"Shhh—"
Under the power of the mirror dagger, Ronan's form shifted, appearing in a separate, isolated space.
But before Ronan had a chance to take in his surroundings, he immediately sensed a terrifying spell power rushing towards him.
Unfazed, Ronan raised his hand in a slashing motion.
A dazzling silver crescent blade erupted, with a fierce blue flame cutting a narrow path through the overwhelming tide of energy.
Ronan's figure blurred, transforming into light and shadow, disappearing and reappearing at a corner of the space, outside the spell's reach.
Two faceless black-robed wizards from the Resurrection Society approached coldly, their casting uninterrupted. On another side, a young wizard dressed in the Crimson Tower's attire, expression twisted, approached with blood-stained hands hanging naturally, covered in the blood of his comrades.
Ronan glanced at them.
Two third-level wizards and one late second-level wizard.
He could fight them...
But there was no need.
The mirror dagger's cooldown was up, and Ronan raised it, lightly stabbing his shoulder.
"Shhh—"
His figure vanished, leaving the three Resurrection Society members with uncertain expressions.
"Click—"
Ronan landed gently on the dueling platform, looking around. The ancient frost he had unleashed earlier had yet to melt.
"Back again."
Ronan's eyes flickered, "Good thing I returned."
He gained a moment to catch his breath and think.
Ronan realized he had underestimated the Resurrection Society's Dawn-level artifact.
The mirror dagger's teleportation could indeed break through the temporary spaces created by the Dawn artifact, allowing him to move freely.
But these isolated spaces, manipulated by the artifact, constantly changed positions, making location-based navigation inaccurate.
The entire venue's layout was etched clearly in Ronan's mind, but each attempt to teleport landed him somewhere unexpected.
Of course, this wasn't the biggest problem. The biggest issue was...
"The Resurrection Society has realized I'm 'escaping.' I have the World Stone coordinates they want, and they'll likely catch up soon."
Ronan pondered.
At that moment, the first light of dawn broke.
Ronan looked up to see the deep blue night receding on the horizon, stars fading, as bright white light cast from afar.
At the boundary of black and white, gray mist spread, mysteriously blocking the dawn light, creating mirror-like reflections on the ground.
The vast Goblin Plains seemed like a huge, calm body of water, ripples spreading out.
Then, one, two, three...
Twelve black-robed figures appeared on the distant horizon, approaching quickly from all directions, casting long shadows on the ground.
"Whoosh—"
Ronan exhaled softly, his face calm.
After using the mirror dagger, or rather after killing Ignatius and Damien, he anticipated facing this situation.
He just didn't expect it to happen so quickly.
But...
It didn't matter anymore.
Soon, twelve black-robed wizards of the Resurrection Society reached Ronan, each exuding the powerful mental waves of a third-level wizard.
Together, these waves naturally formed a vast, invisible pressure, slowly bearing down on Ronan.
"I told you before..."
From among the twelve black robes, a woman's voice emerged.
She stepped forward, extending a pale, slender hand with black nails, pulling down her hood to reveal a face marked with twisted black patterns.
"You belong to me."
The woman smiled at Ronan, her dark green lips stretching towards her ears as if soaked in poison.
Her expression was bizarre, filled with indescribable madness and joy, a look of fulfilled desire.
"Laura."
Ronan squinted slightly, calmly speaking the woman's name.
The woman who had once been like a mad dog, the first to plunge him into deep despair, the first to drag him into the abyss of death... In a sense, she was also the first to grant him "rebirth."
He had once killed her.
Now, she had returned.
"Third-level."
Ronan sensed the aura emanating from Laura, his eyes flickering slightly.
Laura's presence in the Resurrection Society didn't surprise Ronan at all.
Someone like Laura was a natural "terrorist," joining a wizard "terror organization" seemed perfectly fitting.
However, her strength did surprise Ronan a bit.
But recalling what Jerome had mentioned, that Laura had somehow inherited her mother's full power, the headmistress of Hoddam Wizard Academy, through a mysterious bloodline link.
Laura herself wasn't lacking in talent, and with the Resurrection Society's means, advancing to the third level wasn't unexpected.
It's just...
Ronan felt Laura was no longer purely a plant-based wizard; he detected a faint stench of decay from her.
Hmm... This woman had become even more repulsive.
"Who would have thought the worm writhing and begging at my feet..."
Laura stepped forward, seemingly wanting a closer look, her face twisted with a neurotic expression, "could grow to such heights. Truly unexpected."
"Delusions?"
Ronan couldn't help but frown, "If it weren't for your mother sacrificing herself, do you think you'd still have the right to stand here and speak to me?"
Laura's smile froze instantly.
Ronan's words seemed to touch a nerve, her face turning icy, openly radiating intense killing intent.
"Kill him!"
"Those wastes Ignatius and Damien died by his hand, everyone attack!"
Laura commanded coldly, but a man's impatient voice came from under a black robe.
"Laura, you have no authority to command us."
"Shut up!"
Laura's face twitched, glaring at the speaker, who met her gaze fearlessly.
Ronan shook his head slightly, a bit helpless.
