Chapter 246: Tracking

The strike missed, but Gao De's mood didn't change much; he remained very calm.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard is, after all, a first-circle earth-vein creature.

Even if his spells were far more powerful than other mages' due to the Wind-Spirit-Moon-Shadow point addition, they were ultimately just cantrips, and it was perfectly normal for them to be blocked by a first-circle earth-vein creature.

Compared to other first-circle mages, besides the Wind-Spirit-Moon-Shadow, the most prominent aspect of Gao De was the extremely large number of spells stored in his spell library.

As the saying goes, quantitative change leads to qualitative change.

Some spells, when taken individually, don't count for much, but they can link with other spells to produce an effect of 1+1>2.

Two intense energy beams flew out from Gao De's hands, shooting toward the oncoming Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard.

【Eldritch Blast+】, which comes with target-locking and force damage, is just perfect for dealing with the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard, which has extremely strong physical resistance.

After all, force damage is a noble damage type that ignores armor and physical defense, which means that no matter how tough the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's skin is, it cannot ignore the rays of the Eldritch Blast.

The energy beams shot out.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's keen insight into energy also smelled a hint of danger from it, and it tried to dodge.

However, the continuous tracking mechanism of 【Eldritch Blast+】 made its attempt futile, unless it could burst out with astonishing speed in a short time to pull its position out of the spell range of the Eldritch Blast.

Finally, the two energy beams accurately hit the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard and then submerged into it.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard didn't show any injuries on the surface, but it immediately let out a scream of pain.

Because its body had already suffered some damage internally.

At this moment, the distance between Gao De and the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard was extremely close, and they were about to pass each other.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard, suffering great pain, opened its mouth in anger and spat out a blue airflow storm like a tornado, rolling toward Gao De.

Gao De, however, seemed not to have reacted, without any movement.

The next instant, that blue airflow had already covered Gao De.

However, a layer of faint light appeared on the surface of Gao De's body at this moment.

【Enhance Resistance+】.

Having the first-mover advantage, there is also a great advantage, which is that Gao De can add 【Enhance Resistance+】 to himself early.

And the duration of 【Enhance Resistance+】 is no longer limited to one minute, but can be continuously extended according to his will until the mana is exhausted.

The blue airflow swept over, covering Gao De's figure.

But Gao De was as steady as a rock, and his actions were not affected at all.

This was due to both the credit of enhanced resistance and the ability of the primary Ice-Blessed Body.

Gao De, who possesses the primary Ice-Blessed Body, has an 11% increase in his ability to withstand ice-element damage, just like the earth-vein creatures on the snow plains, naturally possessing strong ice resistance.

Under the dual blessing of the primary Ice-Blessed Body and 【Enhance Resistance+】, the damage caused by this ice storm from the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard could almost be ignored.

And the freezing and slowing effect brought by the ice storm was also completely immune due to the primary Ice-Blessed Body.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard clearly didn't expect Gao De to be able to ignore this attack so easily, and it hadn't reacted yet.

And Gao De naturally wouldn't miss this brief opportunity.

Between the surges of mana in his body, at the moment of passing the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard, two floating ghost hands were summoned by him and pressed heavily on the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's rough skin.

In an instant, the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard felt its whole body go soft, becoming tired and powerless.

【Mage Hand+】 + 【Touch of Fatigue】! Mage Hand does not possess attack capabilities.

However, Gao De can use the Mage Hand to complete the contact required by 【Touch of Fatigue】, indirectly transforming 【Touch of Fatigue】 from a relatively chicken-rib melee spell into a mid-to-short-range spell.

This is the embodiment of 1+1>2.

Seeing that the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard had fallen into a state of fatigue, Gao De immediately pursued the victory and released the next spell.

A beam of scorching fire erupted from his hand.

The fire arrow drew a bright trajectory and hit the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard, which was unable to respond in time due to the spell effect.

【Fire Arrow+】! Although the extreme cold of the northern realm will weaken the performance of fire-type spells, because the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's main resistance is concentrated on ice, the damage caused by fire-type spells to it is significantly increased accordingly.

One side is weakening, and the other side is increasing, but comparing the two, the increase outweighs the weakening.

Therefore, the cost-effectiveness of casting Fire Arrow is still extremely high.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard hit by the fire beam let out a scream of pain, and charred traces had already appeared on its tough skin; it was clearly seriously injured.

Seeing this, Gao De knew that now was the best time to end the battle.

Clang, clang, clang! A burst of mournful bell sounds rang in the air, echoing continuously.

