Hogwarts Raven

Chapter 445, Section 444: The Battle That Has Settled
Ian's figure disappeared completely into that absolute darkness.

Looking from the outside.

It's like a drop of water merging into an inkwell, leaving no trace.

Behind him, the monster's deafening roar, the dull thuds of its tentacles pounding against the boundary, and its furious shouts of "Join us!" seemed to be muted after penetrating the invisible barrier, instantly becoming distant and blurry.

Ultimately, all was silence.

You can't hear anything without using magic to listen.

This is not actually the disappearance of sound, but rather that this extremely eerie dark area seems to possess the characteristic of absolutely isolating internal and external sound, light, and energy fluctuations.

Just like I said earlier.

It seems to be rejecting all normal rules.

"It's getting more and more creepy, it's so cold."

Ian steadied himself.

He hovered in this void where even his own existence seemed diluted. He tried raising his wand and whispered the universal spell "Fluorescence".

However, no light shone from the tip of the elderberry staff, as if the magic had been completely swallowed up by the darkness. He tried several other lighting spells, even using the "Dawn Light" which contained divine power, but the result was the same—the light was mercilessly extinguished by the surrounding darkness as soon as it appeared.

Not even a ripple could be made.

“Absolute darkness… even the concept of light is rejected?” Ian muttered to himself, not feeling panicked, but rather more interested, just as he had previously judged.

The reason for this situation is currently unknown.

how to say.

That's not the strangest thing. What's strange is that when he looks back, he can clearly see the "boundary" he came from and the scenery outside.

Scientifically speaking, the light must have entered Ian's eyes. However, that's exactly the situation: he could see outside light even though he couldn't turn on a light source in the dark.

"Science still has aspects of the magical that it cannot explain." It is not a tangible wall, but a clear and straight "line".

At one end of the line was the chaotic space he had just escaped from. The dark purple glow remained, and the enormous, twisted monster was writhing and roaring wildly outside the boundary, its countless tentacles futilely pounding against the invisible limit, unable to cross it even a step. At the other end of the line was where Ian was.

Absolute darkness that devours everything.

This feeling is as if light and darkness are forcibly separated by some supreme rule, so that they do not infringe upon each other.

“However, as long as this monster can't get in, that's fine.” Ian's biggest guess had been confirmed, and he felt reassured. The main reason he rushed in was to save himself the trouble—he no longer had to bother dodging the monster's endless and varied attacks. Now it seemed to be working exceptionally well.

Should we go straight into the darkness?
of course not.

Ian needs to deal with the monsters outside first.

It wasn't because of any deep-seated hatred towards the monsters outside; it was mainly to verify my own conjecture. After all, wizards are unpredictable; who knows what bizarre things they might do to satisfy their curiosity?

Ian was considered normal. He calmly turned around to face the area of ​​"light" and the monster within it that had gone berserk because of his escape.

Although he was in darkness, he could still see directly with his naked eye. Combined with his powerful mental perception, he was naturally still able to clearly control everything outside the boundary.

"Hey everyone, aren't you angry?"

Ian called out casually towards the border, knowing his voice wouldn't carry, but he was enjoying it nonetheless. The feeling of mocking the boss from within the safe zone was strangely satisfying.

"Come and hit me, I'm so annoying, keep hitting me!" He raised his wand and aimed it at the monster outside the boundary that kept pressing its huge eyeballs against the boundary, trying to peer inside.

"Shattered to pieces!"

A condensed beam of shattering magic pierced precisely through the boundary between darkness and light.

It struck that enormous eyeball!
"Pfft!"

The eyeballs burst instantly, splattering thick fluid everywhere. The monster let out a painful yet even more furious roar, violently recoiling backward while its severed tentacles lashed out wildly.

However, they dared not venture into the darkness even slightly.

"Wow, quite a reaction." Ian raised an eyebrow, and his wand lit up again.

"Flame burns the sky!"

A blazing fire serpent roared out.

Crossing the boundary.

The tentacles that had wrapped around the monster burst into flames.

"Roar! Roar! Roar!" The monster frantically pounded the ground, trying to extinguish the flames, but the magical flames were exceptionally stubborn, burning its skin and flesh until it emitted a burnt stench.

"All petrified!"

"The Divine Edge is Shadowless!"

