Chapter 1279
The elemental flames at the edge of the fiery torrent were stripped away, revealing a massive hand wreathed in golden fire. The hand was covered in intricate flame patterns, as if sculpted from pure fire crystal.
With the appearance of this giant hand, the overwhelming pressure intensified, supernatural power exploding and surging several times over in an instant...
The Wind-Fire Torrent unleashed by Theodorus and the Elemental Storm conjured by Andefa were instantly crushed by the giant hand...
Then the giant hand slammed toward Leon, even while still a hundred meters away, his fusion shield began to fluctuate violently. If struck, it would undoubtedly shatter...
Leon frowned, and the flame rune on his forehead began to shift. The intense fiery aura around him was suddenly joined by three other distinct elemental rules.
As the Four Elemental Rules—Earth, Fire, Water, and Wind—fluctuated, the rune on Leon's forehead transformed into one flashing with four colors. An even more terrifying aura spread out, and the surrounding elemental forces seemed to rejoice, countless energies converging toward Leon.
Unleashing the Elemental Elf King Avatar at full power, Leon stirred the elemental forces within several kilometers. Every uncontrolled earth, fire, water, and wind element in the area frantically converged toward him.
This collapse-like convergence triggered a chain reaction that spread across more than ten kilometers, causing the elemental concentration here to plummet, which in turn drew in replenishing energies from the surroundings.
A massive vortex of four-colored elemental energies—over a thousand meters wide—formed in midair. All that power relentlessly poured into Leon's hand, converging with a frenzied intensity...
Leon’s face grew pale. The Elemental Elf King Avatar was anything but easy to wield. Without the Natural Semi-Plane—his near-infinite reservoir of magical power—as a backup, it would drain him dry in a single second...
Even so, the rate at which the Natural Semi-Plane could replenish mana lagged far behind the consumption rate of the Elemental Elf King Avatar. At this pace, Leon could only maintain it for a dozen seconds before his mana was completely spent—no matter how endlessly the semi-plane tried to supply him.
So at this moment, the best strategy was to unleash the most powerful Quad-Elemental Rule Bomb—using the power of rule runes and the Elemental Elf King Avatar to forcibly accumulate strength beyond his rank and limits. Once released, with the barrier gone, it would obliterate everything within a diameter of one or two kilometers, and the shockwave could reach even farther...
Such terrifying power gathering here immediately drew a swarm of powerful figures to the scene. Even Graham was at a loss, never expecting Leon to be this strong. Lafayette’s face was ashen—he still hadn’t regained control over his body or mana. His mind ordered his legs to move, but it was his hand that twitched...
His mind tried to summon mana to cast a shield, but his magic was in complete disarray—not even a first-level spell would come out...
Staring at the impossibly powerful Leon floating in midair, Lafayette’s eyes filled with despair. Who could have guessed Leon would survive Graham’s assault? Damn it, wasn’t he supposed to be instantly annihilated...?
Just half a year ago, this guy was only a Title Archmage. Even if he’s broken through to Sky Rank now, how could he possibly withstand a spell from a peak fourth-level Sky Rank powerhouse?
The gap between them was so vast it defied calculation. Why didn’t the instant kill happen? How did it turn out like this...?
Lafayette couldn’t run, couldn’t defend—could only watch. He didn’t even need to think to know that the coming spell clash, even its mere ripples, would be enough to finish him...
Graham was stuck between a rock and a hard place too, utterly clueless about what to do. With this mess, things were bound to spiral out of control...
Just as Leon’s Quad-Elemental Rule Bomb was about to fully coalesce, and the fire giant hand strained against the pressure outside, streaks of silver light flashed—a Portal Gate formed at the very center of the battlefield.
An elder with hair shimmering silver-white stepped out from the Portal Gate. The moment he appeared, all magical turbulence around him instantly calmed. He raised one hand toward the nearby fire giant hand and made a simple gesture; in a blink, the hand dissolved into a sheet of flame, then vanished altogether...
With his other hand, he gestured toward Leon. Suddenly, a terrifying, irresistible force swept over Leon—like an invisible giant hand brushing past. The colossal vortex of elemental power above Leon’s head collapsed, and the Quad-Elemental Rule Bomb in front of him turned into a surge of elemental energy rushing skyward, dispersing with the rest.
That utterly irresistible force felt like the will of the world itself. Even with the Elemental Elf King Avatar, Leon couldn’t resist its dispersal...
