Immortal Ice Empress: Path to Vengeance
Chapter 948: Maria's Debut

Touching her cheek, Maria looked at her hand. 'Blood?'

She didn't even see the attack coming. One second, she was fine, the next, she felt a sting in her cheek. It came so fast that she didn't know where it came from or who sent it.

Looking around, she finally noticed a man leaning on a throne, staring at her with an unsettling smile. 'Him? But why? More importantly, who is he?'

Since the man was in the middle of Divine Sea Realm masters fighting, he must have been strong, but she didn't know what she had done to upset him.

'No.' She shook her head. 'Rather than upset, he looks… eager?'

Light shone on her wound, and it was healed in an instant, but for some reason, she felt that she had missed something…

"Umm… Maria? What's that tattoo on your cheek?" Celaine pointed and asked.

"Tattoo?" She touched the previously injured spot but didn't feel anything.

"Yeah. There's a red lightning bolt on your cheek."

"...Huh?"

Suddenly, she heard a shout coming from behind her. "I… I can sense it! This, this girl has a Tribulation Lightning mark! Get her!"

"Be careful not to damage her too bad!"

A mature woman in Thunderstrike Pavillion robes pointed a finger at Maria and inwardly shouted, 'Thunderous Heartstrike!'

A thin thread of lightning, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, shot out of her finger toward Maria's heart, but she had already moved out of the way.

"Woah~! Attacking me out of nowhere?" The thread snaked back around as if it was tracking Maria, but she just smirked. "That's no way to greet a lady~!"

The light around her distorted for a moment before the thread penetrated her chest and enveloped her heart, rupturing it… Only for 'Maria' to dissipate into light particles.

'A clone?!' The Thunderstrike Pavillion woman raised her guard, looking around. Just then, she heard a beautiful voice whisper in her ears.

"Since you attacked first, I suppose I don't need to hold back, right~?"

"Demonic Restoration!"

A beam of corrupted Light Qi shot a hole through the woman's shoulder, but before she could react, immense pain tormented her entire body as she ballooned up.

"Bye~ Bye~"

BOOM!

The woman exploded into a mist of blood as Maria returned to her original position.

"...That's one scary technique," Celaine muttered, once again promising not to get on Maria's bad side.

"Funnily enough, it wasn't meant for humans," Maria said, smiling.

"...Seems pretty effective to me."

"Only if it hits."

"...That doesn't make it any worse, you know? It's basically a sure-fire kill technique."

Maria shrugged, not bothering to comment, as dozens more people surrounded them. Yet, none made any risky moves, staring at where the woman just died. Nobody knew what happened. She didn't even look badly hurt when that light beam hit her, but within seconds, she literally imploded!

"Be careful, everyone. This girl's not ordinary."

"I'm more worried about the green-haired one beside her."

"Yeah, well, she doesn't have a Tribulation Lightning mark on her."

"Still, keep your guard up."

"What're you young'uns so afraid of?!" A stream of lightning streaked in the distance before a middle-aged man with a well-shaven beard showed up. Right after him, more and more people appeared, all of whom exuded the same domineering presence. "With us here, there's nothing she can do."

"Elder Zhen!"

"Elders!" The disciples called out happily, but their focus was on Maria.

"Girl! We'd really prefer not to kill you. So, if you could please just come with us, we'll take you back to the Sect and look for ways to extract that mark from you. It's very important to us, after all."

Maria fell silent, staring the man known as Elder Zhen in the eyes. It wasn't a bad offer, she didn't come here to kill, either. Not to mention, she's a victim. There was no reason to make enemies for no reason.

"...If it were any other time, I would've agreed." She started with a sigh.

"But?"

"But I came here to look for someone, and I have no intention of going back without her." She finished while also thinking, 'I'm also sure Mira's out there watching me. Now's the perfect chance to show her that I'm not the same little girl I was before!'

"...I see, that's a shame." Elder Zhen muttered while eyeing the other Elders. "It seems we can only take you by force."

"Good luck~!"

Seeing that things were about to get heated, Celaine closed in on Maria and whispered, "Do you need help?"

Maria shook her head, "No. This is my battle."

"Very well." Celaine backed off and crossed her arms, showing she wasn't going to get involved.

Maria's gaze sharpened as the circle of masters tightened around her, their intentions clear. Elder Zhen, with a wave of his hand, signaled the commencement of their attack.

"Let's see how you handle this, young lady!" Elder Zhen shouted, his voice booming like thunder as he thrust his palm forward, unleashing a torrential wave of energy toward Maria.

In response, Maria's lips curled into a smirk, her body glowing with a dazzling light. "Prismatic Wave!" she exclaimed. Light erupted from her, not just white but a spectrum of colors, each strand twisting and turning, creating a dazzling display that intercepted and neutralized Elder Zhen's attack.

However, it didn't stop there as the ring of light expanded and 'corrupted' everything in its path. One of the Elders got nicked by it and saw his arm turning black as some weird energy invaded his meridians.

He hurriedly used his lightning to destroy the invading Qi before shouting, "Don't let that touch you!"

