"Hiss hiss."

The fifth layer of the overlapping Runic Magic Circles intertwined with the flames from Merlin's Condensed Fire. Both were comparable in power, so neither could triumph over the other. Right now, Merlin had put all his power into Condensed Fire, so it was already almost at the peak of a Sixth-level spell.

However, it was still not enough. The fifth and final layer of the overlapping Runic Magic Circles did not give any indication of yielding and even managed to rebound a few fireballs of Condensed Fire at Merlin.

"Crack."

Merlin's Perfect Armor finally cracked apart due to the force of his own spells. Sure enough, even Perfect Armor was unable to withstand the attack of Condensed Fire.

Fortunately, Merlin was very familiar with Condensed Fire and kept the Flame Maxim active in his Awareness, so any Flame-type spell surrounding him would be suppressed. Therefore, he only suffered minor shocks to his body. Since his body was strong and powerful, those minor shocks were negligible.

"Sure enough, it hasn't broken!"

Merlin's face sank slightly. He ignored the minor injuries on his body and glared fiercely at the final Runic Magic Circle on the square door. It was still unbroken.

Wizard Effidel approached him slowly with a smile on his face. "Young Spell Caster, you should feel lucky enough. I definitely didn't expect that you were hiding such a powerful Pandora Demon Ability. The Runic Magic Circles left behind by the Great Wizard Fidel have almost been broken by you!

"I'll tell you honestly then. Forcibly breaking these five layers of overlapping Runic Magic Circles will need powers that exceed the peak of a Sixth-level spell. Although your Pandora Demon Ability is very strong, you can only reach the peak of a Sixth-level spell at best, so it will not be sufficient to break the fifth layer Runic Magic Circle!"

As the guardian spirit of the sixth floor, Wizard Effidel was naturally well-versed with the obstacle.

"Powers that exceed the peak of a Sixth-level spell?"

Merlin mumbled under his breath. Powers that exceeded the peak of a Sixth-level spell might sound similar to a Seventh-level spell, but Merlin knew that they were not the same.

Beyond the peak, there was something known as the "ultimate limit". However, the ultimate limit was not easily achieved by all Spell Casters. Most Spell Casters could only construct spells up to the peak of the Sixth-level. In order to achieve the ultimate limit, the constructed spell must be able to incorporate elements such as Pandora Demon Ability, Enhancement casting tools or even mysterious runes.

"No matter what, I still have to try!"

Merlin narrowed his gaze as he affixed his stare at the final layer of Runic Magic Circle on the square door. A terrifying aura started to rise around his body and surrounded him.

"Oh? Don't tell me that he's actually capable of powers that exceed the peak of the Sixth-level?"

Wizard Effidel was somewhat taken aback. Powers that exceeded the peak of the Sixth-level was notoriously difficult to achieve, not to mention that Merlin was merely a Third-level Spell Caster. Even a true Sixth-level Spell Caster would rarely possess the amount of power required to exceed beyond the peak and reach the ultimate limit.

Therefore, it was extremely difficult, to the point of unthinkable, for a Spell Caster to reach the ultimate limit. It would require a Spell Caster to successfully combine multiple aspects and elements in order to possess powers exceeding the peak of the Sixth-level. In other words, to exceed the peak powers of the Sixth-level was even more difficult than being promoted to a Seventh-level Spell Caster.

"If he actually ends up breaking the entire Runic Magic Circles by force, then what should I do? Should I let him progress to the seventh floor or is it counted as a defeat? Sigh, this quandary is giving me a headache. Why didn't the Great Wizard Fidel anticipate that a situation like this might happen?"

The internal conflict within Wizard Effidel was of course not felt by Merlin. At this time, his focus was wholly concentrated on mobilizing the Fire-type Magic Power inside his body.

The Third-level spell, Condensed Fire which was infused with Collapse Fire might only possess the peak power of the Sixth-level, but after every three spells, there was a window of opportunity for him to cast a stronger, enhanced version of the spell.

Despite this opportunity, Merlin had never used it. This was because very few had been able to withstand the attack of Collapse Fire, so there was no reason for Merlin to use the stronger, enhanced spell.

However, the situation was different now. If Merlin failed to break the final Runic Magic Circle on the square door, then his tower conquest would be considered a failure. His conquest would end on the sixth floor, exactly like Kleis.

Faintly in his heart, Merlin too, had a desire to compare himself with Kleis. Therefore, he had a strong desire to surpass the sixth floor and enter the seventh floor of the Runic Tower. At least then, he would be the first Spell Caster to set foot on the seventh floor of the Runic Tower!

Nonetheless, even Merlin himself was not entirely confident whether he possessed enough power to exceed the peak and reach the ultimate limit of the Sixth-level.

"Condensed Fire!"

Around Merlin, strong raging flames began to rise and burn ferociously. The pale white flames appeared exceptionally terrifying, especially the small fireball floating between his hands. The fireball appeared to be continuously absorbing the surrounding flames into its small body.

