Chapter 188: Let Uncle Give You A Shot
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Lin Li turned around abruptly, and saw a figure in black robe floating over the cave like a ghost. His blood-red eyes were filled with devilish aura. They were so unique that Lin Li did not even need to look at his face. He knew that this person was one of the two men who’d scared him into hiding in his tent when they visited the Silver Hand camp that morning.
Lin Li vaguely remembered Serena seemed to have said that this fellow was called Argus or something. It was said that he was a mysterious level-16 mage. The one with him was Wilhelm’s nephew, a warrior who was also level-16.
“Who are you?” Lin Li remained composed. While he asked something he knew the answer to, one of his hands quietly reached behind him and clutched the crossbow on his back.
“My name is Argus, one of Master Matthias’ magic instructors.” Argus’s voice was calm, sounding as if he were talking about weather with his old friend.
But as he spoke, a powerful magical wave continued to emanate from him, making Lin Li feel greatly pressured. It was indeed the strength of a level-16 Archmage. Lin Li could clearly sense that purely in terms of strength, the fellow with ruby eyes might have already surpassed Gerian…
“Mr Argus, is it? It’s a pleasure to meet you. I didn’t expect you were Matthias’ magic instructor. That is great, Mr Argus. Could you please tell Matthias something for me…” Lin Li smiled casually as if he had really met an old friend.
“Oh?”
As a trace of doubt flashed through Argus’ eyes, the strong aura that emanated from him fluctuated like ripples as well. This slight fluctuation was very short and subtle, but with a keen and incomparable mental strength, Lin Li seized the slight fluctuation in an instant. At the same time as the doubt flashed through Argus’ eyes, a shrill noise of something breaking the air sounded in his ear.
“Swish!”
There was only a soft noise. A dark red light ripped the gloom of the cave in a moment. It went straight at Argus’ chest like a venomous snake.
Still, Argus was a level-16 Archmage. The unexpected strike did not fluster him at all. Argus raised his staff almost at the moment when the dark red light cut through the gloom. A colorful halo flashed past him, and a Frost Shield and a Flame Shield had been propped up at the same time…
“Funny!” Argus showed slight contempt on his face as he faced the dark-red light as it tore through the air. What was a mere crossbow to an Archmage above level-16? What was the point of attacking like this besides provoking him? He didn’t imagine Felic to be this stupid; how dare such a person challenge the Marathon Family? It was ridiculous!
But in the next moment, Argus could no longer laugh…
The bolt tore the Frost Shield almost instantly without any hindrance—just like a burning knife cutting through butter. There was a tearing sound, and the solid Frost Shield was split open; the Flame Shield was exposed in the next instant.
Argus’s expression suddenly changed. He couldn’t comprehend at all—why was this bolt so sharp?
How could he possibly have thought that the bolt Lin Li had fired was actually one made from the fang of a high-level Vampire? With just one blow, it had a great chance of penetrating even a legendary-mage’s magic field, let alone a small Frost Shield.
When the Frost Shield was split open, Lin Li seemed to have seen the vampire fang tear open the thin layer of Flame Shield in the next moment, and then plunging deeply into Argus’ body, sucking up the last power of the level-16 Archmage.
“Clack!”
But then, Lin Li heard a soft crackle.
Almost immediately after the vampire fang pierced through the Flame Shield, the magic staff on Argus’ hand was raised at once. Then, a Frost Spear was formed in Argus’s hands. At that instant, it impartially collided into the oncoming vampire fang…
“F*ck!” Lin Li’s face immediately darkened; the ruby-eyed mage’s response far exceeded Lin Li’s estimation.
Under the circumstances earlier on, even Lin Li had to admit that he wouldn’t be able to do it better than the ruby-eyed mage. As the vampire fang pierced through the Frost Shield, what was left for the ruby-eyed mage was only a split second; but, in that split second, he had made the utmostly correct choice. The Frost Spear blocked what Lin Li thought would be the deciding strike.
“Master Matthias is right. You are very cunning, but, unfortunately…” The vampire fang dropped to the ground amidst the splashing ice debris.
Argus smirked, and slowly lifted the magic staff in his hand. With a long and complicated recitation of spell, a bitter chill filled the air in an instant; large snowflakes circled around the tip of the staff. The bitter chill even overwhelmed the natural heat in the cave.
“Sh*t!” The look on Lin Li’s face changed the moment that the chill diffused. With his present strength, he wouldn’t be able to withstand the full blow of a level-16 Archmage.
