The chain slithered out from the black hole like a living snake, proudly raising its "head," carefully sniffing around its surroundings.
Nis squinted, quietly observing the pitch-black chain, seemingly contemplating something.
Suddenly, Nis extended a finger, a special ripple of soul force, like a wave, spread towards Nausicaa.
This soul ripple carried intense evil intent.
Seeing this, Angel frowned. He initially wanted to intervene but, after careful observation, withdrew his hand.
As the soul ripple spread around Nausicaa, she visibly paused, her clear eyes veiling under a layer of chaotic gray. Her previously lucid thoughts instantly turned bewildered.
In this state, feeling the evil intent in the soul ripple, Nausicaa subconsciously manipulated the chain, aiming it towards the source of the evil intent.
The pitch-black chain, after a brief hesitation, responded to Nausicaa’s inner command.
It rushed forward, swift as an arrow at dawn, completely undetectable by the naked eye, streaking straight towards Nis.
Nis did not dodge or evade, relying solely on the strength of his physical body to engage the chain. Each contact between the chain and Nis erupted with a thunderous boom.
Fortunately, Nis had previously set up a soundproof barrier, otherwise, it would surely have aroused outside suspicion.
The air currents from the collisions between Nis and the chain sent surrounding alchemy equipment, paper sheets, and various extraction liquids flying. In just a blink, half the area was a chaotic mess.
Seeing the range of air current clashes expanding, Angel lightly tapped his foot to avoid the entire alchemy room turning into ruins, and a head rose from the shadows.
Earl Mi transformed into a pitch-black shadow, confining the confrontation between Nis and the chain to a small area. The outer region, covered by Earl Mi’s shadow, became a domain of darkness.
Angel and Reynaud stood on the edge of the domain of darkness, observing the battle within.
Reynaud was initially worried, but he soon realized that Nis merely wanted to test the chain’s power and had consistently refrained from attacking Nausicaa. As for Nausicaa...she was still under the influence of the soul ripple, her gaze not yet clear, attacking the source of malice by instinct.
The chain’s prolonged failure to succeed clearly made Nausicaa, still in a state of chaos, increasingly agitated.
Suddenly, from the black hole in Nausicaa’s chest, emerged a purer and more powerful soul force. These soul forces adhered to the chain, causing noticeable changes visible to the naked eye.
Black flame, the pitch-black chain ignited with black fire.
These black flames bore no temperature but carried a terrifying aura of danger.
"This is Soulflame Fire!" Reynaud exclaimed incredulously, "This is a forbidden technique. Even when I wield this weapon, I need to use almost all my soul force to activate it!"
Nausicaa only temporarily borrowed this weapon, yet she could unleash it as well?!
While Reynaud was full of astonishment, the chain carrying Soulflame Fire sliced through the air like a black phantom, striking towards Nis.
As the chain was about to collide with Nis, Reynaud shouted, "Don’t touch that fire, it will burn the soul!"
Nis glanced at Reynaud out of the corner of his eye, not moving. Facing the incoming chain, he squinted his eyes into slits, his expression becoming more solemn.
Bang—
Amidst the scattering black flames, Nis’s hand still grasped the chain.
Upon contact, the Soulflame Fire emitted sizzling sounds, as if roasting something. For the first time in battle, Nis furrowed his brow.
He gently tugged on the chain, causing it to visibly tremble.
When the amplitude reached a certain extent, Nausicaa’s eyes, which were filled with chaos from afar, suddenly brightened. Her obscured thoughts regained clarity.
Seeing Nausicaa regaining self-awareness, Nis released the chain, allowing it to return to Nausicaa.
At this point, Nausicaa’s face had become pale, partly from fear, partly as a side effect of the massive depletion of soul force.
With the battle over, Angel and Reynaud finally stepped in.
Looking at the "battlefield," which had nearly become ruins, Angel sighed and snapped his fingers at the air, letting the surrounding debris be swallowed by darkness. After clearing the shattered equipment and various dust, Angel used some tricks to restore the damaged ground. With everything done, the surroundings finally looked much cleaner.
Reynaud approached Nausicaa and inquired about her condition in a low voice.
"I’m fine," Nausicaa said, her face pale but indeed not too uncomfortable. Although her soul force had been depleted excessively, it was still much better than when she fought Master Man previously.
Nausicaa herself found it somewhat surprising. Her consumption was much greater than during the battle with Master Man, yet she managed to endure.
Her soul didn’t feel exhausted, only a slight fatigue.
It was as if her soul source had expanded several times in a single day.
"I precisely controlled her consumption, and besides, she received my soul force, so how could she be in trouble?" Nis grumbled on the side, "What should be concerning is this old man, using my soul force to fuel those black flames, and getting burned instead."
As he spoke, Nis spread open the hand that had gripped the chain.
His hand still appeared white and flawless, yet this was merely a facade. Nis slowly revealed his soul hand.
On his soul hand, there was now a scorched black shell.
The injury to his soul didn’t seem severe, and with Nis’s understanding of the soul, he could quickly repair it. Yet the fact that the Soulflame Fire could inflict such damage on a mentor well-versed in soul manipulation was testament enough to its power.
If it were an official wizard of another discipline facing the Soulflame Fire, they would likely suffer significant harm if unfortunate enough to be hit.
Nausicaa felt a bit embarrassed by Nis’s comments, although she herself wasn’t fully aware of what had transpired earlier.
"Ignore him, he brought it upon himself, getting hands-on to test the chain’s power." Angel approached Nausicaa, his gaze fixed on the hovering chain.
By now, the chain no longer carried the Soulflame Fire, and Angel directly reached out to touch it.
The first sensation was of coldness, like grasping something both solid and akin to a chill wind—a peculiar texture. Carefully stroking it, Angel felt as if he touched some metallic texture.
Using the Eye of Nalda, he observed the chain, discovering that under its gaze, the chain appeared in a state of particle aggregation. Some particles seemed to have traces of material, but more of them displayed some sort of energy configuration.