"Earth Barbarian Bull!"
Andre blinked, looking at the Magical Beast before him. He had specifically chosen this quest to kill an Earth Barbarian Bull from the Task Hall.
The day after he had practiced his Witchcraft on the back mountain of the Wizard Inheritance Hall, he had gone to the Task Hall and accepted this quest.
Upon accepting the quest, Andre learned the location for the hunt. The Earth Barbarian Bull’s habitat was nearly fifty kilometers east of the academy.
To find it, Andre had activated his Multiple Wings of the Wind and flown for two days before finally locating this Earth Barbarian Bull.
Sensing Andre’s hostile intentions, the Earth Barbarian Bull lowered its head. It snorted jets of air from its massive nostrils, then charged at him.
’The quest requires me to bring back the Earth Barbarian Bull’s Bezoar Stone.’
Andre flew into the air, banking to the side to dodge the bull’s savage charge.
The Earth Barbarian Bull rushed past him and slammed directly into the cliff wall.
BOOM! Dust and rubble flew everywhere.
The Earth Barbarian Bull shook its head, turned around, and a red glint began to appear in its eyes.
’Frenzy. A common trait among bovine Magical Beasts.’
Watching the change in the bull’s eyes, Andre shrugged his shoulders. The Multiple Wings of the Wind on his back carried him higher into the air.
Seeing Andre fly higher, the Earth Barbarian Bull let out a roar.
With a loud MOO, thick earthen spikes shot up from the ground, heading straight for Andre.
’If one of those hit me, there wouldn’t even be a body left.’
Andre changed his angle, using the power of the wind to continuously dodge the earthen spikes flying toward him.
At the same time, he began to gather his power, carving a Witchcraft Curse Seal onto a wooden board.
This time, he chose Frostfire Blade. Soon, Andre had finished carving the Witchcraft Curse Seal for Frostfire Blade.
With a two-handed push, Andre sent the Frostfire Blade flying toward the Earth Barbarian Bull.
The Earth Barbarian Bull sensed a sharp wave of energy coming for it from the air and roared.
Following its roar, streams of earthen-yellow light shone from its body. At the same time, rocks and soil began to rise from the ground, forming a round shell that enveloped the Earth Barbarian Bull.
’One of the Earth Barbarian Bull’s Talent Witchcraft, Shield of Earth and Stone. I didn’t expect this bull to be able to completely envelop itself with this Witchcraft.’
A glint of surprise flashed in Andre’s eyes as he looked at the stone and earth shielding the bull’s body.
To be able to use the Shield of Earth and Stone to this extent, this Earth Barbarian Bull was almost identical to the one he had seen in Secret Realm No. 1. It was a Magical Beast at the peak of the Wizard Apprentice level.
’But the tougher it is, the better for practice.’
Andre’s gaze flickered as he watched the Earth Barbarian Bull on the ground.
At that moment, the Frostfire Blade sliced through the earth and stone, landing heavily on the Earth Barbarian Bull and piercing straight through its body.
’The Shield of Earth and Stone is one layer of defense, its hair is another, and its hide is a third?’
’These three layers of defense combined greatly weakened the Frostfire Blade’s power.’
Andre currently had his Test of Truth and Light of Insight active, allowing him to see the internal structure of the Earth Barbarian Bull with perfect clarity.
Just as the Frostfire Blade passed through the Shield of Earth and Stone and struck the bull, the beast’s hair had glowed with an earthen-yellow light, weakening a portion of the Frostfire Blade’s Power.
Fortunately, the Frostfire Blade’s piercing power was immense, and it cut right through the hair.
This weakened the Frostfire Blade’s Power for a third time. But even after being weakened three times, the blade still pierced straight through the Earth Barbarian Bull’s body, a testament to its might.
’It was too short. If it had been longer, this attack could have severed the Earth Barbarian Bull’s body. Even if it didn’t, the bull would have been critically injured, if not dead.’
Flying in the sky, Andre continuously assessed what kind of Witchcraft he should use next against the Earth Barbarian Bull.
Sensing it had been injured, the Earth Barbarian Bull shook its body, and the wound created by the Frostfire Blade began to heal.
In just a few moments, the wound was completely healed. If not for the missing patch of hair, you would never know the Earth Barbarian Bull had been injured at all.
’This is the trouble with Earth-element Magical Beasts. Their Life Energy is the strongest of all Magical Beasts!’
’In that case, I might as well try the Witchcraft combination I thought of before.’
Andre dodged another earthen spike launched by the bull.
He continued to plan the Witchcraft he would use to defeat it.
Soon, Andre settled on a plan he had previously conceived.
’First, activate Divine Blood!’
While flying, Andre called upon the System to unseal his Divine Blood.
As the System’s seal vanished, one Divine Pattern after another appeared on Andre’s body.
’Demonic Energy Frenzy. This is the first time I’ve tried this.’
Andre directly activated Magic Fury. The moment he did, Magic Power from the surrounding air began to pour into his body.
With every beat of his Magic Heart, Magic Power was pumped into every corner of his body. At the same time, intense pain accompanied the flow of Magic Power.
’Furious... this is definitely furious.’
Feeling the Magic Power rampaging through his body, Andre sucked in a sharp breath.
The Power was too great; it felt as if someone was relentlessly beating his entire body with a sledgehammer.
’I need to work on strengthening my body when I get back to the academy. It would be the biggest joke in the Wizard World in years if word got out that I can’t even withstand my own Talent Witchcraft.’
Andre hissed again, forcing himself to concentrate as he began to carve another Witchcraft Curse Seal on the wooden board.
Sensing the surge in Andre’s aura, the Earth Barbarian Bull on the ground’s eyes turned completely red as it entered a full frenzy.
As the Earth Barbarian Bull entered its frenzied state, more and more Earth Element flowed into its body, gathering on its surface to form a layer of armor.
’Armor of Earth, a weaker version of Earth Armor, but its Defense Power is not to be underestimated.’
After carving the final Witchcraft Curse Seal, Andre clapped his hands together, shattering the wooden board.
The instant the board broke, it burst into flames, combusting out of thin air.
"Flame Scroll!" Enduring the intense heat, Andre grabbed the burning board and hurled it with all his might at the Earth Barbarian Bull.
Just as the board was about to reach the Earth Barbarian Bull, it exploded, transforming into a tornado of fire and wind that descended upon the beast.
Seeing Andre’s attack, the Earth Barbarian Bull raised its front hooves and stomped heavily on the ground. Earthen spikes immediately shot up and, with a roar from the bull, merged together to form a Stone Spear that flew toward Andre.