Chapter 7

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Chapter 7: The Forbidden Spell Duel

Both sides’ mage corps controlled their magical energy input while collectively directing the forbidden spell clouds toward the enemy’s skies. Due to the limitations of their mental strength and control, the forbidden spell clouds couldn’t descend directly onto the enemy but were shoveled with great effort toward the opposing camp. At this point, both great empires had no time to worry about their aerial knights and could only hope they would retreat safely to escape.

The elemental storm in the sky created violent air fluctuations. Many aerial knights, relying on wing flapping for lift, found it impossible to maintain control and began to descend toward the ground. Although more dangerous down where both sides’ soldiers stood, losing lift in the air meant they could crash down and become a mere pile of flesh. Both sides’ aerial knights, unwilling to engage any longer, desperately struggled to fly away, their already shaky flight further impaired.

From the ground, a cluster of black dots that were previously mixed together split into two groups, each fleeing in different directions.

Even the gold giant dragon, controlling the void magnetic field, had to strain to maintain its form, preventing itself from losing control. Morin clung tightly to Gold Coin’s saddle, knowing that if he fell, he could only blame his bad luck and shouldn’t expect Gold Coin to catch him. Morin was already grateful that the dragon hadn’t turned on him.

Looking down, the devastation from the first wave of the forbidden spell cloud explosion was beyond “atrocious.” In an instant, both sides’ soldiers suffered a ten percent casualty rate, with over a hundred thousand lives lost in the blink of an eye.

Both commanders turned red with rage. Such massive casualties called for a decisive victory to compensate, or on returning to the imperial capital, they might find themselves in dire straits, facing the wrath of countless widows and orphans demanding justice for their fallen loved ones.

The mages, usually composed and refined, lost their elegance and restraint under pressure. Their faces turned deep red, veins bulging on their foreheads, as they recited their spells hurriedly and forcefully. One by one, they began to rise into the sky as if buoyed by anti-gravity spells, channeling every ounce of their mental power, control, and magic. The forbidden spell clouds in the air charged with energy again, forming countless new attack spells, their size and power multiplied several times over compared to the previous round.

Massive fireballs and lightning clashed in the sky, and the aerial knights caught off guard were obliterated before they could even scream, turning into ash and disappearing from existence. The remnants of the forbidden spell cascaded down, taking even more soldiers’ lives, as though the gates of hell had been opened.

Suddenly, the world seemed to pause, and strong winds picked up, creating numerous tornadoes that stretched from sky to ground.

Crack! Crack!

The amplified sound of tearing fabric rang out incessantly!

It was as if countless black cracks rapidly spread from the black lightning-infused forbidden spell clouds. This blackness was unlike any other people had seen, distinct from the forbidden spell clouds, so deep it seemed to absorb all light, pulling souls towards this overwhelming darkness.

“It’s the Absolute Spatial Prison Forbidden Spell…” a despairing mage from the Su Lan Empire cried out, his magical energy going awry. He coughed up a mouthful of blood and fell from mid-air, losing consciousness.

The other mages turned pale, as though they had witnessed the most horrifying sight in the world. Despair flickered in the eyes of the Su Lan commanders on the ground. They never expected the Texi Empire to have held back such a deadly trump card. The Absolute Spatial Prison, ranked fourth among the ten deadly forbidden spells, required exceptionally rare spatial mages to invoke. The weakest spatial spells could not be activated by just one or two mages, and the appearance of such a spatial forbidden spell indicated unparalleled destruction. As the Texi Empire unleashed the Absolute Spatial Prison, the Su Lan officers realized they were doomed; even if their mage corps remained unharmed and full of magic, they couldn’t withstand the slaughter this great forbidden spell would bring.

Both on the ground and in the sky, an invisible force drew all toward the black cracks within the black lightning-infused forbidden spell cloud. The cracks seemed to tear apart everything: air and magical clouds alike, brutally ripping through the black clouds towards the red fire element forbidden spell clouds. The red clouds offered no resistance, being torn apart as easily as a fragile girl’s modesty before a robust man.

