This sudden change instantly stunned everyone.
From Suyass to Lys, from William Merlin to Xiuban, a dozen people could only stare blankly as Fran was sent flying like a kite with a broken string before heavily falling down. That loud sound echoed in everyone's mind.
"This …" No one had expected that the one sent flying was actually Fran, who had the power of an Archmage. Even a 9th Rank High Mage like Lys couldn't retaliate in front of him.
But now, his Elemental Shield had been pierced by a Flame Burst.
And the one who cast that Flame Burst was actually a 9th Rank Great Mage, Mafa Merlin!
What was going on?
A 9th Rank Great Mage's Flame Burst pierced an Archmage's Elemental Shield? Wasn't this too much of a joke?
This wasn't something that could be explained by carelessness or underestimating the enemy.
The gap between a 9th Rank Great Mage and an Archmage was more than a thousand kilometers. It was hardly an exaggeration to say that even if an Archmage stood there motionlessly, it would be very difficult for a 9th Rank Great Mage to injure them. Just the difference in mana was a hundred times, a thousand times greater. Moreover, Fran had used an Elemental Shield earlier, so how could it be pierced by a Flame Burst?
This wasn't logical …
No one could have thought that something even more illogical was yet to come!
Just as Fran flew up, Lin Yun moved.
Lin Yun's movement was like a bolt of lightning. With the Magic Array's Haste, Lin Yun's speed was raised to the limit. Everyone only heard a loud sound as Fran fell to the ground. They only saw a blur as Lin Yun was already standing in front of him.
"You …" Fran was lying on the ground. He didn't even have time to get up when he saw Lin Yun in front of him. He was so shocked that he didn't even have time to think about how that Flame Burst had pierced his Elemental Shield. He didn't even get up before casting a Counterspell.
This was no joke …
Archmages were also made of flesh and blood. Without the protection of an Elemental Shield, even if they faced a 9th Rank Great Mage, they could still be killed.
Furthermore …
This 9th Rank Great Mage had just pierced through his Elemental Shield.
Fran's reaction was very fast, he cast Counterspell almost as soon as his body hit the ground.
Unfortunately, it was still too late …
Fran didn't even have time to cast a Counterspell before he felt pain in his chest. A dazzling white light had already exploded on his chest, followed by a burst of popping sounds as one white light after another exploded on Fran's chest.
Fran knew that it was an Arcane Missile …
The damage wasn't too great. Arcane Missile was only a 1st Rank Spell after all, and with Fran's power as an Archmage, his Magic Conducting Rune was completely fused with him. Even if he didn't need an incantation or a gesture, he could still mobilize a huge amount of mana at any time. Although the Arcane Missiles were continuous, most of them were blocked by Fran's mana, and very little damage was done.
But for Fran …
The sound of the Arcane Missiles exploding was like a slap to Fran's face. It was too disgusting. An esteemed Archmage had his Elemental Shield pierced by a 9th Rank Great Mage's Flame Burst, but he was now being stepped on by someone else and being bombarded by Arcane Missiles.
If this spread, people would definitely laugh at him!
But there was nothing he could do about it.
Fran felt as if he had the power, but he couldn't use it. He clearly had the power of an Archmage, but he was being pressured by a 9th Rank Great Mage. This kind of awkwardness, this kind of grievance, was driving Fran crazy.
To be honest, the other side's casting speed wasn't that fast. As the owner of the Time Hand Magic Conducting Rune, even if Fran hadn't used the Crystal Scales to advance to the Archmage realm, he wouldn't have cared about this kind of casting speed.
But now, Fran was being forced into a difficult situation by this unhurried casting speed.
That's right, the opponent's spellcasting speed wasn't fast, but it was extremely crucial. It was as if he had calculated everything beforehand. Every time he cast a spell, he could disrupt Fran's rhythm. There were even situations where Fran was forced to stop casting four times in a row.
What kind of concept was this?
Even for Archmages, rashly interrupting their casting was very dangerous. It wasn't just a matter of wasting mana, but also because every time they interrupted their casting, it could lead to a mana backlash. It could be said that if it wasn't absolutely necessary, no mage would be willing to interrupt their casting.
But each of these four interruptions was very necessary.
The first time was when the Elemental Shield had just disappeared and Fran had just gained the initiative. He wanted to use a burst to regain it, but the other side just happened to make a casting error. An Elemental Burst that should have been completed a few seconds earlier was actually delayed a few seconds for some unknown reason.
