"Crack! Boom—"
The seemingly thick ice crystal shield shattered like thin paper under the pressure of the two opposing forces, breaking apart almost instantly.
Crimson red and golden collided, turning into rolling amber lava, splashing in all directions with the heat waves distorting the air.
"Swish—"
A silver-white figure appeared from several hundred meters away. The thin layer of silverized metal attached to its surface melted away, revealing Ronan's figure.
The short-range spatial teleportation effect of **Spatial Silverization** was particularly useful in such a "cage" scenario, with enemies closing in from both sides.
There's an old saying in the wizarding world: "Time is not out, space reigns." While space magic may not be the most dominant in other aspects, it certainly has unparalleled advantages when it comes to evading and escaping.
When the ancient Mirror Garden opened, Ronan was given a **Dawn-tier Staff of Space Energy Seed**, and with just a spark of sentience, he was able to escape from four Dawn-tier wizards from the six major factions.
Though there were quite a few Dawn-tier magical tools found in the Mirror Garden by the six factions, only a fraction of them were truly obtained.
Ronan expanded his mental power and summoned a curtain of ice and snow to block the scorching golden lava flowing in all directions.
Amidst the rising heat, he saw the giant Magic Box monster, now with only one leg, battling the Ashen Witch.
Having escaped the gap between their joint attack, the Red Lotus staff of the Ashen Witch struck the monster's leg, and the terrifying high-temperature flames directly melted its remaining leg.
The Magic Box monster had never fully intended to target him. After taking such heavy damage, it began relentlessly pursuing the Ashen Witch. Who would have expected this?
"Is this what they mean by 'shooting yourself in the foot'?"
Ronan gazed at the Ashen Witch's figure in the distance, and for a moment, he marveled. But after a brief glimpse, he noticed that the young witch with the staff didn't seem to have any remorse or frustration on her face.
She was simply too strong.
The Red Lotus Flames burned everything. Even the terrifying giant Golden Magic Box monster couldn't get an advantage against the searing heat of the flames. It could not harm the Ashen Witch in any meaningful way. Instead, its massive body began to melt under the continuous assault of the flames.
Looking at the giant Magic Box monster completely engulfed in the crimson flames, it appeared like a massive golden torch.
Ronan continued to retreat.
"She's much stronger than when she fought me before, at least ten times more powerful. Is this her true strength?"
Watching the battle from a distance, Ronan's face showed subtle awe as he saw the one-sided battle between the two, despite the vast difference in size.
This was the first time he truly felt the meaning of "overbearing and unparalleled" in a witch, and especially from a female one.
Suddenly, a figure appeared beside him. Ronan turned to see the silver-haired witch who had been following closely behind Grace.
"Now's our chance, let's go!"
The silver-haired witch urged him, her expression serious. "We have the tool to break through the secret realm. Right now, Morille is entangled, and she can't free herself. It's the best time to leave."
Ronan's gaze flickered for a moment as he glanced toward a certain direction without speaking.
The silver-haired witch seemed to understand his intentions. Her slender brows furrowed slightly, and soon, she took out a few items from her spatial ring and handed them to Ronan.
"If you want to leave a message, I won't stop you.
Your two acts of rescuing Princess Grace will be reported to Princess Serena, and the royal court will certainly thank you for it."
She handed him a communication stone. "This communication stone is for you from Princess Grace herself. She hopes that you can contact her when you have time."
The silver-haired witch gave Ronan a deep look. "Good luck."
With that, she turned and walked away.
Ronan looked at the items left by the silver-haired witch—two communication stones and several exquisitely crafted white scrolls. He could feel faint energy fluctuations emanating from them.
He had seen a young wizard named Donny use this kind of scroll before. When torn open, it could instantly cast powerful spells without the need to guide the mental energy. It was more convenient than magical tools but only usable once and quite expensive.
The silver-haired witch leaving him these scrolls wasn't just about showing off the strength of the Life Court but also seemed to indicate that the royal family wouldn't break their promise.
Ronan glanced toward Grace's direction, noticing that she was looking at him with eager eyes, her mouth open as if she wanted to say something. However, she was quickly swept away by the silver-haired witch and others.
Ronan watched them leave without any visible change in his expression and casually stowed the items given by the silver-haired witch.
His attention returned to the intense battle between the Ashen Witch and the giant Magic Box monster in the distance.
Running into Grace in the Mechanical Heart and this unexpected encounter with the Ashen Witch weren't part of his plan. Ronan hadn't forgotten the true reason he entered the Mechanical Heart — he came for the powerful legacy and treasures.
A flash of white light gathered at Ronan's brow, forming the shape of **Truth's Eye**.
His gaze pierced through the layers of flames and amber lava, locking onto a glimmer of golden yellow hidden among the giant Magic Box monster.
The golden Magic Box!
Ronan focused on the location of the golden box, his sapphire eyes flashing with intensity.
Though the Ashen Witch was powerful, he still had many hidden cards. His three years of hard training had not reached a point where he had to retreat. On the contrary, the ongoing battle between the Ashen Witch and the giant Magic Box monster worked in his favor.
Whichever side lost would give him a chance to take action.
The only problem was to seize the perfect moment.
"Buzz—"
Ronan was just contemplating when a dark shadow rushed past him.
It was a black-winged Magic Box, one of many that had flown out of the ground with the golden Magic Box. They had been dispersed by the Ashen Witch's Red Lotus staff, and Ronan had almost forgotten about these Magic Boxes.
Ronan blinked. Under the **Winter's Homeland** set, large frost appeared around him, blocking the intense heat waves swirling through the air.
