Mitchell’s eyes lit up, and he waved his hand to halt the group.

"The seven of you, follow the original plan and head to the outskirts of the camp to intercept and kill. Leon, you come with me."

Clearly, he intended to keep Ian’s potential secrets for himself.

The other seven High Level Apprentices didn’t dare defy Mitchell’s command. They gave a respectful bow and sped away.

Mitchell and Leon then transformed into two streaks of blood-red light and gave chase, speeding after Ian.

Ian cursed inwardly and immediately changed direction, sprinting wildly toward a more remote and desolate Stone Forest to the southeast.

His physique, enhanced by the Magic Power from his recent advancement and nourished by the Rock Bear Potion—all coordinated by his incomparably formidable Spiritual Power—allowed his burst of speed to far exceed others of the same rank.

But Mitchell’s arrogant voice, amplified by Witchcraft, rapidly closed in:

"You’re a fast runner! Kid, stop right there and hand over your secrets. I’ll be generous enough to give you a quick death, and maybe even let your Soul be reincarnated."

Ian paid him no mind, observing his pursuers with his Eye of Vigilance as he ran.

He noticed that Mitchell’s aura was dense. Of all the High Level Apprentices he had ever seen, Mitchell was the most formidable. As for Leon trailing behind, Ian ignored him.

The chase continued, and soon, a dead-end cliff wall appeared ahead. Ian spun around abruptly.

Mitchell and Leon stopped thirty meters away, spreading out to corner him.

"Done running?" Mitchell leisurely adjusted his robes, his eyes filled with contempt.

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

Panting heavily, Leon rushed to say, "Young Master, he’s very young. Just a few months ago, he was still a Middle Level Apprentice, and now he’s already a High Level Apprentice! Plus, his Talent for Magic Potion Science is unnaturally good!"

Through information secretly passed on by his family, Leon already knew that Ian had been selling large quantities of Rock Bear Potion, and he hated Ian to the bone for it.

He, too, harbored greedy thoughts, but he knew his own limits. He couldn’t possibly take down Ian inside the camp, so in a moment of ruthless resolve, he defected to the Deep Red Royal Court.

"Did you hear that?" Mitchell licked his lips, looking at Ian.

"Hand it over yourself. Don’t make me do it personally, or I’ll rip out your Soul."

Ian listened silently to their monologue, killing intent surging within him.

He scanned his surroundings, confirming that this was a perfectly secluded spot. His gaze grew icy.

’I can’t drag this out. I have to end this quickly. I absolutely cannot let this arrogant young man send a message.’

The battle erupted in an instant!

It was Mitchell who struck first, the Blood Crystal in his hand flaring with a brilliant light.

Dozens of scarlet Blood Arrows shot forth, blanketing the area and cutting off all of Ian’s room to dodge.

At the same time, he secretly formed a seal with his other hand, casting with incredible speed. An invisible spiritual shockwave shot toward Ian—a Curse Type Witchcraft designed to disrupt spellcasting.

However, Ian’s Spiritual Power, having been refined through nine Limit-Breaking stages, had nearly condensed into a tangible mist, making him almost immune to this level of interference.

A Crystal Energy Barrier instantly appeared, blocking all the Blood Arrows. The Shield’s light flickered violently, but it did not shatter.

"An Instant Shield?!"

Mitchell was stunned for a moment; he was sure he hadn’t seen Ian use any Witchcraft Tools.

So... this was a Witchcraft he had cast himself!

Instantly, his vigilance soared, but at the same time, his greed grew even more intense.

In the instant Mitchell was stunned, Ian’s counterattack arrived.

Still without a Spell or gesture, two deep-blue Secondary Frost Freeze Beams materialized from thin air and shot forward.

The Twin rays carved a bizarre arc through the air, sealing off his left and right.

Immediately after, a thick, blazing Scorching Beam shot straight down the middle.

Two layers of Shield auras automatically activated around Mitchell, but caught off guard, he couldn’t cast a counter-Witchcraft and could only rely on his Witchcraft Tools to tank the hit.

