Chapter 71: Chapter 70: Deep in the Jungle
“I really didn’t expect Sister Nymph to be so powerful…”
As they walked through the dark forest, Fina still had not recovered from her surprise. She looked around, at a loss for words. Being a spellcaster, she could clearly sense the magic essence emanating from all around, and in Fina’s eyes, the numerous interlocking and circulating barriers felt close at hand, almost within reach.
Logically speaking, being in such a massive chain of barriers, they should have been detected as soon as they stepped in unless the entire barrier was destroyed. However, now, Fina could feel that these barriers were still operational, but they completely disregarded their presence, as if the two of them were the masters of the barrier.
The thought that all of this was the doing of that petite, adorable girl made Fina extremely emotional, unsure of what to say.
“Yeah, I didn’t expect it either.”
Hearing Fina’s sentiments, Fang Zheng also shook his head. To be honest, he had not held much hope for Nymph’s level of power initially because, firstly, she was a silver-rank summoning stone, which generally meant a basic guarantee in Africa. Secondly, her frail appearance when she first appeared had somewhat disappointed Fang Zheng. Typically, individuals like her would not possess great strength. But… damn, she was playing an unexpected hand!
You can hack magic barriers, and you’re pretending to be a little white rabbit here!
Fang Zheng genuinely couldn’t imagine what kind of world Nymph came from. With her abilities, she still lived on thin ice, nervously and willingly enslaving herself to others?
Thinking this, Fang Zheng glanced up at the treetops. Nymph had not come along with them. Being an artificial angel, she could fly. Therefore, Fang Zheng had assigned her the task of aerial surveillance. Not only that, but the little one also possessed the ability to turn invisible, which eased Fang Zheng’s worries considerably. Otherwise, if Nymph were to encounter any danger and he couldn’t help, that would be a problem.
Just then, Fang Zheng suddenly stopped in his tracks and gestured to Fina beside him. Fina quickly crouched down and moved closer to Fang Zheng, clutching her staff tightly. Soon, they heard footsteps, and then saw several figures draped in black robes emerge from the depths of the forest. They weren’t armed, but the sulfuric smell on them already betrayed their identities.
“The master’s command must be followed.”
These cultists had not noticed Fang Zheng and Fina nearby and were whispering among themselves. Their voices were not loud, but for Fang Zheng, who had senses as sharp as the Zerg’s, it was as if they were singing right by his ear.
“But isn’t it too soon? We just caught these dogs of the Sanctuary…”
“For the master’s plan, all this is unnecessary! Don’t forget our mission! The master just sent a message; he has reached an agreement with that master. As long as we deliver these prisoners as agreed, that’s enough. We don’t need to worry about the rest!”
“But can we really trust that mage?”
At this moment, one of the cultists asked in a somber tone. Hearing this, another cultist sneered.
“He’s a traitor; we don’t need traitors. Only the Twilight Legion, those corrupt fools, would fancy such an idiot. But for our master, his power is necessary. Since that foolish mage thinks he can gain power through negotiation, let him indulge in this brief and beautiful fantasy. I believe when that master arrives, he will understand what his choice truly means.”
With that, these cultists broke into a series of sinister laughter and then turned away and left.
Listening to the cultists’ speeches, Fina gripped her staff tightly, her expression filled with anger. Meanwhile, Fang Zheng narrowed his eyes and scanned the surroundings. Perhaps it was because of the magic barrier, so these cultists did not conceal their actions and were not very vigilant. But because of this, Fang Zheng finally got a bit of useful information from these dedicated “NPCs” mouths.
Clearly, the cultists’ attack on the stronghold was premeditated, and these prisoners seemed to have been brought here for someone. As for the use of these prisoners? Well, it’s just a sacrifice, a sacrifice, a sacrifice… After all, cultists seem to know nothing else.
Beyond that, the words of this group of cultists also revealed something else: there was a mage with them, who, from their speech, seemed to be a traitor. But none of that was important to Fang Zheng. What was crucial was the secret the cultists had just revealed.
Their master had reached an agreement with a master.
With that thought, Fang Zheng immediately tightened his invisible chains and muttered to himself. Soon, he heard Nymph’s voice in his ear.
“Yes, Master, what is it?”
