"Tch..."

Iz’s eyes widened, a rare sight.

BOOM!

Spirit Burst!

It detonated in an instant!

The entire space trembled from the blast!

Even Izparut’s Magic was swept away and shattered by the aftershock of the Spirit Burst!

The power of this attack...

...was on a completely different dimension of destructive force from ordinary Tier Two Magic.

’Did it work?’

Lu Cang didn’t let his guard down. He immediately surrounded himself with a Protective Shield and a Molten Shield as Heavy Walls rose on all sides.

BOOM!

But the next second, the Elements stirred violently again!

A Wind Spear instantly pierced the four Heavy Walls, penetrated three layers of his Protective Shield, and dissipated just before reaching the Molten Shield.

’It didn’t work!’

Lu Cang’s gaze shot in the direction the Wind Spear had come from—a position diagonally across the field from him.

Iz was over five hundred meters away.

He was encased in a sphere of condensed earth, a burning ball of lava, a Wind Shield wrapped in a hurricane, and flowing water that acted as a barrier. One could even see a sphere of tangled Vines and roots within.

A dazzling array of various Protective Shields.

They appeared to be regenerating, and were already almost completely restored.

’Iz, your defense is like a damn fortress.’

"Not bad. Is this also a product of your thinking?"

"But you didn’t find the real target."

"If you can’t even tell the difference between a Water Mist Illusion and the real body, all that power is just hitting empty air."

Inside his Protective Shield, Iz raised a hand toward Lu Cang.

Magic Burst (Tier Two)

Above Lu Cang’s head, Magic Power surged violently!

’Huh?’

’Use Rejection Wind Roar to create distance! Stack the Protective Shield and Heavy Wall! Block the impending explosion!’

BOOM!

A terrifying roar erupted from the spot where he’d just been!

’Is it just my imagination?’

’Did he just copy my Spirit Burst? And change it to release Magic Power instead?’

Lu Cang created more distance, using multiple explosive bursts of Wind Roar to move, dodging the endless barrage of Ice, wood, and earth spikes erupting from the ground.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

"Lu Cang, you really never cease to surprise me!"

Tier Two Spells truly did have their limits.

No matter how much more Magic Power one poured into them, their Power wouldn’t increase by much.

It was like a tire; there’s a limit to how much air you can pump in, and a limit to how much Magic Power you can infuse.

You couldn’t inflate it indefinitely. Too much air and it would pop—in your own hands.

All the Magic Lu Cang and Iz were casting was at maximum Magic Power output.

Every single spell was infused with as much Magic Power as it could possibly hold.

That was the limit of the Magic’s Power.

However, Iz’s Skill was clearly superior, and he was obviously infusing more Magic Power than Lu Cang.

Fortunately, Lu Cang had Mage Mastery - Transcender. All the Beyond Magic he cast received a significant boost in all aspects.

As a result, the exchange of Magic between Lu Cang and Iz was more or less an even match.

But Iz knew more spells, his Control was more refined, his casting frequency was higher, and his casting Speed was faster than his own.

Combined with his superior knowledge of the counters between spells, he was managing to keep Lu Cang suppressed.

Moreover, Iz was also constantly improving during their battle.

Lu Cang was starting to realize it—was it possible that Iz could instantly learn any spell he himself cast? And with a high Skill Proficiency Level, no less.

’Hey...’

’Who’s the real cheater here?’

In mid-air, a kaleidoscope of spells collided once more!

Kumironi’s small mouth formed a little "o".

It was the first time she had ever seen someone fight Iz like this... able to trade blows with him in the realm of Magic.

Izparut was universally acknowledged as the most genius Mage in the world. At least in the field of Magic, no one could compare to him.

But judging from Little Lu Cang’s current performance, if he were given a few more years to grow, he might truly have a chance to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Iz, or even... surpass him?

The entire Training Ground had been battered into a mess, littered with tangled thickets of wood, Thorns, stone pillars, sheets of ice, and a Sea of Fire.

Lu Cang’s figure moved with extreme speed, dodging and creating distance.

In the midst of battle, Lu Cang was also growing rapidly. His methods for countering Iz’s Magic were becoming more adept.

Although the gap between him and Iz was still huge.

But Lu Cang’s Skill in controlling Magic was undeniably improving, and at a divine speed.

Spirit Burst x3

Sacrifice Soul - 20,000

VMMMMM—

Lu Cang pointed toward a distant location where countless Protective Shields had formed!

Kumironi’s eyes narrowed slightly.

’Little Lu Cang, the Iz over there is a Water Mist Illusion, you know.’

However, just an instant before the Spirit Burst was about to complete...

CLICK—

The Spirit Burst was canceled!

Immediately after, a new Spirit Burst formed in the center of the field!

Spirit Burst x3 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Sacrifice Soul - 50,000

Kumironi’s pupils constricted slightly. She looked sharply at Lu Cang, only to see him hastily dodging a chaotic mess of Earth Fire and Ice Spikes, a look of excitement and madness in his eyes.

’Iz.’

’When it comes to the application of Magic, its Power, the number of spells, and knowledge, I am indeed no match for you...’

’Therefore, my ability to Sacrifice Souls should be my greatest advantage over you!’

’Since I can’t find your real body behind the Water Mist Illusions...’

’...then I’ll just have to increase the Power even more!’

’I’ll cover the entire Training Ground and just blow the whole place sky-high!’

’Oh, Iz!’

’With your Tier Two Magic defenses, can you possibly block this attack?!’

’Today, I’ll make you admit, wholeheartedly, that at this realm, I am stronger than you!’

It was a stark contrast to the well-behaved, polite child he usually appeared to be.

Kumironi saw that Lu Cang’s eyes were filled with excitement, madness, and elation—the confident pride of someone who believed he could defeat Izparut!

"Excellent!"

"Wonderful! What a delightful expression! You are truly worthy of being the disciple I admire!"

"You are worthy of witnessing my true thinking!"

Iz’s words exploded in Lu Cang’s mind.

BOOM—

In almost an instant, the entire Space of the Training Ground lost its color.

No... it wasn’t that it had lost its color.

Rather, the Elements had instantly turned into a vacuum, forming a Void within the Training Ground!

RUMBLE—

In the center of the Training Ground, only a condensed emptiness remained. Around the outer edge of this emptiness, a kaleidoscope of Elements swirled at high speed!

"Tier Two, Root Magic, Element—Void."

THUMP—

An oppressive feeling, almost enough to stop one’s heart—Lu Cang felt an indescribable sense of suppression!

’I have to Sacrifice more!’

Sacrifice Soul - 80,000

’No...’

150,000!

The Soul Light of the Spirit Burst was dazzling!

The Soul Light had already completely filled the entire area of the Training Ground!

"Two madmen," Kumironi muttered as her pupils constricted at the sight.

She immediately raised her hand!

A wall of emerald light expanded outward!

SHHIIING!

In an instant—

The world was suddenly reduced to black and white!