Amidst the temple's battlefield…
It was the most violent battleground, hosting the strongest individuals within the temple.
Compared to what was happening there, the other locations felt like mere child's play.
Amid the raging flames and relentless bombardment, Sophia sat cradling the body of her former mentor, Synthia. She desperately tried to make her swallow a healing potion, hoping to bring her back.
With vacant eyes, she continued to feel the coldness seeping from Synthia's body as they both lay submerged in a pool of blood.
"Snap out of it, Sophia!"
While she was preoccupied with trying to heal her mentor, the other instructors were still engaged in battle against Kai Luc.
Though calling it a battle was a stretch—Kai Luc was simply bombarding them with pre-prepared magical spells.
"She's gone! Leave her and focus on what's in front of us!"
Alexander Fleming struggled through the blazing blue flames, attempting to break through Kai Luc's relentless attacks, but he barely managed to move a few meters forward.
"Damn it!"
He cursed, drenched in blood and sweat, frustrated by the situation.
"If only Director Bloodmader or Lady Melina were here, this wouldn't be happening…"
Indeed, the temple was missing its strongest weapons. But time waited for no one.
"Tell me… What do you hope to achieve with this pathetic resistance?"
Completely unscathed, the sorcerer loomed over them, surrounded by countless magical circles.
"Perhaps you're stalling for time? Hoping reinforcements will arrive soon?"
Most of the instructors grimaced, realizing their plan had been exposed.
Seeing their reaction, Kai Luc burst into hysterical laughter.
"Do you really think you stand a chance?"
"As long as we're here, anything is possible!"
"Oh? Is that so?"
Kai Luc brought his hands together, forming a circle—much larger than the ones before.
The amount of aura he gathered was anything but insignificant.
"Allow me to shatter your foolish illusions."
Slowly, a massive meteor formed behind him. Raising a single finger, he continued,
"Previously, the first teleportation circle scattered my comrades across different areas of the temple—an initial wave, so to speak."
The fiery meteor behind him continued growing at an alarming rate. Meanwhile, the instructors remained pinned down, unable to act under his continuous bombardment.
Even amidst the chaos, his voice rang clear as he raised a second finger.
"Although I've spent years preparing for this… I must admit, a circle of this scale does take some time to activate."
As realization dawned upon them, despair and disbelief finally took hold of the instructors' faces.
"Kai Luc… You…"
"That's right… There's a second teleportation circle."
With a smug grin, he spread his arms wide.
"One that will engulf the entire temple! Once activated, the real forces of the Ultras will descend—thousands of bloodthirsty warriors!"
Everyone's faces darkened at his declaration.
It meant only one thing.
"Hahaha! Yes! Your attempt to stall for time was the most foolish decision you could've made! All you've done is delay your inevitable deaths!"
"An entire army… will appear here?"
Finally, the last of their resistance crumbled as the weight of the impending disaster settled in. If Kai Luc's words were true, then they stood no chance.
If just a few hundred invaders could cause this much destruction… what would happen when thousands arrived?
The Grand Sorcerer relished in their despair. He nodded in satisfaction before clapping his hands.
"Let's put an end to these pitiful souls."
By now, the fiery meteor had grown large enough to blanket the entire battlefield.
Faced with its overwhelming might, the instructors stood frozen, powerless against their impending doom.
It loomed closer and closer, swallowing everything in its path.
The entire temple shook as the colossal meteor crashed into the ground—its impact sending tremors far and wide, leaving onlookers in shock.
Alexander Fleming shut his eyes tightly, as did the other instructors, resigning themselves to their fate.
But the end never came.
Slowly, he opened his eyes, only to be blinded by a brilliant golden light encircling him and the rest of the instructors.
Kai Luc frowned, confused by what had just happened.
Then, he got his answer.
Before him stood a dark-skinned man, one hand resting behind his back while the other firmly gripped an ancient staff he had wielded countless times before.
His eyes, now fully closed, locked onto the sorcerer as he spoke with unwavering resolve.
"It's far too soon to surrender… If you do, how can you expect the students to keep fighting?"
Raising his staff, he declared,
"Here and now, let's end this."
For the first time, the smirk vanished from Kai Luc's face.
"Choupo Moting… What are you doing here?! What happened at the arena?!"
Of course… The dark-skinned man was none other than Choupo Moting.
He was second only to the Vice Director in terms of who needed to be eliminated immediately.
Of all places, the arena had been where the enemy's strongest forces were sent—four S-Class Awakened warriors.
All for the sake of taking down a single man.
Yet, somehow, that very man now stood before him.
As if answering his unspoken question, Choupo Moting calmly stated,
"Naturally, they fell."
In an instant, he appeared before Kai Luc like a phantom.
"And so will you."
His fist was about to connect with Kai Luc's face, but the sorcerer vanished just in time.
He reappeared a distance away, sending volleys of fire and lightning toward Choupo, but they were effortlessly deflected by his staff.
Once again, Choupo closed the distance.
Kai Luc had no idea what was happening.
The battlefield had been laced with his spells.
In terms of raw power, he was far above his opponent, an S+ rank.
Yet, no matter what he threw at him, Choupo blocked everything with the golden aura surrounding his body.
Kai Luc attempted to teleport again, but before he could, stone hands emerged from the ground, grabbing onto his legs.
He shattered them with ease, but that brief delay proved costly.
Choupo was now right in front of him.
As a sorcerer, Kai Luc was hopeless in close combat, whereas his opponent was a master of martial arts.
One punch was all it took.
Kai Luc's head twisted at an unnatural angle as his body was sent flying.
But Choupo didn't stop there. With a few gestures, massive stone hands formed, slamming into the sorcerer's body and burying him deep within the earth.
The battlefield fell silent as everyone stared at Choupo Moting, their mouths hanging open in utter disbelief.
In just a few minutes, Choupo had accomplished what no one else could—he had taken down the sorcerer who had been fighting within his own domain.
But the battle was far from over.
Everyone realized this the moment they saw the black aura lines slowly rising from the spot where the sorcerer had been buried.
From amidst the ruins, Kai Luc emerged once more, standing on his feet. His head was tilted backward at an unnatural angle, but with an eerie snap, it realigned itself.
Dark markings spread across his entire body, accompanied by strange, scattered symbols.
His expression was now far more complicated—an unexpected variable had disrupted his carefully laid plans.
He still didn't fully grasp how Choupo had managed to block his attacks so effectively, nor did he understand the strange light that had continuously repelled his spells.
But their last clash had revealed everything to him.
"I see now… Choupo."
"The one I should have dealt with first… wasn't Baek Ryun. It was you."
The pressure around the sorcerer surged drastically, pushing him closer to the realm of an SS-Class.
From the very beginning, it should have been impossible for an S+ rank like Choupo Moting to suppress him like this.
But the secret didn't lie in Choupo himself… it lay in what he wielded.
Kai Luc pointed at the golden staff in Choupo's grasp, a smirk forming on his lips.
"That staff… so it was in your possession all along…"
"The Dawn Guard."
A subtle shift crossed Choupo's otherwise calm expression at the mention of his weapon.
But ultimately, it changed nothing.
Kai Luc had become deadly serious now, fully aware that eliminating his opponent was a necessity. He had no choice but to unleash the power he had obtained from the demons.
On the other hand, Choupo knew exactly what had to be done.
Golden light from the Dawn Guard enveloped him as he prepared for battle.
As the two warriors stood on the brink of unleashing everything they had—
Far from the battlefield…
The traitor was about to make his move.