Limit-Breaking Genius Mage Chapter 596

Episode 596 Third Round

As if resisting a transcendental oppression, the snow that had briefly subsided raged even more violently and fiercely.

Visibility was so poor that it was hard to distinguish objects even a few meters ahead.

The three mages, who had been flung far away, barely managed to control their speed with <Flight> and came to a halt somewhere in the sky.

Grit.

Osgar clenched his teeth, enduring the agony of his wrecked innards.

Blood foam flowed from between his teeth.

“Just by being exposed to the shockwave of aura, my insides are shredded like this…! Can either of you see what’s become of Adrian?!”

[Since we’re still alive, he must surely be safe too. The place where the previous stage fell was closer to us. But that also means Sandir Paen has decided to deal with us first.]

Perhaps Sandir found the mages’ assistance bothersome in fighting Adrian, or perhaps simply wanted to concentrate wholly on Adrian.

It’s impossible to know the transcendent’s intent, but what’s clear is that it’s dangerous.

“Ugh.”

Piiing…

A peculiar echo rumbled gently in Yurgien’s head. Hot blood trickled from both ears.

His eardrums had ruptured.

That his magic, which especially required concentration, would be shut down was inevitable.

With their internal connection cut, direct conversation was now the only way to share thoughts.

It was impossible for Adrian to precisely assess the situation right now.

[Yurgien, are you all right?]

“If I just recover a bit, just a little bit more, I’ll be able to manifest magic again…”

Yurgien answered firmly, even as cold sweat poured down his face.

To restore their scattered formation and once again close in to surround Sandir, they would need some time.

However, for a transcendent who can step into an instant, even that time is too long.

“?!”

Sensing a menacing presence approaching, Osgar responded first. <Burn> shot out from his staff, setting the night sky aflame.

A bright yellow flame that banished the darkness.

Facing it head-on, Sandir charged through the air in a lance-thrusting stance and forcefully thrust the spear he had secured inside his arm.

Jeongcheon: Righteous Piercing

—Thud!

“Keugh…!”

Osgar Fargun, who was in the direct line, was pierced through the side.

And then, dragged down to the snow- and landslide-ravaged earth by the inertia of the following force.

[Osgar!!]

Mellad called his name, but there was no time to worry about anyone else.

Huff.

Having silenced the sage of strength, Sandir wasted no time closing in. The tip of his spear was aimed precisely at Yurgien.

<Accelerated Corrosion>

A tidal wave of corrosion reached out like a giant hand, blocking the path, but Sandir advanced erratically through the air, not allowing even a single drop of water to touch him.

Thud!

In a split second, a cold blue spear pierced Mellad’s abdomen.

The unique aura of Sandir Paen destroys its target’s interior. Ordinary potions are almost useless for recovery.

Even though Mellad was controlling an Arch Lich, it was already anticipated that the impact might affect the main body outside the battlefield ‘to some extent,’ so preparations had been made.

He had reinforced the link with the Arch Lich even more tightly than before, so that consciousness wouldn’t escape from any shock.

And his real body consumed Lysandro’s fruit potion to recover in case of injury.

Unlike Osgar or Yurgien, the relatively minor damage was for this reason.

However.

[……!!!!!]

Mellad felt intense pain, as if truly pierced by the spear. He couldn’t even move one arm of the lich as he wished.

“I usually forcibly seal my aura’s special nature. Otherwise, challengers would lose their will and die too easily. But just now, with my technique ‘Yongdo,’ I’ve fully released the restrictions I’d maintained all this time.”

Pulling out his spear, Sandir swiftly gripped it again.

“Let’s see how that feels.”

Wonyul: Scorched Shatter

Countless spear thrusts unfolded at close range, filling Mellad’s vision.

“No!”

Yurgien hastily blocked Sandir’s movements, halting the technique, but already dozens of spear thrusts had pierced through.

