Ice cracked with a resounding CRACK, and a man shot up from the gaping polynya, appearing no older than a little over thirty. His face was unremarkable, his hair chestnut-brown, his eyes dark. A luxurious robe draped his figure, an crimson magical dagger visible at his belt, and from his outstretched right palm erupted a blinding cone of roaring flames.
A translucent fiery shield enveloped the mage, and raindrops hissed into vapor upon touching its surface, turning into light wisps of steam. This fiery haze gave him a truly menacing appearance.
Before his feet could touch the ice, the mage raised his hand, and an instantly blinding crimson beam as thick as a chicken egg burst from his fingers. It sliced through the air at incredible speed, hurtling toward the armored ice bear that the recent explosive wave had flung high into the sky.
Like the sharpest blade, the beam pierced the ice-bound bear's body, drawing a mournful howl from it.
Viola halted the downpour and lightly waved her hand, recalling the ice bear. The beast dissolved in a flash of azure light and, settling onto her palm, reverted to a soul card.
The four fiery ravens that had attacked the archer girl also dispersed, turning into invisible spiritual power and returning to her Soul Gathering Tower.
The archer girl was gravely wounded, blood streaming ceaselessly. The flames from the fiery ravens had charred her clothes and hair, scorching and tearing her skin—she barely resembled a human anymore.
The mage who had emerged from the polynya hastily pulled out some potion, intending to heal her.
"Level six elementalist, fire specialization," Reyn noted to himself, narrowing his eyes slightly. The mage's spiritual power was impressive.
The spell he had cast upon emerging from under the ice was called "Burning Hands"; the one that pierced the ice bear was "Scorching Ray." Both were among the most powerful spells of the fire element.
Soul Eye revealed to Reyn that the elementalist's spell arsenal was small—scant even for his level: just a few charms, almost all fire-based.
Yet each of these spells was significantly enhanced, their circles elevated by one or two levels.
Thus, "Scorching Ray," originally a second-circle spell, had been elevated to third-circle by the mage's spiritual power, boosting its might and range. The other charms had undergone various enhancements too: "Burning Hands" gained an explosive effect after refinement, while "Fireball" had reduced casting time and crude power amplification.
"What monstrous firepower! A true mage-artillerist!" Reyn involuntarily held his breath.
First a level four archer, then a level five Shadow Warrior, and now a level six elementalist... Who desired Viola's death so badly that they sent three such high-level superhumans after her soul?
The downpour ceased, the clouds in the sky rapidly dispersed, and the azure sky shone once more.
Viola looked serious. Her spiritual power was greatly depleted, so she pulled out a second potion and drained it. After a few breaths, channeling spiritual power into the card, she resummoned the armored ice bear.
The ice bear seemed reborn—all wounds on its body had closed.
She didn't stop there and summoned two frost-emitting ice ravens from her Soul Gathering Tower, then drew a stack of soul cards—all identical, depicting ice ravens.
A massive amount of spiritual power flowed into them, and the entire stack, tossed into the air, scattered like flowers strewn by a heavenly maiden.
Each soul card turned into an ice raven. These were external souls, so they were slightly smaller than those with internal souls—their wingspans measured about one and a half meters.
The ten ice ravens formed a flock and, emitting a series of piercing cries, circled above Viola's head.
Viola's spiritual power depleted again, and she immediately drank a third potion. Color returned to her face, and she cast "Water Shield Art" and "Speed Boost" on Reyn.
But that wasn't all. She pulled out two vials of dark-red potion, drank one herself, and handed the other to Reyn, saying:
"This is a medium fire resistance potion—drink it quick."
Reyn was stunned.
Whether the three high soul restoration potions or these two medium fire resistance potions—each cost over five hundred gold shields.
Viola wasn't drinking potions; she was drinking money!
No wonder All-Souls Mages were considered to have limitless combat potential. With sufficient resources, they could suppress any other superhuman class, single-handedly forming an entire army!
This wasn't an All-Souls Mage; this was a Gold Shields Mage...
Reyn's gaze fell on the elegant necklace around Viola's neck. Since they met, she had never taken it off. It was likely her spatial storage, which he had previously mistaken for mere jewelry.
How many treasures hid within that necklace!
Pondering this, he downed the resistance potion in one gulp.
The liquid burned scorching hot upon touching his tongue, turning into searing energy that seeped into his skin, flesh, and blood. Each exhale now carried the scent of volcanic lava.
Viola exhaled a puff of hot air, her golden hair fluttering.
