by Zhuang Bifan
Hutton was the first to be shocked. He shot a cautious glance at the gigantic pit, and saw all scales and hideous face. There were also two horns on the head, a pair of wings on the ribs, and a pungent smell of sulfur. What could it be other than an Aztek that was close to level-20?
However, this Aztek was lying there lifelessly. Its c.h.e.s.t had been pierced through by a Frost Dragon Gun. Fresh red blood oozed out of its wound profusely…
"Oh God…" Hutton exclaimed; his jaw dropped. 'Profound' was the only word he could use to describe the abilities of President Felic. How could he kill a level-18 with just a single strike? It seemed that Senior Adelo was not exaggerating, after all.
"Hutton, how much longer can your magical equipment work?" Lin Li asked without even looking at the Aztek in the pit.
An Aztek that cast the Fire Rain would have three to five seconds of mana depletion. In that three to five seconds, its magic abilities and defense mechanism would be at their weakest. If his Frost Dragon Gun was unable to kill the Aztek with one strike, he should just pack his luggage and return to Jarrosus for retirement immediately.
"Five more minutes." Hutton's heart skipped a beat when he heard President Felic's question. The fact that he was asking about the 'magical equipment' and not the 'spell' meant that he had seen through him. The blue projection he had used did not require mana. It was magical equipment that had been passed down for generations in the Malfa Family.
What a sharp eye President Felic has…
"Very good." Lin Li nodded his head, and did not say more. He secretly transmitted a bit of mana into the source of mana of the mageweath array.
The introduction of this wave of mana lit up the level-10 magical crystal. Then, the entire Maze Mageweath Array transformed into a gigantic whirlpool as it tried to absorb the mana within the level-10 magical crystal…
Under normal circ.u.mstances, such a Maze Mageweath Array would require an astronomical amount of mana and a magical crystal of at least level-18 to function. The mana within a level-10 magical crystal would be depleted within five minutes.
However, that was sufficient for Lin Li. From the start, he'd never thought of giving the optimal conditions for the mageweath array to function. That was the second pit Lin Li had dug.
The first pit helped to punish Stephen, while the second one would function to kill the group of Azteks. Five minutes should be enough…
After one Aztek was struck by the Frost Dragon Gun, close to 10 Azteks were spreading their red wings and rushing towards the forest.
They found the three humans as soon as they landed. To the evil beings that lived in the Abyss, any living beings that did not belong to the Abyss were considered their enemies. They only knew that killing the intruders of the Abyss would make their powers stronger.
That was a battle between the hunter and prey. However, they would only know who was the hunter and prey after the battle. There was neither verbal communication nor psychological tests needed. It was the most primitive and brutal battle from the beginning. It started off with the growl of the biggest Aztek, which signaled the 10 other Azteks to spread their wings. They swooped towards the three young mages like a boiling wave.
"We only have five minutes," said Lin Li as he prepared his Frost Dragon Gun. What followed was the fall of one of the Aztek in front.
However, the Frost Dragon Gun did not kill the Aztek in a single blow this time. After all, it was an Aztek above level-18 that was not undergoing the depletion of mana. This allowed it to use its Flame Shield against the Frost Dragon Gun. Although the Frost Dragon Gun was powerful, it would be close to impossible for the Frost Dragon Gun to pierce through the Flame Shield right away.
A thunderous "POM!" erupted as the Frost Dragon Gun collided with the Flame Shield. There was a bunch of dazzling sparks, while the Aztek in the front line had to slow down. Lin Li made use of the opportunity to mutter all his recitations. Immediately, there were three walls of ice standing on the ground that was filled with blazing flames.
These three walls of ice were harder to deal with as compared to the Frost Dragon Gun…
Compared to the Frost Dragon Gun that could be countered by the Flame Shield, these walls of ice obstructed their way. They had to use Pyroblast on the walls before moving forward.
Time was required for them to cast the Pyroblast.