The water covering the archlich’s skeleton was stained with blood, and Mellad, leaving only a faint groan, crashed helplessly downward.

Crackle!

Yurgien’s material enchantment spell could not withstand it and shattered.

Sandir licked his lips.

“Nameless mage, do you know what it means to die?”

“Heh… How could I, who have been alive my whole life, know what death is? I don’t know. Nor do I want to.”

With half-closed eyes, Yurgien gave a hollow laugh and raised his staff.

“At least, not until my grandchild meets their partner and gets married.”

Magecraft <Atribio>

As his magic reopened, the severed inner connection was restored, and a human shadow shot upward from below.

Clang!

A greatsword and spear shaft clashed in a shower of sparks.

As Adrian soared past Sandir and gained altitude, Yurgien drew a small circle with his staff.

Using the magic foothold formed in the sky, Adrian changed direction, crashed into Sandir, and pushed him downward with all his might.

(He’s targeting you all. Fighting him in the sky actually puts us at a disadvantage.)

(Understood.)

With that thought, Yurgien hurriedly descended.

Kraang!

Adrian and Sandir crashed to the ground, waging a fierce battle. Amid the flurry of earth and snow, the clang of metal never ceased.

“Not enough.”

As Adrian ducked his head to the side, the spear tip tore part of his trapezius.

Sandir, on the other hand, had nothing more than a few singed hair tips.

“I said, it’s not enough!!”

A foot came from Adrian’s blind spot and struck his jaw. For a moment, his sense of balance faltered, and Sandir’s figure vanished.

The mad transcendent’s new target was Osgar in the distance.

An attack impossible to react to.

So Osgar, instead of making a clumsy attempt to dodge, glared fiercely. In an instant, half his left upper arm was torn away.

By tormenting the mages to death in this manner and driving Adrian’s mind to the edge, this was Sandir’s intention.

Because then, the guy would be forced to act more boldly, even recklessly.

At that moment, Osgar invoked his decisive magic with maximum output.

“Got you.”

<Overfocus> stacking.

After boosting his reflexes, he poured all subsequent physical damage into magical power, and pressed his staff against the spear.

Boom!

Irresistible gravity wrapped around both weapons. Even Sandir couldn’t control the weight as his spear was driven into the ground.

Immediately afterward, as a greatsword swung from the side and Sandir twisted the spear shaft to block it, both Adrian and Osgar simultaneously extended their remaining arms.

Thud!

A burst of gravity and a bare fist struck Sandir’s chest and face.

For the first time, the man lost grip on his spear and skidded to a stop across the ground.

To keep from missing this chance of desperate resolve, the two quickly closed in, and Yurgien forced Sandir to stay within a defined range using <Restraint>.

“Impressive. You’ve prepared thoroughly and properly. Even after being hit by my aura, you recover by some unknown means, enhance all other abilities, and your emotions shine even brighter than when I first saw you.”

The transcendent blocked his opponents’ joint paths in advance, thwarting their attacks.

“Especially you, Osgar, was it? You seem to be talented in many fields, but that also means you’re somewhat vague. No matter how much magic enhances your abilities, if your fundamentals are like that.”

Sandir declared.

“The specialized can’t handle those even more specialized, and the vague can’t surpass the specialized.”

Adrian’s signature was agility, but he couldn’t overcome Sandir; Osgar might be versatile, but in no field did he match Sandir’s speed.

“If you can’t reach, it’s meaningless.”

Bulletproof: Unfallen

Adrian’s mentor—Raymond’s technique—for defense and counterattack.

Thud!

An elbow struck Adrian’s abdomen, nearly snapping his waist.

A kick launched diagonally up damaged Osgar’s staff and explosively hammered his right arm and torso.

“Keugh…!”

The sage of strength bounced off the ground several times before colliding with massive, uprooted trees from a landslide.Sandir deflected Adrian’s blade with bare hands and channeled energy.

“Still too slow, Adrian Chambers. I told you! If you hesitate even a little, those mages will die!”

