No one expected that among the eight people present, the one with the least presence, the most mediocre, and who only made it to the top eight by luck—Anglie—would hide such terrifying strength.
With a mid-level third-tier body, he instantaneously killed the first-tier Wei Nu Er Si, who didn't even manage to escape with his soul, being devoured directly.
On the platform shrouded in shadows as dense as night, Ronan felt the slight thumping of the Bloodline Crystal embedded in his heart.
Fragmented memories imprinted in the Hekalto bloodline were continuously transmitted, recounting the name of the Ancient Fallen Crow, a loathsome creature that fed on fear and chaos, known for its cunning and treachery.
Ronan took a gentle breath, images of his interactions with Anglie flashing through his mind, evoking many inexplicable emotions.
In the end, part of these emotions was sealed deep in his heart lake, while another part transformed into searing magma, igniting every bit of fighting spirit within Ronan's body.
"I have indeed been looking forward to this for a long time."
Ronan raised his head, his azure eyes suddenly transforming into a mesmerizing blue-gold.
His white hair, cascading like a waterfall behind him, lifted high, and from beneath his silver-black Wizard Robe, a torrent of cold air surged forth, rapidly coalescing into large patches of frost around him.
In a daze, the phantom of the Ancient Frost Hydra behind Ronan seemed to lift its head from the dark shadows, its cold serpent eyes locking onto the faint silhouette of the Fallen Crow in the sky, emitting a low growl that carried the authority of an ancient beast.
Faced with all this, Anglie's lips curled into a smile. He raised his hand, performing a gesture as calm and elegant as the most refined noble, his voice resonating like a poet's lament.
"Through the frost-laden night, I dedicate this to my dear—Ronan Damien."
In the next moment, the pitch-black wings behind Anglie gently flapped, and he silently melted into a darkness deeper than night.
[Eye of Truth]! The instant Anglie's figure vanished, a white light surged in Ronan's eyes, weaving an eye pattern at his brow.
His mental power had completely lost its lock on Anglie; even under the probe of [Eye of Truth], he could not catch a trace.
"Is it the concealment ability brought by the Ancient Fallen Crow bloodline?"
Ronan frowned slightly, then decided to ignore where Anglie was, turning instead to summon the anchor points needed to construct the icy domain.
With the emergence of one ice spell after another, the heavy frost surrounding Ronan rapidly spread outward, soon reaching the edge of the platform and then climbing into the void.
At this moment, dense "night" descended, touching the frost without any collision, silently sweeping past, devouring every bit of light in Ronan's vision.
"I still remember."
Suddenly, Anglie's voice came from behind.
The voice was so close to Ronan that it felt as if Anglie was whispering intimately in his ear.
"Ithium!"
Ronan's expression remained unchanged as Ithium attached itself to his entire right arm, forming the shape of a blade. The emerald green Spell Breaking Flame surged along the silver sword body, and he swung it backhandedly toward the source of the voice.
Ithium sliced through the void, emitting a sharp whistle, shattering a large area of shadow with the intertwining brilliance of silver and emerald, and Anglie's voice abruptly ceased.
But the next second, it came again from in front of Ronan.
". Back then, you were still a child, in the garden of corpses."
The black wings unfurled behind Anglie, who appeared to blend completely with the shadows, smiling as he stood less than ten meters away from Ronan, reminiscent of the fallen angels from Western mythological films who forsook the light for evil.
Anglie stood before Ronan, but under Ronan's mental probe, the spot where Anglie was located was empty, devoid of any presence.
Instead, in a direction to the left, Ronan's heightened perception caught a hint of unusual fluctuations.
Ronan's gaze flickered, and under his conscious control, several ice spells resonating with the second-tier law domain shot rapidly toward the source of the fluctuations.
The terrifying icy current broke through layers of shadow, as if striking something, producing a dull sound.
Ronan's eyes shifted, ready to pursue the attack, but a sudden "panicked" voice sounded near his right ear: "Oh no... you actually found me!"
