Chapter 103: Ambush

“Each of you leads a team of about twenty mages, spreading out one team every kilometer to clear both sides of the road.”

Over here, Mage Viersha had already issued orders in an orderly manner: “If you encounter trouble you can’t handle, send a signal immediately—I’ll arrive as soon as possible.”

The recipients of these orders were twenty other First-Ring mages, also affiliated with the city of Bremen’s official forces.

At Viersha’s signal, each First-Ring mage selected over twenty non-official mages to form twenty teams.

Following a strict sequence, as each team advanced one kilometer, two teams would leave the convoy and enter the forests flanking the official road.

After six mage teams had already departed from the convoy, it was finally Gao De’s turn.

A middle-aged mage appeared, pointing at four carriages—including the one Gao De was in—“You, you, you, and you, get down and follow me.”

The mage apprentices on all four carriages had already prepared themselves mentally.

At the command, they leapt down from the carriages and followed the middle-aged mage into the forest.

The four carriages they had ridden in, along with the dozen or so city guards accompanying them, would remain on the road to wait for them.

One purpose was to provide necessary logistical support; the other was to transport valuable bio-pulse carcasses.

Leaving the road and entering the forest, the scent of decay hit them at once.

Thick, lush foliage blocked out all air, leaving the light dim.

The group moved through the dense woods, footsteps crunching on the thick layer of fallen leaves and dead branches, producing a rustling sound.

Gao De followed within the team, noticing that though he felt some tension, what dominated his heart was actually eagerness.

The lead middle-aged mage had already cast a spell the moment they stepped off the road.

His eyes grew deep and bright, as if capable of piercing through all illusions and disguises.

Gao De, noticing this, understood clearly: this was a detection spell.

Compared to “wild mages” who learned spells haphazardly, mages under the official system had one major advantage: their spells were systematic.

From reconnaissance to combat, everything was thoroughly developed.

“Watch your surroundings, especially above—I only have two eyes and can’t cover every direction,” the middle-aged mage warned, sensing the group’s growing laxity.

Hearing this, everyone tensed up immediately, raising their vigilance.

Yet, the instant he finished speaking—

Zzzt! A dark shadow plunged down from the shadow of a towering tree, moving at an unbelievable speed.

It was a giant flying bird.

Its dive was precise and swift, having already locked onto its target—the mage apprentice lagging behind the group.

The apprentice, seemingly paralyzed by fear, stood frozen in place, motionless.

The next instant, the bird’s talons slashed out like a sharp dagger, slicing across the apprentice’s chest.

In an instant, blood sprayed—the apprentice didn’t even have time to scream before collapsing, life unknown.

The entire event occurred in the blink of an eye.

This sudden attack jolted everyone awake.

After the successful ambush, the bird let out a piercing cry, as if taunting them.

Its feathers were pitch black, its eyes glinting with cruelty.

“Beast!” roared the lead middle-aged mage.

He drew a deep breath, raised his right hand, and his fingertips glowed with blue light.

At his roar, the blue light exploded into a blade of ice, shimmering with cold, hurtling toward the flying monster in midair!

The ice blade carved a graceful arc through the air, as if freezing the very atmosphere.

Sensing the threat within the ice blade, the monster shrieked shrilly, attempting to evade through rapid flight. But in the middle-aged mage’s hand, another streak of blue light was already forming.

Zzzt! The ice blade skimmed past the monster’s belly feathers—missing direct impact, yet the cold radiating from it still made the creature shudder.

Before the monster could react, another ice blade arrived.

It struck the monster’s left wing with perfect accuracy.

Ice shards sprayed as a horrifying wound opened, and a thin layer of ice spread rapidly across the monster’s left wing.

Instantly, the monster lost balance and tumbled uncontrollably downward.

Mid-fall, it struggled desperately to stabilize itself, but to no avail—finally crashing to the ground with a pained screech.

“Die!” The mage apprentices, still shaken, saw the monster on the ground and unleashed their spells in fury.

In an instant, dozens of attack cantrips rained down upon the flying monster.

Even with its astonishing resistance, it couldn’t withstand the continuous magical barrage—it was instantly reduced to a dead bird.

Even Gao De joined in.

Unfortunately, he wasn’t the one who landed the final blow, so he gained no essence.

But none of that mattered now.

Everyone turned to the mage apprentice who had been struck by the monster.

He lay on the ground, his chest clothing torn open, revealing a horrifying wound that exposed bone.

He was unconscious, fading fast, life slipping away.

The lead middle-aged mage saw this, frowned slightly—but nothing more.

He pulled out a pre-prepared “Basic Healing Potion” from his pocket and applied it to the wounded apprentice’s wound to temporarily stop the bleeding.

“Take him back to the convoy—the convoy has mages trained in healing spells.”

The middle-aged mage showed no emotional disturbance, simply pointing at one of the remaining apprentices and ordering, “You.”

“Yes!” The selected apprentice, as if granted mercy, hurriedly replied.

—After all, you got paid per day; avoiding combat was always better.

“The rest of you, continue the mission. Learn your lesson—these beasts always ambush. If you get hit hard, even healing spells might not save your life,” the middle-aged mage reminded the team that had failed to prevent the attack.

Everyone nodded silently, clearly storing this warning deep in their minds.

Experience teaches—once taught, you learn.

Having witnessed a companion fall, all their sense of ease vanished.

A heavy, oppressive atmosphere filled the team.

Everyone was thinking the same question: If that bird had targeted me instead, what would my fate be now?

Once that thought took root, no one could remain relaxed.

Gao De’s perspective had changed:

He had underestimated the dangers of hunting bio-pulse creatures in the wild.

He had assumed that with numbers and official mages leading, safety was guaranteed.

But in truth, anything could happen in the wild.

Teamwork only slightly improves safety—if you rely solely on others, you won’t even know how you died.

You can only rely on yourself.

(End of Chapter)