CHAPTER 46: TEST 1

The island was a tangle of dense vegetation. Zephyr followed the crabs until he sensed their numbers swelling to an unavoidable horde.

Abandoning his current course, he decided to climb the hill at the island’s center.

The crabs, taking a winding path below, were moving directly toward the necromancer.

Zephyr preferred not to approach the necromancer head-on. So, to find a geographical advantage, he sought higher ground.

A few minutes later, he reached the summit and walked toward the northwest cliff. From there, he could see the vast expanse of sea, shrouded in a thick, low-lying layer of fog.

The cyclonic fog formation continued to spew its vapor relentlessly. Fortunately, the fog remained dense and close to the ground.

He could make out the shadows of the islands far in the distance from where he stood.

’The necromancer is in one of the islands.’

Currently, Zephyr was standing on the island close to the mainland. The rest of them were connected like a chain around the fog formation.

’From the way the crabs are moving, I presume he is there.’

Zephyr lifted his hand and pointed at the thick layer of fog he could see a little north of him.

The island he was in and the island he was pointing to were connected by another stretch of lowland in the middle. It was entirely shrouded in fog and looked difficult to navigate through.

’This is troublesome.’ He muttered and sat down on the edge of the cliff, on a rock ledge.

’I suppose nothing comes easy in life. To be something, to achieve greatness, to transform yourself, to defeat your fate, you must be ready to struggle. I must say, doing difficult things is fun. I am enjoying it.’

He chuckled.

Even though he lost one arm, he was beginning to adapt to the constant threats.

’Time to test my railgun.’

Zephyr said and looked up at the sky. He could see thunder clouds clamoring above. The weak electric pulses were lighting up the sky as cold rain drizzled.

"The storm season lasts for two months. During that time, it would rain without end. Occasionally, fierce winds and cyclones would ravage the land."

Zephyr’s eyes moved to the horizon. Far away, he could see the clouds rapidly twisting and turning, awakening something ominous.

"I hope the rain doesn’t mess with the projectile’s motion." He commented and lifted his hand.

The manabolt was the projectile he was using to carry the 60 spells’ worth of lightning and light enhancements. If the rain interacts with the mana bolt, it would be difficult to strike his target.

Therefore, testing it before being used was of great importance. And the reason he decided to test it on the island was to unsettle the mind of the necromancer.

"He thinks I am weak. And I agree that I am weak compared to him. But he should see a threat to send out his minions in search of me."

Gale’s memory had shown him the large swarm of undead the necromancer was hiding under the sea. These undeads were working together to absorb the life essence of the sea life, such as crabs, fish, and everything else, to feed the godspawn within the temple.

The necromancer had been preparing for this day for thirty years. So, how could he not have tricks up his sleeve? Zephyr was not surprised by what he learned.

"I could attract his attention with the help of the railgun. Then, he would send some of the undead my way. It would spread thin their area of influence."

Zephyr lifted his hand and pointed to the horizon—at the fog formation in between the island cluster.

"Destroying the fog formation would be a plus." He said and activated the 61 spells in his mindscape instantaneously.

12 rune enhancement spells were activated first, and then waited for the 16 rune mana bolt to activate.

As soon as the mana bolt completed executing, it produced a wave of mana, producing a concentrated bolt formed in the middle of the spell. Then it flew through the center of the first elemental enhancement spell.

The first spell was light enhancement.

The Manabolt acquired the elemental property of light, gaining a bright glow and speed. Thereafter, it moved through the remaining 59 enhancements in a flash, gaining speed and the volatile property of thunder.

Zephyr widened his eyes when he felt the clouds above him rumble.

"Now that I think about it, clouds carry an electric charge. My railgun carries it..."

When his thoughts reached up to that point, a flash of light formed over his hand that was pointing at the fog formation. Thunder rumbled above him, but before it could gather and strike, a volatile beam of concentrated light and electricity blitzed out of his body, sucking every bit of mana in his mindscape.

A wave of exhaustion immediately shrouded Zephyr. But with a smile, he watched the concentrated bolt of light as wide as his arm fly towards the fog.

The enhanced mana bolt he just released carried more mana than the light crystal, which exploded, taking out the lighthouse. It was also a concentrated beam with light and lightning properties.

What would happen when it strikes something?

Even Zephyr didn’t know it.

He watched the bolt cover a span of several kilometers in a couple of seconds, striking the heart of the fog formation. For a second, it completely disappeared into the dense fog.

Then...

A bright flash of light erupted from the centre of the cyclonic formation. It lit up the entire area for a moment.

’Is that it?’ Zephyr raised an eyebrow.

From what happened to the lighthouse, he assumed something spectacular like the beam of light would appear once again.

But, it didn’t.

’Maybe the concentrated energy pierced through the fog formation and fell into the sea, disappearing into the depths. That could be it." He muttered in disappointment.

He thought he had messed up his aim, and that was why there was no reaction from the fog formation.

However, it was not all the case.

Far away, within the fog formation, you could see a light beam, a bolt of light as wide as an arm, hovering mid-air.

The onion-skin-like protective shields around the fog formation were trying their best to stop the light bolt from piercing through to its core.

Runic characters one after another emerged from the formation, sticking close to the light bolt. But even after all that, the bolt kept on moving forward, albeit slowly, piercing the shield one after another.