Chapter 85: The Mage Doesn't Want to Work

Juan Ce Long's memory inheritance is as vast as smoke; Naimi Xisi spent considerable effort before finally locating the information on the Shadow Steel Golem.

It is one of the most terrifying killing machines on the battlefield.

The seven‑meter‑tall monster is forged from a non‑smooth black metal called Shadow Steel; the necromancers etched an Anti‑Magic Stance onto its surface, rendering the golem immune to all magical attacks.

They can hide within shadows and at any moment unleash terrifying negative‑energy shockwaves in all directions; the black energy drains the life force of every creature, kills them, and then heals and strengthens the Undead surrounding the Shadow Steel.

The golem is the pinnacle of a mage's war Magic Item craft; they bind captured elemental essences within the material, granting the golem endless power.

Three factors affect a golem's strength: first, the elemental essence serving as its power core— the stronger the essence, the greater the power it supplies, determining the golem's size and the Magic Runes it can bear.

The second factor is the material of its body, which is categorized into five grades from weak to strong: bone, clay, flesh, steel, and Magic Ore. Stronger materials grant higher physical defense and also bestow certain special spell‑like abilities.

The third, and most crucial, factor is the rune the mage carves onto the golem.

The Anti‑Magic Stance is standard on every golem; without it, a painstakingly crafted golem could be reduced to ash by a single Disjunction Technique, which would be heartbreaking.

Beyond that, mages can freely inscribe various Runes on the golem to grant offensive or defensive abilities; for example, the Shadow Steel Golem's negative‑energy shockwave stems from a Rune, while its ability to slip into shadows comes from the inherent spell‑like property of the Shadow Steel Magic Ore.

Runes are not carved arbitrarily; the quality of the elemental essence determines which and how many Runes a mage can inscribe. With sufficiently powerful elemental essence, a mage can forge a Legendary golem tens of meters tall, endowed with numerous spell abilities.

Such a powerful construct is naturally exorbitant to produce; even the basic Anti‑Magic Stance requires a Six‑ring Protector to enchant it, since the Anti‑Magic Stance is a genuine Six‑ring Spell!

Aside from brute‑force dismantling, Naimi Xisi cannot think of any way to counter them, and with five golems plus a host of Undead guardians, he deems the task impossible.

In his view, among everyone present only General Kolon possesses the strength to easily dismantle the golems; after all, a fourteen‑level Battlefield Shapeshifter can handle a Shadow Steel Golem without difficulty.

Naimi Xisi's reply left the young officer utterly disappointed; bloodshot eyes reflected the thought of soldiers who had perished to push the front forward, making his heart feel as if it were bleeding.

"If we must retreat, where should we establish a defensive line?" the hoarse young officer asked.

Kolon cleared his throat and replied, "As for that, let me speak. I have received reliable intelligence that the Elder Green Dragon of the Tuma Ci Mountains has completely left this area."

"The canyon of the Tuma Ci Mountains is the nearest route to Saisike; it is easy to defend yet hard to attack, so I have decided to build a military fortress there."

"Previously, because of that Green Dragon we had to ignore the monsters in the mountains; now that the dragon is gone, to ensure stability behind the fortress I need the army to eradicate those monsters."

He turned to Naimi Xisi and requested, "Lord Naimi Xisi, I hope you will serve as consultant for the fortress construction; as for you, Luoga."

Kolon ordered the despondent young officer, "You will lead this squad."

The young officer froze briefly, then sprang to his feet and shouted, "Yes, General!"

Naimi Xisi shrugged; he saw no difficulty in the task—whether the Green Dragon were present or not, he was confident he could spar with it, turning a field excursion into military merit, a very nice job.

"As you wish, General Kolon," Juan Ce Long said.

After concluding the discussion and leaving the military intelligence office, Naimi Xisi returned to his office to confer with his two Dependents about the next steps.

Keli Te and Luosi Ren recounted in detail the events of the past year to Naimi Xisi.

"During this past year, the royal family issued a death‑order to eradicate cult forces nationwide; almost every city was turned upside down."

"But we still have not found the mentor of that red‑robed mage, the twelfth‑level Spellcaster."

Naimi Xisi shook his head, "The Spellcaster's mobility is almost uncatchable; whenever he wishes, he can teleport several kilometers away."

"Indeed," Luosi Ren said, "and that Spellcaster seems to be protected by a prophecy spell; the royal seers cannot locate him at all."

Naimi Xisi mused, "You will remain in Degeng City, continuously monitoring the sewers, underground, and any places where filth can hide. The sacrificial rites require massive blood offerings; from now on, compile statistics for all citizens of Degeng City, and if any unexplained disappearances occur, investigate immediately."

"Other cities are beyond my concern, but Degeng City must not endure another Abyssal sacrificial rite."

The three were talking when the door was knocked; the young officer named Luoga entered, his black hair and emerald‑like eyes matching General Kolon's.

Luoga leaned against the doorframe, jutting his chin toward Naimi Xisi, "It's time to go, Counselor."

Naimi Xisi exchanged a glance with Keli Te, then smiled, "Then I shall depart first, Lord Count."

The two exited the castle and approached the monster‑clearing squad, a unit of three hundred soldiers; after dealing with the monsters, an additional two thousand laborers will join the fortress construction.

As the soldiers left the city, many citizens lined the roads to bid them farewell, aware that these spirited troops were heading to the most dangerous zone for their mission.

