Chapter 8: The Journey (Part 2)
"A wind-element magic archer—just from the 'Swift' and 'Precision' enchantments on that single arrow, this wind-element magic archer is at least a fifth-level mage." Doehring Cowart's voice echoed in Linley's mind. "With that archer's power, even if you dodge within fifty meters, you'll be severely injured. Run."
Linley's heart trembled.
"Hand over all your valuables, and I'll spare your lives." A cold voice rang out, followed by over a dozen figures in green darting out from the forest in the distance. Each held a bow and arrow, with a short blade hanging at their waist. They stared coldly at Linley and his two companions, steadily closing in.
The speaker, however, remained hidden.
Linley, Kava, and Matt exchanged glances. They didn't surrender their belongings but instead watched the group warily.
"Shoot!" The cold voice commanded. The wind-element magic archer behind them was clearly decisive. Seeing that Linley's group wouldn't submit, he immediately ordered the kill.
"Swish!" "Swish!" "Swish!" "Swish!"...
Without warning, the dozen archers loosed their arrows simultaneously. A flurry of shafts shot toward them. Linley, Kava, and Matt dodged immediately. Kava used his massive battle blade to deflect the incoming arrows.
Linley cast the wind-element auxiliary spell 'Swift,' moving gracefully to evade. Even while dodging, he kept an eye on the others. Matt was extremely cautious, constantly weaving and occasionally blocking with his short blade.
Kava, on the other hand, was reckless. Wielding his giant blade, he lacked agility, relying on it and a thin layer of battle qi on his skin for defense. The arrows from the dozen archers weren't particularly powerful, and Kava, a fifth-level warrior, could withstand them.
"Ah, die!" Kava roared, charging at the archers with his massive blade.
Hidden in the branches, the wind-element magic archer saw this and a murderous glint flashed in his eyes. He drew his powerful bow to a full moon, silently chanting the auxiliary spells 'Swift' and 'Precision.' A faint green light began to glow at the arrow's metal tip.
Kava charged forward with a roar, but halfway there, he saw a flash of green light ahead. Before he could react, an arrow was already upon him. Cold sweat broke out on his back as he frantically raised his giant blade to block. But—
"Pfft!"
The arrow pierced through Kava's head, brain matter splattering.
"Ah..." Kava stood frozen, disbelief in his eyes. He had clearly blocked the arrow with his blade—why had it still killed him? With endless confusion and utter incredulity, the light in Kava's eyes faded completely, and he collapsed like a mountain.
Linley's heart clenched.
"The wind-element auxiliary spell 'Precision'—it was 'Precision'!" As a wind-element mage, Linley knew well that the auxiliary spell 'Precision' allowed a wind-element magic archer to slightly alter an arrow's trajectory mid-flight.
For example, an arrow that should have been blocked by Kava's blade could shift direction just enough to pierce his skull.
"Wind-element magic combined with a strong bow—truly terrifying." Linley was inwardly alarmed, but in an instant, he began silently chanting a spell.
"You two, come out quietly." The cold voice came from the distant forest. The dozen archers howled triumphantly. A wind-element archer needed not only magical skill but also enough strength to wield such a powerful bow.
Wind-element archers were terrifying long-range attackers.
A murderous gleam flickered in Linley's eyes as he looked at the distant archers as if they were already dead.
"Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!" "Pfft!"—
Suddenly, the ground trembled. From beneath the feet of the dozen archers, earth spikes erupted one after another. Sharp, earthen-yellow-tipped spikes pierced through the archers' thighs and abdomens, blood spilling everywhere as screams rang out.
Fifth-level earth-element spell—Earth Spike Array!
"Ahhh~" Cries of agony rose and fell.
Dozens of earth spikes burst from the ground simultaneously. The sharp spikes, over a meter tall, could pierce a person in an instant. The dense array of spikes struck like a sudden disaster, plunging the archers into a desperate plight.
"Chief, save me, save me!" An archer, impaled through the groin by an earth spike, cried out in pain.
