Chapter 15

Gao Dun's legs sprang, and he leaped three meters to the side, narrowly avoiding Mendoza's attack. He knew it was a second-level necromancy spell that could plant a corrupt cyst on the target.

This spell not only reduced the target's resistance to negative energy but could also be detonated with a third-level spell, "Corrupt Cyst Expansion," causing massive damage and pain.

If hit by this spell, the outcome would be unbearable, and it would be better to commit suicide immediately.

Fortunately, Gao Dun had already cast the Jump spell on himself, allowing him to dodge magical attacks effectively.

Seeing Gao Dun dodge his attack, Mendoza sneered and pulled out a magic scroll.

As the scroll turned to ashes with the incantation in Draconic, three white skeletons rose from the black, filthy soil of the cemetery.

At this moment, Gao Dun's spell was also ready. A small candle in his hand, serving as a material component, became a conduit to the Outer Planes, opening two portals.

With a creaking sound, two peculiar creatures walked out of the portals.

These were Formian worker ants, creatures from a Lawful Plane. They were covered in reddish-brown carapaces, standing like centaurs, and attacked enemies with their mandibles or front limbs.

Both the Conjuration and Necromancy schools have many summoning spells. Gao Dun used a second-level summoning spell, while Mendoza read a second-level summoning undead spell from the scroll.

The only difference was that Mendoza, who had mastered third-level spells, was clearly more proficient in magic, allowing him to summon three skeletons at once.

"Attack!" Mendoza pointed at Gao Dun from a distance, and the three skeleton warriors swung their rusted weapons, charging forward. At the same time, he rapidly changed his hand gestures, gathering orange-hot energy into a huge fireball, which he hurled at Gao Dun.

Gao Dun quickly leaped backward, narrowly avoiding the fireball's destructive range. However, the powerful shockwave from the explosion still knocked him off balance, nearly causing him to fall.

As one of the most practical third-level offensive spells, the Fireball spell was renowned. Some fanatics even formed the "Fireball Cult." These fanatical mages believed that the Fireball spell could solve all problems. If the problem wasn't solved, it was because the fireballs weren't numerous or powerful enough.

Fortunately, Mendoza's spell slots were limited, and he hadn't prepared a second Fireball spell.

Gao Dun, in a sorry state, launched a counterattack. His body suddenly radiated a golden light, which then transformed into two beams, dispersing the two approaching skeletons.

"Mercurial Light! I hate positive energy!" Mendoza cursed. He wanted to quickly finish off Gao Dun, but the two rapidly approaching Formian worker ants left him no room to maneuver.

Although not specialized combatants, a bite from a Formian worker ant was far from pleasant.

The necromancer had no choice but to pull out a bone wand from his pocket and point it forward. Two Melf's Acid Arrows accurately hit their targets, the acid glowing green in the darkness.

With both a magic scroll and a wand, Mendoza's magical arsenal made Gao Dun envious and resentful. However, as a newly promoted third-level mage, his foundation and accumulation were certainly inferior to Mendoza's.

Ultimately, it was a matter of money.

Mendoza thought he had easily dealt with Gao Dun's two summoned creatures, but to his surprise, the Formian worker ants appeared unscathed after the acid dissipated.

"Damn! What's going on?"

"You should learn more about planar creatures," Gao Dun mocked. Formian ants were immune to strong acids, cold, and petrification, so Mendoza's acid arrows had no effect on their carapaces.

Mendoza, failing with one plan, switched to another attack method. A gray aura burst from his body, spreading out in a six-meter radius, eroding all living things with negative energy. Plants withered, insects fell, and the two Formian worker ants collapsed, disappearing from the Material Plane in a flash of light.

Fortunately, Gao Dun, with his extensive knowledge, knew that Mendoza's "Negative Energy Burst" had a wide attack range and promptly retreated from the spell's range. He also took advantage of Mendoza's spell preparation to finish off the last skeleton with a Magic Missile.

After a round of combat, both mages were unharmed, seemingly back to square one.

Gao Dun pulled out another small candle from his inner pocket and began chanting.

"Again?"

Seeing Gao Dun about to use another second-level summoning spell, Mendoza almost couldn't believe his eyes.

Previous intelligence indicated that Gao Dun was only a low-level caster capable of casting first-level spells. Even if the information was outdated and Gao Dun had recently advanced to a third-level mage, he should have only one second-level spell slot.

However, from initially luring Donien and the other four wanderers into the cottage with the Invisibility spell, to summoning the Formian worker ants, and then using Mercurial Light to kill two skeletons, Gao Dun's second-level spell slots should have been exhausted. Why could he still calmly summon two more Formian worker ants?

