There was a reason why Salin didn't speak. He found that his accent was obvious. If someone came from the northern coast, they would be able to tell that he was from Ceylon City. If he talked too much with these people, it would be hard to avoid revealing his flaws. If they had a wanted order, it wouldn't take long for them to discover his true identity.
The careless Sika was easier to get information than him. After a few days of getting along, Salin already knew his ultimate goal. It was a relic from the second dynasty.
Before the fall of the Goddess of Nature, the Myers Continent had been unified by humans four times. The second dynasty was nearly 20,000 years ago. It was an extremely glorious era of magic, but not many relics had been passed down. Every time the continent was unified, the flames of war would destroy many traces of civilization.
Every magic tool from the second dynasty was of high quality, and none of them were less than 10,000 gold coins. Even the smallest relic, if it was related to a magician, would be enough to make the team rich.
If they were lucky, everyone in the team could get more than 100,000 gold coins, retire, go back to their hometown, build a castle, buy a title, and no longer have to live a life of fighting. As for Salin, this money was enough for him to become a level-four magician, and then go to the Qinyin Empire to practice in peace. Sika could buy enough equipment, food, and go back to the village to help the people. Maybe these gold coins could create a new strong tribe, or even the people of this village could be favored by a duchy.
In this world, only power was not enough, money was also necessary. The Scottinya people had long understood this, so they had the most trading companies, the largest bank, and the most popular mercenary system in the whole continent.
The richest person in the empire was His Majesty the Emperor. Even if all taxes for the farmers were exempted, he would still be the richest person on the continent.
Hearing that this mission was the relic of the second dynasty, Salin also understood why Cang Hong didn't hire a mage. In the era of the second dynasty, the emperor who unified the continent was partial to magic and didn't believe in gods. It was more extreme than the current Qinyin Empire. If the Holy Church knew about this relic, they would definitely destroy everything here.
The second dynasty was also known as the Blasphemy Dynasty.
Salin didn't care what the magicians of 20,000 years ago believed. He only knew that if he could get a magic tool from the second dynasty, he wouldn't have to travel for a few years.
After walking for six days, it suddenly snowed in the mountains. The snow was very fine, causing the road to become muddy. The group had no choice but to abandon their horses. The road here was narrow and dangerous. Many places were close to cliffs, and horses could not pass through.
Sicca carried her and Salin's luggage, while Pino and Cook carried Cang Hong and the others' belongings. Sara, wearing a leather mask, led the way. Lucas, the archer, brought up the rear. The speed of the group did not slow down. Instead, they sped up quite a bit.
As evening approached, a mountain range appeared in front of them. Sarah stopped abruptly and let out two short cries.
The whole team quickly hid, and soon, Sarah retreated.
"What happened?"
"We've encountered vultures." Sarah was wearing a mask, so her expression could not be seen. Her voice was obviously worried.
"Have you been discovered?" Cang Hong became cautious.
"What's a vulture?" Shika asked innocently.
Cang Hong hesitated. After all, after this mission, he could leave the mercenary group. It did not matter if he did not give up the five thousand gold coins deposit. Revealing some information could also show his sincerity to the magician who did not know his limits. Thinking of this, he replied, "Vulture is also the code name of a mercenary group. However, they rarely accept normal missions. This mercenary group is like a scavenging vulture. They will track dangerous adventurers until they die. This way, they can obtain the wealth of adventurers without breaking the rules of the Professional Union. "
Salin thought for a moment. Indeed, other mercenary groups were not obliged to help each other unless it was during a war. You can't attack another registered mercenary group, but you can still stand by and watch them be in danger.
"What level is the Vulture?" Salin finally spoke.
"Four. Sarah, continue. "Cang Hong was interrupted by Shika. He did not reveal the relationship between the Grey Falcon mercenary group and the Vulture. He was not afraid of the Vulture mercenary group. However, he could not let the Vulture know about this mission no matter what. It was already winter. Who was still running around in this area and even caught the attention of the Vulture?
"The three vulture squads should be fully staffed. There should be two other groups. One group is escaping, and the other is chasing. I can't estimate their numbers. "
"Can we go around them?"
"No, the escaping group has entered the tunnel. This is our only way."
"Damn it." The five members of the Grey Falcon mercenary group looked serious. They could not just wait here. The winter in the Chaos Swamp was extremely dangerous, and the hungry high-level monsters were even more terrifying.
"Wizard Merlin, do you have any good ideas?" Cang Hong turned and asked Salin.
"Map." Salin's answer was very short.
Cang Hong felt his heart ache. He cleared a piece of ground, took out a map, and spread it out. It was a detailed map of the Chaos Swamp. Cang Hong pointed at the bottom left corner. "This is the tunnel we have to pass through. I found it.
