Chapter 402 The Protagonist Always Arrives Last (Patreon)

Chapter 402 The Protagonist Always Arrives Last

"A World Tree Sub-body is hiding among ordinary Treants?"

Stio scratched his head as he listened to the message transmitted through the Crystal Ball, casually shrinking the radius of the metallic storm swirling around him.

As one of the first Wizards to encounter a World Tree Sub-body, he had a vivid impression of those creatures. If such a monster got close, even he would suffer greatly.

Even after reducing the storm's range, the pitch-black whirlwind of metal continued to slaughter Treants with terrifying efficiency.

Storms weren't the only things capable of felling giant trees—chainsaws worked just as well.

The rapidly moving metallic particles acted like gnashing teeth, shredding the Treants into splinters.

Suddenly, with a thunderous boom, a bolt of white-purple lightning as thick as a barrel shot through the ranks of Treants and struck the metallic storm.

The spinning tempest of metal shuddered under the impact, nearly dispersing into individual particles.

"Damn, that packed a punch."

Stio's relaxed expression sharpened instantly, and his massive hammer-staff crackled with faint arcs of lightning.

He expanded his spiritual senses to their limit, searching through the horde of Treants for the World Tree Sub-body. At the same time, he pulled a vial of Magic Potion from his pocket and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing through both glass and liquid before swallowing.

As the potion took effect, his skin flushed a faint red.

Every cell in his body surged with power under the potion's influence. Individually, each spark of energy was insignificant, but multiplied by sixty trillion, it became enough to shake heaven and earth.

Abruptly, Stio snapped his gaze toward a specific direction.

There, concealed among ordinary Treants, a World Tree Sub-body was quietly gathering energy.

Stio bared his gleaming steel teeth in a savage grin.

"Found you!"

With a swing of his hammer-staff, the metallic storm around him accelerated to a terrifying speed, obliterating every obstacle between him and the World Tree Sub-body.

In the next instant, a lightning-wreathed hammer descended upon the creature with earth-shattering force.

BOOM!

The World Tree Sub-body was cleaved cleanly in half, the sheer power leaving the severed cross-section smooth as a mirror.

Seizing the moment, the hammer-staff unleashed a bolt of white-purple lightning, reducing the lower half of the creature to charred remains.

As for the upper half—before Stio could act—a burst of azure flames reduced it to ashes.

"Stio, long time no see," greeted a figure wreathed in ghostly blue fire.

Stio planted the head of his hammer into the ground, panting heavily. "Yeah, it's been a while, Robby. But I should mention—I could've handled that thing without your help."

Robby chuckled. "I know. But I figured you should save your strength."

The Magic Potion's effects were extraordinary, but its side effects were equally severe.

This particular potion was called the One-Strike Elixir—meaning it granted enough power for a single, overwhelming attack. Once that strike was unleashed, the user would be left in a weakened state.

Robby stepped closer to Stio, waving his staff to summon a sea of flames that incinerated any approaching Treants.

"I've already met Two-Face, but I haven't heard anything about Richard yet. Seems he's gone pretty far ahead."

Stio replied weakly, "He was the first to locate the World Tree Sub-body, so he must have his own methods when it comes to finding it. It's only natural that he might have gone farther."

But even as he said this, both of them knew it was just an excuse.

No matter how far Richard had gone, he should have returned by now.

Over these past two months, the Wizards had dispatched the White Wizard Legion multiple times to retrieve returning Third Circle Black Wizards.

Yet Richard had never appeared among them.

"...What a shame."

After a moment of silence, Robby spoke with a hint of regret. "He was strong, and that magic pet of his was even more impressive. I was hoping to borrow it for research once the war was over."

"Don’t jump to conclusions. Richard isn’t as simple as you think."

Stio straightened up, swinging his massive hammer staff, and summoned the metallic storm once more.

Wizards who pursued physical evolution had far greater resistance to abnormal conditions compared to ordinary Wizards.

The weakness period after consuming a Magic Potion would last at least an hour for an average Third Circle Wizard. For those whose physiques were barely adequate, it might even cause permanent deterioration.

But for Stio, the weakness period lasted only a dozen seconds.

"Let’s head back to the second line of defense. If we encounter the World Tree Sub-body, even we—"

Before he could finish, a suffocating pressure, thick with impending danger, weighed down on them.

