Usually, Luo Qi wasn't too concerned about using powerful magic at this school. But in a place so closely connected to the Dark Soul Plane, it was probably like a magical energy hotspot. After all, the number of Dark Souls that emerged here every month probably surpassed the combined total of a few of the world's top magic schools.
So, if a Dark Soul appeared here, it was bound to be a little more intense than usual.
"Who cares what it is? Let's just smash it to pieces! Watch my Flaming Fist!" Benjamin, on the other hand, was getting hyped up. The stronger the enemy, the better the workout for him.
"Fire's power, condense in my fist! Come forth, my roaring soul fire!"
Benjamin shouted the incantation, and his right fist was engulfed in blazing red flames. It looked ridiculously cool.
"Physical enchantment? This guy really isn't simple..." Zhao Shishi raised an eyebrow, looking at Benjamin. This was a high-level battle technique. If an ordinary person tried to use this, they'd probably end up consumed by the fire in a second, but Benjamin had full control, making it look effortless. This guy was definitely more impressive than she expected.
"Take that, Dark Soul! Feel the heat of my fiery soul impact!"
Next, Benjamin swung his flaming fist with exaggerated flair and slammed it like a hammer into the Dark Soul.
"Yaaaaaaaaaa!!!" The Dark Soul was sent flying, screeching in a shrill, disturbing sound that made everyone's heads spin.
But thanks to the soundproofing magic, the horrible noises from the classroom didn't reach the outside.
"One punch didn't do it? Well, guess I'll just hit it a few more times!" Benjamin recovered quickly, charging again, his right hand hammering down on the Dark Soul like he was punching a child.
However, to Zhao Shishi and Karls's surprise, with each blow, the Dark Soul not only failed to be defeated—it seemed to be getting bigger...
"It still isn't enough? Then it's time for Ice and Fire!" Benjamin's excitement only grew. His eyes were practically shining with anticipation! This was the toughest target he'd encountered in a long time!
"My heart's dark! Take the form of a sword! Become my weapon! This is the flame of darkness!" As he finished the chant, blue flames engulfed Benjamin's left hand.
Boom! With another loud explosion, Benjamin's left fist collided with the Dark Soul, instantly freezing half of its body—and the classroom's temperature dropped drastically, freezing much of the room along with it.
"Ice flame? He can even do this?" Zhao Shishi was even more surprised. Benjamin's combat ability was far beyond her expectations. Though he wasn't yet at the level of a Grand Mage, he was definitely a skilled magician. Her decision to personally come observe this public school was definitely the right one.
"Yiyiyi!!!" But the Dark Soul seemed to be a bit stronger than she thought. It screeched again, and the magic energy it released sent Benjamin flying across the room, slamming into the wall at the back of the classroom.
"The Dark Soul's that tough?!" Benjamin, despite his body being covered in muscles, was unscathed. His expression was filled with shock, though.
The Dark Soul had looked like some ethereal ghost creature, with no physical body—but now, it felt as solid as steel.
"Of course. This thing's essentially an elemental entity... Physical attacks won't hurt it, and magic doesn't have much effect. You can think of it as a monster with extremely high magic resistance—C-tier by itself. With three of them, it'd be B-tier." Zhao Shishi said calmly, explaining the situation.
"Really? Well, good thing there's only one," Benjamin nodded in realization. That made sense, but this thing was so rare that without experience, it was definitely tricky to deal with.
But, if he could increase his power a little more, this would be no problem, right? He hadn't had a fight this thrilling in ages! His body was practically on fire with excitement! This feels great!
"You two get back, I'll deal with this," Zhao Shishi ordered in a commanding tone. Suddenly, a magnificent sword appeared in her hand.
"How beautiful..." Karls was immediately captivated by the giant blue gem embedded in the sword's hilt, while Benjamin instantly recognized the gem as an extremely rare magic stone. It contained an ocean of magical power—one of the rarest of its kind. Just one gem could buy a second-tier city in a country! There were only a few in the entire world.
And the magical runes engraved on the sword's blade hinted that it might even release high-level forbidden spells in times of crisis. As expected, the Zhao family is ridiculously wealthy!