POW! POW! POW!

The extreme cold and intense heat struck almost simultaneously, causing the Shield to fluctuate violently.

The turbulent Energy from the clash of ice and fire caused him to falter, and cracks appeared on his Shields.

"Instant casting again? Impossible!"

Mitchell’s expression finally changed, and for the first time, a look of terror appeared in his eyes.

He frantically channeled his Magic Power, attempting to cast a more powerful Witchcraft, but Ian gave him no such opportunity.

Ian knew full well that his Attack Power was relatively lacking; he couldn’t break through all of his opponent’s defenses in a single blow.

His Scorching Beam was still a bit of Skill Level away from Limit-Breaking, and with time so tight, neither of them could afford to recite the incantations for their spells.

He once again capitalized on his advantage in instant casting, pushing his Frost Freeze Ray to the absolute limit.

One deep-blue ray shot out after another without pause. He was no longer aiming for a fatal blow, but simply trying to slow his opponent’s casting rhythm.

But every time a layer of ice started to form, it was shattered by the pushback from his opponent’s Shield.

The continuous sound of dense impacts and shattering filled the air.

Ian lost count of how many rays he had fired. All he knew was that despite his formidable Spiritual Power, a dull, stinging pain was beginning to throb in his brain.

The temperature around Mitchell plummeted, and frost began to form in the air.

His movements and casting speed slowed visibly. The Shield protecting him trembled unceasingly as a thick layer of ice formed over it.

Seeing that the situation was dire, Leon tried to launch a sneak attack from the flank, only to be hit by a casually cast Secondary Frost Freeze Beam from Ian. He was instantly covered in a layer of ice, left in a wretched state.

"Bastard!" Mitchell roared, once again forcefully activating a life-saving Witchcraft Tool.

A blast of blood-red light erupted, shattering all the ice on his body, but his aura weakened considerably as a result.

In that very instant, Ian seized the moment his Shield was at its weakest.

His Spiritual Power surged, and two even thicker pillars of ice-blue light appeared in a flash, striking Mitchell squarely in the chest.

An explosion of extreme cold erupted, freezing him—along with his not-yet-shattered Shield—into a heavy ice sculpture.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Ian turned to face the terrified Leon.

Seeing Leon turn to flee, Ian’s speed exploded. He closed the distance like a phantom and delivered a heavy chop with the side of his hand, shattering Leon’s Shield and knocking him unconscious.

To avoid a situation like the one with Douglas, in case Mitchell had a Wizard Mark on him, Ian did not destroy the ice sculpture with his own hands.

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

His muscles bulged as his body swelled to over two meters tall. He grabbed the frozen Leon and, using all his strength, smashed him into Mitchell before rapidly retreating.

BOOM! The two ice sculptures exploded. Mitchell and Leon disintegrated into a sky-filling cloud of ice fragments, leaving not a single complete trace behind.

In midair, a blood-red mark flew out. It circled once, unable to find its target, and then reluctantly dissipated.

Ian gasped for breath, his face pale. The continuous, high-intensity use of Instantaneous Witchcraft had consumed an immense amount of his Spiritual Power.

Then, the corners of his mouth slowly curved into a smile. ’A Wizard Mark isn’t all-powerful, after all. As long as the distance is great enough, you can still evade its lock.’

He had done his homework on how to deal with these marks, precisely to prepare for a situation like this.

He quickly scanned the battlefield, erased his most obvious tracks, and, not daring to linger, headed northeast again, vanishing deep into the Stone Forest without a backward glance.

...

At the "Furnace" camp, the scene was a slaughterhouse of flesh and blood.

Murphy had just cast a spell to harvest the flesh and Souls from the field when he suddenly froze.

An expression of shocked fury instantly covered his gaunt face.

The mark he had left on Mitchell... had dissipated!

A suppressed yet berserk aura began to emanate from him, spreading uncontrollably.

"Audacious!" A heaven-shaking roar echoed throughout the camp.