【Death Knell】.

The bell sound that has extra damage bonuses for injured units rang out.

Dark spots appeared on the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's skin, and emotions of fear and despair were revealed in its eyes.

This is the necrotic damage caused by 【Death Knell】, which not only causes damage to its flesh but also has a certain impact on its spirit.

With the echo of the bell, the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's life force seemed to be being extracted by an invisible force.

Gao De did not give the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard any chance to breathe; even a lion fighting a rabbit must use its full strength.

"【Eldritch Blast】!" He shouted lightly, and two intense energy beams flew out from his hands again, shooting straight at the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard, which was already weak.

This time, based on the necrotic damage, the energy beams caused greater destructive power within the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's body.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard struggled weakly, but its body was already unable to make effective resistance.

The energy beams hit its abdomen, making a muffled sound, and then submerged into it.

Under the dual negative effects of fatigue and necrosis, the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's body was at its most vulnerable at this moment.

Therefore, these two energy beams instantly caused greater destruction inside its body.

Finally, this Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard fell on the snow, losing all its life force.

Gao De looked at the 【Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard】 (1/7) that appeared on the Wind-Spirit-Moon-Shadow source column, and after confirming that it was dead, he released 【Enhance Resistance+】 and then walked to its corpse.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard is one of the earth-vein creatures unique to the northern realm.

So the earth-vein creature general knowledge class he took at the Sairisi Academy did not have an introduction to the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard.

Of course, he couldn't know which parts of the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard were more valuable.

Gao De could only cast 【Detect Magic】 and then cut off the tongue part where the magic aura was most shining, putting it into his package.

Afterward, he patiently divided the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's corpse.

This was the first Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard Gao De had killed, but it was not the first lizard earth-vein creature.

Source:

0-circle - Frost-Tail Lizard (4/7), Ice-Scale Lizard (2/7).

Before encountering the first-circle Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard, Gao De had also encountered two different 0-circle lizard earth-vein creatures.

It was a pity that lizard earth-vein creatures were mostly solitary, unlike snow wolves and snow hyenas, which were encountered in large groups.

So the source he obtained was also scattered, and he hadn't gathered a single new source until now.

And after killing the Frost-Tail Lizard and the Ice-Scale Lizard, Gao De had already tried it, and the taste of lizard meat was unexpectedly quite good.

Lizard meat tastes somewhat similar to fish meat, relatively tender and smooth, and rich in protein and fat, definitely considered a high-quality ingredient.

According to the northern people's way of eating, it was naturally eaten raw.

However, Gao De's eating habits still couldn't accept such a primitive way, so he generally took the lizard meat in whole pieces, cut it into small pieces when needed, and roasted it on a fire.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's body size was about as big as a wolf, and the amount of meat that could be divided from its body was sufficient.

However, limited by weight, Gao De finally only cut off the largest and most tender part from the Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's abdomen.

The rest was left to nature or the snow eagles and snow hyenas circling on the snow plains. After cleaning up, Gao De set off again.

After walking a few more kilometers, he was far away from the previous battle point, and the sky was getting dark, so he prepared to set up camp and rest.

Gao De first confirmed the weather for the next day through 【Druid Tricks】 as usual, and then cast 【Wild Agility】, calling out the Spirit of the Wilderness to help find a suitable camp.

This is the professional field of the Spirit of the Wilderness.

After a while, the Spirit of the Wilderness found a relatively flat, leeward, and sunny area nearby, and there were some low bushes around, which could serve as a natural barrier.

Clearly, this was an ideal camping location.

The Spirit of the Wilderness, which found the camping point, immediately and very consciously looked for dry branches and grass that could be used as fuel, stones to circle the fire, and used Gao De's supplies to build a simple camp in the camping location it found.

It set up the tent, unrolled the bedding, and took out the rations Gao De carried with him.

Having mastered this spell, Gao De's living standard on the snow plains could be said to have risen in a straight line.

No wonder Baruke said at the beginning that 【Wild Agility】 is a must-learn spell for Guardians.

Of course, currently, the Spirit of the Wilderness can only do these things; more difficult work can only be done by Gao De himself, such as cooking.

He quickly lit a fire with the Spark Spell, then divided the lizard meat into small pieces and roasted them on the fire.

At the same time, he set up a small pot on the fire and boiled hot water.

As for the Spirit of the Wilderness, it was sent out by Gao De to continue looking for fuel.

The Dragon-Tongue Blue Lizard's meat was exceptionally delicious, and even without seasoning, the taste was not bad.

