The white light gradually dispersed, and the two opposite areas instantly turned into complete ruins, black smoke billowing upward.
Even the raging flames were sliced in half by that blinding white light. The lava lost all its energy, slowly solidifying, its surface ravaged by the fierce wind beyond recognition.
Meanwhile, the forest and sea of flowers opposite this scorched land had also become lifeless.
The flowers and plants that had already lost their vitality were now uneven and shriveled under the impact of the white light, all withered and ugly.
Sparks floating in the air drifted onto those dry branches, igniting new flames.
Dust and smoke gradually filled the air, completely obscuring Viktor from view.
After withstanding that tremendous shockwave, Haim and Cocotte poked their heads out, surveying the devastating scene around them.
From behind a cracked boulder that had escaped the lava, they trembled as Haim called out toward Viktor, "I–Is it... over?"
That terrifying strike, the blinding white light it produced, had nearly shattered the barrier they were maintaining together.
If it weren't for the magical potions Viktor had given them, and the powerful defenses within Hyjal's subspace, they would have never survived such an attack. Their mana alone was nowhere near enough to keep the barrier up under that level of destruction.
When the smoke and shattered rocks over the scorched ground finally cleared, they saw Viktor standing atop a towering rock formation, gazing down at the scene before him.
The cloak behind him still fluttered slowly in the void. At that moment, Viktor's face looked slightly thinner, faint crimson lines spreading across it. The eyes that had formed from his cloak still gleamed with bursts of red light.
His figure remained just as steady as before, unshaken, as if that space-tearing attack had not affected him in the slightest.
"Viktor... won!?"
The heavy weight in Haim's chest finally lifted. Viktor's strength truly was extraordinary.
He stood up and let out a long sigh of relief.
The very next second, Cocotte yanked him back behind the floating boulder.
"It's not over yet."
"I can feel it."
Cocotte's expression was grim. She could clearly sense it, the immense natural energy felt like a blade pressed against her neck, sending a chill down her spine.
Suddenly, a deafening roar burst from the smoke and sparks in the distance, knocking Haim flat on his back.
He scrambled to hide beside Cocotte, feeling the overwhelming pressure emanating from not far away.
The scorched, lifeless grass and flowers were replaced by vibrant green growth and bright blossoms, an abrupt contrast of red and green.
The scattered sparks were drowned out and extinguished by the surge of life energy.
The massive flower buds regained their color, once again scattering pollen into the air.
Haim stared at the renewed greenery before him, yet instead of joy, only dread and worry filled his heart.
"That thing... it's still not dead..."
He didn't know, Druja was still miles and miles away from death.
Viktor stared at the massive health bar of the Wood Calamity before him, frowning in thought.
That health, thick as a mountain. Even after such an immensely powerful attack, it had only lost about twenty percent.
Druja stood motionless amid the green ocean, and Viktor withdrew his flying cards, waiting quietly.
Druja raised its huge serpentine head toward the sky, flicking out a massive forked tongue that trembled violently.
Five antennae extended from its head, vibrating in rhythm with the tongue, as though performing some mysterious ritual.
Like a drop of water falling into the ocean, the ripples created by the five antennae spread outward. The surrounding flowers and weeds began to tremble, and even the massive flower buds started to sway.
A faint green mist slowly rose from the plants, spreading toward the antennae on Druja's head.
Tens of thousands of fine strands of energy wrapped around Druja's enormous serpentine body, growing thicker and thicker until not a single gap remained.
After a moment of deathly silence, Druja suddenly burst free of the cocoon, its serpentine body vanishing.
In its place stood a six-eyed giant, its green body covered by a thick layer of black armor. The three pairs of familiar compound eyes still gleamed on its head, while the five antennae gradually lowered.
The flower field beneath its feet lost its vitality once more, returning to decay.
The natural energy radiating from its body was so immense it began to erode the area around Viktor.
Even atop the lava, green buds sprouted out of nowhere, waving arrogantly at Viktor.
Viktor gazed calmly at the Wood Calamity's transformed form.
That was Druja's final, true appearance, Flourishing Form, Complete State.
"What!? That wasn't even its full form before!?"
Haim and Cocotte were both stunned, watching Druja radiate green energy after its metamorphosis.
'That overwhelming aura already felt unbearable before, and now it was still growing stronger!?'
"Can Viktor... still win...?"
The monster seemed to have only just reached its peak state, while Viktor had already exhausted his trump cards.
At such a disadvantage, how could he possibly defeat it?
Unless...
"Unless Viktor can use that same powerful nature magic again," Haim muttered.