The Treants around them suddenly halted, their branches uniformly pointing at the two Third Circle Wizards.

"What is this?"

Stio tensed, his gaze fixed on the Treants.

He could sense something terrifying lurking behind the layers of Treants, watching them.

"The World Master?"

The flames around Robby flickered violently, and his staff emitted faint ripples of Magic Power.

"No, it’s not the World Master."

As a Wizard who had evolved his physique, Stio’s senses were far sharper than Robby’s, whose body had been elementalized.

Though the source of this pressure was formidable, it was definitely not the World Master.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

A deep, drum-like rhythm pounded in their ears as the surrounding Treants suddenly moved in unison.

Pale-purple lightning arced from one Treant to another, as if all of them had merged into a single entity.

"Damn it! Gestalt linkage!"

Stio’s expression twisted in alarm. He turned and bolted toward the Floating City, moving so fast he became a blur.

Robby didn’t know what "Gestalt linkage" meant, but seeing Stio’s panic, he knew it couldn’t be good. He immediately tried to flee as well.

But that brief hesitation cost him dearly.

Countless roots burst from the ground, instantly blocking his path.

Robby swung his staff, and a surge of rule-based power deepened the blue flames around him to an indigo hue.

The transformed flames reduced the obstructing vines to ashes before they could even touch him.

But before Robby could celebrate, a deafening explosion erupted behind him.

BOOM!

A torrent of lightning, vast as a river, swallowed his figure in an instant.

Flying ahead, Stio glanced back in terror, only to see that the Wizard's path had left behind a scorched black trail stretching thousands of meters across the enchanted, hardened ground.

At the edges of the path, even the searing magma was still cooling.

"Damn it."

Stio was both shocked and furious. As a Third Circle Wizard, he had almost forgotten the last time he had been in such a wretched state.

He pulled out his Communication Crystal Ball and connected it to the command center.

"Command, command, this is Third Circle Wizard Stio. A secondary Gestalt connection has been detected in the World Tree Sub-body. Repeat, a secondary Gestalt connection has been detected in the World Tree Sub-body. All Third Circle Wizards, retreat immediately!"

With that, another surge of formidable Magic Power erupted from within him, propelling him like a bullet toward the Floating City.

...

The command room fell into silence.

"Gestalt connection..." Jimmy muttered weakly.

He wondered if he had somehow offended a curse Wizard before this expedition—why else would the war reports keep getting worse and worse?

First, the Floating City had crashed, damaging the Power Furnace. Then, the defensive line had been breached. And now, a Gestalt connection had appeared.

His only remaining trump card was that thing the Dean had given him—whatever it was, wherever it was now.

Hah. What an abundant reserve of last resorts.

"...Mobilize the White Wizard Legion," Commander Adams spoke up. "A fortress won’t hold against a Gestalt."

A Gestalt connection referred to a group of creatures linked through some form of bond, transforming the collective into a single massive entity.

These connections were divided into three levels. The first level was merely a fusion of minds—where the personalities of the group merged into one.

The coordination among the sub-bodies of such a collective became as seamless as a person’s left and right hands.

The second level, however, involved a dual fusion—both of minds and energy.

At this stage, the Gestalt entity not only shared a unified consciousness but also pooled all the energy of its individual components.

A second-level Gestalt connection was already a terrifying creature comparable to the White Wizard Legion.

Even an ordinary White Wizard Legion might not necessarily defeat them.

As for the third level—that was beyond the capabilities of mere "mortals" like them to handle.

A third-level Gestalt entity required the intervention of a Great Wizard or a saturation bombardment from the Floating City to be vanquished.

"Mobilize the—"

Before Jimmy could finish, another Crystal Ball lit up.

The moment the connection was established, a panicked voice screamed, "Second-level Gestalt! No—it's a second-level Gestalt swarm! The World Tree Sub-bodies are all turning into Gestalts!"

Then came a deafening explosion, and the Crystal Ball dimmed instantly.

The command room fell silent once more.

"...Everyone, prepare for a fight to the death."

After a long pause, Jimmy spoke slowly.

"A second-level Gestalt swarm..." Adams suddenly laughed. "To think I’d die at the hands of something like this. The Astral World truly holds infinite possibilities."