The surrounding Elders were taken aback, not understanding how such a gentle technique could deal so much damage.

However, their momentary lapse allowed Maria to seize the initiative. "Radiant Abyss Barrage!" she declared, her hands moving as she directed a series of light beams, each one surging with energy, toward the encircling enemies.

The elder coordinated their efforts, channeling their Qi to form a collective barrier. Yet, Maria's attack was relentless, the barrage penetrating their defenses, pushing some back and knocking others outright.

Elder Zhen, gritting his teeth, acknowledged her prowess. "She's not to be underestimated. Prepare the Grand Array!" he commanded, signaling the others to adopt a more strategic formation.

Maria, undeterred, prepared her next move. 'Solar Flare!' she inwardly announced, and the air around her shimmered with intense heat. A blinding light emanated from her, expanding rapidly to engulf the battlefield in a wave of searing energy.

Everyone had to shut their eyes as the overwhelming brilliance and heat nearly blinded them. They were all experts in their realm, yet the eyes were often the weakest part of every creature; the members of the Thunderstrike Pavillion were no exception.

Seeing an opening, Maria channeled her Qi, focusing it into a singular, potent form. "Radiant Spear!" With a thrust of her arm, a beam of concentrated light shot forth, piercing through the array like a needle through fabric, targeting Elder Zhen directly.

Elder Zhen reacted in the nick of time, deflecting the spear with a wave of his hand and dispersing its energy into the air.

The disciples and other elders exchanged glances. This woman was undoubtedly a threat, and she wasn't going to be easy to deal with.

Elder Zhen, now more cautious, addressed Maria, "Your powers are indeed amazing for someone your age, but do you really think you can take us all on? Just come quietly; I promise we won't hurt you."

Maria replied with a light smile, "I understand your concerns. But as I said, I have my reasons. And I won't back down."

As the standoff continued, Maria prepared her next technique. "Luminous Burst!" she declared, gathering an immense amount of light energy into a single point before releasing it in an explosive wave.

The impact sent shockwaves through the area, cracking the ground and rippling energy outwards. The Elders were thrown off balance, some unable to maintain their footing as the air turned against them.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Maria invoked her defensive technique. "Prism Shield!" A radiant barrier enveloped her, deflecting incoming attacks and providing her with a momentary break to plan her next move.

Elder Zhen sighed but knew they needed to act decisively. Stalling this out was pointless. "Focus your energy! We must overwhelm her!" he shouted, rallying everyone to combine their strength.

As they converged their powers, Maria felt the surge of energy building against her. Knowing she couldn't withstand a collective attack, she prepared her most dazzling and deceptive technique. "Radiant Myriad Reflections!" she exclaimed.

In an instant, the battlefield was filled with countless mirrors. Tapping her fingers on the air, she unleashed another round of [Radiant Abyss Barrage] that mixed both normal and corrupted Light Qi.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

In an instant, dozens of disciples blew up and were disintegrated upon contact as light beams bounced around the sky, reflecting off the countless mirrors forming.

As time passed, the attacks only became faster and more destructive as they kept reflecting off the mirrors. The weaker disciples tried to move away, but like a puppet master, Maria remained hidden within her array of mirrors, controlling everything.

Everyone was clad in lightning armor as they bounced around the aerial battlefield. They even chained their lightning together, attempting to destroy the mirrors that kept appearing, only for half of them to end up being illusions.

Even Maria's body seemed to always be an illusion, with countless lightning bolts piercing her numerous figures and afterimages, only for them to dissipate.

"Dammit! Catch this woman!"

"We can't! Whenever we lock onto her position, it's either a fake, or she's already dodged!"

"Fuck! Where'd this bitch come from!?"

"Enough!" Elder Zhen shouted. "If we can't find her, then let's just destroy everything!"

"Good call, Elder Zhen!"

"Well said!"

The Elders all charged up their large-scale attacks before unleashing them.

"Heaven's Wrath!"

Countless lightning bolts from all directions converged on a singular point in the midst of the battlefield, destroying everything, including Maria's mirrors. When the energy reached a breaking point, a second explosion burst out, shaking the sky and earth.

As the attack cleared the illusions, revealing her location, Maria seized the moment. "Now!" she whispered to herself, emerging from her hiding spot. With a swift motion, she unleashed a focused beam of light, aiming directly at Elder Zhen.

Caught off guard, Elder Zhen barely managed to deflect the attack, but the force behind it sent him reeling back, his defense finally showing cracks.

Maria, seeing the impact of her strategy, prepared for the final blow. She gathered all her energy, her aura blazing with an intense light that rivaled the sun itself. "This ends now!" she declared, her voice echoing across the battlefield.

With a final, determined step, she unleashed her ultimate technique: "Celestial Radiance!" A torrent of pure, blinding light burst forth, enveloping the battlefield and consuming everything in its path.

The Elders, despite their strength and numbers, could not withstand the overwhelming power of Maria's light. One by one, they were enveloped, their forms silhouetted against the brilliant glow, before being swept away by the tide of energy.

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