"Wind Slash!" Zhao Shishi shouted, and the sword was enveloped in green light.
In the next moment, her figure vanished from their sight. Benjamin and Karls could only see the Dark Soul being attacked at an absurd speed, its body shrinking with each strike.
"…I'm the one who caused this mess, so I guess I'll take responsibility and send it back to its home," Karls seemed to have regained his composure. He pulled out a magic bow, seemingly one of the school's archery club's equipment.
"Oh, oh, are we using that move?" Benjamin suddenly looked like he'd had a brilliant idea.
"That move?" Karls looked confused. Honestly, he just didn't want to fade into the background completely… He had to at least get a few hits in, or else people might start calling him a coward. After all, Benjamin was the type to blurt out everything without thinking.
"That one you mentioned last year. The combo move," Benjamin said, nodding confidently.
"You mean... the combo move we talked about before?" Karls froze for a moment, then his eyes widened in realization.
"Yeah! The one where you and I do a combo, 'Heaven-destroying Savage Tiger Break!' I've been practicing it since then!" Benjamin nodded proudly.
"Ugh... how long ago was that?!" Karls was super embarrassed. That combo move was something he'd come up with when his cringe phase was in full swing—back when he was a delusional high school freshman. It wasn't just with Benjamin; he had ideas for combo moves with Luo Qi, Dylan... even a four-person combo that included a certain girl.
Sadly, the girl was Luo Qi's childhood friend, who had been chosen as a saintess candidate for the Church of Saint Rose due to her affinity with Light Elements.
Now, looking back, it was all so embarrassing. He had written a whole book of cringe-worthy material during his "Middle School Delusional Era." He even had the audacity to call them the "Four Kings of the Apocalypse" or something equally ridiculous.
The only lucky part was that, after transitioning from middle school to high school, he finally woke up! Now, as a suave, handsome guy, he barely had any residual symptoms of his past delusions... at least, except around the four of them. If anyone else found out about his old cringey phase, his idol image would be ruined!
Though, a small part of him still wondered: once he graduated from being an idol, maybe he could consider transitioning into directing... and make a movie based on all those middle school fantasies. It could be really fun...
"...Can you two stop chatting already? It's still getting bigger," Zhao Shishi suddenly interrupted Karls's "reminiscing."
It turned out Zhao Shishi's earlier attack had only temporarily suppressed the Dark Soul, and now, instead of being destroyed, it had grown even larger.
"What's going on… That attack should've taken it out..." Zhao Shishi stepped back, frowning as she rejoined Benjamin and Karls.
"Don't worry. As long as it has enough energy, we can destroy it. No need to panic." Benjamin remained as confident as ever.
Zhao Shishi, however, was now a bit concerned by Benjamin's over-the-top confidence.
"Really? Let me handle the defense." Zhao Shishi furrowed her brow and dashed forward. She had many powerful attacks, but causing such a big commotion on her first day at the school wasn't great for her investigation.
Plus, she wanted to observe these two suspicious people's combat abilities—they were crucial to finding the hidden Demon King.
Although, with this "welcome ceremony" on her very first day, it was hard not to suspect that this was the Demon King's doing...
Watching the chaos unfold, Luo Qi felt a sense of relief. Finally, someone else could share in the suffering!
"Alright, alright. Time to unseal my powers," Karls sighed dramatically, then raised his bow. "Dark, silent spirit! Answer my call, materialize into this world, seal broken! By my name, take on the power deeper than darkness!"
"Hmm?" Zhao Shishi turned to look at him, surprised. His speech actually had a bit of a Demon King vibe to it...
But when Karls fired the arrow, it was just a regular wind-type arrow. It had zero connection to darkness. In fact, it was just a normal wind spell, slightly stronger than usual.
"...Seriously?" Zhao Shishi blinked, stunned. After all that dramatic chanting, the result was just a basic, slightly powerful arrow?
"Boom!" But just then, Benjamin exploded with a surprising burst of power, his flaming fists slamming into each other, creating an intense heatwave and a burst of fireworks that shocked the room. The temperature in the entire room suddenly shot up several degrees.