Two level-17 high-ranking warriors and four Bandits above level-15. Even if it was a Legendary magical beast, it would have a hard time, not to mention this level-17 Red Leopard.
Hence, Lin Li rubbed his nose and retreated to the side with ease …
Compared to the bloody battle in the distance, Lin Li was more interested in the middle-aged mage who had similarly concealed his strength. This was a true master of disguise. Even in such a chaotic situation, he could still disguise himself very well. There was a hint of panic that could not be concealed in his expression. Lin Li even heard him chanting a few incantations wrongly.
Of course, an Archmage at the peak of level-17 could not chant incantations wrongly …
Lin Li pursed his lips, and muttered, "Pretty good disguise, but too bad luck …"
The entire battle only lasted for a few minutes. The Red Leopard broke through the ice wall, and was stabbed in the heart by Reggie. Then, everything ended. That level-17 magical crystal fell into Reggie's pocket. This was an unwritten rule between Adventurers. If two groups of Adventurers participated in a battle at the same time, the one who dealt the last blow would obtain the most precious spoils of war.
Less than two hours after the death of the Red Leopard, this advance party stepped into the Scar of Death.
There were steep mountain walls on both sides, and the dark brown soil under their feet felt wet and slippery when they stepped on it. Faintly, there was also a pungent smell. Looking up, the sky above their heads seemed to be especially dark. On the Blackstone Mountains, the Scar of Death was like a wound cut by a sharp blade, and it was always filled with a thick smell of blood.
The first impression that the Scar of Death gave Lin Li was desolation. The steep mountain walls on both sides were like a cage, separating the Scar of Death and the Blackstone Mountains into two completely different worlds. The ground under their feet seemed to have died, and the dark brown soil constantly emitted a dilapidated aura. Although the canyon was extremely wide, it gave people a sense of oppression when looking at it. Lin Li knew that this was because the colors in this canyon were too monotonous. It was forever dark, just like the sky before a storm. There were no clear ponds, nor were there any green plants. There was only black soil, and occasionally, eerie white bones exposed outside the soil …
"According to the map, it should be this way …" Johnathan took out the map from his pocket, and after gesturing for a long time, he finally pointed in a direction with certainty.
However, even he couldn't help but swallow a mouthful of saliva after he finished speaking …
In front of them was a mountain wall that looked as though it had been chopped by knives and axes. The only paths were the cracks on the mountain wall, and a natural fork in the road was placed in front of everyone. The three roads looked rather sinister, but the one that Johnathan pointed out was the most ghastly. At first glance, they could see piles of white bones on the black land, some of which belonged to humans, and some of which belonged to the Demonic Hand. At the side, there were countless rusty weapons and armor, some of which even had faint magical waves. Looking at all this, even a fool could imagine how much blood had flowed on this black land, and how many tragic battles had happened on this road …
"Erm, Brother Felic, do you think we should go in?" Johnathan stared at the white bones, and couldn't help but stare blankly.
"It looks very dangerous …" Lin Li couldn't help but swallow his saliva. This time, he really wasn't putting on an act. This road was indeed very dangerous. Perhaps what others saw were the white bones and the tragic battles between humans and magical beasts for thousands of years, but apart from that, Lin Li saw something else …
To Lin Li, this aura was extremely familiar to him. In the trial at the Shadowglen, in the underground palace at the Demon Fall Valley, and on top of the bell tower in the ruins of Syer Town, there was a similar aura. Indeed, this was the unique death aura of Undead creatures. However, the death aura here was much stronger than what Lin Li had seen before …
To be honest, Lin Li felt a little guilty. Even Ujfalusi did not have such a powerful death aura when he was at his peak. Besides, it was in a place as sinister as the Scar of Death. Who knew what was hidden behind the powerful death aura?
"I really don't know what Young Master Hutton is thinking. How could he send a bunch of trash like you? If you're afraid of death, just hide at the back. Don't be a hindrance with that map …" Lin Li and Johnathan hesitated, and couldn't decide whether to go in or not. Finally, Adelo's two bodyguards became impatient.
Both of them were level-17 high-ranking warriors, and had the terrifying strength to tear magical beasts apart with their bare hands. At this time, they walked forward with a look of disdain, and pushed Lin Li and Johnathan to the side with just a light push. Especially Lin Li, a mage with a weak body, who staggered a few steps back. If not for Johnathan's support, he would have fallen to the ground and made a fool of himself.
"It's always good to be careful …" Lin Li, who was almost pushed, was not angry, and only smiled awkwardly.
"Careful my a * s. Can being careful make a living?" The bodyguard with the greatsword on his back laughed coldly. "If you're afraid of death, get lost. The Malfa Family doesn't keep useless people."
