Wizard: Starting from Escape from the Thorn Garden

Beyond the archway of bones lay a transparent gate, as clear as rippling water—the true entrance to the Purification Temple, radiating an alluring yet deadly glow. The crowd filed in.

When the four forces, each with their own goals and vigilance, stepped into that pure light, the cruel selection process began the instant the spatial displacement was completed.

Kate felt that she was not "teleported," but rather that a vast, cold, and undeniable force precisely "stripped" her of her original spatial coordinates, like sand thrown into a fine sieve and randomly scattered into a vast and boundless ocean.

His feet landed firmly and coldly.

Before us stretched a magnificent corridor that seemed to have no end.

Its material transcends the jade or metal that ordinary people can understand; it seems to be composed of solidified, highly compressed pure light itself—Holy Radiance Crystal Rock.

This is a rare light-based purification material. The Purification Temple is actually made of these holy radiance crystals. No wonder it can maintain its mystery even after the passage of time.

The ground, the towering walls on both sides reaching into the sky, and the unreachable arched dome all radiate a uniform, constant, and flawless warm silver glow.

The light was not dazzling, but it carried a sense of "absolute purity" that sent shivers down one's spine.

The air was so clear it was almost ethereal, devoid of dust and odor, and one couldn't even sense the natural flow of energy; it was as if time itself had lost its meaning here.

However, this "cleanliness" is by no means comfortable. It creates an omnipresent and heavy pressure of order, like billions of invisible needles of light that penetrate clothing and skin, constantly washing over the intruder's physical body, magical core, and even the origin of their soul, attempting to strip away, purify, and crush everything that is considered "unclean," "chaotic," or "alien."

What's even more unsettling is the structure of the corridor itself.

The entire space is not static. Countless enormous geometric crystal structures of various shapes—perfect prisms, perfectly round spheres, and complex polyhedra—like living stars, silently suspend, move, rotate, combine, and separate in the vast space of the corridor according to some profound and mysterious principle.

They are not active patrolling guards, but rather components of the temple's "immune system".

They radiate a silvery glow that shares the same origin as the corridor, but is more understated.

Only when specific energy fluctuations—especially "pollutants" associated with attributes such as the abyss, the undead, shadows, and raging elements—reach a certain threshold and enter its perception range will these seemingly harmless "stars" instantly activate, unleashing destructive power to purify all intruders.

The moment you step into the purification corridor, the bloody selection process begins.

Random teleportation completely shattered the originally tight-knit group, leaving isolated individuals in this absolute light domain that was extremely hostile to "others," as if they had been thrown into an invisible meat grinder.

Within just ten minutes, many wizard apprentices who had misjudged the purification of the temple and were unprepared were eliminated.

About fifty meters away from Kate, space distorted, and the figure of a mid-level fourth-grade apprentice from Molten City appeared.

He was clearly cultivating the most violent lava battle aura. Before the dizziness from the teleportation had completely subsided, the crimson lava shield that he habitually maintained on his body surface instinctively ignited. The scorching, restless, and destructive fire elemental aura was like a giant torch lit in the night in this absolutely pure silver sea of ​​light, instantly attracting the attention of all the "stars"!

The nearest slowly rotating silver-white energy ridge suddenly trembled, and the mysterious runes on its surface instantly lit up!

Without warning or charging, several arm-thick spears of judgment, composed of pure, condensed light of purification, appeared out of thin air. They carried an absolute will to pierce through all evil and return to purity, instantly tearing through the air and emitting a high-frequency hum that made one's teeth ache, as if the space itself had been "purified"!

The Molten City apprentice only had time to widen his horrified eyes before his lava shield, which was strong enough to withstand the bombardment of a level four spell, was pierced through and vaporized like thin paper!

Then came his chest, limbs... The moment his entire body came into contact with the purifying beam, it disintegrated and vanished silently, like a cheap wax figure thrown into a furnace, without even leaving a scream.

All that remained was a slightly distorted trace of air, as if scorched by high temperatures, and the Variants recorder at his waist, which dimmed and shattered instantly, emitting a sharp wail before falling completely silent.

His high-intensity, highly polluting energy, evolved from the Abyss Fire, triggered the highest-priority "purification" command.

On the other side, the shadows rippled like water, and the figure of an elite stealth warrior from Shadowhold vaguely appeared.

He is one of "Shadowsong" Maurice's confidants, and is well-versed in the art of shadow leaps and the erasure of presence.

Upon appearing, he minimized his presence, his figure almost blending into the faint light and shadow changes of the Holy Radiance Crystal Rock, and he also tried his best to restrain the pure shadow magic he cultivated within his body.

However, the "absolute light" of the purification corridor is the natural enemy of shadow!

The omnipresent silver light seemed to have a life of its own, and the faint "dark zone" around his body, which was deliberately created for concealment, was as clear as an ink dot on a white sheet of paper at this moment!

On the surface of a slowly floating energy sphere three steps away from him, a subtle ring of light silently illuminated.

The next second, a ring-shaped purifying light wave, which was difficult to detect with the naked eye but could make the soul feel "stripped away", spread out instantly like ripples and accurately swept across his body!

