Chapter 49

In sharp contrast to Augusta's thunderous might was Horn.

This genius with Tier 8 talent displayed suffocating defensive and counter-attacking capabilities; he was like an unshakable mountain, standing firm and guarding every inch of land he chose.

"Stand firm, they're coming!"

Wherever the team he led went, they would turn the surrounding earth elements to their own use.

Thick rock shields could withstand the charge of heavy cavalry, and stone pillars rising from the ground could scatter the native formations.

Horn himself was like a mobile fortress, condensing a massive rock fist in his hand and smashing a group of knights attempting to close in—knights and armor alike—into fragments.

The natives once tried to lure him into an underground cavern with traps, then detonate the rock strata to bury him alive.

However, Horn merely stomped his foot, forcibly calming the surging earth elements underground and using an earth element shield to stabilize the cavern structure, even turning the subterranean tremors against them to leave the native ambushers dazed and confused.

Subsequently, he brandished his massive rock fist, using a single Earth Pulse Shock to leave the natives within dozens of meters dazed and confused, then calmly counter-attacked, crushing them all.

Augusta and Horn were like two sharp blades, cutting through the native coalition's defensive lines again and again.

Their battle records spread rapidly among the apprentices like legends, and every report of a "desperate counter-attack" boosted the morale of the other apprentices.

Gradually, the communication wizarding tools no longer carried desperate pleas for help, but the latest news of Augusta and Horn breaking through encirclements.

"Miss Augusta has broken through another native blockade line! She is too strong; she hardly seems like an apprentice!"

"Young Master Horn led his team and routed a native knight order head-on! Those knights couldn't shake him in the slightest!"

"With them here, these natives are nothing at all!"

Unknowingly, the wizard apprentices' fear of the natives quietly transformed into a strange kind of "excitement."

They no longer viewed the natives as enemies capable of threatening their lives, but as a massive "target" to test their own strength and earn merit.

They began to relish comparing the battle records of Augusta and Horn, guessing which genius would ultimately stand out in this "test" and become the final victor of this trial.

……

……

Greyrock Realm.

In the secret camp of the native coalition, inside that massive tent, the atmosphere was oppressive yet carried a hint of calculated excitement.

On the animal-hide map, the movements of the wizard apprentices and the locations of the traps set by the natives were marked.

"Progress is smooth." A young knight commander spoke in a low voice, his finger tracing several areas on the map marked as "cleared." "Those outsiders are easier to hook than we imagined. They are too confident in their power and too dismissive of us."

"The space-locking barrier has already begun to take effect, cutting off their path of retreat." High Priest Oswaldo's voice carried an unfeeling calmness. "Once dragged into the battlefield we have set, their wizardry becomes a consumable."

The other leaders nodded one after another.

Through the intelligence continuously sent back, they precisely grasped the movements and energy consumption of the wizard apprentices.

Those apprentices who survived the initial ambushes were like lambs driven into a pre-set slaughterhouse, walking step by step toward a desperate situation.

The high-tier wizarding tools the wizard apprentices were so proud of were also rapidly depleting their energy in continuous combat, potion reserves were plummeting, and their mental power was even harder to sustain for long-duration, high-intensity confrontations.

They were like a group of bonfires with insufficient fuel, seemingly burning fiercely, but actually slowly and inevitably heading toward extinction.

Especially those few apprentices who had shone brilliantly in recent battles—Augusta's thunder storm, Horn's rock fortress, and other "geniuses" who had emerged.

Their strength had cost the native coalition a greater price, but it had also allowed them to obtain extremely precise intelligence.

"The one who excels in lightning attacks... Augusta." A shaman recited this name in a dry voice, a trace of wariness flashing in his eyes. "Her thunder can destroy our totem formations; her speed is too fast, and our warriors find it hard to catch her."

"That Horn who can drive the earth is also troublesome; his defensive power is too strong, and the physical strike methods we prepared have little effect; we must use higher-tier magic to break his defense." Another knight commander added.

"These guys all have to be taken into account..."

On the animal-hide map, various points were marked with special symbols; besides Augusta and Horn, there were other geniuses who had gradually made a name for themselves on the battlefield recently.

These symbols marked the activity areas and combat styles of these geniuses.

The miscellaneous ordinary apprentices who were easily finished off earlier were not taken seriously by them at all; only by finishing off these most dazzling geniuses could they truly hurt the "wizards'" bones—this was the real "revenge"!

However, in this sea of clear intelligence, only one area lacked any specific information.

In the northwest corner of the map, an area originally marked as "multiple ambushes set, high-tier magical beasts entrenched," the recent intelligence feedback had been eerily interrupted.

It was like a black hole, swallowing all prying gazes.

The abnormality of this area naturally led to arguments among these native leaders.

"The scout team sent to that area... lost contact."

"The assassination team also didn't return, even though they were clearly instructed to split into two groups, one overt and one covert, to investigate."

"Three vanguard brigades were sent in succession, including thirty elite knights and two mid-tier shamans... all lost contact! No distress signal was sent!"

Inside the council chamber, the atmosphere of controlling the overall situation was broken, replaced by a sense of unease and irritability.

"This was almost impossible originally; according to our arrangements, it's impossible for no intelligence to be sent back; even if they encountered the strongest magical beast group, or were routed by those two geniuses, at least someone would have escaped back to report!"

A young knight frowned; he was responsible for intelligence gathering, and this complete "silence" made his skin crawl.

"According to the current consistent situation, the traces of battle in that area... are very abnormal. It's not a normal magical beast battle, nor is it the wizardry destruction common among wizard apprentices. All areas have become completely scorched earth, as if 'plowed' through by endless flames. Even the remains of magical beasts and natives have been burned to ashes, making them difficult to identify."

(Extra update today, one more chapter to go, please vote for monthly tickets!)