After saying that, the two of them did not care about Lin Li's expression. They protected Adelo on his left and right, and walked out of the canyon that was filled with white bones. To two level-17 high-ranking warriors, a level-10 Magic Shooter was not much stronger than an ant. If they wanted to, they could crush him with a finger at any time. So what if they pushed such a small character? Who would care about his expression?
"Brother Felic, are you alright?" Johnathan's face was filled with concern. The strength of a high-ranking warrior was not to be trifled with. Even he was pushed to the side easily. This young mage seemed to be rather weak, and he did not know if he was injured anywhere …
"I'm fine." Lin Li smiled. Although he was not a high-ranking warrior, he was a true Blacksmith Guru. His body had been tempered by the furnace and the hammer. How could he be injured from a light push? In fact, if he was not willing, even a level-17 high-ranking warrior would not be able to push him away so easily.
The reason why he had retreated so pathetically was because he wanted to give way to these two fellows …
This was not like queuing up to collect money, where whoever rushed to the front would get more. On the contrary, this was the Scar of Death where danger lurked everywhere. Whoever rushed to the front would be more likely to be attacked by magical beasts.
"I can't even avoid it. Only an idiot would fight with you …" Lin Li smiled obscenely as he looked at the backs of the two high-ranking warriors.
This smile was a little strange. Johnathan and Reggie could not understand it at all. They could only guess that this young mage was agitated by something. Norfeller and Ujfalusi understood, but to these two cold-blooded Undead creatures, it did not matter who died. As long as the young mage did not die, they would not even bat an eyelid if the others died.
Only Rina rolled her eyes at Lin Li in disdain. If Mentor Englos knew that the genius pharmacist he spoke of was actually such an obscene person, who knew if he would roll his eyes in anger …
And reality proved that Lin Li's obscenity made sense. The road ahead was not smooth. The advance party had only entered this fork for less than 10 minutes, and they had already encountered their first battle since entering the Scar of Death.
That was a pack of over a hundred Shadow Wolves …
Those who had not experienced it personally would never understand what it felt like to be surrounded by 100 Shadow Wolves in the evening. Their green eyes were like phosphorescence in the night, and it made one's scalp go numb just by looking at them. The level of the Shadow Wolves was not too high. They were only level-11 or level-12. Even if Lin Li and Adelo pretended to be level-10 Magic Shooters, they could kill a few of them without any trouble, and not have to worry about exposing their abilities.
However, no matter how low-level the magical beasts were, they would become rather terrifying when there were many of them. This was the conclusion Lin Li had made when he was attacked by hundreds of Three-eyed Blood Wolves in Alanna.
This conclusion was also applicable in the Scar of Death. When hundreds of Shadow Wolves swarmed in from all directions, the scene was really creepy. The bodies of the half-undead and half-magical beasts were like clouds of smoke in the night, and normal attacks could hardly kill them. In the legends, they were monsters that were formed from the resentment of wild wolves after they died. They were born with the ability to be immune to physical damage, and in order to kill them, one had to use weapons with elemental power, which was the so-called magical weapon …
Magical weapons were rare, especially for powerless adventurers. It was even more difficult for them to get their hands on a good magical weapon. Otherwise, Jason wouldn't have spent all his savings on a rune adamantine longsword, and had no choice but to accept a mission like the one in the ruins of Syer Town that he would never have accepted in the past.
There were two high-level Warriors. One of them was holding a scimitar and the other was a greatsword. Both of them were considered good magical equipment. The elemental power on the scimitar and greatsword happened to be ice and fire. Under the control of the two powerful Warriors, the elemental power of ice and fire was exerted to the limit. Almost none of the Shadow Wolves could get within five meters of them. Amidst the aura that seemed to have substance, the blue and crimson lights were incomparably gorgeous.
Lin Li and the rest also had a few magical weapons in their hands, such as Norfeller's Heaven's Wrath Dagger, and Rina's Blade of Glory that never left her side. Unfortunately, they could not take them out now. An Adventurer with a magical weapon would easily attract attention, not to mention low-level Adventurers like them. If they really took them out now, even if they managed to eliminate these Shadow Wolves, they would still scare Adelo half to death.
As for Johnathan, Reggie, and the rest, the weapons they used could barely be considered sharp weapons. They were sharp, but they were worlds apart from real magical weapons. At most, they could be sold for three to five thousand gold coins in a weapon shop. Naturally, they were not enough to deal with the Shadow Wolves …
But this was not a problem for Lin Li. He searched his pocket, and quickly took out a few scrolls.
"Each of you take one of these scrolls. Just activate them with your Combat Energy."
