End of the Magic Era

In the notes of that Great Mage of the Cloud Tower, the prince’s army was buried in the Dark Arena, and under the influence of the Bloodline Curse, they had already transformed into spirit-like existences, tempering their fighting skills all day and night in the Dark Arena while also guarding the only path leading to the prince’s tomb.

That year, the lucky Great Mage almost fell into a desperate situation in the Dark Arena. He ultimately relied on his heaven-defying luck to walk out of this Dark Arena.

Lin Yun didn’t think he would be as lucky.

So when Lin Yun passed through the Jade Rock Door and saw that empty circular arena, his expression wasn’t as calm as usual…

“Here!”

Almost at the same time as Lin Yun’s feet touched the soil of the Dark Arena, a powerful roar echoed out. In a flash, the desolate and deathly still Dark Arena changed greatly. A blood-red setting sun, a sea of black clouds, blood and pieces of bodies flowing everywhere on the ground, broken weapons, discarded flags. All of this made Lin Yun feel like he was standing on a battlefield from the 3rd Dynasty.

Immediately afterwards, Lin Yun heard a sinister roar echoing behind him.

Lin Yun turned around and caught sight of a group of Rock Wolves encircling him. The pairs of clear, blue eyes shone brighter than the setting sun. These magic beasts were level 13 at the very least. Their individual power was only a bit inferior to that of a Rotten Flower.

What’s more, there were at least ten wolves surrounding Lin Yun.

“Worthy of the Dark Arena…” Lin Yun suddenly felt numb. This was only the 1st stage, yet there were already no less than ten Rock Wolves. If it was like that, what would follow? Lin Yun already didn’t dare to go further down this line of thought.

As he was inwardly feeling apprehensive, the biggest Rock Wolf already pounced over, carrying an odd, fishy smell along with it. That Rock Wolf was clearly the leader of the pack, and its level should be above 13, perhaps already at level 15. It was extremely fast and very powerful, more or less on par with a 5th Rank Great Swordsman. The only difference was the lack of the powerful Aura.

But it was already frightening enough just based on the speed and strength of a 5th Rank Great Swordsman. That fishy smell could already be detected as the Rock Wolf was pouncing at Lin Yun. The sharp claw flickered with a cold light under the setting sun. This was the most frightening weapon of a Rock Wolf, and it could instant tear apart a hard rock.

‘So fast…’ Lin Yun was startled. The Spiritual Magic Staff in his hand moved as his Flame Shackles coiled over. But a level 15 magic beast like the Rock Wolf wasn’t as useless as the mana-exhausted Shawn. Those Flame Shackles were broken open by the wolf pack leader in mere moments.

The Rock Wolf roared as it broke free, and over a dozen shadows charged at Lin Yun.

Almost at the same time, the ground surprisingly distorted. The originally smooth floor transformed into a gorge, and moreover, that gorge was blocking the path behind Lin Yun. If Lin Yun had retreated, he would have tumbled into the gorge, and then the Rock Wolves would have swarmed him and torn him into pieces.

Fortunately, after Lin Yun used the Flame Shackles to trap the wolf leader, he didn’t try to back away.

Lin Yun hadn’t moved, as if he had known that a gorge would appear behind him, and directly started casting another spell.

In that split second, Lin Yun pushed his casting ability to the peak, shortening more than half of the incantations of his spells while mixing in some instant spells. For some time, flying flames, hovering pieces of ice, and countless fluttering runes could be seen. The entire fight could only be described as magnificent.

And in the midst of that magnificent fight, Lin Yun on his own forcibly managed to do what would have required the joint work of several Great Mages.

Attack, defense, control…

Lin Yun was obviously by himself, but he suddenly turned into a few Great Mages in this battle, accomplishing perfection in every aspect. Not a single Rock Wolf managed to break through Lin Yun’s defense, and not one of them managed to dodge his attacks.

Thirty seconds later, a Flame Spear pierced the alpha wolf’s chest.

The battle was over…

“Fucking Dark Arena…” Lin Yun cursed when he stopped. It may have looked like this fight only lasted thirty seconds, but it wasn’t as relaxed as when he was facing several hundred Toxic Dragonflies. These Rock Wolves were too fast and too powerful, they simply didn’t allow Lin Yun any room for error.

One mistake and his chest would be ripped apart by claws.

