Everything that happened tonight had left Harlan in a state of utter shock.

  He had considered the possibility that Pierce might escape from Riker, and for this reason, he had personally come to the scene, hiding in ambush, ready to kill Pierce himself should Riker fail.

  But he never imagined that Pierce would actually kill Riker!

  The strength Pierce displayed during the process was several times greater than what he had seen in the images from the Recording Ring!

  It was hard to imagine that this was a 16-year-old boy.

  Genius, monster, freak...

  Harlan didn't know how to describe Pierce. The only thing he was sure of was that he had to kill Pierce now.

  Otherwise, once Pierce grew stronger, even the Pei family probably wouldn't be able to handle him.

  Facing Harlan's cold words filled with killing intent, Pierce merely gave a mocking smile.

  Harlan wanted to kill him, but didn't he want to get rid of Harlan too?

  After all, having someone constantly stabbing him in the back wasn't exactly comfortable.

  It just so happened that Harlan had delivered himself to him this time; killing him now wouldn't raise any eyebrows.

  Seeming to sense Pierce's thoughts, Harlan's eyes flickered, and he sneered, "You are indeed very powerful, powerful enough to surprise me. However, in your current exhausted state, you are no match for me at all."

  Pierce mocked, "Save the probing. Whether I'm a match for you or not, why don't you try and find out?"

  As his voice fell, the sky full of Mist Ravens screeched in unison, swooping down on Harlan like a blanket.

  Harlan huffed coldly. Red light surged around him, quickly enveloping his body and blade as he met the attack with a grim expression.

  The battle erupted instantly, and the center of the street once again became a battlefield.

  Not far away, Sia couldn't hide the anxiety on her face.

  "This is bad. Lord Pierce just went through a fierce battle and has consumed a lot of energy. I'm afraid he's not Harlan's match."

  Peyton frowned, his voice deep and muffled. "Not necessarily. Aren't there still over 1000 crows left? If they could deal with that Madness Drinker just now, why can't they deal with Harlan?"

  Sia shook her head, speaking worriedly. "It's different. That Madness Drinker used Earth Elemental Power and was better at defense, naturally at a disadvantage against the flock. But Harlan has mastered Fire Elemental Power, which has extremely high explosive power and is the perfect counter to familiar constructs like the flock, which rely on numbers but are individually weak."

  As if to verify Sia's words, Harlan in the distance swung his sword violently, unleashing a large swathe of scorching flames that instantly incinerated nearly a hundred Mist Ravens.

  A distinct blank space appeared instantly in the dense flock.

  Watching this scene, Peyton was stunned, and a look of unease appeared on his face.

  "Then... what do we do?"

  "We can only wait for reinforcements."

  Sia looked towards the City Guard garrison, a trace of doubt flashing in her eyes.

  The battle here had been going on for nearly half an hour, and the commotion wasn't small. By all rights, the City Guard should have discovered it long ago.

  But until now, not a single soldier had been seen.

  Could it be that the City Guard are all blind?

  Or, did Harlan tamper with things?

  The more Sia thought about it, the more likely it seemed. To kill Lord Pierce, Harlan had even colluded with heretics; tampering with tonight's patrol schedule would be all too normal.

  But in that case, expecting reinforcements to come to the rescue became a pipe dream.

  And this place was not close to the City Guard garrison. Even if they rushed to the garrison for help now, it would likely be too late.

  No matter how she looked at it, the current situation seemed like a dead end for them.

  BOOM!

  Rolling flames swept through the void, instantly incinerating Mist Ravens wherever they passed.

  The flock, which originally numbered 1200 to 1300, was now reduced to just over 900.

  Watching this, Pierce shook his head secretly.

  Fire Elemental Power, with its extreme explosiveness, was indeed a strong counter to the flock.

  With a thought, he decisively issued a new command.

  Instantly, the sky-filling flock retreated, flying towards Pierce like a flood, crowding together and quickly merging into the body of Mist Raven on his shoulder.

  As the Mist Ravens merged, Mist Raven's body expanded rapidly as if inflated, quickly transforming from a small creature into a behemoth nearly 2 meters tall.

  Under the dark night, Mist Raven's pitch-black body appeared even more profound, like a black hole seemingly absorbing the surrounding light.

  Seeing Mist Raven's greatly changed appearance, Harlan secretly raised his guard to the highest level, but showed nothing on his face. Instead, he deliberately mocked, "Futile struggle. No matter how many tricks you pull, it won't change the outcome."

  Pierce knew Harlan wanted to shake his will, so he paid no attention to these words. He slowly took out a bottle of Boiling Blood Potion and drank it, then waved his longsword, looking sharply at Harlan.

  Seeing this posture, Harlan was stunned at first, then laughed in extreme anger.

  Arrogant brat!

  A Rank 3 Wizard Apprentice actually intends to engage him in close combat?

  Who gave him the nerve?

