Chapter 130

"Lizardmen, we are just passing through." Luo En said calmly:

"We have no intention of seeking trouble, and we don't have anything valuable. Move aside, it's better for everyone."

The lizardman leader let out a harsh hiss:

"Nothing valuable? Then what is that around your neck? My tongue can sense the energy fluctuations it emits."

Luo En only then realized that he was inadvertently wearing the green leaf brooch given by Ailan, and it indeed contained a trace of natural energy.

"Last chance, human." The lizardman leader threatened, the scimitar in his hand flickering with cold light:

"Hand over the valuables, and I'll spare your lives."

Luo En took a deep breath, and spiritual power began to flow in his body:

"It seems the negotiation failed. Andre, are you ready?"

"I've been impatient." Andre's eyes had completely turned golden, and scale patterns were faintly visible on his body surface.

The lizardman leader let out a roar, gesturing for his subordinates to attack with his sword.

At this critical moment, Luo En took the lead.

"Sonic Oscillation!"

Invisible energy ripples shot out from Luo En's palm, penetrating the air at an astonishing speed, striking the three lizardmen at the front directly.

Those creatures didn't even have time to raise their shields before being hit by the invisible shockwave.

Their bodies flew back several meters as if hit by a giant hammer, hitting the wall heavily, and dark green blood immediately overflowed from their mouths and noses.

Immediately after, the wooden staff in Luo En's hand shook, instantly restoring to the original form of the ironwood sword, and his figure rushed toward the lizardman on the right flank like electricity.

The sword light was like water, every swing carrying a precise and fatal edge.

"Slash..."

The sword edge grazed the throats of two lizardmen, and the clean cut didn't splash much blood.

Those two creatures didn't even have time to make a sound before they fell down with expressions of disbelief.

At the same time, Andre was not to be outdone.

He took a deep breath, the Red Blood Flying Dragon bloodline in his body was fully activated, and dense crimson scales instantly appeared on his chest.

—Dragon Breath!

A scorching flame sprayed from Andre's mouth, turning into a surging line of fire that rushed toward the lizardman crowd.

The temperature of the flame was extremely high, so much so that the air twisted and deformed in the heatwave.

The remaining three lizardmen didn't have time to dodge before being swallowed by the flames, emitting miserable screams continuously in the sustained high-temperature scorching.

The entire battle lasted only a few seconds, all eight lizardman warriors were knocked down, charred corpses and headless bodies lay everywhere, with no survivors.

"These guys are really too unreasonable."

Andre looked at the corpses on the ground, smoke coming from his mouth as he said disappointedly: "I thought there would be some challenge."

Luo En squatted down to check the lizardman leader's corpse and found a strange mark: a spider-shaped tattoo was carved on the inside of its left arm.

"It seems this is not an ordinary robbery." He pointed to the tattoo and said:

"This is very likely Mola's mark; I can feel the magic power in it, which indicates they are under her control. I don't think this kind of mercenary would die for their master."

Andre leaned in to observe, a trace of thought flashing in his eyes: "Spider... Old Spider Mola?"

"Very likely." Luo En stood up and patted the dust off his hands:

"It seems Otto was right; Mola really likes to 'test' visitors."

The two continued to move forward, their vigilance even higher.

This section of Lizard Alley had almost no pedestrians, and on both sides of the dark and damp alley were dilapidated buildings; occasionally, some rustling sounds could be heard, not knowing if they were rats or other creatures.

After walking for about ten minutes, a heavy sound of footsteps suddenly came from ahead, and the ground shook as a result.

"Be careful." Luo En stopped immediately, his spiritual power spreading out to detect the situation ahead.

"A big guy is coming." Andre said vigilantly, holding the sword hilt, ready for battle.

A moment later, a huge figure appeared at the corner ahead.

That was a cannibalistic mage standing three meters tall, with skin presenting an unhealthy gray-green color, covered in bumps and scars.

