The shore of Crescent Lake was very quiet.

Centimeter Mountain was very quiet.

The Magic Stage was also very quiet.

Tushan Chujiu quietly watched the heatwave brushing past her, observing the slightly distorted silhouette of the warlock beyond. She watched the young man open his mouth, seemingly saying something, though she couldn’t hear a word.

The series of magical power impacts from the collision between the Silent Birds and the fireball made her feel the blood surging within her body, and her ears were filled with a buzzing sound. She felt a bit flushed.

This should be the aftermath of the blood surging, she thought to herself. Of course, it might also be due to the heatwaves still rolling on the Magic Stage.

She took a deep breath, still very calm.

"It’s not too late to stop now."

Tushan Chujiu looked at Zheng Qing with an unruffled expression, her hands nestled in her sleeves rapidly forming spells. The three fox tails behind her suddenly fanned out like a blooming iris. Her tone carried a hint of sincerity: "The attack method I’m about to use was just developed recently and is very powerful, but I’m not yet proficient in controlling it... If it gets out of control, you might end up in the hospital for some time. So, it’s not too late to stop now."

This was a very tactful offer to surrender.

Zheng Qing smiled shyly, didn’t speak, and gently declined the witch’s kindness.

Negotiations failed.

The fox tails behind the witch suddenly fell, and a gust of wind rose abruptly.

One by one, bean-sized fire orbs appeared silently around Tushan Chujiu, like a swarm of fireflies foraging, spinning lively and passionately in the storm.

Zheng Qing saw very clearly.

This time, although the fire orbs were much smaller in size, the intense feeling grew even stronger. Just looking at them felt as if his gaze was being burnt. Coupled with the wind aiding the fire, Tushan Chujiu’s words ’very powerful’ were definitely not an exaggeration.

He exhaled softly, turning his hand to pluck out a stack of pre-prepared talismans from a grey cloth bag. Skillfully, he tore the deerskin thin line binding them, brushing his hand over them so that dozens of talismans shimmering with a faint glow neatly floated and arranged themselves before him.

He still didn’t use the law book or chanting.

But this time, whether on the shores of Crescent Lake or atop Centimeter Mountain, everyone saw the spell light flickering at the warlock’s fingertips.

The spell light touched the talisman paper one by one like dragonflies skimming the water.

One by one, pale blue little birds came tumbling out of the spell light, flapping their wings as they circled around the warlock, warily eyeing the potential rain of fire surrounding the witch.

Everyone held their breath.

The atmosphere on the Magic Stage seemed almost stagnant.

Zheng Qing wasn’t sure how long this oppressive atmosphere lasted—perhaps the standoff lasted a long time, or maybe it was just a moment—he only felt a wave of hot air sweeping over, and his mind stirred immediately.

"Like the wind that traverses! To guide with wings!"

"Like the snow and rain! Gather first to sprinkles!"

The pale blue little birds sang melodious spells, going against the wind, carrying bouts of cold as they charged towards the fire orbs. This time, there was no violent magical power impact from the collision of ice and fire on the Magic Stage, nor did the fire orbs roll into uncontrollable heatwaves. It was simply a battle between birds and insects—either the birds pecked at those ’fireflies,’ or the swarm of insects melted the birds.

The storm swept the Magic Stage, and the steam rising had barely formed before being sent aloft, gathering together, and before long, a thick layer of clouds formed not far above the Magic Stage.

Tushan Chujiu looked at those pale blue figures darting through the steam, and a wave of inexplicable anger surged in her heart.

She had reasons to be angry.

On the one hand, the other party repeatedly made her feel defeated.

On the other hand, it was because of the talismans the opponent used.

Admittedly, talismans are one of the standard techniques a wizard uses against an opponent. But in places like the Magic Stage, everyone tacitly avoids using talismans. It’s challenging to genuinely showcase a wizard’s mastery of magical skills. In Tushan Chujiu’s mind, Su Shijun’s man shouldn’t have such little caliber.

"I’m curious, how many more talismans can you waste like this?"

The witch’s eyebrows slightly raised, her tone carrying a trace of provocation and dissatisfaction.

"I drew all these talismans myself."

Zheng Qing seldom explained, but he made an exception this time.

This was also the first sentence Zheng Qing spoke since the challenge started. As he spoke, he smiled awkwardly, pulling out a paulownia wood box from the grey cloth bag, wiping the dust off its top, then opening the lid. Inside, neatly stacked, were a large number of standard talismans, bundled and tied.

The shore of Crescent Lake erupted in an uproar.

Even the elder wizards atop Centimeter Mountain fell silent for a moment.

Everyone knew talismans were convenient and powerful, but on platforms like the Magic Stage, they were seldom used because they were not cost-effective. To put it plainly, using talismans on a large scale was akin to burning money, competing not on a wizard’s magical skills but on each other’s financial resources.

Just like now.

The paulownia wood box Zheng Qing revealed, at a glance, contained at least a thousand talismans. According to the market rate of one standard talisman per gold bean, just the talismans in this box were worth at least one hundred and twenty jade coins—many small families had total liquid assets of only two or three hundred jade coins.

The Tu Shan Clan certainly had sound foundations, but they weren’t so extravagant that they could waste over a hundred jade coins in such occasions.

"Just judging by such lavish means, Su Councilor had reasons to choose him as well."

Zhan Yuchen leaned against the railing, looking at the ’golden’ box on the Magic Stage, his tone carrying a hint of dejection: "No wonder this boy dares to be so fickle..."

"How do I think he used to be quite poor?" Deng Xiaojian looked doubtful.

"Many wealthy people like to pretend to be poor." Zhao Qiao’s face showed a pinch of color, and he sighed heavily: "...Just like many big figures enjoy pretending as little wizards playing in the dust."

"Talismans are just one aspect. Don’t you think his use of transformation spells is the most brilliant part?" Uncle Zhang Zhi folded his arms, his tone carrying a few traces of admiration: "No wonder my younger brother is willing to work under him."

On the Magic Stage.

Tushan Chujiu looked at the thousands of talismans in the box, her face slightly pale.

It was very similar to the color of the fluff on her tails.

She screamed, and the three fox tails, which had originally hung to the ground, twisted together like a windmill, turning into one thicker, but awkwardly ugly due to excessive force, gigantic fox tail, with intertwined ripples resembling solid muscles, creating an intense visual impact.

At the same time, the law book floating in front of the witch flipped rapidly without wind, its hurried spells forming a continuous piece, making it seem as though she had grown three tongues and was simultaneously chanting several spells, her voice blurred and distorted due to the mixture, almost indistinguishable whether she was chanting a spell or simply screaming.

The storm intensified.

The clouds gathering above darkened visibly.

Thunder roared from within the clouds.

One by one, bean-sized silver-white fireballs mixed with white thunder orbs dropped from the clouds amidst the sound of wind and thunder, like a sudden summer rain, covering the sky and overwhelming Zheng Qing from above. With each meter they dropped, the fireballs and thunder orbs swelled larger, and in just an instant, Zheng Qing felt as though the entire world had turned white.

He exhaled softly.

Placing his hands on the Bronze Book, a strong flow of magic power surged from an unknown source, pouring into the spell formulas he had transcribed, an instance of spell light enveloped that paulownia wood box. Just in a moment, like a thousand birds awakening in the morning, the sharp chirping pierced through the young man’s body, causing his hairs to stand on end.

Then, the flock of birds burst out from the box like a flood, heading against the torrential rain of fire.