The Ministry of Magic's relentless opening offensive caused Thunderbird to waver for a moment. He immediately cast a Cloud-Conjuring Spell, attempting to obscure the attackers' vision.
Bird Snake, standing beside him, was greatly alarmed and glanced resentfully at his partner. "Damn it, didn't you say this was foolproof? How did we get surrounded at the pickup location and lose nearly half our men at the very start?"
Indeed, the Auror teams had been sharp from the get-go. In an instant, ten of the thugs responsible for transport were incapacitated, a result even smoother than Alan and his team had anticipated. As the thick fog began to rise, the various Auror teams immediately converged according to Alan's deployment. Several captains cast the Hurricane Curse, attempting to disperse the mist before it could settle.
By this point, many of the smugglers had reacted and begun to retaliate. However, because the Aurors had adopted a defensive contraction, the spells aimed at their original positions either missed or were easily blocked.
Bird Snake knew the situation was dire. Immediately after the battle began, he threw a dark leather pouch, emitting a faint black mist, onto an open space nearby. This was a treasure given to him by Lord Phoenix before he arrived with Thunderbird, and he hadn't expected to be forced to use it so soon.
"Corpse Revival!" Bird Snake roared, shooting a pale white beam of magic at the pouch.
The black leather pouch erupted with a powerful magical reaction. The mist intensified, and the opening loosened into a dark void. Immediately after, with a heavy thud, Inferi surged out from the hole. These creatures were dark-faced, emaciated, and resembled animated corpses. They immediately charged toward the Aurors. While their movement was not fast, their numbers were overwhelming; dozens appeared in seconds, and more were still pouring out of the black pouch.
The Aurors, who had just cleared the fog, were shocked to find a small army of the dead suddenly appearing before them.
"Use Incendio and the Shattering Spell! Be careful not to get scratched; they carry corpse poison!" Mavis shouted. She had already broken through to the floating magic carpet with her four-person team.
"Incendio!" "Boneshatter!"
The Aurors reacted instantly, casting fire and force spells. The magic was remarkably effective. The Inferi, oozing dry fluids, ignited instantly upon contact with fire. Their physiques were fragile compared to living humans, and the Shattering Spells reduced them to splinters of bone and rot.
Mavis's performance was particularly valiant. With her three companions, she quickly pushed back the enemies around the magic carpet and seized control of the transport vehicle. She held the line like a nail, while the other teams maintained their formations around her. However, the Inferi were simply too numerous. Soon, over a hundred were rushing toward them, turning the battle into a desperate struggle for ground.
But where were the two high-level combatants of the Silver Spears?
They had been targeted the moment the battle began and were completely unable to support the smugglers. As the chaos commenced, Thunderbird, enraged that his meticulously planned operation had been so easily compromised, channeled his magic to unleash a massacre.
However, several exceptionally sharp cutting spells flew in from the flank with a series of sharp whistles. The attack interrupted Thunderbird's casting and forced him to turn, waving his wand repeatedly to deflect four Sectumsempras aimed directly at his vitals.
As he deflected the spells, he felt a jolt of surprise. The power behind them was extraordinary; they were incredibly fast and possessed a terrifying intensity. This was no ordinary cutting spell. Thunderbird looked through his fog-piercing mask and saw a young man dressed in a dark formal suit with silver trim. A dazzling thundercloud hovered above the boy's head as he rushed straight for him.
"It's him?" Thunderbird recognized the young alchemist from the Silver Lightning Trading Company. He hadn't expected his Fiendfyre trap to fail, and now the boy was brazenly challenging him.
Thunderbird noticed the magic surging from the young wizard was astonishing. The thundercloud above him continuously struck the ground with lightning. In the short distance he covered while rushing over, three collaborators had already been struck down by his bolts, their bodies emitting black smoke.
"Good kid, you're ruthless. Since I couldn't kill you before, I'll kill you now to vent my anger!" Thunderbird faced Alan, swinging his wand violently and unleashing two extremely powerful evil curses. By their sheer volume, these curses were far larger than ordinary spells.
Alan, charging ahead, was seething with rage. The feeling of being targeted in his own home was not something he would let slide. He had locked onto this scoundrel from the start. As the two powerful curses approached, Alan showed no panic. He waved his wand in a tight arc, and with two heavy bangs, he deflected the trajectories.
One spell crashed into a rock on the cliff edge, sending fragments flying. The other struck a smuggler, exploding upon contact and instantly shattering the man's arm, leaving him wailing in agony.
The splashes of blood and stone had no effect on Alan. He stared intently at Thunderbird, his narrowed eyes reflecting his focus. He had held nothing back, and he knew his opponent hadn't either. If those spells had hit a test target, they would have scored at least three or four hundred points.