Saul had just come back to his senses when he realized heâd been pinned to the ground.
He didnât even need to look up to know who had cast that icicle.
The next moment, another whooshing sound split the air. Saul swung his right handâblack Touch of Torment entwined with a translucent Soul Borer surged forth to intercept the second icicle.
Midair, the icicle collided with the black tendril. The icicle shattered instantly, but shards of ice also sliced the black tendril into several pieces.
Yet, while the black tendril was blocked, the Soul Borer hidden within remained unaffected by the icicle and continued to streak toward Kongsha.
Unexpectedly, Kongshaâs eyes widened violentlyâher eyeballs trembling as if they might fall out, pupils shrunk to pinpointsâlocking a vicious glare on Saulâs tendril.
Then, Saulâs Soul Borer froze in place as if caught by an invisible hand, suspended right between Kongshaâs brows, unable to move.
In that stalemate, Saul finally noticed that the Ancient Soul-Devouring Mire, which had been trailing behind Kongsha, had somehow retreated to the hall a hundred meters away.
It was now covered in a thick layer of frost. Though the frost shattered and fell off as it moved, another fresh layer quickly formed to replace it.
It seemed the frost was trying to freeze the tendrils in place.
âFrost⊠must be those white figures in the forest. Looks like the Pure White Throne did do something after all. Just a bit slow.â
With the Pure White Throne stalling the Ancient Soul-Devouring Mire, Saul had more confidence in taking on Kongsha.
Of course, the mental and magical power Kongsha was displaying now far surpassed her normal state.
Clearly, the elf kingâs head perched atop her was providing immense support.
Otherwise, sheâd have no chance of withstanding Saulâs Soul Borerâeven a true wizard might not withstand it.
Gritting his teeth through the pain, Saul yanked his left hand free from the icicle.
Splitting his focus, he simultaneously recalled the Soul Borer for another assault and quietly began gathering magic into both hands.
Faced with the powerful head of the elf king, Saul had no choice but to unleash his still-incomplete trump cardâmental realm battlefield!
Kongsha conjured a wall of will to block the gray, translucent tendrilâs assault, while one of her eyes shifted its gaze directly to Saul.
Spotting his subtle movement, Kongsha narrowed her eyes.
She sensed danger.
Though his spell hadnât fully formed, Kongshaâs instincts screamed that she could not let his magic converge!
So, in the next instant, Kongshaâs left eye popped from its socket and began hopping toward Saul.
Just as Saul looked up, he saw the eyeball bounding toward him. As soon as their eyes met, his vision filled with a deluge of eyeballs falling from aboveârolling, bouncing, and crawling toward him with uncanny gazes.
It felt like a sea of eyes was about to swallow him whole.
âAn illusion?â Saul immediately narrowed his eyes and switched to meditative observation, but his hands didnât stop moving.
The spell circles inscribed on his palms began to glow faintly, the structure of magic and the entangling of mental energy almost complete.
Yet even through his semi-immersed meditative vision, he still saw countless eyeballs bouncing toward him.
One of them rolled right up to his footâand he could even feel it bump against him.
To activate his mental realm, Saul had to stay still. He brought his hands together, fingertips about to meet.
But in that very moment, the scattered eyeballs around him explode all at onceâeach detonation shattering a portion of Saulâs mental energy!
Unbearable pain tore through his body. His skin burst open like fish scales, blood trailing along paths of shattered nerves. The magic pooling toward his palms was immediately thrown into chaos and destabilized.
Saulâs eyes widened in agony, blood trickling from the corners. Droplets landed on his clothes, blooming like crimson flowers.
âYou⊠trying to die?â he rasped at Kongsha.
What sheâd just detonated wasnât anything elseâit was her own mental energy.
To stop him from casting the mental realm, she hadnât hesitated to self-detonate her mental power.
âIt doesnât matter,â Kongsha croaked. Her voice now resembled that of a ninety-year-old crone. âI never wanted those eyeballs anyway.â
Despite just detonating part of her mind, she acted as if nothing had happened.
Saul, on the other hand, was anything but calm.
His entire body was drenched in blood. His skin, reshaped through wizard-body modification, was also a vessel for his mental energyâso the damage to his mind was fully reflected on his flesh.
Whooshâwhooshâ
Kongsha waved her hand. Two even clearer and sharper icicles materialized and instantly pierced Saulâs hands, which still couldnât move.
Not only that, the freezing aura from the icicles quickly spread up his arms, locking down most of his upper body.
Though veins bulged at Saulâs temple from the pain, he still forced a mocking smile.
âBlowing up your own mind, borrowing power from an elf spiritâyouâre polluted, Kongsha!â
Kongsha herself was also clearly under strain, but seeing Saul immobilized and seated on the ground, she burst into laughter.
She waved again. Two more icicles whistled through the air, stabbing into Saulâs calves, pinning his lower half to the ground and quickly sealing it under thick ice.
Swaying her hips, she sauntered over unhurriedly. When she reached him, she suddenly kicked him over.
Saul grunted as he hit the ground.
But in that moment, he noticedâKongsha wasnât wearing shoes. As her robe shifted with the motion, a glimpse of smooth, shapely legs flashed. Beneath that flowing wizard robe⊠she wore nothing at all.
She planted one foot on Saulâs chest. Blood instantly soaked through his robes, seeping between her toes.
She didnât seem in any hurry to kill Saul now that he was helpless. Instead, she even seemed intent on showing off her beauty.
Resting one arm on her raised knee, she leaned down, her face twisted into a smile.
âAm I beautiful?â
âCough.â Saul spat blood as he spoke. âThe elf king is quite beautiful.â
Kongshaâs smile faltered for a moment, but then she laughed even harder.
âHa⊠You really think elven features match human standards of beauty? What you see as beautiful is just a reflection of your own perception. No need to play tough.â
She caressed her face. In Saulâs pupils, she saw a face of stunning beautyâher dream visage.
Her expression turned dazed. âI really am beautiful. If Gorsa hadnât insisted on transforming me into that disgusting thing, Iâd never have ended up like this.â
She chuckled softly. Though her laughter wasnât loud, it carried a hysterical madness.
âWho the hell would want that eyeball-riddled glass head? Even if it kept my mental body stable, so what? That whole modification was just a tool for Gorsaâs resurrection experiment.â
âWhen it failed, he just threw me away⊠Heh, I could never accept that locator device, so I was never able to advance to Third Rank. They all knew, but none of them cared!â
Kongshaâs body trembled. Yet even as she shook, she smiled.
âOnce Gorsaâs apprentices are no longer useful, he throws them away. Later, because of those eyes, I started seeing terrifying things, but Gorsa didnât care. He actually told me to find my own way to deal with it?â
âHa⊠Everything was forced onto me.â
Her gaze dropped. One eyeball turned toward Saulâs left hand.
That hand was stealthily trying to wriggle free from the icicle.
Kongsha waved again. Another icicle slammed into his wrist.
âYou thought Iâd let you bring your hands together?â she sneered, her voice icy cold. âMy eyes can easily pierce the illusion magic youâve been hiding in your palms. Quite the impressive spell circle.â
(End of Chapter)
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