In theory, a mage cannot defeat a knight of the same level in close quarters combat, especially in a one-on-one situation. Even a knight one level lower than a mage still has a chance to defeat a mage one level higher. However, Uther, who only has B rank power, challenged Fiona, an S rank knight who is several levels higher than him.

The battle lasted for more than ten minutes. Carteros, observing with interest, stroked his chin as if there were actually a beard on it. The situation before him was a bit strange. It was not surprising for an S rank knight to easily defeat a B rank mage, but Uther managed to hold his ground despite Fiona's relentless attacks. Although Fiona was missing one of her mech swords, she still held an overwhelming advantage in overall combat strength. It should have been easy for her to defeat Uther, but she was continuously obstructed by a defensive barrier named the Golden Fortress, which was a high-level first-order defensive magic. However, Uther managed to activate it partially, enabling him to use it in quick succession.

Whenever a spell scroll turned to ashes, a castle wall would appear. Uther had plenty of scrolls remaining in his bag. Fiona would invariably collide with the barrier whenever she attacked, which frustrated her. Uther's total magic power allowed him to be so lavish. However, this battle was far from easy, and for Uther, it was like walking on a tightrope. Any slight mistake could result in Fiona's enraged sword cutting him in half. Time was running out, and she had only developed the spell scroll for the Golden Fortress, unable to instantly cast any other spells.

Fiona collided with the barrier again, shattering the Golden Fortress with a single strike, and stepped forward.

"Activate!" Uther raised his staff. "Inherent magic number 188: Frost Sword Formation!"

Around ten magic formations appeared behind him, generating a surging magic power that formed into cold swords. Fiona raised her sword to deflect the ice swords flying towards her and continued her assault. However, Carteros frowned because he noticed that a significant amount of magic power was gathering at the front end of Uther's staff, and he had no idea what he intended to do.

With a loud bang, the two forces of magic collided. Fiona's mech sword struck Uther's staff, but the immense magic power coiled around the staff repelled the magic on the sword, releasing dazzling electrical sparks. Fiona suddenly threw a punch with her left fist, hitting Uther's abdomen. Uther, destabilized, retreated backward, and Fiona took a step forward but was again stopped by a barrier. The spell scroll in Uther's hand turned to ashes as he endured the pain in his abdomen and sneered. Fiona shouted loudly, slashing through the barrier, but the next second, she was blasted away by a thin and long surge of magic power. A tremendous amount of magic power gathered at the front end of Uther's staff, shaping itself according to his will. Longer, thinner, and sharper! The magic power constantly changed form under his will, and finally, at the front end of the augmented staff, a two-meter-long magic energy blade appeared, which quickly transformed into a horse-cutting saber.

Carteros couldn't help but clap his hands in excitement. He had never thought that a mage would fight in this way. At least in his time, no mage had devised such a method. Most mages were unable to achieve precise control over their magic power, which was one reason, but the biggest reason was that no one had ever thought in this direction. The magic energy saber Uther created completely deviated from the combat principles of mages! What? Have you ever heard of a mage resorting to hand-to-hand combat? Hahaha, this joke isn't funny at all! But today, there was a mage in front of Carteros who was ready to engage in close combat.

Could it be that this guy is a genius? At the very least, he is a damn talented person! Carteros felt a sense of delight. The ancient mage civilization was indeed glorious, but behind that glory was a rigidity in their way of thinking. In summary, it lacked imagination! As the Chief Archmage, Carteros was well aware of the situation within the mage organization. The apprentices mindlessly followed the prescribed curriculum, studying mechanized techniques. While such training produced powerful mages, there was no room for progress. The reason was simple: their imagination had been dulled by the educational system. They didn't understand adaptation, let alone innovation. Even those with decent talents were unable to further develop their skills.

On the other hand, the girl in front of him had not undergone formal mage training and had only completed basic-level training at most. In the past era, she couldn't even be considered an apprentice. However, her combat capabilities were undeniable, and the reason was simple: she had enough imagination to utilize her seemingly boundless magic power. Although her spiritual power was much weaker, her ever-changing tactics and precise control of magic compensated for this deficiency.Carteros watched Uther with interest, wondering what kind of surprising new tricks she could come up with. Uther activated two permanent magical enhancements: body strengthening and petrified skin. Then, wielding the staff that had transformed into a horse-cutting sword, she struck at Fiona. Thanks to her high magical power, the enhancement to her body strengthening was also significantly increased. Fiona, with her exceptional dynamic vision, caught every movement Uther made and didn't dare to underestimate her. She was surprised to find that this young girl was proficient in close combat and had clearly received formal swordsmanship training, with a master who was a swordsmanship expert. To make matters worse, the blade of Uther's horse-cutting sword was actually a condensed form of magic, powerful but weightless. In reality, she was just wielding the staff, but this two-meter-long magical blade had a massive attack range. As the Sword King, Fiona found herself repeatedly forced back in close combat, fueling her anger.

