost instantly.
Before they even reached her the overwhelming heat alone began melting and burning away her barrier. Stellar closed her eyes. She took a slow breath. When they opened again her blue eyes shone brilliantly. Time froze.
One thousand milliseconds exactly ten seconds. Within the frozen world Stellar calmly walked away from the incoming attacks. She stepped out of their trajectory. Then Time resumed.
BOOOOOOM!! The countless fire orbs detonated behind her, engulfing the battlefield in flames.
Var smiled.
"Look at you…freezing time."
On the sidelines Eryndor smiled.
"She's gotten powerful."
Rein smiled as well.
"Yeah. She finally achieved that path she wanted."
The others looked toward him.
Rein folded his arms.
"The path…to freeze anything in your way…even if it was time."
He looked at Stellar standing amidst the frozen air.
"Absolute Frost."