Chapter 496: The Grand First-Year Combat Festival: Next Match II

Mass Alchemy is one of the biggest displays of power an Alchemist can show, and it can be used in both combat and Crafting.

At its core, it is a creation process that allows an Alchemist to create a high number of the particular creation he or she wants to produce. Instead of creating only one object, one weapon, or one attack at a time, an Alchemist with enough Cognis Control can spread the effect across a large area and produce many creations almost at once.

And with that number of creations...

The Alchemist can bombard his or her opponent with a mass number of attacks, overwhelming them through sheer quantity.

It is one of the reasons Mass Alchemy can become so dangerous in a battle.

However, there is one major thing that prevented Mass Alchemy from fully displaying its true power.

The Alchemist using it needs a certain level of Cognis Control.

Especially if the Alchemist isn’t yet a Full Alchemist.

Or...

If the Alchemist is still in the early construction of his or her Adept Star and hasn’t even passed the Half-Star construction.

In that situation, controlling a large number of creations at once can place a heavy burden on the Alchemist. The more creations there are, the more Cognis is needed to be distributed between them, and the harder it becomes to maintain control over every single one.

An Alchemist who already possesses a Fully Constructed Adept Star could therefore face a Mass Alchemy from an Alchemist at that earlier stage without necessarily needing to use Mass Alchemy of their own.

Not to even mention an Alchemist whose Adept Star is already undergoing the gaseous form of Cognis.

That means a breakthrough to the next Alchemist rank is already possible.

Such an Alchemist could deal with a Mass Alchemy of that level quite easily, as long as they remained vigilant and are naturally strong enough physically to handle whatever managed to get through their defenses.

And if you were wondering why it is like that...

The answer is simple.

How could an Alchemist perfectly control multiple creations at once when that Alchemist didn’t even have a good way to distribute his or her Cognis around their own body and the creations that might need constant feeding of Cognis to regenerate?

It is one of the reasons Nature Alchemy Paths tended to suffer from this problem.

Their creations often remained connected to the Alchemist, and some needed a continuous supply of Cognis to maintain their strength, movement, or regeneration.

As for many Combat Alchemy Paths, such as Gun Alchemy, didn’t have the same issue to the same degree, since a Gun Alchemist didn’t need to constantly feed Cognis into their firearms simply to keep them functioning.

But that didn’t mean Combat Alchemy Paths have no weaknesses while using Mass Alchemy in the Adept Alchemist Rank.

Every path has its own limits.

And right now, Phiora Casper was about to test one of those limits against Diane Bergwyn.

***

Diane flashed forward with immense speed.

Her movement was so fast that most of the spectators could only see a light-blue glow from her hair and parts of her training cloth, which carried the same light-blue and black colors.

Her feet barely seemed to remain in one place before she had already crossed another section of the platform.

Phiora immediately raised her second hand to join the other one.

At the same time, more Holly branches moved according to her control and rushed toward Diane.

This time, Phiora didn’t simply send the Holly branches forward as a single mass.

She separated some of them from the larger group and combined them together, forming more Holly serpents so that the number of attacks surrounding Diane would increase.

The branches twisted around each other.

Thorns scraped against thorns as the plant bodies connected, creating several long serpentine forms that moved across the platform.

But Diane kept advancing forward.

She didn’t move toward another direction.

Nor did she retreat.

She simply continued forward through the barrage.

Her slim sword kept moving with fluid hand control.

A vertical slash came downward.

Then upward.

A horizontal slash came from the left.

Then another from the right.

Her sword changed direction again, cutting diagonally from the right before sweeping back toward the left.

Each movement connected naturally with the next, without any wasted motion.

To the ordinary spectators, her sword seemed to be flashing through the mass of green.

Some could only see pieces of the exchange.

A few low-ranking Alchemists were able to follow her movement better, especially when she slowed for an instant to meet one of the Holly serpents directly.

