Chapter 78: Chapter 77: Oh my, this idea is really too bold.
The Cleric Maiden blinked curiously and looked toward Fang Zheng.
“Mr. Fang Zheng wishes to know about Spellcasters?”
“Exactly. During the previous battles, I found myself quite unfamiliar with Spellcasters, so I’d like to ask Miss Fina about their combat methods and such.”
Fang Zheng wasn’t making excuses; on the contrary, if he had felt no need to understand the Mage profession before, he now had to change his mind. A single Bald Guy, Charles, had managed to embarrass him, and had it not been for Nymph’s assistance, he probably would have had to flee in disarray. Considering that they might encounter a Destruction Mage among their future enemies, Fang Zheng naturally intended to gather some information on Spellcasters first.
“Of course, that’s not a problem. What would you like to know, Mr. Fang Zheng?”
“What exactly is that Lightning Shield all about? Why did it appear suddenly when I launched an attack?”
This was Fang Zheng’s most confounding issue. At that time, he could have sworn the Bald Mage had been stopped by his Time Stop, and theoretically, he should have been an easy target. However, just as his sword was about to strike, the lightning appeared out of nowhere, repelling him, and disrupting his manipulation of time, which was the most perplexing part for Fang Zheng.
However, Fina quickly provided an answer.
“Based on Mr. Fang Zheng’s description, I believe that must be the Mage’s stored Spell Trigger… It’s a technique where a Spell is stored in advance and then automatically triggered under specific circumstances; most Intermediate Mages possess this Skill. I suppose that Mage Charles had set up the trigger to release a Lightning Shield upon being attacked, hence your attack being blocked, Mr. Fang Zheng.”
Well, that’s just like an automatic cheat, isn’t it?
Hearing this, Fang Zheng couldn’t help but roll his eyes, reminded of the many cheat programs in online games of the past, such as automatically drinking a Blood Bottle when HP fell to a certain level or regenerating mana once MP dropped… Damn, an Archmage is truly an Archmage!
“Then Miss Fina, do you possess this Skill too?”
Facing Fang Zheng’s curious inquiry, Fina showed a troubled expression.
“Spell Trigger is a Skill known by Intermediate and higher-level Spellcasters. However, there are Divine Arts that can achieve similar effects, though they must be cast in advance… ”
“Then, how should one deal with such a situation?”
Upon hearing this, Fang Zheng frowned. According to Fina’s words, Mages seemed invincible, impervious to sneak attacks and tough in battle, and capable of escaping when overpowered. It was fortunate he had the Little Angel, Nymph, who could invade and take control of the Mage’s Spells. Otherwise, facing a Mage, would he have to give up fighting and just go home to sleep?
“Spellcasters prepare specialized Spells to remove another’s defenses when fighting each other, and there are also some weapons capable of breaking magic… Besides that, using overwhelming power to break through is another method…”
After Fina’s response, Fang Zheng’s brows furrowed. He didn’t have any magic-breaking weapons, and using overwhelming force was a solution, having eventually broken through the Bald Guy’s Lightning Shield with Divine Storm. However, that was because Nymph had prematurely nullified the Bald Mage’s Protection Magic. As the saying goes, “Know thy self, know thy enemy, and you shall win a hundred battles”… It seems…
“Yes, I’m here, what is it?”
“If I want to learn magic, are there any restrictions?”
Upon Fang Zheng’s question, Fina paused, then shook her head.
“Well… the Sanctuary doesn’t impose any restrictions, but magic is a highly complex and difficult Spellcasting technique that requires a significant amount of effort and is not easily mastered. Thus, it’s rare for someone to study magic while also specializing in swordsmanship…”
“You’re right, I was being a bit impatient, thank you.”
Hearing this, Fang Zheng’s initially vexed mood finally calmed down. As Fina said, he had yet to perfect his swordsmanship; considering magic might indeed be premature. However, Fang Zheng wouldn’t give up on studying magic because of this. From that Bald Mage alone, he saw many useful aspects of magic that were far more beneficial than simple swordsmanship.
And besides… damn it, he was a Dimensional Mage, what sort of mage doesn’t know any spells? Just a Holy Light and Weapon Mastery would be following the Gandalf template.
So now there was only one question left.
“Lady Fina, you mentioned earlier that Divine Arts also has similar effects… Can you perform it? I would like to conduct a small experiment.”
“Ah, of course, that’s no problem.”
Fina readily nodded in agreement to Fang Zheng’s request. Although she hadn’t spent much time with him, the intelligence and wisdom he had displayed had already filled her with trust in him. Not only had he easily extracted their conspiracies from Charles, but he could even use these vague pieces of evidence to deduce the enemy’s actions. It was a skill that made Fina feel inferior, so even though she didn’t know why Fang Zheng wanted to do this now, she quickly agreed, raised her staff, and Fang Zheng saw a beam of light suddenly appear, enshrouding Fina and then disappearing into specks of radiance.
“This is Holy Armor, it will actively manifest to block an attack when I’m under attack, and the effect should be similar to the spells cast by mages… It just needs to be actively released…”
Staring at the radiance around the girl, Fang Zheng nodded.
The next moment, time stopped.
In Fang Zheng’s eyes, the girl before him suddenly froze in place, standing there like a statue without moving, her eyes staring ahead, looking just like a wax figure.
Fang Zheng reached out and gently patted her shoulder; it was warm and soft to the touch, but the girl did not show any reaction.
Um… in this situation, I suddenly have a bold idea.
Looking at the Cleric Maiden before him, Fang Zheng couldn’t help swallowing hard; for some reason, he suddenly remembered certain scenes from the adult films he had seen in the past… Speaking of which, it seems time stop does have such uses!
Cough cough… Thinking too much, thinking too much, stop right there.
Patting his head and tossing away the movie scenarios in his mind, Fang Zheng started to carefully observe the girl before him, then he raised his longsword and thrust at the girl’s shoulder.
Fang Zheng’s strike was not fast, but just as he was about to pierce her body, a golden barrier suddenly appeared and blocked his strike, and along with the appearance of the barrier, Fang Zheng quickly felt his grasp on time begin to weaken, with the duration of the effect rapidly decreasing. Perhaps it was because Fina was not as strong as the Bald Mage, so Fang Zheng still had time to grasp and feel.
Indeed, if I face an enemy’s released Skill while manipulating time, will my maintained duration decrease?
Fang Zheng had considered this while he was performing his combo attacks, and now after battling the Bald Mage and practicing with Fina, he was increasingly certain his speculation was correct. The time manipulation he wielded wasn’t invincible; quite the contrary, this ability had many restrictions, and there was the danger of being resisted and immuned.
Even when facing an Apprentice Priest like Fina, my time manipulation is at risk of being weakened. So, it’s not surprising that it was directly countered by the Bald Mage; he said he was a Three-Star Mage… It must be the baseline for Africa, at least stronger than One-Star and Two-Star, right?
I wonder what a Five-Star Mage is like?
While his mind wandered aimlessly, Fang Zheng snapped his fingers, and time began to flow again. Fina, in front of him, also returned to normal.
“Thank you for your help, Lady Fina.”
“Don’t mention it, Mr. Fang Zheng.”
Although Fina didn’t know what exactly Fang Zheng had done, she quickly bowed her head in response. And then…
While speaking, Fang Zheng glanced over the encampment strewn with corpses; this place was not suitable for camping out.
“We’ll find a safe place to rest first, then head to the Dark Marsh… I’m also curious about what those Cultists are really up to.”
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