Gan Ning stood under a Return Soul Poplar.
There was no one around, because of the Winter Hunting, the small animals in the forest had long since fled, leaving only the ostentatious aura of the ogres in the distance, as conspicuous as a bonfire in the night.
He sighed lightly, took off his mask, and carefully folded his black feathered cloak, putting it away. He replaced it with a plain black velvet cloak, and flipped open a plain-looking Law book.
He closed his eyes and felt the fading presence of his teammates one last ti, taking a deep breath. The cold air seeped into his chest, making him involuntarily shiver.
He couldn’t help but chuckle self-mockingly, turning to return the way he ca.
"Planning to go die alone?"
All of a sudden, a slightly mocking voice ca from above: "Just an ordinary registered wizard, do you plan to take on an entire Ogre tribe alone?... You foolishly overestimate yourself."
A small voice imdiately advised beside him: "Sister Ruiwen, brother Gan is well-aning, you’re being..."
Gan Ning abruptly looked up, his gaze fierce, as he looked in the direction of the sound — not far from him, atop a crown of a locust tree, on a thick branch growing obliquely, stood or crouched five familiar figures. Like him, they wore no masks, each wearing the standard winter cloaks issued by the school.
The Raven’s masks were different from the Seven Sins.
The faces beneath their masks did not deliberately conceal from other companions. Wearing masks was partly to prevent contamination from experints, and partly to protect their identities from outsiders.
Now these wizards perched on the tree, their intentions were clear.
"You shouldn’t be here."
After saying this, Gan Ning imdiately closed his mouth — those who could enter the professor’s lab weren’t childish, each had their own firm beliefs. Standing before him now, wasting breath was futile — he quickly swept over the figures before him, confirming: "...Are all of you here?"
"You think everyone is as stupid as you?"
The witch nad Ruiwen ridiculed again, then, shifting her tone, spoke rapidly: "The others, under Mu Yin’s supervision, have already left with the test materials... We’re here waiting for you, as Hu Yin’s divination predicted."
Upon hearing his na ntioned by the witch, two tall, thin warlocks on the tree greeted Gan Ning with raised hands, their smiles sowhat awkward.
They were brothers, Hu Yin excelled at divination magic, known as number nine among the Ravens; Mu Yin specialized in monitoring magic, numbered thirteen among the Ravens; most of the ti they handled auxiliary logistics, so seeing them now, Gan Ning couldn’t help but frown slightly.
But soon, he realized the witch’s arrangent was intentional.
To snatch the lesser Zhu Si from under the Ogre tribe’s nose required not only agile wizards but also those who could afterward interfere with divination and avoid pursuit. In these aspects, the brothers Hu Yin and Mu Yin were indeed the best choice among the Ravens.
Thinking of this, Gan Ning hesitated no longer.
"There’s no ti left."
He opened the Law book and skillfully distributed tasks: "Second Rank Zhen Staying Battle Formation, I’ll be the center, Hu Yin and Mu Yin as Left Auxiliary and Right Aide, Ruiwen as the carriage, Keluol as the yoke, Kelaor as the fighting..."
The wizards on the tree quietly and quickly took their positions according to his instructions.
Their deploynt of the Zhen Staying Battle Formation, also called the ’Celestial Chariot Battle Array’—used by the Fringe Hunting Team during the school hunting competition to escape right under the Ravens’ noses—is one of the few formations in the Twenty-Eight Constellations known for ’relocation.’ When deployed, the envelope surrounding it resembles a large worm that consus dust above and drinks spring below, anchoring on water and earth, with extraordinary speed in escape.
Of course, aside from practical needs, the Ravens particularly liked this battle array because, in astrology, Zhen Staying belongs to the southern constellation ’Raven,’ which fits their image well.
This can be considered an inexplicable tendency towards mysticism.
The wizards forming the battle array are employees of the First University, including lecturers and researchers; even among registered wizards, they belong to the most outstanding group.
So, upon landing, in just a mont, a stroke of water-blue envelope suddenly appeared, then materialized, transforming in an instant into a blue Axis Water Worm, disappearing in the crowded woods in the blink of an eye.
...
...
A green giant tail carried a hurricane, resembling several rotating rolling stones, wreaking havoc wherever it passed, snow and mud flying, trees breaking horizontally, rocks shattering. More than a dozen ordinary ogres standing outside could not avoid it, screaming, flesh and blood blurred.
The few two-headed ogres didn’t fare well either; one hit directly by the giant green tail was sent flying hundreds of ters away, smashing through several large trees before heavily crashing into thick snow, its face bloody, struggling in the snow pit, unable to rise for a long ti.
This green hurricane lasted quite a while. Almost as it began to cease, several bright incantations sounded simultaneously from different directions:
"Binding Spell!"
"Peach and tender, dazzling its bloom!"
"Wolf Struggling Its Whiskers, Carry on its tail!"
"Walk Hesitant, drunken at heart!"
"I’m a Dark Yellow Horse!"
The yellow and white spell lights intertwined, and the ogres staggered as if drunk, bumping into each other like headless flies. From ti to ti, one could see an ogre swinging a thick wooden stick, heavily striking its comrade’s head; then, thick vines shot through the air, crisscrossing, wrapping each fallen ogre into a bundle.
But among all the incantations, the most magnificent was the peach blossom blooming on the magic carpet.
Fiery red peach blossoms suddenly blood under the Hoop-headed Ogre’s palm; the scorching petals spread in all directions, resembling the skirt of a spinning dancer. After burning the ogre’s palm, the petals contracted inward, wrapping the little witch on the center of the magic carpet into a bundle.
"No!!"
The Hoop-headed Ogre roared, disregarding the soul-piercing burn in its palm, grimacing as it grabbed at the still fiercely burning peach blossom.
Boom!
With the fingers tight, an explosive sound was squeezed out. But no matter the speed of the sound, it couldn’t outpace the spell light. Although wisps of red flas still escaped between the fingers, the empty feeling in its palm clearly told the Hoop-headed Ogre that it had grabbed nothing.
From behind it, another green spell light assailed, rapid and silent, but difficult to dodge with the two extra eyeballs of the two-headed ogres.
"Aahhh!!!"
The Hoop-headed Ogre roared, twisting its waist, turning around, its clenched fist carrying the last lingering wisps of fla within the creases, heavily smashing onto the green spell light.
Boom!
The spell light was shattered by the massive fist, emitting a crisp sound like broken glass.
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