Chapter 179: Shining Brightly (Part Two)

  "Not bad, not bad at all. The performance by the Cabo Empire was truly delightful."

  King Rhein looked very pleased.

  "So, Mr. Roge, do you find the magicians of our Northern Alliance impressive?"

  King Cabo smiled and raised his glass, addressing Roge, the fat man seated to his right. Due to his unique status, Roge had been seated directly below the three kings on the right side. This performance was largely aimed at winning Roge's favor.

  "Hmm."

  Roge maintained his usual kind smile, but his response was concise.

  "What? Mr. Roge doesn't seem too satisfied."

  King Rhein asked tentatively, feeling a bit anxious. Failing to cheer up this fat man tonight could complicate matters. The equipment update for the Tri-National Alliance depended entirely on this man. In critical times, some things couldn't simply be bought with money.

  "It's alright."

  Roge smiled.

  "Hehe, let's proceed. Please welcome the performers from the Rhein Empire."

  King Rhein laughed heartily and gestured.

  Upon his command, a servant jogged to the entrance of the hall and whispered to someone waiting there. The person then shouted loudly.

  Hearing that the Rhein Empire also had a performance, the guests' spirits lifted. Such performances at such events were usually rare and not to be missed.

  Han Ming gently swirled the crystal wine glass in his hand, observing the actions of each person at the banquet with interest.

  Turning to look at Maren, he saw that Maren was still smiling, but his smile seemed somewhat forced. Clearly, under the circumstances, the Monte Empire had not prepared any performance. The performances by the Cabo and Rhein Empires had been sudden.

  If this continued, the Monte Empire's face would be lost.

  Han Ming pondered this in his heart.

  After a while, two people dressed in earth-yellow robes entered the hall.

  "These are our Rhein Empire performers, please take a look, Mr. Roge. Ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy."

  King Rhein was clearly very confident in his own people's performance. Having seen the Cabo Empire's performance, he didn't feel the slightest pressure.

  "Hehe, let's begin."

  The two people in earth-yellow robes were also magicians, earth-type magicians. They appeared to be a man and a woman, possibly a couple.

  They respectfully greeted the kings of the three countries first. As magicians, a profession of such high status, they did not need to kneel on one knee to greet the kings.

  "What do you think, Chalad?"

  Valerie smiled and asked Chalad, who was sitting at the same table, in a low voice.

  Chalad curled his lips and said, "Trivial tricks. Let's see what impressive performances these two have."

  The two earth-type magicians turned and politely bowed to the guests from various countries.

  "So wordy!"

  Chalad was getting impatient.

  The two earth-type magicians exchanged a glance and slowly moved apart.

  The male magician waved his hand towards the door, and a large amount of sand and soil rushed in from outside, piling up into a small mound between the two of them.

  The male magician smiled slightly and continuously tapped the small mound with both hands. The sand and soil mound began to slowly collapse, and the scattered sand on the floor seemed to come alive, flowing slowly.

  Shapes of mountains, plains, ravines, and valleys were outlined by the sand.

  There were high and low mountains, various terrains, all resembling a miniature version of a country.

  The female magician stood on the other side, her delicate white hands also continuously tapping in the air. The sand gathered and condensed, slowly rising. At first, people didn't quite understand what these shapes were.

  But as the female magician squatted down and carefully used magical energy to guide the sand, continuously reshaping and trimming the excess parts, buildings gradually emerged before the eyes of the guests.

  "Wow!!"

  A round of applause erupted from the crowd.

  King Rhein smiled, his face showing no trace of smugness, exuding a composed demeanor.

  Before long, a majestic architectural complex appeared before everyone.

  "This looks like a miniature of the Rhein Empire."

  A mercenary leader who frequently traveled between countries nodded slightly.

  "Yes, it's indeed very well done. Combining several famous mountains and outstanding buildings of the Rhein Empire in this limited space is truly breathtaking."

  The male and female magicians enjoyed a moment of praise before they began to move again.

  The female magician stood on the side with the buildings, and the male magician stood on the opposite side.

  Both waved their hands simultaneously.

  On the side of the female magician's buildings, small protrusions appeared as the sand shifted, and the sand grains on these protrusions quickly fell off, forming vividly shaped soldiers.

