Wizard: I Have a Nightmare World

The shadow spikes were silent and swift as lightning.

Isabel was focused on grappling with Cullen, her frost whip wrapping around Cullen's battle axe as she tried to pull it away.

She was completely unaware that the deadly shadow was approaching from behind.

She only became alert when the shadow spikes were less than a meter from her back, but it was too late to dodge completely.

At the critical moment, the silver pendant on Isabel's chest suddenly burst forth with dazzling light, and a layer of ice-blue shield instantly condensed behind her.

puff! ! !

The shadow spikes struck the ice shield with a dull thud.

The ice shield shattered in less than half a second, and the power of the Shadow Spikes was greatly reduced, but the remaining force still pierced Isabel's left shoulder.

Isabel let out a painful groan, staggered forward a few steps, and a cloud of blood exploded from her left shoulder, instantly staining half of her silver-white robe red.

Her face turned deathly pale in an instant, and large beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

"team leader!"

The three apprentices from Moon Ring Academy exclaimed in unison, immediately breaking free from their entanglement with Fei Qing and Scarlett, and quickly retreating back to Isabel's side.

One of them supported Isabel's swaying body, while the other stared warily at Lynn, an ice spike already forming in his hand, ready to retaliate at any moment.

Isabel clutched the wound on her left shoulder, blood seeping through her fingers.

She raised her head, her gaze falling on Lynn. Those eyes, which were always as calm as a lake, were now filled with disbelief and deep apprehension.

"First-circle witchcraft? You can actually cast first-circle witchcraft?"

Her voice was hoarse and weak, each word sounding like it was being squeezed out from between her teeth.

Lynn did not answer, but simply looked at her calmly, his right hand still in the pose of releasing [Shadow Fang], the silver patterns on the ring beginning to recharge.

"withdraw!"

Isabel gritted her teeth and forced out the word.

Without hesitation, the three apprentices from Lunar Ring Academy, two of them supporting Isabel while the other brought up the rear, quickly retreated towards the exit of the underground space.

During the retreat, Isabel glanced back at Lynn, her gaze filled with complex emotions—resentment, apprehension, and a hint of something else entirely.

"Disciple of the White Raven Tower Bloodvine Wizard, I'll remember you."

Her voice was soft, but in this vast underground space, every word was clearly audible to everyone.

Lynn watched expressionlessly as the four members of Moon Ring Academy disappeared into the darkness of the passage, then slowly withdrew his gaze.

She glanced down at the Shadow Fang ring in her hand; the silver patterns on the ring had faded by nearly half, meaning that she had already used up one of her charges for the day.

"It can be used four more times."

Lynn silently made a mental note of it, then turned his gaze to another direction of the battlefield.

The battle at Steelscale Academy is also nearing its end.

Gareth was trapped in the smoke and rubble created by Duvi. Although he was not seriously injured thanks to the powerful defense of earth magic, his movements were severely restricted.

To make matters worse, he saw that Moon Ring Academy had already retreated, and his face instantly turned extremely ugly.

"That good-for-nothing Isabel!"

Gareth cursed under his breath, then suddenly exerted his strength, shattering the pile of rubble in front of him, and bursting out of the dust.

But as soon as he landed, he saw Du Wei standing in front of him, holding a silver-white alchemical bomb in his hand, looking at him with a smile.

"Does Captain Gareth want to continue?"

Du Wei’s voice was gentle, but his tone carried an undisguised threat.

Gareth's expression changed several times, his gaze quickly sweeping between the alchemical bomb in Du Wei's hand and the floating world core in the distance. Finally, he gritted his teeth and made a decision.

"Steelscale, retreat!"

The three Steel Scale Apprentices he brought with him had clearly been planning to retreat. Upon hearing the order, they immediately regrouped and escorted Gareth to retreat through another passage.

As Gareth was about to disappear into the passageway entrance, he turned back, his gaze lingering on Lynn for a moment before turning to Du Wei and letting out a cold laugh.

"Don't be too happy yet, White Raven Tower."

"The core of the world is right in front of you, but whether you can get it depends on your abilities."

He glanced meaningfully in the direction of Obsidian Academy and Crown of Thorns, then turned and disappeared into the darkness.

The underground space fell silent again.

Only three groups of people remained.

The five members of the seventh logistics squad of White Raven Tower stood on the southwest side. Although they had been through a fierce battle, apart from Fei Qing having a shallow scratch on his arm and Scarlett having used up most of her quiver, they were in relatively good condition.

The four apprentices from Obsidian Academy were still standing on the stone pillars on the north side. The gaunt man leading them still had his arms crossed and was expressionless, as if the fierce battle just now was just a farce that had nothing to do with him.