With a loud noise, Uther's staff was knocked away. Bursting with aura, Fiona showed her true ability, surrounding her body with a blue-green aura. This aura was actually a highly compressed concentration of magic, as knights relied on magic even in melee combat. Fiona had no choice but to reveal her true abilities as she couldn't continue to toy with Uther. In one strike, she sent Uther's horse-cutting sword flying. The bladed part made of magic quickly dissipated, leaving only the silver magical staff far away.

"Surrender!" Fiona triumphantly declared. "Or you'll not only lose a foot or a hand."

"Looks like I still can't defeat you," Uther said with frustration, smiling. "But this battle proves that my tactical theory is at least correct, as it's possible for me to fight you in close combat."

"Are you out of your mind?" Fiona exclaimed in disbelief.

"It's not over yet!" Uther summoned the World Record. "The wonderful second round begins. No interfering, old man," she said, looking at Carteros.

"I won't interfere," Carteros said, pulling out some potato chips from somewhere. "You two keep fighting. I'm just here to watch."

With that, he started munching on the chips. Fiona seethed with anger, releasing her aura with a buzzing sound. Uther couldn't help but bitterly smile, realizing that the Sword King was truly furious.

"I'll give you three seconds," Fiona said. "Do whatever you want to attack me, and then I'll finish you off with one strike."

"I won't hold back then," Uther said, opening the Magic Book and flipping through the pages rapidly, releasing dark incantations. "Activate, Magic Style No. 188, Frost Sword Formation! Continuous overwrite!"

Hundreds of magic formations appeared on the floor around her. In an instant, several hundred ice arrows appeared on the floor around the two of them. Glancing at the numerous icy swords, Fiona sneered, "Where are you aiming at?" She swung her staff and charged at Uther. But to her astonishment, Uther actually picked up an ice sword from the ground and used her own magic to protect her hand, preventing frostbite.

The ice sword and the staff collided. It was a purely physical collision. Surprisingly, Fiona discovered that the ice sword held up for three rounds before breaking. Ice could be this hard? Carteros, eating chips, raised an eyebrow because he knew the physical properties of ice – the colder it got, the harder it got. Uther's ice sword was close to absolute zero, with a Vickers hardness approaching 9, similar to diamond. However, ice was still ice; although hard, it lacked flexibility and could break easily. But on the floor around Uther, ice swords kept generating. When the sword in her hand broke, she casually pulled out a new one, almost as if she had an infinite supply. Furthermore, Fiona had to be careful not to touch the ice swords while moving. Her aura could defend against attacks, but it couldn't withstand the low temperature.

"This kid is an extraordinary genius," Carteros said, throwing another chip into his mouth. "I didn't expect her to have a trick up her sleeve. I wonder if my underling will fall for it."

The battle continued into the fifteenth round, and Fiona finally realized something was wrong. Her flowing magical energy on the staff started to be obstructed. Taking a closer look, she saw a tiny crack on the otherwise indestructible blade, which damaged the magic circuit within the sword, causing magical obstruction.

"What's going on?" she muttered, jumping backward and surprised when she examined her beloved sword. However, Uther wouldn't give her the chance. She swiftly picked up an ice sword and charged at Fiona, launching a fast attack. Watching the Sword King being forced back repeatedly by a B-grade mage, Carteros couldn't help but smile bitterly. The boundary between mages and knights was actually the way they used magic. Mages were more like artillery, converting magic into energy for long-range attacks using spells and magical formations. Knights, on the other hand, used magic to enhance themselves, forming a protective aura around their body and amplifying it with the help of their staff. In theory, if a mage abandoned their aura and solely used magic to strengthen their body, they could fight a knight as long as they didn't get hit. However, that deviated greatly from orthodox theory, becoming an unorthodox tactic.Uther not only did that, but also set a trap for Fiona.

Metal becomes brittle at low temperatures, and Fiona's machine sword is made of metal, so it cannot escape this law of physics. Uther intentionally chose an ice sword, and under the attack of the ice sword, which was close to absolute zero, Fiona's sword finally began to show damage due to metal fatigue caused by low temperatures. She was left with only one sword, and if this continued...

