The earth tore open. A deep fissure erupted with relentless pulling force, trying to drag Hrubess into the Abyss. She had planned to use Four Symbols Magic to kill Lujin Lushi and disrupt their Magic Spell chanting—but the Old Woman’s sudden strike shattered that plan.
Though Hrubess had braced for the Old Woman’s move, she never expected the attack to bypass her shield entirely and tear the ground itself apart.
Her eyes swept the fissure. In an instant, she understood the Old Woman’s intent. Chanting a Magic Spell, she shaped Mana into wings and strained to break free from the rift’s pull.
Those few seconds were all Lujin Lushi needed. Alternating chants reached their climax. Light swirled around them—black and white harmonizing peacefully, like the Taiji of Yin and Yang born from chaos. The dual halos spun gently, dispelling the Four Symbols Magic. Mana and Abyssal Aura harming their bodies shattered under this purifying force.
Hrubess knew she couldn’t hold back. One palm pressed over her eye socket; the other spread wide. An invisible radiance drained surrounding Mana and Abyssal Aura—a technique forged from her unique Magic Spell fused with a Mana-Sealing Array Pattern, the culmination of her life’s work.
“…All forces converge upon me.”
Her spell drew nearby energies into herself. After attaining divine power, it no longer limited her to Mana and Abyssal Aura—it could harness kinetic energy, thermal energy, even more. Commanding nature itself came with a constraint: she had to touch the “threads.” Each energy manifested as a thread—varying in thickness, length, proximity. Usually, only Mana and Abyssal Aura offered thick, close threads. And in her view, they were the most useful. She rarely tapped others.
With divine power, she could even strip energy from living beings. A flick of her wrist dimmed the white light around Lujin Lushi. Darkness symbolizing Lu Shi rapidly spread outward. Previously stabilized Mana plunged into chaos again. Lu Jin and Lu Shi, about to utter the final line of the Unsealing Magic Spell, froze in unison. Chanting now meant certain death.
“Disperse…”
Lu Shi knew—even if Lu Jin finished the chant alone, balance was impossible. Grief and fury flashed across her face. *So close…* Dispersing now meant only backlash. Lu Jin felt Lu Shi’s Mana invading her body; their energies spiraled into disorder. More than backlash awaited. Heart heavy with regret—this was their closest shot at success—she gave a reluctant nod.
Black and white forcibly separated. Both coughed blood, hastily calming the rampaging Mana within.
Seeing the threatening energy fade, Hrubess relaxed. Her gaze swept the scene: backlash-stricken Lu Jin and Lu Shi, Mana-depleted Old Woman, Qiu Sheng and Zhao Qingsnow trapped by Four Symbols Magic. Undeniably, she was the victor.
Then—a cannonball etched with Array Patterns struck her light barrier. It shattered two Mana shields effortlessly. By the fourth layer, her inner Mana halted it. She seized the smoking projectile, examined it, and deduced its design.
“Reinforcement Array Patterns. Amplification Array Patterns. Pity it didn’t detonate… Even if it had, it couldn’t break my shield.”
No sooner spoken than a second cannonball fell. As she raised a hand to block, it exploded. A deafening roar shattered two barriers; heat seared her cheeks through the light.
“I told you, this is nothing—”
Space before her fractured. The fissure pierced her barrier, stretching straight to her face. She startled slightly, eyes scanning the arena—two figures were gone. Qiu Sheng and Zhao Qingsnow, once trapped, had vanished. Her gaze locked on the rift. She knew where they’d gone.
She began chanting to mend space—but they were faster. Channeling their last Mana into fists, they unleashed a final, combined punch. A raw roar tore from their throats. Fists slammed squarely into Hrubess’s cheeks, hurling her backward.
Hrubess stabilized midair, a trace of anger flashing in her eyes. Flames surged from her palms, aiming to reduce them to ash.
“Harm my disciple not!”
A thunderbolt split the sky with a rumbling roar. A hoarse female voice pierced the pitch-black spatial fissure, cleaving the heavens. Pillar-like lightning cleansed the earth—yet not a single soul from the Twelfth District was harmed.