"What scroll is this?" Johnathan took one of the scrolls with a puzzled expression.
"An enchantment scroll for the Flaming Blade. It can give your weapon the power of flames, but it can only last for an hour. After an hour, the power of the flames will disappear."
"Oh my god …" Johnathan was so shocked that his hands trembled, and he almost dropped the enchantment scroll on the ground.
"Shh … Don't make a sound. I stole it from Teacher …" Lin Li was afraid that this guy would make a fuss, so he could only tell a lie.
"Oh …" Johnathan heaved a sigh of relief. How could a level-10 Magic Shooter like Brother Felic get so many enchantment scrolls? Although enchantment scrolls were not permanent, they were still very expensive in the market. A Flaming Blade scroll like this would cost at least ten thousand gold coins. Furthermore, one could not complain that it was expensive. It did not matter if one did not buy it — there were plenty of people waiting to buy it. For an Adventurer, an hour of enchantment could very well save their life at a critical moment.
It could not be helped. This was the market for magical items. If it was a magical weapon or a permanent enchantment, the price would be frighteningly high. It could easily cost hundreds of thousands of gold coins, and even millions. Adventurers who were not at the level of Jason and Emendas did not even have the right to ask about it.
But, it should make sense that it was stolen from Teacher …
Seeing that Brother Felic was a level-10 Magic Shooter despite being in his twenties, Johnathan knew that Brother Felic's teacher was most likely an Archmage, and a top level-17 or 18 Archmage at that. Otherwise, he would not have been able to teach such a young and promising disciple.
"Brother Felic, will you be in trouble like this?" But, after coming to a realization, Johnathan showed some worry. In the eyes of an Adventurer who had not seen much of the world, mages were the weirdest bunch of people in the world. They locked themselves in a cold and quiet tower, and studied mysterious knowledge that no one but themselves understood. Year after year, day after day, such a boring life had already ravaged them into perverts. Furthermore, the older and stronger they were, the more perverted they would be. According to this line of thought, Brother Felic's teacher must be a perverted fellow who could not be more perverted. If he found out that the enchantment scrolls were stolen, would he use Brother Felic for magic experiments in a fit of rage?
"Don't worry, my teacher has a lot of such enchantment scrolls. If we secretly take a few, he will definitely not find out …" Lin Li comforted Johnathan against his conscience. He had no choice, he was too embarrassed to tell Johnathan that yes, that old man Andoine did have a lot of enchantment scrolls, but they were all given to him by him …
With the addition of Johnathan and the rest, the situation of the battle immediately changed. Although there were many Shadow Wolves, they were ultimately only at level-11 or level-12. In the beginning, they could still rely on their half-undead half-magical beast bodies to tangle with them. Now, there were suddenly five new forces, and all of them were holding sharp magical weapons. Fire magical element was originally a power that Undead creatures were most afraid of other than light magical element. When the five weapons that were enchanted with Flaming Blades were brandished, it was simply a massacre for the Shadow Wolves.
The number of Shadow Wolves was decreasing. Even the dumbest person could see that the advance party was not far from victory.
But at this time, Lin Li kept frowning.
Although these 100-odd Shadow Wolves did not bring much danger to the advance party, it confirmed Lin Li's previous guess that the most dangerous thing in the Scar of Death was not the crazy magical beasts, but the Dark Force that made the magical beasts crazy …
This was because Lin Li knew that the Shadow Wolves were actually not monsters that were born from the resentment of dead wolves. They were just ordinary Three-eyed Blood Wolves, or wolves that were weaker than the Three-eyed Blood Wolves. However, there must be a powerful wolf king in a pack of Shadow Wolves. This wolf king could even be said to be their father. Because of the existence of this wolf king, they could transform from level-5 Three-eyed Blood Wolves to level-11 or 12 Shadow Wolves.
The wolf king of the Shadow Wolves was called the Ghost Wolf.
The Ghost Wolf was just a name. When it was alive, it could be a Three-eyed Blood Wolf that was no more than level-5, or a Night Demonwolf that was at least level-15. But when it returned to the embrace of death and was controlled by the Dark Force, it only had one name, and that was the Ghost Wolf …
The Ghost Wolf was a true Undead creature. In essence, it was even purer than Norfeller, the Vampire, and Ujfalusi, the Lich. This was because both Vampires and Liches still retained some characteristics from when they were alive. If they were careful, they could even live like normal humans.
But the Ghost Wolf was different …
Only the purest Dark Force could give birth to such a terrifying monster like the Ghost Wolf. They might retain some of their memories from when they were alive, but those were only instincts from the soul fire. Turning into a Ghost Wolf meant that they became a completely different existence.
