And as that yellow mass of Earth energy was completely enveloped by the blue curtain of light, a strange luminescence sparked across the blue barrier. Then, the yellow glow was seen slowly vanishing within the blue light, as if the entire energy of the Earth-elemental Forbidden Spell had been entirely absorbed by the blue barrier.

After absorbing the energy of the Earth Forbidden Spell, the blue magical barrier slowly began to revert to its original state, until it was completely restored to normal, appearing as if nothing had happened at all. Everything seemed as though it had never occurred, presenting an eerie spectacle. Witnessing this scene, every single mage of the Tianlong Empire atop Tianlong City displayed looks of utter disbelief.

For the phenomenon displayed by that blue magical barrier was simply too bizarre; it seemed as though the spell's energy had been completely consumed by it. Even though Earth mages themselves were not inherently specialized in offense—indeed, Earth attack magic was generally considered the weakest among all elemental magics, as Earth was fundamentally geared toward defense—it was still an Earth Forbidden Spell, and its power was incomparable to that of ordinary spells. To think that such a Forbidden Spell could be entirely absorbed by this strange blue barrier was simply astonishing.

It was as if the blue barrier had just devoured it whole; it was truly incredible.

At this very moment, within the camp of the Demon Dragon Clan, stood a young man clad in yellow silk, his expression cold and impassive. If Mo Han were to see this person, he would instantly recognize him: this youth in yellow was none other than the Demon Dragon Clan's Young Clan Leader, the one previously wounded by the combined efforts of Mo Han and the Holy Dragon Clan Princess. It appeared his injuries had completely healed by now.

Gazing at the Earth Forbidden Spell's energy being completely absorbed by the blue magical barrier.

A flicker of smug satisfaction crossed the Young Clan Leader's eyes as he spoke with disdain, "With the pitiful power of your human Earth Forbidden Spells, you dare attempt to break the protective barrier of our Demon Dragon Clan's Sacred Relic, the Blue Demon Jade Plaque? You overreach yourselves. If the Jade Plaque forged from the Blue Demon Jade could be broken so easily by you lot, how could it possibly be called a Sacred Relic? Such foolish humans; no wonder your fate is sealed toward annihilation, becoming mere sacrifices for our Demon Dragon Clan to unify the Longteng Continent."

Beside the Demon Dragon Clan's Young Clan Leader stood another hulking Demon Dragon warrior.

Upon hearing his Young Clan Leader's words, the big man quickly adopted an obsequious, flattering tone. "Only our Young Lord possesses such foresight, knowing to have the Clan Leader hand over the Blue Demon Jade Plaque to you early on. Now it has proven its worth perfectly. Otherwise, I fear that mere Earth Forbidden Spell just now could have thrown our entire plan into disarray. However..."

The Demon Dragon warrior seemed to pause mid-sentence, an appearance that caused the Young Clan Leader to involuntarily frown.

He spoke calmly, "Dolores, say what you mean. Don't look so hesitant to speak. Tell me whatever confusion or worry you have; I won't blame you."

Hearing his Young Lord's words, Dolores immediately spoke up. "Young Lord, please don't misunderstand. I was just contemplating: if the humans opposite were to use attack magic of a different attribute, would our Blue Demon Barrier also be able to withstand their magic? After all, what the humans cast just now was the Earth Forbidden Spell, which has the weakest offensive power among all Forbidden Spells. If they were to unleash the Fire Forbidden Spell, which has the strongest offensive power..."

Dolores did not finish his sentence, but the Young Clan Leader instantly understood the implication of the words he left unsaid.

The Young Clan Leader shook his head triumphantly. "Let's not even discuss whether anyone in the Tianlong Empire has the capacity to unleash a Fire Forbidden Spell, considering there are no high-ranking Fire Archmages in Tianlong City. Even if they somehow managed to cast a Fire Forbidden Spell, I trust our Blue Demon Barrier could certainly endure the energy of a Fire Forbidden Spell. Unless..."

The Young Clan Leader paused for a moment, then gave a self-mocking laugh. "But that possibility is practically nil, so I believe it's out of the question."

Seeing the curiosity etched on the faces of his subordinates, the Young Clan Leader continued his explanation. "Unless the human mages opposite can cast those immensely powerful Forbidden Spells or Divine Curses from the Ancient Magic era, only then might they stand a chance of breaking our Blue Demon Barrier. Otherwise, it's all wishful thinking. But given humanity's current magical standards, merely managing to force out a Forbidden Spell is commendable enough, let alone those mighty Ancient Magics and Divine Curses. That's why I said it's simply impossible."

