Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 1345: Section 1346 The so-called inspection

Angel was startled for a moment, not immediately grasping Sanders’ intention.

It was only when Sanders launched an unreserved attack on him that Angel realized what Sanders was planning… What kind of test was this for assessing his training progress? It was essentially forcing him to make a move!

Once he acted, it would not be easy for him to hide his creation of spells.

“So ruthless!” Angel complained inwardly, but faced with Sanders’ attack, he had no choice but to respond, silently thinking to himself: He couldn’t fall for Sanders’ cunning plan.

That was easier said than done, though.

Sanders’ attack was not a one-off effort, but rather a persistent assault tailored to Angel, blocking all of Angel’s techniques.

And Sanders didn’t take Angel’s physical strength seriously, because once he used illusion techniques, Angel couldn’t even determine his whereabouts.

He could only passively react like a target.

Sanders had no intention of pulling his punches yet, using various spell techniques with ease, appearing unhurried. However, as Angel was responding at first, because Sanders was testing his moves, he still managed to retain a bit of his mental capacity to restrain himself.

But later on, as the frequency of attacks increased, Angel’s mind was left with only thoughts on how to counter and break through, pushing all other thoughts to the back of his mind.

Sanders also noticed that Angel’s state of attack had changed, no longer restrained, and his focus had become sharper. In this state, Angel actually became more adept as the battle progressed, his eyes grew fierce, and his fighting style was no longer just about taking hits; he started thinking about how to counterattack.

A smile curled at the corner of Sanders’ lips as he thought to himself: That’s more like it.

As Angel’s retaliatory moves grew stronger, Sanders also increased the intensity of his own attacks.

Sanders felt a tinge of surprise inside because his current attacking intensity was almost that of battling an Official Wizard, and that was what he was using against Angel.

Moreover, according to Sanders’ own estimation, even a relatively powerful Official Wizard might struggle to cope with such continuous attacks.

But Angel was holding up.

Of course, part of this was because they both specialized in the Illusion Series, and Angel had a certain resistance to illusions, but even without this factor, Angel’s current combat abilities were not to be underestimated.

While Sanders was surprised, he also harbored doubts.

He noticed that Angel had not yet released the witchcraft from his Witchcraft Slot… This made Sanders even more curious as to what spell technique was fixed on Angel’s Witchcraft Slot. Was it offensive? Defensive? Or perhaps functional?

Logically, the spell in the Witchcraft Slot could be instantly cast, and if it were offensive, Angel should have used it by now. But since he hadn’t, there was a high chance it wasn’t offensive, right?

So was it defensive? Sanders once again raised the attack intensity a bit, but faced with such dense attacks, Angel still did not use any defensive spell technique.

This led Sanders to suspect: “Could it be that Angel’s fixed spell is a functional one?”

If it truly was functional, it would be difficult to test.

For example, certain spell techniques in Alchemy, like the Eye of Nalda, Alchemical Tricks, Magic Power Circulation… and so on. Of course, there are more functional spell techniques beyond Alchemy, such as Wizard’s Vision, Dark Detection, Barrier Breaking, Purifying Field, and so forth, which are more functional or supportive in nature, almost impossible to identify through combat alone.

As Sanders pondered whether to choose another method of testing, suddenly, amidst the relentless onslaught, Angel managed to carve a path through.

Angel dodged multiple illusions in succession, muttering under his breath, “This is fake, this is still fake, the real body isn’t here.”

Finally, before Sanders could even daydream, Angel burst through the mist-like Illusionary Realm, leaping high!

Against the backlight, the figure of Angel leaping was filled with the beauty of strength.

“Found you!” Angel’s eyes lit up, shouting loudly.

Given Sanders’ abilities, he had ample time to layer a few more illusions and keep Angel entangled. But at that moment, he suddenly halted, curious to see how Angel would act facing his true form.

If the fixed spell was offensive, wouldn’t it be time to use it now?

As Sanders thought this, Angel’s leaping figure didn’t continue to approach him but instead, under a burst of intense light, three vague tendrils appeared behind Angel, rushing towards Sanders with great speed.

The speed of these white tendrils was faster, not slower, than Angel’s own body!

Even though Sanders recognized the direction of the attack and wanted to immediately respond, it wasn’t so easy.

If Sanders employed his True Knowledge Level abilities, he could easily dodge. But he didn’t, relying instead on his rich combat experience, moving lightly on his feet with his body responding accordingly—it was just a slight motion, and he dodged the three white tendrils rushing at him.

The white tendrils brushed Sanders’ skin as they thrust into the ground beneath.

After a thunderous roar, three large pits appeared in the cloud soil.

The white tendrils had pierced directly through the cloud soil!