Extraordinary magical domains surged from around him, quickly forming a pure white ice blade.
The ice blade appeared and vanished quickly, leaving a dark cut in the void.
"Ding!"
The crisp sound of metal being struck rang out.
A flying gray-winged Magic Box's trajectory was suddenly interrupted, the pure white ice blade pinning it down before quickly falling into a slender, pale hand.
"Crack—"
Ronan held the Magic Box and gently squeezed it. The black Magic Box, pierced through by the ice blade, shattered completely.
Inside the shattered box, there was nothing except some metallic fragments nearly frozen into ice and faint traces of magical runes.
"Fake?"
Ronan frowned.
"Swish—"
The pure white ice blade, under his control, became a blurred light, disappearing and striking down several more black-winged Magic Boxes, only to find that all of them were fake.
"They're all fake."
The shattered pieces of the Magic Box turned into cold white metallic dust, falling from his fingers. Ronan's eyes flickered, and he began to question the authenticity of the golden Magic Box that had flown out with all the other Magic Boxes.
If all this effort led to a fake box, that would be a huge loss.
"The Dwarven craftsmen of Spitbert and the Mechanical Heart wouldn't be so careless, would they?"
Ronan's firm resolve wavered for a moment. He didn't want to go through all this trouble only to end up with nothing.
Just as Ronan hesitated, the giant Magic Box monster, wrapped in blazing Red Lotus Flames, finally reached its breaking point. With a "boom!" it exploded.
Amidst the flying molten metals, the figure of the Ashen Witch, holding the Red Lotus staff, appeared.
Under the golden-red fire rain, the Ashen Witch, in a tight long skirt and robe, casually destroyed the giant Magic Box monster, a feat that even third-level wizards would hesitate to attempt. To her, it was just an insignificant task. She even yawned in boredom.
Surrounded by a massive and powerful magical domain, the red flames flickered and swayed, resembling withered yet ever-blooming red lotus flowers. Each flame seemed like a falling petal.
At this moment, the Ashen Witch displayed such grace and power that even Ronan couldn't help but be mesmerized.
But soon, Ronan's gaze was drawn to a glowing gold in the distance.
The giant Magic Box monster perished, and the shadow of the golden Magic Box finally emerged.
Now, two pairs of wings on the golden Magic Box's back fluttered faintly as it descended, with a mysterious black metal the size of a fist clinging to its underside. It appeared to be escaping from the Ashen Witch in a hurry.
"This is my chance!"
Ronan's eyes flashed with brilliance as he, now under the effect of silverized metal, flashed several times, his figure shifting in and out of sight like a silver ghost.
At the same time, the Ashen Witch stretched lazily before exploding into a cloud of sparks.
Ronan and the Ashen Witch moved simultaneously in two different directions, both reaching for the escaping golden Magic Box.
Just as the golden Magic Box was about to fall into their hands, and escape was no longer possible—
"Buzz—"
An unusual wave suddenly emanated from the golden Magic Box.
At that moment, the entire space seemed to fall into complete stillness, as if time itself had stopped.
A massive golden light ring spread from the golden Magic Box, quickly passing over the two figures, Ronan and the Ashen Witch.
Their bodies, frozen in place, slowly turned golden from their fingertips, as if they were statues made entirely of gold. Every strand of hair and every pore gleamed with golden light, as if they were life-sized golden statues.
The golden light ring continued to spread, turning everything it passed—stones, metals, and even the wandering puppets and rampaging mechanical life—into gold. The entire world seemed to be slowly turning into gold.
Opulent, brilliant, cold, and devoid of life.
"Crack, crack, crack—"
In this grand yet eerie transformation, a perfectly lifelike golden statue of a beautiful young witch hanging in the air suddenly made a crisp cracking sound. Her golden eyes regained their liveliness.
Thin sheets of gold peeled off her body, and her eyelashes and robe were gradually stripped away.
When most of the gold had peeled off, her perfect, pale body began to emerge.
"Boom!"
A burst of red flames erupted from beneath the girl's skirt, quickly engulfing her.
Moments later, a pair of delicate feet stepped out from the flames.
As the red flames receded, the girl, now dressed in a beautiful fire-patterned gown, stepped out holding a staff.
"Golden Curse."
The girl blinked, and her sparse eyelashes grew back. She looked around, and the golden transformation continued to spread, now covering the entire secret realm city-state.
Looking down at her own nails, she noticed that the gold patches were starting to grow again.
A look of irritation crossed her face.
"This is so annoying."
She muttered to herself, then turned and swiftly disappeared into the air.
A second later, she reappeared in front of the golden Magic Box, facing another golden statue—this time, a man.
The young man was in golden armor, like a knight from an ancient court, perfectly sculpted.
Despite being a golden statue, it was so beautiful that it could easily stir admiration in any princess in the mundane kingdoms.
But to the girl, this beautiful statue was the most annoying thing in the world.
She raised her staff and struck the statue's head.
"Boom!"
The burning Red Lotus staff hovered just inches from the statue's eyes. The golden eyelashes began to melt, but it couldn't advance any further.
She was stunned for a moment, then looked down and saw that the staff was being tightly gripped by a large hand surrounded by black runic light.
The flames from the staff burned the palm, but the hand gripped tightly without letting go.
"Eh?!"
The girl's face showed utter disbelief.
"You... you managed to break free from the curse?"
It seemed like the golden statue of the handsome young man responded to her question. The statue made a series of cracking sounds.
With a deep frown, the girl tugged at the staff, but it didn't budge. She was becoming frustrated.
"Dammit! Why didn't you tell me this earlier, Vivian?!"
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