After making their preparations, the group of 'refugees' began moving toward the border of the Arcane Federation. Unbeknownst to them, a line of fully armed wizards had been waiting nearby for quite some time.
The wizards stood in a row, each spaced ten meters apart. The leader, a wizard in white robes, glanced at the Crystal Ball in his hand, which displayed real-time footage of the 'refugees' advance. "They're almost in position," he said. "Prepare to engage."
A moment later, he calmly commanded, "Attack!"
The hundred-plus wizards around him chanted in unison, their movements perfectly synchronized. They stepped forward as one, raising their staffs in unison.
Orbs of fire coalesced at the tips of their staffs, swirling, condensing into spherical projectiles, and then launching skyward.
To the Artemis Believers, glancing up, red dots appeared on the horizon. After a moment of stunned silence, an Artemis Priest shouted, "Fireballs! Take cover!"
At the same moment, a massive Magic Circle appeared beneath their feet. A dark green gas erupted from the circle, enveloping everyone in its foul embrace.
"Ugh—!"
"It stinks! It stinks so bad!"
"I can't take it anymore!"
This was the Third-Level Necromancy School's Stinking Cloud spell, one of the most revolting magics imaginable. The stench, beyond human comprehension, permeated the air, causing everyone to collapse to their knees and vomit uncontrollably. In an instant, the scene transformed into a living hell.
Forcibly "controlled" in place by this grotesque spell, the crowd was helpless as the Fireballs rained down from the sky, detonating among them.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The destructive power of Fireball spells needs no elaboration; in this situation, they were absolute killing machines. Each violent explosion sent at least a dozen people flying. Yet the wizard holding the Crystal Ball remained calm, issuing orders: "Adjust the trajectory slightly higher. Fire again! Keep attacking!"
"Again! Keep attacking!"
"Continue!"
"Continue!"
Wave after wave of Fireballs erupted, their relentless explosions engulfing the entire battlefield. The bombardment persisted for an unknown duration until the white-robed Wizard finally lowered his Crystal Ball and declared, "Alright, it's over."
This man was Jonathan Bush, the Tower Master of the Divination School—one of the nine towers within the Arcane Federation. In other words, he was among the nine most powerful and influential individuals in the entire Federation.
The Old Mage from the Divination School who had witnessed Mydei's rampage in the Grand Duchy of Kandela was merely an ordinary instructor at the Prophecy Tower.
During a recent use of Divination Magic, the Tower Master had foreseen that a group would arrive at the Arcane Federation's border today. Allowing these individuals to infiltrate the Federation would severely compromise its future plans, so he had acted decisively, leading his forces to lay a trap and launch an attack.
Surveying the smoke-filled battlefield, the Tower Master waved his hand dismissively and turned to leave. "Let's go."
Meanwhile, high above the battlefield, Hyacine peered down from Big Ica's back. When the Artemis Believers were scattered, they had been difficult to track. But now that they had gathered into a cohesive group, the Okhema Spies within the Alliance had spotted them and reported their location to Tribios.
The Alliance was currently preoccupied with the war and had no time to deal with these minor disturbances. This was a matter between the Alliance and the Empire, and Okhema, frankly, had no legitimate reason to intervene. It was a difficult situation to manage.
But these rogue Artemis Believers were a different matter entirely. Hyacine had come directly here, intending to resolve the situation herself. She couldn't allow these fanatics to roam freely and cause further chaos.
What she hadn't anticipated was that the Arcane Federation had already been lying in wait, having set up a trap and ruthlessly exterminated the Artemis Believers.
After pondering for a moment, Hyacine patted Big Ica's neck and said, "Let's move on."
Big Ica flapped its wings and soared into high-speed flight. Anyone looking up from the ground would have glimpsed a faint rainbow arc, like a miniature rainbow stretching across the sky.
Hyacine soon arrived at the capital of the Arcane Federation. From a distance, she could see nine towering Mage Towers rising from various parts of the city, each at least twenty stories high. Every stone in these towers was etched with intricate magical runes, and their construction had consumed unimaginable wealth.
It was no exaggeration to say that even the tallest buildings in Okhema didn't reach twenty stories—there simply was no need for such height.
Hyacine scanned the city below for secluded alleyways, hidden corners, or deserted spots. Though she hadn't accomplished her original mission (eliminating the Artemis Believers), now that she was here, she decided to explore the Arcane Federation and scout out a suitable location for activating the Century Gate.
In the roughly three months since Anaxa's emergence, he had mastered nearly all of Okhema's Magitech Technology. He had even fully comprehended Melly's proudest creation, the Elemental Reactor.
In other words, Anaxa's knowledge now rivaled Melly's. Following his original plan, he had decided to visit the Arcane Federation after mastering Okhema's knowledge.
Hyacine pondered for a moment. During this trip to the Federation, she would stick close to Anaxa, operating as a "duo."
After all, in the original Honkai: Star Rail storyline, Hyacine had been Anaxa's Teaching Assistant. Working together would be both fun and practical. Another reason was that Anaxa's direct combat prowess was relatively weak among the twelve Demigods, and having Hyacine by his side would help compensate for this deficiency.
As Hyacine was lost in thought, she suddenly sensed a gaze fixed in her direction. Instinctively, she curled her legs up and pressed herself flat against Big Ica's back.
It felt as if she had been caught spying on someone—a guilty feeling of being caught red-handed. Her first reaction, of course, was to hide.
Big Ica was massive, while Hyacine was petite. When she flattened herself against its back, someone looking up from below would see only a white celestial steed, with Hyacine's figure completely concealed.
Still, Hyacine murmured in confusion, "But I'm over eight thousand meters in the air! How could anyone possibly detect me at this height?"