Chapter 392: The Mastermind

Chapter 392: The Mastermind

"Who are you?" Grand High Priest Gregory squinted his eyes and asked in a deep voice.

He took a quick glance at Rain and noticed that the young man's aura was merely that of a Tier 2 Liquidization Wizard, which slightly eased his worries.

Apparently, the current situation had caught him off guard.

The expected scenario of the Bius Armament Academy's stationed wizards and the Hellfire Boulder Giants mutually destroying each other had not occurred.

Judging from the battle traces at the scene, the stationed wizards from the Academy were quite capable.

Meanwhile, the other Black Flame Cultists were on high alert, surrounding Rain.

"So, you used this thing to attract the Hellfire Boulder Giants to attack?"

Rain did not respond to Gregory. With his keen perception, he immediately noticed a black-robed figure standing beside the leader, holding something from which he could sense a faint, scorching radiation.

At that moment, Vice Dean Bradley led several of the Academy's most elite wizards and appeared on the other side of the Black Flame Cultists. The commotion caused by the massive Obsidian War Golem immediately drew Gregory's attention.

"Oh? A War Golem and an initial-stage Tier 3 Crystalization Wizard?"

"Bius Armament Academy, huh? It's quite interesting. I recall you're just a medium-sized Academy. Is this your trump card?" Gregory smirked upon seeing this, and said.

Finally, he understood why the young man before him was so calm.

It turned out that they had set up an ambush with a Tier 3 Crystalization Wizard and a War Golem.

However, to Gregory, this was quite amusing.

Perhaps they didn't realize that even among Tier 3 Crystalization Wizards, there were significant differences in strength.

"Black Flame Cult!" Bradley exclaimed, his face darkening.

When he saw the group of black-robed figures, he immediately sensed their origin from their attire and aura.

The leader among them was a deep-rooted member of the Black Flame Cult, one of the churches of the Evil God, and his strength was clearly above Bradley's.

This made Bradley feel as if he was facing a formidable enemy.

During the previous Imperial Capital War, there was a member of the Black Flame Cult who worshipped the Hunting God, Luen. Although he was repelled, he had still managed to kill an Imperial Dragon Knight on the spot.

Meanwhile, inside a hidden room within the camp.

The wizards from the Academy, upon witnessing this scene, began whispering among themselves.

"So, it really was someone causing trouble behind the scenes!"

"It's those guys from the Black Flame Cult."

"I never expected them to discover this secret realm."

"Damn, I thought Rachel's death in the last attack was an accident, but it seems like it was indirectly caused by these people."

One of the wizards, who seemed to want to charge out and fight the Black Flame Cultists, was restrained by his peers.

"Don't be impulsive! They are very strong, especially the leader, who seems to be a late-stage Tier 3 Crystalization expert. I estimate he's Bradley's match."

Upon hearing this, Alicia and Audrey exchanged glances and couldn't help but laugh.

A Tier 3 Crystalization expert would indeed be a top-notch figure in any Academy or church. However, in front of Lord Rain, they might still not be a match.

But they sensed that Rain seemed to not want to reveal his identity to everyone.

So, the two women could only think about it in their hearts and refrained from speaking up.

Meanwhile, Paul, who was standing nearby, couldn't hold back any longer and muttered:

"With that person here, you can rest assured!"

"Damn, it's my fault!"

A wizard standing beside him, puzzled by Paul's muttering, asked:

"Hmm?"

"Paul, do you know this mysterious person?"

The wizard asked while thinking, 'Indeed, as expected of a direct descendant of the Imperial Capital's ducal family.'

Just as Paul was about to respond, he suddenly looked up and met the gaze of the two women. His face turned pale, and he said to the wizard:

"I don't know him, but he must be an important figure arranged by the Academy. He's definitely capable of handling this situation."

"Rest assured!"

Although the wizard didn't understand why Paul didn't recognize the person, he still nodded in agreement.

Paul, no-frills flights was well-known among the Imperial Capital's upper class.

Paul, who was standing nearby, couldn't hold back any longer and muttered:

"With that person here, you can rest assured!"

"Damn, it's my fault!"

A wizard standing beside him, puzzled by Paul's muttering, asked:

"Hmm?"

"Paul, do you know this mysterious person?"

.2. The wizard asked while thinking, 'Indeed, as expected of a direct descendant of the Imperial Capital's ducal family.'

