Mystic Overlord: Reading Gives Strength
Chapter 291 - 290: Striking without Reservation

Chapter 291: Chapter 290: Striking without Reservation

Crossing the grass and sand, Ronald sprinted at an athlete’s pace and successfully arrived at the battlefield at the edge of the beach.

—This was a battlefield with unique terrain.

Eroded by the constant sea water of the setting sun sea, a stretch of reef stood at the edge of the coast here, connected to both land and ocean simultaneously.

The people Ronald had previously scouted were sparsely standing amidst these reefs, battling the closest person to them. And in the larger reef at the center, three individuals stood in different directions engaging in the most perilous combat.

One of them was surrounded by rotund blobs of beast-like flesh in the center, mercilessly tearing any enemy that drew near into shreds, while crimson secret fire sprang forth from around her to rush forward, eager to reduce her foes to ashes.

As for her main adversary...

It was a middle-aged man standing gravely atop the reef, clad in a coarse coat.

Against the enemy’s assault, a lead-grey ripple continuously spread out around the man.

Some collided directly with the crimson secret fire and then extinguished together.

The excess ripple that spread close to the enemy was promptly swallowed by the beast-like flesh masses, ultimately fading into nothingness.

Narrowing his eyes to discern carefully,

Ronald immediately recognized the man’s identity.

He was none other than Clark, whom Ronald had met once before, the investigator specifically responsible for the investigation into this witch incident!

At this very moment, both spell casters exuded strong magic power from their bodies.

The two of them were undoubtedly Grimoire holders.

Thus, the reason why other Casters dared not approach became quite clear – in this battle of spirit and endurance, the Grimoire holders’ spells, although seemingly simple in their eradication,

would be lethal to anyone weaker who inadvertently came into contact.

Be it the lead-grey ripples or the crimson secret fire, for them, both were things that could lead to an immediate demise.

As for the aftermath between the clashes of the two...

It would often affect a third person, indeed the only one who could enter their battleground.

—This was a Grimoire holder Ronald had seen before.

—Likely a member of the Nine Commandments secret society.

—The mysterious Caster holding "Astronomy Master."

Whether it was the man’s lead-grey ripples or the woman’s emitted crimson secret fire, once they neared this individual’s vicinity, they would immediately be diverted by an invisible force and obediently perform uniform circular motion around him.

So much so that when Ronald witnessed this scene, a ring akin to a stellar halo had already appeared around him, created by the rapidly flying secret fire and ripples.

But, for now, this individual’s attitude was markedly ambiguous.

He simply stood atop the reef, watching the two combatants cross swords, without directly joining the fight.

Even if he just stood still,

his presence still added significant pressure to the two in battle, making the atmosphere on the battlefield even more tense.

Both Crawk and his enemy were aware.

If this Grimoire holder of unclear origins took action, the delicate balance of the battle would likely be upset in an instant!

Meanwhile, Ronald shaking his head slightly as he approached the battlefield,

Although everyone had told him of the strength and rarity of Grimoire holders, after arriving in Springs, within a short time, he had encountered several, which truly left him at a loss for words.

"So it seems..."

"Grimoire holders don’t attract one another, do they..."

Musing quietly to himself, Ronald produced a black Grimoire in his hand.

The breeze beside him flipped the pages while he stood firmly in place, his gaze scanning around the reefs.

By the time Ronald reached here, there were already numerous bloodstains around the reef.

Numerous bodies lying in eternal slumber beneath the sea were not few in number.

And on the side of the investigative bureau, only four regular investigators continued to fight, facing off against nine beautiful witches dressed in black dresses, their bodies already drenched by seawater.

Unlike the heretical magicians Ronald had initially encountered in Springs, each witch from the "Original Witch Coven" was an elite, with abundant combat experience and exceptionally skilled in the use of spells.

The convergence of such power made it utterly impossible for the investigators, who were few in number, to put up any resistance.

Even with casualties on both sides, the numerical disparity couldn’t be bridged.

——Excluding the battlefield of the original text’s holder.

——The investigators were already in an irredeemable decline.

Ronald’s gaze swiftly shifted through the crowd, detecting and seeking enemies with the power of ’Fury,’ his grey pupils locking onto the positions of all the enemies in less than two seconds.

Then, the verses from the "Divine Comedy"

resonated inconspicuously at the edge of the beach.

"At this moment, I beseech you to gaze into the deep valley.

The River of Blood lies before us.

It is boiling, cooking those guilty of using violence against others.

Ah! The blind greed and the mad flame of rage

led them to commit such sins in their brief lives,

but now they sink into woe, tormented eternally in the scalding blood!

..."

Since Ronald had acquired the original text, this was the first time he had used such power without restraint.

The enemy deserved no mercy; they were vile criminals.

Several kilometers outside the city, there was no need to worry about civilians detecting the battlefield.

——And so.

The beach, usually noisy with battle, sea, and waves,

fell suddenly into silence.

With Ronald standing on the sand as the center, a spreading black fog appeared around him like an abyss swallowing all life, its imposing presence even completely obscuring the light of the early morning sun.

Amidst the battlefield.

Whether original text holders or ordinary casters,

upon the arrival of this all-encompassing black fog, all tacitly stopped and looked around at the spreading spell filled with potent magical power.

The emergence of the black fog was silent and smooth, like a natural change in environment or the transition from day to night.

Yet this very silence brought an immense shock to those on the battlefield.

Investigators and witches alike could only watch its appearance helplessly.

And they noticed.

Within the pitch-black fog, a deep, blood-like red faintly emerged.

If one listened carefully, it also mixed with the woeful howls of hell.

Huu—

At this moment, the situation changed once again!

People hardly had time to react.

As they realized this, the black fog from the south surged and rolled violently, its fierce momentum even shunting aside the seaside breeze.

In just a few breaths’ time.

The thick fog, like a vast black curtain, had already spread over the entire expanse of sea and beach. Looking up, not even the sky offered an escape.

And so they understood.

Another holder of the original text had entered the battlefield.

And this new arrival was likely the one who would decide the outcome of the battle.