The four apprentices of the Crown of Thorns remained leaning against the stone pillars on the south side. The woman in the lead even shifted to a more comfortable position, half-lying on a protruding rock, propping her chin up with one hand, and observing the situation in the arena with great interest.

An eerie silence filled the air.

None of the three parties spoke or made a move.

But Lynn could feel that the invisible pressure was even heavier than when Steelscale and Moonring had joined forces.

Because the enemy we faced before was clear, while the enemy we face now is unclear.

What is Obsidian Academy thinking? And what is Crown of Thorns thinking?

Will they join forces? Or will they fight their own battles? Or will they wait for the White Raven Tower to make the first move and seize the World Core, then launch a surprise attack at a crucial moment?

These unknowns made Lynn even more nervous.

"Du Wei, what do we do now?"

"Lynn asked in a low voice."

Du Wei did not answer immediately. His gaze swept back and forth between Obsidian and Crown of Thorns, and then he let out a soft breath.

"wait."

"wait?"

Lynn was taken aback.

"What are you waiting for?"

"Let them make the first move."

Du Wei's voice was soft, but his tone was very firm.

"The core of the world is right there; everyone wants it, but no one wants to become the target of everyone's criticism."

"Steelscale and Moon Ring teamed up against us just now because they thought White Raven Tower was the easiest to bully."

"But now that Steelscale and Moonring have withdrawn from the game, none of the remaining three parties are absolutely certain that they can defeat the other two."

"So they are waiting for an opportunity, for someone to lose their temper and make the first move, so that they can legitimately join forces to attack the person who made the first move."

After listening to Du Wei's analysis, Lynn remained silent for a few seconds, then nodded.

"So we can't make the first move?"

"No."

A meaningful smile appeared on Du Wei's lips.

"We need to take the initiative, but we can't go straight for the world's core."

Lynn frowned, about to press for more information, when he saw Du Wei turn around and loudly proclaim in the direction of Obsidian Academy:

"My friend Obsidian, are you interested in discussing a deal?"

The gaunt man leading the Obsidian Academy slightly raised his eyelids, his gaze falling on Du Wei. He remained silent for a moment, then asked in a hoarse voice.

"What kind of deal?"

Du Wei pointed to the dark red sphere of light floating in the center of the space.

"There's only one world core, but there should be more than one totem energy crystal surrounding it, right?"

"You can have the core of White Raven Tower, and the surrounding energy crystals are yours. How about it?"

The gaunt man narrowed his eyes slightly, as if he was considering Du Wei's proposal.

After a moment, he slowly shook his head.

"not enough."

Du Wei raised an eyebrow: "Then what do you want?"

"I want the ring on his hand."

Lynn's heart tightened, and he subconsciously clenched his right hand.

He knew all too well the value of the Shadow Fang ring; a ring capable of casting Ring Control magic was a rare treasure in the entire wizarding apprentice circle.

Du Wei's expression darkened slightly for a moment.

"That's impossible."

His tone remained calm, but it had taken on a hint of coldness.

The gaunt man looked at Du Wei's reaction, remained silent for a moment, and then suddenly smiled.

The smile was faint, just a slight upward curve at the corners of the mouth, but it sent a chill down Lynn's spine.

"Just kidding."

The gaunt man withdrew his finger, resuming his expressionless demeanor.

"The White Raven Tower core energy crystal is ours. Deal."

Du Wei was stunned for a moment, clearly not expecting the other party to agree so readily.

But he quickly came to his senses and nodded.

"make a deal."

Then he turned toward the Crown of Thorns.

"Friends of the Crown of Thorns, what about you?"

The woman in the lead sat up from the rock, stretched, and then looked at Du Wei with a smile.

"We...we don't want the core, nor do we want energy crystals."

Du Wei's brows furrowed even deeper.

"So what do you want?"

The woman's gaze passed over Du Wei and landed on Lynn, a meaningful glint flashing in her eyes.

I want him.

The air suddenly froze.

Lynn was somewhat puzzled, but his right hand had already begun to activate the [Shadow Fang] ring.

Du Wei's face darkened completely. He took half a step forward, blocking Lynn's path, his voice now carrying a clear hint of hostility.

"What do you mean?"

The woman burst out laughing when she saw Du Wei's reaction.

"Don't be nervous, I was just joking."

She waved her hand and leaned back against the stone pillar, looking rather lazy.

"We, the Crown of Thorns, have no interest in the core of the world, nor in energy crystals."

"We just want to confirm one thing."

Du Wei asked, somewhat puzzled, "What is it?"

The woman's gaze fell on Lynn again, and this time her expression became more serious.

"Kid, that Shadow Pierce you just used, was that the work of the Bloodvine Wizard?"