"Thunderbolt explosion!"

Ian seemed to have found a perfect magical firing range, and began to leisurely try out the various offensive spells he knew, one by one, even those that were still basic and unmodified.

As long as it can cause damage, that's fine.

Now that they were in complete control, there was no need for firepower suppression. Beams of multicolored magical light shot out from the darkness, accurately striking the monster's massive body.

The monster raged outside the boundary, attempting to retaliate by spitting acid, firing energy beams, and even trying a soul-piercing attack again. But all its attacks vanished instantly upon touching that invisible boundary, as if sinking into the ocean. It turned out that it not only dared not step inside, but was also unable to attack there.

This guy's attacks couldn't harm Ian in the darkness at all.

It could only passively endure Ian's one-sided magical bombardment, emitting roars of impotent rage. Its body was constantly damaged under the magical bombardment, but it regenerated and mutated at an even faster rate. Hard bone armor would grow from the parts shattered by the Shattering Curse; fire-scorched areas would evolve a fire-resistant slime layer.

The wounds torn by the cutting curse will heal and grow sharp bone spurs...

It's like a piece of sinister metal that's been repeatedly hammered and quenched, rapidly "evolving" in a more twisted and indescribable direction with Ian's "help".

"Come on! I've had enough rest!"

Ian continued to "output" for nearly a few hours, "baptizing" the monster from head to toe with various spells countless times. Watching the creature twist, deform, and roar outside the boundary, evolving from a lump of rotten flesh into an ultimate deformity covered in bone spurs, shells, pustules, and countless bizarre organs—a form that even the most insane painter could not depict.

He even felt a little... bored.

"That's about enough, let's rest for a bit more."

Ian stopped casting again, rubbing his slightly sore wrists. The continuous high-intensity magical output, though within his control, still required a short rest. He landed in this absolute darkness.

He felt the emptiness beneath his feet, not physical, yet enough to support him. Then, he did something that would absolutely astound any other wizard—he calmly pulled out a complete, gleaming bronze hot pot from the pocket of his magically extended space!
And various freshly prepared magical meat, vegetable and mushroom platters, as well as his special spicy beef tallow hot pot base and rich mushroom soup base, which have an aroma that can be smelled for miles!
"Hmm, although I can't smell it or see the color, the texture should still be there," Ian muttered to himself, skillfully using his wand to ignite the magical heating runes beneath the hot pot.

The runes' light was also swallowed by the darkness, but the heat was strangely preserved.

Soon, the broth in the pot began to boil vigorously, the sound also blocked out, but Ian could sense it through vibrations. He sat comfortably in the darkness, relying on muscle memory and his perception of the food's energy, and began to cook tripe, beef aorta, and fatty beef... enjoying himself immensely.

"Tsk, eating in the dark has a unique flavor." Ian picked up a perfectly cooked slice of marbled beef and took a few bites without looking at it.

Experience the tender texture and the explosion of spicy broth on your taste buds.

The young wizard nodded in satisfaction.

He even raised his glass to the monster that was still writhing wildly outside the border, trying to find a way out, his provocative words sincere.

"You've worked hard, everyone. I'll play with you after I finish eating."

The monster outside the boundary seemed to vaguely sense Ian's leisurely state, which was undoubtedly the greatest provocation to its madness. It became even more agitated, its massive body began to expand and contract violently and erratically, the rate of distortion on its surface accelerated further, and it even began to tear and reassemble itself.

It was as if an out-of-control arms race was taking place inside. Ian leisurely enjoyed his hot pot feast, even taking a fifteen-minute nap. Only when he felt his mental and magical energy had returned to their peak did he calmly clean up the hot pot utensils.

"Alright, time for post-dinner exercise." He turned to the boundary again, twirling his wand in his palm. "Let's see what new tricks you can pull out for me."

At this point, the monster's form had reached an unbelievable level.

It no longer resembled a living being, but rather a living mountain range that constantly writhed, roared, and exuded an aura of destruction. Its body simultaneously contained hard crystals, flowing metal, rotting flesh, burning ghostly flames, and countless opening and closing holes filled with sharp teeth.

This creature's aura was so powerful that even the surrounding chaotic space trembled slightly, and the dark purple light was suppressed by the even deeper darkness emanating from its body.