Without any warning, the hairs on the back of Ronan's neck stood on end.
"Stagnate!"
A thread of space stagnation power instantly radiated from him, the medium being Ithium after [Spatial Silvering].
As a section of the void transformed into a smooth, polished "mirror" under the space stagnation power, Ronan quickly vanished, using his short-distance spatial teleportation ability to move to another location.
The moment he landed, a brilliant deep blue light burst forth between his palms.
At that moment, all the previously "buried" spell anchor points activated: Snow Kingdom Descent!
Exquisite snowflakes fell from the pitch-black "night sky," layers of ice spikes and Ice Flames blossoming like flowers around Ronan.
A light chuckle echoed, like a crow swiftly gliding through the cold night sky.
Ronan clenched his teeth and spoke coldly: "[Winter Mirror]!"
The snow kingdom he had just constructed froze in an instant, countless ice flowers solidifying in their "blooming" state, the terrifying space stagnation power filling the entire platform's void, forming the stunning "Winter Mirror."
However, this terrifying power that stagnated everything seemed to have no effect on the "night" that draped over the platform.
Large swathes of shadow continued to descend like smoke, and Ronan's "Winter Mirror" was about to be obscured by the "black veil."
"Even the space stagnation power is ineffective?"
It is said that the Ancient Fallen Crow traverses shadows, walking between reality and illusion. It seems Anglie has inherited this part of the ability, which is also his reliance...
Ronan's expression remained unchanged as he lightly tapped the void before him.
The smooth "Winter Mirror" shattered, the beautiful snow kingdom scene transforming into countless irregular fragments, and terrifying spatial turbulence surged forth.
On the platform, the dense shadows were "torn" into pieces, like a large black cloth shredded by chaotic blades, yet their numbers did not decrease; instead, they rolled out even more.
Ronan walked through the shattered turbulence, his figure rising inch by inch, pure white lightning bursting forth from his skin, his muscles and veins bulging, having entered the state of "Complete Giant Fiend Transformation."
"Rip—"
A tearing sound echoed beside him as Ronan swung a punch, the runes of [Ancient Power] glowing with black light in his palm.
"Boom!"
Where his fist landed, space collapsed, light distorted, and the black spell scythe hidden in the shadows that slashed at him was directly shattered by his punch.
But an extremely cold aura rushed in from behind, and Ronan twisted his body, swinging his arm in a horizontal slash. Ithium-clad right arm collided violently with a black bird claw the size of an adult's hand, producing a fierce metallic clashing sound.
The enormous bird claw, sharp as a red diamond, sliced through Ronan's chest, easily tearing through his mental power field and Ithium's protection, leaving deep, knife-like gashes on his body.
Ronan seemed to feel neither the injury nor the pain, directly seizing the strange, grotesque bird claw, attempting to drag out the person hiding in the shadows behind it.
But the bird claw "poofed" into countless black mist, and the next moment, Anglie's figure flickered in the darkness not far away, emitting a series of nostalgic sighs.
"Who would have thought that the kid who sneaked into someone's home to kill back then has now grown to such heights."
"I truly feel gratified for you, dear Ronan."
Anglie continued to speak, lamenting, his words conveying the sentiment of a close friend to Ronan.
Yet his attacks on Ronan never ceased for a moment.
The Fallen Crow's claws moved stealthily in the shadows, each attack accompanied by subtle energy fluctuations that were either present or absent.
Anglie had perfectly inherited the temperament of the Ancient Fallen Crow; his skill in weaving "conspiracies" was nothing short of masterful.
He continuously released various distracting "false signals" toward Ronan, which might also contain some truths.
Ronan's mental power could not capture his figure, and the only instinctual perception he could rely on was disrupted by these indistinguishable "signals"—he could not tell which energy fluctuations were real and which were deliberately released by Anglie.
He was being "toyed with" by Anglie.
