by Zhuang Bifan
They thought, They're so shameless, especially that Undead creature. Not only did he rush to get the gains, he actually shapeshifted into bats to take everything away. After the bats gathered together, they quickly scooped up the magical crystals and handed them over to the shameless human mage, without feeling any guilt at all.
Actually, they weren't there for the magical crystals, anyway. However, they found Lin Li's and the Vampire's behavior to be overboard. If you want the magical crystals, you can attack the magical beasts. You're both Legendary powerhouses, is it that difficult to deal with the magical beasts?
After more than half a month, the elves felt increasingly disgusted with Lin Li. They were both intelligent races, but why was the difference so great? However, some elves dared not show their disp.l.e.a.s.u.r.e, because it was not only the instructions of their superiors, but also because they really needed Lin Li's help.
After entering the depths of the Haiga Mountain Range, those powerful magical beasts were indeed a great threat to the adventure team. However, the genuinely lethal threat actually came from the magical beasts which seemed unassuming on the surface. In fact, their power did not allow them to be qualified as magical beasts.
Toxins and curses were some of the very tricky weapons that magical beasts were born with. In the deeper areas of the Haiga Mountain Range, where life was forbidden, the magical beasts that had survived relying on toxins and curses definitely had unimaginable power.
Low-level antidotes would be of no use here. Even the high-level potions prepared by the elves in advance didn't have that great of an effect. At this moment, they finally realized how important the annoying human mage was.
Although Lin Li did not take initiative to attack the magical beasts, and even got Norfeller to snatch the gains, he would never hesitate to help any poisoned humans or elves. Of course, the only reason he could be so magnanimous was because the herbs were all supplied by the elves.
Under such circ.u.mstances, no one dared to say anything; no one could guarantee that they wouldn't get poisoned, either. Everyone knew that the young mage Lin Li could turn against the elven elders for the sake of his Undead creatures. Offending him would be akin to losing their chance to live. If they were to get poisoned, the consequences would be far greater than losing just a few magical crystals.
The elves did not know much about Princess Elune and the rest getting poisoned, nor did they know what kind of a price they had paid to get Lin Li to help. However, the fact that the eighth elder had personally sought help from a human was shocking enough. In the opinion of several elves, the price of sacrificing one's pride could not be balanced by anything else.
Finally, after more than half a month of hard exploration, the exhausted adventurer team came to a cliff, which was one of the places that the elves claimed to be a clue. It was also a landmark mentioned in the humans' treasure map.
After clearing and driving out the surrounding magical beasts, the team began to set up tents. All of them truly needed a break at this time, be it humans or elves, though they only had very little time to rest. While setting up the tent, the main figures proceeded to look around the cliff in a bid to see what clues they could find.
In such a place, the average person would no longer be able to complete the investigation work, even if he was a Legendary powerhouse, for the outcome would be miserable, and they would end up being eaten by the beasts. Hence, if they wanted to understand the situation and find clues, it could only be done by several Legendary powerhouses.
"Master Felic, the situation seems to be unfavorable," Cheyenne said with a frown after arriving at the cliff.
Unfavorable? It's terrible! Lin Li was actually clearer than the rest that there was a strong Menace of the Dragon coming from the bottom of the cliff because he had a deeper experience than several other Legendary powerhouses. Not long ago in the valley, he had a battle against the projected avatar of the Elemental Wyrm. Not to mention, Xiao Hua that was living in Dream Garden in his ring needed several magical crystals a day for it to be appeased.
With a sullen expression, Borg said, "It's the Menace of the Dragon. Is there a wyrm below this cliff?"
Lin Li shook his head, and said, "It is the Menace of the Dragon, but there's more than just one wyrm." He could feel how complicated and powerful the Menace of the Dragon was, thus indicating that the source of it was more than just one wyrm.
Of course, it was uncertain if that was a good thing. Whether it was a wyrm with a strong Menace of the Dragon or a few wyrms with a weaker one that were harder to deal with was a subjective issue.
