Chapter 113: Lich

Luo Jie and Zhuo Ertan stopped in their tracks at the same time and asked, "Where is it?"

Lei En pointed ahead, where a wide street in the cavern was littered with a few items. Zuo Ertan adjusted his mechanical goggles, strained to look, but saw nothing.

Luo Jie's vertical pupils also contracted; the demon hunter's eyesight is extremely sharp, far surpassing that of ordinary cultivators, but the distance was too great, and he likewise could not see those things.

Both of them wore a hint of confusion on their faces.

Lei En only then realized and whispered, "Follow me."

The party descended the stone steps into the cavern, which was also a dwarf residential area; the three footsteps shattered the darkness's silence.

Soon after, upon reaching that street, Luo Jie and Zhuo Ertan finally saw what Lei En had mentioned.

A few extinguished torches lay scattered on the ground, along with some opened backpacks that spilled clumps of blackish matter—already rotted dry rations. Around them were broken longswords, shattered armor, and the floor was strewn with dried black bloodstains.

These items were clearly not dwarf's but those of outsiders—humans.

Zuo Ertan and Luo Jie couldn't help but be amazed at Lei En's eyesight, being able to spot those inconspicuous items from such a distance.

Luo Jie did not press further, stepped forward, and examined closely.

The demon hunter, an expert in this field, quickly reached a conclusion and said:

"It should be the cultivators who entered when the last rune array was activated; there were five of them. They encountered a battle that ended in less than two minutes, and all were killed."

He walked around the site, then noted a few details: "There are traces of spells; the enemy was a very powerful spellcaster."

Zuo Ertan and Lei En were both startled.

The rune array opens once every sixty years; it was thought that very few entered, but now it seems that far more people know about the Iron Ox Fortress than expected.

"Where are their corpses?" Lei En suddenly asked.

Luo Jie pointed to a few barely visible marks on the ground, his expression turning very solemn, and said, "The bodies were dragged away, the weapons and gear were looted, but the rations were left behind; it's likely the work of undead creatures, we must be careful."

Zuo Ertan jumped in alarm, "You mean it's still inside the fortress, not gone?"

Luo Jie nodded.

Lei En grasped his warhammer, his sharp gaze swept the surroundings, and the Voice of All Things was fully activated, yet no abnormal movement was detected.

All three heightened their vigilance and pressed on.

Soon after, Zuo Ertan found a half-carved stone map in a room of the residential area, finally recognized his location, and identified the route to the next level's temple.

He traversed one cavern after another, passing through tunnels that had been hewn out.

"Ahead is the central plaza of the third level, also the largest cavern of this tier; there lies a passage leading to the fourth level…"

Zuo Ertan stopped mid‑sentence, staring blankly ahead.

Lei En and Luo Jie also halted.

Not far ahead, the ceiling above collapsed as if a terrible earthquake had struck, burying most of the cavern under countless boulders and earth, leaving no way out.

Lei En looked up at the edge of the collapse, where a blackish fissure stretched for hundreds of meters, occasional stones falling from it and a faint airflow blowing out. The airflow indicates a possible passage elsewhere, but the fissure could collapse at any moment; even approaching it is extremely dangerous, let alone passing through.

"This route is impassable; are there any other passages?" Luo Jie asked aloud.

"There may be, but they're hard to find; we must take a detour." Zuo Ertan opened an ancient tome at his waist, replanned the route, retreated to the cavern behind, wound around for a long time, and finally discovered a narrow path that led deep underground into the fourth level.

The fourth level was also a residential area, its structure similar to that of the third level.

The Mo La Ding Temple Zuo Ertan sought was on this level, but as the three of them headed toward it, a massive collapse blocked the way.

After studying the collapsed cavern for a while, Zuo Ertan turned back with a wry smile, "Our trouble has grown this time."

"What's wrong?" Lei En asked.

"This collapse likely occurred on the second level; water from the Fei Lei Ge Lun River flooded in, softening the second‑level soil, striking the fortress's weakest structure. One layer gave way to the next, causing a chain reaction. I estimate the lower levels collapsed as well, splitting the entire fortress in two and blocking every route to the other side."

Zuo Ertan pointed to the map in the book and began explaining.

