Chapter 360 – Rain of Fiery Flames

At the same moment Joni struck, Ben Lajie also cast “Scorching Fireball” at Ovakain from a distance. It had to be said the fat old man’s luck was truly remarkable—after Punk, who had initially tried to create distance, became Ovakain’s primary target, Ben Lajie became the safest of the three present.

Facing Joni’s full-force slash, Ovakain didn’t dare underestimate it. Without hesitation, he abandoned his pursuit of Punk and turned to defend against the blade now dangerously close.

“Master-Level Conjuration Spell—Tamron Anti-Battle Aura Shield.”

“BOOM!!”

Where Joni’s bright yellow blade met the semi-transparent shield above Ovakain’s head, massive shockwaves erupted instantly, accompanied by deafening roars and explosions.

Ovakain’s spellcasting speed was astonishingly fast. Even though Joni had used “Charge” at full power to boost his speed, the powerful black dragon still managed to cast this highly targeted spell before Joni’s sword could strike him.

Next to hit the black dragon was Ben Lajie’s “Scorching Fireball.” However, it seemed the wise Ovakain had made thorough preparations before arriving. When Ben Lajie’s fireball slammed into Ovakain’s neck, a faint red barrier silently blocked the scorching heat of the white-hot flames.

“Master-Level Conjuration Spell—Fire Elemental Protection Wall.”

“Damned, insignificant, overconfident fools! Your power is utterly negligible.”

Seeing that neither Joni nor Ben Lajie’s attacks had caused him any harm, Ovakain let out a triumphant, sinister laugh. Then, the black dragon viciously raised his claw and slammed it down hard on Joni Zordas, who was still attempting to launch another charge.

“BAM!!”

As a young dragon of the nineteenth level, even without cultivating Battle Aura, Ovakain possessed strength comparable to a fifteenth-level warrior. At this moment, Joni, having just expended his Battle Aura, was caught in a vulnerable state—his old strength spent and new strength yet to gather.

Thus… Joni, struck by the dragon’s claw, was sent flying like a cannonball. The Holy Warrior crashed toward the ground like a miniature meteor, and under the force of Ovakain’s powerful strike, he shattered three earthen mounds before finally coming to a stop.

“Damn it, this guy is too tough. How many layers of protective spells does he have?”

Seeing his attack had no effect and Joni being swatted away after charging forward, Ben Lajie could only continuously hurl fireballs at Ovakain while loudly complaining.

But Ben Lajie’s complaint wasn’t without reason, because Ovakain… was simply too “resilient.”

As the battle progressed, both sides had gained a fuller understanding of each other’s capabilities. However, as the feedback from Divination Spells grew, even someone as calm as Punk found his expression darkening.

This was naturally due to the startling results he had just obtained using “Detect Magic.”

Punk had initially wondered why this black dragon dared to swagger into the combat zone as a target, but now he understood—Ovakain Acidmaw, this “monster,” had nothing to fear!After carefully sensing it, this guy actually had seventeen layers of protective magic stacked on him—”Death Ward,” “All-Element Repulsion Field,” “Archmage Armor,” “Mind-Guarding Domain,” “Greater Unbreaking Rune”… not a single one was missing!

It’s worth noting that even Punk only had seven layers of protective magic. In other words, just in terms of the defense provided by protective magic, Ovakain’s defense was higher than two Punks combined, not to mention the terrifyingly sturdy dragon scales of the black dragon!

“This is just too absurd. Even a level 19 mage wouldn’t be this strong. Supporting seventeen layers of protective magic at once—any ordinary spellcaster would have already suffered soul collapse by now!”

So far, the surprises Ovakain had brought Punk were becoming increasingly staggering. With the memories of Grand Arcanist Vedrasha, Punk knew very well that, in terms of the upper limit of spell model support, Ovakain had far surpassed an ordinary level 19 mage. At the very least, Punk was certain that even Vedrasha at level 19 wasn’t as insane as Ovakain.

“Legendary Equipment! That’s the only explanation… Shit! Now it’s really time to fight for our lives!”

Watching Ovakain, relying on that “turtle shell,” completely ignore Ben Lajie’s Fireball attacks in the short term and charge toward Jiaoni, Punk’s gaze grew increasingly icy. This proved that in this world full of opportunities, he wasn’t the only one who could obtain treasures. Even seemingly weak enemies could pull out terrifying trump cards capable of turning the tables, let alone an enemy who was already incredibly powerful!

“Ben Lajie, stop throwing Fireballs. Use ‘Rain of Fire.’ This guy has too many protective spells on him. We can’t fight him until we’ve exhausted them all.”

Seeing Ben Lajie still foolishly spamming Fireball without a clue, Punk, who had already flown out of the “Spatial Anchor” range, couldn’t help but feel exasperated. Dealing with a “god-like opponent” was bad enough, but to have “pig-like teammates” fighting alongside him was just adding insult to injury. A series of Fireballs couldn’t even make a splash on Ovakain, yet Ben Lajie still hadn’t thought to change tactics. If not for Punk’s reminder, who knew how long it would take for this “academic mage” from the “Five Fireball Sect” to catch on.

Hearing Punk’s furious roar, Ben Lajie finally remembered that he was a flexible mage, not just a simple turret. Without bothering to thank him, the flustered Ben Lajie immediately followed Punk’s instructions and began casting the spell.

“Master-Level Conjuration Spell—Rain of Fire.”

This spell caused a large area to be showered with fiery raindrops. The “Fire Elemental Protection Wall,” on the other hand, was a rather foolish “point-to-point” targeted protective spell, meaning it only significantly increased defense in the specific area where the enemy struck.

When facing a spell like “Fireball,” which only hits one spot, the “Fire Elemental Protection Wall” naturally conserved energy. But when confronted with a continuous, large-area attack, to protect against every single raindrop, the “Fire Elemental Protection Wall” had to simultaneously increase the defense of every area hit by the raindrops, causing its energy consumption to multiply exponentially.Fortunately, as a mage who had lived for thousands of years, Ben Lajie possessed sufficient spell reserves. At the very least, he had learned the relatively common Master-Level spell “Rain of Fire.” It would have been utterly frustrating if Punk had shouted instructions only for Ben Lajie to look up and ask, “What is Rain of Fire?”

In any case, though perhaps somewhat slow, Ben Lajie’s Rain of Fire was successfully cast. High in the cloud layer, a crimson flame magic circle vaporized all the clouds, and a vast number of conjured blazing fire elements continuously coalesced into burning raindrops that poured down in torrents. Due to his enormous size, Ovakain, positioned directly beneath the Rain of Fire, was forced to endure at least half of the downpour.

Naturally, Joni, who had been slammed into the crater, was also within the Rain of Fire’s range. Punk had to act swiftly, casting a “Fire Elemental Protection Wall” over Joni as soon as he emerged from the ground.

Although Punk used the same spell as Ovakain, he was confident that the Fire Protection Wall on Joni would last longer. After all, this spell consumed energy to shield against flames. Even under the same Rain of Fire, Ovakain’s massive size meant he would inevitably endure far more fire-element rainfall.

However, Ovakain had no intention of evading. Feeling the continuous fire-element raindrops rapidly depleting the energy of his Fire Elemental Protection Wall, he unhesitatingly increased the pressure of the second breath gathering in his throat—facing three Master-Level combatants at full strength was far too dangerous. This black dragon was determined to severely injure Joni Zordas, even if it meant sacrificing several layers of protective magic to the Rain of Fire.

(End of Chapter)