The stronger Alchemists, however, could see how Diane was choosing the shortest path through the attacks, cutting only where necessary instead of wasting strength on every branch that moved toward her.

Clank!

A Holly serpent slammed into the body of Diane’s slim sword.

Diane sharply blocked it.

The impact forced her backward slightly.

Her boot dragged against the platform, leaving a visible track behind it as she absorbed the force rather than allowing her body to be thrown away.

The serpent pressed forward, its thorn-covered body twisting against the blade.

Diane’s arm held firm.

Then her footing changed.

She pushed against the platform and immediately jumped.

Her body spun through the air.

Several Holly branches came from the side, attempting to catch her leg while she was airborne.

Diane had already sensed them.

Before the branches could close around her, her slim sword flashed again.

Slice!

Another branch fell.

She turned her body in the air.

Slice!

Another group of branches was cut apart.

Her movement remained controlled even while she was surrounded from several directions.

The Holly serpents continued twisting beneath her, trying to follow her movement, but Diane had already changed position before they could close the distance.

Clap!

Diane’s hands came together.

Several glass bottles filled with water were already out in the air, falling downward around her.

Phiora noticed them.

Her eyes followed the bottles for only an instant before her hands moved.

She immediately controlled one of the Holly serpents toward Diane while the latter was still airborne.

The serpent opened its thorn-covered body as it rushed toward her.

But the Frost Alchemy Circle ignited before the Holly serpent could reach Diane.

The circle appeared beneath her control while she remained in the air.

Immediately...

Cold steam burst out from Diane’s position under the influence of her Frost Alchemy Circle.

The temperature around the battlefield dropped sharply.

The moisture in the air became visible.

A layer of frost began spreading across the nearby branches, while some of the Holly leaves stiffened under the sudden cold.

"Tsk."

Phiora clicked her tongue.

She could feel it.

She had lost control over several of her Holly serpents and branches.

The cold spreading from Diane’s Frost Alchemy wasn’t merely attacking the plants.

It was interfering with them.

Diane dashed out from the steam.

The cold vapor flowed behind her as she moved down from an almost large Holly serpent that was big enough to carry her weight.

Her boots touched the surface of the serpent for only a moment before she continued forward.

And with every step she took caused ice to form over the spot her boot touched.

The Holly serpent beneath her began freezing.

Behind Diane, the cold steam remained suspended in the visible air, freezing the branches and other parts of the Holly creations solid.

Phiora’s expression tightened.

"Is her Cognis level and Control so far ahead of me that she can easily cut off my control over my own creations?"

She gritted her teeth.

Her mind moved quickly.

She needed to find another method.

If Diane continued freezing every Holly creation she touched, then simply sending more serpents at her would accomplish nothing.

Still, Phiora didn’t stop her attacks.

She first sent more Holly branches and serpents toward Diane.

Several branches moved from the sides.

Another serpent rushed forward from behind.

More branches tried to attack from above.

Diane sliced through everything.

Her slim sword moved through the branches, and the moment they were cut apart, the cold surrounding her froze them.

Pieces of Holly fell onto the platform and hardened almost immediately.

Her slim sword was also under the influence of the ice steam, making every slice she performed lead to the freezing of the branches she cut from the Holly flower plants.

The battle had become a contest of control.

Phiora created.

Diane destroyed.

Phiora created again.

Diane froze what remained.

"I’m not without ideas yet, Ice Sleeping Beauty."

Phiora said to herself in a low tone.

Her eyes remained locked on Diane.

She spread her hands.

Instead of sending the remaining Holly serpents toward Diane, she changed her control over them.

The serpents began dismantling themselves.

Their bodies separated.

Branches pulled apart from branches.

The thorn-covered forms collapsed into long strands that moved back toward Phiora.

The Holly was becoming veins.

Phiora continued controlling every remaining piece.

Then she joined her hands.

The Holly veins moved rapidly.