"That's enough, switch out," Carteros stood up from the throne. "Fiona, how dare you call yourself the Sword King? You've completely disgraced me. Go sit aside."

"Yes, master," Fiona didn't dare show any dissatisfaction this time.

Uther took a breath, feeling fortunate that her master was Milos Charles, the chief knight of the Empire, a top-notch magic armor pilot, and also a master of swordsmanship. Despite his disabled legs, he taught Uther not only how to pilot a magic armor, but also swordsmanship and martial arts.

Carteros stood in front of Uther, but he is currently using Lin's body, which worries Uther greatly. However, Carteros quickly figured out what she was worried about.

"Do you think I would use this man's weak magic power? Then kill him?" Carteros laughed loudly, pointing at the red pendant on his chest. "My soul is in here, it's a perfect soul transfer. It's completely different from that girl Lusita's half-baked method."

"So, if I break that pendant, you're finished?"

"That's absolutely right," Carteros chewed on a potato chip. "I'll have a few more bites, you go get your staff back. Although Silver Moon is just a cheap product, it's quite precious in this era. As a mage, I hope you treat your staff well."

Although Uther didn't know what this guy was thinking, she couldn't miss the chance to retrieve her weapon. Uther picked up her staff and turned to Carteros, only to see him stuffing a handful of potato chips into his mouth, desperately swallowing it down, as if choking. Mages need to chant spells to activate magic, if he's choking, isn't this a good opportunity?

"Activate!" Uther ordered. "Inherent Magic Formula 166, Thunderbolt Spear!"

Dozens of magic formations appeared behind her, gathering magical power to create a spear of lightning. With a wave of her staff, the spear of lightning aimed at Carteros' position and launched an attack. Why did she choose this magic spell? Uther's main consideration was to subdue this arrogant person. Thunderbolt Spear's power wasn't very high, but it had a paralysis effect.

However, a golden barrier blocked all the lightning spears. Only then did Carteros manage to swallow the potato chips. He calmly gathered magical power, and a black staff appeared in his hand.

"Hey, my descendant, it's not fair to use a second-tier magic spell to launch a surprise attack on Grand Magus." Carteros said, "Mages must follow strict etiquette before a duel, and what you just did is clearly cheating!"

Incantation-less magic! Uther couldn't help but feel a sense of fear. Her opponent is an S-grade Grand Magus.

"Well, you are quite educational," Carteros began to gather magical power. Black magical energy waves erupted from his body, it wasn't Lin's magical power, he doesn't have such strong magic power! "Come at me, Uther Nornheim! Show me what you've got!"

He raised one hand, huge amounts of magical power gathered in his palm, instantly forming a black energy ball. The construction speed was unbelievably fast! Uther couldn't afford to slack off, she threw out a talisman and quickly deployed six golden fortresses, ready to defend. In terms of overall magical power, Uther's magical power seemed to be slightly higher than Carteros'. However, after their mental domains clashed, Uther realized that the difference was more than a little bit.

"Are you ready?" Carteros smiled and said, "I suggest you run."

Upon hearing this, Uther jumped to the right, and Carteros immediately released the gathered magical power in his palm.

"Demon's Devouring!"

The construction of the first-tier Dark Magic Spell No. 006 was completed, and a black beam of light instantly pierced through Uther's barrier. If she hadn't dodged in time, she would have been completely annihilated. Looking at the wall behind her that was pierced through, Uther felt lingering fear. It was too fast! This unreasonable construction speed of magic, incantation-less magic is truly terrifying."Wow, not bad at all. Your reaction is good and your intuition is on point," praised Carteros. He snapped his fingers and six complex magic circles appeared behind him. The magical rings, composed of incantations, unfolded one after another, forming a cannon-like structure. Tremendous magic power was infused into the magical cannon, converging layer by layer until it transformed into a black, high-density energy mass.

"The Cannon of the God of War!" Uther couldn't help but wryly smile. "And there are six of them."

A miniature black hole was shot out, covering the area around Uther's position in a barrage of firepower. Qin Feng couldn't help but let out a cry of surprise. She had personally experienced the power of this magic. Being hit by it would leave nothing but ashes. The black hole disappeared in an instant, leaving several large craters on the ground with smooth, mirror-like edges. However, Uther's figure appeared above Carteros' head, using the partly unfolded Golden Fortress as a stepping point. Uther swung the staff, transformed into a halberd, and struck at Carteros.