In a dwarf underground fortress, the core areas are usually the largest caverns, but once those caverns are hollowed out, they become the most vulnerable spots.

If dwarves still reside there and prevent water ingress, there's no problem.

But after the dwarves evacuate, the unmaintained fortress inevitably collapses.

Lei En compared the map and found the collapse split the fortress in two, like a wooden board wedged diagonally into a massive honeycomb—one side occupying two‑thirds, the other only one‑third, and they were in the smaller half.

Whether it's the Mo La Ding Temple or the main passages of the fortress, they're almost all in the other half.

"Are we trapped?" Luo Jie asked, frowning.

"Possibly." Zuo Ertan, grimacing and tugging his red hair, muttered, "If we can't get through this level, there might be another way."

"What if the lower levels have also collapsed?" Lei En wondered skeptically.

Zuo Ertan and Luo Jie fell silent.

After a long while, Zuo Ertan finally said, "We probably won't be that unlucky; let's first find a way out."

After several hours, Zuo Ertan discovered a secluded passage; after traversing it, they reached the fifth level. Unfortunately, the fifth level was likewise blocked by countless earth boulders.

Worse still, the collapse slanted like a landslide; the deeper they went, the more space was blocked, making the fifth level's area smaller than the fourth and third levels, with only a few intact chambers.

Zuo Ertan could only suggest pressing down to the sixth level to try their luck.

But after searching for a long time, they found no passage to the next level; every route was sealed.

"Now it's really over!"

Outside a modest temple, Zuo Ertan didn't bother wiping the dust, plopped heavily onto the steps, his face full of gloom.

Luo Jie's complexion was equally grim.

Lei En remained relatively calm, observing the temple ahead, which enshrined the dwarf guardian deity "Ma Ha Er," a majestic stone statue standing on the steps, over ten meters tall, depicting a male dwarf clad in heavy armor, one hand gripping a battle axe, the other a war hammer, poised to charge into battle.

No one had worshipped it for millennia; the statue bore extensive weathering, and Lei En sensed no divine aura.

It is said that the dwarf god Ma Ha Er was severely wounded by the Abyss evil deity, fell into a slumber, and has not recovered to this day, nor answered the dwarves' prayers.

However, Lei En's interest lay not in the statue but in the temple itself.

His gaze passed through the temple's great doors, where a faint magical fluctuation lingered, extremely subtle; without the blessing of Truth Willpower, it would be hard to detect.

Lei En did not rush in, but walked to the side of the two and sat down.

Zuo Er Tan put down the metal box behind him, took out rations and gave them to Lei En and Luo Jue; after walking in the fortress for almost a day, they were a bit hungry.

Besides the rations, the dwarf also prepared three cups.

He lifted a water‑gathering rod, muttered a incantation, and the water Element in the air gathered, condensed into clear water, flowing down the slender rod, quickly filling each cup to about half.

The water‑gathering rod is an alchemical product, a must‑have for adventurers.

Lei En ate the rations and drank the water while taking the rod, examined it closely, studied its rune principle, and was quite interested.

Zuo Er Tan chewed his food, saw Lei En's expression, and couldn't help asking, "Lei En, you don't seem worried at all that we can't get out?"

Lei En returned the rod to him, smiled, and took a voice transmitter from his pocket.

"Use this to contact the outside. Getting out may take some trouble, but we definitely won't die."

Seeing the voice transmitter, Zuo Er Tan recognized what it was yet still asked, "What's it for? Rune arrays can only bring people in, not out. Do you want the outside folks to come in and die?"

Luo Jue also didn't understand.

Lei En, a bit helpless, explained, "Besides one‑way teleportation arrays, there are bidirectional ones. We can have someone set up a rune array outside first, then set the corresponding teleportation array inside, and we can leave."

"I know that, of course."

Zuo Er Tan sighed, "Do you know what materials are needed to set up a bidirectional teleportation array? How much do they cost? At least ten thousand Gold Shields! Moreover, only Wizards of legendary rank or higher can lay such an array. If I could hire a legendary Wizard and had ten thousand gold, I'd already be ready."

Lei En's expression flickered, but he was not stumped.

Sending a voice transmitter to Captain Bolok to find Viola shouldn't be a problem. Ten thousand gold is a bit pricey, but there's a way out.

