Surviving the Magic Academy With Just Intelligence Stats-Chapter 42: Back to Square One

Minghua charged forward, her graceful movement belying the deadly intent behind her strike. The Spider Queen, though still dazed, managed to deflect her initial downward slash with one of its chitinous limbs. The blade scraped against the monster’s natural armor with a sharp screech that echoed through the forest.

As the creature retaliated with a powerful swing, Minghua demonstrated a stark contrast to Hualing’s earlier berserker style. Where Hualing had been all fury and forward momentum, Minghua moved like water, flowing away from the attack with calculated precision. Her blade work transformed the brutal business of combat into an elegant dance, each movement purposeful and refined.

From his position tending to Marcus’s wounds, Ambrose couldn’t help but observe the familiar patterns in Minghua’s swordplay. His perception and Mind’s Eye ability caught every nuance of her technique, and the similarities to Marcus’s style were undeniable. The same foundational forms, the identical rhythm in the footwork – it was too precise to be coincidental.

"Of course," Ambrose thought as he applied a healing salve to Marcus’s injuries. "This must be why Marcus’s swordsmanship seemed so refined – he learned it from Hualing’s ancestor in his previous life." This revelation seemed to explain so many of his earlier suspicions about Hualing. He had wondered how someone so unstable could possibly be related to the main character – it all made sense if she was actually hosting an ancestral spirit. That would mean that the one shown in the cover wasn’t actually Hualing but rather her ancestor.1

The battle continued as Minghua executed a precise thrust toward the Spider Queen. The monster, proving craftier than expected, instantly deployed a spray of webbing that ensnared her blood-forged blade. A brief contest of strength ensued, but Minghua, recognizing her disadvantage, made a tactical decision. She released her grip on the sword, causing the Spider Queen to stumble backward from its own pulling force.

With elegant poise, Minghua extended her hand toward the monster and snapped her fingers. The trapped sword instantly reverted to its liquid state, seeping through the sticky webbing like crimson rain. With a fluid gesture of her hand, the blood reformed into a deadly constellation of crystalline daggers, which she launched at the creature’s cluster of eyes.

Though the Spider Queen managed to shield itself with its foremost limbs, three of its eight eyes were still pierced by the deadly projectiles. The monster reeled backward, its movements becoming erratic as the berserk state that had empowered it began to fade. Its massive form shrank rapidly, condensing to half its original size.

But the horror wasn’t over. The Spider Queen’s abdomen began to twist and contort unnaturally, bulging in impossible ways before finally rupturing in a grotesque display. Hundreds of smaller spiders poured forth from the breach, scattering in all directions like a living flood of nightmare fuel.

Minghua responded instantly, morphing her blood into a long whip. With precise strikes, she began decimating the smaller spiders, each swing turning clusters of them into crimson mist. She moved methodically, ensuring none could escape – particularly toward Ambrose’s position, which she guarded with special vigilance.

However, the continuous use of her blood-based abilities was taking its toll. Having already expended significant blood earlier, she could feel her stamina waning. A knowing smile crossed her face as she activated one of her new abilities:

[Blood Communion](S) - Enables rapid recovery and enhancement through blood absorption. The user can absorb blood through touch to restore health and enhance their physical capabilities. The blood of their lord is exceptionally potent, providing 10 times the normal recovery rate and temporarily boosting all stats by 50%. Common blood provides minimal benefits, while blood from powerful beings offers moderate enhancement. Excessive use of this ability on normal blood can lead to temporary blood frenzy.

…

The scattered blood from the battlefield began to defy gravity, rising from the ground in crimson streams. It all flowed toward Minghua, who absorbed it with visible delight. Her cheeks flushed with pleasure as the power coursed through her veins.

"Yes, this feeling..." she whispered, before her voice rose in exultation. "This is it!" She leaped skyward, and the blood followed her ascent like a loyal servant. Standing on a platform of suspended blood, she commanded it to spiral around her hands, condensing and crystallizing into an ever-expanding disk until it formed a perfect chakram, its edges gleaming with deadly promise.

With practiced precision, she began to swing the weapon in wide, devastating arcs. Each sweep carved through the air with terrible efficiency, eliminating roughly a hundred of the smaller spiders with every pass. As she descended back to the ground, she continued absorbing the blood from her vanquished enemies, maintaining a constant cycle of destruction and replenishment.

However, her expression grew serious as she observed the Spider Queen, which showed no signs of slowing its grotesque production of offspring. While Minghua was confident in her ability to maintain this war of attrition, she was wary of consuming too much "dirty blood" – the risk of entering a frenzied state was too high.

"I’m not sure if this body can really handle it, but here we go," she muttered to herself. "Isn’t it supposed to be immortal? Let’s put that to the test, shall we?" She brought her hands together in a prayer-like gesture, closing her eyes to focus her power. The sounds of scurrying spiders surrounded her, but she remained perfectly still, achieving complete calm.

The most uptodate nove𝙡s are published on frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓.

When her eyes reopened, they had transformed into pools of pure red. A halo of crystallized blood materialized above her head, completing her otherworldly appearance. Her voice, when it came, was unnaturally soft and devoid of emotion.

"Blood Domain:..." she began, but never finished.

"We can’t have that now, can we?" A masculine voice whispered beside her ear. Every instinct screamed at Minghua to dodge, but her tactical mind made a split-second assessment – if this individual had managed to approach so closely while she was in her enhanced state, evasion would be pointless.

Instead, she activated another skill, confident that her combination of Blood Domain and newly awakened talent’s defensive abilities would protect her, even against an A-rank opponent:

[Blood Armor](B) - Creates a protective layer of hardened blood around the user. This living armor can automatically respond to attacks, strengthening weak points or extending to block incoming strikes. The armor gradually consumes the user’s blood to maintain itself and repair damage. When severely damaged, it can be instantly restored by consuming a large amount of blood at once.

As the protective blood began to form around her, Minghua turned her head to face her attacker. Their eyes met for a brief, terrible moment – just long enough for her to register his menacing smile – before his hand made contact with her body. The blood armor hadn’t even finished materializing when his strike connected, instantly reducing her to a fine crimson mist that scattered on the wind.

A/N - rip

A/N - alr bud. On a serious note, I just realized that Ambrose’s "narrative identity formation" (idk) is to the extreme, almost to the point of being straight up delusional. I should probably explore his character more.