The most eye-catching thing was its head—disproportionately large, with a huge single eye growing on its forehead, and its body covered in mysterious tribal tattoos.

It wore a rough beast-skin uniform and held a thick staff, with a purple-glowing gem embedded in the tip.

"Cannibalistic Mage." Luo En confirmed in a low voice, his eyes becoming solemn: "This guy is much more dangerous than an ordinary cannibal."

The cannibalistic mage let out a low roar, and a purple light flashed in the single eye on its forehead:

"Humans... I can feel the special aura on you... the master is very interested..."

It waved its staff, the gem at the tip glowing brightly, and a purple energy beam shot out, striking Luo En and Andre directly.

"Be careful!" Luo En shouted, while golden-red energy condensed around his body, rapidly expanding into a ring of light.

"Ring of Radiance!"

The golden-red ring of light met the purple energy beam, colliding in the air, producing a blinding flash and a deafening explosion.

The shockwave cracked the nearby broken walls, and rubble flew everywhere.

"Such strong magic power..."

Luo En stepped back slightly to avoid the aftermath of the opponent's energy beam; his own energy output was clearly a notch weaker than the other party's:

"No wonder even high-level apprentices dare not provoke it easily."

The cannibalistic mage seemed to be shocked by Luo En's counterattack, but soon roared frantically, and the tribal tattoos on its body began to flicker with ominous colors.

The single eye turned blood-red, the surrounding air began to twist, and twisted energy ripples spread in all directions.

"Mental attack!" Luo En immediately identified this attack method, quickly constructing a mental barrier, while reminding Andre:

"Protect your consciousness; it is trying to interfere with our minds!"

Andre gritted his teeth, his brows locked, clearly resisting the invisible mental impact:

"This guy is much stronger than I imagined..."

Seeing that the mental attack had limited effect, the cannibalistic mage changed its strategy again.

It inserted its staff into the ground and began to chant an obscure spell.

The ground shook, and rubble and dust began to condense, forming three earth-stone giants, each more than five meters tall, exuding rich elemental energy.

"Go! Tear them apart!" The cannibalistic mage commanded the three earth-stone giants to rush toward Luo En and Andre.

"I'll deal with these stone men, you solve that cannibal!"

Andre shouted to Luo En, while fully activating the dragon bloodline in his body, the whole person seemingly wrapped in crimson scales.

Luo En nodded, his eyes becoming exceptionally focused.

"It's time to go all out."

Spiritual power erupted instantly, sweeping through his body like an invisible storm.

The cannibalistic mage seemed to sense danger, and a trace of panic flashed in its single eye.

It waved its staff, condensing an energy shield, trying to protect itself.

"Mental Interference!"

Luo En suddenly urged his mental field, and an invisible ripple erupted around him as the center.

The oscillating ripples penetrated the air, striking the cannibalistic mage's mental core directly.

This move was originally specifically aimed at creatures with intelligence by wizard apprentices.

The energy shield was easily penetrated under the impact of the mental ring, the cannibalistic mage let out a painful howl, its huge body staggered back a few steps, and the staff slipped from its hand.

Its eyes were full of disbelief, seemingly unable to understand why its defense was broken so easily.

But Luo En's attack did not stop.

He followed the mental interference, guiding the light and fire elements in his body to condense.

"Ring of Radiance, maximum power!"

The ring of light formed this time was three times larger than before, with a diameter of six meters, and golden-red energy danced on the ring, flickering with dangerous light like a living thing.

The ring of light suddenly scattered out, penetrating the cannibalistic mage's body at an astonishing speed.

Unlike the ordinary Ring of Radiance, Luo En mobilized more magic power for this strike; although the utilization efficiency was far inferior to the super-magic techniques of formal wizards, it undoubtedly greatly increased its power.

The moment the ring of light passed through the body, the cannibalistic mage's body seemed to be ignited from the inside, and golden-red energy could be faintly seen flowing in the blood vessels under the skin.