That incredible eruption of molten fire, Haim and Cocotte had never seen or even heard of such a spell. It was as though Viktor had harnessed the purest natural energy of this world.
Haim's heart twisted with frustration. He hated that he was just hiding behind a rock while Viktor faced such a terrifying foe alone.
If he joined in, that would be one more bit of strength, one more chance at Viktory.
Even if the creature seemed invincible in his eyes.
He began to move, but Cocotte caught him by the arm, shaking her head.
"Haim, if you go now, you'll just die."
"You want me to just watch Endymion get destroyed by that monster!?"
"No, no, Haim, you've got it wrong."
Cocotte waved her hand. "That's not what I mean. I'm saying..."
"If you rush out there now, you'll probably be blown up by Viktor's magic."
Haim, "?"
He turned his head.
At some point, Viktor's aura had surged dramatically. Intricate, dense magical formations completely enveloped him.
A massive crimson array floated at the center, while smaller arrays orbited around it like satellites, constantly rotating.
The complex patterns linked together like buttons fastening every spell into one.
The runes on them fused and shifted, taking on tangible form as they combined across the arrays.
Haim stared, dumbfounded.
"These... these runes... it's like endless layers of magic! How is he even doing this?"
Bursts of dense magical power surged between the lines, vast as the ocean. That level of strength was far beyond what a fourth-tier mage should be capable of.
Haim was completely bewildered. Viktor now felt even stronger than before.
He trembled slightly and muttered, "Viktor... just what are you planning to do?"
Standing atop the shattered rock, Viktor ignored Druja's wild spellcasting. The area was soon swallowed again by dense forest growth, the towering trees seeming to pierce the heavens.
Druja lifted its head high, and the life it had lost began to rapidly regenerate, shrouded in a faint green glow.
Viktor's eyes locked onto that very moment, the instant its regeneration began.
The countless magic circles behind him unleashed a relentless bombardment toward Druja.
Fire serpents... phoenixes... suns... all pouring forth from the formation in a blazing flood, one after another.
In an instant, the entire barrier-filled void turned into a chaotic sea of fire, countless flame particles swarming toward a single target.
At that moment, Viktor was like a pure magical machine gun, firing continuously without pause. His mana was being consumed at a terrifying rate.
Druja's attack patterns were completely different from Guldon's, it fought by regenerating, summoning beasts, and using endurance and adaptation rather than raw offense. Its immense defense made it far more troublesome.
Viktor could only keep pouring out high-level magic to suppress it.
Any health Druja managed to recover was immediately burned away under Viktor's apocalyptic assault.
Stray flames rained down around it, setting the withered plants below ablaze.
The energy in the area grew even stronger, the ground beneath Druja turned into roiling magma, cutting through its wooden magic like knives stabbing into its heart, making it howl in agony.
Its six eyes couldn't even distinguish its surroundings, everywhere it looked was engulfed in crimson flames, leaving nowhere to hide.
Cocotte stood frozen. The Viktor before her was already a demon god.
He cast spells without limits, mana itself seemed unnecessary.
"It's like... he doesn't even need mana anymore," Haim murmured in disbelief.
'Why?'
Magic was powerful, yes, but a mage's greatest weaknesses were chant time and mana exhaustion.
The stronger the spell, the longer the chant and the greater the cost.
But Viktor was different.
He didn't seem to need to chant at all. Every spell flowed seamlessly into the next, creating an unbroken rhythm.
Cocotte glanced at Haim, shaking the blue potion bottle in her hand.
"If you hoard as much of this stuff as he does, you could cast endlessly too."
Haim froze, then suddenly understood.
Of course, the miraculous mana potion.
It came from Viktor himself.
Remembering that, he quickly pulled out one of his remaining bottles and took a sip.
Feeling his mana rapidly replenish, his confidence returned.
He created even more clones, channeling power into Hyjal's barrier to keep it stable...
———
After leaving the illusion, Aurelian wandered the library for a long time.
She had never seen such profound and wondrous magic before. Walking through the aisles felt like exploring a treasure vault open entirely for her to browse.
The deeper she studied, the more absorbed she became. When her head finally began to ache from the strain, she shook it slightly, seems her magic studies would stop here for now.
Lifting her gaze, she noticed a dark fork in the maze-like library.
Curiosity tugged at her, and Aurelian slowly stepped into the darkness.
As she went deeper, the walls around her faded from sight until only darkness remained.
Trailing her hand along the black walls, she turned a corner, and stopped.
There, floating in midair, was a golden scale.
A flash of lightning shot through her mind.
Staring at the scale, Aurelian murmured softly, "The Scales... of the Goddess of Justice?"
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