Chapter 361 – Exhalation

Ovakain’s reaction was remarkably swift. No sooner had the dust-covered, disheveled Joni Zordas emerged from the rubble than the massive black dragon’s enormous maw was already aimed directly at him.

“ROAR”!!

The terrifying Dragon Breath had been compressed within the dragon’s throat into a narrow, elongated jet of dark green energy with immense impact force. Judging by the terrifying power of this breath attack, if Joni were to take a direct hit, he would almost certainly meet his end.

But Punk, standing nearby, possessed the incredibly rich combat experience of a Grand Arcanist. He had already discerned all of the black dragon’s intentions even before Ovakain opened his mouth. Temporarily aligned with Joni on the same battlefield, how could Punk allow Ovakain to so easily eliminate an important combat asset?

Therefore, at the very moment Ovakain’s Dragon Breath finished brewing, Punk’s spell mercilessly struck the dragon.

“Master-Level Conjuration Spell – Greater Dispel”

Metamagic – Mana Compression.

Metamagic – Dualcast

Master-Level Conjuration Spell – Magic Acceleration.

To ensure this round of spells would take effect, Punk truly held nothing back, employing both of his metamagic techniques. Among the two spells he used, the purpose of “Greater Dispel” was to tear an opening in Ovakain’s substantial magical protections, while “Magic Acceleration” served to increase the flight speed of “Greater Dispel,” ensuring it would hit the target before Ovakain could blast Joni to death with his breath.

Punk didn’t use any powerful offensive spells to “relieve the besieged by besieging the base” or employ control spells to buy Joni time to escape, primarily because Ovakain’s layers of protective magic were simply too numerous and robust.

Even if Punk had used some high-damage spells like “Critical Strike” or “Kinetic Shockwave Sphere,” they would likely have been spectacularly ignored by Ovakain. Thus, in a way, Joni could only rely on his own means to save himself or counterattack at this moment, and what Punk aimed to do now… was provide Joni with an opportunity for self-preservation or retaliation!

Enhanced by the shimmering blue glow of “Magic Acceleration,” the initial speed of “Greater Dispel” instantly doubled, and its velocity continued to increase with flight distance. Finally, this “Greater Dispel” spell—significantly amplified by “Mana Compression”—struck dead center on Ovakain’s head with lightning speed.

Although the three mages and one Holy Warrior present had all taken various actions, in reality, less than a second had passed from the moment Ovakain approached Joni to when Punk’s “Greater Dispel” hit Ovakain. The black dragon, who had just opened its mouth to unleash its breath, was undoubtedly caught squarely by this “Greater Dispel.”

CRACK CRACK CRACK!!

As if massive sheets of glass were shattering simultaneously, accompanied by continuous cracking sounds, the outermost layer of Ovakain’s “Greater Energy Barrier” was torn to shreds by the multicolored, gleaming “Greater Dispel.”In fact, the effect of Punk’s full-powered spell exceeded even his own expectations. It wasn’t until a breach tearing through seven layers of protective magic appeared on Ovakain’s magical defenses that the colorful radiance of “Greater Dispel” finally dissipated.

Had it merely been a crack that could automatically repair itself in under two seconds, Ovakain would not have abandoned his pursuit of Jiaoni.

But Jiaoni was, after all, a battle-hardened Holy Warrior. Seizing the opportunity created by Punk, this Holy Warrior—who had been swatted away the moment he struck—finally revealed the terror of an enraged Level 17 combatant.

“Ahhhhhhhhh, Ovakain, you… DIE ahhhh”!!

With a roar that echoed through the skies, vast amounts of golden Battle Aura erupted from every part of Jiaoni’s body as if transforming into streaks of luminous haze. Immediately after, the Holy Warrior channeled all of this Battle Aura into the tip of the blade in his hand.

Note! All of it!

Even facing the terrifying breath that would reduce him to ashes, Jiaoni had no intention of letting this chance slip. Seeing that Ovakain was about to repair the breach in his protective magic in the next instant, the furious Jiaoni erupted explosively.

Ignited by the flames of vengeance, this man resolutely abandoned all defense and evasion. In the shortest possible time, he compressed all his Battle Aura to the very edge of his blade, then… thrust with all his might toward the magical breach on Ovakain’s head, which still faintly glowed with colorful light.

Exactly! From the very beginning, this Holy Warrior—who had already cast aside life and death—had never considered evasion. His sole purpose in this attack was one thing: to slay Ovakain Acidmaw! If mutual destruction could ensure his enemy’s fall, then… Jiaoni had already answered with his actions—he would not hesitate in the slightest!

Witnessing the blade tip where Battle Aura was compressed to a point, granting it tangible mass, even the ever-arrogant Ovakain finally paled with alarm. Ovakain knew all too well the defensive capacity of his seventeen layers of protective spells. Had he not suffered Punk’s “Greater Dispel” earlier, he would have been fully confident in withstanding even such an intensely concentrated thrust from Jiaoni through his multiple defenses.

But now…

“Damn it! Treacherous scum”!

No wonder Ovakain roared in furious frustration—Jiaoni’s terrifying thrust was no jest. If that highly compressed Battle Aura blade struck his head, while Jiaoni would undoubtedly be annihilated by the Dragon Breath in an instant, Ovakain would also inevitably suffer severe injuries on the spot. With both Punk and Ben Lajie at their peak, a heavily injured black dragon would be little better than dead.

Without a doubt, Ovakain had no desire to perish alongside Jiaoni. To avert this worst-case outcome, the unwilling black dragon could only expend a massive amount of mana once again to cast the spell he had personally improved.

“Master-Level Conjuration Spell—’Rapid Shift’ (Modified – Dragon Version)”I must admit, the effect of this spell was truly exceptional. With a sudden burst of accelerated lateral movement, after plowing through another stretch of ground, Ovakain finally managed to evade Jiaoni’s desperate assault.

Of course, as the black dragon’s position shifted at tremendous speed, its ultimate Dragon Breath attack, infused with massive amounts of magical power, naturally missed its target entirely.

The dark green Dragon Breath, compressed to an extremely fine state, appeared like a silk ribbon stretching across the sky. All matter and energy along its path instantly turned to dust. When the terrifying breath attack finally ended, the space through which it had passed was left with a long black trail due to its corrosive power. In the distance, a small mountain peak had been sliced off as if by a hot knife through butter—though it failed to hit the enemy, this single breath still demonstrated just how… terrifying Ovakain Acidmaw’s power truly was.

(End of Chapter)