Its giant eye instantly lost focus, its mouth wide open, but it couldn't make any sound.

A figure had already flashed in front of the cannibalistic mage like a ghost, the ironwood sword in its hand exuding cold light.

—Dawn Cross Overlimit!

The sword light crossed the night sky like a meteor, so fast that the trajectory could hardly be seen.

A perfect cross-shaped cut appeared on the cannibalistic mage's chest and neck, the cut so neat it was outrageous, as if measured with a ruler.

The cannibalistic mage's expression froze in shock and fear, its huge body fell slowly, hitting the ground with a bang, stirring up a cloud of dust.

The light in its eyes dimmed rapidly, and its vitality vanished in an instant.

And the three earth-stone giants also lost energy support the moment their master died, collapsing into a pile of lifeless rubble.

Andre panted heavily, his body bruised by stones in many places, but basically unharmed.

"This is too amazing..." Andre looked at the cannibalistic mage's corpse, his eyes full of shock:

"You ended the battle almost instantly."

Luo En put away his sword and said calmly: "A frontal confrontation would consume too much energy; the best strategy is to take the opponent by surprise and kill them with one blow."

He walked to the cannibalistic mage's corpse, picked up the staff, and carefully examined the purple gem at the tip.

"Energy crystal, still retaining a portion of energy."

He commented, casually dismantling the staff and collecting the energy crystal separately: "It might be helpful for my research later."

It's a pity that these wild spellcasters use rough spells they awakened naturally; otherwise, he could have collected a few more spell models.

Andre looked back at the road he came from:

"We have already solved more than ten lizardman warriors and a cannibalistic mage capable of contending with high-level apprentices. That guy probably has something wrong with its brain, actually sending so many elite thugs over like sending them to their deaths..."

"I feel it shouldn't end so easily." Luo En nodded and continued to walk forward:

"But no matter what, I must see that old hag today and figure out why she attacked us."

The two continued to move forward, the surrounding environment becoming increasingly dark and weird.

Spider-web-like patterns could be faintly seen on the walls, and the air was filled with an ancient and mysterious aura.

Turning the last corner, an ancient brick and stone building appeared in front of them.

A faded wooden sign hung on the door, simply carved with the four characters "Labyrinth Pawnshop."

"Here we are." Luo En took a deep breath, observing the surroundings vigilantly: "Stay alert, this place is full of weirdness everywhere."

The two approached the pawnshop cautiously and pushed open the wooden door that looked like it was about to fall apart.

Inside the door was a dim space, piled with all kinds of weird items:

Faded portraits, incomplete sculptures, rusty weapons, dusty jewelry... the air was filled with an ancient and mysterious aura.

"Is anyone here?" Luo En called out softly, his spiritual power detecting the surroundings vigilantly.

Responding to him was a slight movement, coming from behind the curtain in the corner.

The curtain was gently pushed aside, and a hunched figure slowly walked out—it was precisely that old hag with unhealthy yellow skin.

"What a rare guest."

The old hag's voice was dry and hoarse, like tree bark rubbing:

"Young wizard apprentice and bloodline knight... I have lived in the Black Fog Jungle for so many years, and I have rarely seen a combination like you."

Luo En and Andre looked at the old hag vigilantly, without relaxing their guard.

"You are Mola?" Luo En asked directly.

The old hag revealed a smile with almost no teeth:

"Yes, child, I am Old Spider Mola. It seems you already know my name, yet you still ventured here... courage is commendable."

Luo En looked straight into Mola's eyes, which were deep in their sockets:

"The ambush in Lizard Alley last time, as well as the lizardmen and the cannibalistic mage on the road today, were all arranged by you, right?"

Mola's smile deepened, and a trace of appreciation flashed in her eyes: "Smart child. Yes, those were all my little 'greetings'."

"Greetings?" Andre sneered, golden light flashing in his eyes: "You call that a greeting?"

(End of chapter)