They had lost contact with a nearby team, and they did not even have time to release their magic bugs. This made Solderin's team in the Gloom Mountains even more vigilant.
In a secluded cave, the Typhon soldiers were taking the time to rest, while several Knight in the team were discussing the team that they had lost contact with in a low voice. The atmosphere was very serious.
"That team is probably doomed. They may have been exposed and encountered the nearby Ansu army," a Knight said. "To be able to annihilate an elite team in such a short time without giving them a chance to release any information, it is likely to be a large force of the regular army."
"This area should be the pioneering territory established by the legendary 'Recovery Pioneer', right?" Another Knight recalled the information they had before they set off. "Has the 'Duke of Pioneering' sealed off the surrounding mountains? Didn't he just gain a foothold in this area? "
"Maybe our information is wrong. He has the support of the Ansu royal family," the last Knight guessed. "If he wants to rebuild the entire southern Ansu defense line, then he should have brought a large number of troops here …"
"Communication with other teams is still normal …"
The Knight discussed in a low voice, but their attention was more on Solderin, who was closing his eyes and resting not far away.
The Knight knew very well that although there were so many imperial soldiers on the move, the entire infiltration plan in the Gloom Mountains revolved around the Elven commander. This high-grade ranger was the brains of the entire operation, while the ordinary soldiers, Knight, and mages were only there to collect information and explore the way forward.
Although the team that entered the Gloom Mountain Range was made up of elites, they didn't have many high-level combatants. On one hand, the infiltration team wasn't meant to fight the enemy head-on. On the other hand, even if a group of powerful combatants were sent to carry out the infiltration mission regardless of the cost, these powerful combatants weren't necessarily better than experienced soldiers when it came to gathering information and drawing maps. On the other hand, if their identities were exposed and they were ambushed, it would be difficult for a powerful combatant to come back alive just like an ordinary soldier. The cost of such an operation was frighteningly high, but there were no additional benefits. That was why, in the entire infiltration operation, apart from Solderlin, the only other team that had a Middle-level mage in charge was the "deputy team".
In this place, Solderlin was the backbone of all of them.
And this backbone did not say anything after learning that one of the teams had lost contact. He just quietly thought about life.
"My Lord." A mage in the team could not help but come up to Solderin. "We should take action. Whether it is to send back information or continue to search for clues of the missing team, it is better than waiting here."
Solderin opened his eyes and said slowly, "Do you think the rumor of the ancient duke who came back from the dead is true?"
"To be honest, I don't believe it." The mage was startled for a moment, then shook his head. "Things like coming back from the dead are only heard of in myths, but mages are a pragmatic group. This kind of phenomenon cannot be explained by theory. Unless I see it with my own eyes, I won't believe it."
"Is that so …" Solderin did not comment. After a moment of silence, he continued, "But the Gwen Cecil from seven hundred years ago was best at doing things that challenged the norm. I really think … he has the ability to climb out of the coffin seven hundred years later."
The mage was puzzled. "My Lord?"
"Don't worry." Solderin shook his head. "Didn't I send out two soldiers earlier? I'm waiting for their news."
He seemed to have been waiting for Soledrin's words. As soon as he finished speaking, the two soldiers who were sent out to investigate the situation returned to their hiding place.
"My Lord." One of the soldiers who returned hurriedly came up to Solderin. "We found an open-air mine halfway up the mountain! And it is in operation! "
"An open-air mine in operation?" The mage next to Solderin was stunned. "In the middle of winter?"
Solderin's indifferent look disappeared. He became spirited and said, "Bring me the map. Where is the approximate location of the mine?"
Someone next to him handed over a rough topographic map, and the soldier who returned from the investigation roughly described the location of the mine. "In this place, between two mountain ridges, there is a very large open space. The scale of the mine is very large. God knows how long it has been excavated for it to be so big. There are a lot of people working in the mine, and there are also many soldiers guarding the perimeter. We were afraid of being exposed, so we didn't dare to get close. "
Solderin immediately lowered his head and identified the location on the map. "The team that we lost contact with had an accident on this route … and the mine is in this position … as expected."
