<h4>Chapter 420 The Exit</h4>


    Bam!


    Vale dodged the preemptive attack of the Evil Creature, leaving a hole in the ground… The Creature''s ability seems to be rted to an invisible energy attack.


    Even with his Phantasm State, he barely noticed the attack until it was almost at his body.


    ''Is this meant to be defeated by fourth-year students?'' Vale silently thought, but he didn''t stop moving.


    A faint shadow was released from his body before it hit the Creature''s shadow… This all happened without being noticed by the Creature itself.


    Just like that, the Shadow Muttion Spell was activated. Now, he only needed to cut the Evil Creature''s shadow to end its life.


    "Grrooowl~"


    The Evil Creature seemed to have sensed Vale''s threat as it tried to avoid a direct confrontation.


    However, Vale didn''t allow that to happen. In a decisive moment, he drew forth his sword.


    Vale knew he couldn''t waste a lot of time if they wanted to quickly finish this Labyrinth. The de gleamed with an otherworldly radiance as if infused with the very essence of lightning and darkness.


    It was the Stormbringer Sword!


    Philip was able to recognize it as his eyes widened in surprise. ''He brought it with him?!''


    With a surge of determination, Vale swung his sword with all his might, cleaving through the Evil Creature''s malevolent form.


    The air crackled with energy as the de connected, passing through the Creature''s body.


    Thud!


    Just like that, the Evil Creature fell lifeless to the ground. Not even a minute had passed since they entered the Cavern!


    Maya and the others stood in stunned silence, their minds racing to process the incredible disy of power before them.


    ''Whoa~ Was the sword that powerful?! I didn''t know about that… That''s probably worth more than a million zen…'' Philipmented in his mind as he saw Vale trouncing the Evil Creature.


    They had been prepared to unleash their strongest Dark Spells, yet Vale had effortlessly dispatched the Evil Creature with just abination of speed and a single swing of his sword.


    "What in the world was that technique?" Crystal eximed, her voice filled with astonishment.


    "I didn''t even know he was carrying a sword… Where did thate from?" Luna added as she failed to see how Vale suddenly held a sword in that brief moment.


    "T-that was…" Maya was also unable to answer as she couldn''t recall where Vale could be hiding that sword


    Nevertheless, she noticed that Vale didn''t seem satisfied with the separated body of the Creature. They saw him kneel beside it and touch its head as if to savor the ugly sight of dead Evil Creature.


    ''What is he doing? Is it a ritual?''


    Maya and the others, including Steven, who was hiding, all had the same question in mind.


    Vale stayed there for a few seconds before standing up with a satisfied smile on his face.


    Maya couldn''t help but frown at this as she shifted her focus to the dead Creature''s face, curious why Vale looked happy.


    ''Ew~''


    The demonic face was terrifying, with blood oozing on its orifices… Its red eyes were even open and seemingly looking at her. She would probably have a nightmare because of this.


    ''Did he feel satisfied after looking at that face for a while?'' Maya didn''t know that Vale had such a hobby. She could only shake her head in disappointment.


    ***


    Outside the Labyrinth, a vibrant atmosphere filled the air as a multitude of people gathered to witness the winners of the intensepetition.


    The Labyrinth''s exit was surrounded by a grand gallery filled with spectators eagerly awaiting the emergence of the students. Excitement crackled in the air as the anticipation grew with each passing moment.


    The audience gallery was a sprawling structure elevated above the ground, providing a perfect vantage point for onlookers to witness the students'' triumphant arrival...


    The seats were filled with family members, friends, and supporters of the various academies, their eyes fixed upon the stone entrance, ready to catch a glimpse of the emerging participants.


    Adjacent to the audience gallery was a designated area for the students who had sessfullypleted their run through the Labyrinth.


    This section provided a temporary resting ce for the participants, allowing them to catch their breath and bask in the victory of their aplishment.


    It was a bustling scene, with students from different academies mingling, sharing stories of their experiences, and eagerly exchanging nces to gauge the strength of their fellowpetitors. After all, this wasn''t the onlypetition where they would meet.


    Among the groups gathered in this area, Princess Ceres Millton and her fellow Holy Arts Academy students could be seen enjoying their refreshments.


    Thud!


    Suddenly, a group of students came out of the stone door. The eyes of the students in the resting area immediately shifted to the group that had justpleted the contest.


    "We did it!"


    "Hahaha! How long was it?" The students eximed in joy.


    The spectators also cheered for these students from the Mortimer, Academy of Transformation Arts.


    Then, the Labyrinth Official announced the time they took to escape the Labyrinth.


    38 minutes.


    Hearing this, the students hugged each other as they felt satisfied with the result.


    "Huh? They''re already happy about that?"


    Ceres couldn''t help but ridicule them. He couldn''t help but feel confused as to why they would have such a reaction to a terrible result.


    Anyway, she didn''t think much of it as she knew that her group would win this contest.


    The other 10 Arcane Academies had alreadypleted their runs, leaving only the Farrel Academy and Vermont Academy groups still inside the Labyrinth of Secrets.


    "It''s our win…" Rizza, a fellow 4th-year student from the Holy Arts Academy, eximed with a sense of relief after seeing that Mortimer had taken such a long time to reach the exit.


    After all, Farrel Academy had always been a strong contender in this contest, often securing either the third or even the first spot in previous years.


    "I guess we have to keep winning all the other contests from now on…" Ceres muttered as she felt that it would only be appropriate to win all the contests in their batch.