Argus recited at an amazing speed; it was only in the blink of an eye that he had already finished his spell recitation. Endless chills poured in from the sky, and the magical elements were so immense that Lin Li could hardly breathe. At this point. Lin Li simply had no time to dwell on it. He could only rely on his instinctive response and channel a trace of mana into the Torrent of Elements Ring…
However, the expression on Lin Li’s face suddenly froze.
For he clearly saw that it was only a thin icicle after the endless wave of chill…
“It’s over…” The icicle was swallowed up by the Torrent of Elements in an instant, but what it brought to Lin Li was a feeling of almost despair. The massive magical elements and the long recitation of spell turned out to be all an illusion; the real purpose of it was to make him show the Torrent of Elements Ring. This was a conspiracy through and through!
As the last chill faded into the channel of elements, Argus’ near-devilish, handsome face revealed a triumphant smile. “It seems that Master Matthias is right, you have a good magic equipment, but, unfortunately, you’ve used it at the wrong time…”
Now that things had come to this point, it was no longer meaningful to play any more tricks. Lin Li took out his Winter Staff from the Ring of Endless Storm as he scolded angrily, “Damn it, did Matthias ever tell you how he was beaten into a moron by me?!”
“…” Argus smiled, and slowly descended from the air. It was absolutely unnecessary to use the Levitation Spell in a battle between two mages. Apart from the psychological advantage of a commanding position, overlooking the opponent on the ground, the magic at this Archmage level had no significance at all. Unless you could fly faster than spells, the Levitation Spell would only make you a flying target.
Neither of them spoke. They raised their staves and began to recite their spells almost concurrently.
On one side, it was a roaring flame; on the other, it was a thunder of ice and snow.
This was a pure power struggle. It was about who was more aggressive and ruthless. The collision of the Flaming Storm and Ice Storm instantly sent off sparks in the cave.
Innumerous sparks of fire exploded on the Elemental Shield. Almost every spell made Lin Li shudder in fear. The power of a level-16 Archmage was far beyond his limits. Every clash of the spells would dim the Elemental Shield right away.
In the meantime, there was not even a sign of weakening on the other party’s Flame Shield. As their exchange continued, the gap between an Archmage and a Magic Shooter was magnified infinitely.
This was a completely one-sided battle. From the beginning, Lin Li had fallen into an absolute disadvantage.
This fellow named Argus was probably the most powerful enemy Lin Li had ever encountered. Even the Lich in the Shadowglen was not as terrifying as this ruby-eyed mage. Argus had attained a frightening level, whether in terms of skill or strength. In Andoine’s words, this was a real mage, with incomparable rich combat experience that enabled him to deal with any situation with unparalleled accuracy and ease of judgment, which also gave Lin Li a severe headache.
On several occasions, Lin Li tried to deceive the other party for a Mana Retroaction. However, what he got in exchange for feigning casting a spell was not an opportunity to reverse the situation, but merciless ridicule from the other side.
Lin Li could even feel that the other party was not even giving his best.
It felt like a game of cat and mouse. After the cat caught the mouse, it was not in a hurry to devour it, but instead played the poor mouse until the latter was hanging at its last breath—only then did the cat snap the mouse’s neck.
Lin Li felt that he was the mouse at present…
He wanted to figure out a way to be rid of the disadvantageous situation, but the battle was like a whirlpool, constantly dragging him to the depths. The powerlessness made Lin Li feel as if he was entangled by something. No matter how hard he tried, he could not prevent the battle from sliding down to the abyss step by step. The only thing Lin Li could do was to struggle desperately until the moment when he was exhausted of his last strength…
The light on the Elemental Shield was getting dimmer and dimmer; Lin Li could already feel that the cooldown was gradually failing to keep up with the speed of the disappearance of the Elemental Shield. At this point in time, he had fallen into a terrible vicious circle.
Perhaps for the next time, he would be facing the other party’s spell bombardment without the presence of a shield.
“Are you still struggling? What admirable courage…” There seemed to be a perpetual derision in Argus’ smile. Just a few seconds ago, he had used a Flaming Storm to blow off the other party’s Elemental Shield, and at the same time released two wind blades, which swiftly cut through the leather armor made of the Fire Salamandrid skin.