"The effect of my 'Ice Domain Art' scroll will wear off in less than three minutes," she said. "We need to finish them quickly."
Reyn nodded in agreement.
"Ice Domain Art"—a fifth-circle spell, available only to legendary-level mages and above. A scroll that could enhance a mid-level mage for so long was undoubtedly worth a fortune.
He never stopped scanning his surroundings intently. Raising the shotgun, he loaded it and warned:
"Be careful with that Shadow Warrior—he might not have left."
The recent downpour had left the ice surface covered in fine ice shards, like a layer of coarse sand. Every step now crunched and left visible tracks.
Such conditions were extremely unfavorable for the Shadow Warrior, nearly nullifying his "Shadow Fade" effect and greatly hindering stealth attacks.
Moreover, the Shadow Warrior had taken a heavy hammer blow, was seriously wounded, and his power had surely weakened.
Without the Shadow Warrior's threat, Viola could focus on casting spells without much fear, but they couldn't relax.
On the ice plain, the elementalist was still tending to the archer girl.
Reyn and Viola exchanged glances. They couldn't let the enemy recover—they decided to strike first.
A deafening rustle of wings filled the air as the ten ice ravens in the vanguard dove toward the two foes on the ice.
Reyn stepped off the deck, leaped from the yacht, and landed on the ice with a dull thud, gripping his warhammer and charging forward.
The frost giant and armored ice bear followed, leaping down and charging ferociously.
Viola, remaining on the yacht, tore another scroll, cast "Flight Art" on herself, soared to over ten meters high, and followed, overseeing the battlefield from above.
Reyn could only sigh inwardly: the rich fight differently.
Ahead, the elementalist's expression changed slightly.
He had to interrupt the healing and stand. Drawing his magical dagger with his left hand from his belt, he began chanting. A fireball formed in his palm, rapidly expanding into a head-sized fiery sphere, which he hurled forward with force.
The fireball trailed a two-to-three-meter fiery tail, streaking like a meteor at incredible speed, continuing to grow. In an instant, it swelled to basket size, glowing orange-red like a miniature sun.
When the fireball was still seven or eight meters away, Reyn felt a wave of heat wash over him.
He was genuinely alarmed. "Fireball," perhaps the most famous spell. Though merely third-circle, its destructive power surpassed many fourth- and fifth-circle spells.
Moreover, this "Fireball" had been enhanced to fourth-circle.
And it seemed, during casting, it had been further boosted by the elementalist's magical dagger!
"Bad news—we need to get out!"
Reyn realized the danger. He lacked experience fighting mages and had underestimated spell power.
He was about to dodge sideways when a massive ice spike plummeted from the sky—Viola entering the fray. The spike struck the fireball dead-on. Ice and flame collided, unleashing a massive explosion.
Boom...
Like a heavy shell detonating nearby. The entire ice surface shuddered, shards of ice and flames flying everywhere. The ice cracked, forming a five-to-six-meter-wide hole from which lake water gushed.
Reyn was nearly knocked off his feet. But ignoring the shockwave and using his phone's gyroscope for balance, he skirted the hole and charged the elementalist again.
The frost giant and armored ice bear simply leaped over it.
In a few breaths, the enemy was right before him.
The ten ice ravens reached their target a moment earlier. Ice arrows erupted from their beaks—like a hundred arrows loosed at once—raining down on the elementalist and archer girl from all sides.
Reyn drew his shotgun and fired instantly.
"Get out of the way!" the elementalist roared. His body flared crimson, and a fiery ring surged outward fiercely, repelling everything except the archer girl beside him.
The fiery ring was so swift and furious that the air compressed around it with a deafening crack.
The barrage of ice arrows shattered. The ten ice ravens, barely approaching, were flung apart; several nearly fell. Reyn's bullets also failed to hit, bouncing off the fiery ring.
"What a powerful 'Repelling Ring of Fire'!"
Reyn was shocked but didn't stop. Seizing the pause in the enemy's spells, he fired two quick shotgun blasts.
Boom-boom! The shots struck the elementalist's fiery shield, rippling its surface, but it was far from breaking.
The elementalist glanced at Viola and realized she was about to unleash a powerful spell.
He dared not stay put and, abandoning the archer girl at last, erupted in flames enveloping his body. With a firework-like boom, he vanished.
Reyn froze for a split second. Half a second later, the flame-wreathed elementalist reappeared a few steps in front of him.
"Flame Blink Art!"
The thought had barely formed when the elementalist raised his hand toward Reyn, unleashing a crimson beam from his fingers.