Just as Paul was about to respond, he suddenly looked up and met the gaze of the two women. His face turned pale, and he said to the wizard:

"I don't know him, but he must be an important figure arranged by the Academy. He's definitely capable of handling this situation."

"Rest assured!"

"Who the hell are you?" Gregory's eyes narrowed as he asked again.

"You might not have heard my name, but I am an old friend of the Black Flame Cult," said Rain, smiling.

"Let me think..."

"You are the Grand High Priest Eckster of Minster Province and Grand High Priest Erickson of Marne Province. I sent you both to the embrace of the Hunting God," Rain explained.

"What! I know who you are now, you're Rain!" exclaimed a Black Flame Cultist, his eyes widening in shock.

Having just been transferred from Marne Province, he naturally knew who Rain's superior was.

But Gregory's heart was pounding like a thousand horses had galloped through it.

Damn it!

He was merely on a whim, leading a team to collect Hellfire Crystals, and he encounters this Rain fellow.

As a Grand High Priest, he was well aware of Rain's accomplishments.

Apart from his own church, he had also heard that recently, Rain had been in conflict with the Sea God Church, reportedly slaying numerous renowned Sea God Cultists.

This made Gregory hesitate, looking at Rain before him, feeling torn between attacking and retreating. His entire body seemed frozen in place!

If they fought, the odds were heavily against them.

If they didn't fight, their morale would be crushed, and they would still lose.

However, Gregory, being a Grand High Priest of the Black Flame Cult, hesitated for a moment. Then, he found the courage to take a gamble, and shouted:

"Everyone, attack!"

Following Gregory's command, the remaining Black Flame Cultists began to cast spells towards Rain.

In an instant, countless Black Flame Fireballs rained down on Rain like a sudden storm.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Amidst the explosions, an intact figure emerged from the dust, radiating a metallic sheen.

It was Rain, who had activated the Tier 2 'Iron Armor Technique'.

In a flash, he appeared before a Tier 2 Dark Cultist who had just regained his senses.

With lightning speed, Rain punched the cultist, leaving no time for him to cast more powerful spells or other defensive measures. Instinctively, the cultist activated the innate spell 'Shadow Shield'.

Just as the shield appeared, Rain's fist struck.

"Sizzle!"

The innate spell 'Shadow Shield' shattered!

The cultist's black energy shield burst like a bubble, and Rain's fist drove straight through, hitting the cultist's soft abdomen.

"Boom!"

Instantly, a bowl-sized bump appeared on the cultist's back. His eyes bulged like a goldfish, nearly popping out of their sockets, and his entire body flew twenty to thirty meters away.

"Boom!"

The cultist slammed into the side of Fury Gorge's cliff.

At that moment, a spiderweb-like crack radiated from the center of the hard cliff surface where the cultist's body had impacted.

"Ugh~~~Ugh~~~"

The cultist vomited blood, unable to utter a word, his lips trembled, and he died!

The power of a single punch was terrifying.

It instantly killed a Tier 2 Dark Cultist.

But this was just the beginning.

As the other Black Flame Cultists' hearts sank, Rain's figure moved like a silver lightning bolt, crisscrossing the ground, leaving silver lines in its wake.

Each silver line represented the death of a Black Flame Cultist.

"Slowdown Spell!"

"Weaken Spell!"

"Confinement Spell!"

A barrage of negative energy spells bombarded Rain.

After all, everyone knew that without restricting Rain's speed, they stood no chance.

Except for innate spells and granted Dark Arts, powerful spells required incantation time. But with Rain's extraordinary speed, a two to three-second incantation could mean death several times over.

"Gravity Field!"

At Gregory's command, a dark grey energy sphere radiated from him, distorting gravity within a forty to fifty-meter radius.

Rain's speed, once swift as a rabbit, now crawled like a turtle.

This gave the surviving Black Flame Cultists a moment of relief, grateful for their Grand High Priest's signature spell, 'Gravity Field', which proved to be exceptionally powerful.

The Tier 3 Earth spell 'Gravity Field' was challenging to cultivate, requiring significant time and energy, and most importantly, innate talent.

But once mastered, its power was astonishing, capable of deciding the outcome of a local small-scale battle.

"Attack now!" Gregory roared.

The surviving Black Flame Cultists reacted immediately, hastily casting spells.

"Oh? Do you think I'm restricted in my actions?" Luen contemplated for a moment before deciding against using transformation to counter the current gravity field.