The three young mages would never win against the Azteks with their physical strength. Not to mention Hutton and Stephen, even a Smithing Master like Lin Li, who had the strength close to a level-15 Warrior, would never be able to wrestle with an Aztek. However, it would be another story if he were to use magic…
It was a fact that the three young mages standing here were the top mages in the entire Felan Kingdom. If they had sufficient space and time, the lethality of their spells could definitely be described as 'shocking'.
Thanks to Lin Li's three ice walls, Hutton and Stephen won precious time to cast the spells. Immediately, there were sounds of abstruse and mysterious recitation. The raging magical elements were like tidewater that acc.u.mulated at their sides.
The Thousand Miles of Ice and Winter Horn were unleashed very quickly. At that instant, the surroundings were like a snowy scene. The ground froze within a diameter of 100 meters. The blazing fires were extinguished immediately, and there were huge snowflakes falling from the sky. While the icy ground was firmed up, it trapped the few Azteks that were closest to the ice walls…
The Thousand Miles of Ice was the most powerful spell among the others below level-20. Its effects were amplified with the support from the Winter Horn. It was beyond imagination. Although the Azteks had Flame Shields on their bodies, they were unable to respond to it quickly.
After the Thousand Miles of Ice succeeded, Hutton and Stephen grew more unreasonable. They continuously cast Frost Spears onto the Azteks that were trapped by the ice.
If it was before, such a level-12 spell would never be able to harm Azteks that were above level-18.To them, the Flame Shield would only turn the Frost Spears into itches on their body. Unfortunately, the goal of these Frost Spears was not to kill these Azteks, but to trap the Azteks in the firm ice…
Although they were only level-12 spells, Hutton and Stephen were casting them instantaneously. They aimed dozens of Frost Spears on the Azteks in every single strike. No matter how firmed up the ice was, there would always be the moment it would crack.
"Crunch…"
That was a gentle sound in that intensive battle. However, what followed was terrifying results. As the first crack appeared in the ice that trapped an Aztek, more appeared. These cracks deepened like drain tunnels…
"POM!"
The moment the firm ice shattered, the frozen Aztek burst into pieces. Red pieces of flesh stuck within the ice looked rather striking in the midst of a snowy area…
However, after one of their kind died, the other Azteks used Pyroblast to shatter the ice walls. Hutton and Stephen had to stop the recitation of the Thousand Miles of Ice and utilize different types of magic spells to control the scene. Among the many spells, there were the Earthbind Spell, Blood-vine Spell, and the Thorny Entanglement…
The battle became fierce and entered a stalemate. There was constant spell casting to control the situation. Hutton and Stephen were so engrossed that they did not realize that the youngest mage had not been doing anything after he established the three ice walls. Instead, he cast the Levitation Spell and hovered 10 meters up the sky. He looked as though he was waiting for something…
Lin Li was indeed waiting.
He was waiting for Hutton and Stephen to provoke these Azteks further so that they would transform into Live Bombs.
The effect of the Maze Mageweath Array would be maximized the moment they turned into Live Bombs. It did not require all of the Azteks to transform, though. As long as one or two did so, it would be sufficient for Lin Li to kill them in the gigantic pit.
In reality, Lin Li did not wait too long. The opportunity came three
minutes after the death of the first Aztek.
The inability to break away from the magic control of the humans finally agitated the biggest Aztek. Its loud growl made the other Azteks seem as though they were high on drugs. They started to cast the fire spells that were innate to them.
Flaming Storm, Hell Fire, Fire Rain, Pyroblast… At that instant, the entire forest turned into a flaming world…
Chapter 452 - Explosion
The strength in numbers created a great destruction. The ground that was still frozen started to burn. Dragons of fire growled amidst the pouring Fire Rain. The flames created a Six-pointed Star Array that seemed to have a crimson glow. At a glance, it seemed like the entire world was on fire…
The magic attack that was close to madness made Hutton and Stephen incredibly exhausted. They had no choice. The attack was too intense. The Earthbind Spell, Ice Wall Spell, and Blood-vine Spell lost their effects in that battle. They did not have the time to expand the spells before being engulfed by the flames of the Fire Rain…
"Stephen, this doesn't work…" Hutton said in a low voice as he cast another wall of ice. There was a distinct worry on his pale and exhausted face.