"You are quite capable to dodge that," Carteros sneered. "I didn't expect the defensive barrier to act as a stepping stone. Are you a genius, little Uther?" As the magical blade approached, he waved his hand lightly, and Uther was sent flying in mid-air, crashing into the wall on the right.

A layer of high-density magic power attached to Carteros' hand, causing his palm to suddenly enlarge hundreds of times, and his strength increased by several hundred times. With a light swing, Uther was easily blasted away.

"See, I can use your moves too," Carteros waved his hand and casually hit Fiona, who was unprepared, causing her to take a few steps back. "The power still needs further adjustment, but it's a good idea. As your master, I shamelessly plagiarized it."

Uther, covered in tattered clothes, finally climbed out of the rubble. Her left arm had been dislocated, hanging limply down, and blood flowed down her forehead, sticking to her left eye. Seeing her miserable condition, Carteros couldn't help but sigh. "Your physical defense is too low. Do you need me to use the Healing Spring on you?"

"It's not over yet!" Uther forced her arm back into place. "Silvermoon's World Record, Unified Fire!"

Before she finished speaking, the World Record, previously stored in the void, appeared in her hand. It established a connection with Silvermoon, and the two magic devices glimmered with unstable electric lights. Without any incantation, nearly a hundred fireballs were generated in the hall. They were purely generated by fire magic spells, but under Uther's control. However, the next second, all the fireballs were dispersed with a gentle wave of the black staff in Carteros' hand.

"I see. Linking magical devices to increase computational speed. It's a good idea," Carteros walked towards Uther, the magical fluctuations emitted from him were pressuring her, infiltrating her mental domain. "However, clever little brat, you fundamentally misunderstood. The so-called incantation-less casting is still built upon the foundation of inherent magical spells. It's not the result of your random actions. Magic is something you manipulate at will. Just like radio frequencies, feel the subtle magical changes when activating each inherent spell. As long as you release the corresponding frequency of magic, you can instantly activate the spell without chanting. I really don't understand why you are struggling to link magical devices. Does it make sense to simply increase the calculation speed of your mental domain?"

"Of course, it makes sense," Uther said. "Dear master, as you just said, magic can be manipulated as one pleases. By manipulating magic to generate spells, combining them into magic formations, and then transforming magic into energy, this is the way of combat for a mage. But why bother with all the trouble? Why waste half of the magic power in the process of generating spells and forming magic formations? Why not directly convert magic power into energy?"

As she spoke, several massive blocks of magic power were generated beside Uther. These were pure magic power, not bound by spells or magic formations. These magic blocks rapidly changed their shape, forming burning longswords, spears enveloped in lightning, and spikes dripping with blood—each magic block created something different. Normally, a mage could only construct one magic formation at a time, and only after completing it could they construct another. However, sustained magical formations like the Golden Fortress was an exception.

The problem that had troubled mages for thousands of years, the "multiple incantation" dilemma, was solved just like that."This lunatic..." Carteros laughed happily, "If one magic device's processing power is not enough, use two. If two are not enough, add your own spiritual realm. Normal people would never dare to do such a thing, especially considering your incomplete soul that could collapse at any moment. But...to be fair, you have actually achieved a true plural incantation, generating magic spells purely through magical manipulation! The line between genius and madman is very thin, and you, Uther, have crossed both sides!"

More than a dozen different magic spells flew towards them, but Carteros joyfully defended against them. The magical utilization rate was extremely high, as there was no need for incantations or conversion of magic spells, yet they still lacked the power to penetrate Carteros' iron wall defense. Besides the difference in strength between an S-class mage and a B-class mage, there was also a huge difference in equipment.

"Little Uther," Carteros said gently, as if speaking to a beloved disciple, "There is a limit to being chaotic. Your soul is almost at its limit as well. Let's end this battle." He drew a curse spell in the air, "Emergency code 499666, stop all functions, execute immediately."

Uther, who had been gathering magical energy with all her might, suddenly shook and collapsed to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. Her body's functions were completely frozen, and she lay motionless on the ground.

Damn, fell for that move again!

Uther desperately tried to stand up, but something deep in her soul shattered. She wondered, why did the Almighty, that guy, remain silent throughout this fierce battle?

"Is it too late?" Carteros put his finger on her forehead, "I'm sorry, I got a little carried away. I didn't expect your soul to start collapsing... I'm really sorry, little Uther. You were a good opponent, and I will remember you. As for this body, I'll happily take it."

Fiona looked at Carteros and quietly gripped her sword.

