Chapter 158: Four‑Ring Spell

Inside Dong Ting Fortress, a massive flame‑blade dragon‑eagle shot out at high speed, its body cloaked in flames, like a red meteor, plummeting toward the cliff, and before the shape‑shifting wizard's corpse fell into the water it seized him, then flapped its wings powerfully and rose back up.

With a slap, the corpse was thrown onto the grass, and the dragon‑eagle turned into red light and vanished.

The shape‑shifting wizard's body was scorched in many places, but his face remained intact.

Lei En did not use the Rainbow Beam to blast his head, only to be able to identify him.

Viola appeared on the terrace, relaxed once she saw Lei En was unharmed, approached the corpse, and examined its shape and features.

The heavy footfalls sounded as Bademon and several Silver‑armored Knights arrived, cordoning off the grass so the guests could not get too close.

Some still‑shaken guests stood at a distance, pointing and murmuring.

"My lord Earl…" Bademon felt guilty; the first banquet held in Dong Ting Fortress had let enemies slip in, a serious dereliction.

Fortunately, the Earl of Glamorgan had already slain the enemy.

Lei En shook his head, indicating it was fine; preventing a shape‑shifting wizard's infiltration was not something Bademon and his Iron Guard could achieve, it far exceeded their ability.

For shape‑shifting wizards, there are few places in the world they cannot infiltrate.

He turned to Viola and asked in a low voice, "Have you seen this person? He claims to be from Mo Du, representing Mo Du's nobles on the spot, and tried to stop me from entering the territory."

"Never seen him."

Viola frowned, a trace of anger on her face, "High‑level shape‑shifting wizard, they're rare even in Mo Du; uncovering his identity isn't hard."

Bademon, standing nearby, along with a few guests with extraordinary hearing, heard Viola's words and instantly their gazes at Lei En changed, filled with awe.

They hadn't seen the battle themselves, assuming the wizard's strength was average.

They didn't expect him to be a high‑level shape‑shifting wizard.

Any high‑level wizard, regardless of school or specialization, is a very powerful figure. The strongest extraordinary being in Dong Ting City, the head of the Public Security Bureau, is only a Level 7 Gunner, far weaker than a wizard of the same rank.

However, what was even more surprising was that the Earl of Glamorgan managed to kill the opponent in such a short time!

Until then, the upper class of Dong Ting City and Bamond both looked down on the Earl of Glamorgan, thinking he was just an unlucky fellow chosen by the Silver Star Duke as a pawn.

Now it seems that was not the case.

Lei En noticed the shift in people's attitude toward him but did not mind; he searched the shape‑shifting wizard's corpse and found nothing more.

Shape‑shifting wizards fight in various forms, a trait that prevents them from carrying conventional magical gear; the vast majority fight bare‑handed, without even a staff.

"Poor ghost…"

Lei En muttered under his breath and ordered Bademon to dispose of the corpse.

However, it wasn't a total loss; the wizard's soul was fairly strong, granting him more than thirty‑five units of energy.

The total energy now exceeds 80%, enough to raise Swiftness or some spell by one level.

Viola ordered the Silver‑armored Knights to restore order, and the banquet continued.

This time, wherever Lei En went he was the focus; the strong are always more readily respected.

Viola received a report from Mayor Mikson: the real Pajit, the Deputy Director of the Judicial Bureau, was found in a forest beneath Yueyang Slope, unconscious but not dead.

That was good news; Dong Ting City lost no officials, evidently the shape‑shifting wizard had not intended to kill at the outset.

He probably never imagined that a mere threat at the door would cost him his life.

"This is the consequence of underestimating the enemy."

Lei En silently warned himself.

Despite a slight stir, the first official appearance of the Dong Ting Earl within his domain concluded smoothly.

Late at night, on the master bedroom bed of Dong Ting Fortress, Lei En opened his eyes in the darkness, turned his head to glance at Viola beside him, his gaze sweeping over her alluring curves beneath the thin blanket, a smile of satisfaction spreading across his face.

Now, finally having some free time, he could review his gains.

He opened his phone interface, and icons lit up one by one before his eyes.

Lei En thought for a moment, then his gaze settled on the 'Swiftness' and 'Rainbow Beam' icons; Swiftness was already at level 4, with plenty of room to improve.

He had previously tried to boost Swiftness to level 5, which would require about 70% energy.

That was far higher than he had expected.

Perhaps because speed itself is hard to raise, it turned out so. With the current energy, the upgrade is sufficient, but the remaining few dozen units feel unstable.

The Soul Power invested as enhancement Element cannot be used for casting.

