Chapter 291

The joy of victory dissipated as quickly as the morning mist, replaced by the solemn atmosphere brought by the labyrinth guardian.

He walked silently in front, his figure appearing and disappearing in the mist, as if he could merge into this void at any time.

The group followed closely, watching the surroundings vigilantly; the thick mist limited their vision, and they could barely see a few steps ahead, with unknown dangers lurking within, making people feel uneasy.

"Watch your step." The Starry Knight reminded in a low voice, his voice sounding particularly dull in the mist.

The Messenger of Light looked at Kelinda worriedly. "Are you okay? The battle with the Dark Lord consumed a lot of energy, and now..." Before she could finish, she was interrupted by a faint buzzing sound.

At first, the sound was so faint it was almost imperceptible, but soon it grew louder and louder, like countless mosquitoes flapping their wings by their ears.

Immediately after, a group of tiny flying insects emerged from the mist; they were pitch black, flashing with metallic luster, attacking the group like a black tide.

"It's Corrosive Poison Flies!" The Nebula Sage exclaimed. "Their venom can corrode flesh and energy!"

Before he could finish, Kelinda let out a cry of pain; a poison fly had already landed on her arm.

A burning pain came, Kelinda's face turned pale instantly, a wisp of blue smoke rose from her arm, and her skin began to fester rapidly.

"Kelinda!" The Messenger of Light exclaimed, wanting to step forward to help, but was pulled back by Zhang Cheng.

A flash of cold light crossed Zhang Cheng's eyes; he quickly took a palm-sized device from his waist and pressed the button.

The device instantly released a pale blue energy barrier, enveloping the group.

Those flying insects hit the barrier, making a crackling sound, and fell to the ground one after another.

"Fortunately, I was prepared." Zhang Cheng's tone was calm, but carried a hint of imperceptible solemnity.

The group only then noticed the device in his hand, looking at him with admiration.

The labyrinth guardian stopped his steps; he looked back at Zhang Cheng, a flash of admiration in his eyes, but quickly returned to his previous indifference.

He pointed to the deeper depths ahead, his voice low: "The real danger is still behind..." He continued forward, disappearing into the depths of the thick fog, leaving only one sentence echoing in the mist: "The holy relic is there..."

The pale blue energy barrier steadily resisted the attack of the Corrosive Poison Flies, the crackling sound continuing, like a strange death sonata.

The group breathed a sigh of relief, their eyes full of admiration as they looked at Zhang Cheng.

The Messenger of Light nodded at him gratefully: "Thanks to you, Zhang Cheng."

"Just some small gadgets," Zhang Cheng smiled faintly, but his gaze remained vigilant. "The labyrinth guardian said the real danger is still behind; we cannot let our guard down."

The Nebula Sage bent down to examine a poison fly that had fallen to the ground, his brow furrowed: "These poison flies... seem even more ferocious than recorded; their carapaces are harder, and their toxicity is stronger."

Just then, the poison fly corpses scattered on the ground began to tremble slightly.

Everyone's hearts tightened, and an ominous premonition arose.

I saw those poison fly corpses, as if summoned by some kind of force, beginning to gather rapidly, one on top of another, one pressing on another, surging like a black tide, piling up into a wriggling mountain of flesh.

The mountain of flesh constantly ** 【distorted/deformed】, and finally, a huge flying insect monster appeared before the group.

It had a harder carapace than the previous poison flies, flashing with a chilling metallic luster.

Huge compound eyes were like two scarlet lanterns, exuding a chilling, ferocious light.

It waved its huge wings, making a deafening buzzing sound, and the surrounding mist was shaken away.

Everyone looked at this sudden giant monster in astonishment, and the previous ease and luck were replaced by fear.

They never expected that these seemingly weak flying insects could combine into such a terrifying existence.

Kelinda's face turned pale, clutching her injured arm, shouting in horror: "This... how is this possible?!"

The labyrinth guardian stopped his steps; he didn't look back, just a low voice came from ahead: "I said, the real danger is still behind..."

The Starry Knight gripped his sword, a flash of excitement in his eyes, and he stepped forward, full of fighting spirit: "Let me try its weight!" He took a deep breath, his legs exerted force suddenly, and he rushed toward the flying insect monster like an arrow from a bow... The Starry Knight turned into a residual image, the sharp sword in his hand tearing through the air, piercing straight at the flying insect monster's huge compound eyes.