“Can you check where the captured Sanctuary Warriors are located?”
“Of course, no problem, please wait… found them. The detector scanned twenty-three disarmed humans; they are located in the northwest corner, surrounded by ten soldiers on guard.”
“What about the Mage?”
“It seems he is not in the camp; I didn’t detect his energy fluctuation.”
“This is really interesting.”
Hearing Nymph’s report, Fang Zheng’s lips curled slightly, and then he recounted the situation to Fina standing beside him. After hearing Fang Zheng’s account, Fina also frowned deeply.
“So, what do we do next?”
“In any case, let’s first rescue those Sanctuary Warriors. There are too many Cultists here. Just the two of us can’t handle them all.”
Fang Zheng certainly didn’t tell the whole truth; if he were to summon the Lich King or Kerrigan, it would simply be a massacre. What’s more, who could outnumber the Scourge Legion and the Zerg? However, given the current situation, he still didn’t want to use these two. As for the Sanctuary Warriors, although they were captured, they should still be able to fight. Even if they couldn’t defeat the Mage, they should have no problem dealing with the ordinary Cultists.
With Nymph serving as an aerial radar, avoiding the Cultists’ sentries was remarkably easy for the duo. Moreover, perhaps due to overreliance on the external magic barrier, these Cultists never considered the possibility of someone sneaking in. This led to their internal defense being as empty as if it were non-existent. Not only did Fang Zheng feel as though he was strolling in his own backyard, but even Fina played the role of a top agent—the incompetence of their adversaries played a huge part in this.
It didn’t take long for the two to stealthily arrive where the Sanctuary Warriors were held captive. It had to be said that the Sanctuary Warriors were indeed in a pitiful state. By the light of the fire, Fang Zheng could see that their armors had been stripped off, leaving them only in thin outer garments. Moreover, each of them was tightly bound by iron chains. It was a very bizarre kind of chain, appearing rusty and dark red, looking exceedingly fragile as if a normal person could break it simply by twisting it. But in reality, the Sanctuary Warriors were completely enervated, collapsed on the ground with a lifeless gaze, appearing as though their bodies were hollowed out.
“What’s wrong with those guys?”
Staring at the Sanctuary Warriors lying on the ground with a despondent expression, Fang Zheng was taken aback. He had thought that these Sanctuary Warriors would have some resilience even if they were wounded. What was going on with this defenseless, dead-fish-like state?
“It’s because of the Chaos Shackles, Mr. Fang Zheng.”
As a Cleric, Fina noticed the problem at once.
“These are shackles forged by the Cultists using Chaos Energy, specifically designed to imprison the offspring of order. As long as one is bound by the Chaos Shackles, they can’t exert any of their powers.”
Hearing Fina’s explanation, Fang Zheng suddenly understood. This was essentially a tangible version of the Child of Chaos DEBUFF. It seemed that these years of conflict between the Cultists and the Sanctuary had indeed honed their abilities.
Now that they understood the reason behind the Sanctuary Warriors’ enervated state, the next step was figuring out how to rescue them. With this in mind, Fang Zheng peered around, taking advantage of the firelight. Compared to other areas, the security here was slightly stricter. Ten Cultists were responsible for guarding, all clad in long robes and standing so still under the illumination of the firelight that they looked like corpses. If Fina hadn’t sensed the absence of a Necromancer’s aura from them, Fang Zheng might have even suspected that these Cultists were some kind of Undead Creatures.
But no matter what, what needed to be done still had to be done.
“Are you sure it’s no problem, Mr. Fang Zheng? The adversaries are quite strong.”
As Fang Zheng made his preparations for battle, Fina anxiously voiced her concerns. The sulphurous aura from each of those ten Cultists was very intense, each of their strengths comparable to that of Knight Conan. This meant that all these Cultists were of Elite Rank. Fina was not worried about one or two, but with ten of them, and spread out, if something went wrong, they could immediately be surrounded by a large group of Cultists!
“Don’t worry, leave it to me.”
Drawing the Sky-Cleaving Sword from his waist, Fang Zheng nodded to Fina, then he looked forward, slightly crouching his body.
The next moment, Fang Zheng’s figure completely vanished from Fina’s sight.
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