Comprehensive network wizard, magic emperor.

Chapter 356 Sword Duel Test, the Archmage's Approval

“The mage’s force field wall is quite something.” The handsome dragon vein mage scratched the silver scales on his forehead. “I’ve never seen a force field wall that can deform and move. It defies common sense.”

“It’s common sense to us, but Brother Mage is a certified god-like power across the entire network.” The unstudious Tiflin sighed softly, “If only Brother Mage were my sect leader. He’s incredibly skilled and speaks so nicely. He seems like the kind of great master who would spoil his disciples rotten.”

"Alright, alright, stop talking in your sleep in broad daylight," a companion comforted her warmly.

Standing atop the reef, the [Flying Sword Apprentice] pursed his lips and frowned, his ten fingers still entwined with the magic net, remotely connecting to the flying and leaping sword pellets. With each flick of his finger, the sword pellets would unleash a force field spell, whether it be a ray, an arc of light, or specks of starlight.

The pale gold magical light was dazzling and chilling, and the sound of it cutting through the air was fierce and menacing. When it landed on the rocky beach, it left a deep groove; when it landed on the reef, it left a pile of dust. Its power was quite terrifying.

To avoid being affected, the spectators on the shore consciously stepped back a few steps and set up shields and protective spells.

Despite the howling winds and the ever-changing sword light, the transparent wall across the sea remained insurmountable, relying on its flexible shape to block all magical attacks attempting to bypass the battle line.

This is not a wall at all, but a living river, slowly advancing like a mountain torrent, indifferent and unstoppable.

Seeing that his force field spells could not neutralize the opponent's force field spells, the [Flying Sword Apprentice] was greatly surprised and did not continue to fight to the death.

The battle line theory of flying weapons is very flexible, and attacking the enemy's forced defense is an excellent way to break the stalemate.

With a flick of his finger, the golden sword pellet suddenly made a spacetime jump, vaulting over the wall and flying swiftly towards Lin Bo on the reef.

"You can do that?" "Such a flexible application of magic!" The players clapped and exclaimed in admiration.

"Good." The archmage was genuinely impressed by the sword pellet teleportation technique. Combining displacement magic with a flying weapon was technically very difficult, but it opened up a huge range of tactical applications. It was a decisive move.

He simply raised his hand and drew a line, and a hazy, thin force field appeared before him, like a fluttering plastic film, soft and weightless. The golden sword pellet crashed into it head-on, but suddenly stopped in mid-air, unable to advance an inch.

The Flying Sword Apprentice tried to use the same trick again, attempting to teleport away with a flick of his finger, but the sword pellet remained firmly rooted to the spot.

He anxiously urged it on, but the sword pellet remained motionless, as if it were frozen inside amber.

"What kind of spell is this? A force field prison?"

The Dragon Vein Sorcerer's eyes gleamed with a cold, spiritual light as he used divination to probe the truth. "No, there is a vast space inside that membrane, and it is constantly expanding. The Demon Duncan's Sword is still flying at high speed, but it is too slow compared to the speed of the spacetime expansion, which is why it looks like it is not moving."

“I understand, the theory of relativity,” Tifflin said with a wise expression.

"Speaking of which, isn't our classroom a similar environment?"

[Flying Sword Apprentice] had no choice but to retreat. He flicked his finger and teleported the sword pellet back to his side. His spell slots were limited, so he couldn't use them arbitrarily and had to plan carefully.

He saw through the Grand Master's intention: to force him to do his utmost and demonstrate his courage and wisdom. This was a test, not a duel.

But he was unwilling to give up. He wanted to see the Grand Mage's swordsmanship, to exert his utmost effort, and to use his final trump card to force his opponent to make a move! This would be the perfect reward for his hard work and training.

Adjust your breathing to slow your heartbeat, so that your mind can be focused and your spells will respond more sensitively.

With a flick of his finger, he cast a spell. The force field sword pellets at his hand suddenly split apart, conjuring up a realistic magical illusion. Hundreds of golden sword pellets, like a swarm of hornets, emitted terrifying, noisy whistles as they suddenly shot through the air, scattering into countless meteors that launched an attack from all directions.

“It’s fake.” The Dragon Vein Sorcerer stared at the only real sword, which was as silent and unnoticed as tears in the rain, hidden in the waves of sword cries.