Several Knight in the team had come over. They quickly understood what Solderin meant. "The team that had an accident accidentally bumped into the guards around the mine?"
"That should be the case. This is actually good news." Solderin raised his head. "This means that the pioneer lord did not seal off the entire mountain area. The missing team was unlucky and bumped into the enemy's stronghold."
"But this means that the lord of this place should have increased his vigilance …"
"Yes, he must have increased his vigilance. The guards around the mine and the perimeter must be tighter than before. But we have to go and take a look." Solderin pointed at the general location of the mine on the map. "Mining in the mountains in winter requires a huge price to pay. There are also very powerful guards around the mine. This place must be very important!"
The mage next to him also realized the importance of the open-air mine. He could not help but say, "The Ansu royal family even sent a 'founding duke' here to explore. Maybe it's also because of this mine. Are they trying to cover up their tracks?"
Solderin put away the map. "Put out the campfire and cover up the traces. Let's find out what the Ansu are doing in this mountain range."
Learning from the previous incident, Solderin led his team to approach the open-air mine hidden in the mountains in a more cautious manner. They avoided all possible mountain paths where there might be patrols, shuttled through the steep rocks and vines, and with the help of elven magic, the entire team completed this incredible leap and finally lurked at the best observation point near the mine.
As the scout had said, it was indeed a very large mining site. It was hidden deep in the mountains (not hidden), and it had probably been developed for a long time to reach such a scale (two and a half days of bombing). A large number of unfortunate mine slave workers were mining under the supervision of soldiers in the cold wind (they all queued up in the government office for half a day to register), and in the invisible places around the mine, God knows how many Ansu troops were guarding the secret mine (there were only a few patrols).
It seemed that tons of secrets were hidden in the mine. There might be an ancient seal buried under the mine that could summon an evil god.
"We can't get any closer. There are a few sentry towers around the mine. Do you see them?" Solderin reminded the mage beside him. "Summon a Mage's Eye and see if you can sneak around the sentry towers and see what those people are digging in the mountains."
"Understood." The mage nodded and silently recited a short incantation. Then, a shimmering Mage's Eye, which was barely visible in the daytime, appeared in the air beside him.
The mage controlled the magic eye to slowly approach the mining site. When his vision passed by the sentry towers, he could not help but be curious. The soldiers on the towers were holding a strange-looking metal tube in front of their eyes and looking around. What was that?
There was no magic reaction, so there should be no need to worry.
The mage controlling the magic eye put the soldiers on the sentry towers aside and focused on controlling the Mage's Eye to slowly go around the base of the sentry towers. But at this moment, a strange cracking sound suddenly came from nearby, startling him. The channeling of the spell was then interrupted.
Before the cracking sound came, Solderin had already sensed the presence that suddenly appeared in all directions. He instantly realized that he and his men had been exposed, so he stopped hiding and jumped up. At the same time, he raised his short bow and nocked three arrows that were surrounded by light green cyclones on the bowstring. He did not have to aim at all. He raised his hand and shot three arrows in a row in the direction of the most powerful presence. At the same time, he shouted a warning, "Prepare for battle!"
Then, three crisp sounds came from afar. It was the sound of the arrows wrapped in magic being blocked by a person. Solderin and the soldiers of Typhon who had just reacted looked up and saw a tall, fully armed man standing on a boulder in the distance. He held a black longsword in his hand, and his eyes were sharp and steady. Behind him and around him, soldiers stood up one after another. The soldiers quickly formed a net.
Gwen looked at the blond elf standing among the soldiers of Typhon from afar. He was a little surprised and a little amused. "I guessed it right, Solderin. Why are you here?"
Compared to Gwen who was relatively calm, Solderin was more shocked when he saw Gwen. He stared at the familiar figure, and the cold and indifferent image that he had been maintaining for a long time almost collapsed. "You are —"
"Elves should have good memories." Gwen spread his hands. "Have you forgotten your old boss?"
"Are you really Gwen Cecil?" The high-grade elven ranger's face quickly calmed down, and his eyes became particularly serious and sharp. He did not put down the short bow in his hand. Instead, he nocked another arrow on the bowstring. "You really came back from the dead?"
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