"Mana Disruption!" Kael tapped his Sacred Flame Scepter, immediately unleashing another spell!
Mana Disruption, another interference-type magic, proved even more terrifying than Spell Silence.
The spell struck Dylan!
Unable to evade while being relentlessly pursued by Kael's Stellar Steps, Dylan felt his internal magic energy surge chaotically. His face paled slightly as he nearly suffered magical backlash, but relying on his vast experience and extraordinarily solid magical foundation, he merely staggered momentarily before gradually regaining control.
Seizing this advantage, Kael pressed his attack and roared another incantation: "Frostflame Hand!"
A gigantic icy-blue flame hand descended from the sky like a titan's palm, mercilessly crashing down upon Dylan with overwhelming force!
BOOM!
The thunderous collision nearly ruptured the audience's eardrums. Students watched in awe as the frostflame inferno raged, completely engulfing Dylan's section of the arena.
As the eerie yet deadly flames continued burning, the front-row spectators instinctively retreated several meters, fearful of being touched by these deceptively beautiful but lethal flames.
CRACK!
A crisp shattering sound echoed from within the conflagration. Dylan emerged hurtling backward from the flames. Though his body showed no visible injuries, his Earth Guardian defensive spell now hung by a thread - the once deep ochre glow had faded to a faint shimmer. A single basic spell from Kael would now shatter this weakened protection.
This display proved particularly striking considering how even the 'Berserk Mage' Andrew had struggled to breach Dylan's Earth Guardian defense. Kael's near destruction of it with a single spell unequivocally demonstrated his overwhelming power.
"So formidable..." the crowd murmured in awe.
"I always believed Dylan was the Magic Academy's strongest, but now I'm not so sure. While Dylan remains powerful, Kael seems even more dominant!"
"Exactly, I feel the same way..."
Though the duel between Kael and Dylan had just begun, their performances already left the audience breathless. Their terrifying spellcasting speed, impeccable anticipation, masterful use of interference magic, and seamless spell-cancellation techniques all commanded profound respect.
Magic Academy students stood particularly tall, chests puffed with pride. Witness this! Our academy nurtures true masters, peerless geniuses who rival any!
Yet even as Kael and Dylan's duel captivated the crowd, their performances stirred astonishment—particularly Kael's subtle yet undeniable command of the battle's tempo, which gave him a fleeting advantage!
Dylan was formidable, but Kael seemed mightier still!
This was the collective impression.
Of course, this was merely the beginning. Yet it had already ignited fervent anticipation. As Vesper had proclaimed, this clash would ultimately decide the Magic Academy's true strongest—a question soon to be settled.
Though momentarily suppressed by Kael, Dylan showed no trace of panic. Instead, a faint smile flickered in his eyes. Suddenly, his brown mage robes billowed without wind, lifting upwards as he solemnly chanted a terse incantation—completed in an instant.
"What's this...?" Kael froze mid-movement, surprise flashing across his face.
"Levitation!" Abruptly, Dylan's body ascended, hovering a full meter above the ground.
"Damn! Levitation! Kael's in trouble now!" Finn shouted excitedly, while beside him, Amelia frowned—a rare show of concern for their comrade.
"By the stars! Dylan has invoked Levitation!" Vesper exclaimed from the commentary platform, gesturing animatedly. "A seventh-tier spell! This dramatically enhances a mage's mobility. I fear Kael now faces an uphill battle!"
Levitation—a seventh-tier spell exclusive to mages of equivalent rank. True to its name, this magic allowed casters to hover mid-combat, multiplying their movement speed severalfold over grounded opponents.
Such a spell fundamentally transformed mobile warfare, compensating for mages' inherent lack of agility. Undoubtedly one of Dylan's trump cards—likely reserved for confronting Ethan himself—yet now deployed against Kael.
Hovering midair, Dylan's gaze sharpened like blades, his typically gentle demeanor cooling perceptibly—clear proof that Kael's earlier assault had pushed him to recognize the younger mage as a genuine threat.
Kael blurred into motion, vanishing from his position as incantations spilled from his lips. Yet Dylan, now levitating, did not pursue. Instead, he began his own resonant chant. Both voices rose in tandem, weaving lengthy, esoteric syllables as they prepared high-tier spells.
The audience held its breath, awaiting the culmination of their magic.
"Flame Summoning: Scorching Arachnids!" Kael's spell erupted as a summoning ritual—a technique recorded in The Book of Immortality. Though less devastating than the Nine-Tailed Inferno Fox, this magic excelled in versatility, its shorter incantation window making it viable even in frenzied combat.
Flame Spiders.
A fiery magic circle flared to life, its arcane geometry hissing violently as over a dozen crimson spiders clawed free. Each two-meter-long monstrosity radiated blistering heat, their eight legs scuttling with a sinister creak as they swarmed around Kael, forming a searing perimeter.
"A mass summoning!" Cruy, observing nearby, narrowed his eyes. "Each spider is an Elite-tier magical construct… Fifteen in total. Even a Lord-class entity would be torn apart… And he cast this so quickly…" As a summoning specialist, he alone grasped the terrifying implications, a chill creeping down his spine. Rarely did one witness such a horde of Elite-tier summons conjured simultaneously—let alone with such blistering speed.
"Abyssal Labyrinth!" Dylan countered, his hovering form flickering unpredictably as his staff pointed skyward.
The ground quaked thunderously. Towering ochre stone walls—each over five meters tall—erupted from the earth, crisscrossing chaotically to form a sprawling maze. The labyrinth's scale overwhelmed even Kael's reflexes, its shifting walls ensnaring him instantly.
Interlocking and rearranging without pattern, the stone barriers sealed Kael within a disorienting prison, severing sightlines and trapping him in a directionless void.
"A large-scale interference spell!" Kael's mind raced with alarm. Abyssal Labyrinth—this magic could trap hundreds within its kilometer-spanning maze. Were it cast by an Arcane-tier mage, it might imprison thousands with ease.
"Truly worthy of the Magic Academy's genius!" Such spells demanded extraordinary mental fortitude, yet Dylan had deployed it effortlessly.
Still levitating, Dylan melded into the labyrinth's shadows—the perfect synergy of Levitation and Abyssal Labyrinth granting him both mobility and concealment.
"Patience. This is mere disruption." Kael gritted his teeth. "If I map this maze, his tactics crumble." With a tap of his scepter, five Flame Spiders scuttled forward through twisting corridors while five others backtracked. The remaining five maintained their defensive perimeter around him.
By deploying ten spiders as scouts, Kael aimed to pinpoint Dylan's location and shatter the labyrinth's hold.
The duel's escalating complexity stole the audience's breath—a masterclass in adaptability where every heartbeat shifted the advantage.
Sensing Kael's strategy, Dylan struck. Stone walls roared to life, their surfaces rippling with bestial fury as entire sections of the labyrinth lunged toward Kael like living battering rams!