Translator: SumTLMan
Angel was unaware of the legend of the “three wind generals” of the Stormridge, but he paid significant attention to these three beings whose sizes far surpassed other wind elemental creatures.
Judging purely by strength, the capabilities of other wind elemental creatures varied widely, with the majority being at the peak apprentice level. With the enhancement provided by the stormy cloud sea, they could barely reach the level of a formal wizard. However, this was a stretch; their collective attack could pierce through the cloud sea, forcing even Angel to take a step back. But once they were separated and each fell into an illusion, their strength could not be considered on the same level as when they attacked together. At least, Angel believed, without external influences, trapping them for several hours would pose no problem.
However, the three wind generals were a different matter altogether.
Not only were the three wind generals massive in size, but their energy levels were also close to Angel’s, already at the formal wizard level in normal circumstances. If they were in the outside world, Angel was confident he could trap them in illusions using external nodes. But currently, in the cloud sea rich with wind elements, trapping them briefly was possible. However, once they realized what was happening and started absorbing the surrounding wind elements recklessly to attack the illusion with higher energy, they could break through in a short time.
Thus, facing such adversaries, relying solely on external illusion nodes was insufficient; it was also necessary to supplement with heart illusion spells.
And to use heart illusion spells, it was best not to face multiple opponents at once but to defeat them one by one.
After trapping the other wind elemental creatures, Angel distanced himself again, heading to a new battlefield to achieve this very goal.
Of course, the three wind generals were not the strongest among the wind elemental creatures; Harlequin held that title. Its power level had reached the true knowledge level, although only in terms of power. Its inner realm, combat experience, and energy application methods were still lacking.
Had Harlequin been the elemental companion of another wizard, nurtured and developed, Angel would not dare to provoke it directly. But as it stood, Harlequin was entirely wild-born. Even Angel was confident in facing it alone without disadvantage; moreover, Eremy was confronting Harlequin. Eremy’s real combat strength was even stronger than most true knowledge wizards.
With Eremy restraining Harlequin, Angel felt quite reassured. Once he dealt with the three wind generals one by one, facing Harlequin together should not be too difficult.
Angel glanced at Eremy’s battlefield in the distance, ensuring that Eremy would not make a mistake. Then, he refocused all his thoughts on how to deal with the three wind generals.
Because Angel had raised a thick fog, the three wind generals were unaware that the other wind elemental creatures had already fallen into an illusion. They were still chasing Angel at full speed.
Once they realized and attempted to break through the surrounding illusions to aid the other wind elemental creatures, it would become troublesome.
Therefore, Angel had to deal with them one by one before they realized and went to assist the other wind elemental creatures.
After reaching a relatively open area, Angel’s figure suddenly merged into the thick fog and disappeared for a few seconds.
The three wind generals did not think much of it, as the dense fog around often obscured their vision, causing them to appear and disappear intermittently. They assumed Angel’s brief disappearance was due to the fog, and as long as they were heading in the right direction, there would be no problem.
As expected, Angel’s figure soon reappeared ahead, and they continued the chase.
However, due to the fog’s obstruction, they did not notice that there were actually two Angels. One led two of the wind generals to the right, while under the cover of the misty clouds, only one of the wind generals saw the other Angel and unhesitatingly headed to the left.
This lone wind general was Angel’s first target to be defeated one by one.
After running for another minute, Angel stopped, turned around, and faced this lone wind general.
This lone wind general, a Three-Headed Lion Dog, slowed down upon seeing Angel stop. Hate was evident in the eyes of all three heads.
Its central head stared directly at Angel: “Finally can’t run anymore?”
Angel did not respond but simply stated, “It’s time.”
Is it time? The three-headed lion dog did not understand the meaning of this phrase at first, until the skull on the right suddenly spoke: “Main head, take notice, Chimera and Kraken have disappeared.”
The skull on the left also voiced: “Tail head is correct. I sensed the surroundings, and there’s no trace of Chimera and Kraken. Moreover, the fog here is somewhat strange, the sensation of convection wind has been suppressed to the minimum.”
The words of the deputy head and the tail head made the main head in the center also start to pay attention to the surroundings. Indeed, the companions had vanished, and the fog was abnormal.
Tail head: “Perhaps this is the enemy’s ploy, intending to separate us and then defeat us one by one. I suggest to the main head, it’s best to choose to leave here first, fight cautiously.”