Without the protection of Fire Salamandrid leather armor, the toxic heat in the cave immediately struck him like plague. The exposed skin was scorched almost instantly; Lin Li could even hear a sizzle. An excruciating pain assaulted him, and it felt as if he was being cut bit by bit with a knife…
The high intensity casting of spells had drained the last ray of strength from Lin Li. The severe pain was also a torture for him. When Argus’s voice sounded, Lin Li was overcome by drowsiness as if he were stepping on a mass of cotton. He tried to open his eyes, but no matter how hard he tried, the sight in front of him was always a blur. Colors flickered before his eyes as if he were watching an absurd movie.
“Unfortunately, it’s all over.” Argus’ slowly lifted right hand, and a ball of light gradually gathered in the palm of his hand. The mouse was on the verge of collapse—it was time to bite its neck.
“Boom!” A dull explosion followed. A dazzling glow gushed from the palm of his hand. The Arcane Missile struck Lin Li firmly on the chest. The heavy sound was like a hefty hammer falling down, causing Lin Li to spit out a mouthful of blood on the spot.
However, the Lin Li at present seemed to drop silly. Blows after blows of Arcane Missile landed on his body, but he did not move at all. He stood there like a target, letting the Arcane Missiles hit him as the dull sounds rang out repeatedly…
“Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa…”
There was no scream and no angry roar, only a stream of blood from his mouth. After the tenth Arcane Missile fell, Lin Li fell straight on the ground like a puppet.
Everything in the cave suddenly quieted down. Even the slowly flowing lava seemed to be solidified by time…
Sean looked at Lin Li, who was on the ground, and then at Argus who was in the distance. His tanned face was filled with incredulity. He could not believe that Mr Felic, who had always been omnipotent, would be killed by this ruby-eyed mage.
“Mr Felic… will you get up?” Sean’s voice seemed to tremble. He bent down and tried to lift Lin Li up; but, when he touched him, all he could feel was the hot blood on his hands.
“He can’t get up.” There was an indescribable contentment in Argus’ voice. “He had received ten Arcane Missiles. No one can get up with that.”
“You killed Mr Felic!” Sean stood up fiercely; his eyes turned crimson all of a sudden. The green Combat Energy around him burned like a flame. He stomped his feet abruptly and flew into the air like a huge bird. The double-edged sword, which had been integrated with the Abyss Fiendish Iron, was held high above his head as he slashed down with a heavy sound of breaking the air.
“Courting death…” For a level-16 Archmage, a level-10 warrior was no different from an ant. Argus raised his right hand without even looking at Sean, and another Arcane Missile was fired with a blast…
“Pom!” The Arcane Missile landed solidly on Sean’s body.
But with the spattering of a dazzling light, the young man—who was as stout as a magical beast—did not fall from the sky like a broken kite as Argus had imagined. His green Combat Energy was still burning, and his double-edged sword was still held high above his head.
The shadow in the sky was getting closer and closer, and the look on Argus’s face changed at last.
In haste, he only had time to quickly prop up a Frost Shield.
What followed was a crisp snap…
How horrifying Sean’s strength was, and his anger was in full swing. Even if it was a Frost Shield erected by a level-16 Archmage, the ruby-eyed mage still uttered a groan of pain under the powerful and hefty sword. The great sword rubbed against the Frost Shield, sending a sparkle of dazzling fire there and then.
Sean had torn a crack on the Ice Armor with a hardly sharp sword. The greatsword in his hands drew along the crack and slashed past Argus; in an instant, blood spattered from the latter’s shoulders.
Sprays of bright-colored blood spurt in the sparkling light. In that moment, it was gorgeous.
“Ah!”
The empty cave echoed with bouts of shrill screams. Argus’s blood-red eyes were filled with unbounded hatred. Even the handsome and slightly devilish face was completely distorted almost instantly, turning extremely hideous in no time at all.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!” A succession of Arcane Missiles fired from the palm of his hand. Although Sean had the Combat Energy to protect himself so that they could not hurt his body, he was still forced to step back a dozen paces under the continuous impacts. He plunged his great sword into the ground, which barely anchored his retreating figure. Accompanied by heavy breathing, a pair of eyes—still carrying a fervent crimson tinge—stared fixedly at Argus.
“You must die, bastard!” Argus’ voice was hoarse and shrill, like the sound of glass rubbing against each other.
He raised the staff in his hand abruptly, and a yellow light engulfed Sean at once. It was followed by a hurried recitation, and massive magical elements began to distort violently.