"Everything is going smoothly. Let's proceed to the final step," Carteros picked up Uther and placed her on the crystal throne. With the sound of machinery starting, sixteen steel needles were inserted into Uther's back one by one, and red blood flowed out along the tubes behind the needles, flowing under the throne.

The red blood flowed through the transparent tubes and finally entered the body of the sleeping girl below, who was buried within the crystal. As the blood was injected, the cloned girls opened their eyes one by one, without any focus in their gazes. Carteros looked satisfied at the hundred mass-produced mages gathered in front of the throne. They all had the same appearance as Uther, barcodes engraved on their foreheads, lifeless silver eyes, like puppets. He glanced back at Uther on the throne, her back drained of blood by the needles and tubes, and her unfocused eyes seemed as if she were dead.

"Lael, even though I'm sorry," Carteros apologized, "I need your core, and besides, you won't need it anymore. Just hand it over to me." He reached out towards the girl's chest, but in the next second, the seemingly dead girl suddenly grabbed his wrist.

"Carteros," Uther said in a completely different tone, "You take someone's blood, then you want to touch their chest. Isn't that too much?"

"You!" Carteros was shocked, "Could it be... Lael?!"

The girl suddenly revealed a charming smile.

"In the name of the highest authority administrator," Lael stood up, and the tubes on her back fell off one after another, "Cover all system privileges, freeze all accounts except for the highest administrator, execute immediately."

Carteros felt a wave of exhaustion as something was stripped from his soul. It was the control authority over the system, and he had lost his status as an administrator.

"Lael, why did you do this?" he stared at the girl in front of him with confusion, "We could have worked together, revitalized the great Mage Kingdom, and relived its lost glory! Why did you push me away?"

"Because..." Lael looked at him quietly, without any waves in her eyes, "If we continue like this, you will repeat the tragedy of a thousand years ago."

A powerful desire for battle erupted from Carteros, as he began gathering magical energy.

Kalyus Noinheim woke up in a white space. The intense pain in his left half made him groan in agony. He looked down and saw that his left arm was gone, and only bare white bones were exposed from the red muscles. His lungs, even his heart, had disappeared. Even the blood had congealed. Without a heart, there would be no blood pressure, and thus no bleeding. He saw his beloved pilot uniform and the colonel emblem on his shoulder stained red with blood. His self-awareness resurfaced, and the restrictions imposed by Rucita on him had disappeared."Who are you?"

A seductive young girl stood in the middle of a white room. She appeared to be around 18 years old, dressed in a black magician's battle suit and holding a black magic staff. Her outfit contrasted sharply with her fair skin and silver hair. Numerous ominous black tattoos covered her snow-white skin, giving off a sense of horror.

In the eyes of Carlus, the girl in front of him was undoubtedly very beautiful. Her face seemed familiar, as if it would resemble Uther's if he had grown up five years older. But then again... who was Uther? Carlus felt a storm brewing in his spiritual space, as the boundless amount of magic power tore through his consciousness.

The girl walked up to him and embraced the struggling man, completely disregarding the fact that he was a mutilated corpse.

"You are you," she said in a gentle tone. "But your soul is no longer whole. Death has taken away many things from you, things that you will forever lose."

"Ah..." Carlus groaned, calming down. The wound still throbbing, the pain was not surprising even if he were to die immediately. "Where am I? Hell?"

"The place we are currently in is Uther Nornheim's spiritual space," the girl explained. "You and I are residents here, except for a long period of time, you were the ruler of this world. After all, as a soul, you are much more complete than me, so it is not surprising that you have taken over the dominion."

"And who are you then?"

"Me?" The girl smiled softly. "My name is Leil Brunstatt, the sovereign of the magicians and the original owner of this body. Unfortunately, the real Leil is already dead. I am just a fragment of her soul, or rather... a remnant of her existence, a residue of consciousness and memory."

"Perhaps you also have another name," Carlus said, "The Almighty."

"That's right." The girl, who called herself Leil, placed her hand over her chest. "But my residual self is too insignificant. Even as an AI support for magicians, I am not competent. I deeply apologize for this."

"Enough with the empty words. I am a soldier, let's get straight to the point," Carlus sat down on the ground, no longer concerned about his incomplete body. "What is the current situation? If I remember correctly, that guy called Carteros used some kind of code to stop my bodily functions, and then I knew nothing."

"The current situation is that my surface consciousness is probably fighting Carteros outside," Leil said with a bitter smile. "In reality, my soul has been destroyed almost completely. Even if I were to resist, I wouldn't be a match for the Great Magician Carteros. Fortunately, he is not in perfect condition either, so for now, things are going smoothly."

