Bait

*Drip! Drip!* Droplets of lava the size of human heads fell from the sky, bringing with them the burning power of fire. Under their glamour and beauty, they hid a terrifying might.

The earth kept rumbling, and each contact between the lava and the ground caused explosions that formed huge pits. The surrounding forest was also set aflame, resulting in a horrifying sea of fire.

The werecreatures seemed tiny in this fire. Even if they’d only been touched by a bit of it, their oily skin lit up like they were torches.

The wails of the werecreatures resounded as an overpowering charred smell permeated the air. Paired with the vast sea of fire, it was as if this was the end of the world.

“The destructive power of a legendary spell really is immense. It’s no wonder that the legendary council on the continent made it taboo…” The paladin Patrick was obviously shocked as well. While he could easily kill a legendary Hunter, his area of effect was nowhere as terrifying as this was.

Thousands of werecreatures were burnt to ashes in a single attack, and many more suffered grievous burns. With no priests to heal them, their contaminated wounds would lead to certain death.

“Now isn’t the time to watch.” Leylin pointed his finger. A few black figures that overcame the flames soon arrived before them.

Leading them was the legendary Hunter, but it was evident that Leylin had focused quite a bit on it. The Skyfire Rain had been aimed at it, and much of its scales and fur had been burnt. Bones were jutting out of some parts of its body, creating a terrifying sight.

Behind the Hunter were a few werecreatures who looked just as pitiful. The fur and beards on their faces were mostly burnt off, and they were now watching Leylin and the paladin with vigilance.

One of them, evidently an older priest, stood out and stared straight at Leylin. Its gaze contained a hatred that was etched into the bones, “Legendary wizard of the outer world, we of the Blackblood Tribe don’t seem to have dealt with you. Why do you suddenly hinder our holy sacrifice, and even harm our people?”

Patrick had been ignored. With the difference in their factions, the two groups were natural enemies anyway, so what more was there to be said?

“I used to work for Silverymoon,” Leylin answered. He was smiling slightly, but felt a twinge of pity inside him. Even with the bonus of being an arcanist and his other skills, large-scale legendary magic still didn’t cause much damage to the truly powerful.

Blue light shone in Leylin’s eyes, ‘This is just a ranged attack after all. A single target spell would’ve taken one of them down forever…’

“So you’re one of Al.u.s.triel’s people!” the old werecreature exclaimed. The Blackblood Tribe had stood on the side of the orcish empire, so they were now the arch nemeses with Silverymoon. The werecreatures had all heard that the Queen of Silverymoon was preparing to reclaim her lands, so there was no need for discussion anymore.

“So that’s why you’re against us. Indeed, that conflict can’t be settled…” the old priest muttered, his eyes turning bloodthirsty, “But while you did interrupt our holy ritual, you’ve provided us with even better sacrifices. The lives of two legendaries should be enough to appease our master. Get them!”

The priest roared, and the legendary Hunter finally had an outlet for its impatience. It leapt out, leaving a large pit on the ground. Cracks spread like spider webs in all directions as the creature barrelled towards Patrick like a cannonball, its terrifying poisonous claws striking down on the paladin’s head.

“We need to show overpowering might. If not, it’ll just be more powerful werecreatures…” At this moment, Lillian’s voice sounded by Leylin’s ear. It seemed like she and the druid were still concealed, as if the most patient of predators waiting for their prey.

“That’s what I like!” Lowering his eyes, Leylin exuded a murderous aura.

Banshee’s Wail! A piercing shriek that seemed to emerge from the very soul burst forth, the sound spreading in all directions to freeze everyone’s thoughts for a moment.

“Now’s the time. Greater Binding!” Leylin’s hands moved like he was a professional bard, constantly pulling at the strings that were the elements in the Weave. Dazzling spell rays emanated from his body.

*Roar!* The legendary Hunter seemed to be bound by some invisible force in mid-air, and it was left stuck in that position.

“All evil shall be persecuted, Divine Trial!” The paladin had finally gotten his chance. He’d arrived in front of the Hunter with his crystal sword enveloped in holy white light. His eyes burned with platinum flames.

Clean Break! The legendary Hunter’s scales and energy defences were split apart by the paladin’s sword like it was a hot knife slicing through b.u.t.ter. Blood spurted in all directions as a giant head fell to the ground.

Their proficient techniques and teamwork allowed Leylin and Patrick to instantly take care of the legendary creature. This amount of strength evidently surpa.s.sed the imaginations of the higher-ups amongst the werecreatures, and the legendary priest resolutely placed his hands in his bosom, as if about to pick out something.

[Beep! Based on energy undulations and judgment of shape, chances of opponent taking out sacrificial dagger are 99.99%. Divine force sacrifice will begin in 0.27s.] The A.I. Chip’s robotic voice sounded, and the prediction caused Leylin to move quickly.

A mysterious light swept forth from his hand, disregarding all defence in an attempt to strike the old priest head on.

The priest stared at his hand blankly. The gorgeous dagger that had once been there had cracked apart, to the point that there wasn’t even a handle left.

Legendary arcane spell, Great Disjunction! Even a divine weapon would suffer the wrath of this arcane spell, much less normal items of the mortal world. That was not all. The old priest’s necklace, his staff filled with divine force, his beast teeth, and all sorts of magic artifacts that were brushed with exemplary strength were all broken apart.

‘As expected of an arcanist legacy. Even just Great Disjunction and Timestop can allow me to do whatever I wish amongst legendaries…’

Although Leylin had a few standard legendary spells, they couldn’t compare to the arcanist legacy he held. He had even gotten himself a floating city! He had all the arcanist secrets and spell models he wanted.

“This strength…” It wasn’t just the werecreatures that were surprised by Leylin’s strength. Even his allies in Patrick, Lillian, and Alegor were shocked in secret.

‘How can he have so many high-ranked and legendary spell slots? Could he be a lover of the G.o.ddess of the Weave? No, that’s not it. There’s another possibility… Arcane spells!’ Lilian’s eyes burnt with fervour, ‘His attainments in arcane spells far exceeds my expectations. It’s already at an inconceivable level…’

As a legendary wizard, she too had performed research on arcane spells and obtained a few low-ranked arcane spell models. She definitely knew that this would allow her to cast more spells.

It was a pity that there were few she had seen who had obtained and could use legendary arcane spells easily. They were all old freaks who had lived for thousands of years, none as young as Leylin!

‘No wonder he advanced so quickly. So he’s already grasped some secrets of the ancient arcanists?’ Lillian pondered inside, thinking she’d unraveled Leylin’s secrets.

Leylin had expected this, though. He paid little mind to it, for the leak of information was intentional. After all, it wasn’t taboo for legendary wizards to perform research on arcane arts, and he was just skirting the line slightly. The more strength he revealed, the more he could do.

“Why are you still standing there? Go!” Like now, for instance. The dazed paladin listened to Leylin’s commands subconsciously, charging towards the few remaining powerful werecreatures, who were at a loss.

Meteor Explosion! Bigby’s Crus.h.i.+ng Hand! With the paladin attacking, Leylin used his terrifying control over spells and took care of the situation in an instant.

By the end, Patrick’s mind seemed to crash as he saw Leylin rendering the last of the werecreatures to dust. ‘Such a violent yet refined method of battle, as well as that last fight, is even more crazy than a berserker… Is he really a wizard?’

“Be prepared. Now’s the true test!” Leylin reminded him with a serious expression.

The paladin turned grim as he glanced at the Blackblood Tribe. A terrifying roar resounded in the area, containing great amounts of fury. Seeing so many of his subordinates dead, Malar could no longer take it. He sent his avatar to take the stage!