Silas's attack

The situation in the forest clearing was completely reversed due to Ling Yao's intervention.

The dazzling light barrier erected by the Vajra Talisman acted like an insurmountable chasm, firmly keeping the crazed demonic wolves and eerie ghosts at bay. The invisible force field of the Small Eight Trigrams Trapping Array further sluggished these monsters, making them seem trapped in a quagmire of time, their movements slowed, their roars distorted, and their threat greatly reduced.

The most shocking sight was the wounded who had been healed by the Qingyun Pill. The students, who had been on the verge of death and pale-faced from the torment of the curse, were still weak, but the terrifying dark substance and icy blue runes on their wounds had dissipated, and their life force was steadily recovering. Some of them were even able to struggle to sit up, their faces filled with the bewilderment and joy of surviving a disaster.

"We're saved...we're really saved!"

"What kind of medicine is that? The effect is amazing!"

"And that golden shield and the power that slows down monsters... were those also made by that lady?"

"Finn! Where did you find such a capable helper?!"

The surviving students were so excited they were incoherent, their eyes all fixed on the black-haired girl on the earthen slope, her clothes fluttering and her expression indifferent, their eyes filled with gratitude, awe, and incredulous curiosity.

The two professors, who had been struggling to hold on, were finally able to catch their breath. They felt the power within the Vajra Rune barrier—a power distinct from magical protection yet far more indestructible—and watched the curses on their students rapidly fade. Their emotions were incredibly complex. There was the ecstatic joy of escaping death, the shame of their own powerlessness, and above all, the profound shock at the completely incomprehensible power displayed by Ling Yao.

"Thank you so much for saving us!" The professor, whose arm was frostbitten, was the first to react. Despite the pain, he bowed solemnly in Ling Yao's direction. "If it weren't for your timely arrival, we would all be dead here today! May I ask your name? Rockefeller Magic Academy will be eternally grateful!"

Another professor quickly echoed, his attitude extremely respectful. Strength was paramount, and Ling Yao's methods had far exceeded their comprehension, leaving them no choice but to show respect.

Finn Liver stood behind Ling Yao, chest puffed out and head held high, feeling incredibly proud. He had never been so triumphant in his life! Look! This is the golden thigh we've latched onto! He shocked everyone with his very first move!

However, amidst this atmosphere of relief, gratitude, and awe, a cold, chilling voice, filled with undeniable authority, suddenly rang out from the other side of the forest, like a biting winter wind:

"A generous reward? Thank you for using even more dangerous and uncontrollable evil powers?"

Before the words were finished, a squad of elite judges dressed in pure black uniforms with silver spiked badges on their chests emerged swiftly from the shadows of the trees like ghosts, spreading out in a semi-circle and subtly surrounding the entire open space, especially the area where Ling Yao was located.

The leader was none other than Silas, the Inquisitor, whose face was as cold as ancient ice. He held a spiked hammer engraved with holy runes, the hammerhead already beginning to gather a chilling pure white holy light. His icy gaze, like two sharp swords, was fixed on Ling Yao, filled with undisguised hostility and killing intent.

The arrival of the courtroom instantly froze the atmosphere that had just eased!

The students' joy froze, replaced by confusion and unease. The two professors also frowned, their expressions turning serious.

“Inquisitor Silas?” The frostbitten professor suppressed his displeasure and spoke, “You’ve come at the right time! The trial has encountered a major setback, with unknown mutated monsters and a powerful curse appearing. Thanks to this lady’s help, even greater casualties were averted…”

“Help?” Silas sneered, interrupting the professor, his voice sharp and sarcastic. “Look at the power she used! That golden barrier, did it have the slightest magical fluctuation? That method that stopped the monster, was it any known divine spell or magic circle? And that so-called 'elixir'! How could she so easily dispel a curse that even high-level dispel spells struggled to cleanse?”

His gaze swept over the students, still weakened from the recent removal of the curse, and his tone grew even more aggressive: "Such abnormal effects, such bizarre forms of power! This is no aid at all! This is a more dangerous and unpredictable evil heretical power than any monster or curse! She is merely concealing the true nature of her power in a way you cannot comprehend! It's even possible that this disaster itself is inextricably linked to her!"

These accusations are utterly malicious! They not only completely ignore Ling Yao's life-saving grace, but also portray her as the source of the disaster and an even more dangerous entity!

“Your Honor! Please watch your words!” another professor couldn’t help but retort, his tone filled with anger. “This lady just saved all of our lives! That’s an indisputable fact! How can you slander her like this!”

