Chapter 625: A Flight Of Dragons
The first thing that could be determined was that only the Legendary powerhouses could step into the poisonous gas and explore the path. Not to forget, there was a force that restricted Nature Magic. In other words, Druids had to be excluded. Hence, there were very few people who could explore the path.
“Is there anything else you guys would like to add to the issue of candidates?” After roughly shortlisting some participants for the expedition, Elder Randy decided to ask for the opinions of the humans.
Borg looked around and turned to look at Elder Randy again. “My son, Stephen, may have yet to reach the Legendary-realm, but he has a special physique that makes him immune to poisonous gas. Let him tag along.”
Hearing that Borg, the spokesperson of the Dark Blade had mentioned Stephen, Lin Li turned to look at him and realized that he seemed to be hiding something. Everyone knew how dangerous that path was, and the poisonous gas was only one of the many dangers.
However, Lin Li did not probe, since Borg wanted his son to tag along. He turned to look at the elven elder, and calmly asked, “Elder, since there’s a force there that restricts Nature Magic, you guys… You’re a Druid, right? Miss Elune should be a Druid too… ”
Actually, that path was not the only dangerous one; many other areas in Haiga Mountain Range contained forces that would restrict and suppress Nature Magic. However, the deeper into the range, the weaker the force would be compared to the borders.
Elder Randy smiled, and said, “Mage Felic, don’t worry. We have a solution for this problem, though it’s going to be rather troublesome and we can’t use it on a large scale. Otherwise, the Haiga Mountain Range would have really become ours.”
As long as he could take care of himself, there would be nothing to worry about. Lin Li immediately expressed his approval of the list of candidates, after which Borg and the rest followed suit.
Lin Li was definitely included on the list, together with his follower, the Vampire Norfeller. Although Norfeller had yet to reach the Legendary-realm, he was just a step away from it. Besides, as an Undead creature, he definitely had a strong resistance towards poison.
Next was the Lich Ujfalusi, who had arrived later. Although he was not outstanding in terms of power, he was definitely capable since he could summon a Humerus Wyrm.
Apart from Lin Li and his followers, the other humans included Cheyenne, the only Legendary-mage of the Malfa Family, the three Legendary-realm leaders of the Dark Blade, and Borg’s son, Stephen. For the elves, it would be the Legendary-realm Druids, Chief Elder Randy and Princess Elune, as well as Culofen and Gildor who had once asked Lin Li to help them.
After some serious preparations, the team formed by Legendary figures swiftly sped in a certain direction according to the information provided.
Due to the influence of the Menace of the Dragon, there were no obstacles along the way, and the team soon arrived at the place found by the reconnoiters. Under the shroud of green mist, they saw a road that extended downwards, all the way into the deeper areas of the mist. Actually, it was not a pathway, because it was surrounded by plenty of strange rocks on the ground even though it was spacious, which meant that it might be affected by poisonous fog. Plants were scarce too. Some vaguely visible magical beast skeletons could be seen in the mist, and amongst them were some strong and fearsome magical beasts that they had once dealt with.
“Elder, this is the place,” said the elf who had been leading the way.
At the moment, the elven scouts still could not deduce if they could make it to the bottom of the cliff. After all, with their current abilities, they still could not delve deeper to explore. However, according to the direction of the path, they could roughly deduce that it was likely possible to reach the bottom of the cliff.
The reconnoitering elves were sent back, and the Legendary powerhouse team was getting ready to delve into the fog. However, before they got ready to enter, Elder Randy reminded, “We have come all the way, and we have not encountered any magical beasts yet due to the influence of Menace of the Dragon. However, we must still be very careful whilst in this poisonous mist. According to the investigations we’ve done over the past centuries, some of the magical beasts are very fond of highly poisonous environments, and such magical beasts are often very scary.”
Just because there was some deterrence provided by the Menace of the Dragon, it did not mean that one could brave the poisonous fog without any surprises and dangers. Since humans and elves could suppress their fear towards the Menace of the Dragon, not all magical beasts were afraid of it, either. Besides, while the fog might be intensely poisonous and could only be resisted by Legendary figures, to some magical beasts, it was delectable like fresh air to humans.
Some magical beasts were naturally born with fire attribute; hence, they mostly enjoyed environments with abundant fire elements. Meanwhile, the magical beasts with water attribute mostly lived in rivers and seas. Hence, it was no surprise that the magical beasts whose innate ability was related to poison liked to be shrouded in poisonous gas. Even though there was still the Menace of the Dragon nearby, they wouldn’t mind taking the risk for the sake of poisonous gas.