His carefully constructed disguise vanished like smoke blown away by a strong wind!

His figure was completely exposed!

Even more terrifying was that the moment the light wave swept over him, he felt the shadow magic he had cultivated within his body was like a lit fuse, boiling and clashing violently, almost out of control!

His expression changed drastically, and he tried to forcefully use Shadow Leap to escape, but it was too late!

At least five different constructs around him locked onto him simultaneously, and dense, interwoven beams of purification light covered the area around him like a torrential downpour.

There was no explosion, only a continuous, high-frequency "purification" hum. The Holy Radiance Crystal Rock ground in that area was slightly sunken, presenting a glassy texture that had been over-cleaned.

When the light faded, the spot was completely empty, not even a speck of ashes remained.

Further down the corridor, around the corner, a late-stage level four apprentice from a mid-sized wizarding organization called "Frostwind Tower" was quite well-known within the stronghold for his exquisite ice magic.

After teleporting, he was relatively cautious, observing for a few seconds. Seeing the miserable state of the Molten City apprentices in the distance, he felt a chill in his heart.

But he had a special understanding of his ice magic: "Ice is the essence of water, pure and clear, and should be of the same origin as the radiance of this place, at least it should not be regarded as 'filth'." He decided to test it.

He gathered his magic power and constructed a massive, half-meter-thick, crystal-clear ice shield in front of him, its edges gleaming with a sharp, cold light. Runes flowed across the shield's surface, emanating a chilling aura, and he was confident that it could withstand any attack.

Just as he finished casting his ice shield, a purification beam shot from above struck it.

Without any earth-shattering collision, the moment the beam of light touched the ice shield, the ice magic structure contained within the ice shield seemed to have encountered its natural nemesis, and was instantly disintegrated, assimilated, and purified!

The seemingly indestructible ice shield melted and vaporized silently, just like snow exposed to the blazing sun, centered on the point of contact with the beam of light!

The whole process was incredibly fast, taking less than half a second!

The beam of light was almost completely pierced through the chilling aura left by the dissipated ice shield, striking his hastily raised left arm hard!

A terrifying purifying energy surged in instantly, and his left arm, along with the frost armor covering it, shattered and vanished like fragile glass!

The intense pain and the indescribable "purification" sensation, as if his soul were being burned, caused him to let out a piercing scream!

He tried to freeze the wound to stop the bleeding with his remaining magic, but the purifying energy remaining at the wound was like a leech, frantically eroding and purifying the ice magic he was trying to condense, which only accelerated the loss of his life force.

He staggered backward, watching in despair as another construct nearby slowly turned toward him, only to be completely engulfed by the second and third beams of light.

A sudden, intense mental surge emanated from the emerald-topped communication talisman on Kate's chest, followed by Rhodes's signature roar, now filled with pain and rage: "Bastard! Get the hell out of my way! Molten Core..."

The communication was instantly severed by intense energy interference!

Kate's heart sank. The vague perception transmitted by the Seed of Origin through the communication talisman made him feel as if he were there: Rhodes was extremely unlucky and was directly teleported to the center of a triangular area composed of three huge polyhedral structures!

His violent molten battle aura erupted instinctively, like a small volcanic eruption!

This sudden outburst was nothing short of the most dazzling "pollution source" signal in the eyes of the construct!

The three constructs instantly activated to their fullest potential, their surface runes resembling burning suns!

Three torrents of purification, several times thicker than any they had seen before and as condensed as liquid silver, carrying a terrifying will to annihilate all alien matter, hurtled toward Rhodes in a triangular formation!

Rhodes's fighting instincts were astonishing. At the critical moment, he roared and pushed the power of his Molten Core Explosion Fist to the limit. His fists ignited with blinding white light as he crossed them to block!

Boom! A deafening explosion, like glass shattering at high frequency, resounded throughout the area!

Rhodes's gauntlets and the lava armor covering his arms vaporized almost instantly upon contact with the purifying torrent!

He was sent flying backwards as if he had been hit head-on by a battering ram.

The terrifying purifying energy frantically eroded his body. His left arm, from the elbow down, along with half of his chest, was instantly vaporized and disappeared, as if bitten off by an invisible giant mouth.

There was no blood at the edge of the wound, only a charred black spot and a strange, smooth, glass-like cross-section left after it had been forcibly "purified"!

The remaining purifying energy raged within his body, and the life-giving instinct of the Blood-Devouring Vine was suppressed. Not only did the wound fail to heal, but it also slowly expanded!

Rhodes' massive body slammed heavily against the distant crystal wall with a dull thud, his aura instantly weakening to the extreme, bringing him to the brink of death!

Just as several nearby constructs locked onto him again, preparing to deliver the final blow, the Emerald Top Communication Talisman burst forth with a strong silver-blue light!

It was Elena! Using the communication talisman to locate Rhodes, she joined forces with Alphonse Deep Tide, who was relatively close to Rhodes. Despite her own exhaustion, she forcibly locked Rhodes' coordinates with the Star Prophecy. Alphonse then used the power of the tides to remotely construct a double protective shield, narrowly blocking the subsequent deadly beam!