They wrapped around one another and began forming a protective structure around her.

Four Holly Bastons rose around Phiora, surrounding her like a shield.

Their thick branches crossed over one another, while the thorns pointed outward.

At the same time, the remaining Holly veins gathered together.

Most of them moved toward the red berries.

The berries began swelling.

One after another, they grew larger.

Their red color became deeper as Phiora continued feeding Cognis into them.

Phiora was no longer trying to overwhelm Diane with numbers.

She was preparing something else.

"Come, Lady Diane Bergwyn!!"

Phiora Casper’s eyes sharpened as Diane increased her speed.

The change was sudden.

Cognis flowed into Diane’s legs.

Her running speed increased sharply.

It was almost like a sonic boom had followed the movement of her body.

The air around her seemed to ripple as she moved faster.

Loose snow scattered from the Holly serpent she ran on.

The remaining Holly branches shook from the pressure of her passing movement.

Diane tightened her grip on her slim sword.

She jumped down from the Holly serpent.

The serpent was already frozen.

Phiora had lost control over it because Diane had frozen the creation while moving across it.

Diane’s body dropped toward the platform.

The cold steam that had been flowing behind her because of her movement suddenly moved toward her front under her control.

She spun sideways.

Her light-blue hair followed the motion of her body.

Her slim sword remained firmly in her hand.

At that moment, the red berries brightened.

Their red color became deeper.

Then...

BOOOOOOOM!!!!

BOOOOOOOM!!!!

A crimson explosion ignited from the clash between Diane and the red berries.

The blast spread across the platform.

A thick red mist rushed outward, mixing with the remains of the smoke and cold steam that had already filled the battlefield.

The force of the explosion shook the platform.

The Holly creations around Phiora trembled under the pressure, while the four Holly Bastons remained positioned around her.

The crowd became even more excited.

People leaned forward in their seats.

Some stood up.

Others shouted Diane’s name.

Many of the ordinary spectators couldn’t see Diane clearly through the crimson mist, and even some of the lower-ranking Alchemists could only make out vague movements within it.

The stronger Alchemists kept their attention fixed on the battlefield.

They were waiting to see what had happened to Diane.

Phiora didn’t rely on her normal Alchemist eyesight.

She immediately fed Cognis into her eyes and ears, increasing her sight and hearing so she could perceive what was happening through the red mist.

Her breathing remained controlled, but her attention was completely focused.

She had to be sure the red berries had done their job.

The explosion itself wasn’t a lethal flame-like explosion.

The danger came from something else.

What made the red berries lethal was the high concentration of toxins contained within them.

If the target was caught inside the mist for too long, those toxins could weaken the body and, depending on the target, could even kill them.

But Diane was a powerful Adept Alchemist.

She wouldn’t simply die from the toxin of the red berries.

That wasn’t what Phiora was expecting.

She was trying to weaken her.

The entire fight platform was now filled with the red mist.

It spread across the battlefield, covering the Holly creations and hiding the fighters from ordinary sight.

The mist continued pushing outward.

If not for the Force Field containing the fight area and preventing attacks and dangerous effects from reaching the stands, the red mist would have spread all the way toward the spectators.

The Force Field shimmered faintly as the mist pressed against its boundary.

Some people in the crowd stood up from their seats, trying to get a better view.

They couldn’t see much.

Some only saw a crimson cloud covering the platform.

Others could occasionally catch the outline of a branch or the faint movement of light-blue hair within the mist.

A few low-ranking Alchemists increased their sight with Cognis, sharpening their vision in an attempt to see through the red mist and discover what had happened to Diane Bergwyn.

The stronger Alchemists remained silent.

Their eyes stayed fixed on the battlefield.

Phiora also remained still behind her four Holly Bastons, listening carefully while keeping her Cognis flowing through her eyes and ears.

She was waiting.

The entire Arena seemed to be waiting with her.

The anticipation grew.