Deputy head: “tail head makes a point. However, I did not feel an overwhelming energy presence from the enemy, his strength is still unknown, we can try to probe first. Of course, the main head can also choose the suggestion of the tail head, to act cautiously to avoid any mistake.”
The main head’s gaze shifted, also pondering the suggestions given by the other two skulls.
Angel witnessed their conversation, a trace of deep light flickering in his eyes. He chose this three-headed lion dog among the three great wind generals because, during the chase, he felt that each of the three heads had a slightly different gaze, with the main head’s gaze being the most fierce, the deputy head’s relatively moderate, and the tail head’s filled with the light of wisdom.
In the gaze of the tail head, he faintly saw the shadow of sages from various places. Therefore, he speculated that each head of the three-headed lion dog might have its own role, with the tail head possibly in charge of strategic planning.
A mere brute is not frightening, but a brute with a sage at his side plays a role in battle that is far from simple addition.
For this reason, Angel’s first target to strike was the three-headed lion dog.
Now, from the conversation of the three heads, Angel was very glad of his choice. The tail head indeed appeared to be strategic, the deputy head’s level of intelligence was also high, but the main head in charge seemed somewhat dull.
Tail head: “My intuition tells me, if the main head doesn’t make a decision now, we won’t be able to leave.”
The tail head’s words made the main head’s consideration heavier, but still, he couldn’t make up his mind.
The tail head sighed, it would be better if Chimera and Kraken were here, they would definitely listen to its opinion. But the main head is always hesitant, afraid of being replaced by the two deputy heads, not making a decision.
Deputy head: “He has already come over.”
It was not until then that the main head suddenly lifted its head, realizing the enemy indeed appeared in front of it, and behind the enemy, many white fog tentacles grew, at first glance resembling Kraken’s tentacles, but the energy wrapped around them was even more astonishing than Kraken’s tentacles.
When those “white tentacles” swung down towards the three-headed lion dog, the main head could no longer choose to fight cautiously. It violently spun its body, using three thick tails to flick away the white tentacles, then the three thick tails spread in three directions, like wind columns, spinning wildly.
Endless flowing wind was attracted into the wind columns, then through some indescribable transformation, these flowing winds became powerful wind columns, released from the very center of the wind columns.
The three wind columns, by increasing the interval between them over time, released wind columns at different times. This made the attack of the wind columns almost without any gap, able to release wind columns against the enemy at any moment.
In simple terms, the three-headed lion dog obtained an almost perpetually existing buff: a self-propelled wind column artillery.
Moreover, the three-headed lion dog itself could also use other abilities against the enemy, forcing Angel to dodge wind columns while also contending with the three-headed lion dog.
Angel tangled with the three-headed lion dog for quite a while, quickly discovering the cause of the three-headed lion dog’s abilities.
Once in combat state, the main head almost took over all control of the wind abilities, while the deputy head and tail head closed their eyes, only opening their mouths to issue various wind attacks at the main head’s request.
The reason why the deputy head and tail head closed their eyes, Angel also got the answer from the tangle, the main head is specifically responsible for combat, while the deputy head and tail head control the rhythm of the battle, that is, the firing interval and direction of the wind column artillery.
This means that the three heads of the three-headed lion dog each have their own responsibilities, achieving multitasking. This is what enables the “self-propelled wind column artillery” to gain permanent enhancement.
It must be said, the capabilities of the three-headed lion dog are quite impressive.
However, the ability Angel spoke of is not the self-propelled wind column artillery, but the three-headed lion dog’s multitasking ability. They can simultaneously comb through the wind energy within their bodies, and even manage to comb, release, and absorb at the same time.
If this ability were to be developed by a wizard, it could push the combat strength of the three-headed lion dog to unimaginable levels, turning it into a real living cannon, where all obstacles could simply be cleared away with a cannon blast.
However, the three-headed lion dog developed this ability on their own, and even with a “strategic head” as their conductor, their vision and insight are not up to a certain standard, ultimately only developing this odd “self-propelled wind column artillery.”
At first glance, the power seems fierce, with continuous attacks, but the weaknesses are also very clear. Whether it’s mastering the rhythm or directly targeting the core at will, one can easily throw them into complete disarray.
It’s somewhat regrettable that such superior talent ended up developing abilities in this manner.