"By the Undying Master Vecna! That damned guy hasn't even used a single magical item. How is he doing this?"

Mendoza was baffled. He thought it would be an easy battle, a high-level mage overwhelming a low-level one, but the current trend suggested a prolonged conflict.

Gao Dun was not at all intimidated by a prolonged battle. His advantage over Mendoza was his reliance on mana for casting, allowing him to cast more spells than a traditional mage like Mendoza.

"Damn it!" Mendoza was furious. He skillfully summoned three more skeleton warriors to deal with Gao Dun's Formian worker ants.

Gao Dun was prepared, and Mercurial Light shot from his palm again. Under the impact of the two golden beams, the magically reinforced skeleton warriors melted and dissipated like snow in the sun.

"Is this ever going to end!"

Mendoza felt his emotions spiraling out of control. He knew this was not a good sign. A mage skilled in logical analysis and calm thinking would not fare well if controlled by negative emotions.

He didn't know why Gao Dun had seemingly endless spell slots, but the necromancer understood one thing: if it came down to a war of attrition, he would likely not prevail against this unexpected opponent.

Mendoza had used up his second and third-level spell slots, and his remaining first-level spells could only sustain one more round of combat. He needed to end the fight quickly. The only good news was that the opposing mage seemed to have no magical items or scrolls.

Dealing with a poor mage was always easier than dealing with a wealthy one.

Taking advantage of Gao Dun's moment of distraction while he eliminated the last skeleton, Mendoza pointed at the two Formian worker ants charging at him. Two terrifying, twisted faces appeared in the fog, causing the large insects to hesitate.

With two Fear spells, Mendoza finally gained a respite. He raised the wand and fired all three Melf's Acid Arrows stored inside at Gao Dun.

Gao Dun leaped again. Thanks to the Jump spell, he narrowly avoided the acid arrows, but his mage robe was burned through by the splashing acid.

While Gao Dun was preoccupied with dodging the acid arrows, Mendoza pulled out his last magic scroll.

"Lo-vinu!" Mendoza loudly pronounced the final syllable, and an invisible hand made of force energy suddenly appeared, gripping Gao Dun's throat!

"Strangle!"

With his throat tightly constricted, a strong sense of suffocation spread throughout Gao Dun's body. His face turned red from lack of oxygen, and his throat felt like a walnut about to be crushed by a vise.

Seeing the spell finally succeed, Mendoza breathed a sigh of relief. If the last magic scroll hadn't worked, he would have had to flee in disgrace. For a mage specializing in Evocation and Necromancy, known for his aggressive and always successful combat style, this would have been a disgrace.

Mendoza was not the type of mage who spent all his time buried in books and theoretical knowledge. The organization that trained him was known for its brutal and bloody elimination process. Every qualified magic apprentice was a combat expert.

"Haha, I don't know how you can use so many more spells than usual, but now, unable to breathe or speak, can you still cast spells?"

Mendoza stepped closer to the immobilized Gao Dun. "If you had the ability to cast spells silently, you might have been able to counterattack, but unfortunately, you don't."

He pulled out a small bone knife with sharp, large serrations, which sent a chill down Gao Dun's spine. It reminded him of the tools used by psychopathic killers in horror movies.

"I have four 'Preserve Organ' spells left. Tell me, which organ should I preserve? The brain, the heart, or the liver? Oh, I almost forgot, you can't say anything."

Gao Dun felt the taste of death for the first time. In "The Ancient Era," death was just watching half an hour of black-and-white TV and then returning to the resurrection point. With the pain sensation blocked, you wouldn't even feel anything.

But now, in this real world, Gao Dun finally had a direct understanding of death. His vision began to blur due to lack of oxygen, and his strength was rapidly fading.

"I don't want to die!"

Gao Dun bit his tongue hard, and the intense pain gave his brain a brief moment of clarity. It was enough. A small crossbow slid out of his sleeve into his hand.

With his last bit of strength, he raised his hand and pulled the trigger.

Then, the retinas of the fifth-level necromancer Mendoza, in his final moments, were fixed on the armor-piercing bolt heading toward him.

The crossbow Gao Dun bought wasn't very powerful, and with the armor-piercing bolt, it could only penetrate leather armor at a distance of twenty-five meters. But Mendoza was a mage with no armor protection. The bolt accurately pierced Mendoza's throat, causing a spray of blood to fly in the dim moonlight, splattering in a ghastly manner.

Mendoza's body fell to the ground with a thud, and the effect of the Strangle spell disappeared. Gao Dun, weak and exhausted, knelt down, greedily breathing in the air and coughing violently.

"The feeling of being alive is truly fucking great!" A sense of relief and gratitude welled up in his chest.