Dragon Tribulation of All Realms

Chapter 129: Disappearing Like Snowflakes

The man was leaning on the throne.

The man didn't even look at him.

Invisible rage was tearing at Fluder's nerves at that moment, and his heart was even more frantic than what his face showed.

Because he can't see anything.

He possessed a natural ability known as the 'Eyes of Seeing', which allowed him to see the highest-level magic a target could cast, as well as the amount of magical power they possessed, simply by making eye contact. And just now, he had glimpsed the answer.

Nothing at all.

He couldn't tell what level of magic the other person could wield, nor did he know the extent of his magical power. However, even at this close distance, he could roughly sense some magical power flowing.

That's very little magic.

The amount of magic power flowing in that place did not even reach the total amount of magic power contained in the two swords, one long and one short, that Dust placed beside the throne.

This could only mean two things—either the opponent possessed some unique technique that could shield him from his innate abilities, or, his terrifying spellcasting ability was actually simply the result of a powerful secret treasure.

Both possibilities were possible, and both made him mad with jealousy. He was certain the man before him was indeed a young man, no older than his early twenties. As an immortal, he was already familiar with the decay that emanated from the depths of the soul. He had spent centuries just to reach the realm of the unnatural, while the man before him was still in the vibrant youth. This was simply unbearable.

Because that's what Fluder Paradine was.

He cared nothing about anything other than magic, and needed nothing other than magic. But precisely because of this, he could not stand the fact that those who came after him could acquire the secrets of magic more easily than he could.

He was a great wizard, a figure even his own disciples envied, because he had to study alone and painstakingly in the past. While his disciples, under his guidance, were able to master fourth-tier magic at a young age. Although he never showed any of this, the deep flames of jealousy would always erupt violently when his young prodigies made mistakes.

He wouldn't strip them of their spellcasting abilities, but would simply scold them harshly and expel them from his fold. Afterward, these fallen geniuses would undoubtedly be bullied by their former classmates, ultimately devastated. This would bring him both satisfaction and the praise of his discerning eye. He wouldn't consider it a problem, because a true genius wouldn't be defeated by such a setback.

However, he never waited for a true genius who could stand on equal footing with him. For two hundred years, he never waited.

As a result, the Bahars Empire had become what it is today—even though the national policy prioritized magic, and even with the dedicated training of an exceptional Grand Mage like him. For two hundred years, no magic caster, even of the heroic rank, had emerged. Because all qualified magic casters had been eliminated by him long before they could reach maturity, only a bunch of mediocre individuals remained, stuck in the fourth tier of magic, neither rising nor falling.

Several emperors had vaguely discovered this and were wary of him. However, as the patron saint of the empire, he had become too powerful to be controlled, and in the end, the emperors could only regard the talents he destroyed one by one as the price of hiring this great wizard to stay long-term.

He's always been like this, always.

The floating arena beneath his feet didn't frighten him, for he knew the history and the power that the Holy Kingdom's inherited Golden Crown could unleash when activated—the sacred ritual known as the Final Holy War, which, when activated, summoned hundreds of powerful angels for days before being sent back. The construction and operation of this arena were, of course, the work of these powerful angels.

And now, the Grand Master of the Bahas Empire will once again taste the wonderful feeling of stifling a genius and knocking down his young successors.

The air becomes stagnant.

The standing archmage, the lazy regent.

One second, two seconds.

The experienced wizard, who was good at striking back, clenched the staff in his hand.

"Sixth-level Undead Summoning!"

The spell activated, and a heavily armored Necromancer appeared out of thin air before Fluder. This was a semi-original technique he had mastered and refined over countless years. The Necromancer created through this method would be immune to damage from divine power and fire!
It swung its sword, shrouded in black energy, and stomped across the consecrated arena ground, charging straight toward the Regent. At the same moment, a ring on Fluder's finger gleamed.

Magic resistance breakthrough: Dragon Thunder!
Pale lightning appeared out of thin air. Before he began, Fluder knew that the Regent possessed the power to wield three elemental magics. However, dragon lightning was a special kind of lightning, capable of tearing through shields and armor under the super-modified effect of resistance breakthrough.

