Wizard: My career panel has no upper limit

Chapter 198 The Whisperer of the Stars

The dark red crystal pillars surrounding the platform emitted irregular light, providing eerie yet ample illumination for this dueling arena.

"Jacqueline, watch out on the left!"

Elliott shouted a reminder, while his fingertips traced an arc in the air.

A sharp wind blade immediately formed, precisely slicing towards a clone that was attempting to ambush its companion.

This is the third wave of clones they have encountered since entering the core area.

The first two waves were both single-unit attacks, making them relatively easy to deal with.

This time, however, they faced a mixed squad of three or four clones, which significantly increased the difficulty of the battle.

"These clones seem to be consciously cooperating with each other!"

While maintaining the mental link, Lina controlled the floating orbs of light around her to deliver precise strikes, and was surprised to find that the clones could always cover for each other or dodge at the last moment.

"Stay calm!" Elliott's voice was calm and firm.

His unusually large ears twitched slightly, picking up every subtle sound and energy fluctuation on the battlefield:
"Stand by the original plan, each person is responsible for their assigned area. Do not let the chaos disrupt your plans!"

The battle on the field was close.

Although the apprentices of the Crystal Spire were individually powerful and coordinated well, the clones on the other side seemed to have inherited some characteristics of abyssal creatures.

Not only does it possess extraordinary regenerative abilities, but its fighting style is also unpredictable and ever-changing.

Just when the battle was at a stalemate, Caesar suddenly discovered an opportunity.

A clone dressed in a black robe revealed a weakness in the melee, clearly one of the Black Mist School apprentices who had just entered the core area.

It wasn't Ron, Holt, or Trish, but one of two other sequence members.

"Watch me!" A hint of excitement flashed in Kessar's eyes.

His right arm swelled to more than twice its size in an instant, and a layer of fine red scales appeared on its surface, resembling the skin of a legendary dragon.

He charged toward the replica like a cannonball, even knocking away a boulder that was trying to block his way.

The stone shattered into countless fragments under his fist, like a miniature explosion.

—The Claw of the Fiery Dragon!

With a low growl, Caesar's right fist, imbued with terrifying force, slammed heavily into the clone's chest.

The clone clearly hadn't anticipated such a fierce attack and only had time to raise an energy shield in its haste.

But against Caesar's fist, which was comparable to a small battering ram, the shield shattered instantly like paper.

"puff!"

With a muffled thud, the clone's chest collapsed instantly, and its body flew backward several meters like a puppet with broken strings, finally crashing heavily into a crystal pillar and falling silent.

A few seconds later, the clone's body began to disintegrate, turning into countless specks of light that dissipated into the air.

These points of light did not scatter, but instead converged toward Caesar as if drawn by some kind of gravity.

"Ah—!" Caesar let out a strange cry that was somewhere between pain and pleasure, and a layer of pale golden light appeared on the surface of his body.

He could clearly feel a strange and powerful force surging into his blood, merging with it, and eventually becoming part of his own power.

The feeling was like drinking a thousand-year-old vintage wine, a kind of intoxicating satisfaction.

"Hahaha! Unbelievable!"

As the glow faded, Caesar stretched his arms, his eyes gleaming with fanaticism:
"My strength has increased by at least 30%! My magic power has also increased significantly!"

He raised his right hand high, and a fireball, larger than before, instantly condensed in his palm, radiating heat that even distorted the surrounding air.

Irregular, twisted patterns formed along the edge of the fireball, making it appear to writhe like a living creature.

"I told you long ago, those guys from the Black Mist School are utterly no match for us!"

Kessar announced loudly and triumphantly:

"A bunch of weaklings who survive on potions and inferior magic are not worthy of being compared to us! Look at this clone, it can't even withstand one of my punches. Is this the strength of their strongest? Ridiculous!"

He straightened his chest, looked around, and seemed to be expecting praise and recognition from his companions.

"Kaiser, focus on the battle!" Elliott frowned as he reminded him, but it was too late.

Just as Caesar was basking in the joy of the enhancement, the surrounding air suddenly became unusually humid, and a rich plant scent wafted over him.

The ground began to tremble, as if something was moving rapidly underground, and tiny cracks spread across the stone surface at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"What--"

Just as Caesar was about to turn around, dozens of thick vines burst from the ground and quickly wrapped around his limbs and torso as if they were alive.

These vines grew at an astonishing rate, and in the blink of an eye, they wrapped him up in a tight green cocoon.

The vines were covered with fine barbs, each shimmering with an eerie purple sheen, clearly carrying some kind of toxin.

At the same moment, on the other side of the platform, a massive earth elemental colossus suddenly appeared and charged toward the immobilized Caesar.

The ground trembled with every step the colossus took, and its fists, made of rock, looked capable of easily shattering a wall.

Its body was inlaid with countless crystallized bone fragments, causing its entire body to shimmer with an ominous blue light, making it look more eerie and powerful than ordinary earth elemental colossi.

"This aura should be a clone of Trish and Holt from the Black Mist School!"

