The thunderous, roaring rumbles gradually faded into the distance, and a gentle breeze swept past, carrying away the residual dust lingering in the air.
Once the dust cleared, both Kyle and Hermione saw the state Ignotus was in.
Ignotus was currently half-kneeling on the ground, regulating the somewhat turbulent magic within his body. His right hand, which held his wand, was bent at an unnatural angle and bore a charred black color.
Witnessing this, Kyle couldn't help but freeze in shock.
Although he hadn't personally taken part in that last attack, relying solely on the magic stored in the Uru metal within the Asura Path, combined with the Deva Path—who had been slacking off and not outputting much during the battle earlier—the offensive they unleashed was still incomparably formidable.
If it were him facing that blow, he could have directly given up resisting and simply waited for Izanagi to resurrect him.
Yet, the opponent had only paid such a minor price to block the combined finishing move of the Deva and Asura Paths.
What Kyle didn't know, however, was that the opponent's current state was actually not much better.
A wizard's magic simultaneously exists within their soul and their bloodline.
Among them, the magic carried by the bloodline occupies the vast majority, while the share occupied by the soul is less than one-twentieth of that of the bloodline.
This was also the reason why Voldemort, despite being in the state of a remnant soul, could still cast spells, yet his strength after losing his physical body was less than one percent of his peak period.
The magic of a Reanimated person was similarly composed of these two parts.
The soul portion of the magic came from Ignotus's own soul.
As for the crucial magic inherent in the bloodline, it was provided by the owner of the physical body used as the sacrifice.
When Snape reanimated Ignotus, he had merely grabbed a random, mediocre victim from Knockturn Alley.
For Ignotus to possess his current level of combat power, the vast majority of the credit still lay in his immensely powerful strength during his lifetime.
His formidable nature ensured that even when only a wisp of his soul remained after death, the residual magic was still enough to make him a preeminent existence in the wizarding world.
Yet Kyle's strength was not to be underestimated either.
In such a high-intensity battle, the remaining magic within Ignotus was already running thin.
Taking advantage of the moment Ignotus was still regulating the turbulent magic in his body, Kyle slammed his hand hard onto the ground, and four more figures wearing black robes with red clouds materialized.
This development caused Snape's eyes to narrow abruptly.
The strength of the Deva and Asura Paths was unquestionable. If four more existences of the same caliber were to join, then their operation this time could be considered a complete and utter failure.
But Snape did not immediately retreat with Lucius.
If this operation did not succeed, alerting Kyle and making him cautious, it would be difficult to find such a perfect opportunity ever again.
Fortunately, his gamble paid off.
As the new round of battle commenced, Snape discovered that the combat strength of the other four Paths was not as powerful as that of the Deva and Asura Paths.
They acted more as power banks for the Deva and Asura Paths, providing them with additional magical support.
Following the close-quarters clash just now, Kyle and Ignotus returned to the mainstream combat style of wizards—exchanging spell fire.
Their two wands continuously fired beams of light, carrying extraordinary power as they blasted countless craters into the ground around them.
The two constantly moved to dodge and block each other's magic, and for a time, neither could do anything to the other.
Black Zetsu detached itself from the body of the Deva Path and attached itself to the Asura Path instead.
Under its control, the other five Paths all channeled all of their remaining magic into the energy receptor on the Asura Path's back.
The Asura Path's chest once again unleashed an incredibly powerful stream of light. Because a full five Paths were providing him with magic this time, the power of the light stream was nearly twice as strong as when only the Deva Path had powered it earlier.
Ignotus, who was being pinned down firmly by Kyle, was utterly unable to dodge the incoming beam. He had no choice but to stake everything on a single throw, mobilizing all the magic in his body to fire a spell of his own to clash against it.
Since ancient times, those on the left lose the clash!
Looking from his own perspective, Kyle was pleasantly surprised to find that his Asura Path occupied the advantageous position on the right.
Seizing this opportunity, he performed the Summoning Jutsu once more.
Accompanied by a piercing eagle cry, a Thunderbird with feathers like pure gold burst through the air.
Stepping onto Ran's back, the magic inside Kyle's body surged out like a roaring flood through opened floodgates.
The Susanoo on his body also dissolved at this moment, turning into raw magic that continuously transferred into Ran's body.
The sky and earth dimmed at this instant as dark clouds rolled and converged continuously in the sky, with lightning flashing and thunder rumbling within the cloud layers.
While Ignotus was adjusting his magic, a faint white glow lit up at the tip of Kyle's wand—a sign of casting a weather-modifying charm.
A ferocious thunder beast protruded its colossally massive body from the clouds.
This iteration of Lightning Release: Kirin was the largest scale Kyle had ever unleashed since mastering this technique.
Just the head of the Kirin alone was as large as Hagrid's cabin.
"Vanish along with the clap of thunder," Kyle muttered softly, standing on the back of the Thunderbird.
Yet, at the very instant the Kirin was about to descend, a cold sensation of palpitations rose out of nowhere in Kyle's heart.
Without any warning whatsoever, an intense, searing pain shot from Kyle's abdomen, and the weather charm at his wand tip was instantly disrupted.
Kyle stared in disbelief at the longsword that had pierced in from his back and protruded out of his abdomen. He had completely failed to notice when Ignotus had slipped behind him.
Looking forward again, the figure that had been clashing with the Asura Path was already slowly dissolving into an afterimage.
Like a mist scattered by the wind, it vanished entirely.
Just when on earth did he...
"Kyle!" Hermione covered her mouth in disbelief.
The longsword slashed horizontally, ripping out from the side of Kyle's waist.
A ruthless look flashed in Kyle's eyes. Completely disregarding his damaged body, he swung his wand fiercely, guiding the thunder beast to crash down toward the location of the two of them.
Under the effect of Human Transfiguration, his growing spine tore through flesh and blood, transforming into several bone-white chains that bound Ignotus and him tightly together, leaving only their arms able to move.
Snape, who was observing everything from the shadows, knit his brows.
His intention had never been to kill Kyle.
The hand of Ignotus holding the blade aimed at Kyle stopped at this moment, and a silver-glowing shield materialized above their heads.
Now was the time!
Release! The Eight Inner Gates!
Gate of Opening, Gate of Healing, Gate of Life, Gate of Pain—open!
Opening four gates in rapid succession, a surging green energy erupted around Kyle. At the exact moment the thunder beast descended upon their heads, Kyle reversed his grip on Fengqiuhuang and plunged it backward with a violent stab.
The longsword pierced precisely into Ignotus's body, skewering his heart. At the same time, surging magic erupted from the blade, leaving a gaping, bowl-sized hole directly in Ignotus's chest.
The silver-white shield above their heads dissipated at this very moment.
What no one noticed was that right now, the two tomoe in Kyle's right eye spun at extreme speed.
Under Hermione's horrified and despairing gaze, the blinding lightning directly engulfed Kyle, instantly reducing him to nothingness.
Snape was also incredibly panicked at this moment.
Why did things turn out like this?
All color drained from Hermione's face. Sorrow welled up from the depths of her heart, instantly swallowing her whole.
A torrent of tears burst from her eyes.
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