However, now that the three-headed lion dog is an enemy, Angel is relieved that their level is not high enough; otherwise, he would have had to run today.
Having identified the weakness, Angel began to control the rhythm of the battle, quickly launching an attack on the three-headed lion dog.
As expected, once the rhythm was controlled by him, the three-headed lion dog immediately became disorganized. However, with the tail and deputy heads coordinating, the main head eventually found a balance point, preparing to switch methods for a new round of attacks.
Based on Angel’s prediction of the main head’s combat behavior, switching methods could only mean two things: either enhancing skillfulness or increasing attack power.
If it were possible to enhance skillfulness, it would have done so already, so it could only mean an increase in attack power.
As for how to increase it? It’s estimated to still be related to that self-propelled artillery.
Previously, the artillery was three wind columns seamlessly connected, allowing the wind column to be maintained permanently. However, this way, even if the three wind columns rotate together, it’s still just one wind column.
Angel guessed that to enhance the attack, the main head would definitely turn the wind column into two or three?
His guess was quickly confirmed: correct.
The main head began to release three wind columns simultaneously from the three wind columns, instantly tripling the power.
However, upon seeing this, Angel internally shook his head. Indeed, the power had tripled, but the three wind columns had to be released together to achieve this effect, which, from previous battles, showed that wind columns obviously tire over time. Releasing all three simultaneously prevents them from rotating and resting, leading to a vulnerability period for the three-headed lion dog after the wind columns end.
And that vulnerability period is the best time to deal with the three-headed lion dog.
A minute later, the triple wind columns gradually disappeared. The three-headed lion dog’s tail, at this point, hung limply behind them as if it was drained.
For at least half a minute, the three-headed lion dog would not be able to release any wind columns, and this was Angel’s opportunity.
Angel instantly burst out with terrifying energy, advancing several times, bypassing several whirlwinds, and in less than fifteen seconds, arrived in front of the three-headed lion dog.
In the main head’s horrified gaze, Angel extended his index finger, lightly tapping the main head’s forehead.
——His slightly crude illusion could only be activated through close contact.
The moment the fingertip touched the forehead, the already constructed illusion model emitted a bright light, following the energy channels directly into the three-headed lion dog’s body.
At a speed visible to the naked eye, the main head’s gaze went from horror to daze, slowly becoming bewildered, and finally, completely entered a state of confusion and vacancy.
The deputy head and the tail head also witnessed this scene, and as the second and third heads of the three-headed lion dog’s body, they also noticed the anomaly within.
“Why is this happening? What did you do?” exclaimed the deputy head.
Angel paid no attention to the deputy head but turned his gaze towards the tail head, whose eyes were still relatively clear and who remained silent: “Your previous advice to the main head was indeed wise. However, what I want to tell you is that even if the main head had listened to your advice and made a decision at that time, the outcome would have been the same.”
This could have been said before the battle, but Angel, with his vast experience, knew that talking big before a fight was like setting a flag, which easily leads to failure. Now that the outcome was decided, it was harmless to say.
After saying this, Angel pointed his finger twice consecutively, touching the foreheads of the deputy head and the tail head.
He didn’t know if the deputy head and tail head would replace it as the primary consciousness after the Main Head entered the heart illusion. To avoid any mishap, he decided to deal with all ends thoroughly.
Therefore, the three-headed lion dog enjoyed a triple heart illusion spell.
Only after the three-headed lion dog was captivated by the heart illusion did Angel feel relieved to place the three-headed lion dog into the original external illusion nodes.
The heart illusion was not easy to break, even if Harlequin or the other two wind generals exerted their great powers and destroyed the external illusion, they would not be able to awaken the three-headed lion dog in a short time. Thus, the three-headed lion dog was rendered useless in this battle.
Angel watched the three-headed lion dog wander off in a daze, slightly relieved.
Due to the existence of the tail head, he had already prepared to use special abilities, not expecting to resolve the situation so easily, controlling it with just the simplest heart illusion.
However, if the positions of the main head and tail head were reversed, it would probably have been much more difficult to solve. But fate plays tricks, and the three-headed lion dog’s main head happened to be a brute and somewhat distrustful of the tail head, which made his victory quite effortless.
Having dealt with the three-headed lion dog, Angel’s gaze then turned to another side.