Carlus fell silent for a moment and said softly, "I... should be dead, right?"

"Theoretically... yes."

"If..." He looked at Leil, "If you were in perfect condition, could you kill that idiot Carteros?"

"No problem," Leil smiled confidently. "I am the sovereign of the magicians, the true magician king. No magician can defeat me in a one-on-one situation."

After a brief hesitation, Carlus stood up and said solemnly, "Leil, devour me. According to Lucia's theory, fragments of souls can be used to repair and shape new souls. I possess an immeasurable amount of magic power, but the spiritual space as a magician is too limited. It would be a good material to repair your soul. But you have to promise me, free Lin from Carteros' control. Most of my friends have died in the war, he is my best buddy, you must save him."

"Unfortunately," Leil shook her head, "I cannot devour you."

"Why?" Carlus was surprised.

"Because..." Leil looked away, "I will become the material to repair your soul."

Carlus stared in shock at the girl in front of him. He had already made up his mind to give up his own existence, but now he hesitated. His life had already ended at the age of 26, though it was a bit short, he had done almost half of what he needed to do. There were still some regrets, like not leaving behind any descendants, but nothing too major. Moreover, he had long accepted the fact that he was already dead, and even buried his original body with his own hands. However, the seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl in front of him was actively giving up her own existence, which he found hard to accept."I am just the remnant of Laiel's soul. Since I am just a remnant, it is impossible to recreate a stable soul," Laiel explained with a smile. "And as for your soul, although it has reached the edge of collapse, it is still relatively intact overall, just missing a few fragments. It will be much easier to repair than to create anew. Besides, Laiel is already dead, her artificial soul has been destroyed. As a dead person, it is only right for her to stay in the coffin. I will do my best to merge with you, so that your spiritual space will expand a thousandfold. Coupled with your immense magical power, you will become my successor, the new Mage Lord." She reached out and gently cupped Carlus's face. "Through my observation, you are an honest person who will not misuse power for personal gain. So, I am confident in entrusting Laiel's legacy to you. Live well... Uther."

With a sound like shattering glass, Laiel's body crumbled into countless particles of light that entered Carlus's body. A warm feeling surrounded his consciousness. When the intense light faded, Uther, dressed in a white Mage Lord uniform, stood in the place where they had been.

"I have entrusted everything to you. Live on..." Laiel's voice still lingered in her ears, but she had already dedicated everything and completely disappeared.

"I will live on," Uther lifted her head and looked at the white sky. "Laiel, I promise."

The white space collapsed, and Uther opened her eyes to see the fully deployed Golden Citadel and Carteros desperately attacking outside multiple defensive barriers. The control room had been completely destroyed, and white smoke billowed from the damaged buildings, showing the intensity of the battle. Wasn't it a bit unfair to switch like this all of a sudden? Uther sighed softly and turned her gaze to Carteros.

"I'm back," she said. "Let's continue our delightful battle."

Carteros's gaze sharpened, with a deep aura of killing intent. Uther focused her consciousness, manipulating her own magic. Under the touch of the magic in her spiritual realm, her magic underwent countless transformations. She had never had such a skillful command of magic before. Her spiritual realm became incredibly vast. If it had been a small house before, now it felt like it could hold the entire world. Concentrating her mind, manipulating magic, creating spells, unleashing magical techniques!

The laws of the world were distorted!

Under the blue sky with drifting white clouds, the calm salt lake was devoid of any breeze. A thin layer of shallow water covered the white salt particles, and the crystal-clear water surface reflected the blue sky and white clouds like a mirror. Carteros, forcefully pulled into Uther's domain, looked at her with astonishment, holding a silver staff. He showed an admiring expression.

"I didn't expect you to be able to use 'Domain' already. Truly surprising," he said. "The ability of a Mage Lord is essentially to bring the power from another world into the present world through the spiritual realm, then use this power to interfere with the 'principles' that make up this world and influence its rules. But this is just affecting the rules. A true powerhouse can establish their own rules and create their own domain. This is a higher-level magical technique than 'Battlefield.' Unfortunately... I haven't reached your level yet."

Carteros lightly tapped the water surface with his black mechanical staff, and the mirror-like salt lake experienced changes. Stars appeared on the originally blue sky-reflected water surface, and a silver galaxy spanned between Uther and Carteros, with countless stars twinkling and shining brightly. Carteros had eroded Uther's domain, but due to the vast difference in their spiritual realms, he temporarily couldn't swallow this domain in one go.