Thus, Fran had no choice but to face a very awkward problem.
He could either interrupt his casting, or he could endure the Elemental Burst and finish it, gambling with the other side to see who would fall under the spell bombardment.
The problem was that Fran had experienced the power of that Elemental Burst.
Although it wasn't like the Flame Burst from before, which could strangely pierce through the Elemental Shield, its power absolutely shouldn't appear in the hands of a 9th Rank Great Mage. It was hardly an exaggeration to say that without the protection of the Elemental Shield, even Fran, who was now an Archmage, might be seriously injured by that Elemental Burst.
Thus, Fran had no choice but to interrupt the Elemental Burst and retract all his mana to condense a Runic Shield to resist that Elemental Burst.
This was something he couldn't do anything about. The defensive ability of a Runic Shield was far inferior to an Elemental Shield. If he wanted to rely on this Runic Shield to resist the Elemental Burst, Fran would have no choice but to retract all his mana.
This was too disgusting …
Fran struggled for an opportunity to counterattack, but it disappeared because of the other side's casting error. Fran simply wanted to spit blood. At this time, Fran really wanted to ask, 'F * ck, why do you want me to pay for your own mistake?'
But …
After that, this situation occurred again and again. Once or twice was still fine, but three times, four times, and even five or six times … Fran finally realized that something was wrong …
'Could it be that Mafa Merlin is doing this on purpose?
No, impossible … '
How could a 9th Rank Great Mage have this kind of casting ability? Let alone a 9th Rank Great Mage, even Suyass and Karon, who had entered the Archmage realm earlier than him, couldn't cast spells so accurately and treacherously. Among the people he knew, the only one who could reach such a realm was his unfathomable teacher, Nolan.
'But isn't this too much of a coincidence?'
'Once, twice, thrice, thrice, thrice, thrice … It's the same every time … Could there really be such a coincidence in this world?'
Unfortunately, Fran didn't have time to think about it. After being interrupted a few times, Fran was at a complete disadvantage. Apart from using all kinds of defensive spells to resist, Fran couldn't find an opportunity to counterattack.
An esteemed Archmage had been thoroughly suppressed by a 9th Rank Great Mage and hadn't been able to retaliate from start to finish.
This scene left the entire joint exploration team dumbfounded.
"Solomon, who do you think will win …" Lys had already freed himself from Fran's mana shackles, and his injuries had already healed. He was now standing next to Solomon, watching the battle while taking the time to ask, "Solomon, who do you think will win in the end?"
"I can't tell …" Solomon shook his head with a smile.
"That's right …" Lys knew that he had asked a stupid question. Although Solomon was the most powerful High Mage of Thousand Sails City, this battle clearly surpassed the realm of High Mages. Even if Merlin was only a 9th Rank Great Mage, the power he displayed had already reached the peak of the High Mage realm.
And this was just power …
What was truly frightening about Merlin was the casting ability and control he had displayed in this battle. That could only be described as unfathomable. This kind of casting ability that surpassed the limits of a 9th Rank Great Mage, even a 9th Rank High Mage would be scared half to death. Not to mention that kind of terrifying control. Fran might not have been able to see it in the middle of the battle, but Lys could clearly see it from the side.
As a 9th Rank Great Mage, Merlin was able to firmly grasp the rhythm of the battle while facing an Archmage. What kind of control was that?
The only thing Lys couldn't see was the outcome of the battle.
It looked like Merlin had the upper hand, but one shouldn't forget that Fran was an Archmage. What kind of concept was an Archmage? That was an existence standing at the peak of magic. The difference between the two sides was as high as ten ranks. Under normal circumstances, the battle wouldn't even need to start before it was over.
Merlin being able to fight until now already made Lys overjoyed.
'Enough, enough, it's really enough …'
This battle had already proved that Merlin had the power to contend against an Archmage. Even if he was defeated, it wouldn't be a big deal. Whether it was Fran or Suyass, they had to consider Merlin's reaction before getting their hands on those magic materials.
Naturally, Lys had another voice in his mind.
'It would have been great if I could have won …'
However, this could only be said in his heart. Lys also knew that the battle had progressed to this stage due to luck. Merlin had completely relied on that strange Flame Burst, which unexpectedly pierced through the Elemental Shield and gained the upper hand for the first time in the battle.
But even if Merlin didn't say it, Lys knew that those strange Flame Bursts absolutely couldn't appear again and again. Otherwise, why would Merlin be fighting against Fran? He could have just used a few Flame Bursts to get rid of him.
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