Chapter 51: Chapter 36: "Tier 2

Even though Sean was fast enough to dodge sideways, the scalpel still pierced his shoulder, slicing through his skin to leave a freely bleeding gash between his neck and collarbone.

Even worse, Quill himself was now right in front of him.

The taut threads were as sharp as knives, glinting coldly under the light as if dicing the very air. Thankfully, Sean landed an elbow strike that knocked the Puppet back, slowing the threads’ horizontal slice. He threw up a hand to block, barely deflecting the fatal attack, but Quill still managed to kick him squarely in the abdomen, sending him flying backward into the wall.

The Ring of Truth, which had deflected countless bullets, was shattered instantly by the threads. The problem wasn’t its ability to repel melee attacks; the Magic Power infused into the threads simply overwhelmed the Ring of Truth’s limits. Otherwise, even if it couldn’t rebound the blow, the ring could have at least functioned as a Defense Spell.

This one exchange gave Sean a much clearer understanding of Quill—not only was Quill a Wizard, but his Magic Power had reached Tier Two.

Likewise, through the shattered Ring of Truth, Quill also sensed Sean’s Magic Power.

"Tier Two..."

"I have to say, Mr. Sean, you really are full of surprises."

Though he called it a surprise, there was no joy in Quill’s voice. The smile at the corners of his mouth turned predatory, and a far more intense killing intent than before flared in his eyes.

After all, an ordinary Novice Wizard might not reach Tier Two even after a year of arduous cultivation. The growth of Magic Power wasn’t a simple process of accumulation; it couldn’t be achieved just by waiting. A Wizard had to discover new, more efficient methods of internal consumption to advance in Tier.

Meditation might not be considered exceptionally difficult, but it was by no means simple. Take that little fan of Sean’s, for example. He could create at least two types of Magic Potions—one for escape and one for explosions—which indicated he had been a Wizard for some time, yet he was still only at Tier One.

In contrast, Sean had advanced to Tier Two in less than a month since the Black Fruit Rainforest incident.

Quill had never heard of such speed.

Even the Witch Hunters in his family, hailed as geniuses of Mysticism, had taken half a year at the fastest to get from Tier One to Tier Two—and that was with the constant aid of Magic Potions for their Cultivation. He himself had taken two and a half years.

This only strengthened Quill’s resolve to kill Sean.

’This writer must not be allowed to live!’

Perhaps this terrifying promotion speed and his Tier Two Magic Power were the source of Sean’s confidence.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough.

"Let me show you, Mr. Sean." Quill raised the threads at his fingertips again, and the Puppet beside him let out a piercing shriek. "Even within Tier Two, there are vast differences."

Sean controlled about 3.2 Lak of Magic Power, while his had already reached 9.9 Lak, just shy of entering the ranks of Tier Three. Not to mention, he practiced Puppetry Art, giving him an absolute advantage in a one-on-one duel.

It was no exaggeration to say that even three Seans wouldn’t be a match for him.

And the facts bore this out.

The Puppet couldn’t "die." Kate had only pierced its chest; it hadn’t been completely destroyed and was still functional.

Quill controlled the Puppet, the two of them ganging up on Sean. Sean wasn’t skilled in close combat to begin with, and he hadn’t yet had time to practice any fighting techniques. He would just scramble to his feet only to be knocked down again. He was beaten so badly he couldn’t even raise a hand to defend himself, and soon he was covered in bloody wounds, a truly wretched sight. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

But he didn’t stay down.

No matter what angle Quill attacked from, or how he coordinated with the Puppet to unleash combos that were beyond any standard forms, he could never manage to kill Sean. Sean always managed to avoid the vital spots, blocking with his magic or taking the blow on a less critical part of his body.

"You’re a tough one."

Quill’s killing intent intensified.

The more powerful Sean proved to be, the more determined Quill was to deny him any chance of a comeback.

If before he had simply wanted to kill Sean, now he resolved not to even leave a complete corpse. No sense in leaving things to chance.

But he was too focused on the fight to notice that Sean’s Magic Power was, little by little, growing stronger under the onslaught of his threads and scalpel.

His body was still adapting to the Power he’d gained from his first use of Forbidden Meditation. He had to overcome his body’s natural self-preservation instincts, and in a way, the wounds Quill inflicted on him were helping him unleash this Power.

And so.

At one particular moment.

Sean, who had been taking a beating the entire time, suddenly looked up at Quill and spoke in a hoarse voice.

"You’re right."

"Even within Tier Two, there are vast differences."

His hair, long matted with blood and sweat, was a mess, yet his eyes shone as brightly as stars in the night sky. This was no exaggeration or metaphor; a fleck of gold had genuinely appeared in the depths of Sean’s pitch-black eyes.

It was a tiny dot, formed from countless, overlapping characters.

"Empty theatrics."

Quill narrowed his eyes and unleashed a flurry of killing blows.

But this time, his attacks failed to land on Sean.

Suddenly, golden symbols and letters materialized in the air, stringing themselves together into lines that bound him and his Puppet in place like chains.

Quill instinctively tried to break free with brute force.

The best way for a High-tier Wizard to deal with a Low-tier Wizard’s Control Spell was to overwhelm technique with pure power. As long as one’s Magic Power was sufficient, no restraint was unbreakable. But when he tried to shatter the chains with brute force, he was horrified to discover their strength far exceeded his expectations. Despite his Magic Power being close to Tier Three, he couldn’t even snap a single link.