This was the enhanced version of Merlin's Condensed Fire. He could clearly feel that the fireball in his hands had been compressed tightly to its limit.

The composition of Condensed Fire was basically made up of a continuous compression of flames. The more flame power it compressed, the more powerful the resulting explosion would be. The ordinary Condensed Fire released by Merlin also contained compressed flames, but he could feel that their compression had not reached their limits.

Now that Merlin had used the enhanced version of Condensed Fire for the first time, he discovered that there was a limit to the amount of compression that could go into the spell. Only when the flames had been compressed to its limit, then its power could be maximized.

Therefore, it would be wise not to be easily fooled by the small fireball which was floating in front of Merlin. Even though its size was smaller than Condensed Fire, the power contained inside was even stronger than ten ordinary Condensed Fire combined.

"Go!"

Merlin locked his gaze and used his Mind Power to guide the path of Condensed Fire. With a small hum, it transformed into a sharp ray of white light and flew toward the Runic Magic Circle on the square door.

"Boom!"

The small fireball slammed violently against the big door, especially on the final remaining layer of the Runic Magic Circle. Mysterious runes began to rapidly float in front of the Runic Magic Circle in a futile effort to subdue the pale white flames.

However, the small fireball that Merlin had released with all his might packed a truly powerful punch that could not be subdued by these runes. In an instant, a fire erupted and engulfed the entire square door.

From the outside, Merlin could no longer see what was happening clearly. All he could see was a strong raging wall of flames burning ferociously before him. He used his Mind Power to check the Runic Magic Circle on the door.

"Crack."

Suddenly, a crisp loud noise sounded on the square door. Merlin's face instantly changed, and he heaved a long breath of relief as if releasing a huge burden.

"It's finally broken. The power that exceeds the peak, the ultimate limit... It turns out that I have already possessed the ultimate power limit of a Sixth-level Spell Caster!"

Merlin laughed in glee. He had managed to break the Runic Magic Circles by force and defeated the challenge on the sixth floor! He would be progressing to the seventh floor, so he had won the indirect showdown with Kleis!

"You… You've actually broken the Runic Magic Circle? Powers that exceed the peak of Sixth-level – that's the ultimate limit of a Sixth-level spell!"

Beside him, Wizard Effidel's eyes and mouth were wide-open, a stunned look displayed on his face.

Wizard Effidel was conflicted. If Merlin broke the Runic Magic Circles by force, would his victory still be considered a victory? Did he conquer the challenge of the sixth floor?

According to the rules of the Runic Tower, it would be acceptable to award the conquest to Merlin. However, according to the original intentions of the Great Wizard Fidel, the Runic Tower was meant to select Spell Casters who were proficient in runes to continue his legacy. Therefore, Merlin's actions of breaking the Runic Magic Circle by force did not comply with his rules, so it should not be regarded as conquering the sixth floor. This question posed a dilemma for Wizard Effidel.

Seeing that Wizard Effidel's expression was torn, Merlin's heart sank a little. In a low voice, he whispered, "Wizard Effidel, what's the matter? I've conquered the sixth floor. Please open the door to the treasure chest."

Merlin knew that the square door was fully controlled by Wizard Effidel. Only after the guardian spirit had determined that Merlin had succeeded in conquering the sixth floor, then he would open the door and allow Merlin to receive one of the treasures left by the Great Wizard Fidel.

Upon Merlin's urging, Wizard Effidel gritted his teeth fiercely. "Fine, I don't care anymore. I'm the guardian spirit around here. According to the rules, as long as someone manages to break through the sixth floor regardless of the method used, I must open the treasure chest door and let him claim his treasure."

Merlin had succeeded in cracking the five-layered Runic Magic Circles, but it was done via forceful destruction rather than a deep understanding of runes. This went against the original intentions of the Great Wizard Fidel.

Regardless, he did in fact, defeat all five layers of Runic Magic Circles, so it was in line with the challenge set by the Runic Tower. Therefore, as the guardian spirit, Wizard Effidel could not help but acknowledge that Merlin had conquered the sixth floor.

With that in mind, a smile appeared on Wizard Effidel's face. "Congratulations, young Spell Caster. You're the first Wizard in the Dark Magic Region to conquer the sixth floor. Hence, you can choose a treasure on the sixth floor! Do remember, however, that you can only pick one item."

"Rumble."

Subsequently, with a wave of Wizard Effidel's hand, the big square door slowly rose up.

Merlin was staring intently behind the door. According to Wizard Effidel, there was more than one piece of treasure on the sixth floor that was left behind by the Great Wizard Fidel. Even though he knew that he could only choose one, it would be enough to attract the envy of many Spell Casters.

After all, any treasure left behind by the greatest rune master would not be ordinary. Therefore, Merlin's heart was brimming with anticipation.