Chapter 328: Chapter 328. Mad Alchemist
Azure lightning rippled and snaked around Zarek’s figure. His expression tightened. His jaw setting bled grim focus as the lightning around him crackled fiercely.
Then, an armor that pulsed golden materialized around him — a rank 0 protective rune-inscribed armor he had purchased from the academy stores. The protective rune on the armor was inscribed by a masterful rank 0 runesmith from the Atrexia Society, who was a supreme stage ascendant lifeform.
So, the rune’s effect would be more potent because the runesmith had a higher level of spiritual power compared to other rank 0 runesmiths of extremely lower sub-ranks at the beginner stage ascendant level.
He couldn’t take any chances, as the enemy was equally matched with him in strength.
He would have had Kailen inscribe a rune on a different armor for him before they proceeded with the plan to come here. Then, he would have shunned this armor.
However, Kailen was a rank 0 runesmith at the beginner stage ascendant level. Despite his rune skill proficiency being extremely high, his deep knowledge in runesmithery, and even his mastery of the craft, compared to other masterful rank 0 runesmiths who were at a higher rank in the ascendant level than Kailen, the effect of Kailen’s runes would be less potent.
After Zarek donned the rune-inscribed armor, more lightning danced around his longsword, flickering with azure light.
An aura of palpable, piercing sword intent rippled outwards from the blade, causing the very void to tremble. The lightning snaked around the longsword in lethal, preternatural strides, as if they were about to birth an apocalypse.
"Insurgence."
After that mutter, Zarek disappeared — as if he had become one with the void.
Vesper was not idle either.
Quickly, a deep red armor that pulsed with malevolence materialized around his figure too, tightly hugging his frame. With unimaginable power coursing through his being, he muttered:
"Blood Hook: Reversal Sneer."
Unlike the previous attack of the blood fishing rod that aimed at absorbing the blood of the enemy to make him stronger, this one would rather target and somehow drain the universe energy essence of the enemy’s attack itself, and redirect that essence into himself.
Clannnng!!!!
The moment he unleashed the attack, it clashed with several incessant lightning and sword strikes. The attacks caused cataclysmic shockwaves to ripple outwards, several areas in their vicinity now dried of swamp water.
Kailen, observing from a veiled distance, narrowed his eyes. His lips pressed into a thin line as he silently watched Zarek’s figure unleash a flurry of unpredictable slashes.
Zarek was zigzagging around the opponent like erratic lightning strikes — extremely fast.
As for Vesper, he was not labeled the strongest councillor of the student council for nothing. Not a single one of Zarek’s lightning-fast attacks managed to land on him. It was as if he had eyes everywhere; his perception was insanely off the charts.
No matter how fast, unpredictable, or lethal the lightning attacks seemed, they couldn’t even graze a single part of his body. He was parrying all of them with the hook of the fishing rod, wielding it with finesse that bordered on the preternatural.
The duo were engaged in a brutal exchange of attacks, each aimed at brutalizing the other. The exchanges continued for a while, destroying the environs.
Vesper realized that Zarek’s attacks were extremely fast, light, and incorporeal — meant to slowly overwhelm him.
However, thanks to the amount of strength coursing through his being and his insanely heightened perception as a result of the temporal boost in strength, he managed to counter them without any slips for the enemy to exploit.
Zarek, and even Kailen — who seemed to be observing everything from a veiled distance — realized something was not right.
Zarek’s attacks were getting weaker and less lethal with each strike, whereas Vesper was starting to push Zarek back.
Kailen’s gaze sharpened. His brows furrowed, and his expression shifted into one of analytical intrigue as he observed the flow of universe energy. Through the eyes of a shadow creature, he could clearly perceive that the energy flowing through Zarek’s attacks was growing increasingly weaker.
"It’s the fishing rod. He’s somehow managing to absorb the universe energy essence in Zarek’s attacks to make them weaker, and he’s using the essence absorbed to reinforce himself and grow stronger for a short while. The mechanism is similar to when he absorbs the blood of opponents."
"This Vesper guy is terrifying. But it seems he has no other trick up his sleeve. He plans to wear down Zarek with this sequence and then strike when he becomes too strong for Zarek to handle."
"However, no galactic-level lifeform followed him here like I suspected, and he doesn’t have any more cards up his sleeve. Although Zarek is not aware of it, my real intention in making him fight Vesper was to get him to draw out all of Vesper’s trump cards, while I also analyze the whole scenario to see if a galactic-level lifeform would show up with him."
Kailen exhaled quietly. His eyes glinted with calm calculation.
"There won’t be any danger for me if I step in now. If my fear of a galactic-level lifeform, possibly an instructor, following Vesper here had come true, I’d have just used Umbral Replacement to grab Zarek out of there and teleport us back to my room in the first-year residence."
"As for Ethan, he has already gone back to the other end of the teleportation gate, so he’s safe."
"It looks like I can now begin Plan B. I cannot use my runesmithery against him because I am a rank 0 runesmith with the spiritual power of a rank 1 beginner stage ascendant level lifeform. There’s no way my runes will therefore be effective against him."
Kailen’s grin widened faintly, the kind of expression that made him look both brilliant, and wickedly ferocious at the same time.
"However, I am a rank 1 alchemist. The alchemical products I make can even affect galactic-level lifeforms — how much more supreme stage ascendant level lifeforms?"
"Of course, unlike other rank 1 alchemists whose syllabus for making alchemical products mostly borders on talent-enhancing products, universe energy recovery elixirs, aphrodisiacs, and the like, I am different. Thanks to my comprehensive knowledge of Alchemy Level 1, I have a wide array of knowledge concerning poison techniques at my fingertips. It’s good I passed by the alchemy department to concoct some poisons before meeting with Vesper."
After these brief thoughts, which took less than a second to flash through Kailen’s mind, several black-colored elixirs in glass tubes appeared in his hands.
His eyes narrowed, and a wicked smirk tugged at the edge of his lips.
"Time to play mad alchemist."