He laughed and said, "My friend can hire a legendary Wizard, and we can raise ten thousand gold."

Zuo Er Tan's eyes lit up, and Luo Jue also breathed a sigh of relief.

The two were about to ask who Lei En's friend was when a sound suddenly echoed from within the temple, like stone slabs shifting, followed by a strange laugh.

The laugh carried a magical effect.

"Fear Technique!"

Lei En identified the spell; it wasn't a single Fear Technique but something like a large‑area "Group Fear Technique," yet it didn't quite match, seeming to be a creature's ancillary ability.

Group Fear Technique is a Five‑Ring spell, only casters of legendary rank or higher can unleash it.

If the opponent were a legendary caster, Lei En would turn and run immediately.

He looked left and right; Zuo Er Tan and Luo Jue were unaffected by the laugh. The dwarf drew his soul spear, his other hand gripping a double‑edged battle axe, and the demon hunter's longsword was already sheathed.

The three spread out slightly, staring at the temple's great doors.

A gaunt figure emerged, humanoid in shape, wearing a tattered, creased robe; only a thin layer of skin clung to a skull, muscles withered, the eyeballs in the sockets long rotted away, becoming two deep‑red flames that glowed with evil light.

Two hand‑bones protruded from the robe's sleeves; one hand grasped a staff, the other held a co‑authored book whose cover bore purple runes.

This attire, if not for the lack of flesh, would be that of a powerful caster.

"Lich!"

Lei En and the others instantly recognized it—the famous undead creature.

Every Lich is a wizard or other caster transformed; to achieve eternal existence they pray to one of the Abyss's four great evil gods, the Lord of the Dead, and perform a conversion ritual, turning their bodies into undead and offering their souls, becoming followers of the Abyssal evil god.

After becoming a Lich, the caster no longer needs food, air, or water, and in theory can live forever.

Moreover, a Lich retains all pre‑death casting abilities and, granted by the Lord of the Dead, can command even more necromancy spells.

Lei En opened his soul eye and looked cautiously.

This Lich was not legendary, but almost; in life it had already been a ninth‑rank Elementalist, its soul containing over thirty Arcane Elements, a gray‑white flame of faith swirling around, exuding endless evil and death aura.

Lei En dared not stare longer, for this was a manifestation of the Lord of the Dead's divine power.

The Lord of the Dead, formally named "Yegri," is also called "Death God," "Lord of the Undead," "King in Black," "Reaper," "Grave Digger," etc.; the Abyssal Plane he governs is commonly called the Underworld, and any topic of death inevitably circles this terrifying ancient evil god.

Among the Abyss's four great evil gods, the Lord of the Dead is the most dread‑inducing.

He is not as madly violent as the Lord of Darkness, nor does he possess the bizarre mutations of the Lord of Chaos, nor the corrupt filth of the Plague Lord; he simply wants to annihilate all living things, harvest the souls of the living, and master the true meaning of death!

All undead beings in the world were created by the Lord of the Dead.

Liches are among the Lord of the Dead's masterpieces.

This Lich stepped out of the temple, did not attack immediately; the flames in its eye sockets flickered a few times, "looked" at Lei En, and said, "Do you have a way to get out?"

Its voice was extremely unpleasant, as if it hadn't spoken to anyone in ages; every word sounded raw.

Lei En gave no answer, but exchanged a glance with his two companions; the Lich's question revealed much information.

Clearly, this Lich was also trapped underground.

As expected, it had entered years ago through a rune array, then discovered it could not leave; to survive it transformed itself into a Lich. The battle traces found in the third‑level cavern were probably its doing.

Moreover, this Lich actually wanting to get out was sheer fantasy.

"Why won't you answer me?"

The Lich received no reply; the flames in its eye sockets flared intensely, its emotion raging, and it hissed, "Heh heh… you needn't speak; when I kill you and sacrifice your souls, I'll naturally obtain what I desire."

Before the words finished, it lifted its staff and lightly struck the ground.

Boom!

A fierce flame erupted like an explosion, instantly turning the plaza before the temple into a sea of fire.

At the same time, the Lich's form shifted, becoming three identical Liches.

Each Lich held a staff and a rune book, indistinguishable, and each targeted one of the three in the fire, casting a spell simultaneously.

(End of Chapter)