Chapter Twenty-Three Blazing Orb
Takebitori resurrected in the pitched tent. As soon as she left, she saw a few other Players.
“Why are you still here?” Takebitori was shocked. The boss hadn’t been defeated yet, let alone their equipment that was left behind in that godforsaken place.
The female Player with the Hunter class shook her head and pointed to the strange magic circle on the ground, saying, “That building is gone.”
Takebitori looked and was stunned. The spot was empty, with nothing but the magic circle. So this was a one-time dungeon?
*
Amber City, on the Spire Bridge.
Li Wen tried to distract the opponent with words she herself didn’t believe while thinking of a counter-strategy.
Frankly, Li Wen had already determined the enemy’s location. Apart from her initial move, the enemy hadn’t moved at all. This meant that either the enemy had some lingering concerns from Li Wen’s words, or they possessed absolute confidence.
There was also another possibility: this was a trap, and the opponent was waiting for Li Wen to fall into it.
Li Wen, of course, wouldn’t fall for it. Her Prayer was a targeted divine ability, only usable on targets within her line of sight or perception, otherwise, the stalemate wouldn’t have lasted this long.
The advantage of a targeted spell was that it was difficult to dodge, but if the enemy’s shadow couldn’t even be seen, there was naturally no possibility of hitting them.
Fire Mage, on the other hand, was different. Most of the magic they cast, except for the elemental shield, were all non-targeted area spells or projectile spells. The advantage was too great. It was no wonder the opponent learned the White Mist magic for obscuring the field of vision; it was indeed useful.
However, this was useless for Li Wen. She possessed the extraordinary trait “Reverse in Shadow,” which reduced her presence by 50% when in the shadows. Within this White Mist, the Fire Mage couldn’t pinpoint her exact location.
So, it was hard to say whose advantage was greater with this White Mist, but one thing was certain: to break the deadlock, the Fire Mage had to remove the White Mist themselves, otherwise, she could only wait for the White Mist to dissipate on its own.
Li Wen believed it wouldn’t take too long. The Mage had been hit by a poisoned arrow and couldn’t hold on much longer.
After waiting quietly for a moment, the Fire Mage finally replied, “You’re right. After all, we don’t have any major grudges. But… how can you prove that you can truly make all this as if it never happened? Well, of course, I know you are a Warlock skilled in curses, and you naturally wouldn’t care about a few lives.”
The moment the words fell, Li Wen heard the sound of flames burning.
The next moment, the White Mist dissipated, revealing both the Fire Mage and Li Wen, who had been concealed by it.
Li Wen instantly cast the Dark Word Curse she had prepared, and the Fire Mage, upon confirming Li Wen’s location, threw a fireball simultaneously.
Their skills hit each other, the difference being that the Fire Mage was directly cursed, while Li Wen, the moment she threw the curse, fell to the ground to dodge the fireball’s direct hit.
Intense, chaotic air currents exploded around her. Li Wen could even smell the burnt odor of death. Fortunately, a shield lit up on her body at this time, blocking part of the damage and then restoring Li Wen’s Life.
Life remaining: 44%.
This was the result even after using Prayer in advance, otherwise, even if Li Wen didn’t die, she would have lost her ability to act due to the scorching heat.
The Fire Mage was also not doing well. The Dark Word Curse hit directly, and they couldn’t even dispel it again. Each use of the ring required at least a three-day interval.
The curse, combined with the potent poison, made their already dire condition even worse. Although temporary blindness caused by the curse, they could feel that their magic hadn’t killed the enemy.
Could this be the end? How could that be!
Dark, bloody fluids leaked from the Mage’s nose, mouth, and pores, yet they only managed a slightly manic smile.
Moonlight Potion was a prohibited drug listed with high priority in the notice issued by the Kingdom’s Disciplinary Bureau. The effect of this prohibited drug was: after taking the potion, for a certain period, the user’s Mana would briefly recover rapidly, and their spellcasting ability would increase by one level.
As a price, a Mage could only use Moonlight Potion once in their lifetime, and after the effect disappeared, they would lose their spellcasting ability for ten days.
The rapid recovery of Mana was trivial; what was truly important was the increase in spellcasting level. This meant a Stage One Mage could cast a Level Two spell without cost, or use a Level Three spell through rituals and scrolls. Such an increase was terrifying.
The Fire Mage felt an unprecedented surge of power within them. The sensation even overwhelmed the curse and the potent poison. They felt that with just a flick of their finger, they could kill any enemy, even those old guys in the Forbidden Institute.
Moonlight Potion was highly addictive, but a Mage who took the potion a second time would instantly explode and die. Therefore, the Fire Mage suppressed their craving for power.
At this time, the effect of blindness disappeared. The Fire Mage looked at Li Wen and coldly took out a scroll.
“To be forced to this point is truly humiliating!”
Flames formed behind them as the Fire Mage felt their Mana draining like a tide.
Level Three Magic, Blazing Orb!
Restless, chaotic fire elements surged into it. The flames condensed into a scarlet sun, hanging high behind the Fire Mage, as if it would burn everything.
Li Wen simply watched calmly. The Dark Word Curse she had just cast had depleted her remaining Mana. Facing the Mage’s move, it seemed she really had no other counter.
Was that truly the case?
Li Wen focused her attention on her traits. The Candlelight Blood trait allowed her to forcibly use Life to substitute Mana when Mana was insufficient to cast Glorious Spectrum Series skills.
However, this wouldn’t change the situation. The opponent was casting a Level Three spell, enough to blow up this entire stone bridge. It seemed they weren’t planning to spare anyone, and Li Wen currently only knew one skill: Prayer.
Interrupting the opponent’s casting earlier had been a surprise attack. Now, the opponent was surely prepared and wouldn’t stop casting just because of a curse. Furthermore, the opponent was using a large-scale destructive magic. The idea of making the enemy blind to lose their target was no longer realistic. The opponent surely had this in consideration, otherwise why would they cast such a level of magic?
In this situation, Li Wen might have no choice but to give up resistance and accept Death obediently.
After all, she was still a Player, and dying just meant starting over.
However, if she were to truly surrender, Li Wen was unwilling to accept it. After all, as a reborn person who had made so many preparations, she couldn’t even deal with a Stage One Mage. This was unacceptable no matter how you looked at it.