Qiu Sheng froze in shock, then joy flooded her face.
“Master!”
“You’ve done well, Qiu Sheng… I never imagined you’d grow so much in months. It warms my heart. You’ve shed arrogance, faced yourself truly—your future is limitless.”
Indeed, the one emerging from the rift was Qiu Sheng’s master. Months ago, Qiu Sheng had bought intelligence from Night Frost for her. Using it, her master slipped through an unstable Abyssal Rift into the Abyss, seeking breakthrough to Chapter Three. The rift’s instability trapped her—until spatial fluctuations revealed a weak point. Sensing Qiu Sheng’s peril, she shattered space without hesitation and returned.
“Who are you?” Hrubess murmured. She’d never heard of this woman in the Twelfth District. The tattered suit marked her clearly as Chapter Three—same material as expedition gear. *Crafted by the Fourth District’s guardian?*
“Order Keeper of the Eleventh District. Thunder Slash. I waste no words. You harmed my disciple—prepare to die.”
She ripped off the ruined suit. Lightning swirled around her, coalescing into a sleek black Magic Armor traced with golden, lightning-like patterns. She stretched, reacquainting herself with freedom after being confined too long.
Hrubess slightly furrowed her brow. *Thunder Slash… the Magic Maiden who vanished. Took two months’ leave, gone three. So she sought Chapter Three in the Abyss.* A lightning-wielding Chapter Three was formidable—but Hrubess, blessed with divine power, wouldn’t yield easily.
On the rooftop, Qianchun ducked back. She’d readied the Magic Stone to retrieve them—never expecting someone to emerge from the rift, someone tied to Qiu Sheng… *Good news.* While the two faced off, she and Zhou Jiaxin moved everyone to a nearby new apartment. Then she settled onto a stool, ready to watch the celestial duel.
“Qiu Sheng,” Thunder Slash said softly, “today your master shows you… true lightning.”
She inhaled deeply. Her form flashed—became lightning. Blinding speed carried her before Hrubess. Fist met shield with a furious roar. Lightning erupted from her knuckles. The barrier shattered instantly; Hrubess stumbled back.
Before Hrubess could react, the final syllable of Thunder Slash’s silent chant landed.
“…Unseal.”
Mana surged toward her—but she didn’t form Magic Armor. She condensed every ounce into her palm, seized the swirling energy, and pulled forth a long spear.
Everyone in the corner—even Hrubess—stared wide-eyed. She hadn’t fully unsealed her power. She’d channeled *all* of it into the Mana-forged weapon!
The spear pierced Hrubess’s dome-like barrier effortlessly. In seconds, Hrubess cycled through dozens of Magic Spells—none withstood a single thrust. Qiu Sheng watched, breathless. Thunder Slash moved with swift, fluid grace—a breathtaking sight. The spear, charged with unsealed might, swept all obstacles aside, thrusting straight for Hrubess’s Eye Orb. Thunder Slash saw it clearly: that Eye Orb was the source. Destroy it, and victory would be hers.
“Who’s there?”
Thunder Slash turned. A robed figure stood silently in the corner. Qianchun and Qiu Sheng looked too—unaware of when she’d appeared.
“I sensed Hrubess faltering. Never expected the Twelfth District still held an ace.”
The black robe flicked. Over a dozen Seekers of Cantata Two materialized behind her—each formidable. Two Chapter Threes plus a dozen Cantata Twos… *Truly troublesome.*
“Handling one or two? Easy. This many? I’ve no confidence,” Thunder Slash admitted.
“What, running already?” Qianchun stepped closer with a smirk. “Weren’t you just promising a grand performance?”
“The evacuation’s complete,” Qianchun added calmly. “Aklatia doesn’t idle. While you fought, she moved everyone.”
The answer was clear.
“You outnumber me. I can’t win.” Thunder Slash raised a hand. Mana flared, forming a barrier to hold back all from the Twelfth District—then she dissolved into a streak of light and vanished.
