The Teacher

In the gentle breeze that now blew, Professor Planck’s old eyes suddenly turned incredibly cold. A terrifying aura, one that did not belong to an old man, rose from his withered body.

Above his head, an ancient crown condensed from a faint light, and then, like the first clear air at the dawn of the world, it quickly floated upwards.

And then, in the center of the semi-circular barrier, as if a phantom throne had long been cast there, the moment the crown merged with the throne, a phantom shadow also sat upon it, its indifferent gaze falling upon all things in the world.

In an instant, the world in Professor Planck’s eyes was no longer the same.

With the authority of the second layer of the Great Sealing Instrument fully open, everything within the range of Saint Marika Academy was now laid bare before his eyes. The trees, the weeds, the fish and insects, the silent teaching buildings in the shadows, every minute change did not escape his eyes. Everything appeared in his mind. Everything, at this moment, seemed to be held in the palm of his hand, to be controlled at will.

“Hah…”

This wonderful feeling of being able to control everything made Professor Planck, whose body had long since begun to decay, feel a surge of vitality once more.

It was as if he had returned to his younger self.

Unfortunately, the young girl he had met when he was young… was no longer here.

Professor Planck raised his hand, and the twelve black towers hummed. An infinite amount of magical power, channeled through the Great Sealing Instrument, was poured into his briefly revitalized body.

A faint light seemed to shine in his old eyes.

And so, a perfectly divided hexagonal structure, from the heavens and from the earth, layered upon layered, like a huge millstone that could crush all tangible things, pressed down on the Saintess with the pure-white wings.

“Waaaah—”

In the Saintess of Purification’s sorrowful wail, a sharp shriek was suddenly mixed in, as if some entity, through her body, was showing its anger and madness to the lowly insect before it.

The Saintess of Purification raised her hand, clenched her fist, and then smashed it.

There was no technique, no move. For a Saintess, this action was too crude, more like a shrew in a street fight.

But when that small fist fell, the layered structure shook violently.

The perfectly interlocking hexagons actually bent under the unspeakably terrifying force, and with it, the entire space began to tremble and distort, emitting a piercing sound like tearing metal.

“Even after becoming a Saintess worshipped by thousands, your way of fighting is still so simple and crude.”

Professor Planck gave a bitter smile, just like when he had been forced to clean up the mess of her fights back then.

“In that case…”

Professor Planck opened his arms.

Behind him, golden lines extended, intersected, and then formed a complex, profound pattern.

An instant-cast magic array.

An instant-cast magic array, which should have been inscribed on gold and gems with quicksilver and beast blood, was constructed by Professor Planck in the void with an unimaginable magical attainment. A huge amount of magical power gathered on it, gradually brewing into a storm of destruction and a sea of fire.

Professor Planck’s face was cold as he gave the command.

“Go.”

And so, countless huge, terrifying spells, supported by an infinite amount of magical power, were fired non-stop, forming a saturated magical strike that lit up the entire night sky.

The magical attack that the hundreds of students had launched together before, compared to the magic array that Professor Planck had constructed by himself at this moment, was like the difference between a drizzle and a storm that could cause a tsunami.

This was the terror of a great archmage at the pinnacle of truth. As long as he had enough magical power, one person was enough to be a match for a whole magical army.

The Saintess of Purification naturally did not dare to block it with her hands this time. If she ate that candy, it would at least be a gut-wrenching end.

The wings behind her spread, and then closed, perfectly protecting her figure within. A pure-white light expanded, like a holy domain, rejecting the entry of any unclean thing.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

As if ten suns had risen at once, a bright light rendered the night sky as bright as day.

Even if it was a holy domain constructed by the authority of a god, after all, the god could not truly descend. And in the face of this pure, immense power, the holy domain could not be maintained. Clearly visible cracks gradually appeared, and then… it was completely pierced through.

An infinite amount of heat and light poured into the holy domain, rushing toward the delicate figure protected by the pure-white wings, as if to completely burn her to ashes.

Professor Planck raised his hand and held down his hat, preventing it from being blown away by the hot blast and the fierce wind.

He squinted his eyes, carefully staring at the scene that was difficult to see due to the blazing light and the spatial distortion caused by the violent explosion.

The attack just now, it could be said that he had exhausted all the knowledge he had learned in his life, and had directly consumed nearly thirty percent of the magical power that the academy had drawn from the leylines. Let alone a Crowned One, even the undead who guarded the cemetery of the church, if he had taken this attack head-on, he would have turned to dust.

But for some reason, the unease in Professor Planck’s heart had not subsided at all.

In fact, it was even stronger.

It was as if something even more terrifying was about to happen.

At his level, a premonition was never without reason, so he did not dare to relax.

The magic array behind him lit up again, ready for a second strike.

Suddenly, his vision blurred for a moment.

Professor Planck’s heart tightened.

The magic array was ready to fire… but he suddenly froze.

It was as if the thought of activating the magic array had suddenly been erased from his mind.

A brief moment of mental stagnation. The space in front of Professor Planck was suddenly torn open.

The Saintess of Purification stepped out from the space.

It was clear that the attack just now had not been easy for her. Her pure-white wings were shattered, leaving only half a pitiful wing trembling slightly. Her hands were charred black, no longer pale. And her perfect, beautiful face was now covered in cracks, like a broken porcelain doll.

But when she appeared, the whole world grew dim.

Even the bright light from the explosions now seemed insignificant.

Because in her hand, it was as if she were holding the most brilliant light in the world.

It was a sword.

A sword that had neither exquisite patterns inscribed on it, nor dazzling gems decorating it. It looked extremely ordinary, like a half-finished product.

But when that sword appeared, there was nothing in the world more conspicuous than it.

“What the hell? A holy sword?” a certain bear in the academy’s underground exclaimed in shock.

But no one heard him, and no one cared.

Because at the place where all eyes were gathered, the Saintess of Purification raised the holy sword in her hand and stabbed at Professor Planck’s heart.

In that moment, everyone’s breathing seemed to stop.

An infinite number of hexagonal structures layered upon layered, instantly unfolding in front of Professor Planck, intending to force the Saintess back.

But in the light of the holy sword, everything was completely purified. The layered structures under the control of the Great Sealing Instrument had no effect at all before they collapsed back into pure magical power.

“Pfft.”

The sound of flesh being torn, and blood splattering.

Professor Planck looked down in a daze at his chest.

The holy sword had pierced his body, and an infinite amount of light poured in, bringing with it a burning sensation like fire.

He coughed up blood, and it was as if light were coming from his mouth and nose.

He should have died.

Being stabbed in a vital spot by a holy sword, even with the protection of the Great Sealing Instrument, he should have died.

But he didn’t die, because the holy sword had pierced… his right chest.

He looked up in astonishment.

The Saintess of Purification’s vacant left eye seemed to have regained a sliver of life.

And so, in the still-wailing cry that was like a ghostly wind, a sad, soft cry was mixed in.

“Profess—or.”