"Kid, I'll admit—your audacity is impressive. You actually think you can take on two tenth-tier mages at once?" Orc paused briefly before letting out a mocking laugh.
By locking onto both Orc and Carman simultaneously, Kael had made his intentions clear: he planned to fight them together. This infuriated Orc—did this brat really believe reaching the tenth-tier made him invincible?
"Pathetic fool. A bit of talent, and he thinks he can conquer the world." Carman shook his head, sneering.
Kael couldn't care less about their opinions. His mind raced with calculations.
Orc was a peak tenth-tier mage. One-on-one, Kael was confident. But adding Carmanto the mix? That complicated things.
However, Carman had a critical weakness—he'd only just broken through to the tenth-tier, his foundation unstable. He was the duo's Achilles' heel. If Kael could eliminate Carman swiftly, then focus on Orc… he might stand a chance!
The kitten, perched behind Kael, seemed to grasp his plan.
"Minor World!"
In an instant, Kael unleashed his Minor World. A towering Tree of Life rose within it, radiating divine light. Its lush canopy stretched like clouds, its trunk pillar-like, filling the space with vibrant vitality.
Orc's heart jolted. He hadn't expected Kael to deploy his Minor World immediately—nor for it to span kilometers, rivaling even Orc's own domain! And this from a kid who'd only just reached the tenth-tier?!
Orc's thoughts whirled, but the battle left no room for hesitation.
Kael's eyes gleamed. Maintaining a Minor World drained energy massively. Without the Tree of Life's support, his mana would've been exhausted in minutes.
Strike now—eliminate Carman first!
Kael focused his mana on Carman, stirring a turbulent vortex of energy around himself. The sheer pressure made Carman's heart pound.
"This kid's monstrous. In a one-on-one, I'd stand no chance." Cold sweat beaded on Carman's forehead as he hurriedly summoned his own Minor World—a blazing realm of fire, its flames roaring with terrifying intensity.
Yet Kael remained unfazed. As a fire mage himself, did flames truly scare him?
With a smirk, he glanced at the kitten on his shoulder.
Understanding instantly, the kitten nodded—then leaped into the air, transforming mid-flight into the Winged Serpent!
That's right, a tenth-tier Winged Serpent. Its deep purple scales gleamed, its massive body stretching over ten meters long. Its forked tongue flicked, and its crimson eyeslocked onto Carman with predatory intensity.
The illusion was flawless. The kitten's mimicry of the serpent was indistinguishable from the real thing, its oppressive aura so tangible that even Kael's keen spiritual sense couldn't detect the ruse—let alone Carman.
Carman jolted in terror, his soul nearly fleeing his body at the sight. Beside him, Orc fumbled mid-motion, equally startled.
"A tenth-tier monster?!" Carman blurted.
Kael's earlier summoning of fifty-plus Unicorn Rhinos had already left Carman and Orc deeply shaken. Now, a horrifying thought struck Carman:
Was this kid a master of beast contracts? Had he somehow tamed even a tenth-tier Winged Serpent?!
Given the rhino army, Carman had no choice but to believe it.
No wonder he's so fearless—he's been hiding a tenth-tier beast as his trump card!
Kael inwardly smiled. This entire sequence had been meticulously planned, originally meant for Orc. But against Carman? The trap worked even better.
Seizing Carman's moment of distraction, Kael struck.
His Minor World expanded fully, his eyes locking onto Carman as he unleashed—
"Thunderflame Eyes!"
Kael spared no mana, prioritizing Carman's elimination. The Thunderflame Eyes were devastating—purple lightning and frostfire stacked together, instant-cast, leaving Carman no time to react.
Still reeling from the serpent's pressure, Carman was vaporized by the blast before he could blink.
His body plummeted from the sky, charred and frozen simultaneously—already dead.
A tenth-tier expert—albeit newly ascended—had fallen to Kael in a single strike!
"Damn it...!" Orc's hair stood on end as a chill ran down his spine, his heart pounding with dread.
Kael's attack had obliterated Carman, but the mana cost was staggering. The more potent the Thunderflame Eyes, the greater the drain. Such an expenditure would've exhausted anyone else—yet Kael remained standing.
Orc's gaze toward Kael now brimmed with fear and disbelief. That spell had been unfathomably bizarre, annihilating Carman instantly.
A technique so unorthodox that Orc had never heard of it. Still, such a terrifying ability surely had limitations—otherwise, this brat would already be invincible.
Clutching at this thought, Orc mustered a sliver of fighting spirit.
No matter how frightening, this kid's power likely caps at insta-killing a fledgling tenth-tier like Carman. Against me, a peak tenth-tier, he stands no chance!
As Orc stewed, the Winged Serpent illusion conjured by the kitten began to flicker and fade. The feline's phantasm couldn't last forever—soon, the serpent's image warped, reverting to the tiny Dragon-Cat.
"Kael, nice work! One shot, one kill!" The kitten perched triumphantly on Kael's back, its tone smug.
Orc's jaw dropped. That "tenth-tier Winged Serpent" had just been a fraud—a cheap trick! The realization ignited his fury, his face flushing crimson.
He'd been played for a fool!
His chest burned as if exploding. This brat's ruthless cunning had cost him Carman, the five thousand Black Eagles, and Zev... What kind of monster had the Reynolds provoked?!
A glance at the manor below nearly made Orc black out.
The estate lay in ruins—walls shattered, grounds trampled by the Unicorn Rhinos, littered with the corpses of Reynolds clansmen.
For all their pride, the family stood no match against fifty ninth-tier beasts.
In minutes, the Reynolds' home had become a living hell.
Kael felt no remorse. Every Reynolds had wanted him dead—mercy was never an option.
"I'll kill you!" Orc roared, his fury so intense it felt like smoke might pour from his ears.
Now at the peak of his power, Orc unleashed his full might, his Minor Worldexpanding to engulf Kael.
Kael stood unwavering. Though his mana had been drained significantly, strands of life energy from the Tree of Life seeped into him, replenishing his strength.
Facing the enraged Orc, Kael too gave his all.
Their Minor Worlds collided, space itself quaking from the impact. The overlapping domains warped violently, generating twin forces of repulsion that pressed against their chests like a thousand boulders, making breathing arduous.
"A peak tenth-tier mage is formidable indeed. But this is perfect—I'll use Orc as my whetstone, sharpening my skills to new heights!" Kael mused silently.
With both combatants fighting at full strength, Orc found Kael's prowess terrifying. The sheer diversity and ferocity of Kael's lightning magic left him shaken to the core.
In this moment, dazzling spells became harbingers of death. As their Minor Worlds clashed repeatedly, the laws within their domains imposed heavy restrictions. Yet Kael's lightning magic proved exceptionally lethal, gradually tipping the scales in his favor.
Orc's shock deepened. How could he—a peak tenth-tier veteran—be suppressed by a newcomer?!
Cold sweat drenched Orc's back as his gaze toward Kael grew increasingly alarmed.