Wizard: My skills can be upgraded indefinitely.

Mitchell's eyes lit up, and he waved to stop the group.

"You seven, proceed with the planned ambush outside the camp. Leon, you come with me."

Clearly, he intended to keep Ian's possible secrets for himself.

The other seven senior apprentices dared not disobey Mitchell's orders, and after bowing respectfully, they hurried away.

Mitchell, along with Leon, transformed into two streaks of blood and raced after Ian.

Ian cursed inwardly and immediately turned around, running wildly towards the more remote, desolate stone forest area to the southeast.

His physical attributes, enhanced by magic after his advancement and nourished by the [Rock Bear Potion], coupled with his unparalleled mental strength, allowed him to unleash speeds far exceeding those of his peers.

But Mitchell's arrogant voice rapidly drew closer through amplification magic:

"You ran pretty fast! Kid, stop right there and hand over your secret, and I might let you die a quick death, or even let your soul be reincarnated."

Ian ignored him, running while keeping an eye on what was behind him using the Eye of Vigilance.

He noticed that Mitchell's aura was solid; among the advanced apprentices he had ever seen, he was the most powerful. He ignored Leon behind him.

After a chase, they soon came to a dead end, a stone wall, and Ian suddenly turned around.

Mitchell and Leon stopped thirty meters away, blocking him at an angle.

"Not running anymore?" Mitchell casually straightened his robes, his eyes filled with disdain.

"Leon, tell me, what's so special about this kid?"

Leon, panting heavily, hurriedly said, "Young Master, he's very young. Just a few months ago he was an intermediate apprentice, and now he's an advanced apprentice. Besides, his talent for potions is abnormally high!"

Leon, having learned through information secretly passed down from his family, already knew that Ian was selling the "Rock Bear Potion" on a large scale, and he hated Ian to the core.

He also harbored a secret desire for greed, but he knew his own abilities and that he couldn't possibly defeat Ian in the camp, so he made a tough decision and defected to the Crimson Court.

"Did you hear that?" Mitchell licked his lips and looked at Ian.

"Hand it over yourself, or I'll tear your soul out."

Ian listened silently to their private conversations, his murderous intent surging within him.

As he surveyed his surroundings, confirming that this was an excellent, secluded place, his gaze gradually turned cold.

We cannot delay; we must act swiftly and decisively. We must not allow this arrogant young man to send out the message.

The battle erupted in an instant!

However, Mitchell made the first move, and the crimson crystal in his hand shone brightly.

Dozens of scarlet blood arrows rained down, covering all of Ian's space to dodge.

At the same time, he secretly made a hand seal with his other hand, casting the spell extremely quickly. An invisible mental shockwave attacked Ian, which was a curse-type witchcraft that interfered with the casting.

However, Ian's mental power had been refined through nine breakthroughs, almost turning into a tangible mist, making him virtually immune to this level of interference.

The Crystal Energy Barrier instantly opened, blocking all the blood arrows. The shield flashed brightly, but it did not break.

"An instant-cast shield?!"

Mitchell was slightly taken aback; he didn't seem to have seen Ian use the sorcery tool.

So... this was witchcraft personally performed by the other party!

Immediately, he became highly vigilant, and at the same time, his greed intensified.

In the brief moment that Mitchell was stunned, Ian's counterattack arrived.

There were still no incantations or hand gestures; two deep blue [Secondary Frost Rays] appeared out of thin air and shot out.

The twin rays traced eerie arcs, blocking both sides.

Immediately following, another thick, scorching [Burning Ray] struck straight at the center line.

Mitchell was automatically granted two layers of shield aura, but he was unable to use magic to counterattack in time and could only rely on his magical tools to withstand the attack.

Puff puff!

Extreme cold and intense heat struck almost simultaneously, causing the shield to fluctuate violently.

The turbulent energy flow generated by the clash of ice and fire momentarily stunned him, and cracks appeared in the shield around his body.

"Another instant cast? Impossible!"

Mitchell's expression finally changed, and for the first time, horror appeared in his eyes.

He frantically channeled his magic, attempting to unleash even stronger sorcery, but Ian gave him no chance whatsoever.

Ian knew that his attack power was relatively insufficient and he could not break through all of the opponent's defenses in one blow.

[Burning Ray] is still a bit short of mastering it, and time is of the essence, so neither side has time to chant incantations or cast spells.

He once again took advantage of the instantaneous nature of the frost ray to its fullest potential.

One deep blue ray after another was fired without stopping, no longer aiming for a fatal blow, but only to slow down the opponent's casting speed and rhythm.

But each time the ice layer was applied, it was shattered by the opponent's shield.

A series of impacts and cracking sounds rang out.

Ian didn't know how many rays he fired, but he knew that even with his strong mental power, his brain was still faintly stinging.

Temperatures around Mitchell plummeted, and frost appeared in the air.

His movements and spellcasting speed visibly slowed down, and the shield around his body trembled, forming a thick layer of ice.

Seeing that things were not going well, Leon tried to launch a sneak attack from the flank, but was hit by Ian's casual [Secondary Frost Ray], and his body was covered in ice, leaving him in a sorry state.

"Damn it!" Mitchell roared, forcibly activating another life-saving magical artifact.

A burst of blood-red light shattered the ice layer on his body, but his aura also weakened considerably.

In that instant, Ian caught the moment when his shield was at its weakest.

His mental energy poured out, and two even thicker beams of ice-blue light arrived in an instant, accurately striking Mitchell's chest.

An explosion of extreme cold froze him, along with his still-shattered shield, into a massive ice sculpture.

Without pausing, Ian turned to look at the terrified Leon.

Seeing him turn to flee, Ian burst into speed, pounced on him like a ghost, and shattered his shield with a heavy hand chop, stunning him in the process.

To avoid giving Mitchell a wizarding mark like Douglas, Ian did not destroy the ice sculpture himself.

He lifted the unconscious Leon, froze him, and took a deep breath.

His muscles bulged, his height swelled to over two meters, and after grabbing Leon, he slammed him with all his might at Mitchell before retreating rapidly.

Boom! The two ice sculptures shattered, and Mitchell and Leon were reduced to countless ice crystal fragments, leaving no trace of their original form.

In mid-air, a blood-red mark flew out, circled the air but failed to find its target, and finally dissipated in frustration.

Ian was breathing heavily, his face pale. The continuous high-intensity instantaneous spells had greatly depleted his mental energy.

Then, the corners of his mouth slowly curved up. The wizard's mark is not omnipotent. As long as the distance is far enough, it can still avoid being locked on.

He had done his homework thoroughly to deal with the mark and prevent such a situation from occurring.

He quickly scanned the battlefield, erasing any obvious trace of himself, and without daring to linger, headed northeast again, disappearing into the depths of the stone forest without looking back.

……

The "Furnace" camp had now become a bloodbath.

Murphy had just cast a spell to collect the flesh and souls on the field when he suddenly stopped.

His gaunt face was instantly covered with shock and anger.

The mark he left on Mitchell... has faded!

An oppressive yet violent aura spread uncontrollably.

"How dare you!" A thunderous roar echoed throughout the camp.