"In that case, I'll use sorcery to deal with this," Luen smiled slightly at the sight.

His lips moved rapidly, and a deep voice emerged:

"Metal Transformation Spell!"

"Cutting Net Spell!"

"Sharpen Spell!"

"Wizard Skill: Multi-Cut Net!"

Three large, gleaming silver nets suddenly appeared in front of him.

"Swish!"

With a wave of his hand, the three silver nets flew towards the three Black Flame Cultists who were gathered together.

As the Black Flame Cultists were in the midst of casting spells, stopping halfway would result in severe sorcery backlash. So, they were momentarily stunned by Luen's near-instantaneous sorcery attack.

But in that brief moment of hesitation, the three silver nets passed right through their bodies!

"Sss! Sss! Sss!"

The three Black Flame Cultists, who had been standing and casting spells, still wore expressions of fear and disbelief. However, their pale faces soon turned gruesome as they were covered in crisscrossing bloodlines.

"Crash!"

In an instant, they became three piles of mangled flesh and blood! Gregory's eyes widened at the sight.

Not only was Luen's close combat formidable, but his sorcery attacks were equally astonishing.

Realizing the dire situation, Gregory and his assistant, who was holding a wooden box, hurriedly said, "Quick, let's split up and run!"

However, before his assistant could respond, a metal cage abruptly appeared, trapping him inside.

Immediately after, the three silver nets flashed and disappeared, cutting both the assistant and the metal cage into pieces.

This chilled Gregory to the core. He knew he was facing the biggest crisis of his life. If he didn't handle it well, he would follow in the footsteps of the Grand Priests of the provinces of Minster and Mane.

"It seems I have no choice but to use this move!"

Gregory took a step forward, grabbed the wooden box that his subordinate had dropped, and quickly opened it. He took out a crimson crystal, the size of an infant's head, and held it tightly in his hand.

As soon as the crystal was exposed to the air, a scorching sensation filled the entire area.

Upon seeing the crimson crystal, Bradley, the assistant leader, exclaimed in shock, "Is that an Abyssal Hellfire Crystal?!"

"No wonder you were able to attract so many Hellfire Boulder Giants. You actually have such a thing!"

Before Bradley could finish speaking, Gregory's aura surged, and with his hands outstretched, a large mass of black flame energy was channeled through his palms into the crimson crystal!

Instantly, the crimson crystal, as if alive, began to levitate in midair.

Then, as if triggered by the first atomic fission, numerous crimson fire snakes burst out from within the crystal and rapidly grew in size.

The fire snakes, initially as thick as a bowl, instantly became thicker than a waist. They formed a rope-like curve in midair before returning to the crystal.

After a few seconds, more and more fire snakes emerged, like red cloths piecing together a flame giant over ten meters tall, appearing before everyone's eyes.

"Who... who has awakened... the great Infernus!" A powerful pressure swept through the area, causing even the Tier 2 Liquidization wizards to tremble in fear.

Damn!

What exactly was the opponent's strength?

"Quick! Stop him!" Bradley exclaimed upon seeing this, remembering a description from an ancient book and realizing what was happening.

"Abyssal Hellfire Boulder Giant?" Luen watched this scene, his eyes flashing.

The wizards cast various sorcery spells towards the newly appeared Abyssal Hellfire Boulder Giant, but most of the spells were vaporized by the evil fire energy before reaching three meters from the giant's body.

Only the sorcery spells cast by the Tier 3 Crystalization wizard, Bradley, could barely reach the giant's surface, but they were like tickles, causing little substantial damage.

"Hehe, no time to waste!" Gregory, with his hunched figure and withered face, laughed triumphantly upon seeing this.

Although Gregory had just consumed almost all of his energy and even a portion of his life force to activate the Abyssal Hellfire Crystal, the cost was worth it.

The Abyssal Hellfire Boulder Giant's combat power was even stronger than he had imagined!

At this moment, the giant who had just claimed to be Infernus seemed to regain more consciousness. It looked down at its body, surveyed the surroundings, and said in a deep voice,

"My body... is not complete."

It extended its hand, and several pale green boulders, as if pulled by a special force, swiftly flew towards it.

The surrounding piles of pale green Hellfire Boulder Giant remains also began to vibrate.

In an instant, hundreds of pale green boulders, like moths to a flame, converged towards the giant.

After a few seconds, a giant over twelve meters tall, its body engulfed in crimson flames, appeared before everyone.