Under the effects of the Delaying Spell, each step Sean took required several times more effort than usual. Nonetheless, he held the sword tightly in both hands, and though his footsteps were slow, they seemed very firm. As Argus recited the spell, Sean fixed his crimson red eyes on him while approaching him step by step in a slightly clumsy manner.
“Boom!”
All of a sudden, there was a loud explosion overhead. Then, they felt the earth shake as countless small stones fell from the top, stirring up the dust in the cave.
This sudden loud noise seemed to be the prelude to a great change.
Violent explosion, rumbling footsteps, and forlorn screams…
The whole world seemed to be doused with a barrel of gasoline, igniting suddenly. The cave, which was originally hot enough to roast a living person suddenly became immeasurably scorching. Both Argus and Sean felt their weapons heat up at the same time as if they had just been taken out of a blazing fire.
And then…
With a deafening growl, Argus was so startled that he forgot to recite the spell…
Although he did not know what the monster was, he sensed a tremendous power from the roar straightaway thanks to the keenness peculiar to an Archmage.
If Lin Li was there, he would most likely be able to recognize it as the roar of the Salamander.
Faced with this legendary power, even an Archmage like Argus could not help the fear welling in his heart. The first thought that flashed through his mind was to flee!
However…
It was only a moment later that he suddenly realized—he could not escape at all.
With that deafening roar, the whole cave seemed to collapse. When large chunks of rock fell from the top of the cave and hit the ground, the dull noise seemed to reverberate in Argus’ heart. There were only clouds of dusts around him, and the sand that covered the sky blocked everyone’s sight. Argus could only hide in blind corners based on his memory.
He had just taken a few steps forward when he heard something tear through the air behind him.
He suddenly remembered there was a black bear with a greatsword trying to fight him with all his might.
At this moment, Argus really wanted to die.
If it were other times, even if the black bear flared up, he could never be Argus’ opponent. He could just release a few spells that were above level-10 and easily shatter his Combat Energy.
But now…
Now, the cave was like a pot of boiled porridge. Large chunks of rock fell straight down; if no attention was paid to them, one would end up with a split head. It was a scene of rivers and seas tumbling over each other all around. Not to mention reciting a spell in this situation, even if you stopped to catch a breath, you would risk losing your life.
He could release a few instantaneous spells; but, against a level-10 warrior with Combat Energy, what was the use of instantaneous spells?
There was no other way; Argus could only run with all his might.
The earth trembled in the cave; rocks fell from time to time, and a furious black bear was chasing behind him. For a moment, Argus was unspeakably miserable.
Argus couldn’t figure what medicine the black bear had taken. For the sake of his companion, he could even give up his life. He was determined to kill Argus despite the risk of being hit by the falling rocks.
“You’re f*cking crazy!” Argus spat angrily, and tried to avoid the falling rocks. In the process, he had witnessed at least twice—the black bear was basically a madman. He would let the rocks hit him in order to lay his sword on Argus!
“F*ck! Sick!”
In this seemingly heavenly disaster, escaping was harder than leaping to the sky. Besides, the fellow was still badgering him like a madman. Isn’t he afraid of being crushed by the rocks or being burned by the lava? Argus glanced at the face full of insanity. He really wanted to drop dead.
“Boom!” At that moment, another huge rock fell from overhead.
Argus felt his scalp go numb as the rock fell. This huge rock was almost as big as a house. When it fell from a distance dozens of meters away from the ground, the dull sound it produced sounded like Mars had hit the Earth. Even the thick walls of the cave were shaking.
The position where the rock fell nearly made Argus cry; it was not far from the flowing lava. The road in front was blocked by the huge rock, and just behind was the blistering lava, so there was no way to retreat. And, in between stood a black bear with a greatsword… Oh, and a lucky corpse…
Argus suddenly found himself envying that corpse…
The body was actually unscathed in this calamity. It wasn’t crushed by the rocks, nor burned by the spattering magma. It lay there quietly as if everything had nothing to do with him.
Unfortunately, Sean did not give him the chance to envy.
Just as Argus slowed down, the double-edged sword was once again held high above his head.
“I’m finished…” Seeing that the sword was about to come down, Argus did not even have a place to retreat. Going forward was naturally needless to say—he’d be chopped into half by the double-edged sword right away. There was no difference retreating, either. He’d fall into the lava, which was probably worse than being split to death by the double-edged sword.
“Bom!”
However, at this time, there was another muffled boom.