"Hah, indeed. A second-level Gestalt swarm—now that’s a rare sight."

"Ah, what a waste of my Magic Equipment. If I’d known I was going to die, I’d have left it to my student."

The Third Circle Wizards wore relaxed expressions. Having wandered battlefields for years, they had long accepted the possibility of dying in combat.

"No, you won't die," Jimmy interrupted with a calm expression. "If I fall in battle, the Dean will forcibly breach the boundary between worlds. Though this world may not survive, most of you probably will."

As he spoke, Jimmy pulled two sets of knuckle dusters from his pocket and slipped them onto his hands.

"Ah, dying on the battlefield... at least it's a worthy death."

...

At the second defensive line, White Wizards who had just installed their Alchemy Weapons were abruptly summoned from their fortresses by the Legion Commander.

This unusual occurrence made veteran Wizards uneasy.

Trouble was coming.

The White Wizards assembled in ten-thousand strong combat formations. Since major wars had been rare and fortress battles caused minimal casualties, the White Wizard Legion still maintained 650,000 troops.

But scattered across the battlefield, even 650,000 seemed pitifully few.

Because what they faced was the endless Green Tide.

Thud! Thud! Thud...

The heavy footsteps carried through the air, pounding relentlessly into the Wizards' ears. The sound resembled war drums from ancient battlefields, each beat echoing with the battle cries and death wails of countless lives.

Soon, the Treants drew near.

The White Wizard Commander issued orders through the Mind Network: "All units prepare! Direction: straight ahead. Distance: thirty-five. Spell type: Wind Blade Spell. Three volleys!"

"One, two, three!"

In the next instant, mountains and seas of invisible wind blades flew toward the Treants. The massive gathering of air elements formed a colossal storm over ten kilometers in diameter midair.

Under the storm's tremendous suction, dead branches, fallen leaves, rubble and bricks were all swept into its vortex. Anything caught within could shatter metal and pulverize stone.

Yet the Treants paid no heed to the massive storm.

Their branches interlocked, vines entwined, and roots interconnected.

Mighty as the storm was, it couldn't budge them an inch.

Seeing this, the White Wizard Commander's heart sank. He immediately ordered: "Wind Blade Spell, maximum output!"

The Treants had evolved fire element absorption capabilities, leaving wind elemental spells as the White Wizard Legion's only means to conjure an Elemental Storm.

If this storm couldn't affect the Treants, the Legion would be powerless.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh...

Thousands of wind blades swarmed into the storm like birds returning to nest, causing it to rapidly expand to dozens of kilometers across.

This time, the Treants finally halted their advance.

"It's working!"

The Commander's heart leapt with joy, but his expression abruptly changed.

Because above the Treants appeared a thick energy barrier.

Against this barrier, the metal-shearing storm might as well have been a wooden knife.

It took tremendous effort just to breach that energy shield.

But what good did breaching it do? The remaining storm could only make the Treants' leaves rustle—not even enough to break a twig.

"We're finished."

The Commander watched with ashen face.

So did all 650,000 White Wizards.

"The Gestalt Swarm... ah, what perfect soldiers."

Jimmy watched the approaching tide near the Floating City, a relieved smile playing on his lips.

"Not a bad enemy to die against."

Jimmy's body suddenly expanded to five meters tall, with intricate Magic Tattoos surfacing across his skin.

From his pocket he produced a bundle of single-use Magic Potions and shoved them all into his mouth.

"Everyone, is anyone recording this?" Jimmy suddenly turned around and asked with a grin.

"This punch of mine could make great promotional material!"

"We are." Elco calmly held up a Crystal Ball.

"A premium Tesla Conglomerate Crystal Ball - guaranteed to capture even your hair in perfect detail."

Jimmy laughed and cursed, "Bullshit! I'm bald - what hair are you talking about?"

As he spoke, Magic Power from the entire sky began converging toward Jimmy, with streams of Spell radiance continuously pouring into his body.

"Watch closely, this punch will be..."

Before Jimmy could finish, a faint blue light suddenly flared up beyond the forest. In an instant, a vast expanse of trees was engulfed by the blue glow.

A familiar voice carried through the air to Jimmy's ears:

"Master Jimmy, I've brought what the Dean asked me to deliver to you!"

(End of Chapter)