Jacqueline exclaimed, but they were all tied down by their respective opponents and unable to provide immediate support.

"Hahaha!" Norren laughed so hard he almost fell over:
"You were just bragging about how weak the Black Mist School's apprentices were, and now they've been taken down by their clones! Caesar, where do you put your face?"

"Shut up! Help me now!"

Kaiser struggled desperately among the vines, cursing incessantly.

His muscles bulged, his scales shimmered red, and he struggled against the ever-tightening vines.

But those plants were as tough as steel bars, and even with his enhanced strength, he couldn't break free for a while.

"Damn it, these vines are much stronger than before!"

The earth elemental colossus was already upon them, its fist raised high, about to smash down.

A cold blue light flashed in the colossus's eye sockets, and a peculiar energy fluctuation began to emanate from the surface of its fist, clearly preparing to unleash some kind of elemental shock at the moment of impact.

A massive shadow loomed over Caesar, like the scythe of death, about to reap his life.

At the critical moment, a thin blue line, as thin as a hair, suddenly shot out from a distance and precisely wrapped around Caesar's leg.

Then, with a sudden tug, he was dragged away from the spot, along with the vines that wrapped him.

The colossus's fist slammed heavily onto the ground, causing the entire platform to tremble.

A crater several meters in diameter appeared on the spot, and the surrounding rocks cracked, demonstrating the terrifying power of the attack.

A layer of translucent energy residue even appeared in the center of the crater, like a still pool of water, showing the terrifying destructive power contained in this strike.

"What a stupid idiot who drags everyone down."

Noren pulled back the silk thread, shook his head, and sighed:
"Don't expect me to save you next time. You clearly saw them organizing a counterattack, and you were still showing off. You deserved to get beaten up."

Elliott and Lina exchanged a glance, both showing expressions of helplessness.

“You should teach him a lesson, Noren.”

Lena spoke calmly, her slender fingers still maintaining the gesture of the mental link:
"Anyway, getting hit won't kill him, he might just have to lie in bed for a few days. This kind of lesson will make him remember that on the battlefield, any complacency can be a fatal weakness."

Elliott nodded in agreement:
"That way he might learn the importance of caution on the battlefield. After all, the more arrogant a person is, the more likely they are to become a prime target. He hasn't even learned this lesson yet, so he might be even more reckless next time."

Kaiser's face was ashen, both from his earlier humiliation and from the undisguised mockery of his teammates.

But he dared not contradict Elliot and Lina—although he was known for his extraordinary strength among the new students of the Crystal Spire, Elliot and Lina were both recognized as geniuses in terms of talent and strength.

Moreover, they all had powerful family backgrounds as their backers. In this world where strength reigns supreme, he could only grit his teeth and suppress his anger.

"Just you wait, I'm going to unleash all my firepower on those two damned clones!" Caesar said through gritted teeth, forcefully tearing away the remaining vines still wrapped around his body, his gaze fixed on the Holt clone that was slowly approaching from not far away.

His knuckles cracked, and the scales on his skin turned even redder under the stimulation of anger.
"Let me show you what real power is!"

However, just as he was about to launch his attack, the atmosphere on the entire battlefield suddenly changed.

A strange chill permeated the air, not a drop in temperature, but a bone-chilling fear.

Several sensitive Crystal Spire apprentices involuntarily shivered, as if some ominous presence was approaching.

More clones appeared from all directions and quickly coalesced into a tightly packed squad.

This included replicas of Trish, Holt, and several other Crystal Spire apprentices—but two figures were missing.

What are these clones doing?

Jacqueline warily observed the movements opposite her, the electricity between her fingers flickering:

"They seem to be..."

"They're teaming up!"

Elliott's pupils contracted sharply, and his large ears twitched violently, catching a subtle energy fluctuation in the air:
"What's worse is that the clone Lina is establishing a mental link! Just like us!"

Sure enough, in the center of the clone squad, Lina's clone formed hand seals, and countless tiny points of light appeared around her, outlining a complex energy network in the air and connecting all the clones.

The points of light twinkled like stars, forming a miniature star map. Each pair of points of light was connected by an energy thread, making the whole thing look like a sophisticated neural network.

"Damn it!" Elliott cursed.
"Attention everyone! The clones have not only copied our appearance and basic abilities, but they have even perfectly imitated our tactics and teamwork patterns!"

Even more worrying is that these clones appear to have undergone some kind of enhancement.

Their aura is more powerful than the original, and their every move carries a subtle sense of oppression.

In addition, the clone team has gained two more elites from the Black Mist School—Tracy and Holt. Tracy's control over nature magic and Holt's earth elemental colossus are formidable forces.

The clones launched a well-organized attack.

Trish's clones controlled countless vines to burst forth from the ground, forming a giant net that advanced forward;
Holt's clones controlled the earth elemental colossus to charge ahead, providing cover for the other clones;

The clone Lina was positioned in the center, maintaining the mental link while directing dozens of orbs of light to launch long-range attacks.