However, Lin Li's words attracted the attention of Elder Randy, who shot him a peculiar glance. After all, it was not an easy task for Legendary figures to sense the Menace of the Dragon deeply, because as long as a wyrm appeared, it would definitely be above the Legendary-realm. Hence, the Menace of the Dragon had a great impact on Legendary figures.
Several Legendary powerhouses stood silently on the cliff, calculating the possibilities in their heads. Although they had encountered many powerful magical beasts along the way, ordinary magical beasts could not compare to wyrms at all. At this point, no one was willing to back out, but they had to consider how to deal with the numerous wyrms that possibly existed below the cliff.
The bottom of the cliff was shrouded in thick mist, making it impossible for them to see anything. They could all tell from the Menace of the Dragon that the wyrm that was exuding it definitely was powerful—above the Legendary-level. It also had extremely high magic resistance, physical defense, natural talent, and Dragon language magic. Even if the mage was of the same level, he definitely wouldn't be able to attack it, let alone kill it.
Although this adventure team was composed of the elites of all forces, and was extremely powerful, they would have to pay a painful price to obtain victory. Not to mention, they still had no idea how many wyrms there were in total. Even if they were to send out all subordinates, there might not be a desirable effect.
Feeling concerned, the crowd returned to the camp to discuss what to do next. However, they had an advantage which was also rather perplexing—there were very few magical beasts there, perhaps because of the Menace of the Dragon. Even magical beasts of the same level and strength would be affected. Not to mention, there was apparently more than one wyrm below the cliff.
Upon returning, Elder Randy first sent a few teams of elves to go out and reconnoiter around the place. The existence of the Menace of the Dragon actually made the place less dangerous than elsewhere; hence, the elves could look around safely.
Actually, the problem that they were now facing was how to get to the bottom of the cliff and how to deal with the wyrms that could possibly appear. Be it from the clues found by the elves or the ones in the humans' treasure map, they could deduce that the Immortal King's treasure had something to do with the bottom of the cliff.
In fact, Lin Li was much more certain than anyone else because his debris of the stars allowed him to sense that Thunderbolt was somewhere below the cliff.
However, getting to the bottom of the cliff was indeed a problem that they had to think about. Although Legendary-mages could fly, they still had no idea how tall the cliff was. Besides, they might encounter the attacks of wyrms along the way.
Due to the fact that Legendary-mages used plenty of mana, most of their battles would be conducted in the air. It could be said that fighting in the air was not difficult for them. However, the dense fog under the cliff was difficult to explore even with mental strength. If one wanted to fight in such an environment, there would at least be mental suppression handicapping them by half. If they were to encounter a wyrm at that time, they might really die.
After some discussion, they still did not find a good solution; hence, they had no choice but to wait for the reconnoiters to come back in hopes that the latter would bring some news that they could discuss and develop a few options.
The team rested for two days near the cliff. Due to the M
enace of the Dragon, they were not bothered by any magical beasts in those two days. It could be said that they had a good rest. Although the Menace of the Dragon also had a certain influence on humans and elves, it only radiated naturally, and was not suppressing the humans. That was the difference between the intelligent races and magical beasts.
Finally, a team of elves returned with good news. They explored along the cliff and found a road that seemed to allow them to make a detour to the bottom of the cliff. However, the strength of the team was limited; hence, they had yet to explore the way in detail. Not only were there terrifying beasts along the way, there were also poisonous gases all around them, as well as a mysterious power that limited all the nature magic.
However, the piece of news still made them feel rather energized. Elder Randy rewarded those elves before discussing the route with the humans.
According to the news brought back by the elves, it would be basically impossible for a large team to enter. Lin Li analyzed the poisonous gas that they had collected and found that it was not feasible to formulate an antidote for it, even though it was not as difficult to deal with as viper's poison. However, the Legendary-level poison could remain hidden in the body.