The "Water Shield Art" on Reyn's body burst like a soap bubble, instantly pierced by the "Scorching Ray." The high-temperature beam hit Reyn's chest; his clothes turned to ash, and the skin there reddened like hot coals.
But that was the end—the beam couldn't pierce through.
"It hurts..."
Ignoring the "Scorching Ray" damage, Reyn took it on his chest like damming a breach, lunged forward two steps to close the distance, and swung his warhammer.
Fire flashed before his eyes; the elementalist used "Flame Blink Art" again. Reyn's warhammer cleaved only a few fiery trails.
"Flame Blink Art" came with a firecracker-like pop.
"Voice of All Things" had already locked onto the elementalist. Following the sound wave, Reyn knew without looking that the enemy had blinked behind him this time, between the armored ice bear and frost giant, and used "Repelling Ring of Fire" again.
Flames cracked through the air with a deafening clap. The two mid-level summons were flung back and fell stunned, unable to rise immediately.
The elementalist furiously cast spells, sparing no spiritual power. Two fireballs flew left and right in succession, striking the frost giant and armored ice bear.
Two explosions—ice cracked—and the wounded frost giant and ice bear plunged into the lake.
In an instant, Reyn was alone against the elementalist on the battlefield.
Reyn switched tactics at once. Ignoring the elementalist, he turned to the archer girl.
After the elementalist abandoned her, Viola's spell hit its mark.
A fourth-circle spell—"Mass Ice Lance Art"!
Massive ice lances like pillars crashed down over a ten-plus-meter radius. The gravely wounded archer girl desperately dodged the deadly projectiles.
Normally, with her agility, evading ice lances would be easy.
But her left leg had been clawed deeply to the bone by the armored ice bear. She had barely stanched the blood; her speed had plummeted. After two steps, the wound reopened, and searing pain kept her teetering on death's edge.
Reyn decided to "help" her.
He rushed to the edge of the ice lances' zone, aimed his shotgun at the archer girl, and fired.
The archer girl activated "Illusory Flicker" to mitigate bullet damage, but her body inevitably froze for a fraction of a second. In that moment, an ice lance impaled her from top to bottom.
Her body tore apart, warm blood spraying everywhere and quickly freezing on the ice.
"No...," came a agonized cry nearby from the elementalist.
"You'll pay for this!"
"You first," Reyn smirked coldly. Now it was just him left. With Viola, killing him would be easy.
The elementalist seemed maddened by rage. Without thought of fleeing, he erupted in flames with a boom and charged Reyn.
Reyn tossed aside the useless shotgun without fear and met him hammer-first.
As he moved, a cool watery stream healed his scorched chest skin, and "Water Shield Art" enveloped him anew.
From the sky, Viola finished buffing Reyn and directed the ten ice ravens. They lined up before Reyn and loosed ice arrows simultaneously.
The elementalist's figure halted unwillingly. Unwilling to face the ravens' crossfire, he used "Repelling Ring of Fire" again to repel them.
The fiery ring exploded; the ice ravens scattered.
Reyn slipped between the flying ravens, timing perfectly between the elementalist's spells, and slammed his warhammer onto the fiery shield.
The elementalist instinctively tried "Flame Blink Art" to escape, but casting took time. Flames had just begun coiling around his legs when Reyn's hammer struck.
Boom!
A deafening crack rang out. The fiery shield shuddered violently, nearly shattering.
The immense force interrupted "Flame Blink Art." The elementalist was flung seven or eight meters, crashing onto the ice.
An azure airstream descended from the sky, enveloping the fiery shield externally and pinning it firmly to the ice, preventing him from rising.
Reyn seized the perfect opening Viola had created.
He lunged forward several steps, powerfully pushed off the ice, leaped into the air, raised the warhammer overhead with both hands. His body arched like a giant bow, muscles straining to the limit. Gathering all his strength, he smashed down onto the elementalist below.
Terror reflected in the elementalist's eyes as the descending hammer loomed.
His face twisted madly; eyes bloodshot, skin cracking with fiery glow—he meant to self-detonate, dying with Reyn.
But it was too late.
The warhammer crashed down.
Bam! The fiery shield flared briefly and shattered like eggshell. The hammer struck the elementalist's head dead-on. With a dull squelch, the skull exploded into pieces.
Reyn straightened, gazing at the headless corpse at his feet. His chest heaved heavily, long plumes of hot vapor pouring from his mouth.
The soul flew out and was absorbed by him.
In the next second, his phone's energy charge rocketed upward like a rocket!
***