In a short 30 seconds, Lin Yun used Quicken Spell four times, Instant Spell seven times, and the Magic Conducting ability 11 times. This was definitely a feat that would be extremely hard to exceed for Great Mages.

“Oh wow, that’s pretty good, you actually dealt with these Rock Wolves so fast. This truly is beyond Lord Shawn’s expectations!” While Lin Yun was panting, the True Spirit Magic Tool once again started prattling once again.

“Stop with the nonsense,” Lin Yun unhappily scolded. If he could, Lin Yun wouldn’t want to push himself to this limit. After all, the more extreme the casting, the more mana he would use. These 30 seconds of casting had consumed at least 90% of his own mana.

If not for the Spiritual Magic Tool in his right hand and the Elemental Amber Ring on his left hand, Lin Yun would already be lying down on the ground waiting for his death…

The problem was that he had no choice but to go to this extreme when facing a pack of Rock Wolves. Rock Wolves were so frightening when they fought in large numbers. If there were more than a dozen, their overall ability would become a lot more frightening. Just now, the alpha wolf had made a gorge to cut off his retreat, and if over twenty of them had attacked at the same time, their might would have reached the power of a High Mage.

“You have the cheek to scold Lord Shawn!”

“You want your mana supply cut off?”

“You are getting too bold, you are not only scolding Lord Shawn, you are also daring to issue threats! Wait for me to regain my power, and then…”

“Shut up, Lord Shawn…”

The True Spirit Magic Tool was busy prattling even when Lin Yun was recovering his mana. A silhouette wearing a black robe came out from the edge of the arena. He had a dignified appearance, with flaming red hair and a black robe dyed by the glow of the setting sun. He stood there as if he was a deity.

“Congratulations, Challenger. Your heroic performance pleased me. In return, you can choose your reward.”

As that majestic voice was ringing in Lin Yun’s ears, three golden chests appeared in the circular arena.

“This… What’s going on?” Lin Yun froze. There was no mention of a reward in the notes of the Great Mage from the Cloud Tower.

“Surely you didn’t think that this Great Prince would be watching your performance for free?” the deity-like person said.

“You are saying… You… You are Barov?”

“Indeed, Redhead Barov, the most powerful man of the Empire.”

“No way…” Lin Yun gulped with difficulty. Although he knew that Redhead Barov had died over a thousand years ago, seeing this silhouette wearing a black robe, Lin Yun couldn’t help feeling his blood freezing.

“Nice… Now don’t stare blankly and get the reward that lunatic is giving you. Oh, right, this Lord Shawn is in a good mood, I’ll reluctantly remind you that the lunatic is left-handed…”

“Are you so kind?” Lin Yun looked at the ring with a strange expression.

“Stop with the nonsense…”

Lin Yun walked to the three golden chests, and after hesitating for a bit, he decided to believe in Shawn this time. He opened the leftmost chest.

“Mana crystal?” Just as he opened the golden chest, Lin Yun frowned. There were over a dozen mana crystals inside the chest, each of them being around level 10. In the past, Lin Yun might have been pleasantly surprised with this, but the current Lin Yun had already visited the fertile Bone Plane twice, and he had even planted an Obsidian Flower in his garden. Thus, a dozen mana crystals would barely make him excited…

“Mana crystals? Very good, perfect to replenish Lord Shawn’s mana. Quick, quick…” Shawn cheered.

“Hey, Lord Shawn, did you do that on purpose?” Honestly, Lin Yun couldn’t be blamed for being suspicious. Shawn was too unusual. Pointing out a chest with kind intentions… Moreover, to choose the one chest with the mana crystals he urgently needed. But Lin Yun didn’t expect Shawn to burst out in anger.

“Nonsense! You have the cheek to question Lord Shawn? Intolerable! The Dark Arena originally was like that, whenever you defeated an opponent, that lunatic would give you some rewards. The stronger the opponent, the better the rewards. You only beat your first opponent, so how could you be unsatisfied with a dozen mana crystals?”

“Truth or lie?”

“Won’t you understand if you try it yourself? Okay okay, don’t disturb Lord Shawn’s mana absorption, your 2nd opponent will appear soon!”

Just as Shawn fell silent and started absorbing mana as if his life depended on it, Lin Yun’s second opponent truly appeared…