Chapter 260: War Begins

Facing this sudden change, the eyes of the remaining recruited wizards first flashed with shock and panic.

But they were all formal wizards, not lacking the necessary mind and will.

They quickly suppressed their instinctive emotions, forced themselves to calm down, and cold reason regained the upper hand in an instant, quickly analyzing and seeing the situation in front of them.

Their gazes instantly became sharp, while extremely cautiously using the corner of their eyes to scan every move of other temporary companions on the field, guarding against the possible secondary betrayal.

On the other hand, they locked most of their vigilance and surging killing intent with great tacit understanding onto Levin Mills and Jie Ke's group, who were high above, looking down with a cat-and-mouse playful smile.

On the field, only Jie Ming appeared abnormally calm, as if everything in front of him had been in his expectation.

This feeling of something wrong had already buried a seed in his heart when Jie Ke took the initiative to come up and chat and invite him at the camp plaza—if it was said that meeting after a long absence and greeting each other was understandable, then the opponent's behavior of taking the initiative to chat at the plaza was a bit too enthusiastic.

Initially, he didn't think deeply, but after learning the details of the so-called "rescue mission," a question floated into his mind:

If it was just purely needing manpower to assist in searching and expanding the reconnaissance range, from the consideration of the most basic "cost-effectiveness," hiring a small number of Level 2 wizards was the most suitable.

However, whether it was Jie Ke, or Levin Mills, or others in their team, they all undisguisedly expressed dissatisfaction with the recruited wizards in terms of "quantity"—they seemed to need not just searchers from the beginning, but—"prey" in sufficient quantity.

The second thing that made Jie Ming feel a warning sign was the lack of a contract.

While there are implicit unwritten rules for temporary teams among wizards, how could they not have proactively proposed signing a binding soul contract for a collaborative mission that would last at least a month and carried a certain degree of danger?

This itself was already extremely unusual.

Looking at Jie Ming's abnormally calm, even with a hint of understanding expression, Jie Ke and Levin Mills both flashed a hint of unexpectedness that was not easy to detect in their eyes.

Jie Ming actually had many questions in his heart, but obviously, it was not the time to ask questions.

He turned his head violently, and his line of sight met in the air with that Level 4 wizard not far away who had obviously been attacked before.

The moment their gazes collided, they had already completed a silent exchange:

"Cooperate?"

"Cooperate!"

Without any nonsense, that Level 4 wizard had obviously suffered a similar big loss before, and his reaction was surprisingly fast.

He let out a low roar and, without hesitation, separated a spiritual contract flashing with brilliant golden light from his own soul origin!

That contract, as if possessing life, instantly flew in front of Jie Ming and the other ten recruited wizards.

The content of the contract was simple and direct—temporary alliance, consistent against the outside, no attacking each other!

Jie Ming and other survivors had no hesitation and quickly branded their spiritual marks on it.

With the contract formed, an invisible binding force briefly condensed everyone's loose spiritual will.

Although it was far from talking about trust, at least there was no need to worry about cold arrows from behind at any time, and they could fully deal with the dead end in front of them.

And just at this time...

Crack boom!

The huge energy shield Jie Ming had set up earlier finally issued a wail that it couldn't bear under the joint bombardment of Jie Ke and others like a storm, and completely collapsed into light spots all over the sky!

Looking at the Level 4 protective wizard tool on his hand that was rapidly losing its luster, Jie Ming sent it back into his body space with a blank expression.

Although the speed at which this layer of Level 4 shield was destroyed was a bit beyond expectation, they had also adjusted their state on their side, which could be considered as completing the task.

The two sides had no room for maneuver anymore; the seeds of hatred had long been planted, and only blood could wash it away!

"Levin Mills! Your opponent is me!"

That unknown Level 4 wizard had his hair and beard standing on end, roaring like thunder, and surging energy surged out from his whole body like a wave, taking the initiative to find Levin Mills, the strongest Level 3 wizard on the opposite side, and entangled him to death.

The two tacitly broke away from the area below, and the huge energy collision sound exploded instantly in the high altitude.

But the remaining situation was still desperate for Jie Ming's side!

Except for Jie Ming, the surviving recruited ones were all Level 1 wizards.

And on the opposite side, counting Jie Ke, there were twelve Level 2 wizards with strong strength and tacit cooperation!

What was even worse was that the wizard who had been silent and withered (the original stout wizard) smiled gloomily, and his dry, chicken-claw-like palm gripped the void!

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

In an instant, all the "Glow Worms" released by the recruited wizards for reconnaissance and vigilance, no matter how far away, actually exploded collectively at the same time without warning!

These Glow Worms were connected to the host's spirit; this sudden soul backlash was like countless red-hot iron needles stabbing into the marrow of everyone's brains!

"Ah!!"

The miserable screams suddenly rang out in one piece.

More than seven Level 1 wizards didn't have time to make any effective defense, and immediately bled from seven orifices, their eyes instantly dimmed, and they fell straight from the air like broken-line puppets, losing their combat ability for a time!

In the blink of an eye, only four wizards, including Jie Ming, were left standing!

But at this moment, the remaining three wizards were all pale, and the soul damage made them have splitting headaches, and their strength was greatly reduced.