Perhaps Argus was not destined to die yet. Just as Sean was about to slash down with his sword, a rock the size of a human head suddenly fell, hitting Sean right on his back. Although this did not hurt Sean, it actually knocked him down on the spot, and the double-edged sword fell to the ground with such a clang.
How could Argus let slip this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity? Without demur, he kicked the double-edged sword that threatened his life into the lava.
“I’ll see how you’re going to kill me now…” Although in despair, Argus couldn’t help but be proud of himself. He was almost driven mad by this black bear. Now that he finally gained the upper hand, how could he still hold back?
Unfortunately…
As he smiled triumphantly, he seemed to have forgotten another thing.
Other than claws, the magical beast had a mouth full of sharp teeth.
That was what Sean was doing at present. He did not even look at the double-edged sword that was kicked into the lava. There was only a growl from him as he pounced on Argus like a shot…
“F*ck…” As Sean’s figure grew bigger and bigger in sight, the smile on Argus’ face froze. He could only watch the black bear throw himself on him and send his thick paw on his face…
“Bom!”
Sean was a real magical beast in human form; how could a mere mage withstand his punches? There was only a muffled thud, and flowers bloomed like kaleidoscope before Argus right on the spot. Countless little stars flickered in front of him as if he was hit by a hammer on his face.
“Help…” Argus shouted in grief. But, as soon as he opened his mouth, his teeth fell out.
Sean had a hard time seizing this opportunity; who cared if Argus cried out for help? His crimson eyes were overflowing with hatred, and his fists came down incessantly on Argus’ face, like he was hitting a sandbag. It took only a few punches, and Argus’ face was all swollen. At a glance, there were only patches of purple and blue, with smears of blood amidst them. If one were to look particularly at this face, who would have thought that this fellow—who looked like he was in the dye business—was actually the handsome and devilish Argus?
Argus had completely given up resistance. Under Sean’s continuous rain of punches, he could only let out bouts of weak groans. A level-16 archmage being forced to this degree—this one thing alone would be enough for Sean to make a name for himself.
However, Sean did not care about all this now. He was shrouded in the rage for revenge. There was only one thought left in his mind—he was going to kill the murderer who’d killed Mr Felic…
“Sean, take a break first…” Perhaps even Argus himself did not expect that the body lying on the ground was the one who would keep him alive for the time being.
“Mr… Mr Felic?” Sean’s fist froze in mid-air. He saw—with clarity—someone who should be dead sitting up from the ground in great spirit, speaking to him while spitting something out from his mouth…
Argus—who was beaten to the pulp—was utterly stunned. The fellow who had received ten of his Arcane Missiles actually sat up like someone who was completely fine.
“This black lotus… is motherf*cking bitter…” Lin Li spat out a few mouthfuls before he got up, and patted Sean on the shoulder. “Thanks, Sean.”
“It’s… It’s nothing…” Sean scratched his head. There was a tinge of red on his tanned face. “I am your attendant. It’s my responsibility that I failed to protect you.”
“You did great.” Lin Li smiled. He turned around and took a look at Argus, who was beaten into a pig head. “If not for you, how would our Mr Argus be beaten into a pig head like this…”
Argus wanted to bang his head on the wall as he listened to this mocking remark.
Unfortunately…
He could not even knock himself to death currently. After a fat beating, he felt as if he had been run over by a huge stone. Every bone in his body was broken. Not to mention standing up against the wall, merely blinking his eyes would send a severe pain coming from the cracks in his bones.
Moreover, his life was in the hands of these two men now.
They didn’t even need to lift a finger. They could just leave him in the cave and let him perish in it.
How would he dare to offend the two of them in such a situation?
Not only did he not dare to offend, he had to endure the severe pain and squeeze out a pleasant smile on his face.
This fawning smile fell into Lin Li’s eyes. How could he not know what Argus was thinking? He praised with joy, “Mr Argus is a smart man…”
Just when Argus thought the other party would let him off, he suddenly saw the latter take a bolt out from his pocket… Argus clearly remembered this bolt. When they had exchanged strikes earlier on, this fellow had used a bolt like this to pierce through the Frost Shield with ease, which almost took his life in a right there. If he hadn’t released the Frost Spear, he would have died under this bolt.
At the thought of the power of the bolt, Argus could not help but tremble with fear. He could not figure out what the man who had just feigned death wanted to do.
Lin Li did not keep Argus in fear for long. He came up to Argus with the bolt in his hand. He even turned the latter over carefully, trying not to touch the wounds on his body.
“Hush, don’t be scared. Let uncle give you a shot…”