Saul ran while saving people along the way.

Every time he rescued someone, he would throw the ordinary folk into nearby houses, shield them with a protective spell, and then leave immediately—never lingering a second longer.

Before long, the scattered magical fluctuations from the Soul Armor spell caught the attention of the Grand Shaman in the distance.

He turned his head to look.

“Someone’s casting spells over there? The sources are too scattered—can’t tell how many wizards are in action.”

“Hmph, you think these petty tricks can stop me from finding you?” the Grand Shaman sneered coldly.

He bent down to pat the termite and at the same time held high Dolly’s severed head. “These obedient little snacks nearby can wait. Let’s go enjoy the main course first!”

The termite was somewhat reluctant, but after repeated urging from the Grand Shaman, it left behind three sluggish wizards it hadn’t had time to devour and flew toward the outer wall.

Monte rode the termite and quickly reached a house that was emanating magical energy. He had the termite descend slightly and peeked inside—only to find several ordinary people huddled within the protection of Soul Armor, trembling in fear.

Monte was first surprised, then amused, and finally, his eyes flashed with calculation.

“Hmph, mere bait. No matter how you use them to try and conceal your movements, it’s useless. Your final goal has already been exposed!” The Grand Shaman patted the termite’s head and ignored the magical ripples coming from various other houses. He flew straight over the rooftops, heading rapidly for the outer wall.

As soon as he arrived, he spotted a cloaked figure crouching suspiciously in a corner of the wall, their body partially hidden by local junk carts.

However, both Monte and the termite had their own methods of detecting hidden wizards.

Especially the termite—without even needing Monte’s command, it darted forward the moment it spotted the figure.

It stopped with surgical precision just behind the target, avoiding the wall that would release toxic gas upon impact. Its massive, razor-sharp mandibles opened and snapped shut—cutting the figure in half!

It all happened in the blink of an eye.

The crouched figure was split cleanly in two—the upper half lifted by the termite’s forelimbs, the lower half falling limply to the ground.

But—

There was no explosion of blood!

Monte instantly realized something was wrong. “Fall back!”

But the termite didn’t immediately obey and continued chomping, trying to devour the target.

Just as Monte was about to repeat the order, the severed figure suddenly cried out in pain, drowning out his voice.

“Ow ow ow ow ow—I’m in two pieces! Two pieces! Two pieces!”

The hood fell away, and the bitten head twisted around to face Monte, revealing the figure’s true face.

Beneath the cloak was a soul body!

That soul was none other than Herman. In one hand, he held a still-burning Soul Candle, using its flame to continuously irritate the feeding termite. In the other, he gripped a regular brick, scavenged from who knows where, and swung it violently toward the termite’s head.

Monte was startled, but not worried. This soul’s state of existence was strange, yes—but it was still no match for a Second Rank humpback termite.

Even if the termite wasn’t adept at dealing with soul bodies, its physical strength alone was more than enough to crush him.

Crack!

The brick struck the termite’s head. It didn’t react at all, but the brick shattered into several pieces.

One fragment, seemingly by chance, bounced toward the Grand Shaman.

Monte didn’t pay the flying debris any mind. He was already curious about this peculiar spirit—one that could wear clothes, hold candles, and even wield a brick. He was considering taking it back for study, maybe even to see if it could be tamed.

It was precisely this moment of curiosity that made him delay evading the flying brick fragment.

That shard—about half the size of a palm—had a narrow fissure running through it. At first glance, it seemed completely ordinary.

But in the very next moment, a figure suddenly burst from within the crack!

Saul had only just emerged halfway when he instantly summoned a black blade—and in a flash, shattered the head Monte was holding!

Yet although Monte immediately sensed danger the moment he saw Saul and activated the defensive enchantment on his robe, he never expected that Saul would aim straight for Dolly’s head.

The black blade clashed with the just-activated defensive magic, but almost without resistance, it pierced through and plunged directly into Dolly’s skull.

In the very next moment, under Saul’s control, the black blade exploded inside her head.

Flesh and bone splattered, red and white bits flying everywhere—splatters covered the white ant’s head and slowly slid down its smooth shell.

The white termite gnawing on Herman immediately froze. Its antennae twitched wildly in the air as it slowly turned its head, seemingly falling into a deep sense of unease.

Monte’s face darkened instantly. He raised his hand and hurled an Acid Orb at Saul. Saul immediately ducked beneath the termite’s belly, grabbing hold of one of its legs to evade the corrosive acid.

The Acid Orb struck the white termite, but it caused no harm. However, it snapped the creature out of its daze—having lost Dolly’s spiritual guidance, it had been momentarily disoriented.

Bzzzzzzzz!

A wave of savage fury suddenly erupted from the white termite. Its wings flared and trembled violently, buzzing so loudly they knocked Monte off its back.

Monte knew that without Dolly’s head, the white termite would soon turn on him.

But still, he kept most of his attention focused on Saul.

Though the giant hunchback white termite was also a Second Rank creature, it had only just been born and lacked coherent thought. Naturally, it was no match for someone like him, who had been a Second Rank wizard for decades.

So Monte wasn’t too concerned about the termite’s rebellion. Even without Dolly, he had other means to regain control.

It would just be more troublesome and take some extra time.

Right now, he needed to take care of this troublesome brat first.

Monte soared into the air, easily dodging the termite’s charge. The offensive spell he had prepared was altered at the last second into a binding spell.

Whether it was Saul’s method of manipulating a soul body or hiding in cracks to evade detection—Monte had already made up his mind. He would keep this kid alive.

He’d squeeze every drop of knowledge from Saul’s brain, then toss him to the ants as nourishment for their evolution.

But while Monte planned to spare Saul’s life, Saul had no intention of sparing his.

As the overwhelming magical pressure of a Second Rank wizard came crashing down, Saul instantly released several translucent tendrils from his body to resist it.

Monte’s binding spell failed to restrain Saul in the first instant.

The tendrils coiled around Saul were crushed one by one under the immense pressure, buying him only a moment.

But a moment was all Saul needed.

While facing off with Monte, Saul suddenly opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue.

Etched on the tip of his tongue was a miniature spell formation—The Mental Battlefield.

In Monte’s eyes, a strange pattern suddenly materialized in front of him.

The design consisted of multiple overlapping circles arranged with no apparent logic.

Intersecting, inscribed, circumscribed…

Together, they formed a complex, ever-shifting ring.

When Monte tried to shift his gaze away, he discovered the circles were spinning rapidly, like interlocking gears.

The gears suddenly jammed, then began trembling violently before exploding outward in all directions.

Monte’s heart jolted as he snapped back to awareness—only to realize he was no longer in the settlement, but standing on a massive circular platform.

Above and below him stretched a tranquil, star-filled night sky.

Countless stars twinkled like blinking eyes.

“An illusion? No, this is a consciousness realm!”

“Impressive,” Saul’s figure suddenly appeared at one edge of the platform—or perhaps he had been standing there all along.

“No wonder you’re a Second Rank wizard. You’re the first to figure out so quickly where you are.”

Monte looked at Saul like he was an idiot.

“Do you have any idea how powerful a Second Rank hunchbacked white termite is? You trap me in your consciousness realm, but that means you’re distracted. Very soon, that white termite will devour you whole!”

Saul only chuckled.

“Of course I know. I already got a good look earlier.” He pointed upward. “But the difference between you and me is—I’ve got someone above me. You don’t. So the termite will eat you first. I just need to leave after you die.”

(End of Chapter)

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