Translator: AnubisTL
Feeling Jieming's gaze, Augusta gritted her teeth in frustration but still bowed to him with aristocratic courtesy to express her gratitude. She then led her followers out of the valley at a brisk pace.
On the other side, Horn nodded at Jieming with a smile before giving a few final instructions to his own followers and departing.
"Strange people," Jieming muttered, shrugging off their odd behavior. He turned his attention to his rune-imbued magical artifacts, examining them with a pang of regret.
After such intense use, all of his offensive rune-imbued magical artifacts and most of his flight-related ones were damaged beyond repair.
While many defensive rune-imbued magical artifacts remained intact, relying solely on alchemy for offense felt like a significant downgrade.
"What a pity, they're all broken. Looks like I'll have to withdraw now..."
As Jieming pondered whether to leave immediately or stay in this plane for a few more days, he suddenly paused, sensing a message transmitted through his ring.
Trial concluded. All participants prepare for immediate teleportation!
"Well, that settles it. No need to overthink it now."
Jieming reattached the damaged rune-imbued magical artifacts to his belt, then hefted the large animal hide sack beside him—nearly as big as he was—and stood silently, waiting.
The other wizard apprentices had also received the message, and their pursuit of the indigenous people abruptly ceased.
Some, unwilling to let their prey escape so easily, remained in place, gathering their energy for one final, devastating attack before teleportation.
Regardless of the apprentices' reactions, when the designated time arrived, a luminous white light enveloped each of them. Their figures shimmered like ripples in water before vanishing from the Greyrock Realm.
Outside the Greyrock Realm, at Noren Academy's teleportation plaza, the once-noisy square fell into complete silence the moment Jieming officially entered the battlefield.
Especially when he single-handedly annihilated the entire army, the apprentices' jaws nearly dropped to the ground.
No—bro… seriously?...
We're all third-tier wizard apprentices, so why are you so OP?
Are we even learning the same kind of extraordinary power?
While Augusta and Horn's strength levels were still within the apprentices' comprehension, Jieming's displayed power was utterly incomprehensible.
The high-rank wizard overseeing the entire trial couldn't help but smirk as he watched the scene unfold on the glowing screen. He glanced at the dumbfounded apprentices around him and nodded inwardly with satisfaction.
With such a formidable benchmark, the survival rate of the next two cohorts of students should improve significantly.
As he considered this, the high-rank wizard looked back at the screen and couldn't resist comparing Jieming to his own performance in his youth.
"Truly... a monster."
Jieming's genius reminded him of someone from the past, and he sighed inwardly.
"His strength is almost on par with that monster Clark from back then. Geniuses truly are an unreasonable existence..."
Greyrock Realm, Crimson Valley.
The indigenous people, who had been fleeing in terror, stopped after running a considerable distance. They realized the wizard apprentices pursuing them had mysteriously vanished.
Still shaken, they paused, cautiously observing their surroundings for a long time before daring to confirm the wizards had truly left.
The few remaining leaders, after ensuring their safety, led the remnants of their forces back to their temporary camp, their hearts still pounding with fear.
The plan had ended in catastrophic failure, with the allied forces nearly completely annihilated.
Inside the main tent, a heavy atmosphere permeated the air.
"The plan... should have succeeded!" The Kingdom Knight Commander clutched his chest, where a fireball from Jieming had left a charred wound.
"Our numbers, our traps, our space confinement... everything was executed perfectly! How could this have happened?!"
"It was that... that monster!" The shaman leader's voice trembled. "He was on a completely different level from the other wizard apprentices. Could that be what they call a wizard?! Or is he a spirit? How could he possess such inexhaustible mana?! He single-handedly destroyed everything we had..."
Watching his frenzied outburst, the other leaders exchanged uneasy glances but made no move to stop him. Even they were still shaken by the ordeal.
Only after he had vented his fury did the group gradually calm down.
"Though the wizard apprentices have dispersed for now, there's no guarantee they won't invade again. We must devise a way to contain them!"
With that, the Kingdom Knight Commander pulled out a map and began reviewing the battle with a heavy heart.
The others nodded, sighed, and leaned in to join him.
During the review, they were stunned to discover that a crucial detachment, which should have been deployed early to secure the flanks of the Crimson Valley battlefield, had been inexplicably reassigned to the very area where the terrifying wizard later emerged.
Though the area had become an intelligence void due to the wizard's ruthless efficiency, the absence of information also revealed his likely path of advance.
Judging by the intelligence gap, the wizard hadn't initially been heading directly toward them. It was likely the attack by this combat detachment that had enraged him and driven him to retaliate.
And the one who had issued this fatal order... was none other than Priest Oswald, the man who had cast the massive space confinement spell.
The chiefs turned to Oswald, who had been silently sitting in the corner, their eyes burning with suspicion and anger.
"Oswald! Why did you withdraw that unit?! You're the one who summoned that monster!" the Kingdom Knight Commander roared.
"If that monster hadn't interfered, the outcome of this battle would have been completely different!" someone else complained.
But Priest Oswald's expression had become utterly bizarre.
His face, once pale from overexerting his power, had regained its color, even appearing rosier than before. The sacred and solemn aura of a priest had vanished, replaced by an unnervingly calm, almost indifferent expression.
He ignored the chiefs' accusations, his gaze distant, as if lost in thought or engaged in an inner dialogue.
Finally, growing impatient with their relentless questioning, Oswald glanced at them with a flicker of annoyance.
That single glance.
A colossal pressure, unbearable for mortals, descended like a tangible force!
Thump! Thump!
The surrounding chiefs felt their legs buckle, their bodies collapsing to their knees against their will.
The soldiers outside the tent fared no better. Regardless of their strength, they trembled under the terrifying pressure, paralyzed and unable to move.
(End of the Chapter)