Chapter Seventy-Four: From the Abyss

Although they were indoors, the viscount’s study was quite spacious and tall. As the magic was unleashed, a vast concentration of elemental power began to gather above the building. The biting cold of freezing rain and hail engulfed the area where the fire elemental resided, shrouding Chu Yun’s vision and coating the floor with a layer of ice. This was a third-tier spell, Blizzard, extremely lethal to fire elementals and capable of inflicting multiple times the normal damage.

Fortunately, when Chu Yun summoned the elemental, he had used a second-tier fire elemental crystal, so the summoned creature exuded considerable heat.

Water can extinguish fire, but fire, in turn, can vaporize water.

Once one’s power reaches a certain threshold, even the natural dominance of elements could potentially be overturned!

The intense heat vaporized the freezing rain and hail into steam, which spread throughout the room. Hardy, who had felt chilled by the spell, now yelped as the steam scalded him, hastily throwing up another shield.

Luckily, the high concentration of water element still managed to dull the fire elemental’s senses, granting Hardy a rare moment to catch his breath.

When the mist dissipated, Hardy had already vanished without a trace.

“Hm? Where did that fellow go?” Chu Yun looked around in confusion.

Just then, a keen sense of danger surged through his mind as elemental power rapidly pooled in a certain area within his perception.

A sharp whistle split the air, followed by a resonant hum—a blue energy spear entwined with crackling magical force shot into the shield that surrounded Chu Yun’s body, forging a persistent arc of lightning between him and Hardy. This was a first-tier warlock spell, Witch's Arrow, but in the hands of a third-tier warlock, it was not only released with blinding speed but also packed immense power.

Since arriving in this world, this was the first time Chu Yun had been so thoroughly caught off guard.

Although the attack had only triggered the mage’s automatic protective shield, it had still given him quite a fright.

Having spent his days ambushing others, Chu Yun now tasted the frustration and helplessness of being ambushed himself, as Hardy's silhouette emerged in the act of casting his spell.

The purpose of the blizzard was not to kill the fire elemental, but to obscure vision, allowing Hardy to cast Invisibility and move to the edge of his maximum range, from where he could launch a long-distance spell attack against Chu Yun, the summoner.

To have reached the third tier of his profession, Hardy was far from foolish. On the contrary, he was extremely clever and adept at employing a variety of tactics in combat to outwit his enemies.

A fleeting look of surprise crossed Hardy’s face, but it was quickly replaced by a sly, triumphant grin as he manipulated the arc of lightning. Chu Yun, along with his shield, was slowly dragged closer, while Hardy’s eyes began to shift toward a purplish hue.

Magical protection could guard against physical and elemental attacks, but it offered no defense against mental enchantments.

The range of spells to charm humans was quite limited, but now, if Chu Yun drew just a little nearer, Hardy would have him.

Chu Yun panicked inwardly and hastily commanded the fire elemental to attack.

If possible, he would have retreated as far as he could, but going too far would cause the fire elemental to lose control, which was not an option. With Hardy’s movement and spellcasting distance now exceeding Chu Yun’s control range, he had fallen right into Hardy’s trap.

Thankfully, the fire elemental did not disappoint. Enraged, it hurled two massive fireballs with its hands, while both eyes unleashed searing beams.

A thunderous explosion rocked the room.

Hardy, ultimately a step too slow, failed to seize control of Chu Yun.

As the fire elemental’s attacks closed in, Hardy had no choice but to dodge, yet the area of effect was too broad, and his body caught fire.

Wounded, Hardy’s ability to suppress magical surges was greatly reduced, and the surge triggered by his earlier spellcasting flared up once again.

This time, Hardy’s luck ran out—the magical surge randomly cast a Fear spell, plunging him into a state of utter instability.

In the end, as the fire elemental closed in, it smashed Hardy to pieces with a single blow.

Though victorious, Chu Yun felt little joy.

He had been far too careless. This was the mirror world, where the enemy’s movements were limited, but in the real world, he might have already been controlled by Hardy’s spells.

“It seems I’ll need to strengthen my combat training,” Chu Yun mused. He knew many spells, but had far too little actual battle experience.

From now on, he resolved to spar with a few mage mirror images daily. The Mage Association offered a wide array of practice opponents.

Upon Hardy’s defeat, two orbs dropped from his mirror image—one granting 185 experience points, the other bestowing proficiency in the Infernal tongue.

With the mirror image destroyed, Chu Yun collected his spoils and approached Hardy’s body to investigate his activities, the fire elemental keeping close at his side.

Since this was the mirror world, any damage wrought by Blizzard or fire to the building would quickly repair itself, sparing him the risk of dying in a blaze.

In the real world, Hardy had ceased his chanting. Suddenly bereft of his knowledge of the Infernal tongue, his mind grew heavy and his spirit dazed.

The death of a mirror image would always impact the real world to some extent, let alone when one’s skills and experience points were stolen by another.

“Am I just too tired? Looks like I’d better rest, or I’ll have no energy left to toy with Karl’s daughter tonight,” Hardy muttered, failing to notice that he had forgotten the Infernal language entirely, for he had just found what he was searching for.

It was a peculiar book, distinguished by a three-dimensional closed eye on its cover.

Hardy activated the book with his mental energy. The eye on the cover slowly opened, and a voice emanated from the tome.

“Please tell me your name.”

Hardy started to respond, but the words caught in his throat, refusing to come out.

“Hardy, my name is Hardy. Damn it, that’s the common tongue. How do you say it in Infernal?” Hardy realized he had forgotten everything about the language of the Abyss.

This book hailed from the infernal depths, and only the Infernal tongue could communicate with it.

Chu Yun, standing nearby, understood the book’s words quite clearly. Faced with such a bizarre object, he dared not reveal his name without investigation—it was safer to proceed cautiously.

Moreover, as Chu Yun drew near, the book seemed intent on attacking him, its mirror image glaring at him with that single, unblinking eye, as if it could kill him with a mere glance.

This book was a living magical tome!

“In that case, I won’t stand on ceremony,” Chu Yun declared.

With a sweep of his hand, he commanded a blazing fist of fire to strike mercilessly at the book’s mirror image.

A metallic clang rang out.

Though the magic book, as a living being, could not attack for some reason, it had no trouble defending itself.

“What formidable defenses,” Chu Yun marveled at the magical shield. It was far more resilient than the one Hardy had conjured.

But alas, it was facing a fourth-tier fire elemental. If one blow couldn’t break it, then two, three, or a hundred would suffice!

On the third strike, the fire elemental finally shattered the eggshell-like barrier.

Immediately, searing flames engulfed the strange magical book. Amidst pitiful shrieks, it was utterly destroyed.

Chu Yun picked up the experience orb from the ground, and information about the book appeared before his eyes.

[Abyssal Summoning Tome Lv25: Life 80, Magic Attack 10, Magic Defense 15, Physical Attack 1, Physical Defense 10, Speed 30 (Cannot move or attack without an owner)]