Chapter 431: Chapter 374: Spatial Slash!
The Fifth Level Wizard, draped in a dark red magic robe, stared at the patroller’s remains turned into black ash on the ground, his brows knitted.
Experience told him that a creature with such a simplified body structure was likely artificial.
And after he destroyed the second patroller, he could basically confirm that his position had been completely exposed.
Since exposure was inevitable, it was no longer suitable to continue hiding.
The Fifth Level Wizard’s spiritual power surged, instantly surrounding himself with three layers of shields with different attributes.
Once the defense was completed, his feet left the ground, preparing to swiftly soar skyward and exit this potentially surrounded area.
Just as his figure was about to rise, a faint ripple, like water waves, emanated from a space about a kilometer ahead.
"Spatial teleportation? Or concealment?" The alarm bells in the Fifth Level Wizard’s mind rang loudly.
As a Fifth Level Wizard, his perception of spatial fluctuations was exceptionally sharp, accompanied by a fair understanding of spatial knowledge, he immediately realized an enemy was approaching using spatial means.
He did not panic; his rich combat experience allowed him to make the most logical response—maintaining the appearance of ascending, while secretly mobilizing spiritual power, preparing a Fourth Ring Witchcraft specifically to counter spatial movement, [Space Stasis].
It was now!
At a peak of spatial fluctuation, he suddenly transferred spiritual power to lock onto the source of the wave, the tip of his magic staff bursting with silver-gray light.
[Space Stasis], like an invisible web, instantly covered that area!
He was confident that as long as the opponent emerged from that position, even a momentary stasis would be enough for his subsequent witchcraft to crush the opponent.
Whizz—!
However, almost simultaneously with [Space Stasis] taking effect, an agonizingly earsplitting sound akin to fabric being forcefully torn erupted from behind him!
The three meticulously arranged shields around him, especially the outermost force field shield, flashed wildly, their structures finding instability!
"From behind? How is it possible?!!" The Fifth Level Wizard’s every hair stood on end, a cold despair surged from his spine to his head.
He wanted to dodge, wanted to turn, but just moments ago, in order to precisely release [Space Stasis], both his spiritual power and body were in a brief "cooldown" state, unable to make an effective reaction in time!
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The three layers of shields, under absolute force and bizarre attack styles, like paper, were easily pierced and torn!
In the next moment, Jeming’s figure appeared behind the Fifth Level Wizard like a phantom, without a hint of warning, as if he had always been standing there.
His right hand remained in a thrusting position, the edge of his palm left with subtle black fractures from the spatial cutting.
[Spatial Slash]!
This slash resulting from phase shifting caused spatial shearing force, disregarding conventional energy defense, precisely breaking through the Fifth Level Wizard’s shield, magic robe, and the flesh beneath.
It opened a huge, incredibly smooth-edged wound in his heart!
Jeming’s palm followed [Spatial Slash] as if a sharp blade went directly through that protective gap, striking the wizard before him thoroughly.
The hand that pierced the entire body still held the opponent’s strongly beating heart!
"Uh...!" The Fifth Level Wizard’s body stiffened abruptly, simultaneous attacks of severe pain and rapid life energy loss overwhelmed him.
Jeming remained expressionless, his five fingers clenched tightly!
Splurt!
The heart containing immense life energy burst open in his hand like an overripe fruit.
He swiftly extracted his arm, pulling out a burst of hot, fresh blood.
The Fifth Level Wizard staggered a step, dropping to his knees.
His hands clutched the terrifying hole in his chest, breathing heavily, his face instantly turning as pale as paper.
He felt the hollow sensation and severe pain from the missing heart, struggling to lift his head, glanced at Jeming behind him, who was calm and whose wizard robe was barely stained, a trace of bitterness and relief flashed in his eyes.
"I... lost." He croaked.
The heart’s destruction for a Fifth Level Wizard was only a minor injury; he had several ways to sustain life and even regenerate a heart.
But he was acutely aware; the opponent had broken through all defenses in such a bizarre manner in his most vigilant moment to deliver a "fatal" blow, the disparity was already clear.
His survival was solely because the opponent adhered to the "limit" rule.
Jeming’s face regained a harmless smile, he slightly bowed to the defeated Fifth Level Wizard, as a gesture of respect between fellow sorcerers.
Then, his figure flickered, once again merging into the air, disappearing from the opponent’s sight without leaving any trace.
The Fifth Level Wizard resisted the pain and weakness, carefully sensing Jeming’s disappearance area, his spiritual power combing through every inch of space like a comb.
But surprisingly found that it was as calm as if nothing had happened there, with no remnants of spatial disturbances, no energy dissipated.