However, the tip of the sword just touched the carapace flashing with metallic luster, and it was like falling into a mud pit, quickly wrapped by countless tiny flying insects.

The flying insect monster let out a sharp hiss, its huge body shaking slightly, as if about to swallow the Starry Knight completely.

Seeing this, the group's hearts tightened. The Messenger of Light exclaimed: "Knight!" The Blue Star Guardian also gripped his weapon, ready to support at any time.

Just when everyone thought the Starry Knight was about to encounter misfortune, a powerful energy fluctuation suddenly erupted from within the flying insect monster.

The flying insects wrapping the Starry Knight were instantly shaken away, floating and scattering like black smoke.

The Starry Knight's figure reappeared before everyone; he was unscathed, the sharp sword in his hand flashing with dazzling light.

"I'm not that easily swallowed." The Starry Knight curled his mouth slightly, revealing a confident smile.

It turned out he had deliberately let the flying insects wrap him, precisely to find an opportunity to counterattack.

He utilized the characteristic of the flying insects gathering, condensed his own energy at one point, and erupted instantly, shaking away the flying insects in one fell swoop and causing effective damage to the flying insect monster.

The flying insect monster let out a painful hiss, its huge body swaying, seemingly having suffered no small trauma.

Seeing this, the group couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, marveling at the Starry Knight's wit and bravery.

The Messenger of Light ran to Kelinda's side, gently holding her injured arm, and a warm energy slowly flowed into Kelinda's body, healing her.

The Messenger of Light's eyes were full of heartache and concern; Kelinda felt her care, felt a warmth in her heart, and smiled at her gratefully.

Just then, the Star Spirit's flickering voice sounded in everyone's ears: "We need a trap to trap it." The Red-Robed Mage shook his head, the light of the staff in his hand flickering: "No, direct attack, finish it quickly." The eyes of the Star Spirit and the Red-Robed Mage met in the air, and an invisible tense atmosphere spread between the two... "The trap is too slow," the Red-Robed Mage said firmly, the staff tapping lightly on the ground, creating a ripple. "It's injured; now is the best time to attack."

The Star Spirit flickered with dark blue light, its voice erratic: "You are too reckless, Mage. This kind of creature is cunning; attacking rashly will only put us in a more dangerous situation. A trap can limit its actions and let us find its weakness."

"Weakness? My fireball is its weakness!" The Red-Robed Mage waved his sleeve, a scorching flame dancing in his palm, reflecting his firm face.

Zhang Cheng had been observing the situation silently; now he stepped forward and said in a deep voice: "Two, now is not the time for arguing." He looked around at the permeating mist, his brow furrowed. "The flying insect monster has disappeared; we should be even more cautious. The Star Spirit's trap and the Mage's attack might be combined."

The Nebula Sage stroked his chin, thoughtfully nodding: "Zhang Cheng is right; we can set up a trap first, just in case. If the flying insect monster appears again, the Mage's attack can also play a key role."

Just as the group reached an agreement, the surrounding mist seemed to become thicker, visibility less than an arm's length.

The destruction caused by the flying insect monster just now was still before their eyes, and a strange fishy smell permeated the air.

Silence, suffocating silence shrouded the group.

The battlefield, which had been noisy just a moment ago, now seemed to be gripped by an invisible giant hand.

The Messenger of Light subconsciously gripped Kelinda's hand, her fingertips icy.

Kelinda could feel the sweat on the Messenger of Light's palms; she held the Messenger of Light's hand back, giving her silent comfort.

The Starry Knight looked around vigilantly, the sharp sword in his hand making a low humming sound, as if responding to the oppression of this space.

The Blue Star Guardian stood silently beside Zhang Cheng, like an iron fortress, ready to resist any invading enemy at any time.

Even the usually indifferent Star Spirit's light seemed to dim a bit; it slowly circled the group, as if probing for something.

Suddenly, Zhang Cheng's gaze froze; he seemed to have sensed something and turned his head abruptly to look into the depths of the thick fog on the left...

There, something was wriggling, approaching...

"Shh..." Zhang Cheng slowly raised a hand, signaling the group to be quiet. He lowered his voice and said word by word: "It... is back."