"You should say that to Felic instead…" Stephen enforced the ice wall with great difficulty. There were beads of sweat on his forehead. While he said that, he took a glance back that Lin Li, who was in the air. There was a disdainful tone in his voice. "That coward created all this mess himself, but he is now hiding up there with the Levitation Spell like a tortoise. Hmph, I am interested to see how he is going deal with these Azteks alone when we use up our mana…"
"Maybe… Maybe President Felic is still trying to figure things out…?" Frankly speaking, Hutton was guilty when he replied. Although Stephen was irritating, he was not talking nonsense this time. President Felic did not do anything after he used the Frost Dragon Gun. Instead, he was levitating in the air quietly…
Could it be that he is really planning an escape? This is the Abyss of Tharlen. Even if he wants to leave, where could he go?
"Figure things out? Cut the crap. If he had a way, he would get rid of these Azteks. Does he need to hide so far away like a coward?"
"Erm…" Hutton opened his mouth to defend Lin Li, but could not find any words. He could only take a long sigh and put his focus back to the battle at hand.
A minute passed. Two minutes passed. Three minutes… Four minutes…
The battle was going on for close to five minutes.
After another ice wall was broken by the Pyroblast, the ice shards darted like angry bullets. This time, however, the Aztek that smashed the ice wall stopped its magic attacks. It rolled up its red body. Immediately, the tidal-like fire elements around the Azteks bubbled vigorously like boiling water…
It's here! Lin Li prepared himself the moment the Aztek rolled itself up…
Lin Li moved to the top of the ice wall like a black streak of lightning. What followed was a "ZUK!" as a Frost Dragon Gun that had been prepared long ago bolted out…
"BOOM!"
That was an earth-shaking sound.
The unlucky Aztek got shot by the Frost Dragon Gun the moment it turned into a Live Bomb. The vigorous fire elements within its body had nowhere to go, so it exploded on the spot.
The effects of a Live Bomb could be described as terrifying. The explosion of this Aztek shattered down the seven ice walls immediately…
The seven ice walls were painstakingly established by Hutton and Stephen, who spent most of their mana on them. In the earlier battle, it required at least 10 Pyroblast to break one wall. Now, however, one Live Bomb was enough to knock down seven of them.
The mages turned pallid.
Sh*t…
The effects of the explosion were not what Archmages of level-19 could handle. As long as they had not reached the Legendary-realm, no mage could survive such a horrific explosion without a Magical Domain.
The seven walls of ice were supposed to delay the Azteks for a while. They did not expect them to shatter instantaneously with such a terrifying explosion. Now that a great portion of their mana had been drained, and that the only thing they could rely on had been turned to smithereens, were they going to use their magic staff to fight the Azteks physically?
"What now?"
Hutton and Stephen looked at each other anxiously after the thunderous explosion.
The group of Azteks was in shock as well. Although their intelligence was not any higher as compared to the normal magical beasts, they were clear on the present situation: one of their kind used a Live Bomb, but did not kill anything. Instead, it only knocked down a few walls of ice…
Very quickly, the biggest Aztek let out a ferocious growl…
As compared to its previous growl, it was clearly filled with fury and madness. Three humans had made them lose three of their kind. For the leader of the Azteks, it was beyond tolerance. It had decided to eliminate the three humans regardless of what it would take.
Immediately after the growl, five out of 10 Azteks curled up their wings. Then, fire elements in the entire Abyss of Tharlen vibrated vigorously. Both Hutton and Stephen could very clearly feel the energy of the balled-up Azteks increasing exponentially. It rose from level-18 to level-19, then from level-19 to close to the Legendary-realm…
Damn…
The anxiousness in their eyes turned into hopelessness. The explosion from the five Azteks that were dangerously close to the Legendary-realm was a terrifying thing that Hutton could not bring himself to even imagine. That was a force that could lead to the end of the world, not to mention if the force were to hit him. The aftermath of the explosion would suffice to turn him into broken bones.
