Chapter 186: Cavern Battle (Four)

Watching the magma giant crash into the molten pool, Jie Ming panted slightly, the glow of his “Grand Radiance Form” dimming faintly.

The three predictive strikes hadn’t consumed much of his rune artifacts or energy reserves, but the mental strain was immense.

The high-level magma giant’s tenacity far exceeded his expectations—not just in raw power but in its combat intelligence, cunning, and adaptability.

Jie Ming’s icy gaze remained fixed on the churning magma lake, not relaxing his vigilance in the slightest.

He knew that for an elemental creature like this, falling into a magma pool was akin to diving into a rejuvenation spring. The damage it had taken was minor, and it could resume its assault at any moment.

But while it was submerged, Jie Ming could deal with the “other” enemies.

Even during his life-or-death struggle with the third-level magma giant, his focus hadn’t been entirely on it.

The Five Aggregates Rainbow Mirror’s current spirituality was too rigid to autonomously fight in a battle of this caliber, only able to assist Jie Ming in channeling more power instantly or countering minor harassments.

But in a lower-tier battlefield, its spirituality was sufficient.

Thus, while battling the third-level magma giant, Jie Ming had also used high-frequency sound waves to suppress the surrounding enemies.

The diffuse sound waves were enough to briefly paralyze the low-level magma giants around the other two wizards.

More importantly, Jie Ming had tasked the Five Aggregates Rainbow Mirror with controlling his wrist’s rune artifact, using a downgraded version of “Magma Annihilation” to clear out the gathering first- and second-level magma giants!

His sole objective was to ensure the other two wizards weren’t overwhelmed and killed by the swarm!

This wasn’t out of altruism but cold, rational calculation.

He knew that even if he focused all his attention on the third-level magma giant, he couldn’t defeat it quickly.

In this high-temperature, high-pressure underground cavern, surrounded by an endless magma lake, the giant’s energy supply was near limitless.

Killing a third-level magma giant stronger than himself in such conditions was nearly impossible, and he couldn’t outlast it in a war of attrition.

All he could do was stall, waiting for the wizard camp’s reinforcements to arrive!

Under this strategy, another critical issue needed addressing: the magma giants’ reinforcements were also increasing.

Fortunately, Jie Ming’s fourth-level shield ensured his safety for the time being.

Rather than letting the situation deteriorate, allowing the other two wizards to fall into despair or be killed, collapsing their battle line entirely, it was better to divert some effort while handling the third-level giant to clear the encroaching magma giants, easing the pressure on his allies!

This indirectly stabilized the battlefield, preventing Jie Ming himself from being fully surrounded.

From the scene, he was the only one with the capacity to do so.

The second-level wizard, struggling against the other third-level magma giant, was already pushing his downgraded second-level “Magma Annihilation” spell to its limit.

Yet, with second-level magma giants emerging from nowhere to assist, the third-level giant took no substantial damage.

As for the other first-level wizard, he was barely clinging to life.

Teetering on the edge of death, he could only maintain defensive spells, dodging the swarm of first-level magma giants and the residual attacks from the third-level giant.

Without Jie Ming’s continuous fire support and clearing of peripheral enemies, he’d have collapsed long ago.

Before Jie Ming could clear much more, the magma lake erupted again, and the third-level magma giant charged out, unscathed.

“Tch!”

Seeing the virtually undamaged giant, Jie Ming’s expression grew impatient, but he rallied his spirit and faced it again.

Soon, he blasted the third-level magma giant away once more.

Its massive molten body tumbled through the air, crashing into the stone wall with a deafening roar.

Seizing this brief respite, Jie Ming downed potions to restore his mental energy while pondering the situation more deeply.

Though he’d crushed his magic network terminal to send a distress signal, he knew rescue missions took time, and he couldn’t pin all his hopes on reinforcements.

He began considering if there was a way to kill the giant.

In this situation, he needed a decisive, tide-turning strike!