"Ha—"
Ronan stood in the center of the platform's void, striving to adjust his breathing.
On his grand and imposing ancient demon body, a wound was slowly healing.
The injury was not severe, but the vitality orb within him had been significantly depleted, and worse still, the vast platform was now completely shrouded in black night.
Ronan could hardly see any external scenery, and Anglie's trace became increasingly difficult to capture.
"This won't do; if this continues, I will eventually be worn down by him."
"I can only attempt powerful spells like [Snowy Kingdom in Hand] or [Schbiert's Endless Vortex] to see if I can break through Anglie's shadow domain…"
Ronan had refrained from trying high-damage spells, thinking that their effects might not be significant.
Anglie was unlike any opponent he had faced before; this guy was too disgusting. He never engaged Ronan directly, always lurking in the dark.
Like a patient crow, he used various methods to gradually wear down his opponent's energy until the prey was completely dead, only then would he come down to feast on its flesh and blood, enjoying a hearty meal.
Ronan did not doubt that [Snowy Kingdom in Hand] and [Schbiert's Endless Vortex] could break through Anglie's shadow domain, but breaking through did not mean ending the battle. The latter could very well return again, perhaps hoping Ronan would do so to hasten his "exhaustion," bringing him closer to the crow's feast.
But even with this premonition, Ronan had no better way, only to try and see.
Ronan took a deep breath, suppressing the negative emotions gradually rising within him.
This was undoubtedly the most suffocating battle he had ever experienced. If he could catch Anglie, he would definitely—wait!
A sudden flash of inspiration struck Ronan's mind.
"The soul aura and spell energy fluctuations can be hidden by shadows, but emotional fluctuations may not be."
The one percent of the Hekalto bloodline granted Ronan a keen perception from the ancient overlord, and he felt he could give it a try.
Even if he still couldn't pinpoint Anglie's exact location, it could expose some of his vulnerabilities, creating more opportunities.
With this thought, Ronan's expression completely calmed.
"Crack, crack, crack—"
In the descending night, a series of bone-crunching sounds emanated from Ronan's body.
He detached from the state of "Complete Giant Fiend Transformation" and entered another form.
His figure slightly shrank, but he still stood close to two meters tall, his physique becoming more elongated, the exaggerated muscles and veins retreating, and strange patterns resembling snake scales grew on his skin. Silently, Anglie, who appeared to be playing a game, slowly materialized in some void.
He even held a glass of red wine in his hand, completely unbothered by the battle.
"Let me see."
Anglie gently stroked his chin, looking at Ronan below with a playful expression, smiling, "Our dear little Ronan, what remarkable means are you preparing now?"
At this moment, Ronan's transformation was complete.
He stretched his limbs, and large swathes of black-blue frost transformed into condensed mist, coiling around his tall and slender body like a serpent.
At this moment, he seemed to merge completely with the phantom of the Ancient Frost Hydra behind him, exuding an indescribable charm, evil, ancient, and mysterious aura.
In three years, through countless confrontations with the remnants of Hekalto's consciousness, Ronan had perfectly mastered the one percent of the Ancient Frost Hydra bloodline within him! Now, the power of this bloodline was fully activated.
Anglie watched Ronan's current appearance with great interest, seemingly looking forward to his next performance.
Under Anglie's gaze, the youth standing amidst the countless black-blue frost mist suddenly looked up, his increasingly handsome face adorned with a pair of vertical blue-gold serpent eyes that appeared particularly enchanting.
The two locked eyes, Anglie squinted, smiling as he raised his glass for a sip.
At that moment, the youth suddenly spoke calmly: "Has the Ancient Fallen Crow bloodline within you ever told you…"
"From ancient times to the present, your name…"
"Has always been on my menu."
"Uh…"
Anglie's gesture of raising his glass abruptly froze, a look of astonishment appearing on his face.
At the same time, a fierce brilliance suddenly erupted from the youth's eyes below.
"I found you, Anglie!"
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