Lei En didn't want a lack of Soul Power to limit his casting, especially since he was about to head to Mo Du; he wanted to keep some reserves and present himself as a wizard as much as possible.

Unless the critical moment arrives, he would never reveal his melee prowess.

Thus, upgrading the Rainbow Beam was the best choice.

During the night battle with the shape‑shifting wizard, the second‑ring Rainbow Beam was slightly underpowered, unable to pierce the opponent's earth armor.

Even with the aid of Song of Azure Sky, raising it to the third ring, he could only strike when the enemy transformed into a thunderbird or a giant fish, their defense lowered, catching them off‑guard to cause damage.

Lei En estimated that even a third‑ring Rainbow Beam would be useless against an earth brown bear.

If it were four rings, it should work.

He locked onto the Rainbow Beam icon, pressed the button, and the progress bar moved steadily. Energy plummeted, and after a few dozen seconds fell below 40%; the Rainbow Beam finally rose to the third ring!

A Mid-stage Wizard can master at most third‑ring spells.

Lei En reached under his pillow, brushed the Song of Azure Sky, and a surge of energy entered his mind, Soul Power circulating, activating the leaf that represents the Rainbow Beam.

Instantly, information about the spell surfaced in his mind.

As long as he wished, he could immediately unleash a four‑ring Rainbow Beam.

The four‑ring spell now falls within the intermediate spell tier, its power qualitatively enhanced, penetration soaring, and range reaching twenty meters.

And it now adds another negative effect, 'Freeze'.

This freeze is not the ice‑type spell freeze; it does not generate frost, but a spatial bind formed by mysterious energy, functioning like a freezing effect that restricts the target's movement.

Blindness, petrification, burning, freeze—triggering any one of these negative effects can sway the battle's outcome.

The only thing that displeased Lei En was that the four‑ring Rainbow Beam required a longer casting time, exceeding two seconds.

This is the price for raising the ring count.

Without having the enemy under control, a two‑second casting time is too long.

Lei En sighed inwardly, realizing his study of spells was still insufficient; his casting was all on auto. When he reaches the Weizelan Wizards Academy, he must master the book *Research on Ray‑type Spells* and shorten the casting time of the rainbow beam.

At present, his best skill is "Spell Counter," a rather useless spell that belongs to a generic category; with the aid of the Soul Eye, it becomes his trump card.

The Soul Eye can directly perceive the soul's state; when the target casts, the Element in the soul is activated.

The flow of soul energy is also subtly evident.

Lei En can clearly capture the enemy's casting process and seize the timing for Spell Counter.

Of course, Spell Counter is not omnipotent.

Countering has a distance limit; the second‑ring Spell Counter works only within ten meters, and the spell itself also requires time. If the opponent is instant‑cast or casts faster, it cannot be countered.

In a caster's battle, enemies rarely get within ten meters.

Lei En's Spell Counter comes from a rune book; he cannot use soul power to raise the ring count and extend the effective range, unless he later has a chance to fuse a demon soul that contains this spell.

"Indeed, no spell is flawless."

"If the range of Spell Counter were long enough and I mastered it to instant‑cast, then in this world every caster before me would be fish on a cutting board, ready for me to slaughter."

Lei En thought with some regret.

He closed the phone interface, turned over and gently embraced Viola, who was about to continue sleeping.

During his days at Dong Ting Fortress, Lei En was very happy.

Viola acted with thunderous vigor, wielding both grace and might; with the help of the Silver‑clad Knights, she seized the territory in just a few days, becoming the ruler of the city and the surrounding vast lands and lakes.

The upper class in Dong Ting City obediently accepted the new Count.

He had just turned twenty, and neither mentally nor physically was he ready to be a father.

But Viola seemed to intend it that way; the two had never used any contraception.

Lei En let out a sigh, and could only let her go.

He hoped that when he returned to Dong Ting Fortress, no child would emerge, clutch his leg and call him "dad"…

Indulging in a gentle paradise for a wonderful week made Lei En almost forget his duties and not want to leave, until the Secret Fire Guard arrived with the Silver Star Duke's summons; he knew it was time to set out.

The letter contained little, merely urging Lei En to depart at once.

It told him that the people on Master Anxiwodasi's side had grown impatient, having followed up several times.

The orders of the two Holy Soul Wizards left Lei En no room for further delay.

That afternoon, he boarded the ship that Viola had prepared, set off from Dong Ting Hu, entered Na Qu Mo He, and rode the current straight to Mo Du.

Getting older, staying up all night once drained his vital energy, threw his routine into chaos; yesterday he slept drowsily all day, thought he was ill, and scared himself half to death…

(End of Chapter)