Every Ghost Wolf had the strength of at least level-18 when they were born. Not only were they proficient in all kinds of Necromagic, but they also had a strange body that was half Undead and half magical beast. This strange body gave them unparalleled strength. In this aspect, even Norfeller, the Vampire, could not compare to them.
Indeed, Norfeller was a powerful person who could tear the Ice Howler apart with his bare hands. However, Lin Li believed that if he did not use the Heaven's Wrath Dagger, even Norfeller would not be able to do anything to the Ghost Wolf. This was because the Ghost Wolf's body was in between reality and illusion. Just like the Shapeshifter in the Nightmare Mountains, it was an existence with form but not substance. Pure physical strength would not be able to cause much harm to it.
That trace of instinct within the soul fire drove them to constantly call for their companions. Wolves were originally social animals. Even if they were transformed into Ghost Wolves by the power of darkness, this instinct from the soul fire couldn't be changed. No wolf pack could resist this kind of call, just like no magical beast could resist the control of a prehistoric magical beast. It was a natural fear and submission of the weak to the strong.
Those of the same kind that were called might not change at the beginning, but as time passed, the Dark Force in the Ghost Wolf's body would gradually change them, turning them into monsters that were similar to themselves. This changed monster was the Shadow Wolf that Lin Li was looking at now.
However, what made Lin Li frown now was not the father of these monsters, the legendary Ghost Wolf. What Lin Li was really worried about was the Dark Force that gave birth to the Ghost Wolves …
Back in Alanna, Lin Li had a good relationship with Sendros. He had also heard some stories about the Ghost Wolves from the High Priest of the Darkness Shrine. In the legends of the Darkness Shrine, the Ghost Wolves were the pets of the gods. The purpose of their existence was to find sacrifices to offer to the gods.
However, even Sendros had not seen a real Ghost Wolf with his own eyes. In the ancient books of the Darkness Shrine, there were no records of the Ghost Wolves for at least hundreds of years. The most recent one was more than 700 years ago, when the Darkness Shrine was still at its peak. At that time, the Ghost Wolf had caused a terrible disaster in the north of the Ledin Kingdom. In the end, it was only after the four archbishops of the Brilliance Shrine acted together that the disaster that could have engulfed the entire Ledin Kingdom was extinguished.
Of course, that Ghost Wolf was indeed very powerful. According to the ancient books of the Darkness Shrine, that Ghost Wolf had existed since the middle of the Dark Age. After being nurtured by a Dark Force for countless years, it already had the power of almost level-24.
The one in the Scar of Death would definitely not be so powerful. It had only been 1,300 years since the Dark Age. No matter how much it nurtured, it would not be able to give birth to a level-24 monster. Lin Li guessed that this Ghost Wolf was at most level-18 or 19. Although it was powerful, it was not invincible. Of course, the premise was that Lin Li was willing to risk his life …
After drinking all kinds of potions, summoning the Lord of Nightmares, and having the Holy Light of all evil forces in hand, if a few cannon fodders were willing to sacrifice themselves to buy some time for him, he would still have a chance to kill the Ghost Wolf.
"But the Malfa Family did not give me a salary. Why do I have to risk my life?"
Lin Li had never been a person who was unafraid of death. On the contrary, this bastard was probably one of the people who feared death the most in this world. That was why he had thought of ways to become stronger the moment he came to Anril. Whether it was stealing, snatching, or lying — as long as he could become stronger, he would use any despicable means. Why? Wasn't it all for the sake of living well …
Letting a coward like him risk his life to fight the Ghost Wolf?
Why not just cut off a piece of his flesh …
Lin Li looked at Adelo, who was reciting a spell, and thought to himself if he should bring this fella along. He seemed to know quite a lot about the Malfa Family's plan this time. If he could bring him back to the Tower of Dusk for interrogation, it would be a good choice …
"F * ck, what's going on!" But at this moment, Lin Li suddenly felt a burning sensation on his finger.
The moment the burning sensation came, Lin Li had already reacted. It was the Ring of Endless Storm!
This sudden change almost scared Lin Li out of his wits. This burning sensation was too abnormal. He had worn the Ring of Endless Storm for so long, but he had never encountered such a situation. Even that despicable and cunning fella, Connoris, could not cause any trouble in the Ring of Endless Storm. Why would the Ring of Endless Storm suddenly become like this?
In his panic, Lin Li could not care less about the Shadow Wolf anymore. He directly sent a trace of mental strength into the Ring of Endless Storm.
Then, he saw a scene that made his jaw drop.