  Harlan sneered and lunged forward, charging fiercely at Pierce like a tiger or leopard hunting prey.

  Since this kid was rushing to his death, he would grant his wish!

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  Facing the murderous enemy, Pierce's expression remained calm. With a flash of his figure, he swung his sword to meet the attack.

  The two sides collided violently in the middle of the street like high-speed trains, creating a circle of invisible, violent airwaves with a loud bang.

  Immediately after, a large burst of sparks erupted, and sharp sword light bloomed, tearing through the night curtain.

  The battle entered a white-hot stage as soon as it began.

  After truly engaging, Harlan quickly realized something was wrong.

  Pierce's physical fitness was unexpectedly tough, reaching almost the level of a Peak Grand Knight!

  Even if part of it was due to the potion's enhancement, his original constitution was at least at the level of a High-level Grand Knight!

  How is this possible?!

  Harlan was filled with shock.

  Not only did he advance to Rank 3 Wizard Apprentice at 16, but he had also cultivated his Breathing Technique to the High-level Grand Knight level. Is this kid a monster?

  This talent is too exaggerated!

  Harlan was both shocked and incredulous, and his resolve to eliminate Pierce became even firmer.

  Sensing the murderous intent suddenly flaring in Harlan's eyes, Pierce sneered inwardly. He ignored Harlan's attack completely and swung his sword backhanded at the latter's neck.

  Trading injury for injury?

  Harlan's gaze turned cold. With Elemental Power protecting him, he didn't fear Pierce's attack at all.

  On the contrary, this kid, relying on magic items and defensive spells, dared to fight him head-on. Did he really think his Elemental Power was for show?

  Harlan didn't hesitate to inject more Elemental Power into his weapon, then slashed viciously at Pierce.

  Instantly, a muffled sound like a bubble bursting was heard. The Ring of Protection on Pierce's finger dimmed instantly, the protective force field shattered.

  Immediately after, with a series of fine cracking sounds, the Mage Armor was also shattered and dispersed by the Elemental Power.

  Harlan revealed a ferocious grin, but in the next second, the hard sensation transmitted from the blade froze his smile.

  Another layer of Mage Armor?

  How are there still more?

  Harlan looked astonished. Before he could react, he saw Pierce raise a finger slightly. 20 Magic Missiles appeared instantly, striking him almost simultaneously with the sword blade.

  At the same time, the sound of breaking wind came from behind. Mist Raven raised its sharp claws and grabbed viciously at his back.

  In the blink of an eye, Harlan fell into a situation of being attacked from both front and back.

  His expression changed drastically. He shouted loudly, and the red light on his body surface suddenly flourished, exploding into raging flames. While annihilating the Magic Missiles, the blast also knocked Pierce and Mist Raven away.

  However, after the waves of flame dissipated, Harlan's exposed face was slightly pale; obviously, this move consumed a lot of energy.

  Sizzle!

  A gray ray of light shot like an arrow, hitting Harlan's chest. He felt his body become heavy, instantly feeling a bit weaker.

  Ray of Enfeeblement!

  "Damn it!"

  Harlan cursed in a low voice and charged at Pierce again.

  On the other side, Sia and Peyton were already dumbfounded.

  "Lord Pierce's close combat strength turns out to be so powerful too..." Peyton muttered in shock.

  Sia's face was equally full of surprise.

  In previous battles, they had never seen Pierce fight in close quarters, so they subconsciously assumed Pierce's constitution wasn't high, at most at the level of a Knight.

  But who would have thought that Pierce's close combat strength was not only not weak but even stronger than the two of them!

  It was simply inconceivable!

  For a moment, Sia and Peyton felt greatly blow.

  It was one thing to be inferior in other aspects, but to be surpassed by Pierce even in their specialty of close combat was just too disheartening.

  Has the gap between people become this wide?

  "Suddenly feel like the two of us are kind of useless," Peyton muttered.

  The corner of Sia's mouth twitched slightly, but she couldn't say anything to refute him.

  As the battle progressed, Harlan gradually discovered the strangeness about Pierce.

  No matter how many layers of Mage Armor he shattered, he could never hurt the opponent.

  Once, he even used a combat technique to break 3 layers of Mage Armor at once, but was ultimately blocked by the 4th layer.

  "Exactly how many layers of Mage Armor does this guy have on him?"

  Harlan was so angry he almost vomited blood.

  Since when can Mage Armor be stacked?

  This isn't the Shield spell, dammit!

  Shock and anger aside, Harlan was helpless.

  Facing Pierce, whose defense was as thick as a turtle shell, he had no way to start.

  Instead, he was flustered and embarrassed by Pierce, who had completely abandoned defense and was bent on attacking him tit-for-tat.

  After all, Fire Elemental Power focused on offense and was far inferior to Earth Elemental Power in defense. Facing the fierce siege of Pierce and Mist Raven, Harlan truly felt the strain.