The protective shield fluctuated violently under the bombardment of several beams of light, becoming riddled with cracks, but ultimately held up for a moment.

The All-Encompassing Recorder determined that Rhodes had completely lost his fighting ability and used this brief moment to activate the near-death state trigger protection mechanism.

A soft silver light enveloped his battered body, instantly "popping" him out of the purification corridor and sending him back to the entrance area of ​​the Tower of All Things.

All that remained were fragments of his shattered gauntlets and a patch of crystalline rock ground scorched beyond recognition by the purifying energy.

An apprentice of the Temple of Tides attempts to adapt to his environment by utilizing the temple's secret water concealment and life purification properties.

He summoned clear, vibrant blue water to surround himself, the water slowly rotating and emitting gentle purifying waves.

At first, the water flowed harmoniously under the holy light, and the construct did not seem to attack him immediately.

This put his mind at ease, making him think he had found a way.

However, when he moved to a relatively open area and tried to observe a floating prism more closely, the prism and a spherical structure silently approached him.

Suddenly, both structures simultaneously released a high-frequency purification oscillation force field that was invisible to the naked eye but clearly perceptible.

This force field, like countless high-frequency vibrating tuning forks, directly affects the core energy structure of the water flow he controls!

Splash! His proud Water Concealment technique collapsed instantly, and the azure water surrounding him dissipated and evaporated as if it had lost its support!

Even more terrifying, this force field directly penetrated his physical defenses, like countless fine needles piercing into his mental sea!

He felt as if his brain had been stuffed into a high-speed blender, his mental energy instantly became disordered and out of control, and his head was splitting with pain!

The water elemental shield protecting the body also crumbled.

Exposed to the purifying light, he was like a lamb to the slaughter, easily pierced through the abdomen by a purifying beam that followed closely behind.

He fell with a scream, the remaining Tide Temple insignia on his body rapidly dimming in the purifying light, before finally being enveloped by the teleportation light.

A Level 4 early-stage apprentice from a small organization, who had miraculously survived, caught a glimpse of a small cluster of fine, silvery crystals radiating an alluring, pure energy embedded in the corridor floor while dodging the movement of the construct. They were fragments of secondary Radiant Stone.

The overwhelming temptation overcame the fear.

He took out a mithril dagger engraved with isolation runes and carefully inserted it into the crack in the crystal rock at the edge of the crystal shard, trying to pry it open.

The moment the tip of the dagger touched the crystal rock, it was as if a hornet's nest had been stirred up!

All the constructs in the vicinity of his location, regardless of their shape or size, instantly erupted with an unprecedentedly dazzling light!

A vast, cold, and absolutely furious thought pressed down on his soul as if it were a physical force!

Countless beams of purifying judgment, thicker and faster than any previous attack, interwoven into a seamless net, instantly filled that space!

Without screams or struggles, faced with absolute power and the punishment of the rules, he and the mithril dagger were completely annihilated and erased as if they had never existed.

The crystalline rock surface in that area even had a shallow, smooth, mirror-like indentation, as if it had been personally "cleaned" by the supreme will.

An apprentice skilled in mental illusion attempts to use powerful mental energy to simulate "pure" mental fluctuations originating from the temple in order to deceive the construct.

It seemed to work at first, and he carefully moved a distance.

However, as time went on, the continuous cleansing of his soul by the purifying light and the immense pressure brought by the movement of his construct kept him on edge.

A slight mishap caused a slight disruption in the fluctuations he was simulating, which was instantly detected by the nearby spherical construct.

The construct did not attack directly, but instead released a powerful mental purification shock. It did not harm the physical body, but directly washed away his mental core, forcibly stripping away all his disguises and distracting thoughts, and infinitely amplifying the "impure" thoughts such as fear and desire hidden deep in his consciousness!

He was instantly caught in a vortex of his own mental storm, hallucinations flooding his visions. He seemed to see countless vengeful spirits demanding his life, or he himself being dissolved by endless light. He clutched his head and screamed hysterically as his magic went out of control and his mental sea completely collapsed.

In the end, he rushed toward a moving construct in his madness, only to be easily purified by a simple beam of light.

The attempt to deceive the rules failed, leading to a backlash and ultimately, a breakdown of the self.

An apprentice at the Star Tower attempts to use the power of the stars to form a defense.

However, his understanding of the power of stars was not pure enough, as it was mixed with elements of protection.

When a purifying beam of light shot out, the energy inside the starlight shield he had erected was chaotic, and the purifying rules contained in the beam of light triggered a violent energy conflict and backlash!

The shield exploded instantly like a lit powder keg!

Not only did he fail to defend himself, but the shockwave from the explosion severely injured him, destroying all his defenses.

He was blasted away like a rag doll, crashing into a crystal wall, severely injured and unconscious, before being finished off by the beam of the construct that arrived later.

The omnipresent purifying force field, coupled with the terrifying constructs, eliminated nearly 6% of the wizard apprentices who entered in a short period of time.