Salin smiled. He cast a memory spell. This was a level-0 non-elemental spell. As long as one had enough Mind Power, they could use it. After memorizing the map, Salin calculated the length of the tunnel.
It was about twelve miles long. Salin hesitated. "If you encounter these people, what are your chances of winning?"
"I just don't have the confidence to kill all of them." Cang Hong saw that Salin understood his meaning and did not hide his murderous intent. Salin and Sicar would not publicize this mission, but they could not let their close friends know no matter what.
"What's the composition of the Vulture mercenary group?" Salin carefully recalled the mercenary handbook he had memorized using the memory spell, searching for the key to the problem.
"Five to two composition: heavy-armored swordsmen, archers, assassins, spear swordsmen, and mages."
"No mages?"
Cang Hong smiled bitterly and did not answer the question. He thought to himself, Mages are not potatoes that can be dug out from the ground. The Grey Falcon mercenary group he was in only had three mages, and the highest was a level-three mage.
"I can cast a fog of confusion with a radius of thirty meters, which can last for two hours. We'll go through at a normal speed. In the tunnel, I'll add a fluorescent spell. Everyone will have a visual range of about ten meters, so we won't be discovered by the enemy. Of course, it's hard to say if the enemy has a mage. "
"Fluorescent spell?" Cang Hong had never heard of this spell, but illumination spells were often mentioned.
"It's a level-0 water spell. The light it creates is very dim, suitable for hiding in caves and underwater environments. However, I can't guarantee 100% concealment. If we're discovered, you guys will be responsible for the archers. I have enough confidence to eliminate the assassins. "Salin said calmly, but he was actually not very confident. After all, he had very little battle experience. The only thing he could rely on was the rumor that the enemy would not have a mage.
As long as they did not encounter a mage, it would be easy to kill the two assassins in a sneak attack.
Cang Hong was overjoyed. He was worried that the assassins would escape if they clashed. In a dark cave, assassins who were good at concealment were the most troublesome thing. Fortunately, he had hired a mage. Otherwise, he would be in a dilemma.
"Then let's go in. Mage Merlin, please prepare your spells. Lucas, you and I will go to the front. Sicca, I'll trouble you and Sarah to cover the rear. Cook, you protect Mage Merlin. This time, we have to rely on the mage to pass. Kill anyone who tries to get close to the mage. Don't worry. "
Cang Hong reminded Cook. After all, they might meet someone they knew. If they hesitated, the mage would be in danger. In the Grey Falcon Mercenary Group, only important missions would require a mage's help. Usually, they were paid to do so. Everyone was used to protecting the mage and saw him as the core of the battle.
Salin did not object. His Invisible Shield was permanently attached to his magic robe. It would take at least one second to release. It could never reach the level of instantaneous casting.
Instantaneous casting meant that a spell could be prepared, released, and completed in the shortest amount of time. This speed was usually one-thirtieth of a second, which was a few times faster than the released sword aura.
Only at level-four would a mage have a second instantaneous defensive spell, Ice Patterned Armor. Before that, the Wind-type Invisible Shield was the first defensive spell. Only then would it be superimposed on the slower Skin Petrification or the unstable Ring of Flame. Salin had yet to understand the unpopular Water Patterned Shield, so its release speed was even slower than a fixed spell.
As the sky darkened, Salin began to prepare his spell. Bewildering Fog was a level-0 Water-type spell. He did not practice much, so it only took him three seconds to release. With him as the center, the gray fog spread in all directions. Soon, it had a diameter of 50 feet.
After the spell was completed and stabilized, Salin began to prepare the second spell, the level-0 Fluorescent Spell. He had no choice but to learn this spell. He couldn't learn the Light Spell or the Fire Spell. Night Vision was a Level-6 spell, and it was a long way off for him. He had no choice but to find this unpopular spell to deal with it.
Fortunately, the Fluorescent Spell had its advantages over Illumination. Although it was dark, it would not cause any magical waves and would not alert others.
As the gray fog spread, the hearts of the Grey Falcon Mercenary Group were in their throats. Because their vision had been lost almost instantly, they could not see or hear Salin and Sicca's breathing.
They could only vaguely feel the presence of the two when they used their sword aura. However, Cang Hong and the others were experienced mercenaries and had dealt with Mages before. They knew that what they were feeling might not be real. If the young Mages attacked now, only area-of-effect attacks would be of some use in this fog.
Salin was not confused by the fog. He could clearly see the expressions of the five Grey Falcon Mercenary Group members and laughed inwardly. I'm going to give you a show of strength, so that you won't turn against me after the mission is completed.
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