"Come on, the final round." Ian's eyes narrowed slightly, and Music also sensed something was amiss, beginning to unleash even more powerful compound magic and rule-based attacks.

"Novem Caeli Fulmen Carcer!"

"Glacies Aeterna (Extreme Cold Permafrost)!"

"Dimensional Exile Slash (Exilium Dimensionis Incisura)!"

"Life draws from the torrent (Torrents Vita Succe**)!"

"Paradox: The Spiral of Existence and Nothingness!"

Don't ask why there's English at the end.

Ian is a genuine British wizard, so what's wrong with adding a little English to his magic spells? This isn't him padding his own biography; it's a way of showcasing his excellent British spoken English.

Put it anywhere.

Many people are surely amazed at how well he speaks English.

"Behold my divine might! Invincible!"

Ian's magical activity actually recovers very quickly as long as he has time to rest.

A dazzling yet terrifying magical light erupted once more from the darkness, pouring down like a torrential downpour onto the monster's body, which had reached the peak of its mutation. The monster let out a deafening roar, a mixture of pain, madness, and a hint of... relief?, frantically urging all its power to resist and regenerate.

Under the bombardment of magic, its body sometimes turned into a dazzling ice sculpture, sometimes was torn apart by dimensional rifts spanning its torso, sometimes withered by the massive draining of its life energy, and sometimes existed and disappeared in a paradoxical spiral, falling into unprecedented logical chaos...

The speed of regeneration and distortion has become so fast that it is difficult to detect with the naked eye, like a lump of clay being frantically kneaded by an invisible hand.

"It seems you're not Ultraman Zero." Ian observed calmly. He could sense that this monster's evolution had reached a certain critical point. Its genetic sequence, energy structure, and even the underlying rules that constituted its existence were all groaning under this extreme pressure.

Yes.

It's not Zero.

Then there is a limit.

God knows how many people can understand Ian's logic.

“Now.” Ian stopped attacking, stood with his hands behind his back, and watched silently. Outside the border, the enormous, indescribable monster suddenly stopped moving. The countless wildly flashing eerie lights on its body, the constantly writhing flesh, and those strange organs...

Everything seemed to have been paused at the same time.

Immediately afterwards——

"puff……"

A faint, almost inaudible sound, like a bubble bursting, rang out. Then, as if triggering a chain reaction, the monster's hard carapace and crystals began to shatter inch by inch, the flowing metal solidified and turned into dust, and the rotting flesh melted away as quickly as snow under the scorching sun.

The ghostly flames burning on its body died out silently... Its enormous body, like a sandcastle stripped of all its support, began to collapse and disintegrate from top to bottom!
There was no explosion, no violent energy impact.

There is only one kind of complete, silent collapse.

The countless twisted substances that make up its body seem to have lost all their inner cohesion and vitality, turning into the most primitive and filthy black viscous liquid, which poured down like a waterfall and piled up on the ground into a huge filthy swamp that was constantly bubbling and emitting a strong stench.

The suffocating, maddening atmosphere receded like the tide, leaving only a desolate, slowly writhing dark swamp.

The monster has vanished.

Or rather, its forcibly pieced-together, constantly distorted existence finally succumbed to the backlash of its own evolution, collapsing completely from within and reverting to its most primal, polluted form. Because these ancient gods, transformed into monsters, had already corrupted their divine authority, Ian's legendary status also failed to absorb any useful nourishment.

In layman's terms, the reason Ian was unable to seize the divine power of these monsters in the same way he seized the Paradoxical Power might be because their divine power had already been absorbed by another life form.

such as.

Things hidden in the depths of darkness.

“See, I was right as always.” Ian stood in the darkness, looking at the chaotic space beyond the boundary that had returned to “peace,” with an expression of “I knew it.”

"Evolution under extreme pressure is ultimately just a castle in the air," he concluded softly, as if he had just completed an interesting experiment.

The evil god Ian encountered in ancient Egypt had already made him realize this point, and now, the monster outside has once again confirmed that Ian's guess was correct.

"So, does the monster lurking in the depths of this darkness also have its limits? Or... is it precisely because its distortion has reached its limit that it is unable to move?"

We've dealt with that ancient monster outside.

Ian turned his head.

His gaze turned into the depths of darkness.

(End of this chapter)