Chapter 213: Chapter 168: Firepower Doubled
Isaac had originally planned to modify his hands much later. He’d expected his first modification to be a third eye on his forehead. But unfortunately, plans can’t keep up with change. The war in the Itra Kingdom showed no signs of ending soon, and he couldn’t afford to waste that much time.
After all, each body modification had a cooldown period, just like the promotion rituals for Official Wizards. Furthermore, it affected both the body and one’s Magic Power, meaning the recovery period was longer and the effects harder to stabilize.
Therefore, even if all his training during the Grand Wizard stage went perfectly, it would still take at least a year or two—a stark contrast to the rapid advancement of an Official Wizard.
However, this wasn’t unique to Legendary Mages; all Extraordinary Professions were the same. Advancement for Tier One was incredibly fast, which was why a recent paper from the Truth Association had proposed adding an "apprentice" suffix to all Tier One professions. The suggestion had reportedly sparked considerable controversy.
"Whoa, your hands... they’re so ugly!" Lorna said, looking at Isaac’s hands with disgust. "Good thing I’m not a Legendary Mage like you guys. Eww~"
Isaac wiggled his blue hands and smiled, completely unconcerned. "Don’t worry," he said. "They’ll go back to normal once I’ve adapted. Would Magic really be so inconvenient?"
"Really? Still, they’re pretty gross!"
At her words, Isaac looked down again at his own scale-covered hands and nodded silently. "Hmm... I guess they are a little..."
"See?"
"Mm— Huh? Enemies... Quite a few of them, too." Isaac’s eyebrow twitched, a hint of excitement in his voice. ’Looks like they’ve finally realized the gravity of the situation.’
"What direction? How many?" Lorna asked, her expression turning serious.
"The east... there are a lot. I sense at least thirty of them right now..." Isaac mused for a moment before turning to Lorna and Angel, who had just entered the grand hall. "You two stay here. I’ll handle them."
"Will you be alright?" Angel asked with a slight frown. "That’s at least thirty Tier Two Transcendents. Besides, the ones showing up now aren’t like the ones we’ve faced before."
"It shouldn’t be a problem. Besides, I have to be the one to go; it’s the safest option. You two defend this place. If you really can’t hold it, use Time Reversal to restore the fortress and buy me some time to get back," Isaac said grimly.
"I understand." Angel nodded, not insisting further. In terms of versatility, as the wielder of the Original Scripture, the *Chronicles of Time*, she was confident she was Isaac’s equal. But when it came to direct combat prowess...
She believed that no Tier Two Transcendent, after witnessing his chaotic Magical Cannon barrage, would consider themselves stronger than him. In terms of sheer destructive power, the man had already reached the domain of a High-level Mage.
He was just a little short of a High-level Mage in terms of techniques.
To be honest, he wasn’t far off. It was just a matter of a few Privilege Magics. For anyone else, Privilege Magic was incredibly rare and difficult to obtain, but for Isaac, it was perhaps only a single sacrifice away.
...
East of the fortress, Isaac watched the Transcendents sneaking cautiously toward his position. His eyebrow twitched, and without the slightest hesitation, he extended his right hand. The sinister red mark on his forehead pulsed with light as three highly concentrated Magic Balls instantly materialized behind him!
Magic Cannon x3!
Of course, the body modification alone couldn’t account for a threefold increase in power. After all, this was just a minor modification; there were nine such procedures in the Grand Wizard stage. If every single one yielded such a massive boost, things would get ridiculous.
In reality, his ability to conjure three Magic Cannons at once wasn’t just due to the body modification. It was also related to Isaac’s growing mastery of the Secret Technique. Both the amount of power he could draw and his control over it had improved considerably.
The combination of these factors was what made the improvement seem so drastic.
But what was good for Isaac was, unfortunately, terrible for his enemies. The increased power of the Dimensional Magic Cannon was great for him, but it was anything but good news for his foes.
Seeing the five Magic Balls that suddenly appeared in the sky, each exuding a terrifying aura, everyone froze in horror. ’His casting speed... it’s that fast? Did this guy build a Mage Tower?’
’But that can’t be right! We don’t see a Mage Tower anywhere!’
Horrified, the Transcendents scattered, desperately trying to dodge. Getting hit by a Magic Cannon of that magnitude was no laughing matter.
But could they really escape?
Three Magic Cannons shot toward them every second. Within moments, the barrage had sealed off every possible escape route!
"Fuck! Where is he getting all this Magic Power? Don’t tell me he actually built a Mage Tower!"
"Impossible! Mage Towers aren’t permitted to be built here."
"Then how do you explain his massive reserves of Magic Power?"
"Who the fuck knows!"
"Stop arguing! There are too many Magic Cannons! We can’t dodge them all! We have to defend together!"
Amidst the chaos of dodging, the group quickly came to a consensus. They gathered in twos and threes; those with Combat Techniques used their skills, and those with Magic cast their spells, raising a series of sturdy barriers to shield them!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The cannon fire echoed across the land as mushroom clouds of energy bloomed across the battlefield. The Transcendents struggled to withstand the relentless barrage of Magic Cannons, a sense of despair growing among them beneath the unending assault.
On one side was a continuous stream of Magic Cannons showing no sign of exhaustion; on the other were their own faltering defensive shields...
To be honest, they were already regretting ever coming here. If they’d known this guy was so damn powerful, would they have dared to show up?!
But that was just hindsight. The truth was, they had only come here because they couldn’t survive out there any longer. Both Philo, who was busy conquering strongholds, and Smith, who was hunting them down, had beaten them to a pulp.
That’s why they’d opted for a surprise attack, hoping to strike Isaac’s home base and force Philo and Smith to return as reinforcements.
Unfortunately for them, Isaac’s power was far greater than they had imagined.
They had only just engaged...
No, they hadn’t even come face-to-face!
And they were already on the verge of being wiped out!
’How the hell are we supposed to fight this?!’
Of course, not everyone was ready to beat a retreat. A few of the more ruthless ones still clung to their own plans. They couldn’t defeat Isaac, but winning the fight had never been their primary goal. As long as they could destroy the ritual inside the fortress, stopping it from automatically absorbing the Life Energy within the Itra Kingdom, their mission would be a success.
It would be worth it, even if they died!
Unfortunately for them...
...they hadn’t found a single opportunity for casting. So, retreat was still the only viable option...
「Meanwhile」
On a small hill not far away, several Arcanists clad in blue Wizard Robes watched the thundering explosions in awe. Such terrifying destructive power was truly... terrifying!
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