"Hehehe, a little show of skill," Carteros sneered. "Including me in your domain was your biggest mistake. The domain is, in essence, the expanded spiritual realm. It is so easy for me to erode it from within."

Uther looked at him without saying a word.

"Hand over the control of the system to me, my Lord of Demons," Carteros elegantly bowed. "I will make good use of all the systems you control for the revival of the Mage Kingdom. Please forgive my rudeness."

However, the starry water surface suddenly ceased its ripples. The smile on Carteros's lips vanished, and the water surface gradually returned to the blue sky. Invisible small runes flowed under Uther's feet, effortlessly eliminating Carteros's erosion technique and restoring the original scenery of the domain."Carteros," Uther spoke softly, "I will not hand over the control of the system to you, nor will I let you abuse the ancient heritage. You want to forcefully exclude me from the system, but you have forgotten something very important." She raised her head proudly and declared loudly, "I am the system itself."

"I see..." Carteros smirked, "I have completely lost."

"Proclaim!" Uther tapped the water lightly with her magic staff, "With the highest authority of the system administrator, I command the revocation of all privileges of the Grand Magister Carteros, freezing all his powers!"

Before the words could even settle, the runes flowing on Carteros's staff turned red, indicating a severe error in the spell and then completely collapsed.

"You can't do this!" Carteros roared, "Both you and the system are my creations!"

"Of course, I can do this," Uther closed her eyes, "The one standing before you is no longer a puppet without a will, but a human. I am human! This is my will."

"Uther, answer me!" Carteros's voice trembled slightly as he asked, "Is Laiel really gone?"

"Yes," Uther touched her chest, "She is gone. She used her last power to merge with my soul, repairing my broken soul."

"Well then," he asked seriously, "answer me one question. Who are you really?"

"I am Uther," Uther smiled confidently.

"Uther... I see, so you have crossed that line," Carteros put away his black staff, "Forget it, let's end it here. I no longer have the mood to continue."

Huh? A ceasefire? Uther was slightly stunned. The next second, her territory collapsed, and the two of them returned to the original world. Penglai started to collapse at an accelerated rate, with a large amount of building material falling off the main structure. Even the main tower began to tilt and become precarious. This magnificent floating city was falling apart.

"Anyway, I've obtained what I wanted," Carteros pointed with his hand, and Uther saw a hundred female magician apprentices lined up in the air, forming an army. "So, before I leave, let me give you an assignment." He began to invade Penglai's control system with his spell, although his privileges had been revoked and he couldn't directly control it, he could still directly destroy the control program.

Uther felt the danger as one of the five large Spirit Seed Furnaces that supported Penglai was shut down. With the balance of buoyancy broken, Penglai began to fall, and beneath Penglai was the capital of Yu Jing.

"Carteros!" Uther shouted, "What do you mean by this?"

"Hehe," Carteros sneered, "If you want to stop Penglai from falling, if you want to save the lives of those below, restart the Spirit Seed Furnace within 8 minutes. Farewell."

A large magical array unfolded beneath Carteros's feet as he left with a hundred mass-produced magicians, taking Fiona and Ding Yi with him. Uther landed at the top of the crumbling tower, where injured Qin Feng and Yang Jiye were waiting for her. She led them to the nearest lifeboat and then detached the small brass hovercraft.

"Uther!" Yang Jiye shouted as he held the controls, "Why aren't you coming up? Hurry and get on the ship!"

"If Penglai falls like this, Yu Jing will be destroyed." Uther gripped the brass railing on the dock. "I will find a way to restart the Spirit Seed Furnace and restore its buoyancy."

The lifeboat ignited its rear thrusters, speeding away from the collapsing Penglai. Yang Jiye seemed to say something, but Uther couldn't hear it anymore. She was grateful that Qin Feng had passed out. If he were awake, he would surely choose to live and die with her. The control system of Penglai was completely destroyed and beyond control.

In the capital city of Yu Jing, both the nobles and the common people looked up at the sky. The massive white floating city traveled through the sea of clouds, burning debris falling off its main structure. It was plummeting towards the ground. Realizing that the fall was inevitable, people were thrown into a state of panic. Many screamed and tried to escape on the streets, attempting to flee from this apocalyptic catastrophe.The palace was already in chaos, with eunuchs of all sizes scrambling to escape.

"Your Majesty! Please, escape quickly!" a military officer of the Forbidden Army knelt in front of the throne.