Sandir’s fingertips twitched.

A spear lying on the ground moved remotely and pierced through Yurguien’s shoulder, who had maintained a unique spell.

A short scream grazed his ear. The binding spell <Authority> was released.

Splat!

Just then, Sandir’s right arm, which had been blocking the sword blade, was shallowly ripped from palm to elbow, blood leaking out.

They failed to defend and got cut.

Rip!

A powerful kick followed, ruthlessly striking Sandir in the solar plexus.

The distance was about twenty paces.

Adrian exhaled.

The thrown spear landed in Sandir’s hand.

“Faster.”

As if they had made a promise, they charged at each other in a straight line. Instinctive senses recognized their own unique paths.

Three spear strikes, one sword strike.

“Faster…!”

Adrian once again recalled a feeling experienced long ago.

Back in the Middle Ross autonomous territory, when he dealt with the target ordered by the Bohemirn Magic Tower—after searching for the reason he had grown weaker and emptying himself inside, he was left with a single, focused intention. That sensation.

Two spear strikes, one sword strike.

His skill was rising.

To a height he had never reached before.

“Faster!!!!!!!!!”

Sandir roared so that the entire mountain range shook, urging him on.

Slash.

The greatsword tore through shoulder muscles, and the spear dug between ribs.

They landed the blows at the same time.

Snow and dirt piled up here and there, unable to withstand the power and speed.

Now, it was only possible to sense that something was moving. Eyes and senses could no longer track it.

Melad, barely holding on to consciousness, tried to cast a spell, but simply couldn’t fix on a target.

[At this rate, we can’t help…!]

“Does it look like that needs help?”

Osgar leaned against a fallen winter tree, struggling to steady his breath.

There was a smile on his lips.

“As I said last time, I guess we’re really not that old yet. A sight I’ve never seen before is unfolding right before my eyes.”

Adrian’s focus became so singular that even he forgot who he was. If he didn’t surpass, he would die. Only sheer will ruled his body.

The light of emotion radiating from him was growing ever brighter.

Original Heat 溒裂

Wild Dance 亂舞

Unlike before, when he had lost one-sidedly, he wasn’t backing down at all.

If something couldn’t be avoided, then it couldn’t; if something couldn’t be blocked, then so be it.

And what could be cut, would be cut.

As the fierce battle dragged on, the sword path actually became simpler, but intent and momentum twisted together into a complex, razor edge.

“Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!”

Sandir Paen finally burst into uncontrollable laughter.

Now Adrian’s light was the same as that brightest light he had seen, and even held the potential to become brighter.

Just a little more…!

Just a little more…!!

The very ideal he longed for was within reach, and madness overwhelmed instinct. Even knowing that the transplanted body would be destroyed, transcendent energy trembled at his fingertips.

Because only then could he be sure to reap all of that emotional light.

Then it happened.

A thunderclap sounded far off.

And a blue light flickered closer from a distant bank of clouds. Accompanied by thunder, heading straight toward Adrian.

“Cover me!!!!”

Osgar shouted, shooting into the air with an injured body.

At last, Melad and Yurguien understood what was happening and gritted their teeth, doing all they could to protect their companion.

Kwagwagwagwagwang!

A massive lightning strike punished Osgar, who had blocked its path.

Even the defensive spell formed by the Sage of Wisdom and the Ostaea Tower’s senior elder could not withstand it and was shattered.

Boom!

A current exploded from the healing wound on his left arm, and in return, the lightning’s trajectory twisted and crashed into the earth.

───!

Thunder absorbing all the moonlight around welcomed the darkness, then burst into a flash even brighter, savagely banishing the shadows.

It was an instant.

But precisely because of that, it was deadly.

Lightning blinded their vision.

Losing depth perception from the flicker, the greatsword’s target shifted ever so slightly.

Thunk.

Sandir’s spear mercilessly pierced Adrian’s right chest.

……. (to be continued)