"Clap Clap Clap." Sounds of applause.
Makkany clapped his hands. He was all smiles, looking at Ciaran with some sympathy, and said, "One of the members of the Holy Dawn Evil Six from back then. People were afraid to even look at you, but it seems you’re only so-so. Ciaran, shouldn’t you first look after yourself in a situation like this? In the arcane masters’ circles, you’re known as the queen of finger arcane skills, you launch almost every arcane skill through your ten fingers. But now, you can’t even use a single one of your fingers, how are you going to fight me?"
"Teacher Ciaran, how are you?!"
Behind Ciaran, Moss and Ayrin shouted in anger and alarm at the same time.
Both of them could clearly see that blood had already stopped flowing on Ciaran’s fingers. Yet, a green color suffused her fingers and the backs of her hands. Patches of a moss-shaped plant kept growing and peeling off on them.
"I surprised your teacher Ciaran with my World of Vine Seeds." Makkany looked leisurely at Moss and Ayrin, his eyes brimming with pride. "It looks a lot like moss, right? But in fact it’s the smallest vine in all of Doraster. Your teacher Ciaran’s hands looks alright at the moment, but in fact, these tiny vines have already pierced a thousand wounds in the energy channels inside. Right now, arcane particles can’t even flow as they usually would."
"What, you villain! You actually have the cheek to sneak-attack teacher Ciaran!" Ayrin was so angry he immediately started swearing.
"Bastard! He already sneak-attacked her, why are you still saying have the cheek?! The important thing is, what do we do now." Moss could feel the genuine threat of death. A chill bubbled inside his heart and mind, even as he silently scolded Ayrin.
"I never thought you’d also be one of these fallen arcane masters who renounced their beliefs." Ciaran didn’t move. She didn’t even spare a glance for her hands. She merely looked at Makkany with an extraordinarily cold gaze. "It looks like you’re that Evil Dragon follower Pattinson’s secret agent inside Divine Shield Academy. No wonder he managed to flee from Divine Shield Academy and from St. Lauren even in such a situation."
"Arcane masters exist for the sake of battles. People like you chose the glory from defending your country, while I yearn for the glory of epic battles." Makkany looked at Ciaran, smiling gently. "Ciaran, Liszt and the others should still be trying to track down the reason Pattinson came here, to find out what on earth our plans are. But in fact, the main reason he appeared here is because of you guys."
Ciaran looked at Makkany. She had no idea what on earth the latter meant by that.
"Lord Dias missed you guys very much for all these years." Makkany smiled faintly, saying, "You might not know who he is just from the name, but if I said he’s the one who killed Ashur, you shouldn’t have forgotten him no matter what."
Ciaran’s face turned incomparably pale all of a sudden, a layer of frost seemingly freezing her skin in the blink of an eye. Even Moss and Ayrin could feel the unprecedented murderous aura radiating from her person.
"We’ve always been looking for him. I’ve always been looking forward to the day I see him again." Her voice was frosty, like the cold winter winds of the north. "What, he actually also dares to look for us?"
"Back then, he led a group of assassins and tried to eradicate the future elites of the kingdom, to kill the most famous group, the Evil Six. In the end, Ashur died on your side, but he also lost his younger brother." Makkany faintly said, "He brought such a formidable force back then and though he’d kill you guys with ease, but he never thought he still underestimated how powerful you guys were. Among the three arcane masters you killed back then, one was his brother Pierre. Back then, you were merely young and inexperienced arcane masters just starting to make a name for yourselves, while he was the mere leader of an assassination team. But now, he’s one of our thirteen bishops, a genuinely powerful personage with the authority to bestow the Evil Dragon’s bloodline."
After a pause, Makkany looked at Ciaran and her faintly shaking hands and continued with his banter: "When a small figure becomes a genuinely mighty character, his revenge can begin. It seems he really cherished his little brother very much. Ciaran, as long we kill any among the five of you left, we can obtain a first-rate Evil Dragon bloodline and become a genuine Evil Dragon disciple. That said, with Liszt at your helm, you guys were one of our most important enemies to begin with."
"So that means that, starting with Pattinson, everything was a plot aimed at us, a revenge aimed at us?" Ciaran slowly calmed down, asking.
"Not entirely," Makanny said. "Not only I saw the opportunity to act because you operated by yourself, you even brought these two people with you. Your two Holy Dawn freshmen are also ranked at the top of our list of people to assassinate. I can greatly enhance my status this way."
"Moss, Ayrin."
Ciaran suddenly called Moss’ and Ayrin’s names, then said, "With his ability to chase and move, you guys won’t be able to make it back to St. Lauren even if I let you run right now. That’s why, there’s only one choice. Either he kills us, or we beat him."