  "This kid fought a big battle with Riker earlier, consuming a lot of mental power. Now he's casting spells continuously, his mental power must be running out. Just hold on a little longer. When his mental power bottoms out, dealing with him will be easy!"

  Harlan could only comfort himself this way.

  He didn't know that the mental power consumption of the improved spells Pierce cast was less than half of the original, only about 1 point.

  In the previous battle with Riker, Pierce had only consumed 30-something points of mental power.

  The remaining mental power was enough to cast 140 to 150 spells, more than enough to support a high-intensity battle.

  BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

  The roar of Magic Missile explosions echoed over the street, unceasingly.

  Firelight and sword light flashed alternately, weaving into a chaotic dance.

  The fierce battle made Sia and Peyton nervous, unaware of the sweat sliding down their cheeks.

  As time passed, expressions of doubt mixed with strangeness gradually appeared on their faces.

  Originally, like Harlan, they thought that with the frequency of Pierce's spellcasting, he probably couldn't last too long.

  After all, based on what they knew, an ordinary Rank 3 Wizard Apprentice could cast at most 20 to 30 spells before exhausting their mental power.

  But from just now until now, the spells Pierce had cast must add up to 70 or 80.

  And that wasn't counting the times Mage Armor was cast, which couldn't be seen clearly from too far away.

  If really counted, there must be over a hundred!

  Isn't this amount of mental power a bit too exaggerated?

  Sia and Peyton suddenly felt that their previous worries seemed a bit wasted.

  "Damn it! What is going on with this kid?"

  Harlan was going crazy.

  Does the kid in front of him have no limit to his mental power?

  How many spells is this, dammit? And his mental power still isn't used up?

  "No, if this goes on, I'll be dragged to death!"

  Harlan's current situation was just like Riker's a moment ago; his Elemental Power was running low. In contrast, Pierce's eyes still shone with divine light, showing absolutely no sign of mental exhaustion.

  The situation had reversed; now it was Harlan's turn to be anxious.

  If this continued, he would likely be worn down to death by Pierce.

  Those who could reach the step of Legendary Knight were not indecisive people. Harlan quickly made up his mind. His gaze suddenly turned vicious. He swung his sword to force back Mist Raven attacking from the side, then retreated quickly to open up distance.

  He retreated more than 10 meters before stopping his figure. He glared viciously at Pierce, then suddenly shouted loudly in anger.

  The next second, scorching red flames spewed from his seven orifices and every pore of his body.

  The flames rose fiercely, burning blazingly, churning and interweaving to form a giant wolf nearly 3 meters tall, pouncing ferociously towards Pierce like rolling waves.

  Danger!

  Alarm bells rang loudly deep in Pierce's heart. He didn't hesitate to release the ready Magic Missiles, then shouted in a low voice:

  " Ai."

  With a flash of light, a small triangular shield appeared out of thin air, emitting a dim shimmer as it blocked in front of him.

  Immediately after, Mist Raven flew back like a sharp arrow, transforming into a giant shield standing between him and the Animated Shield.

  By the time all this was done, the giant flame wolf had already attacked.

  20 Magic Missiles struck the giant flame wolf, disappearing with a puff like stones thrown into water, raising only wisps of green smoke.

  And the giant flame wolf didn't pause for even half a second, crashing into the Animated Shield like a high-speed locomotive!

  BOOM!

  The Animated Shield held for only a split second before shattering with a bang.

  The halo dissipated, and the shield fell to the ground.

  The blazing flames followed closely, crashing into the black shield formed by Mist Raven behind it.

  Sizzle! Sizzle! Sizzle!

  Sounds like flesh dropped into acid erupted continuously.

  Black mist and flames entangled, annihilating and canceling each other out.

  Both the black shield and the giant flame wolf were shrinking rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.

  In less than a breath's time, the black shield, originally fully 2 meters high, had shrunk by 99\%, finally turning into a wisp of black mist flying back to Pierce's wrist.

  And the giant flame wolf, whose size had shrunk by 2/3, continued forward unstoppably, crashing into Pierce.

  Harlan's eyes widened, staring dead at the scene not far away.

  When he saw the giant flame wolf successively break through the two defenses of the Animated Shield and the black shield, a look of joy involuntarily appeared on his face.

  Crack! Crack!

  Sounds like crystal shattering rang out in succession.

  Under the burning of the giant flame wolf, light flashed repeatedly on Pierce's body surface.

  Every flash meant a layer of Mage Armor shattered, and the giant flame wolf's size also shrank a bit. The joy on Harlan's face diminished accordingly.

  Gradually, his expression went from joy and excitement to shock and disbelief, until finally, only utter despair remained.

  When the light flashed 26 times in succession, the giant flame wolf finally exhausted its power and slowly dissipated in the air.

  And Pierce still stood in place, unharmed, his body surface shrouded in a faint light.