Meeting an old "enemy" again, Laura seemed unchanged, except for her increased strength. She was as arrogant as ever.
But even if they ignored Laura, Ronan was still their collective target.
The black-robed wizards slowly began to move, gathering powerful energy waves, and low spell chants echoed in the air.
"Don't let him use the three-domain fusion! Crush him! Leave the body and soul for me!"
Laura's voice screeched, her black robe billowing, revealing not an alluring figure but a grotesque body of fused flesh and plants beneath.
Thick slime dripped down in globs.
"You switched from plant to flesh magic?"
Ronan was slightly surprised. Laura's face froze, seemingly not understanding his words.
But quickly her eyes and face filled with hatred, screaming as the black lines on her face wriggled like worms.
Expressionless, Ronan retreated quickly, pursued by terrifying energy waves.
A massive tentacle, seemingly formed from vines and human and animal limbs, tore through the air towards him.
Behind it, at least seven or eight third-level spells, primarily necromancy and dark, followed.
In an instant, Ronan was engulfed by the third-level spells.
"Boom!"
Several spells collided, creating a massive gray mushroom cloud, shaking the space violently, mirror-like ripples spreading, threatening to collapse.
"He's not as tough as expected."
The Resurrection Society's wizards paused, one of them speaking softly.
"I said, leave the body and soul for me..."
Laura spoke coldly, striding towards the mushroom cloud.
One step, two steps...
On the tenth step.
Laura abruptly halted, sensing something, her eyes alertly looking ahead.
The next second, her dark green pupils constricted.
The huge mushroom cloud exploded, a blade-like aura smoothly slicing through the turbulent aftermath.
Then, a two-meter-tall, long-haired, muscular figure bathed in intense white lightning stepped from the void.
Before Laura could fully see the figure's features, an indescribable terror locked onto her.
An unprecedented sense of danger coiled around her heart like serpents and vines.
Beneath her robe, countless grotesque, flesh-like tendrils shot out, wildly flailing around her.
Laura heard a deep, hoarse voice.
Like the deepest, most inescapable "nightmare."
Whispering in her ear.
"Ancient."
"Power."
At those final words, Laura's heart stopped, time seemed to freeze, all sounds and images receding from her.
Eyes wide, she tried to move, to resist or retreat, but her body felt trapped in a thick, transparent mire, her movements slowed to a crawl.
Laura could only watch as an indescribable black light expanded, filling her vision until...
It completely consumed her sight!
"Boom!"
A heavy crash echoed, as if something massive had struck the hearts of the eleven Resurrection Society wizards.
Their hearts skipped a beat.
Before they could react, a terrifying, domineering figure suddenly appeared, punching Laura's forehead.
"Snap!"
Laura exploded, turning into a spray of black, red, and green mist.
A golden light shot from the blood mist, some of it gathered by an invisible force, quickly reforming into Laura's shape.
But this time.
Her nearly pale face was stripped of madness and hatred, replaced by shock, fear, and terror.
"Inhale—exhale—"
Heavy breathing, accompanied by an indescribable aura of terror, washed over the Resurrection Society wizards in waves.
The space's atmosphere grew eerily silent.
Everyone stared stiffly at the figure they had surrounded.
The dawn light cast by the horizon gently fell on this figure, white lightning silently dancing, standing tall and mighty like a mountain, long white hair flowing freely, radiating legendary aura, as if an ancient giant had truly descended.
"Second time."
Ronan spoke softly, in his "fully giantified" state, his voice carrying a powerful, resonant hum.
"This is the second time you've died by my hand."
Ronan looked at Laura, casually wiping the dirty blood off his right fist, then his pure white eyes swept over the surrounding Resurrection Society wizards, speaking calmly:
"What?
Are you all ready to be buried with her?"
"Hiss—"
A soft gasp filled the air, everyone frozen in place.
In that moment, the Resurrection Society's third-level wizards suddenly understood... Why Ignatius, along with another third-level wizard, Damien, had died so mysteriously.
A man stood quietly on the alternating light and dark plains, his night-black robe concealing his entire form, his face hidden, his figure indistinguishable.
He looked up at the sky, watching as the gray-black "sun" slowly devoured another blood-red "sun."
Beside these entangled suns, the Thunder Sun clashed with the Black Abyss Sun, while the Crystal Sun and the Emerald Sun intertwined, faint rumblings falling from the sky, sometimes spell chants, sometimes cold dialogue, or angry roars.
"Dark Leader."
Another black-robed figure appeared silently beside him, whispering quickly in his ear.
The man listened silently, then calmly withdrew his gaze.
"No need to interfere for now. They're close to yielding. The World Stone will soon be ours. Have you secured the coordinates we've been tracking?"
The other shook his head lightly, "The task was originally given to the Molten Lake lineage, but there was an accident, a talented descendant of the Sakiels family has fallen. They don't know yet.
Now, Saranqi and Laura are leading a team there, it shouldn't be an issue..."
"It better not be."
The man looked up at the gray sun about to completely swallow the blood-red sun, murmuring softly, almost to himself, "These two items are crucial for what we plan to do next...
Even Lord New Moon is willing to pay such a high price. What are our lives worth in comparison?..."
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