"Enough."
The elder stood calmly in midair, his white robe embroidered with gold thread utterly still. With just a word, all the surging magical turbulence around them vanished.
Seeing this elder appear—and end the battle with a force so absolute it brooked no resistance—Leon promptly dismissed the Elemental Elf King Avatar. The mana drain was so severe that even Leon struggled to bear it; a moment’s lapse in replenishing from the semi-plane, and it might start draining his life force, even his soul...
When the silver-haired elder appeared, Graham’s face showed utter shock. He immediately stopped casting, withdrew his magical expenditure, and bowed respectfully with a mage’s salute.
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"Dean Gandalf."
Dean Gandalf looked kindly, dressed in white robes, giving off no sense of overwhelming power. Yet just standing there, Leon felt as if he faced a vast, utterly calm ocean—one wave would be enough to crush him.
Dean Gandalf was one of Astral Academy’s three Saint Alchemist Deans. It was Leon’s first time seeing a Saint Alchemist, and his eyes brimmed with awe. This wasn’t the terrifying aura of a mere Sky Rank powerhouse—not wild, not forceful, but unfathomable. That was the most frightening part...
Just the feat of forcibly opening a Portal Gate in the center of the battlefield proved Gandalf’s strength far surpassed both Leon and Graham—utterly overwhelming. Otherwise, opening a Portal Gate here would’ve been impossible...
Gandalf’s expression was calm, even warm with a gentle smile, but his thoughts were conflicted as he looked at Graham and Leon, uncertain how to proceed...
As one of Astral Academy’s deans, Gandalf had already received a full report from Zeiss about this gathering. He had a general idea of how many Runes of Truth each Worldshaper could produce.
Now he was just waiting for Leon to transcribe the secrets of the Runes of Truth. No matter how steep the price, nothing compared to the mysteries within those runes. With them, Astral Academy could maintain its status as an alchemical sanctuary for years to come—and might even birth another Saint Alchemist...
If there was even a chance of producing another Saint Alchemist, it would be worth trading ten resource-rich planes—maybe more. Even the possibility was priceless...
But now things had spiraled out of control. The magical shockwaves from the earlier battle could be felt clearly even dozens of kilometers away. If word got out that Astral Academy’s Worldshapers had their research stolen, future gatherings would be finished...
But now, with Astral Academy’s Vice Dean personally involved, things were even trickier. If Gandalf sided with the academy, what would happen to its reputation?
Side with Leon? That would mean punishing academy members and offending the Jackson Family. For a Worldshaper from the Andalusia Kingdom, was it worth provoking their own families and stirring up internal strife? It hardly seemed worth it...
Besides, no matter what happened, Astral Academy would still end up with the secrets transcribed from the Runes of Truth. So why not just keep the peace, turn a big problem into a small one, and a small one into nothing? Worst case, pay a little extra price...
If not for the fact that things had already escalated to fighting, Gandalf wouldn’t have intervened in person. Internal matters at Astral Academy were all too clear to him...
Gandalf smiled and decided to play mediator, suppressing the whole affair...
Seeing Gandalf arrive, Lafayette didn’t dare utter a word. Gandalf was a legend in Odin Kingdom, one of Astral Academy’s three deans, and a Saint Alchemist whose power was terrifying. He hadn’t intervened in centuries—no one knew how strong he was now, but after witnessing that scene, it was clear he was at least Sky Rank Level Six...
Seeing Gandalf’s demeanor, Graham instantly felt reassured and pointed at Leon with a cold, sinister look.
"Dean Gandalf, I was called for help because this guy tried to steal others’ research, committed violence inside Astral Academy, refused to cooperate with my investigation, and even dared attack me.
According to Astral Academy’s rules, he must be severely punished! We can’t let everyone think Astral Academy is easy to bully!"
Graham loudly accused Leon, but dropped the claim that Leon stole Lafayette’s Runes of Truth transcription. Instead, he focused on Leon supposedly breaking academy rules...
Leon narrowed his eyes, a dangerous glint flashing within. He began channeling power from the Natural Semi-Plane. If this dean tried anything like that idiot Graham, Leon was ready to make a scene. Sure, Gandalf was terrifyingly strong—almost impossible to resist—but if he really pushed, Leon wouldn’t just sit still...
"Dean Gandalf, let me ask you: Lafayette claims I stole the secrets of 1,600 Runes of Truth from him. But could he really research 1,600? No—could he even manage 500?"