Rushing for a day, being able to eat a good meal made Gao De feel great.

By the fire, Gao De took out the map from the Snuofu Clan to check.

Ten days had passed since he ran away from the Snow Plain Guardians branch.

During this period, Gao De rushed an average of 40 kilometers a day, which was 400 kilometers in ten days.

But it was actually still far from the coastline of the northern realm.

Because he entered the northern realm from the Erwenlaya mountain range section within the territory of the Saint Xi En Principality.

And to reach the coastline of the northern realm, the distance to travel was approximately equal to crossing the entire Jin Quehua Dynasty.

But Gao De was not in a hurry.

Because he was not just rushing, but also actively "grinding monsters" while rushing.

With other things to do, the journey didn't seem so boring.

After confirming that his direction was not deviated, Gao De put away the map.

Fu Luo La sat on Gao De's shoulder, roasting fire with him.

The change in temperature had almost no effect on her.

But Fu Luo La was a copycat; seeing the mage roasting fire, she followed along.

Even what the mage ate, she wanted to taste it too.

"Mage, are you going to start practicing again?" Seeing Gao De put away the map, Lady Fu Luo La voiced out.

Gao De nodded, "Yes."

"Then Lady Fu Luo La is also going to start practicing spells."

"Then I wish Lady Fu Luo La success tonight."

"We don't have a horse."

"... My mistake, then I wish Lady Fu Luo La success tonight."

"Lady Fu Luo La almost succeeded last night; it will definitely be fine today." The copycat said firmly.

"Yes, it will definitely be fine today."

"Lady Fu Luo La is indeed wise; mere spells cannot stump you." Gao De praised repeatedly.

Fu Luo La looked at Gao De; she took Gao De's praise for granted, her eyes narrowed slightly, and her joy was fully revealed.

"Really?"

"Of course, an ordinary mage apprentice wants to master a spell, it takes at least half a year!"

"Lady Fu Luo La has been learning for less than a month!" Fu Luo La counted carefully with her fingers, and was even happier.

"Really amazing."

"By the way, Mage, then how long does it take you to learn a spell?"

"..."

"Hmm?!" Fu Luo La tilted her head and looked at Gao De.

"I am going to start today's practice, Lady Fu Luo La should also hurry up. As the saying goes, one drum, then two, then three exhausted; take advantage of the current momentum, and strive to succeed tonight."

"Then how long does it take you to learn a spell?"

"..."

"How long?"

"About that long."

"How long is that long?"

"Two or three days."

Gao De didn't "dare" to look at Fu Luo La again. After answering, he sat cross-legged silently, entered a state of meditation, and began the practice of 【Green Wood Longevity Scripture】.

"?!!!"

Fu Luo La's eyes widened, as if she had been hit by something, and she couldn't say a word anymore.

Gao De hadn't finished today's practice when he was awakened by Fu Luo La.

Of course, Fu Luo La had always been very sensible. The reason she interrupted his practice was because she discovered an abnormality and issued a warning to Gao De.

Gao De's whole mind tightened. Just after getting up, he discovered that two figures had appeared in front of him and behind him at a distance of one or two hundred meters at some point.

It just happened to block his path forward and his retreat.

Two people, one was a man, and the other was wearing a bronze mask.

Gao De narrowed his eyes.

"Snow Plain Guardians?" He confirmed.

Because on the clothes of the two, Gao De saw the familiar pattern representing the "Snow Plain Guardians."

"Yes, we are hunters of the Snow Plain Guardians." The man blocking Gao De's front said in a deep voice.

These two were naturally Loychi and Catherine, who had tracked him by scent all the way.

"What do you mean by this?" Gao De looked at Loychi with a vigilant posture, while letting Fu Luo La help put away the "Breath of the Wilderness" in the package through spiritual communication.

The experience of being with Baruke gave him a certain understanding of the hunter group among the Snow Plain Guardians.

In terms of combat power alone, hunters are stronger than Guardians.

Therefore, although he couldn't know the mage level of these two hunters, there was no doubt that they could absolutely crush him.

He didn't know the other party's specific intention now, but it was clearly unkind, so he had to put away the "Breath of the Wilderness" first to avoid "guilt of harboring a treasure."

"I have had contact with Guardian Baruke of your sect, and I can be considered a friend of the Snow Plain Guardians." Gao De said in a deep voice.

"Sure enough, I didn't find the wrong person..." Loychi saw that he hadn't asked yet, and Gao De had already confessed his identity, so he couldn't help but nod with satisfaction.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 247 =====