Chapter 85: Face-Off

“Dragon?”

Luo De immediately thought of the legends he’d heard back on Earth.

Before a snake becomes a true dragon, it undergoes a certain evolutionary process, one stage of which is growing dragon horns.

Lily shook her head.

“No, this is Biological Weaving—a vile spell created by some boring, disgusting arcane mage.”

Luo De flipped over the serpent-man’s corpse.

On both sides of their long necks, he found two more rows of gills.

Some were normal snake scales; others were slimy, smooth skin like a frog’s.

He frowned.

“Is this thing not banned on the continent?”

“The Arcane Control Alliance banned it two hundred years ago, but recently, students from Bahadur Magic Academy rebranded it as academic medical research—and somehow, the Arcane Control Alliance actually approved it.”

The Arcane Control Alliance.

Though not a mage, Luo De had heard of the Arcane Control Alliance’s name.

Its full name is the ‘Alliance for Preventing Spell Malfunctions,’ also called ACMA, but the public generally calls it the Arcane Control Alliance.

It was formed due to the widespread use and deep study of magic by humans, which led to increasingly frequent incidents of spell malfunctions, posing growing challenges and dangers to society.

Legend says a legendary mage once captured a Flame Lord and, during dissection in a city-center laboratory, foolishly used a storm spell to stimulate the creature’s explosive essence.

The result? The entire city was blown into the sky, and even the Cloudweave City above the clouds was affected, with heavy casualties.

The two kept cutting as they advanced.

After walking a while.

Luo De sensed two Deqixi rapidly approaching ahead.

“Someone’s coming.”

“Mm, two sixth-tier high-stage mages. Both mages.”

Lily’s perception was slightly sharper than Luo De’s; she could even sense their spiritual accumulation.

At this moment, her battle spirit was high, a faint smile on her face, eager to fight.

Soon.

A flash of spiritual light, and two young mages in black robes appeared ahead.

One male, one female—both human, with the typical frail build of mages.

“Stop here, sir.”

The male mage spoke.

He smiled warmly, his expression gentle; his demeanor clearly marked him as nobility’s offspring.

“This area is Bahadur Magic Academy’s testing ground—temporarily off-limits.”

He spoke only to Luo De.

Lily snorted.

“When did this become your territory? An open-air maze isn’t a public toilet—why should you be allowed to defecate anywhere? Or are your Bahadur students’ brains made of shit, and what they excrete is their brain matter? That’s great news! From now on, the Igors won’t target you! But they’ll slit your bellies open and pull out your intestines for study—congratulations again! Another great event! Because in their brain-matter museum, your intestines will be a one-of-a-kind specimen!”

Wow.

So aggressive.

Luo De was startled.

Lily’s appearance was cute, but as she spewed this out without pause, her presence suddenly loomed large.

The male mage’s smile stiffened slightly.

The female mage’s expression turned cold first.

“You can’t spit out ivory from a dog’s mouth!”

She raised her staff and instantly cast a high-strength lightning bolt as thick as a bowl.

Crack—

The lightning struck Lily’s spell shield, flickering wildly, electric arcs crawling across the ground in tree-like char patterns.

But the full spell shield remained undamaged.

The female mage frowned slightly.

She had long entered sixth-tier high-stage, her mana abundant, exceeding most of her peers outside Bahadur.

The half-elf’s mana accumulation clearly belonged to a newly promoted sixth-tier low-stage.

How could she so easily block her spell?

“【Disintegration Lightning】? Feels like scratching an itch—I did better at five.”

Saying this,

Lily sneered, raised her staff, and cast the exact same 【Disintegration Lightning】.

Her lightning moved far faster, arriving before them in an instant.

The spell shield rose.

Ping!

Then it was instantly pierced through.

The female mage’s face turned pale; she frantically raised a second spell shield.

Only then did she block it.

“Come on, keep going.”

Lily spread her hands, her expression arrogant.

The female mage’s face darkened; she stole a glance at the male mage, who had begun smiling again, unsure of his intentions.

Bahadur was, in essence, an arena: win, and you gain respect; lose, and everyone tramples you.

She had worked hard to enter this circle—she couldn’t afford to lose it!

In short—she couldn’t lose!

Instantly, her mana surged to its peak.

The mana practically solidified, shaking the ground; the friction and resonance between their spells roared like an engine.

The next moment, both she and Lily vanished from their spots.

Boom!!!

A powerful explosion echoed from midair.

The shockwave slammed into Luo De and the remaining male mage’s faces.

Continuous mana clashes erupted between the two women.

Luo De looked at the male mage.

“Aren’t you going to help?”

“Fighting with more than one goes against my principles. But you—this half-elf lady is only sixth-tier low-stage. Why aren’t you helping her?”

“To be honest, I’m a top-tier expert—I only fight one against many, never many against one.”

Hearing this, the male mage smiled and shook his head.

“I envy you—young, confident, ignorant, thinking the world is exactly as you see it. How laughable, just showing off your tongue.”

He lifted his black robe.

Then added: “Leave this place. I’m generally tolerant toward humans—but this half-elf lady must stay.”

As he spoke,

The battle beside them erupted again with intense energy.

The female mage cast a spell, and Lily immediately mirrored it.

The female mage could barely even break through Lily’s shield, while Lily pierced one or two layers each time—yet deliberately missed.

Luo De knew Lily was demonstrating her extraordinary spellcraft.

To humiliate the female mage mercilessly.

Lily laughed loudly.

“Weak incantations, imprecise mana, scattered focus, sluggish reactions! How dare you call yourself a student of the mighty Bahadur?! Or is this all you’re capable of?!”

“You bastard!!!”

The female mage, enraged and humiliated, screamed.

A glow emerged from her magical ring—she had abandoned mana combat and resorted to a treasure.

“Cecil!”

The male mage suddenly spoke.

The female mage named Cecil froze.

Then, reluctantly, she withdrew and returned to the male mage’s side.

“Waste.”

“...Sorry, Bert. I’ve brought shame to the Dragon Interest Society.”

“Resign voluntarily next month. You’re not even worthy of us yet.”

With that, Bert walked toward Lily.

Lily was unharmed.

Only the red leather breastplate on her body bore faint scratches.

She smirked smugly, and magic surged again.

Bert’s expression turned cruel.

“Let me show you the true power of Bahadur, vile halfling.”

The magic surging within him was far purer than Cecil’s.

“Wait!”

Luo De called out to stop him.

“Aren’t you leaving yet, sir?”

His demeanor suddenly softened again.

His attitude toward humans and non-human races was vastly different.

Luo De grinned.

He slowly drew forth the [Sword of Devotion].

“How about we trade blows? A gentleman’s duel—take turns, one strike at a time. You’re here already, might as well try!”

(End of Chapter)