Yousef and Audis traded barbs in the center of the arena, oblivious to the growing crowd gathering in the stands around them.Because the Fran Magic Arena was protected by a magic array set up by a Legendary Mage, there was no need to worry about harming the spectators, so the academy simply built a set of stands around the arena for onlookers to observe and learn.
As the audience entered and saw the two people standing in the magic battle arena, they were all taken aback.
"One of them is Vice Principal Blumer!"
"Who's the other person? This is too exaggerated; he's decked out in magic equipment!"
"It seems to be... Master Magic Rune Master Daher!"
"How did these two big shots start quarreling, to the point of even activating the magic battle arena?"
...
Seeing the defensive magic array beside the field was fully activated, with an invisible, transparent magic shield enveloping the entire area, Yousef no longer waited for his district's turn.
With a thought, the many fire magic gems on his luxurious magic wand began to shine with a dazzling red light, and an extremely large deep red fireball condensed above his head.
The wand waved gently, and the huge fireball was hurled fiercely towards Audis under Yousef's control.
Facing the attack of the gigantic fireball, Audis remained unflustered. He slammed his magic wand into the ground, and a massive wall of earth rapidly stretched up from the ground, intercepting the fireball mid-air.
Boom!
The deafening sound of the explosion, accompanied by a fierce wind, spread in all directions but did not cause the slightest ripple when it struck the protective shield formed by the magic array.
Audis was relatively at ease. Unlike Yousef, who had put most of his efforts into researching magic runes and enchantments, Audis, as an arcanist, had always been earnestly exploring the roots and nature of magic power. With years of experiments and accumulation, the number of his exclusive arcane spells outnumbered those of Lis.
Seven-Circle Arcane "Audis's Luminous Flame Burst Fireball"!
The names Audis gave to his exclusive arcane spells were far more impressive than those of Lis, a habit common among most arcanists when naming their own created arcanes, typically combining the creator's name with the spell they took inspiration from.
Because an arcanist's life is filled with the creation of numerous exclusive arcane spells, unless it's something very special or an arcane that wasn't developed through modifying an existing magic model but was a completely original creation, most arcanists wouldn't bother to come up with a unique name for their spells.
Yousef, looking at the glaze-like fireball appearing above Audis, faintly sensed the explosive and destructive fluctuations within it, and his expression shifted.
This was far stronger than the fireball he had just unleashed!
This was an arcanist's power—indeed, with sufficient knowledge accumulated, they became synonymous with strength and might.
Although Audis was powerful, Yousef had no intention of backing down.
If you were to ask where his confidence came from?
It was nothing other than this suit of gear that had drained the heart's blood and savings of a Magic Rune Master. Even if Yousef was not adept at combat, he was confident he could prolong the duel.
Unless a Legendary Strongman intervened, no one could take him down quickly.
A massive green shield appeared in front of Yousef, blocking Audis's glaze-like fireball entirely, but after fully blocking this attack, the shield also gradually shattered and vanished.
If the onlookers were paying attention, they would notice a ring on Yousef's right index finger set with a green magic gem. The spirit light on it also dimmed, suggesting it might need some time to recover.
But Yousef wore a magic ring of comparable level on each finger!
Not to mention all the other magic equipment and items he had on him.
Sorry, that's the power of Gold Coins!
Audis felt a headache coming on; this was why he didn't want to fight with Yousef—his magic equipment was mostly enchanted with various high-level defensive magic, creating an impenetrable shell around him.
Just the magic embedded in that suit of armor was enough for Audis to be occupied for quite a while.
Despite thinking this, his hands didn't stop moving. Arcanes of various colors congregated by his side like fireworks, bombarding Yousef.
Meanwhile, Audis didn't stop talking either, trying to persuade:
"What's the point, Yousef? You're not short of talented disciples, let me have this one. It doesn't look good for you to continue fighting like this, does it?"
Yousef's face twisted in anger, and while continuously casting defensive spells, he cursed:
"Damn you, old man, have you no shame, coming here to steal my disciple!" S~eaʀᴄh the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
"What 'your disciple'? I met Little Lis a long time ago, and I already asked for his opinion back then."
This was a lie!
In fact, Audis could clearly tell from the situation that Yousef probably had noticed something special about Lis and might have already taken him as a disciple.
But this wouldn't do, Audis had long suffered from a lack of good disciples!
Every day he had to endure his old friends boasting about their outstanding disciples. Who could stand that?
Having taken on so many disciples, Audis had taught them with care, but the lottery he scratched off was always a 'thank you for your participation,' not one of them had the potential to break through to the Gold Level.
This often became a joke among his old friends at gatherings.
So, upon seeing Lis, Audis was resolute in his thought: this was his chance to turn the tables!
A Bronze Level Arcanist, what a face-saving addition for himself!
Audis didn't yet know that Lis had already broken through to the Silver Level, but that didn't change his mind, even if it meant coming to blows with Yousef.
In fact, he was already feeling some regret. Why hadn't he acted earlier? If he had taken Lis as a disciple on the spot, there would have been no need to go back to the academy to investigate his background.
But what's done is done, and there was no use in talking about it now.
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It's just a turtle shell, and today I, Audis, am going to shatter that shell!
"You're full of crap!"
Yousef was boiling with rage, the Magic Light radiating from his body growing even brighter.
He had already asked Lis, who had not received any specialized guidance from a teacher, meaning there was no truth to Audis's claim of having Lis as a disciple.
Although Yousef had not interacted with Lis for long, he felt no deceit or disguise from Lis. Instead, Lis had shared openly about the self-charging Magic Rune and a series of subsequent plans, a trust that made Yousef feel comfortable and happy.
Naturally, he believed Lis wouldn't lie to him about such a trivial matter.
What for? In fact, even if Lis already had other teachers, Yousef wouldn't mind, as long as secrets were not disclosed externally. He was not one to hold a bias against other schools of thought.
After all, exchanging knowledge is the most important way for Mages to make progress.
But even so, Audis, you've gone too far. You think you can deceive me?
All sorts of Magic Light flared up around Yousef, and he no longer just defended passively but began to attack Audis aggressively.
For a while, the battle in the Fran Magic Arena intensified.
...
Meanwhile, somewhere in the academy.
A figure suddenly appeared on the road, looking to be a handsome young man in his twenties, with dark brown short hair and a black Mage Robe that gave off a somewhat dusty appearance, as though he had just completed a long journey.
Despite his youthful appearance, he carried a certain air of time-worn experience.
With a wave of his hand, the young man's attire became instantly clean, and he mused to himself while stroking his chin:
"Coming back here is such a hassle. Why did that fellow rush me so much!"
"Hmm? The Magic Battle Arena is activated, let's see who's stirring up trouble."