Lightning bites down.

The rapidly advancing undead warrior had already pounced in front of the Regent.

However, compared to these overt tactics, the true killer move was actually hidden beneath the surface. It was a silent, concealed fireball, and the moment it was released, it was imbued with unique magic.

Magic Concealment: Extreme Fireball

Third-tier magic: Dimensional movement.

The dimensional teleportation magic, which theoretically only affected the caster, was now cast upon the colorless fireball that had sunk into a section of Fluder's nail, effectively making it appear as if it were part of him. While Dragon Thunder and the heavily armored Necromancer distracted the fireball, it silently appeared behind the Regent.

The direction of the spell was backward, because from the beginning, Fluder used his sleeves as a cover to throw the fireball behind him.

However, when the dimensional movement was activated, the back became the front. And the point where it landed would be just a fraction slower than Long Lei and the Undead Warrior. This was the ultimate kill.

He saw the regent's eyebrows raise.

However, before he could show any joy, something beyond his comprehension happened before his eyes.

The magic was stopped.

Whether it was the fireball, the dragon thunder, or the sudden attack of the heavily armored undead warrior, they were all stopped by an invisible force just before they reached the Regent. At the same moment, the connection between the summoned creature and its controller was severed!
How is this going?

Why didn't my magic work?

The white dragon lightning flowed around the Regent, as docile as a puppy. It immediately intertwined with the invisible fireball and attached itself to the Undead Warrior. In the next moment, the Undead Warrior, shrouded in black energy, was draped in a cloak of flame, and its demonic weapon shone with lightning.

He knew that the Regent had the ability to plunder other people's magic - so he used three different spells in one breath. However, now, all three spells fell into the Regent's hands at the same time!

How could anyone possibly be able to steal the magic of three spellcasters of the same level at once? Unless, from the very beginning, the other party's power was far superior to his own!
"Demon...Demon?"

He saw the Regent looking at him. The look that had previously been merely arrogant and indolent now took on the air of a god looking down upon him in the eyes of the Imperial Grand Master. How majestic and noble he was, and yet he had dared to offend and test him!

—No! No! He simply used a tool, a secret treasure inherited from the Holy Kingdom! That's right, isn't that the colorful crystal ball that always floats around him? He used that to achieve this!
Screaming in my heart.

Denial, resistance, self-deception.

However, the truth is destined to come down with power.

"go."

He expected the Regent to say something.

He thought the Regent would judge his spellcasting skills, his experience, his magic—that specially adjusted sixth-tier magic was his masterpiece. Applying dimensional movement to the fireball was his ultimate skill. However...

The Regent simply spoke to his captured summon and gave the order.

The heavily armored Undead warrior took a sudden step forward.

Without hesitation, he activated two spells placed on the props in succession.

First dimensional shifting, then flight, the Imperial Mage suddenly moved to the edge of Aincrad's upper arena. Given just a little more time, he could use a fifth-tier teleportation spell to escape.

He almost did it.

However, he was still a hair's breadth short.

Because at the moment he stabilized his body after the dimensional movement, the heroic undead warrior wielding the lightning sword had already rushed to a few meters in front of him!

For the first time, he discovered that his summoned creature was so terrifying.

"Wait! I'm the Empire's Grand Mage and an envoy of the Empire. If you kill me, there will be a conflict between the Empire and the Holy Kingdom—"

The sword had already passed through him.

The second word of the sentence came out of his mouth when it stroked his neck.

And the next moment, the head of the Imperial Grand Master fell to the ground.

There were no accidents, no sudden intrusion to save the situation.

One of the few exceptional spellcasters in the human world had been annihilated. This was the price to be paid for underestimating and offending the majesty of the king.

The Regent then raised his finger and tapped lightly on the armrest of the throne.

The figure of the highest priest appeared silently at the edge of the arena, bowed to him, and waved his staff.

Fifth-tier magic: Resurrection.

The usurper has paid the price, but now, the human world still needs such an experienced magic caster to remain in the world in a living form.

(End of this chapter)