Hearing the Young Clan Leader's explanation, the Demon Dragon Clan members realized he was speaking the truth. Given how much human magical prowess had declined, how could they possibly invoke those Ancient Forbidden Spells or Divine Curses? Thus, they ceased worrying that their Blue Demon Barrier would be breached.

Meanwhile, atop the walls of Tianlong City, Celeste, the Chief Archmage of the Tianlong Empire, turned ashen-faced upon seeing his Earth Forbidden Spell bizarrely absorbed by the enemy's magical barrier. He muttered under his breath, "How is this possible? Was this blue magical barrier created by some divine artifact? Otherwise, how could it possess such immense power? Was that sound from earlier truly a Dragon Roar emitted by the Dragon race? But apart from a Dragon Roar, what else could cause those highly trained warhorses to behave so unnaturally, losing all their discipline? It must be correct. If those people opposite are truly of the Dragon race, then we are in deep trouble."

Just then, a commotion erupted behind him. Celeste quickly turned to look, spotting Long Gufan, the current leader of the Tianlong Legion and the Emperor Long Zhantian's own brother, ascending the ramparts under the protection of an honor guard and several officials. Upon seeing Celeste, Long Gufan immediately led his retinue toward the Archmage, asking with a composed voice, "Grand Mage, what exactly is happening? I heard reports from my subordinates—are those people opposite truly the Dragon race?" Hearing this, Celeste replied with immediate concern, "Your Highness the Prince, I fear it must be true. Besides the Dragon Roar of the Dragon race, what other sound could cause the warhorses of the Tianlong Cavalry Regiment, veterans of countless battles, to act so abnormally and completely fail to exert any fighting spirit? Furthermore, apart from the Dragon race, I truly cannot conceive of anyone possessing such formidable strength to single-handedly shatter the massive boulders launched by the catapults. Even the Earth Forbidden Spell proved useless against them. I genuinely fear the Tianlong City's magical shield may not withstand another magical assault."

Hearing Celeste's words, Long Gufan's face also grew grave. "If it is indeed the Dragon race, then why would the Dragon race suddenly launch an attack on Tianlong City without any warning? The Dragon race has always remained aloof from mortal affairs, hasn't it? Why would they attack the Tianlong Empire?" In response to Long Gufan's question, Celeste showed an equally perplexed expression, shaking his head, clearly baffled as to why the Dragon race would suddenly wage war against the Tianlong Empire with absolutely no prior sign.

At this moment, Long Gufan heard a voice ring out from behind him: "The concerns Your Highness mentioned pertain to the Holy Dragon Clan; naturally, they would not move against our Tianlong Empire. Unfortunately, those opposite are the Demon Dragon Clan. This war was instigated by them; it is all part of the Demon Dragon Clan's scheme. Currently, our Tianlong Empire stands as the greatest obstacle to their plans, so they naturally must attack us."

Startled by the voice, Long Gufan swiftly turned, discovering the speaker was a young man wearing a black mage robe, a smile gracing his face. His smile somehow evoked a comfortable sense of familiarity within him.

The senior mages standing beside Celeste initially assumed Mo Han was a disciple of some other mage, someone arrogantly unaware of their standing, and were about to chastise him. However, Long Gufan had already smiled and spoken first. "If I am not mistaken, you must be Duke Mo Han, already famous throughout our Tianlong Empire and the Longteng Continent? I have long heard of your great name. My royal brother mentions you constantly. I never expected to meet Your Grace here."

Those standing near Long Gufan and Celeste heard that the young man opposite was, in fact, Duke Mo Han—the one who stopped the Beast race invasion, uncovered the Nether Clan's conspiracy, and solved the mysterious plague in the Kark Duchy. They gasped in astonishment, their mouths falling open, because every single deed Mo Han had accomplished was enough to shock the continent.

Indeed, Mo Han was now famous across the land, and the citizens of the Tianlong Empire took immense pride in having such a distinguished Duke in their nation. It was surprising to them that such a renowned figure was this young man opposite, whose smile was so brilliant, who possessed no airs whatsoever, and who appeared utterly harmless. It was no wonder they were so shocked.

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