"The facts?" A fanatical glint flashed in Silas's eyes. "The facts are that she used chaotic power that was not recorded in the holy scriptures and could not be defined by the existing system! The facts are that her very existence is the greatest threat to order! Look at Professor Silver Bud! An excellent scholar, she has become deranged and obsessed with heresies because she came into contact with her power! This is proof that she has bewitched people!"

He abruptly raised his arm, the holy light on the mace growing ever brighter, pointing at Ling Yao, and shouted sternly: "Heretic Ling Yao! You have used evil power, are suspected of causing the academy trial tragedy, bewitching people, and desecrating order! In the name of the Holy See Inquisitor, I order you to immediately give up resistance and accept purification interrogation! Otherwise, you will be killed without mercy!"

"The Tribunal! Prepare to execute the Purification Regulations!" The black-clad judges behind him responded in unison, raising their weapons. Powerful waves of holy energy surged together, creating an immense sense of oppression that crushed towards Ling Yao!

This act of turning black into white and repaying kindness with enmity not only made the two professors tremble with anger, but even the students who had just been rescued couldn't stand it anymore!

"Your Honor! You can't do this!"

"It was Miss Ling who saved us!"

"Her medicine lifted the curse! Her power protected us!"

"You are repaying kindness with enmity!"

The students spoke up, weak but filled with anger and courage. Finn was furious, pointing at Silas and yelling, "Bullshit! You're just spouting nonsense! You're lying through your teeth! If Miss Ling were an evil heretic, why did she save us? Wouldn't it have been better to watch us all die?!"

Silas ignored the protests, his gaze fixed on Ling Yao as if he had already condemned her: "Eloquent words and seductive charm! This is a common trick of heretics! Your minds have been influenced by her power! All those who obstruct her are considered accomplices and will be dealt with accordingly!"

A powerful holy light surged towards Ling Yao like a tidal wave, attempting to force her to submit.

However, Ling Yao, who was at the center of the storm, remained calm and composed. She even had the leisure to tidy up her cuffs, which had become slightly disheveled from setting up the formation.

She seemed not to hear Silas's accusations and threats at all. Or rather, she heard them, but didn't take them to heart.

Why bother with the barking of ants?

She merely raised her eyes slightly, calmly meeting Silas's murderous gaze, and then gently raised a finger.

There were no powerful energy fluctuations, no earth-shattering momentum.

But the moment she raised her finger, the holy light pressure that Silas had gathered at its peak, enough to terrify ordinary people, vanished into nothingness as if it had encountered an invisible barrier, just three feet in front of her!

It's as if it never existed.

Silas's pupils constricted sharply! The judges behind him also paled in shock!

They didn't even realize how the other party made their move!

"Demon! You dare to resist!" Silas was both shocked and furious. Without further hesitation, he launched a fierce attack!

"Holy Light Judgment!"

He roared, and the mace in his hand erupted with blinding pure white holy light, transforming into a massive pillar of light containing the power of purification and destruction. It tore through the air and crashed down towards Ling Yao! With this strike, he held nothing back, determined to completely purify this heretic who had repeatedly challenged his authority and was incomprehensible!

Wherever the beam of light passed, even the air crackled and popped as if it were being scorched!

Everyone held their breath, and the students even screamed in terror! The two professors instinctively tried to intervene, but it was too late!

Faced with this thunderous holy light judgment, powerful enough to flatten a small hill, Ling Yao's expression remained unchanged.

She simply raised her slender finger again, facing the incoming beam of light, and then, seemingly casually, pointed it at the void.

It's like popping a soap bubble.

The terrifying holy light judgment, upon contact with the invisible barrier in front of her fingertips, melted and disintegrated silently and rapidly, like ice and snow under the scorching sun, ultimately turning into countless tiny specks of light that dissipated into the air.

Not even a slight breeze was stirred.

The entire room fell silent.

Whether it was the angry students, the nervous professors, or the originally menacing judges, they were all frozen in place as if petrified, their mouths agape and their eyes wide open, as if they had seen the most unbelievable thing in the world!

Silas the Inquisitor's "Holy Light Judgment," a strike comparable to that of a high-ranking mage, was... gone just like that?

It was wiped out with just one finger?!

What the hell is this power?!

Silas himself was struck dumb, his arm gripping the mace trembling slightly, and for the first time, a look of near-horrified disbelief appeared on his face. He couldn't understand! He simply couldn't understand! That wasn't a magical confrontation! It wasn't energy cancellation! It felt as if... the power he had gathered had been directly "denied" from existence by some higher-level rule!

Ling Yao slowly withdrew her finger, her gaze remaining calm, even carrying a hint of... boredom?

She finally spoke, her voice cold yet clear enough to reach everyone's ears, as if delivering a verdict on this farce:

"It's so noisy."

"If you're going to fight, then fight seriously."

"Or, get out."