Chapter 625 - A Flight Of Dragons
The first thing that could be determined was that only the Legendary powerhouses could step into the poisonous gas and explore the path. Not to forget, there was a force that restricted Nature Magic. In other words, Druids had to be excluded. Hence, there were very few people who could explore the path.
"Is there anything else you guys would like to add to the issue of candidates?" After roughly shortlisting some participants for the expedition, Elder Randy decided to ask for the opinions of the humans.
Borg looked around and turned to look at Elder Randy again. "My son, Stephen, may have yet to reach the Legendary-realm, but he has a special physique that makes him immune to poisonous gas. Let him tag along."
Hearing that Borg, the spokesperson of the Dark Blade had mentioned Stephen, Lin Li turned to look at him and realized that he seemed to be hiding something. Everyone knew how dangerous that path was, and the poisonous gas was only one of the many dangers.
However, Lin Li did not probe, since Borg wanted his son to tag along. He turned to look at the elven elder, and calmly asked, "Elder, since there's a force there that restricts Nature Magic, you guys… You're a Druid, right? Miss Elune should be a Druid too… "
Actually, that path was not the only dangerous one; many other areas in Haiga Mountain Range contained forces that would restrict and suppress Nature Magic. However, the deeper into the range, the weaker the force would be compared to the borders.
Elder Randy smiled, and said, "Mage Felic, don't worry. We have a solution for this problem, though it's going to be rather troublesome and we can't use it on a large scale. Otherwise, the Haiga Mountain Range would have really become ours."
As long as he could take care of himself, there would be nothing to worry about. Lin Li immediately expressed his approval of the list of candidates, after which Borg and the rest followed suit.
Lin Li was definitely included on the list, together with his follower, the Vampire Norfeller. Although Norfeller had yet to reach the Legendary-realm, he was just a step away from it. Besides, as an Undead creature, he definitely had a strong resistance towards poison.
Next was the Lich Ujfalusi, who had arrived later. Although he was not outstanding in terms of power, he was definitely capable since he could summon a Humerus Wyrm.
Apart from Lin Li and his followers, the other humans included Cheyenne, the only Legendary-mage of the Malfa Family, the three Legendary-realm leaders of the Dark Blade, and Borg's son, Stephen. For the elves, it would be the Legendary-realm Druids, Chief Elder Randy and Princess Elune, as well as Culofen and Gildor who had once asked Lin Li to help them.
After some serious preparations, the team formed by Legendary figures swiftly sped in a certain direction according to the information provided.
Due to the influence of the Menace of the Dragon, there were no obstacles along the way, and the team soon arrived at the place found by the reconnoiters. Under the shroud of green mist, they saw a road that extended downwards, all the way into the deeper areas of the mist. Actually, it was not a pathway, because it was surrounded by plenty of strange rocks on the ground even though it was spacious, which meant that it might be affected by poisonous fog. Plants were scarce too. Some vaguely visible magical beast skeletons could be seen in the mist, and amongst them were some strong and fearsome magical beasts that they had once dealt with.
"Elder, this is the place," said the elf who had been leading the way.
At the moment, the elven scouts still could not deduce if they could make it to the bottom of the cliff. After all, with their current abilities, they still could not delve deeper to explore. However, according to the direction of the path, they could roughly deduce that it was likely possible to reach the bottom of the cliff.
The reconnoitering elves were sent back, and the Legendary powerhouse team was getting ready to delve into the fog. However, before they got ready to enter, Elder Randy reminded, "We have come all the way, and we have not encountered any magical beasts yet due to the influence of Menace of the Dragon. However, we must still be very careful whilst in this poisonous mist. According to the investigations we've done over the past centuries, some of the magical beasts are very fond of highly poisonous environments, and such magical beasts are often very scary."
