Chapter Seventy-Eight: Ice and Fire

Bai Shengye immediately spread his hands apart, sending out streams of frost and snow to block the two giant beasts. However, the power of the frost was quickly halved; while the smaller beast’s steps slowed, the larger lava colossus was already recovering from the cold. Its dim eyes flared red once more, ready to strike again.

Yun Lan was just about to step in and assist Bai Shengye, but the latter waved him back, positioning himself protectively in front.

“Dean Yun Lan, your health isn’t well. Let me handle this.”

“Cough, cough, as the dean, how can I let you—”

He didn’t finish his sentence, for he saw Bai Shengye channeling the power of ice onto his staff. With a sweep of his left hand down the shaft, a chill spread outward in his palm’s wake, condensing into blue-hued, unyielding ice that gradually formed into a blade—a sword of frost.

“Second form—Iceblade Sword!”

As the sword took shape, Bai Shengye struck with a swift slash. Where the sword’s aura passed, the earth cracked, jagged spires of ice erupting skyward, rising like a miniature glacier range. In an instant, the two advancing lava beasts were frozen, their lower halves locked tightly in the icy prison.

Yun Lan was astounded. The ability to morph one’s weapon was a secret art unique to the Snowy Domain. Bai Shengye, so young, was already an apothecary, a wielder of ice magic, and now revealed his mastery of weapon transformation! To possess so many gifts in one person—what an extraordinary student he was!

Even more surprised was Lin Aosoul. As a clansman of the Snowy Domain, he knew well the talent required for weapon transformation.

He thought to himself, “To possess ice magic and awaken a weapon to its second form—could he be of royal blood?”

Focused entirely on the battle, Bai Shengye didn’t see the astonishment on the faces beside him. He unleashed “Frostblade” once more, his magic surging to a new level with the weapon’s transformation, freezing the two beasts in an instant. Without pause, he swung the sword again.

“Iceblade Sword—Slash!”

The frozen lava beast shattered in an instant, split in two. Chunks of ice flew outward, and the sword’s freezing aura, cold as white mist, surged through the breach, sealing the ground behind in a sheen of silver-white.

Frost and snow danced in the air—glorious, weightless—and with such precise and flawless strikes, the sight was a pleasure to witness. Yun Lan’s heart swelled with relief.

“To subdue two lava colossi in such a short time—perhaps Bai Shengye truly is the turning point in this bitter struggle.”

“This won’t do,” Lin Aosoul, understanding the situation, spoke up. “Unless their magic cores are destroyed, no matter how many times you defeat them, they’ll rise again.”

As Bai Shengye adjusted his stance, the larger lava beast was already beginning to awaken from its icy bonds. The frost that gripped its knees and joints—those most heavily coated in snow—was slowly melting away. Soon, its limbs began to reassemble.

The smaller beast, though split in two and thawing more slowly, was not entirely dormant. At its center, a crimson light pulsed—surely the magic core—its heat gradually dissolving the ice that encased it.

“Attacking them one by one scatters my magic too thin,” Bai Shengye remarked. He remained calm, holding the iceblade sword in one hand, the other tucked casually in his pocket, still clad in his fitted white robe, sleeves rolled up past his elbows, frosty air gathering on his skin. He asked Lin Aosoul:

“How many lava beasts are there in total?”

“Five.”

“Have them gather all five together.” He glanced into the distance, where between two shattered walls, Shi Fangcheng and Yi Xin were holding off another beast. He pointed. “There—gather them there.”

“Alright!” Lin Aosoul responded without hesitation, immediately barking orders to his men. “Hey! Holy City Guard! Magicians’ Alliance! Find a way to herd the lava beasts together!”

Bai Shengye and Professor Yun Lan walked in that direction.

Shi Fangcheng was raising a thick stone wall to block a lava beast, the largest of the five. He placed both hands against the wall and, with a roar, used brute force to push the colossus back. But the stone wall only delayed the beast; under the intense heat, it soon began to melt, and the lava giant broke free once more.

“Lord of Scarlet Flame City,” Yun Lan called from the high ground, “my student has a way to eliminate the beasts. He may be the key to this battle.”

“Very well, whatever is needed, we will cooperate fully!”

“First, let’s bring the five beasts together.”

Yi Sheng saw that Lin Aosoul and Yi Xin were already leading the other beasts toward them. “Professor Shi Fangcheng, can you raise a barrier to contain all five?”

“No problem!”

Shi Fangcheng clapped his iron fists together, earthy power surging within him. He slammed his fists to the ground; energy rippled from the earth’s depths, and in moments, a towering wall encircled the area, carving out a vast enclosure equal in diameter to the breach in the city wall. Though only half as tall as the city barrier, the earthen wall was strong and more than sufficient.

Panting, Shi Fangcheng rose. The wall had been raised in a single breath, an awe-inspiring feat that left all onlookers stunned.

“No wonder he’s the strongest earth magician—he raised a defensive formation in an instant,” they marveled. “And with the mightiest windcutter, Yun Lan, as well—no wonder Holy City Academy is hailed as the finest intermediate magic academy on the continent.”

“Everyone outside the wall!” Yi Sheng ordered.

As the magicians withdrew from the enclosure, only the five lava beasts remained, pacing within the stone walls—along with Bai Shengye, who sat calmly on the ground.

Bai Shengye’s demeanor was utterly relaxed—perhaps too much so, as if the ancient, terrifying monsters before him were of no concern at all. Unhurried, he opened his pack, laid out an array of bottles and jars in every hue and size, and began, one after another, to gulp them down as if they were nothing more than sodas.

Tension ran high among those watching from behind the wall, all eyes fixed on the unfolding battle—until this scene left them speechless.

“What… what is he doing?”

Whispers of doubt and unease rippled through the crowd as they watched the young man, uncertain and skeptical.

Even Lei Jue, overlooking the scene from atop the Divine Phoenix, furrowed his brow. But it was Granny Long, standing on the high ground, who first lost her composure.

“Is this some kind of joke? Letting this greenhorn face five lava colossi alone? Are we all being dismissed? Our Magic Continent is not so bereft of talent that we have no one else!” Her tone was sharp and cold, her face darkened with displeasure.