Devil Military Mages

Everyone's skin crawled.

Military Mages had always been seen as guardians in the public eye — symbols of justice and power.

But the people they witnessed today were devils.

Not a shred of mercy. The two female students from Pearl Academy were pillars of talent; regardless of their status or strength, they were living, breathing people — young women who, like most others, had simply trusted that every Military Mage was someone you could rely on.

Life drained away with terrifying speed. Even at the very end, Jingjing and Zhao Mingyue — those two close friends — died with their eyes wide open. They had survived the Field Expedition in Desolate City. Perhaps in their last moments they were still picturing how they'd sink into a long, fragrant hot bath once they got home. In the next instant, they saw the devils wearing Military Mage uniforms — and then parted forever from everything they had ever loved about this world.

"It's a storm cloud — watch out!!"

Someone screamed it out. Everyone looked up, and there it was: an enormous thundercloud hanging directly overhead.

Bolts of lightning danced erratically within its depths. Their descent was no faster than the Thunderbolts Mo Fan could Release, yet Mo Fan could sense the powerful Lightning Element energy surging through the cloud.

"That's a third-tier Thunderbolt — everyone scatter!" Mo Fan bellowed.

The words had barely left his mouth when a thunderous roar split the open sky.

The morning was already blazingly bright, yet when the pale, merciless lightning came crashing down, everything was illuminated to an almost blinding clarity.

A forked bolt of lightning plummeted and struck Zhao Manyan squarely on the head.

Zhao Manyan completed Sacred Shield Blessing at full speed. A golden shield of light sealed him within its protection.

Another forked bolt descended from the sky — this one finding Zheng Bingxiao, already grievously burned. In his condition, he had no way to defend himself.

His face charred black, he stared upward with wide eyes. Flat on his back, he watched the forked lightning come screaming straight down at him.

**BOOM!!**

Zheng Bingxiao — who had just barely clung to life — exploded into a rain of blood in an instant. Flesh and gore became indistinguishable.

The spray of viscera splattered across Zhao Manyan beside him. Zhao Manyan's eyes stretched wide — even his perpetual lazy indifference shattered, leaving nothing but terror flooding his gaze.

The blood on his face. The blood on his clothes. The gory mess pooling at his feet. That was Zheng Bingxiao?

Just last night, when Zheng Bingxiao had summoned the Magma Titan, Zhao Manyan had gained a new respect for that deep-hiding Summoning Element Mage. And now he had been reduced to... this.

The forked lightning kept falling, growing even denser — likely two Lightning Element Mages unleashing Thunderbolts at the same time.

Lightning danced and raged, crashing down into the group again and again.

These students — the pride of their schools — mostly carried some Enchanted Gear and managed to hold on for a time. But the third-tier Thunderbolts were overwhelmingly powerful. One after another, each strike was enough to shatter every piece of protective gear they had.

"Help — help — AAAH!!"

A forked bolt fell straight onto Xu Dalong, who had already lost an arm. His powerful body was blown apart just as Zheng Bingxiao's had been.

Blood rained down on Lu Zhenghe, who was already drenched in crimson. The blood soaking him belonged to his teammates — to Jingjing, to Zhao Mingyue, and now to Xu Dalong.

He was shaking uncontrollably. He couldn't even bring himself to look at his older brother Lu Nian's face.

In Lu Zhenghe's heart, Lu Nian was his real brother — a man who had looked after him in every way imaginable, who always seemed to find a way to get him whatever he needed. Having lost his father young, Lu Zhenghe had looked up to Lu Nian as half a parent.

But this — he never could have imagined that his brother was a murderous, bloodthirsty fiend.

It had been Lu Nian who asked him to leave markers along the route, saying there was a mission he needed to carry out. Lu Zhenghe hadn't given it a second thought — he had simply left signals along the way that his brother could follow.

Never once had he imagined that Lu Nian was coming here to slaughter them all.

Was this still the brother he knew??

"Idiot — get over here! You want to die alongside them?" Military Commander Lu Nian roared.

Lu Zhenghe didn't want to die. Not after watching the people around him drop one by one.

He could barely accept that this killing fiend was his own brother, but the moment he heard Lu Nian's shout, instinct took over. He still trusted the man who had raised him — he was certain that no matter who Lu Nian cut down, he would never raise a hand against his own younger brother.

Lu Zhenghe turned back and looked at Mu Ningxue. He wanted to bring her with him.

But savage lightning crashed down beside him and toward Mu Ningxue, and when he saw Bai Tingting — her protective Enchanted Gear already gone — get struck and knocked to the ground, he faltered.

"GET OVER HERE!" Lu Nian's furious roar rang out.

For Lu Zhenghe, that voice was a command. He finally wheeled around and sprinted toward the group of Military Mages.

He knew perfectly well: if he didn't run now, he'd be reduced to scraps just like the others.

"Running? If you're going to die, you'll die right here with the rest of them!" Mo Fan's fury erupted. In an instant, the Lightning Seal in his hand was complete.

Amid the rampaging lightning, Mo Fan drove his Lightning Element power surging after the fleeing Lu Zhenghe. These lightning marks were noticeably thicker than any third-tier Lightning Seal he had cast before — dark violet arcs racing across the ground at blistering speed until they reached Lu Zhenghe's feet.

At first, Lu Zhenghe paid them no mind. *How could a basic Lightning Seal possibly stop me?*

But as those thick, coiling arcs crawled up his body — carrying a paralytic force more than double that of an ordinary Lightning Seal — his expression collapsed into pure disbelief.

Even with a Spirit Grade Lightning Seed, a basic Lightning Seal simply should not have had this kind of power.

His body locked up completely. Pale-faced, all he could do was stare helplessly at his brother Lu Nian, silently begging him to come and pull him free.

But someone else moved faster.

Mu Nujiao had completed a Plant Element spell without anyone noticing. The moment Mo Fan's Lightning Seal seized Lu Zhenghe, her vines shot forward and coiled tight around his legs —

— and yanked him back with a single sharp pull, sending him crashing straight into Mo Fan, whose entire body had erupted in roaring flame.

Mo Fan had transformed into a blazing crimson fire demon, burning with incandescent fury. He grabbed Lu Zhenghe in an iron grip, the fire raging in his eyes threatening to spill beyond his skin.

"You bastard — tell your people to stand down, or I'll burn him alive!" The flames around Mo Fan surged higher still, the blaze lashing toward Lu Zhenghe.