"There’s no suspense at all in this fight." Makkany nodded respectfully at Ciaran. "With its wings and claws broken, an eagle isn’t much different from a turkey."
"So this is a real battle? Right now, teacher Ciaran actually can’t even deal with powerful opponents."
Ayrin felt a cruel atmosphere he never felt before. He could even feel his blood boiling, becoming a hateful wrath, a desire for killing.
"Even if I die, I have to protect teacher Ciaran!"
He roared tremendously in fury, "Moss, grow bigger! Bloody use all the power of your bloodline!"
Hearing Ayrin’s angry roar, looking at Ciaran’s hands, chill and heat arose inside Moss at the same time, clashing violently together.
The chill came from his fear of death and his fear of a formidable enemy. Moss knew full well that Makkany should be at least an elite master with four open gates. Struggling for life and death with an arcane master of this level, this was a scene that wouldn’t even appear in his nightmares.
The heat came from the valiance and the pride of his bloodline, both compelled to come out as they never had been before, as well as from the call from a companion like Ayrin.
He had to fight, together with Ayrin and Ciaran!
"I am a brave warrior!"
"I have to defeat the enemy, I have to fight to the death together with them!"
He didn’t make any sound at this moment, yet he howled and roared in wrath inside his heart.
His body swelled rapidly, enlarging once again!
Blazing patterns appeared on his stony skin one after another. His face seemed entirely covered by muscles of stone, with only two red dots of light shining in his eyes.
"A very good double bloodline, but you’re ten years too early if you want to win against me," Makkany rebuked him with a jeer.
"Who do you think you are! If you were really strong enough, would you still single-mindedly pursue the Evil Dragon’s bloodline? You’re just a moron who isn’t willing to face himself, who turns his back on himself. A coward!" Ayrin swore in anger.
Makkany’s face suddenly turned unsightly.
"Let’s attack him from three sides! Ayrin, Moss, don’t stay more than ten meters away from me!" Ciaran immediately shouted, her voice grave.
She suddenly vanished from where she stood.
"Onward! Brave warriors!"
Ayrin roared tremendously once again. He followed tightly behind Ciaran, staying on her right, charging toward the unmoving Makkany.
"Dance of the Death Vine!"
Makkany suddenly became solemn. With a deep and grave chant, the weeds in front of him transformed all of a sudden into many dozen dark green vines as thick as an arm. "Puff puff puff puff…" These vines charged into the sky like a maelstrom, then quickly fell down again, spiking into the soil, forming a twisting cage that grew nonstop, squeezing its way towards Ciaran.
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" …
Sounds of collision and explosion detonated nonstop. Countless flames fluttered in the air. Broken pieces of vine spluttered outward.
"Evil Flaming Eye!"
"Die already! Fallen one! War Blast!"
At the same time, an Evil Flaming Eye and a tremendous sound blast charged into Makkany from two different directions.
"A War Blast at this level is only fit for playing games between little children."
Makkany didn’t seem affected in the least by Moss’ War Blast. He laughed in derision. At the same time, rather than retreating, he forged forward like a devil, suddenly shooting toward Ayrin.
The instant he seemed about to crash against the Evil Flaming Eye, arcane particles appeared in his hands, and a bizarre vine drilled out from his sleeves, instantly growing into a great mouth filled with sawteeth that chomped down on the Evil Flaming Eye in one bite.
It immediately swallowed the evil Flaming Eye burning with bewitching flames. Only some tiny sparks and a waft of hot smoke fizzled out of it.
"Boom!"
Without any pause, his feet left the ground, and his whole body started to revolve like a spinning top. A silver light appeared on his feet. Like a giant metallic drill making tremendous vibrations in the air, he crashed toward Ayrin.
Ayrin flashed to the left. He was already in the middle of a motion, yet he still vanished from where he was all of a sudden. Along with a wisp of shadow, he reappeared beside the Death Vine’s cage, coming closer to Ciaran inside.
"Eh?"
Makkany was extremely surprised at Ayrin’s nimbleness that actually let him dodge this attack of his. He couldn’t help but let out a soft sound of confusion.
"Great Parasites!"
"Stabbing Seeds!"
His movements didn’t pause in the slightest, however. While he still spun in the air and hadn’t landed back down yet, arcane particles glittered twice in succession from his hands as he launched two arcane skills in succession!
Many seed-like particles drifted in the wind.
The Death Vines were about to crumble, but many tiny magenta vines suddenly grew from them. Many flowers bloomed on these vines in a split second.
At the same time, some seeds fluttering in the air glued themselves to these flowers. On their petals, they immediately grew into tiny plants brimming with long, transparent thorns.
"Swish swish swish swish…" In the blink of an eye, countless transparent thorns shot out in every direction!
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