Luoga rode a white steed, his armor glittering brilliantly; beneath his black hair, his flamboyant handsome face stirred the young female citizens lining the street into excitement.

Naimi Xisi rode silently atop a summoned phantom horse, cloaked in a black mage robe, while the surrounding chatter of humans gave him a headache.

Sgena, also mounted on a horse beside him, wore a look of impatience; clad in armor, her scorching figure and stunning beauty attracted several men who boldly reached out to touch the leg she had tucked against the horse's belly. "Tsk!"

Sgena let out a threatening snarl, viciously making a throat‑slashing gesture before the crowd, silencing the frenzied humans.

Indeed, not only the humans but even the horse beneath her rear trembled; Sgena hurriedly reined in the stray hint of Dragon Might, preventing the horse from collapsing to the ground.

Naimi Xisi glanced at her, spurred the phantom horse faster, "What a waste of Dragon Might."

The march was rather dull, so Naimi Xisi pulled out a book on protective life magic and began reading.

It wasn't until near dusk that they emerged from the forest and reached the foot of the mountains.

The Tuma Ci Mountains are a massive range stretching thousands of miles; at its center a huge fissure has split open, forming the famed Tuma Ci Canyon.

It is said that this fissure was created during the Day of the Fall centuries ago, when the hunting god Mala clashed with the tracking god Gui Lun·Liufeng.

Mala was pierced by Gui Lun's power, his divine blood spilling across the Tuma Ci Mountains, causing myriad monsters to be born over the years from his ever‑burning evil magic, driving them mad.

Such a place is a monster paradise and also a hatching ground where great dragons seek their Dependents.

After exiting the forest, Luoga took a few steps, raised his hand to halt the troops, glanced left and right, his nose apparently sniffing something.

"Something's off," he asked Naimi Xisi, "Did you notice anything?"

Naimi Xisi didn't even set the book down, merely adjusting his golden‑rimmed glasses and replying, "Over a hundred Hyena Werewolf tribes are ambushed behind the boulder ahead of you."

Luoga stared with a 'Are you kidding me?' expression, seeing Naimi Xisi refuse to look up, and could only reluctantly count it as a possibility.

Because he smelled the scent of Tie Xiu in the air.

Luoga stepped forward, intending to test alone whether Hyena Werewolves truly surrounded them; beside him, Sgena prodded Naimi Xisi, "Aren't you going to do something?"

"I can already smell that Hyena Werewolf stench," Sgena sniffed disdainfully.

Naimi Xisi, hearing this, gave no response, merely kept reading, and without looking up said, "You go deal with them; I have no time to waste on this."

Let the battle drones handle the dirty, exhausting work; the Mage doesn't want to dirty his own hands.

Thinking that way, Naimi Xisi kept reading, and indeed as he said, Luoga took only a few steps before a massive swarm of Hyena Werewolves surged out of the cave behind the boulder.

"Human flesh! Delicious human flesh!" they shouted, their foul mouths gaping with meat strands between their teeth, charging excitedly toward the soldiers.

Luo Jia turned his head to glance at the Mage still reading, let out a cold snort, instantly leapt into the air, raised his long sword and cleaved down at the leading Hyena Werewolf.

The soldiers also drew their weapons and charged at the Hyena Werewolves, and under Luo Jia's leadership they cut down countless Hyena Werewolves.

One Hyena Werewolf crossed the line, or rather Luo Jia deliberately let it out, and excitedly ran toward the woman and child riding on a horse.

It had already foreseen that wonderful taste.

Naimi Xisi sighed, closed the book, raised his hand and gestured at the Hyena Werewolf; a few syllables lightly bubbled out, and three crimson laser beams shot from his fingertips.

Second Ring Shaping Energy System Spell — Scorching Ray.

The ray, like a hot knife cutting into butter, pierced the Hyena Werewolf's head and heart without any effort.

Naimi Xisi withdrew his fingers, satisfied with the power the spell produced; as his casting level rose, the power of low‑Circle spells increased step by step, and although not as strong as high‑Circle spells, it was already a great improvement over before.

He clapped his hands toward the Hyena Werewolves fighting together with the soldiers in the distance, and Mind Power surged out like a terrifying tide, devouring those Hyena Werewolves' minds.

The soldiers, in the next moment, were astonished to find that the Hyena Werewolves before them had completely lost any resistance, standing dumbly in place, motionless; they seized the chance to hack at these Hyena Werewolves and discovered that they offered no resistance even unto death.

Naimi Xisi snapped his fingers again, and all the controlled Hyena Werewolves instantly met their ends in various cruel ways; that bizarre and terrifying scene shocked everyone.

Luo Jia opened his mouth wide, turned to look at the black‑robed priest and Mage, and could hardly believe what he had seen—such effortless control over these creatures to make them kill themselves, what terrifying power that was.

If Naimi Xisi heard this, he would probably sneer; if it weren't for avoiding accidental harm to the soldiers, using spells to deal with these guys would be more convenient for him. Heaven knows how painful it would be for his own mind to command the controlled creatures to commit suicide the next moment.

The youth shrouded in the black‑robed shadow produced the book again, but this time no one dared to underestimate him; that devil‑like power is instinctively detested by any intelligent creature.

The soldiers fell back into formation, and a young soldier secretly glanced back at Naimi Xisi riding on a horse, a flash of fear and panic appearing in his eyes.

(End of Chapter)