The Su Lan Empire’s forbidden fire clouds were shredded by the initial assault of the Texi Empire’s lurking “Absolute Spatial Prison.” It was as if nothing could deter the all-consuming power of space, resulting in the many mages involved with the forbidden spell clouds of the Su Lan Empire constantly spraying blood and plummeting from the sky, certainty of disaster in their future. On the other hand, the Texi Empire, having prepared, saw many mages taking out precious potions to chug down, scarcely one in ten of their mages suffering from the backlash of the forbidden spell. The value of those potions surpassed that of an entire duchy affiliated with the empire, as the royal family had to pull out their strategic reserves to end this protracted battle quickly.

The Texi Empire’s spatial mages donned high-grade matching mage outfits, wielding identical top-tier staves made from the same materials and craftsmanship. They recited an unusual incantation in unison, creating a resonance effect that enhanced the efficiency of their magical conversion. The surrounding air felt as though it were vibrating with energy, and their vision blurred as if transparent ripples spread out.

“Absolute Spatial Prison!” The dragon knights of the Su Lan Empire, desperately trying to escape the range of the forbidden spell, felt their pupils constrict simultaneously. The dragons needed no prompting; they unleashed their full potential, accelerating with all their might. Even proud dragons dared not face the forbidden spell alone, especially one as rare and destructive as the spatial large forbidden spell. A single misstep could lead to the total annihilation of the Su Lan Empire’s dragon knight corps, which would represent a significant loss of political leverage and military might for the empire.

“Have the Texi dogs gone mad?” The gold giant dragon Gold Coin flapped its wings, charred and blackened. Being a gold element dragon, its body was covered in sharp weaponry. In the duel of forbidden spells, it had endured numerous lightning strikes from the Texi Empire, and the residual energy still lingered, causing the tips of its sharpened edges to glow a faint red. The heat impacted its body control, as a shimmering void magnetic field lightly cloaked the gold giant dragon, forming a long, pointed rhomboid that zigzagged clumsily through the air.

“Help! Help! Somebody save me!” The pitiful cries of Glan, the only son of the Minister of Civil Affairs, echoed from afar. The two-legged dragon, lacking the speed or strength of true giant dragons, found itself within the attack range of the forbidden spell, wobbling helplessly. After all, it was not true dragon kin and was obviously struggling.

“You bastards! Come save me, or my father will ensure you meet a terrible fate!” Even as death drew near, this irritating fly wouldn’t forget to issue threats.

Morin couldn’t help but slightly curl his lips. Did he feel sympathy? No—if a dog bites a man, the man won’t bite the dog. However, if that dog fell into water, it would just be a matter of principle not to beat a drowning dog; Morin had no extra sympathy, having learned to fend for himself against wild dogs while growing up.

“Akka, you have to help me! If I die, my father will make your family pay!” Glan bizarrely targeted Akka, who was closest, shouting in sheer panic and overtly threatening him. The two-legged dragon clearly appeared to be reaching its limit.

“You… you jerk!” Akka’s face paled, realizing that Misael, the fire giant dragon, was covered in numerous fierce injuries from battle, struggling to flap its wings with all its might. He wondered how this coward managed to sneak so close to the battlefield, seeking credit to such an extent. He had hoped to pretend not to see, not caring about the slacker’s fate, but Glan had hounded him, trapping him in this dilemma.

If he turned a blind eye now, the Minister of Civil Affairs would just turn into a rabid dog, attacking anyone in sight after losing his only son. Even if he was a Dragon Knight, Akka held only the rank of a count, but combined, it could hardly shield him from the wrath of one of the empire’s four ministers.

Akka cursed Glan in his thoughts, realizing what a calamity this brat was; just before the battle, he warned Morin to be careful, yet now that calamity was knocking at his own door.

“Misael, do your best to get Glan out of here!” Akka gritted his teeth and patted the fire element dragon’s back, fully aware of the severe consequences of ignoring Glan’s predicament.

Fire giant dragon Misael said nothing but nodded vigorously. As it gathered heat from the air beneath its wings, propelling itself toward the out-of-control Glan and his two-legged dragon, it gripped them both firmly in its claws and raced away from the battlefield.

“Morin, Morin! Wait for me!” Akka shouted from below, realizing that he had become an extra burden, making Misael’s injured flight even more difficult.

“Faster, Akka! That’s the Absolute Spatial Prison—we need to get out! Otherwise, we’re dead!” Morin frowned, raising his voice urgently. The battle had become completely uncontrollable; all he could do now was urge everyone to retreat from the battlefield immediately.