"Completely... can’t understand..." he sighed helplessly, his face full of frustration.
In the wizarding world, not understanding the opponent’s methods often signifies an unbridgeable gap in related knowledge fields.
He had to admit that he was completely defeated in his understanding and application of spatial knowledge by a Second Level Wizard, someone lower in rank than himself.
He mobilized Spiritual Power to manipulate his flesh, the massive penetrating wound on his chest began to squirm and heal at a visible speed, even his heart grew back.
After the injury mostly healed, he shook his head, struggled to stand up, and prepared to fly back to the palace.
Since he had already lost, staying here was meaningless.
However, as soon as he raised this thought, and before he could even mobilize Spiritual Power, the scene before his eyes suddenly blurred and transformed.
When his vision cleared, he was already back in that magnificent hall.
He knew that it must have been the Nolun Wizard who had acted, directly teleporting him back to confirm his defeat.
He looked up and found the atmosphere inside the hall was somewhat subtle.
The attention of most wizards was not focused on him, the recent defeated returnee, but was almost all concentrated on the several giant light screens suspended in the air inside the hall.
The light screens clearly displayed various ongoing battles within the competition area.
Among them, most conspicuous and attracting the most attention was the central screen tracking Jeming’s actions.
Inside the hall, there was only the image of energy intertwining on the screens and occasionally some low murmuring discussions.
The wizards present were called geniuses outside, their vision incredibly sharp.
Jeming’s lightning-fast surprise attack and concealment just now, seemed simple, but actually contained a technical density that made even these well-informed high-tier entities glance sideways.
"Mind split into three tasks, simultaneously maintaining two continuous spatial magics acting on oneself while being able to manage bait fluctuations and launch precise attacks..." murmured a third-generation disciple whose hair and beard were all white, his face full of disbelief.
For wizards with Spiritual Power honed through countless trials, merely splitting the mind into three tasks is not difficult.
Handling multiple tasks simultaneously and constructing multiple Witchcraft Models is a core subject for many elite wizards.
Simply casting spatial magic, though complex, there are many present who master this path and can accomplish it.
But combining these two aspects—in intense combat, ever-changing environments, continuously maintaining multiple high-consumption high-precision spatial magics, especially when aimed at oneself, such a "high-value, high-interference" target—is truly extraordinary!
The reason lies in the intimidating "Calculation Power Black Hole" characteristic of spatial magic.
Space is one of the foundational frameworks composing Plane, its rules complex and subtle.
Any witchcraft involving space, from basic [Blink] to advanced [Space Jump], requires massive real-time calculations to locate coordinates, stabilize channels, counteract the "resilience" of space itself and external interferences.
This calculation requirement grows geometrically with the enhancement of the witchcraft effect.
And continuous spatial magic, especially ones like [Phase Shift] and [Space Stabilization] which need to maintain their effects constantly and even dynamically adjust parameters as the wizard moves, become a bottomless pit of Calculation Power consumption.
They are unlike one-off attack magic that ends once cast, instead requiring continuous investment of Spiritual Power for precise control.
More crucially, when spatial magic acts on the spellcaster himself, the complexity of calculation spikes dramatically with the wizard’s own energy level!
Because the wizard himself is a massive collection of energy and mass, embedding such a "colossal entity" safely and stably into phase space, or constructing a stable space Force Field around it, the spatial disturbance to be counteracted and the computation burden directly correlate with the wizard’s own size and Energy Level.
It can be said that the Calculation Power consumption for self-acting continuous spatial magic is calculated based on a certain percentage of the wizard’s own energy level!
The higher the Level, the more terrifying the consumption!
For those super geniuses with extraordinary talent, relying on far superior Spiritual Power management and Calculation Power, barely using "mind split into two tasks" to simultaneously maintain two spatial magics acting on themselves might be achievable.
But to further split out a third mind to precisely control another independent magic is almost a daydream—at least until the Seventh Level where Soul essence undergoes a transition, this is commonly considered impossible!
Yet, Jeming did it.
"Tsk-tsk, Clark, your disciple... he’s quite something." Augusta Wizard nudged Clark beside him with his elbow, his tone filled with amazement, "What he did just now... can you do it?"
Professor Clark returned him a "what a silly question you’re asking" glance, expressionless and silent.
But Augusta immediately understood, even Clark himself might not be able to do it.
In fact, not only Clark, possibly none of the Sixth Level Wizards present could achieve what Jeming just did.
"Unless... I give myself another head. But this young fellow seems to show no signs of bodily modification..."
He showed more interest in the Jeming on the screen, rubbing his chin and clicking his tongue in wonder.
(Extra Chapter today, one more to come)