Lin Bo did not allow these phantom swords to get close to him. He noticed that each phantom was connected to the [Flying Sword Apprentice]'s fingers by magic net threads. The other party could switch the positions of the real and fake sword pellets at any time, and could also use the phantoms to cast spells.

After all, he is already a cross-network adventurer who has completed the exemplary mission, and his strength should not be underestimated.

He smiled silently, raised his hand to catch a wisp of energy ripple by his ear, and catalyzed it into a colorless flame in his hand. From the flame flew a massive number of moths like a reverse waterfall, surging into the sky, in all directions, and towards the phantom sword pellets rushing from beneath the sea.

Each phantom was greeted by a moth, its wings wrapped like a cocoon, imprisoning the approaching sword shadows one by one.

The crowd on the rocky beach witnessed the clash between the moths and bees, like two clouds locked in a fierce battle. The sound of golden swords clashing was like thunder, making their chests tremble. The glass moths fell silent, silencing the cacophony. Just as they were still reeling from the spectacle, the dragon vein sorcerer sighed, "It's over. The true sword is trapped."

The flying sword apprentice, pale-faced but with bright eyes, raised his hand and cried out, "Master!"

The southeast sun has already risen above the horizon, casting long, slanted shadows of trees. The dense shadows of the nearshore reefs connect on the water's surface, resembling urban traffic tracks.

The instant Lin Bo raised his hand in response, a golden phantom sword suddenly leaped out from the shadow of the reef beneath his feet, and then unleashed a force field ray at the archmage at point-blank range.

Such a dramatic turn of events came so suddenly that gasps of alarm rose in everyone's throats without a second thought, but they couldn't utter them.

Because the force field rays travel at extremely high speeds, easily piercing the sound barrier and striking towards Lin Bo's foothold, the outcome of the battle is decided as long as they fall within the reef circle.

[Flying Sword Apprentice] had been preparing for this attack for a long time. He knew that the last wanderer who successfully ambushed the archmage had escaped by hiding in the shadow plane, which might mean that the archmage had limitations in his perception.

Drawing on successful experiences and employing despicable distraction tactics, he exhausted all his talent and cunning to seize this opportunity.

In the brief instant before his heart could even beat, the [Flying Sword Apprentice]'s mind was blank and serene. He had exhausted his spell slots and carried the humiliation of the conspiracy, but at this moment he felt neither fatigue nor shame, only relief and anticipation.

As the pale gold force field ray approached its endpoint, it suddenly slowed down, becoming sluggish enough for everyone to see. It was caught by a hand and stopped less than a centimeter away, but it stopped struggling like a dead fish.

The hand that caught the force field ray was none other than the hand that had greeted and responded earlier. It had been waiting there all along, and the force field ray was sent into its palm as if it had walked right into a trap.

A series of exclamations of surprise and regret echoed across the beach, with sighs of dismay never ceasing.

The flying sword apprentice looked bitter. "I admit defeat, Master."

He sighed inwardly, wondering if the Grand Mage would not have raised his hand if he hadn't been so clever as to warn him at the end, and perhaps he wouldn't have had time to block that final sword light.

Of course, this assumption will never exist. It is more likely that the mage had already noticed his hidden killing move, and the so-called victory was just a fleeting illusion.

[Network notification: Quest - The Archmage's Approval (Extremely Difficult) has been completed]

Quest Rewards: "Gudorei Language", "Animal Language", and the Archmage's Graduation Gift Chest

[Network prompt: Please continue the story and wait to deliver the dungeon drops. Repeatedly completing this task will continuously increase the rewards.]

The Flying Sword Apprentice was taken aback by the information prompt in front of him.

The Grand Master arrived by sea, his face showing approval. "Very good."

They returned to the beach, but the audience was still not satisfied, only unable to find anyone to fight the mage with.

[Flying Sword Apprentice] shared his dungeon information, saying that he had already completed the story quest and received generous rewards.

These words sparked interest among many players, who wondered whether they should request a friendly match with their beloved mage, but were also worried about their own lack of skill and embarrassing themselves.

Lin Bo waved his hand to interrupt their commotion, "It's almost time, go back to class."

"Okay." The auditors reluctantly complied.

The Grand Master looked at the white-robed youth in the crowd; that person was his true form.

My thoughts and ideas are consistent with his.

Lin Bo gestured with his eyes: "Let's have a fight?"
The white-robed sage smiled and said, "We'll talk about it tonight."

They remained silent as they led the students back to the lighthouse. The morning sea breeze grew increasingly noisy.

(End of this chapter)