The Power of Belief

"Luo Wei?" Ophelia blinked in confusion. "What exactly is happening? Did you figure something out?"

"Of course!" Luo Wei sneered at Carlton, even chuckling to himself. "You claim to have studied in this dump for sixteen years, but what have you actually accomplished? From the basic magic sigils to the incantations, and even the casting methods—everything is laughably wrong! Is this how a 9th-circle spell like [Soul Torrent] is supposed to be used?"

"Let me teach you what real magic looks like!" Luo Wei immediately glanced at Ophelia.

She knew he was about to cast a spell, but her expression betrayed her lack of confidence. "If we let magic manifest again, he might corrupt it..."

"Trust me," Luo Wei met her gaze firmly. "When have I ever been wrong at a time like this?"

After only a brief hesitation, Ophelia chose to believe him.

"Alright."

Luo Wei forcibly gathered mana, pushing beyond his usual limits, and unleashed a [Soul Torrent] straight at Carlton.

His version of [Soul Torrent], limited by his level, looked more like a leaky faucet—thin and unimpressive compared to the terrifying display from the witch.

But at least it was a proper "circle" spell.

The moment he cast it, the surrounding darkness surged, clearly indicating Carlton's attempt to corrupt Luo Wei's magic again.

Luo Wei quickly shot Ophelia a look, and she instinctively cut off her domain's influence.

"See? This is how 'circle' magic is supposed to work."

Luo Wei actually began lecturing Carlton in a dead-serious tone. "First, your mana storage organ needs to accumulate enough energy, then the incantation guides the resonance of the magic sigils. Any proper magical academy teaches this stuff... And the higher the circle, the more exaggerated the resonance power of the sigils becomes, allowing you to tap into this 'miracle force.' Lastly—"

"Shut up!" Carlton hurled another spell at him.

"This one’s wrong too. Let me tell you, the finishing stage should never be done like this—it’s a surefire way to trigger backlash..."

Ophelia stared in stunned silence as the two exchanged spellfire...

During this time, Eleya, at Luo Wei's request, didn’t lift a finger to help.

Yet somehow, Luo Wei managed to hold his own against Carlton in a back-and-forth duel...

As she watched, a realization slowly dawned on her...

"Ophelia, do you see it now?" Luo Wei shot her a quick glance. "That guy doesn’t actually know anything. He’s no grandmaster who’s fused all these extraordinary powers! When it comes to the arcane and the supernatural, he’s just regurgitating book knowledge and filling in the gaps with his own delusions! A hack like him probably knows less about mysticism than I do!"

"Magic is simple—you either know it or you don’t. He’s never successfully cast a single spell in his life. He doesn’t have the ability, you get it?"

"We see the witch studying magic every day. Now look at him—he can’t even get the simplest incantation right. It’s all jumbled, full of holes!"

Luo Wei blocked another surge of Carlton’s mana and continued mocking him. "No wonder your spells looked so weird earlier, old man. What kind of act are you putting on? Is this how you’re supposed to use this? Mana eruption is a mage’s last resort in life-or-death situations, and you’re just throwing it around like it’s nothing? You trying to drop dead on the spot?"

"Shut your mouth!" Carlton roared, bombarding Luo Wei with spells, but gradually, the magical surges around him weakened.

"I’m doing you a favor here! Shouldn’t you be thanking me for saving you from becoming the laughingstock of the magical world?" Luo Wei laughed. This tactic was called "knowledge corruption"—an attack on the cognitive level.

He’d been puzzled by one thing.

If Carlton claimed to be an omnipotent deity within this domain...

With power like that, why didn’t he just summon a bolt of lightning to strike him dead or conjure 114,514 trucks to run him over?

Because he couldn’t.

Like he said before, everything in the Dreamlands wasn’t pure imagination—it had to follow real-world logic.

In Carlton’s "anti-magic domain," he could only pretend to wield magic, divine arts, and other supernatural abilities...

And that was the key to breaking through.

"Ophelia! Do you understand now?" Luo Wei turned to her urgently. "Don’t fear him. The core of the domain lies in 'confidence'—in crushing his will completely!"

"That’s why I covered your ears earlier. I didn’t want him to keep undermining your self-belief. All that crap about being an arbiter, about ideals—it’s all fake! He’s just a power-hungry narcissist! Everything he’s done is to eliminate anything that threatens his control. How dare he say you’re inferior to him? You have to believe that in the future, you, me, Tilis, Eleya—the new world we’ll build together will be far greater!"

Eleya blinked in surprise beside him. "Wait, me too? Aren’t I your enemy?"

Luo Wei ignored her and kept encouraging Ophelia. "Believe in yourself! Don’t hesitate, don’t be afraid. No matter what happens, I’ll always stand behind you!"

"I..." Ophelia murmured. "Can I really do this...?"

Her gaze drifted to Carlton II, whose furious, lion-like eyes were locked onto her without blinking.

"Ophelia, I’m giving you one last chance!"

His voice was a guttural snarl.

"I’ll release you from the domain. Leave this place, leave Saint Callen. I won’t hold you accountable for anything!"

"The coup in the Royal Capital has nothing to do with you. None of this concerns you. Just walk away, and you can go wherever you want, do whatever you please—you’ll be free!"

"Haven’t you always wanted freedom?"

"Wasn’t your dream to escape my control, to break free from the Royal Capital’s cage and live as you wished?"

"Well, now I’m giving it to you!"

Carlton’s roar echoed through the endless darkness, vibrating painfully in their ears, hearts pounding.

"Only now, at this point, do you make such an offer..." Ophelia smiled bitterly. "Don’t you think it’s too late?"

"It’s never too late! Nothing is more important than survival. Just go, and you’ll live!"

This time, Luo Wei didn’t interfere with Carlton’s attempt to manipulate Ophelia, even though he knew exactly what the man was doing.

Ophelia covered her own ears.

What meaning would there be in living alone?

Even if she left the Royal Capital, even if she gained freedom—it wouldn’t be the freedom she truly wanted...

In the silence of her own making, she stared calmly at the enraged Carlton. And in that moment, she knew—she could do this.

It was precisely because of his guilt that he grew so furious, so desperate to make promises.

To put it in Luo Wei's favorite words—he was...

panicking.

The corners of her lips slowly curled into a faint, composed smile.

With Ophelia at the center, the boundless darkness trembled violently, her domain momentarily overwhelming Carlton's.

An overwhelming force surged in all directions, even piercing through the darkness and spilling into the real world.

The vast Haiglitze Palace, its grand architectural complex, collapsed in waves, the thunderous tremors felt even kilometers beyond the palace grounds.