  On the other side, the male magician created many ferocious-looking demon soldiers in front of him.

  Constructing these intricate little figures clearly consumed a lot of magical power.

  At this point, both magicians had fine beads of sweat on their foreheads.

  "I wonder if these two can sustain the entire performance. Such performances are not easy and rely heavily on immense magical power and extreme focus."

  The male magician was clearly not as meticulous as the female magician. While constructing the sand demon soldiers, he accidentally became distracted, and a nearby mountain suddenly collapsed.

  "Whoosh..."

  If it were someone else, they would have booed at this moment. But the guests in the hall were clearly of much higher quality than ordinary people. They all watched the male magician's small mistake with bated breath, holding their breath for him.

  The guests from the Cabo Empire, who had been enjoying the spectacular performance, looked somewhat displeased, as their country's performance had been overshadowed by the Rhein Empire in front of so many people. No one would feel good about that. But now, seeing the male magician from the Rhein Empire make a mistake, their mouths curled up.

  "Concentrate!"

  The female magician reminded him when she had a chance.

  The male magician nodded nervously and diverted a thread of magical power to re-condense the collapsed mountain.

  This performance was somewhat dull and monotonous compared to the previous one. The two magicians were immersed in the world they constructed, while some of the guests began to show signs of impatience.

  But King Rhein sat confidently, fully confident in the upcoming performance.

  Time ticked by minute by minute.

  When most of the guests began to feel bored, the work of the two magicians was finally completed.

  Mountains, buildings, plains, soldiers, and demon soldiers were vividly portrayed by the two magicians.

  At this moment, sparse applause began to sound from the crowd.

  For such a grand and extremely energy-consuming project, due to the prolonged duration, the guests' emotions had been dampened to their lowest point. Even now, facing a magnificent scene, it could only slightly pique their interest.

  "Interesting."

  Han Ming was one of the few in the hall who could guess what the two magicians were going to perform next. He also admired their concept.

  "It seems that the real climax is about to begin. I just wonder if these two can complete the performance in its entirety."

  Valerie said with interest.

  Chalad also nodded slightly and said, "The concept is commendable, and although there were some mistakes in execution, they can be forgiven."

  When all the guests thought the performance was over, the two magicians on stage suddenly shouted in unison.

  "Move!"

  The two earth-type magicians simultaneously took out a large number of earth-type magic crystals and placed them in front of them. They sat cross-legged and began to change their hand gestures at an accelerated pace.

  Within the sand and soil mountains, the soldiers and demon soldiers on both sides suddenly came to life.

  "They're moving!! They're actually moving!!"

  "My goodness!! They're really moving!!"

  The two armies charged across the plains and clashed in an instant.

  The guests all stood up, eagerly clapping. The atmosphere reached its climax at this moment.

  "Amazing!!"

  As the saying goes, outsiders watch the excitement, insiders watch the technique. Everyone present was a well-informed individual, understanding the scene before them far better than ordinary people.

  Merely maintaining such a complex terrain and buildings with magical power was already a significant drain on the two magicians' energy. Now, they not only had to maintain everything but also had to divert more attention to maneuvering the two armies into battle.

  What a massive undertaking that would be.

  "Brilliant!"

  Valerie couldn't help but clench her fists and shout. At the same time, she looked at the two earth-type magicians with glowing eyes, not hiding her possessiveness.

  "They are indeed two promising talents," Chalad rarely spoke up in praise.

  In the sand, the two armies clashed silently, and this wordless battle captivated everyone's hearts. Although many soldiers fell apart into sand before reaching the front due to the magicians' inability to keep up, it did not diminish the high spirits of the audience.

  The two magicians were already panting, clearly starting to struggle. The magic crystals beside them continuously provided magical energy, but the exhaustion of more energy could not be compensated for.

  The inspiring war eventually neared its end, with the human army emerging victorious.

  As the human soldiers surged to the top of the hill and planted the Rhein Empire's flag at the summit, the entire hall erupted in excitement.

  The two magicians also collapsed from severe depletion of magical power and energy.

  "Hahaha! Well done!!"

  King Rhein was the first to stand up and applaud, loudly praising them.

  These two magicians had used their performance to show everyone their determination and hope in confronting the demon army.