Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The entire sky turned emerald green as countless orbs of energy, each capable of destroying a world, erupted from Lumina's staff. The projectiles bombarded Feixiao, who was trapped within the Flying Aureus, from every angle, leaving no escape.
Yet despite the relentless assault, neither the Flying Aureus, Feixiao, nor the Wardance Ceremony Arena itself suffered any damage.
This was clearly due to Lumina's precise control.
A true master can wield their power without destroying their surroundings. Lumina had achieved this, proving her status as a true powerhouse.
"Hmm... Isn't this spell—instantaneous, with no casting time, no wind-up, and no cooldown—a bit unfair?" Lumina muttered, watching Feixiao cowering motionless within the Flying Aureus.
Her eyes darted around as she considered the situation, realizing her actions were indeed excessive.
As everyone knows, at the same level, mages are generally no match for warriors.
After all, a warrior seeking an opening would never engage a mage in a prolonged exchange. Instead, they'd close the distance and overwhelm the mage in close combat. In such a scenario, the mage would almost certainly be crushed.
Most mages are ill-suited for close combat, so it's only natural for them to be overwhelmed by warriors skilled in melee.
But...
What if this mage could cast spells instantly, without incantations, casting animations, or cooldowns, and possessed near-infinite mana?
In that scenario, the mage would undoubtedly beat the warrior so badly they wouldn't even recognize their own mother.
After all, with no casting animations or cooldowns and unlimited mana, the mage could simply saturate the area with overwhelming firepower. As a warrior, what could you possibly do against such an onslaught?
Realizing this, Lumina gradually slowed her attacks.
After all, she wanted a proper battle against the beautiful General Feixiao, not a one-sided slaughter.
She eased up slightly, giving Feixiao and Flying Aureus a chance to catch their breath.
"Hmm?"
The instant Lumina eased up, giving Feixiao a brief respite, Feixiao and Flying Aureus transformed into a spiraling vortex and plunged toward her.
Just like casting her own magic, there was no windup, making it nearly impossible for ordinary people to react.
But Lumina was no ordinary person. Even though the sudden attack caught her slightly off guard, she reacted swiftly as Feixiao's strike was about to land.
Raising her staff high above her head, she effortlessly blocked Feixiao's strike.
While warriors typically dominate mages in close combat, it all depends on the mage in question.
Before closing in, it's crucial to observe the mage carefully and decide whether a melee strategy is wise.
Otherwise, you might close in only to discover that the mage you're facing is a battlemage!
Then you're toast.
Just like this—
"Heh heh heh, Feixiao, your reflexes are quite impressive."
Watching Feixiao's palm make intimate contact with her staff, Lumina smiled.
With a sudden surge of strength, she hurled Feixiao—Flying Aureus included—violently against the wall surrounding the Wardance Ceremony Arena.
Bang!
Another deafening crash echoed through the arena.
At this very moment, mirroring the past, a recovered Feixiao couldn't escape her fate of being brutally slammed against the wall by Lumina.
Lumina showed no mercy. After slamming Feixiao into the wall, she immediately aimed her Staff at her.
To give Feixiao a sliver of time to react, Lumina deliberately slowed her movements. A small, green light gradually coalesced at the Staff's tip.
After a full second, she unleashed the attack.
This time, it was a single, focused strike, lacking the overwhelming firepower of her previous barrage.
Yet the power radiating from this one attack far surpassed the combined force of all her previous strikes.
Boom!
Another earth-shattering roar shook the Skysplitter, causing the entire vessel to shudder violently. To anyone unaware of the battle, it would have seemed like the ship had suffered a catastrophic malfunction mid-flight.
"I... I... Is General Feixiao really alright?" Yanqing swallowed hard, his eyes wide with apprehension.
Lady Lumina's attack just now—forget facing it head-on—even at a distance of a hundred thousand miles, he would likely have been caught in the collateral damage...
No, not collateral damage. He'd probably have been reduced to dust in an instant.
But come to think of it, are Skysplitters really this durable?
Yanqing gazed at the still-intact Skysplitter, muttering to himself.
"Sister Lumina is so amazing!" March 7th exclaimed, her eyes shining like stars, her delicate, adorable face brimming with adoration for her "Sister Lumina."
"When will I ever be as strong as Sister Lumina?"
"Hmm... March, at your current rate of improvement, you might not even reach that level by the time of Cosmic Heat Death," Yunli said bluntly, without a trace of comfort in her voice. Instead, she doused March 7th with a bucket of cold, hard reality.
Let alone Lumina, who had utterly dominated General Feixiao throughout the battle, the gap between Feixiao and March 7th was so vast it could never be bridged in a lifetime.
To prevent March 7th from entertaining unrealistic fantasies that might cloud her judgment, Yunli, as her Master, felt compelled to douse her with this cold dose of reality.
"Hehe, of course I know that! I was just saying it for fun," March 7th said, scratching her head with a sheepish grin after Yunli's cold water dousing. She insisted she was just teasing.
March 7th might look up to Sister Lumina, but certainly not in terms of strength. She was well aware of the vast gulf between their abilities.
Still, March 7th genuinely wanted to become stronger, to become someone like Sister Lumina.
As a member of the Astral Express Crew, March 7th always felt she wasn't contributing much during their Trailblaze missions with Stelle, Dan Heng, Himeko, Uncle Yang, and the others.
Though the others didn't seem to mind, March 7th couldn't help but feel a little inadequate.
But that was about to change! Having learned swordsmanship from Master Yanqing and Master Yunli, March 7th was now confident she could finally be of real help.
On their next Trailblaze mission, March 7th was determined to show off her skills!
I'll definitely shine this time! she thought with unwavering conviction.