The reason why CW-236 is facing the threat of destruction was because of a magic beast in the 7th cycle
This magic beast was at least two meters tall and is a humanoid-type beast walking on two limbs. This beast's skin was gray in color and its body was out of portion
Its lower body was quite slender but from its chest and above, it suddenly became bigger. Not only that but on its chest, shoulders, and arms, white masks could be seen
Even its face was just a white mask and these masks constantly shoot magic attacks from different elements
This is a magic beast called Wicked Mask Beast. Its defense was mediocre compared to other magic beasts but its magical abilities were superior
This particular Wicked Mask Beast is even at the 7th cycle, the very reason why the mages at coordinate CW-236 have a hard time defending
The higher the cycle, the greater the gap in power compared to entities even just a single cycle lower
Due to the unwritten law brought to existence by the Guardian and the Magic Beasts, both sides wouldn't just send high-ranking combatants
Once one side threw a high-ranking combatant, the other side would do the same and this thing would repeat
While humanity cannot win against the magic beasts, because of the Guardian's existence, the beasts are also unwilling to have an all-out war as the result would be devastating even if they won
As such, in most cases, both sides would only send combatants at the Junior Rank. It's not every day that both sides would send combatants at the 8th or 9th cycle as these ones have the chance of reaching the rank above the Junior Rank
However, it was not too rare to send combatants at the 7th cycle just like this Wicked Masks Beast
To fight against such a magic beast, a mage at or above that level is required to take action. However, humans have always been on the weaker side
While they surely have many 7th-cycle Junior Mages, it's not like those mages don't have anything else to do. The number of mages that could fight has always been lower than the magic beasts
To deal with this kind of problem, the people responsible for controlling and positioning the troops opted to have lower-ranking mages use the Overdrive Formation for their side to have a combatant that is temporarily at the 7th cycle
The chosen one was Wermon that clenched his fist while staring at the rampaging Wicked Masks Beast killing one mage after another
Wermon can't possibly continue letting that beast rampage as it likes and as soon as his power was boosted, he immediately rushed toward his target
While running, Wermon condensed a yellow magic circle at his feet while moving his sword to the side
This was the same posture as he had earlier since he was casting the same spell
"[Clapping Thunder!]" Wermon muttered and the spell gave him an instantaneous boost in speed and appear
It was like he disappeared again and when he reappeared, he was already engaging the Wicked Masks Beasts
Rumble!
A strong shockwave spreads that threw the nearby humans and magic beasts and their bodies became numb as if someone shocked them with electricity. Even the ground that Wermon was previously standing on caved in and was scorched
When the others could finally see Wermon again, they saw him facing his target
On his body and sword, flashes of lightning swim freely but this time, he was not able to kill his target using a single move
The beast's perception was quite great as the masks on its body breathe out fire in time to block Wermon's sword strike
The mage's sword was not strong enough to cut through the breaths of fire and he was forced to back away if he doesn't want his whole body to be fried
One side is a genuine entity at the 7th cycle while the other is relying on a formation. Naturally, Wermon is not used to the temporary power he had and his control was not as smooth as when he was in his normal state
As soon as he appeared, both the nearby humans and magic beasts suddenly avoided him and his opponent
It seems like both sides understood that they might become collateral deaths if they participate in the fight between Wermon and the Wicked Masks Beast
After all, there are not many 7th-cycle combatants on this battlefield and when they clash, it was possible for them to kill the ones near them accidentally
"Human! You dare face me alone! Do you want to be eaten that much?" The beast suddenly spoke with a hoarse voice
Not all magic beasts are brainless fools that only rely on instincts. The higher the rank, the more likely that they would gain proper consciousness. However, even a 1st cycle Junior beast or even a beastling could also awaken their consciousness. It either relies on luck or their specie
This Wicked Masks Beast is one of those that has human-like intelligence although it was just a Junior Beast. It should have a higher importance on the camp of magic beasts since not many of them have human-like intelligence
It might even be tasked to destroy the section of the wall that Wermon wanted to protect
"Hmph, you are the ones that would be eaten!" Wermon harrumphed coldly before a new magic circle formed below him and lightning once again covered his body and sword
"[Thrust of Destruction!]"
Crack! Sizzle!
Wermon's body emitted more lightning sparks than before. Some streaks of lightning even touched the ground and scorched it
As Wermon generated lightning sparks on his body, the blue aura on his body thinned considerably
That blue aura comes from the mana that the ten 4th cycle mages are supplying to him via the magic formation. The formation couldn't be physically seen right now but the blue glow of mana is proof that it was still working
Wermon doesn't plan on prolonging this battle as the Overdrive Formation has a time limit and he chose to cast the most lethal spell that he could
Soon, the sparks of lightning gathered at Wermon's sword, giving it a bright yellow glow as if thousands of lightning bolts were stored in it
After charging his spell, Wermon charged at his opponent, leaving behind a cracked and scorched ground
Meanwhile, the magic beast was not idle as the masks on its body squirmed and moved. They gathered at its abnormally large chest before combining into a single but bigger mask
The white color of the mask even turned black!
Mana gathered at the mouth of the black mask and it shot concentrated blue energy at the same time that Wermon's feet moved
Boom! Rumble! Crack! Sizz!
The collision between Wermon and the beast's attack produced various sounds and a crater is starting to form from where they are
One yellow and one blue light clashed against each other, sending devastating shockwaves everywhere
For a moment, this area was bathed with two different colors that blinded those that are weaker than the two
When the light subsided, the figure of Wermon and the Wicked Masks Beast could be seen again and both of them are injured
Wermon bled red-colored blood while the other side's blood was dark gray. The human has a gaping bloody hole on his chest along with the lesser injuries all over his body while the magic beast also has a large stabbing wound on its upper body
The two might look like they were injured equally but that was not the truth. As someone that is not a genuine 7th cycle Junior Mage, Wermon was more injured and worn out, especially since while Body Mages have better physical bodies than Spirit Mages, their vitality is still not as strong as those of the magic beasts
Those that are knowledgeable would know that Wermon is more injured and he was at a disadvantage
If he was not a Body Mage, he might have already fainted due to the gaping hole in his chest
In fact, it wouldn't even take that long before Wermon really fainted but before that happens, he planned on defeating his target first
With a wave of his bloody hand, Wermon retrieved a small bottle of potion that has blue liquid inside
This is a mana potion, the type that would recover the consumer's mana in one huge burst
Wermon uncapped the small bottle and drank the blue liquid inside. A chunk of his mana was instantly replenished
While the [Thrust of Destruction] was a powerful spell of his, he couldn't cast the spell twice while maintaining its full power. If he wants to cast it the second time, he has to consume a mana potion
"Human! You anger me! I'll kill you before I destroy that wall!" The beast said angrily
While Wermon couldn't fight it for a long time, the beast is different and it acts as if it was not injured at all
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