Although Jie Ming had been prepared and did not reveal his specificity in front of outsiders, the viciousness and violence of this soul shock still exceeded his estimation.

Fortunately, the body-refining method gave him not only a strong body but also extremely strong resistance to spiritual shock.

And after so many days, relying on the adaptive evolution of the body-refining method, he had great resistance to this type of spiritual shock.

Jie Ming just felt his brain dizzy, as if hit by a heavy hammer, but his strong physical fitness allowed him to forcibly carry this severe pain, and he recovered clarity in an instant after shaking his head.

Just at this moment of trance, the enemy's attack was approaching.

Without the slightest hesitation, Jie Ming beckoned.

"Roar!!!"

Five black giants, over ten meters high, with skin like cast black iron, roared and rushed out from his body space!

Their huge bodies, full of savagery and power, instantly blocked most of the attack routes!

Under Jie Ming's precise command, these five black giants stood fearlessly at the very front, using their broad backs and strong bodies to barely protect everyone.

At the same time, the other three Level 1 wizards who were enduring the soul pain also roared and began to fight for their lives.

They burned their spiritual power at all costs, cast their strongest wizardry, and cooperated with the black giants to barely contain the opponent's seven ordinary Level 2 wizards.

And Jie Ming himself locked his cold gaze on the remaining five people opposite—that was also the strongest combination among the enemies: Jie Ke, the withered wizard, and three other Level 2 wizards whose auras were obviously more fierce!

"Kill!" Jie Ke shouted sharply, and the five launched an attack at the same time, and the energy brilliance instantly drowned Jie Ming.

However...

Jie Ming's counterattack was so violent that it exceeded everyone's imagination!

The ten "rune wizard tools" floating on his wrist erupted with dazzling light for the first time, and high-frequency energy rays, like the death god's weaving net, densely splashed toward the five people.

This was not over yet; Jie Ming waved his hand, and several Level 4 attack wizard tools were activated without hesitation!

For a time, the Ring of Frost froze space, the Disintegration Ray pierced the void, the Distortion Halo deflected attacks—various bizarre and powerful Level 4 wizardry effects exploded instantly, catching Jie Ke's five people off guard, making them look miserable, and they were actually suppressed in place by the terrifying firepower erupted by Jie Ming alone.

"Level 4 wizard tool?! How could he have so many?!" A Level 2 wizard screamed in horror.

Even before the attack arrived, the shield he held up was already fluctuating violently in the energy torrent.

Jie Ke and others were veterans of the expeditionary army after all, and they reacted immediately after being shocked, roaring and taking out their own trump-card Level 4 defensive or attack wizard tools to resist.

Boom boom boom—

The power of several Level 4 wizard tools collided violently in mid-air, erupting with roars enough to tear eardrums and destructive energy tides!

The short-term advantage Jie Ming obtained by relying on quantity was forcibly offset by the opponent using means of the same level within a few seconds.

But, this had already won enough time for Jie Ming.

A fierce look flashed in his eyes, and his mind moved again.

In an instant, thousands of spare "rune wizard tools" whistled out from his body space, quickly combining and circling with his original ten rune wizard tools.

Taking advantage of the Level 4 wizardry bombardment, a huge, complex, and precise "Great Da Guang Xiang," like a halo behind the Buddha's head, formed behind him.

Hum...

The moment the "Great Da Guang Xiang" was activated, a terrifying energy fluctuation that made the soul tremble swept the entire field.

That halo seemed to have turned into a black hole devouring everything, or like the core of a sun about to erupt!

In the next instant, a scorching torrent composed purely of destructive energy, thick enough to be unbelievable, surged out from that "Great Da Guang Xiang"!

Wherever this light flow passed, space seemed to be twisted and dissolved, and the layers of shields built by the enemy wizards in their haste were easily torn and evaporated like paper!

Jie Ming was actually using his own strength to forcibly include most of the battlefield enemies, including five Level 2 wizards, into his attack range!

That destructive light flow, as if possessing life, chased Jie Ke's squad and fired crazily, forcing them to dodge desperately, with no time to care about anything else!

The three Level 1 wizards and black giants who were originally in danger under the siege of the other seven Level 2 wizards and were about to collapse suddenly felt their pressure ease.

They looked up in horror at the back of the man who turned the tide of the battle with his own strength and forcibly suppressed half of the strong enemies with violent and unparalleled firepower, their eyes full of unbelievable shock!

Relying on the assistance of Jie Ming and the black giants, the several wizards who had lost their combat ability before also barely cheered up, forcibly suppressed their injuries, and joined the battle.

But their souls had already been hit by the gloom and suffered heavy damage, their combat effectiveness was greatly reduced, and their joining only delayed everyone's death speed.

In just a few breaths of confrontation, the recruited wizards had already suffered heavy casualties, with only the last five left gasping for breath.

And the black giants summoned by Jie Ming also suffered two battle losses.

But the remaining three black giants, relying on their immortal-like tenacity and their own innate characteristics, actually forcibly killed two Level 2 wizards with slightly weaker strength.

The battlefield, because of Jie Ming's unreasonable eruption, was forcibly dragged into a tragic stalemate. ===== CHAPTER 261 =====