Protector Avin squinted. The chicken might look silly, but it was the equivalent of a Peak Condensed Drop Arcanist or a Grand Rank 2 Beast Lord. It was a step stronger than the Obsidian Wind Wolf that died which was a Late Rank 2 Beast Lord. And more annoyingly, the beast had the ability to disrupt and absorb his spells. That chicken might be an Arcanist's worst nightmare! Yet, Protector Avin was not really convinced that it could absorb spells endlessly. It must have a limit, much like the wolf. He waved his wand and hundreds of icicles formed. Peak Gaseous Fog ice-type spell, Winter Icicles! Whoosh! They flew at the chicken with fearsome momentum. The beast responded by widening its eyes. Rainbow light poured out and illuminated the land. Boom! The icicles, along with a large portion of the forest, were blown away in a gigantic burst of energy!
He was thrown back too, though his barriers blocked most of the impact, except… his barriers started breaking apart. He was surprised. The chicken increased the local interference strength so much that his spells began losing effect. While this would have been a death sentence for weaker Arcanists, he had more resistance as a Blue Depth Core Arcanist. He simply had to use more Magic Energy. As he flew back, he felt the urge to look up. Since he became a Rank 3 King and gained the ability to sense karma, he took these gut feelings very seriously. Because of the heavy snowstorm and dark night, he had been constantly using his Martial and Magic Perceptions throughout the fight and even then, he only noticed now. There were thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of small translucent bubbles covering the night sky! They did not originate from a spell, so he failed to sense them. A bad feeling emerged.
The harmless-looking bubbles started merging together. From a thousand to a hundred to ten, the bubbles rapidly shrunk in number, while also growing exponentially in size. The final bubble was large enough to loom over the entire battlefield, including the chicken and Protector Avin. It then descended upon them. Protector Avin grimaced and casted three spells at once. Thirty Six Falling Meteors! Golden Spark! Winter Icicles! Likewise, the chicken cawed and sent its own attacks flying. Faced with a new threat, they abandoned their hostility and collaborated. The handful of spells landed on the bubble, creating multiple large explosions and strong winds. However, when the explosions faded, it revealed the same bubble in all its glory. It was actually unharmed! Although Protector Avin did not use his strongest methods, these were still three Peak Gaseous Fog spells. Not to mention, the chicken played its part too. The fact they had no effect was somewhat unbelievable.
No, that was not quite right. Protector Avin narrowed his eyes and unleashed his True Perception. He instantly understood that this 'bubble' was, in fact, hundreds of bubbles embedded inside each other. What their attacks did was pop the outermost layers. The inside remained intact! And at the very center of this humongous multilayered bubble was a swirling mass of Martial Energy. He was unfamiliar with Martial Energy and martial techniques, so he could not decipher what it was supposed to do. Nevertheless, it was the source of his bad feeling. Even though there was a high degree of interference strength in the area, it merely destabilized the outer layers of the bubble. It continued to descend with increasing momentum.
Bridging Horizon! Protector Avin immediately unleashed his strongest movement spell and dashed through the forest. He was not about to waste his precious energy in blocking or blasting it away. Coincidentally, the chicken decided to follow him, as it flapped its wings fiercely. They were making their way outside the Mordrigan Peaks. The bubble seemed to have a mind of its own as it slowly changed directions. Of course, slow was relative, because it was huge. Protector Avin calculated in his head if he could escape before it landed, or if he needed to block. Things did not look promising. Right at that moment, many things happened. The chicken turned around and another burst of rainbow light shot from its eyes at the bubble. And in front of Protector Avin, there was a bright flash, the unmistakable sign of a flying strike from that mantis. Both the chicken and mantis's attack targeted the bubble. Pop, pop, pop! After the cacophony of explosions, hundreds of layers were destroyed in an instant.
In the first place, the Fat Light Chicken and Bubble Trap Toad were relative in strength, both being Grand Rank 2 Beast Lords. It would be strange if the former was helpless against the latter. And while the mantis might have been weaker, being a Late Rank 2 Beast Lord, it had an overwhelming advantage in destructive power. The once gigantic bubble had shrunken down to a fraction of its size. It was one attack away from failing. Protector Avin decided to do the finishing blow. A large Magic Circle appeared with wind and water. Whoosh! A giant ice tornado was born! Nassandra would have been startled to see this spell, because it previously was her large-scale tactical spell, Torrential Blizzard! The tactical spell shredded through the last layers of the bubble and destroyed it!
Boom! The force of the explosion tore a small hole in the cloud layer, allowing moonlight to illuminate the land. Protector Avin stood at the center with his back straight, his grandeur overflowing. The chicken and mantis were nearby, and the toad was undoubtedly watching. Some irritation reached his brow. Even with the wolf gone, this was taking longer than he wished. That said, that was about to change. His two largest problems were his low Magic Energy, and the beasts were too spread out. Energy was still a problem, but everyone had grouped up. If he could hit them with his strongest spells, he could finish them off in one strike! His aura churned violently in response to his battle intent. The heavy snowstorm, and even the world, seemed to dim in his presence, as if to prostrate before him. That was the authority of a Rank 3 King! It was then that the final beast made their entrance. Protector Avin and the four beasts glanced at the newcomer. The Half-Rank 3 Beast King, Triple Poison Ferret, joined!
Some hours prior, deep in the tunnels, Shirley just awakened her Core, officially becoming a Low Gaseous Fog Arcanist! Benedict was still amazed. Although he had his own fair share of ridiculous breakthroughs, it was the first time he saw it from the other side. Was this how other people viewed them? He could understand a tiny bit. Granted, becoming a Low Gaseous Fog Arcanist was not the most astonishing thing. In the Zino Kingdom, students enrolled in the magic academies were expected to form their Cores during their first years of school. These would be six to eight year old children. The process was straightforward and there was little to no danger involved. For Shirley, who had ample experience wielding Martial Energy, her success was guaranteed. It was where she formed it that amazed Benedict. They were lost, trapped, exhausted, and against the literal wall, yet she managed to pull off a breakthrough. She was unbelievable.
Then, he had a bold idea. Since they were out of Martial Energy, why not use Magic Energy instead? He did not use any in the earlier battles, and Shirley had a fresh Core. It was a good idea, except… there was a major issue to overcome. They had no wands. Unlike martial techniques, which required no tools to perform, this was a hard limit. And even if they did have them, it was debatable whether they would be any good at casting spells. He sighed. It seemed like a way out, but really it was another dead end. He tried to get up, only to stumble back down. His body could not handle any more strain. It felt like he would faint the very next second. Fortunately, Shirley was with him. If he had to brave these dark tunnels alone, he doubted whether he could keep it together. She helped him more than she knew.