As Lucian sliced away the flesh from his severed arm and used it to draw line symbols enclosed within circles, a strange and mysterious sensation gradually emanated outward, as though these symbols represented the most abstract and profound secrets of the human body and the universe.
Karina stared unblinkingly at Lucian as he arranged the Magic Circle, murmuring to herself: "These three symbols seem to represent the spirit, consciousness, and the vessel respectively. Being on the same level, they likely represent the soul. Those five symbols on the same level are traditional Necromancy symbols — representing blood, bones, flesh, internal organs, and life force. Perhaps they represent the body. The remaining four symbols — the sun, silver moon, stars, and darkness — likely represent the world beyond the body. Is this a Magic Circle that combines Necromancy and Astrology? And depending on the positioning and connections, it seems like it could have different configurations and serve different functions."
The opportunity to witness and learn advanced knowledge of Magic Circles was extremely rare for her.
After drawing the foundational symbols of the Necromancy "Miranda's Twelve Rings of Life" Magic Circle around the energy pool, Lucian transformed the remaining bones and flesh into a semi-solid viscous liquid. He then used it as "magical ink" to draw a unique connection between the twelve rings — a connection centered on the darkness symbol.
Having completed all of this, Lucian smeared the viscous flesh-liquid into the connecting pathways as a "magical conductor." Finally, using the flesh that Adam had cut away, he reshaped and altered the "darkness symbol," the "blood symbol," and the "consciousness symbol."
Faint glows brimming with life flickered to life one by one as Lucian channeled his spiritual energy, rapidly spreading along the fixed pathways. Before long, the entire "Miranda's Twelve Rings of Life" Magic Circle had merged into a single whole, and the glow abruptly contracted inward.
The Magic Circle no longer appeared chaotic and fragmented as before. All the symbols and connecting lines seemed to form a unique, open living organism, creating a wondrous illusion of three-dimensionality.
Karina gazed at the Magic Circle — it was like a work of art — intoxicated and mesmerized, ceaselessly analyzing the meaning behind every symbol and every connection.
Suddenly, a voice rang in her ear: "Karina, the moment the energy pool starts to boil, use your spiritual energy to activate the darkness symbol."
"Huh?" Karina jolted awake to find that Lucian was speaking to her.
After Lucian repeated himself, she flushed crimson. "Mr. Lucian. Don't worry, I'll time it properly."
Lucian nodded. At this point, he could only place his full trust in her — after all, he hadn't yet reached the stage where he could learn Imagery Magic and manipulate things remotely. He then turned to the two knights: "Alvar, Brad. You are responsible for guarding Karina. Don't let anything disturb her."
"At your command, Mr. Lucian." Alvar and Brad saluted solemnly in the manner of knights.
Lucian wasted no more words. He looked toward Adam beside him: "Adam, we're heading to the magic tower's core."
"No problem!" Adam was practically itching to go. He'd been locked up by the old witch for decades, used as experimental material for so long — he was desperate to strike back. Running away was a coward's choice...
*CRASH!* Two iron golems toppled to the ground, their limbs still twitching uncontrollably.
Seeing this, Adam remarked with deep emotion: "If I were alone, unless I had a massive amount of space to maneuver, I couldn't easily take down even a single iron golem. But you destroyed those ferocious things with just a single spell. It's truly inconceivable — absolutely miraculous. Heh, I kind of regret not studying Arcane Magic back in the day."
"It's the advancement of knowledge," Lucian replied succinctly.
With that, Lucian stepped over the iron golem's body, shaking his head slightly as he noted the Magic Circle patterns visible through its steel frame. He thought to himself: "Many things come with advantages and disadvantages. Without these Magic Circles, you could forge metal casings and such to effectively shield against magnetic interference to the iron golems, but how could plain alloys withstand the attacks of a Great Knight or the bombardment of elemental magic? Unless knowledge advances further, there's no effective solution to this structural dilemma."
Adam didn't really understand the developments in magical theory. He spread his hands and said: "Buddy, hurry up and crack the protective Magic Circle. I keep worrying the old witch will suddenly come back."
The Magic Circle protecting the magic tower's core was far more complex than the one guarding the energy room, but fortunately it still belonged to a common category of high-level Magic Circles. With the reference materials left by previous Archanists to draw upon, Lucian spent a full hour and a half before finally deciphering it.
That hour and a half was excruciatingly torturous for these "jailbreakers" who were racing against the clock. Even Adam — a stoic, iron-willed fifth-rank Great Knight — couldn't help pacing back and forth in agitation, every tiny sound provoking an extreme reaction.
From his behavior, Lucian could guess that Karina, Alvar, and Brad inside the energy room were probably stretched to the verge of mental collapse. At this point, it wouldn't even take the old witch's return — a single flesh-puppet knight showing up would be enough to scare them into panicking, perhaps even fleeing on the spot.
Since the magic tower's core was quite far from the energy room — beyond the range of the Minor Mental Link — Lucian had no way to contact Karina and the others. He could only maintain his trust in his teammates and pushed open the black door.
Seeing the door with its shimmering dark metallic sheen retreat backward, Adam let out a long sigh of relief: "That was the most agonizing hour and a half of my life. Thank the stars the old witch didn't show up."
"Let's go. More dangers await us ahead." After carefully examining the stairwell beyond, Lucian stepped onto it decisively.
He didn't know whether the magic tower's core still had other powerful guards, whether the control hub was protected by yet another unique Magic Circle, whether attempting to seize control would even succeed, or whether the old witch — who would certainly be alerted once he began — could make it back in time... A string of unknowns loomed over Lucian like gathering storm clouds.
Adam's body gradually darkened as he cautiously followed Lucian up the silver-gray stairs.
The two had barely ascended a few steps when the entire narrow staircase suddenly began to writhe.
The silver-gray walls and steps rapidly turned blood-red with a hint of flesh tone, ceaselessly secreting pure white and eerie green acid. The corrosive liquid made Lucian's "Spell Absorption Wall" sizzle and swell.
Adam, in his darkened state, was doused head to toe by the acid and let out a pained, thin cry. Fortunately, the damage wasn't severe. He kept his composure and refrained from lashing out blindly, lest he alert the old witch: "Buddy, what's going on? Aren't I supposed to be immune to acid damage after darkening?"
"It's the old witch's unique magic — it seems capable of corroding and digesting the soul, not just ordinary acid!" Lucian said through the Minor Mental Link while sprinting at full speed, leaving long afterimages trailing behind him. "This appears to be a Magic Circle that activates automatically — it would trigger even if the old witch herself came through. But she would certainly have cast the corresponding protective spell in advance."
This was one of the effective defensive measures many mages employed to protect their important possessions and locations — capable of killing those self-assured intruders who thought they'd cracked every Magic Circle, catching them completely off guard.
Fortunately, neither Lucian nor Adam had let their guard down. And that wariness stemmed from their fear and respect for the old witch.
The entire blood-red staircase writhed wildly, like a human stomach digesting food. Grotesque and bloody.