Just because there was some deterrence provided by the Menace of the Dragon, it did not mean that one could brave the poisonous fog without any surprises and dangers. Since humans and elves could suppress their fear towards the Menace of the Dragon, not all magical beasts were afraid of it, either. Besides, while the fog might be intensely poisonous and could only be resisted by Legendary figures, to some magical beasts, it was delectable like fresh air to humans.
Some magical beasts were naturally born with fire attribute; hence, they mostly enjoyed environments with abundant fire elements. Meanwhile, the magical beasts with water attribute mostly lived in rivers and seas. Hence, it was no surprise that the magical beasts whose innate ability was related to poison liked to be shrouded in poisonous gas. Even though there was still the Menace of the Dragon nearby, they wouldn't mind taking the risk for the sake of poisonous gas.
Everyone there was a Legendary powerhouse, and could be considered knowledgeable. Hence, after hearing Elder Randy's reminder, everyone nodded in unison. Although Legendary figures could resist against the poisonous fog, it did not mean that they could resist the magical beasts. If they were to be attacked because of their own carelessness, they would be in deep trouble.
After entering the foggy area, everyone felt that their vision was hindered, thus depriving them of the ability to look at distant objects. Every Legendary powerhouse was keeping his guard up and slowly making his way to the deeper areas.
Although the Legendary powerhouse team was made up of four factions, they formed an inverted triangle. The four Legendary powerhouses of the elven family were in charge of one of the corners, while the three Legendary powerhouses of the Dark Blade and Stephen took charge of another. The last was then supported by Lin Li, his followers, and Cheyenne.
The reality proved that Elder Randy's previous worries were not uncalled-for. The team actually met an obstacle not long after entering the fog.
More than a dozen giant scorpions in emerald shells suddenly plunged out of the ground and through the rocks. The claws of the giant scorpions were almost the size of a human, and their shiny shells were as smooth as mirrors. The weakest amongst them was actually level-16, and two of them were already close to the Legendary-realm.
The Dark Blade's corner was severely pressured as the four of them were surrounded by seven scorpions, two of which were the strongest. The rest that were scattered all over proceeded to attack the elves, Lin Li, and the rest.
These giant scorpions wer
e actually not that rare, and the adventurers often ran into them in deserts. The giant scorpions in the outside world were not too formidable, for they were at most level-10 or so. Level-15 ones could be considered the Kings of Scorpions.
Yet, the giant scorpions here were much more powerful, perhaps because of the nourishing abilities of the poisonous fog. Be it aggressiveness or their defensive abilities, they were definitely terrifying and poisonous.
Lin Li continued to act in his usual style, and remained unfazed by the incoming giant scorpions as if they were just illusions. Cheyenne had no choice but to sigh and wave the magic staff in his hand to take down the giant scorpions.
However, Lin Li was not exactly unconcerned about the situation. He shifted his gaze onto the members of Dark Blade, who were fighting the giant scorpions. Although he had already gotten along with Dark Blade for a period of time, the other two leaders apart from Borg seemed to be rather mysterious. Lin Li had no idea what kind of powers they had, but he knew that they gave him a terrible feeling.
Everyone knew that cooperative relationsh.i.p.s formed because of benefits often meant that the partnership would end when the benefits were obtained. When that happened, it would be akin to giving one's life to others.
Although the three Legendary leaders of the Dark Blade had been taking action and contributing along the way, Lin Li could tell that they did not go all out. However, at this point, it was uncertain if they could continue to hold back their powers. The giant scorpions thrived in the outer borders of the poisonous gas, and they were unsure if there would be no stronger magical beast as they delved deeper. If they were to really face wyrms at the bottom of the cliff, could those leaders continue to hold back?
Out of the four cooperating parties, Lin Li was definitely the weakest one; hence, he had to consider plenty of issues because the other three parties definitely had reasons to attack him. The Malfa Family was not exactly reliable. Lin Li still held three of Geresco's relics. How could Cheyenne not covet them? Didn't the elves similarly want their Star-scarred Robe back?
