The apostle raised his arm, and a powerful white glow blinded everyone on the scene.

“He’s a light mage?” Ejiro exclaimed. Even though he couldn’t see anything, he heard the screams. All the government officials were dead, then it was the soldiers’ turn.

“He’s absorbing souls!” Isaac suffocated in the apostle’s radiating power. Only he could feel it.

“Where is he?!” Seth couldn’t locate the apostle.

“He’s flying above us!” Isaac shouted. “Aaron, dodge!”

Aaron sensed something approaching him and he rolled away immediately. He opened his eyes just in time to notice the red orb on the ground near his hand. He threw himself into the air, narrowly avoiding the explosion.

“Follow my voice!” Jenna shouted, activating her soul manifestation. “We have to stick together!”

In the white void, Aaron, Seth, Ejiro, Gabriella, and Luo gathered with Jenna. Christopher protected himself from the unpredictable attacks in his wolf form, while Isaac raised red magic barriers. However, Anne and Stephen were alone.

As the light magic ceased and everyone slowly regained their vision, Anne found the apostle behind her. A stream of red knives escaped Algus's hands and flew at her.

The wind mage grabbed Stephen and dashed away, yet the flying knives pursued them. She leaped just in time, but another stream of knives appeared.

As knives surrounded them, Stephen spotted Isaac’s silhouette near a market stall. “Anne, get us over there!”

“I’m on it!” Anne grabbed one of her daggers to carve a path through the knives. There were dozens, but they shattered easily. Jenna dashed away, receiving a few cuts, but didn’t look back until she arrived next to Isaac.

Isaac made a new barrier, destroying all the knives.

Anne sighed in relief. Stephen wasn’t a mage and needed to be escorted somewhere safe. Anne left with him deeper into the city. “Thanks, Isaac. I’ll be right back.”

“No problem,” Isaac replied as he for the apostle. He found him floating above, looking confused.

Not wasting time, Isaac hurled a red magic spear at his opponent, but the apostle blocked the attack by copying Isaac’s red barrier.

The apostle paused. “That power! How did you do that?”

Isaac didn’t respond as he created more spears. However, the apostle wasn’t scared as he raised his hand, attempting to use light magic again. Seth struck the ground with his staff from behind, and a shadow bolted out of the road.

As Isaac’s spears broke the barrier, the shadow grabbed Algus’s feet and tied him to the steel road. Just as the apostle was about to cast light magic again, Christopher jumped the apostle. Algus shielded himself with another barrier and exploded the ground to escape Seth’s shadows.

Jenna used her soul manifestation to grab him, but Algus flew away too quickly, almost flying into Luo’s blue fire, and created a giant sword above the road.

Isaac’s eyes flared with red mana as he began levitating. “I won’t let you do that!”

He extended his arm and conjured a round shield to block the attack. Like shattering ice, the sword and the shield cancelled each other out.

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Using a toxic amount of mana, Isaac followed with a simple attack, throwing a human-sized spear at the apostle.

“Hehehe.” The apostle was amused. He simply waved his hand as the spear approached him.

The spear changed directions suddenly, descending the slope and passing the city’s gate. The thousands of soldiers were powerless against the spear. Taking control of Isaac’s attack, the apostle guided it like a needle, cutting through the army effortlessly.

Tens of unlucky soldiers died instantly, and a hundred more fell as the spear slithered like a serpent, killing everyone in its path.

“Dammit!” Jenna punched the apostle, but couldn’t even get through his barrier.

The apostle smiled at Isaac. “Seeing your power, I’m willing to let you live. Leave now, or suffer the consequences of betraying the Dark Faction.”

However, Isaac was in a trance after using too much mana at once. Gabriella touched his shoulder.

“Isaac?”

He shook his head, regaining consciousness, and looked at Algus. The apostle had created three more spears and was preparing to attack. “I won’t leave anyone behind!”

Isaac created multiple barriers to stop them, but as the apostle waved his hand the barriers shattered instantly. The spears passed through, but a sudden light blinded Algus.

“You’re not the only one who can use light magic!” Ejiro shouted as he flew toward the three spears, shattering them with his Dragonsword.

When Algus regained his sight, Luo’s fire was approaching. He hid behind a barrier, but once the fire dissipated, Christopher jumped at him, Gabriella struck him from behind, and Victor fired his shotgun.

Back on the battlefield, Anne intended to use her throwing knives, yet the barrier remained standing after their attacks. As Algus smiled at her, she left toward the gate. “The shield’s too strong. We need stronger attacks!”

Anne hadn’t seen Algus take control of Isaac’s spear. She had no idea it was just outside the gate, about to strike her.

“Anne!” Seth appeared next to her, and they teleported to Isaac.

Meanwhile, Jenna kicked the human-sized spear with her soul manifestation, breaking it at last. Behind her, Aaron imbued mana into his sniper to strengthen the bullets. ‘I have to wait for a clear shot.’

The apostle frowned. “I wasn’t aware there were so many strange mages here!”

Needle-sharp beams shot out of the apostle’s fingers, attacking in all directions.

“He’s out of our league,” Luo murmured as he hid behind Jenna’s soul manifestation. He looked across the street. Isaac had become powerless before Algus. Seth was shielding him with a cage of shadows.

“We need to break the apostle’s barrier. I think I have a solution.” Luo told Jenna, his body igniting in blue flames.

“Alright, let’s break his barrier for Luo!” Jenna struck at the apostle with her glowing fists, and everyone except Isaac began attacking.

The barrier finally shattered. The apostle fell to the ground and tried to use light magic.

“Dammit!” Seth made a shadow grow out of the ground and immobilized him again. “Attack!”

But Luo had already attacked. Anne accentuated his blue fire with her wind magic, and the apostle almost got hit. He created a sphere around himself just in time, smiling as he hid from the flames. His smile was ruined by Jenna’s giant foot breaking his barrier.

Algus immediately formed a new one, but it was too late. The fire had spread within his sphere, burning him to the bone.

Ejiro and Christopher broke the new barrier, and Victor fired at the fleshless apostle.

“Is he dead?” Anne approached the skeleton remains. It was on its knees, blood everywhere, and flesh and ashes dirtied the ground.

Yet, the apostle’s head cracked, turned to face her, and began regenerating. A hand grabbed Anne by the leg. Aaron fired a bullet through the apostle’s head, and Algus, or what was left of him, fell on his back.

However, the hand wouldn’t let go! Anne chipped at the bones with her knife, but it was useless as the bones kept regenerating! The skeleton formed a new barrier around them. She was trapped.

When Jenna finally shattered the barrier, it was already too late. The apostle’s red aura swallowed Anne, materialized into a cage, and ground her into a pile of flesh.

Horrified, Gabriella struck her claws into the apostle’s neck. She pushed and pulled, but the fleshless head wouldn’t tear off. A red beam shot out from its head, launching her ten metres back.

Gabriella tried to get up when she noticed the large hole in her abdomen. She couldn’t breathe properly; blood was pouring endlessly, and her intestines fell into her hands. Tears swelled in her eyes.