The Holy Light that had been lying quietly in the Ring of Endless Storm suddenly became violent, and like a bull that had completely lost control, it dashed around in the boundless Dimensional Space. The scorching white light illuminated the entire world, and the terrifying Divine Power was emitted unscrupulously, causing the almost eternal Dimensional Space to tremble.
That trace of mental strength had just entered the Ring of Endless Storm when it was wrapped up by the violent Divine Power, and was instantly crushed into pieces.
"How … How could this be?" Fortunately, Lin Li's mental strength was abnormally strong. Although a trace of it was crushed by the Divine Power, it did not affect his body much. If it were an ordinary mage, the loss of mental strength alone would be enough to cause his magic level to decline greatly.
However, the fact that his mental strength was not affected did not mean that Lin Li was not surprised.
Lin Li had never seen such a terrifying scene before, or even thought about it …
How could this be? How could the Holy Light that was always quiet and peaceful become so violent all of a sudden?
"Could it be … because of the Dark Force that gave birth to the Ghost Wolf?" Lin Li muttered to himself, and then shook his head. That should not be the case. Although the Dark Force that gave birth to the Ghost Wolf was strong, it was not strong enough to make the Holy Light go berserk. Even when he was in the Endless World and personally shot the Dragon of Destruction Azardas, the seven pieces of the debris of the stars did not behave so crazily.
The only similar situation was when he was in the Well of the Sun.
At that time, he had just obtained the Stars of Fury, and did not know how to control this weapon used by the gods. Due to a very accidental mistake, he allowed the Holy Light and Gloomy Dark to come together, and when the power of light and darkness collided, it created an Elemental Storm that almost completely destroyed the Well of the Sun.
"Wait, Gloomy Dark?" When Lin Li thought of this, he could not suppress the shock on his face. "Could it be that the Dark Force that gave birth to the Ghost Wolf … is Gloomy Dark?"
Legend had it that the gods used the seven elemental powers of earth, water, fire, wind, light, darkness, and chaos to create the seven bolts of the Stars of Fury. They only needed to strike lightly to shatter the stars. Lin Li had already used one of the bolts of Holy Light in the ruins of Syer Town. Although it did not shatter the stars like in the legends, it destroyed the Humerus Domain of a Legendary-level Lich, and killed a Humerus Wyrm that was not weaker than the Legendary-level Lich.
The power of the Holy Light came from the light, and the power of the Gloomy Dark came from the darkness.
After figuring all this out, the death aura coming from the depths of the canyon was no longer as oppressive as before. Faintly, Lin Li felt a sense of familiarity, and even heard a voice calling out to him. This voice transcended space and time, but in his ears, it was no different from when he was in the Well of the Sun.
"I understand now …"
Following this clue, Lin Li figured out many things. Ever since he came to the Blackstone Mountains, things that he couldn't understand seemed to have suddenly become clear to him. Be it the Malfa Family's plan, the purpose of the advance party, or even the identity of Tutankhamun, who he had once eaten roasted meat with, Lin Li vaguely understood his true identity.
"Looks like this Blackstone Mountains is destined to become interesting …"
Lin Li's lips curled into a smile. When he walked into the canyon, his steps were very firm and steady.
…
Almost at the same time, in the campsite not far from the Scar of Death, a thin and small figure suddenly flashed past. Under the evening sky, this thin and small figure was like a ghost as it silently flashed into Hutton's tent.
"Young Master Hutton, I'm back."
"Hmm." Hutton was wrapped in a thick blanket, and he held a magic book with a black cover in his hand. When the thin and small figure flashed into the tent, Hutton, who was focused on reading, did not even raise his head. He only asked casually, "Where did Weathor go this afternoon?"
"Weathor did not go very far. He only went to a forest not far from the Scar of Death, and then met a mage called Gavin there."
"Gavin?" Hutton frowned, and gently put down the magic book in his hand. "Tell me the details. Remember, do not leave out a single sentence."
"Yes." The thin and small figure bowed slightly, and used a respectful and almost humble attitude to repeat what he saw to the young heir of the Malfa Family.
The process of Weathor meeting Gavin was a long one, and Hutton had ordered him not to leave out a single detail. Hence, the thin and small figure spent almost half an hour to finish recounting everything.
"You mean the Breezy Plains Guild of Magic?"
"Yes …"
"Get Hahn here. Oh yes, and Emendas …"
"Yes."
Not even five minutes after the thin and small figure left, there was a flurry of footsteps outside the tent.
Hahn and Emendas entered the tent almost at the same time. Both of them had a look of confusion on their faces. It was already so late, why would Young Master Hutton look for them?
"Hahn, is there a mage called Felic among the adventurers you recruited this time?"
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