Just when he was in despair, there was a gust of wind that approached him. Hutton turned to see President Felic land by his side slowly.
"Mage Felic, what are you doing…?" Hutton froze. He could not fathom the thought processes in the dude's mind. He could have left the battleground with his Levitation Spell anytime. Why would he want to approach at such a critical moment?
"Don't ask so much…" Lin Li interrupted Hutton with a wave is his hand. He wasn't interested in what Hutton was thinking about. "Can you use that magical equipment for another time?" Lin Li asked with a hurried voice.
"Sure."
"That's great," Lin Li replied as he let out some of his mana…
The mana was entering the source of the Maze Mageweath Array. As this wave of mana entered, the dull-colored source of mana lit up. There was a dazzling glow of light, and the mana within the level-10 magical crystal flowed through the Maze Mageweath Array at once.
Each magic node lit up as the mana flowed through it. As each magic circuit was activated, the true force of the high-level mageweath array finally got unleashed.
Then, Hutton's and Stephen's expression froze.
They suddenly saw that the several Azteks that were dangerously close to the Legendary-realm suddenly turned against one another. They were eyeing their own kind with a glare that was filled with craze and despair.
"What the f*ck are they doing…?" Hutton gaped.
It was like a dream. One of the Azteks pounced towards its own kind… No, no, no. Not only one. That instance, all of the Azteks started to battle each other. Two of the Azteks even forgot the rank between demons and pounced on that biggest Aztek…
Could this be the work of President Felic?
The thought of that possibility created cold sweat on Hutton's forehead. That force… is too scary…
The ability to let his enemies turn against themselves made him more demon than demons…
"What are you waiting for? Quick, use your magical equipment now."
"O-oh!" Lin Li's voice ascertained Hutton's suspicion.
However, Hutton did not dare to ask more. Sometimes, it wouldn't be good to know too many secrets. His curiosity about President Felic's secrets might make him a suspicious person…
It would be good to maintain their present relationship. It had
improved greatly as compared to before. Although they were not close, Hutton had the confidence that he would be able to let the Malfa Family form an alliance with this powerful man.
With that in mind, Hutton transferred some mana into his bangle. It called up the Blue Shield which covered the three men securely.
Immediately after the earth-trembling sound, the mountains and ground started to tremble. A mushroom cloud that created infinite heat waves shot up to the sky. Hutton could feel the warmth through the Blue Shield.
The aftermath of the explosion lingered for a while. When the three men opened their eyes again, the forest had already been changed beyond recognition. There wasn't one intact leaf within 100 meters. Even the ground beneath their feet appeared as though it had its top layer ripped off. The soil and ashes that flew in the air that was mixed with the thick and heavy smoke seemed like gray clouds.
"That's too scary…" Hutton muttered in a shaky voice. The fear on his face was not one that could be concealed. If he did not have the protection from the family's bangle, a tiny bit of repercussion from the explosion was sufficient to turn him into smashed bones.
Even though the bangle was a hand-me-down, Hutton could not help but smile bitterly as he glanced at his right wrist, where was the bangle that had been passed down for four generations. The Crescent Bangle was supposed to defend the wearer against critical blows on the Legendary-level, yet it was damaged by that one explosion…
"What a pity…" Hutton slowly removed his bangle. However, his expression did not match his words. As the first heir of the Malfa Family, he knew something better than common mages: life was everything. Any powerful magical equipment would be an idle talk if lives had been lost.
"It is really a pity…" Lin Li agreed. He knew very clearly how the massive explosion earlier on was made up of five Azteks that were above level-18. It was a force that could destroy everything. The combined force of the Lich at the Scar of Death and the Humerus Wyrm would not have been able to rival it. Although Hutton's bangle only protected them from the aftermath of the explosion, it was already considered good magical equipment.