"What...what kind of monster is this?!"

"It's an Abyssal Hellfire Boulder Giant, the leader of the Hellfire Boulder Giants!"

"It's also an Epic-level Bartos Hell Beast, but its body is pieced together from Hellfire remains, so its strength should be greatly diminished. However, it should still possess power at the Legendary Peak level!"

Bradley's expression turned grim as he spoke.

The Black Obsidian War Golem was also pushed to its limits by Bradley.

The crystal core within the golem began to operate at full capacity, and its dark surface was covered with a thick layer of shimmering yellow magical light, a 'Stone Skin' spell.

Without hesitation, the golem took large strides towards the Abyssal Hellfire Boulder Giant named Infernus.

"Thud, thud, thud!"

Each step caused the ground to tremble slightly.

"Shock Strike!" Bradley shouted.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

The Black Obsidian War Golem unleashed a rapid series of over ten heavy punches with its giant fists, like iron hammers, towards Infernus.

For a moment, shards of stone flew from the Abyssal Hellfire's body. But the next second, a massive stone fist struck the Black Obsidian War Golem, sending it flying.

The size difference between the two was immense; seven meters against twelve meters, akin to a monkey facing off against Tyson.

The area where the Black Obsidian War Golem had been struck showed clear signs of shattering and charring.

This further indicated that the Abyssal Hellfire could not withstand the golem's heavy blows.

For a moment, including Bradley, all the Academy Wizards fixed their hopeful gazes on Rain.

The two women, for the first time, began to worry. After all, the giant before them seemed even more formidable than the legendary 'Sculptor' Harold, and its thick hide made it a tough opponent.

Whether Rain could defeat it was still unknown.

"Haha, even if you are Rain, you can only run this time!" Gregory, having paid a huge price, believed he had gained an absolute advantage. He laughed maniacally.

"Rain?"

"I seem to have heard that name before." Many Academy Wizards looked puzzled, feeling they had heard the name somewhere.

"Sigh..." Rain couldn't help but sigh as his identity was exposed by the High Priestess of the Black Flame Cult.

Since his identity was revealed, there was no point in hiding his transformation.

Suddenly, Rain's body expanded like a balloon, his skin turning dark grey, and dragon scales appeared all over.

His back skin ripped open, and a pair of fleshy wings sprouted.

Seconds later, a colossal creature appeared before everyone.

It had three curved horns on its head, a thick tail at the base of its spine, and its body towered over the Abyssal Hellfire Boulder Giant

Seeing this, everyone, including Bradley, was stunned.

Before they could recover, the Draconic King, Rain's transformed state, charged towards the Abyssal Hellfire.

At the same time, Rain activated the core skill 'Weakness Control' of the Epic-level profession 'Thousand Blades King'.

Instantly, a three-dimensional image of the Abyssal Hellfire's defense strength appeared before Rain, marked with blue, yellow, and red dots.

The giant's chest, where a crimson crystal pulsated like a heart, was marked in red.

"Roar!"

The Abyssal Hellfire angrily swung a rock fist towards Rain.

But Rain suddenly accelerated, his massive dragon claws like venomous snakes, piercing the giant's chest and extracting the pulsating crimson crystal.

The giant's fist was still half a meter away from Rain.

"Unworthy Infernus, newly awakened..."

A deep, resentful voice echoed as the pieced-together Abyssal Hellfire collapsed like a falling building.

Gregory stood frozen, unsure of what to say.

He had paid a heavy price to summon this trump card, only to see it crumble before Rain.

The Academy Wizards present, including Alicia, Audrey, and even Paul hiding in the room, stared in disbelief at the scene before them.

After all, hearing about something was not the same as witnessing it firsthand.

"So strong!"

"Incredibly strong!" Paul muttered.

With such power, it was no wonder he could defeat the legendary 'Sculptor' Harold.

In the center of the arena, Rain reverted to his human form.

He weighed the newly acquired crimson crystal, the Abyssal Hellfire Crystal.

Originally, he had come to Fury Gorge to help his mentor Mogaro with a task and hoped to find a few Hellfire Crystals.

Not only did he find more Hellfire Crystals than expected, but he also acquired an additional Abyssal Hellfire Crystal.

Judging by the power the giant had displayed, this crystal was equivalent to a Bartos Hell Beast crystal, an Epic-level interdimensional beast crystal, which would be invaluable for his golem research and other purposes.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end