Everyone there was a Legendary powerhouse, and could be considered knowledgeable. Hence, after hearing Elder Randy’s reminder, everyone nodded in unison. Although Legendary figures could resist against the poisonous fog, it did not mean that they could resist the magical beasts. If they were to be attacked because of their own carelessness, they would be in deep trouble.
After entering the foggy area, everyone felt that their vision was hindered, thus depriving them of the ability to look at distant objects. Every Legendary powerhouse was keeping his guard up and slowly making his way to the deeper areas.
Although the Legendary powerhouse team was made up of four factions, they formed an inverted triangle. The four Legendary powerhouses of the elven family were in charge of one of the corners, while the three Legendary powerhouses of the Dark Blade and Stephen took charge of another. The last was then supported by Lin Li, his followers, and Cheyenne.
The reality proved that Elder Randy’s previous worries were not uncalled-for. The team actually met an obstacle not long after entering the fog.
More than a dozen giant scorpions in emerald shells suddenly plunged out of the ground and through the rocks. The claws of the giant scorpions were almost the size of a human, and their shiny shells were as smooth as mirrors. The weakest amongst them was actually level-16, and two of them were already close to the Legendary-realm.
The Dark Blade’s corner was severely pressured as the four of them were surrounded by seven scorpions, two of which were the strongest. The rest that were scattered all over proceeded to attack the elves, Lin Li, and the rest.
These giant scorpions were actually not that rare, and the adventurers often ran into them in deserts. The giant scorpions in the outside world were not too formidable, for they were at most level-10 or so. Level-15 ones could be considered the Kings of Scorpions.
Yet, the giant scorpions here were much more powerful, perhaps because of the nourishing abilities of the poisonous fog. Be it aggressiveness or their defensive abilities, they were definitely terrifying and poisonous.
Lin Li continued to act in his usual style, and remained unfazed by the incoming giant scorpions as if they were just illusions. Cheyenne had no choice but to sigh and wave the magic staff in his hand to take down the giant scorpions.
However, Lin Li was not exactly unconcerned about the situation. He shifted his gaze onto the members of Dark Blade, who were fighting the giant scorpions. Although he had already gotten along with Dark Blade for a period of time, the other two leaders apart from Borg seemed to be rather mysterious. Lin Li had no idea what kind of powers they had, but he knew that they gave him a terrible feeling.
Everyone knew that cooperative relationships formed because of benefits often meant that the partnership would end when the benefits were obtained. When that happened, it would be akin to giving one’s life to others.
Although the three Legendary leaders of the Dark Blade had been taking action and contributing along the way, Lin Li could tell that they did not go all out. However, at this point, it was uncertain if they could continue to hold back their powers. The giant scorpions thrived in the outer borders of the poisonous gas, and they were unsure if there would be no stronger magical beast as they delved deeper. If they were to really face wyrms at the bottom of the cliff, could those leaders continue to hold back?
Out of the four cooperating parties, Lin Li was definitely the weakest one; hence, he had to consider plenty of issues because the other three parties definitely had reasons to attack him. The Malfa Family was not exactly reliable. Lin Li still held three of Geresco’s relics. How could Cheyenne not covet them? Didn’t the elves similarly want their Star-scarred Robe back?
However, among these three parties, Lin Li was the most worried about the two mysterious Legendary leaders of the Dark Blade because he had no idea what their abilities were. Why did Stephen join the expedition this time? Although Borg was constantly smiling, it was uncertain if he could put the feud between Lin Li and Stephen aside after the alliance was broken.
After shifting his attention back onto the battlefield, Lin Li shook his head when he saw the Dark Blade, for he felt that it would be impossible for them to go all out, just because of the giant scorpions.
Suddenly, Lin Li’s pupils constricted a little. Baldela, the blond-haired leader of the Dark Blade, whipped his sword out to fight them. He cut off the pair of giant pliers belonging to the level-19 giant scorpion. He then stabbed the scorpion again to cut it in half. The giant scorpion whose strength was close to Legendary-realm was killed by Baldela’s sword.
It seemed as easy as a pie, but Lin Li knew that the shells of the giant scorpions were not just meant for decorative purposes. Coupled with strength that was almost at Legendary-realm, even a Sword Sage might only be able to attack it by finding its weakness. However, Baldela did live up to his strong and powerful image, and managed to destroy it using brute force. There were plenty of Sword Sages who could do that, but it was not that easy to do it so silently.
However, Lin Li knew that Baldela’s attack was definitely not as effortless as it seemed. That reminded him of a word he had heard before traveling to the world of Anril: effortless. It did not just express one’s strength, but also the mage’s comprehension of the Rule Power.
