Cassandra’s hand moved away from Eve’s forehead as she turned to face the senior figure projected before her.
Her face still maintained that performative perfect smile, but her eyes were cold and piercing.
"What do you mean by ’something’s not right’, Senior Selena?"
The Witch’s voice sounded relaxed, as if she were just engaging in routine academic exchange.
But Ron noticed that her left hand had unconsciously clenched into a fist.
"I mean..."
Selena slowly walked towards Cassandra, with each step her aura grew sharper.
The previously innocent-looking young face now carried a chilling focus.
"Deep within your soul, something is slowly altering your essence. It’s not the usual traces left by wizard cultivation, but rather..."
She stopped three steps away from Cassandra, her silver-blue eyes cutting like blades:
"Something foreign, alien, devouring your original personality."
The words dropped like a boulder into a tranquil lake, causing massive ripples.
Eve looked at her mother in shock, her eyes filled with confusion and worry.
Gould ceased the motion of stroking the ancient coin, becoming extraordinarily alert.
Yet Cassandra’s reaction was unexpected to everyone.
She didn’t get angry or argue, instead she chuckled lightly:
"Senior Selena’s perception ability remains as sharp as ever. However..."
The Witch’s smile slowly vanished, replaced by a dangerous indifference:
"Some matters are not meant for outsiders to inquire about."
As soon as she finished speaking, Cassandra began to emit a strong void remains aura.
Purple energy spread around like tides, instantly lowering the ritual room’s temperature by over ten degrees.
The oppressive feeling was as heavy as a mountain, making the air thick like glue.
The historical runes on the walls began to flicker violently, seemingly warning of impending danger.
But Selena did not retreat.
Faced with such pressure, the young woman instead showed excitement.
"So that’s how it is..."
She chuckled, her voice full of sarcasm:
"Hector’s descendant, reduced to evading problems like this, truly disappointing."
In the next moment, Selena’s form began to change terrifyingly.
Her back suddenly split into several gaps, from which countless tendrils of varying thickness emerged.
These tendrils were an unhealthy pale color, with surface patterns like veins, ending in various bizarre-shaped organs.
Some looked like eyeballs, some like mouths, and others were completely unrecognizable twisted structures.
But most striking was that these tendrils and organs kept shifting shape, as if showcasing life’s infinite possibilities.
Ron frowned slightly, yet nodded.
Her current form was reminiscent of the board illustration Lady Allen showed him of a successful path of truth follower.
This was Selena’s void remains materialization—the "Thousand Heart".
A terrifying form able to mimic any biological structure, engaging in limitless adaptive evolution.
In terms of power attributes, Cassandra represented conquest and domination, whereas Selena represented change and adaptation, sharply contrasting.
At her peak, this ability allowed her to understand and heal any form of life, but also made her appearance extremely horrifying.
The organs at the end of the tendrils began emitting various sounds.
Some were roars of animals, some the buzz of insects, and others eerie noises beyond comprehension.
These sounds mingled together, forming a spirit-disrupting noise.
Several Great Wizards quickly raised isolation barriers to protect the two young individuals.
"Now..."
Selena’s voice emanated from countless organs simultaneously, creating a bizarre harmonic effect:
"Let me thoroughly ’inspect’ what changes are happening to you."
The tendrils extended snake-like towards Cassandra, but were blocked by the purple energy barrier at the last moment.
The two forces collided intensely in the air, producing visible energy ripples.
Soon, Selena exhibited a disadvantage.
After all, she was merely a historical projection, unable to exert her full strength from when alive.
However, Cassandra was in complete form as a Great Wizard, holding an absolute advantage in pure power comparison.
Purple energy surged forward like waves, gradually suppressing Selena’s tendril domain.
"Enough!"
Uther’s voice erupted like thunder throughout the room.
His phantom solidified instantly, silver light spearing between the two:
"This is a healing chamber, not a duel arena!"
The Eye of Observation’s singular eye also shot a golden light, forming a stable energy barrier, isolating the two Great Wizards’ power:
"Stop it! If this continues, the entire ritual room will be destroyed!"
Gould similarly stood up, a peculiar staff appearing in his hand.
The staff’s top was a continually rotating hourglass, emitting waves of temporal power:
"Ladies, we’re gathered here today to save lives, not settle personal vendettas!"
Under the intervention of the three additional Great Wizards, the tense confrontation finally eased.
Cassandra withdrew her void remains aura, returning to human form, though the coldness in her eyes did not dissipate.
Selena’s tendrils also slowly retracted within her, yet her gaze on Cassandra remained vigilant.