"Ah, ahhh~" Another archer, with a spike through his thigh, writhed on the ground, screaming.
Of the dozen archers, four died instantly, and nearly ten were severely wounded. Their combat effectiveness was almost entirely gone.
"An earth-element mage!"
The archer leader, still hidden in the forest, was shocked. He had ambushed and killed many people near the edge of the Magical Beast Mountain Range—those leaving or entering—amassing considerable wealth.
In his ambushes, he always killed the mages first!
Mages could attack from a distance and posed a great threat. He hadn't expected that after killing one mage, there was another.
"Go."
Taking advantage of the chaos, Linley cast the auxiliary spell 'Swift,' dashing forward at top speed with fluid grace. In moments, he vanished into the distance. Linley knew he couldn't attack the hidden wind-element magic archer.
The distance was too great—magic had its range limits. If he got closer, he'd be vulnerable to the archer's attacks, which he might not survive.
After a long, rapid sprint, Linley covered twenty or thirty li without stopping.
"Boss, why did you run? That magic archer is a threat to you, but if I stepped in, killing him would be easy. Why didn't you let me?" The indignant voice of the little shadow mink 'Bebe' echoed in Linley's mind.
Linley knew Bebe's strength well.
When Linley was just eight years old, Bebe's speed had already surpassed that of a sixth-level warrior. Now, at fifteen, seven years had passed. Though Bebe's size hadn't changed at all, his speed alone was likely comparable to a ninth-level warrior.
At Bebe's speed, that magic archer probably wouldn't even have time to aim.
"This is my trial. I rely on myself." Linley replied.
Bebe jumped onto Linley's shoulder, scratching at him with his claws and chattering angrily, "Squeak, squeak!" He transmitted to Linley's mind, "Boss, you're too much! I want to trial too! I want to fight!"
Seeing Bebe like this, Linley couldn't help but laugh. "Fine, when we reach the Magical Beast Mountain Range, if we encounter a powerful magical beast, I'll let you handle it. How about that?"
"That's more like it." Bebe stood upright, his forelimbs crossed over his chest, his little nose twitching as he squinted with satisfaction.
Just then, the gloomy sky suddenly cracked with a loud "Boom!" Thunder rumbled violently. Linley looked up to see lightning snakes flickering across the sky, accompanied by echoing thunderclaps.
"It looks like a heavy rain is coming soon." Linley frowned.
He quickened his pace, rushing toward the Magical Beast Mountain Range. When he was still about ten li away, raindrops began to fall, quickly turning into a torrential downpour that swept across the entire landscape.
"Rumble~~~"
Thunder rolled continuously as the rain blanketed heaven and earth. Everything was shrouded in a vast, misty curtain of water. Looking around, all Linley could see was a hazy expanse.
But Linley, moving at top speed, remained mostly dry. Hovering ten centimeters above his head was a 'Wind Shield' several meters in diameter. The Wind Shield was highly defensive, and using it to block raindrops required only a small amount of magical energy.
Wind was formless, and the Wind Shield was just a faint, transparent layer of green. From a distance, it was invisible. With this shield above him, Linley continued his rapid advance. Before long, he saw an endless mountain range stretching north and south, dividing the entire Yulan continent. This was the continent's foremost mountain range—the Magical Beast Mountain Range.
Gazing at the vast, unbroken peaks a few li away, Linley held his breath.
"What a massive mountain range."
The range was impossibly long. Looking east, there were endless undulating ridges. To the north and south, the mountains continued without end. Facing this boundless range felt like facing an infinite ocean.
Boundless!
"This is the Magical Beast Mountain Range, the continent's greatest. It holds countless magical beasts, including many saint-level ones." Doehring Cowart appeared beside Linley, his gaze distant. "The Magical Beast Mountain Range... it's been a long time since I was last here."
Excitement blazed in Linley's eyes.
"Let's go!"
Full of vigor, Linley dashed toward the Magical Beast Mountain Range through the pouring rain. On his shoulder, little Bebe squeaked excitedly. In the endless rain, Linley soon merged into the distant mountain range.