Their coordination was seamless, like an elite squad that had been trained for many years.

The Crystal Spire squad immediately adopted a defensive stance, but the clones were too well-coordinated and seemed to be able to predict their every move.

Jacqueline's lightning net was dodged in advance, Norren's silken trap missed, and even Elliott's wind blades only managed to scratch a few clones.

In less than ten minutes, Elliott's squad was forced to retreat to the edge of the platform.

Their defenses were crumbling, while the clones grew stronger with each attack, each one more ferocious than the last.

"This can't go on!" Elliott frowned, quickly thinking of a solution.

If they continue to play this passive defensive role, they will eventually be defeated one by one. We must break this stalemate and turn the tide of the battle.

Suddenly, he remembered a way to turn the tide.

"Everyone, proceed with the 'Starfall' operation according to the plan!"

Elliott gave the order and took out a small hexagonal crystal device from his storage bag.

This is a precious alchemical artifact he borrowed from his family's treasury—the "Whisperer of the Stars," which contains a processed and weakened whisper from the stars.

The raw materials for making this device are extremely rare. Special metals need to be extracted from meteorites that have fallen from the sky and then processed through a complex alchemical process.

Finally, a wizard with extremely strong and stable mental power must seal the captured babbling syllables into it.

The entire process not only requires a large amount of resources, but also carries extremely high risks.

Legend has it that a genius alchemist, while sealing the delirious murmur, was backfired by the power of the stars due to fluctuations in his mental energy, instantly turning into an empty shell that could only repeat those mysterious syllables. He was eventually executed by his school.

For this reason, there are no more than twenty such devices in the entire Crystal Spire, and each one is priceless and a true strategic resource.

Under normal circumstances, this device is mainly used to combat certain abyssal creatures, because the whispers of the stars have a natural suppressive effect on abyssal power.

However, through his research on the device, he discovered that it was effective against any creature or entity with abyssal properties.

Elliott would not have used this precious item lightly unless absolutely necessary.

After all, the device loses most of its energy after one use and requires a long recharging process to recover.

According to his judgment, these clones clearly possess certain characteristics of abyssal creatures and should also be affected.

Elliott quickly informed everyone of the plan:

"If everything goes as I expect, these clones will fall into mental confusion shortly after being linked, which will be the perfect opportunity for us to strike back!"

Lina nodded in understanding, her fingers twitching slightly to strengthen the mental connection between the team members.

Her eyes closed and opened again, a faint purple light flashing in her pupils—a sign that she was unleashing her full potential.

Elliott took a deep breath, held the crystal device in both hands, and infused it with a wisp of spiritual energy.

The hexagonal crystal began to vibrate slightly, and the runes on its surface gradually lit up, forming a complex energy circuit.

"Whisperer of the Stars, activate!"

The red crystal core at the center of the device suddenly lit up with a blinding light, while emitting an eerie low hum.

The sound didn't seem to come from the physical world, but rather from a vibration that directly affected the depths of the soul.

Each tone seemed to contain incomprehensible information, inspiring awe in the listener.

Elliott could sense a strange and ancient power emanating from the device, directed at the clone of Lina opposite him.

Although the babbling was weakened, it still carried a chilling and oppressive force.

Like an ancient whisper from the depths of the distant starry sky, each syllable seems to contain the possibility of distorting reality.

The effect is almost immediate.

The clone Lina suddenly looked pained, covered her head with her hands, and trembled violently.

At the same time, the surrounding clones also exhibited similar symptoms.

It is clear that they were implicated through a mental link.

Their movements became sluggish and uncoordinated, and their attacks lost their previous precision.

"Just as I expected." Elliott showed a look of confirmation, as he had anticipated.

"The clone of Lina is inspired by our Lina, and is particularly adept at perceiving all kinds of information, but this also makes it more sensitive to the whispers of the stars."

He turned to his teammates:

"Now is the time! While they are in a state of mental confusion, let them each deal with their corresponding clones. We must first obtain the bloodline enhancement to avoid any unforeseen complications."

Just as Elliott was about to lead his squad in a counterattack, his sensitive, large ears suddenly twitched violently.

The frequency is so high that even the edges of the ear become blurred.

A deep-seated fear instantly coursed through his body, like an invisible icicle piercing his heart.

That feeling wasn't just ordinary fright, but a fear that came from the deepest part of one's life instinct, like the despair of a mouse facing a giant python.

"Something's wrong! I must sever the mental link!"

Elliott's voice was filled with an unprecedented sense of urgency, and he instinctively severed his mental connection with Lina.

His "Wind Listener" talent is activated in a passive state, which means that the threat he is about to face is even beyond his expectations.

It was a warning from the depths of his soul, telling him that a deadly danger was approaching.

Before the other team members could react, a figure dressed in an ordinary gray robe slowly emerged from the shadows at the far end of the platform.

He was a handsome young man who appeared ordinary and even somewhat thin. If placed in a crowd, few would give him a second glance.

(End of this chapter)