Chapter 568: Ambush and Spell Formation

Rod recalled.

The president of the film club, Seamus, had first wanted to blow up the defensive line at Claw Valley.

Later, at the Violet Tavern in Shi Ying, he had tried to use chaotic spiritual energy to infect Ryan, a seventh-rank mercenary.

Fortunately, he was stopped by the tavern's owner, Valeri.

At that time, the other-dimensional space had not yet shown very obvious chaotic energy; it was still in the stage of rampant spiritual storms.

But even in that brief moment, he had already begun trying to use chaotic, mixed spiritual energy.

The present-day artificial release of chaotic energy is basically inseparable from him.

Speaking of which—

That owner of the Violet Tavern, a retired officer from the Etheron military, clearly has certain secrets.

Rod had noticed this earlier.

Before the Coral Bay offensive, he had gone to the tavern for a drink and tried probing a couple of times.

Yet the answer he received was very vague and full of hidden meaning.

Owner Valeri said that the only thing he needed to protect was this one Violet Tavern.

"Perhaps the Violet Tavern itself?"

His thoughts had drifted a bit too far.

Rod shook his head and refocused on the present.

This group of Bahadur mages had set up their temporary camp on a mist-shrouded mountain plateau nearby.

The camp was built on a platform arched into a cone shape by five or six ancient pines upon which 【Animate Tree】 had been cast.

It was sufficiently concealed, and happened to overlook a fifty-li radius centered on Olive Town.

Looking at it this way—

They said it was near Olive Town, but the scope of this "nearby" was still rather large.

The four of them observed from the nearby woods.

Each employing their own means to stay hidden.

Four or five small huts on the platform.

From time to time, young Bahadur mages in Hei Pao Fa went in and out; these mages were clearly quite young.

Through the wide-open door, one could also see inside an alchemy cauldron fitted with a siphon tube, a crystal ball mounted on a brass tripod, and other research equipment.

Among them, Seamus appeared to be the leading figure of this batch of young mages.

He held a recording stone in one hand.

While explaining something into the void, he occasionally answered or discussed the young mages' research questions.

The heroine Grey said in a low voice, "Eighteen mages, most around fourth or fifth rank, two at seventh rank, the highest being that seventh-rank mid-stage one holding the recording stone."

As she spoke—

The half-deer person Kira beside her stopped from her eyes-tight-shut prophetic state.

Her round, rolling deer eyes opened.

"Magic mines, spell reversal, lightning runes, and elemental barriers—not many of them. I can lead you around them."

Tally tilted her head, puzzled, and asked, "Why go around? They're only seventh rank."

The succubus Young Lady's eyes had been raised by the battle at Coral Bay; she had even come face to face with a top-tier ninth-rank Infernal Archduke, let alone seventh rank.

"The Mage linkage is extremely powerful; with this many of them, even if they're only fourth or fifth rank, they can't be underestimated."

Kira, thinking she hadn't experienced much combat, gently explained.

The heroine Grey nodded:

"None of us are mages, our methods are lacking, and we're few in number—many tactics can't be brought to bear. I suggest we wait until night, set a fire first, then strike by ambush."

"Set a fire?"

Tally was stunned for a moment, then cautiously turned back to look at her master.

Let alone setting fire in the mountain woods, normally she didn't even dare light a fire in front of her master.

You want to set a fire?

A certain Forester would probably not be too pleased.

Rod looked at Tally's innocent, well-behaved expression of peeking up through her lashes, and found it inexplicably amusing.

It wasn't your idea—why are you acting so guilty?

He laughed and pinched her dewy, pinchable cheeks.

"No need for all that trouble. A direct assault will do."

Hearing this—

Grey stroked her chin and did not immediately refute the proposal.

Instead, fighting spirit surged in her eyes.

Rod recalled that this heroine's fighting style resembled military tactics, and had previously guessed she might be retired from the Celestial Court Flower Kingdom's army.

Presumably she personally preferred this kind of direct, forceful assault.

"Fine. I don't have 【Darkvision】; daytime lets me perform better."

"Lady Grey! Last time you challenged that Minotaur across ranks and almost got beaten to death! You promised me you wouldn't take risks anymore!"

Kira grew anxious and immediately voiced her objection.

"This time we have Mr. Rod—he's a high-stage seventh-rank expert—there won't be any problem."

"That still won't do. Miss Tally, you certainly don't want Mr. Rod to take risks either, do you?!"

It had been a long time since Tally's master had pinched her cheeks.

She was happily nuzzling his palm, and upon hearing the question answered instinctively:

"Nope, I love watching Master Rod fight, it always makes my heart itch down there~~"

"Wha—"

Keira was at a loss for words.

Having made up her mind, Grey no longer paid attention to the half-deer girl.

She rolled her shoulders, battle intent surging.

"I'll draw their attention from the front, Mr. Rod you handle the close combat, just focus on breaking their spellcasting formation."

Rod pried off Tally's little hands gripping his arm, and pressed down on the about-to-head-out heroine Grey.

"?"

"One heavy hitter from me is enough, you and Tally just deal with anyone trying to flee."

"What are you saying?"

Grey frowned, thinking this guy was talking nonsense.

Rod didn't argue with her either.

He canceled the invisibility effect of the magic ring and strode boldly out from between the trees.

"Hey!"

Grey clicked her tongue, "Then the plan changes, Mr. Rod draws attention from the front, Young Lady Tally and I circle around to break their spellcasting formation."

The words had just fallen.

A sharp sound of magical friction suddenly rang out.

She looked up and saw a massive blaze had somehow already appeared in midair, rapidly contracting.

At a speed visible to the naked eye, the flames compressed into a violent bright-blue bolt of lightning.

In the blink of an eye it slammed into Rod's chest.

A boom of an explosion was heard.

Instantly, pitch-black smoke and intense sparks burst forth, filling the sky.

At the same time.

The earthen ground was struck and blasted in by the enormous magical energy, and a powerful cavity effect detonated in an instant.

Dirt, charred debris, along with uprooted trees, were all blasted into midair together.

Grey's face changed drastically.

This level clearly exceeded the level of the magic trap from just now.

She suddenly looked toward the camp platform not far away.

The scene of the mages busily working suddenly blurred, then became distorted like a painting.

Illusion magic?

No. Not just that.

The half-deer Keira had the ability to see through illusions.

Yet Keira's face was now full of panic, clearly not knowing what was going on.

"Could it be a Domain?!"

With a whoosh.

The curtain of the illusion spell fell.

Revealing the truth on the camp platform.

—A line of mages already prepared, maintaining a neat spellcasting formation.

The number wasn't wrong.

Eighteen in total.

Six at seventh-tier, the rest all sixth-tier.

Combat spellcasting formation's defensive barrier, accelerated resonance magic, redundant energy collection and reuse, compound spell matrix rituals, and so on and so forth

Outer interference zone, middle control zone, core protection zone, tactical counter layer, killing terminal, retreat contingency—each and every one was in place.

The corner of Grey's eye twitched.

A spellcasting formation combining defense, crowd control, and explosive killing power in one.

She had seen this before.

On the battlefield of Etheron and the Celestial Court Flower Kingdom.

(End of this chapter)