It should be noted that although the cloud soil above Pat Manor was initially manipulated by Angel, after Metheor was transplanted there, to prevent the cloud soil from falling, Suise as well as Eulica had reinforced it.

With the blessings of these two wizards on the cloud soil, even then, Angel managed to penetrate the cloud soil so easily, which meant that the attacking power of these three white tendrils had definitely reached “Spell Technique Level”!

Sanders was shocked inside; this was the first time he had seen Angel deploy these white tendrils.

Could this be his creation of spells?

As Sanders was thinking this, he couldn’t help but focus his attention on the white tendrils. At this point, as the white tendrils brushed past him, he could more easily sense the fluctuations upon them.

“Very strange,” was the first impression Sanders had.

It appeared to possess the characteristics of illusion magic, yet it could pry into the material realm and affect reality. Such a type of illusion was very much like the True Illusion Faction within the divisions of witchcraft. However, Sanders was actually quite familiar with the True Illusion Faction, as Sumishe belonged to it, and according to Sanders’ own understanding, these white tentacles lacked the distinct fluctuations of the True Illusion Faction.

Instead, did it feel like an extension of blood energy power?

Could it be that blood energy power was used as the energy foundation for the illusion node?

Thoughts always race ahead of reality; while Sanders’ thoughts were circulating, in reality, only a very brief moment had passed.

Based on what Sanders thought, it would probably take Angel some time before he could launch another attack. What Sanders didn’t expect was that the attack came so swiftly!

And the method of the attack was still the white tentacles!

All of a sudden, a protrusion grew out of the white tentacle that was stabbed into the cloudscape, and before Sanders could react, this protrusion swelled up with the wind and turned into a brand-new tentacle!

It was like the branches of a tree dividing into trunk and twigs—the new tentacle was a branch split off!

And this newly grown tentacle was right beside Sanders!

It was poised like a sharp blade, ready to pierce into Sanders’ body!

Furthermore, it was not just one sharp blade. The three white tentacles that were originally stabbed into the cloudscape were now splitting into more “branches,” each one aiming for Sanders!

Sanders raised his eyebrows and glanced at Angel from the corner of his eye.

He had never seen such a technique before. Was this truly his own creation?

Like a thicket of thorns, like a persistent rain of blades forming a white prison. After successive booming sounds, the white cloudscape was flung into the air, obscuring the view.

When the dust settled, there was no trace of Sanders to be found.

“Another illusion?” Angel murmured.

While Sanders wasn’t hit by the white tentacles, he had witnessed their strength. Being attacked by such tentacles, comparable to official spell techniques, would probably be quite painful.

Even if Sanders could withstand such attacks, it was likely that he would be in a sorry state. Therefore, he decisively cast another layer of the illusionary realm and transported himself to another location.

When the attack did not succeed, Angel felt regret, but suddenly he heard the sound of wind behind him.

Turning around, he saw that, unbeknownst to him, Sanders’ next attack was already upon him! And this time, Sanders did not use a ranged method; it was a direct close-quarters attack.

Sanders’ right hand transformed into the scythe arm of a phantom mantis, with the crescent-shaped blade gleaming with a golden hue in the sunlight.

Angel didn’t panic because in his eyes, this was still only an illusion. Of course, one thing he was sure of was that even if it was an illusion, the attack was definitely real.

Therefore, Angel immediately directed the white tentacles behind him to swiftly form a dense web as a defense.

When the scythe arm swooped down, there was a clang.

The white tentacles blocked the scythe arm for a moment, but it was quickly slashed through and severed!

A look of shock and suspicion crossed Angel’s face, for the white tentacles were nearly akin to his exoskeleton, as sturdy as his physical body. If even the white tentacles were cut through, it meant Sanders’ attack had exceeded the upper limit of his physical strength!

Furthermore, Angel remembered that crisp sound and the tangible sensation…

Could it be a real scythe arm?!

By the time Angel realized it, he swiftly turned his head back.

There, what he had initially thought to be an illusion of Sanders, was now narrowing his eyes with a flash of cold light, a slight smirk on his lips. The scythe arm was raised high again, ready to fiercely chop down at his unprotected back!

It was real!

The moment Angel saw Sanders’ expression, he immediately understood.

Before he could think further, the scythe arm’s assault was imminent.

Even the sensation of the blade’s wind was almost upon him, leaving him no escape!

His heartbeat pounded, a rush of heat soared to his brain. Even as Angel’s thoughts hadn’t yet processed, his subconscious was already prompting him to save himself.

In the Mind Space, the psychic model suddenly contracted, and the Gate Model in the witchcraft slot immediately shone brilliantly.

In reality, a door suddenly materialized in front of Angel.

All this happened in a flash!

As soon as the door was formed, Angel stepped forward and his figure vanished within the gateway.