The founder of the legendary Dark Blade, the mysterious Legendary bandit, Lansdale, was terrifying enough to send chills down the spines of others even though he was not that outstanding.
As elegant as an ancient, classic aristocrat, the Bandit was naturally poised. Even though he wasn’t comparable to the elves, he was definitely not pretentious, and his elegant mannerisms were often impressive. However, behind the elegant man stood a giant scorpion that instantly disintegrated and crumbled like a toy that was assembled at the last minute before it could even do anything to obstruct them.
Lin Li knew that this was not all of their power, but he could tell how strong they were just from this. As for Stephen who Borg had intentionally brought along, Lin Li noticed that just like himself, Stephen had yet to take any action right from the beginning.
He then turned to look at the elves. Although they were also fighting the giant scorpions, there were not too many of the giant scorpions attacking them—only five level-17 or level-18 ones. The elven elder waved his staff, and a light was cast onto a giant scorpion, after which it maniacally began attacking its peers.
Gildor held up a carved longbow, and as the bowstring was pulled slowly, there seemed to be a stream of light surrounding the arrow. With a loud explosive sound, the arrow vanished instantly, while the giant scorpion that was darting towards him began bleeding from its head all of a sudden. An arrow then pierced through its body.
Lin Li stroked his chin and thought to himself that none of his partners were easy to deal with. Although they were of different professions, they were still Legendary figures, after all. Since they could make it on this journey, they were obviously not useless.
The giant scorpions were soon annihilated, and the team continued to advance into the poisonous fog. The deeper they delved, the thicker the fog became, thus hampering their vision even further.
Although the fog was becoming thicker and thicker, the environment was still a background for the strong magical beasts, and to the team, the giant scorpions were just appetizers. As they continued to go deeper, the magical beasts that they met became harder and harder to deal with. They had to contribute more power in order to continue.
Most terrifyingly, the magical beasts that thrived in the poisonous fog were more or less mutated compared to the outside world’s versions. The toxins in their attacks were rampant and even more concentrated than the poison around them because of the accumulation of toxic properties in their bodies. Even the Legendary powerhouses had no choice but to be extremely careful. A misstep would cause them to be in danger.
As more and more powerful magical beasts appeared, Lin Li began to get a clearer idea of his peers’ abilities and strengths. Apart from the elves and the Dark Blade, Cheyenne of the Malfa Family was hard to deal with too. The fact that he could work against the Dark Blade which had three Legendary leaders for so many years meant that he was rather capable himself.
After walking for about half a day, they finally saw a decrease in the incline of the slope. Everyone deduced that they were likely to be approaching the bottom of the cliff after some calculation. However, at this juncture, all of the Legendary powerhouses of the team, including Lin Li who seemed to be idling around all the time, appeared to be rather heavy-hearted. They could sense the strong Menace of the Dragon that was much more intense than on top of the cliff.
Wyrms could be considered the strongest magical beasts in Anril, even though they were a lot weaker than the prehistoric dragons. However, adult wyrms were at least level-20. Coupled with high magical resistance and defensive abilities and the Dragon language magic they also inherited, they were still powerful and strong existences to the humans and the elves.
As the team continued to go deeper, the oppressive pressure of the Menace of the Dragon began to increase, and there were no longer any magical beasts to stop the team from advancing. On both sides of the road, there were more and more tall cliffs, and everyone seemed to have reached a spacious canyon.
All of a sudden, Elder Randy stopped in his tracks and looked up in the sky. Before the rest could look up, the sounds of a wyrm howling filled the air, causing everyone’s expression to change.
The roar of the wyrm echoed in the canyon, destroying the peace and silence within it. Next, more erratic and chaotic roars of wyrms began to rise, and the air seemed to be shaking together with the sounds. The poisonous fog seemed to begin spreading too.
Although everyone knew that encountering wyrms was inevitable before they arrived, they obviously could not help but be shaken when it was really time to face the wyrms.
Everyone turned to look up at the sky and began to catch sight of the poisonous fog that made their vision rather blurry. They were greeted with a terrifying sight that brought fear to their souls.
Grim-looking dragons roared from the depths of the canyon, each appearing domineering and daunting. All of their formidable auras combined together were enough to bring about a major change that made the world shudder. The entire huge canyon seemed to be unable to withstand the destructive auras of the dragons as it shook slightly.
At this moment, the spacious canyon seemed to have become cramped and crowded, while the gigantic figures covered the sky and filled the canyon like air fortresses that would crush and destroy everything in their path. They weaved through the canyon and caused all the rocks and boulders to crumble, making sounds that seemed to be a prelude to death and destruction when combined with the roaring of the wyrms.