"Escape?" Emperor Lianye looked at the falling Penglai and sighed, "The Jade Capital is destroyed, where else can I escape to? Spread the order to evacuate everyone in the palace and issue a refuge command!"

"Yes!" The officer took the order and left.

"Uther," Emperor Lianye looked at the sky, "You've already escaped, haven't you?"

The Penglai in the sky grew larger and larger, its enormous size demonstrating its unwavering presence. Beneath Penglai, in the machine department known as the Spirit Seed Furnace, one of the large Spirit Seed Furnaces stopped functioning. Uther stood in front of the inactive Spirit Seed Furnace, lightly tapping the ground with her silver staff, and a complex magic spell array unfolded beneath her feet.

"Activation code 259!" she commanded. "Enter ignition program! Detach control rod! Start first-level operational core! Inject magic into external containment ring and initiate ignition!"

Injecting a large amount of magic into the Spirit Seed Furnace, the core immediately emitted a brilliant light. The containment ring, which should have ceased rotating, started to glow. The Spirit Seed Furnace was being rebooted.

(Reboot complete in 120 seconds.)

120 seconds? Uther looked at the approaching ground. The current altitude had already exceeded two kilometers, and she could even see the chaotic crowd on the streets clearly.

Penglai would soon collide with the ground. If the massive floating city collided with the main island of Jade Capital, it would be catastrophic. In the worst-case scenario, Jade Capital might sink. Humanity had already lost the mainland, and the remaining Floating Islands could not afford any further reduction. Determined, Uther crossed the railings and jumped down.

The strong wind blew through her silver hair as Uther activated her flight spell and came to a halt just beneath Penglai.

"Engage!" she commanded loudly. "Golden Fortress! Overwrite to the maximum extent!"

A golden defense barrier instantly formed, withstanding the falling Penglai head-on. The immense building itself weighed tens of thousands of tons. Although the Golden Fortress was known as the strongest defense barrier, it was not designed to withstand such a massive entity. The lower part of Penglai and the barrier fiercely collided, releasing golden lightning. The first layer of the barrier was breached, but immediately replaced by another layer. Uther exerted her incomprehensible magic power to the fullest, unleashing it without reservation. With the support of the Golden Barrier, the descent speed of Penglai noticeably slowed down.

Amidst the chaos, people looked up and gazed at the golden barrier covering the sky. Was it a god? A miracle? They couldn't find an answer and could only stare blankly at the sky.

"Just a little more!" Uther gritted her teeth. "Hold on!"

Magic output had reached its limit. The silver moon in her hand started to overheat, and cracks appeared on her silver magical staff. It couldn't withstand Uther's immense magic power and began to collapse.

Finally, the Spirit Seed Furnace completed its reboot. The glowing containment ring began to rotate, and the anti-gravity ring, which had shut down, supported the massive Penglai once again. The shattered Sky City stopped its descent and slowly returned to its original position in the sky. At that moment, Uther's magical staff shattered, and among the scattered fragments, she grabbed the red calculation gem. Even with just the calculation gem left, it could still be used as a trigger for magic. However, Uther had exhausted all her magic power and could no longer continue to fly.

Would she die if things continued like this? Just when she felt helpless, a blue Night Owl Command-Type suddenly caught her in freefall. The helmet of the Magic Armor opened, revealing a skull.

"Hey, little girl, I'm here to pick you up!" the skeleton said proudly.

"Mr. Tristan?" Uther was taken aback. "You dare to operate my armor?"

"Don't worry about these details!" Tristan manipulated the robotic arm and hugged Uther tightly. "Everyone is waiting for you to come back. If you die here, there will be a lot of people who will be sad! The people who are alive should take responsibility. Don't die for others so easily. Self-sacrifice may be noble, but the people you leave behind in this world will only feel sadness!"After speaking, Magic Armor changed its flight direction and flew past the chaotic streets of Yujing. Uther gazed at the magnificent Imperial City in the distance, wondering if the young emperor was also looking up at the sky now. Penglai was slowly ascending, the ancient sky city returning to its flying orbit at 5,000 meters. The falling debris and construction materials had caused some damage within the city, but compared to the disaster that would have occurred if the entire floating city had crashed down, it was insignificant.

A few minutes later, Night Owl, a scout type, landed on the Explorer. Uther supported the hand of a Kunlun slave and stepped onto the deck, feeling dizzy. She collapsed into the slave's arms.

"I need to get some sleep," she said. "I'm exhausted."

Little did she know, this sleep would last for three years, during which the world underwent tremendous changes.