He still had several purchased fourth-level attack artifacts.

These were top-tier, imbued with powerful spells that, if they hit precisely, could indeed one-shot the third-level magma giant.

But there was a problem.

The gap between his level and the artifacts was significant; activating them would drain an enormous amount of his mental energy, directly affecting his control of the “Grand Radiance Form.”

Moreover, with his current strength, activating a fourth-level artifact would have nearly a one-second delay.

To a mortal, a second might seem negligible, but for a transcendent being, it was far too long!

A first-level wizard like Jie Ming could manipulate hundreds of rune artifacts with his mental energy in that time.

Let alone a third-level magma giant.

Despite its massive size, its unique ecological structure allowed for absurdly fast linear charges.

Though less agile in turning or dodging, in a straight-line charge, it was even faster than a second-level wizard’s flight spell.

If Jie Ming dared to activate a fourth-level attack artifact in this narrow cavern, under everyone’s eyes, with a near-second delay, it would be suicide!

The intense energy fluctuations and brief pause before the attack would give the magma giants ample time to predict and dodge, or even counterattack!

So, was there a way to deliver a faster, one-hit-kill spell against the third-level magma giant?

“There is, brother, there is…” A sudden thought struck Jie Ming, and a grin spread across his face.

With a shift of his mind, a short staff-like artifact appeared in his hand.

The staff was pitch-black, topped with a dull, oval crystal.

It was inscribed with the second-level “Magma Annihilation” spell.

This artifact came from Viola, half-sold, half-gifted to him.

After receiving it, Jie Ming believed Viola’s claim.

She’d said her alchemy skills were poor—not humility, but truth!

Jie Ming had secretly analyzed the artifact; its internal rune pathways were crude, its energy flow chaotic, built purely through Viola’s brute force as a third-level wizard.

The craftsmanship was so rough that even Jie Ming, a first-level wizard versed in alchemy, found it hard to stomach.

But regardless, it could indeed cast second-level “Magma Annihilation.”

And theoretically, this spell’s power was enough to fatally wound a third-level magma giant.

Of course, being a lower-level spell, it required precise hits on the giant’s core areas to kill.

That meant striking critical spots like the chest or head.

Hitting limbs or the torso’s edges would cause significant damage but not a one-hit kill!

This was why the second-level wizard, also wielding a downgraded “Magma Annihilation,” struggled so much against the third-level giant.

In such intense combat, with insufficient firepower, landing a precise hit on a critical weak point was nearly impossible.

Jie Ming knew that if the target wasn’t properly restrained, even if he cast the spell, the giant could likely dodge, wasting a rare opportunity.

“So, I’ll have to wait for the chance.” Jie Ming weighed his options inwardly.

He needed the perfect moment, one where the giant couldn’t dodge, ideally in a stunned state.

Watching the giant rise again in the distance, he prepared for battle while casually tossing the staff backward.

A silver flash appeared as one of his floating cannons, as if sentient, flew over.

Under Jie Ming’s control, the cannon’s metal base caught the staff securely.

The moment the cannon’s side touched the staff, its surface automatically adjusted, forming a perfect interface that locked the staff in place.

Jie Ming had delegated the activation and firing of this artifact to the “Five Aggregates Rainbow Mirror” within him.

In prior battles, he’d realized that, due to its limited spirituality, the Five Aggregates Rainbow Mirror couldn’t handle complex strategic decisions or unexpected variables.

But thanks to its unique material, its computational power and reaction speed far surpassed his mortal body.

It could process vast amounts of combat data instantly, identifying the optimal activation moment.

Thus, entrusting the staff to the Five Aggregates Rainbow Mirror was the best choice.

Next, he just had to stay focused, keep stalling, and wait for that unknown opportunity or the arrival of reinforcements.

But Jie Ming knew deep down that such a moment might never come.

After all, the giant had already shown extreme bodily control in its molten state during the earlier fight.

Relying on this artifact to turn the tide was nearly impossible.