"Keep those barriers strong!" Nolan shouted over the clamor. "I need every second I can get to disarm these sentinels!"
Liam nodded without breaking his concentration. It was not difficult for him to maintain two dao fields simultaneously, but it was a bit too stressful to keep it up for so long without going all out. "You need to hurry."
The next few seconds were touch and go, but eventually, the two of them managed to get blasted out of the small confined room. It would have been good news if not for the long, endless tunnels they found themselves in once again.
At least this time, the walls were not closing in on them.
"Fast. Fast. Run quickly. The main vault should be in one of these corridors." Nolan shouted as he ran forward. Within seconds, another golem popped out of the wall. The entire corridor was starting to show similar reactions. "Jonah. Jonah. Take care of this. Guard me. We will die otherwise."
Liam started erecting dao fields again, blocking them from the mass shooting that was about to happen. This time, there was simply no way two shields were going to be enough. He had to bring out the next dao field as well.
He decided to go with the earth field, trying to get a little more defense, but at the last moment, he ended up choosing fire. Something was off. Liam could feel the heat in the surroundings starting to rise.
Before Liam could piece together the anomaly, a figure emerged at the far end of the tunnel—a man in a tattered robe that seemed to flutter in an invisible wind. He looked human enough, but there was something unsettling about his presence.
It took Liam a few seconds to focus his gaze; then, he noticed the stranger's eyes, burning brightly. It was not just his eyes. It was everywhere. Streaks of fiery glow covered his entire body. The rest of his body was surprisingly flesh.
This was the first time Liam was seeing someone . Another human-related race?
Near him, Nolan was not nearly as calm as Ethan. "Fuck!!! What's an elemental king doing here? Damn it. I spent all of my resources to prepare for this event, and an elemental king had to show up? This is complete bullshit!"
The corridor's oppressive heat and the roar of metallic golems faded into a heavy silence as the robed stranger—this elemental king—advanced toward them. His fiery glow painted shifting shadows along the metal walls, and every step he took sent ripples of heat over the floor. It was as if the man himself was forged out of a living flame.
The elemental king stopped a few paces away, his gaze sweeping over all the chaos. The next second, an intense flame rippled out of him.
Liam acted instantly and no longer held back. Six different dao fields erupted from Liam in unison, each one channeling a primal force, all swirling around him like a living, crackling storm. The combined energies burst forth in a dazzling display of power, weaving together to form a radiant shield that pulsed with every beat of his heart.
Nolan gaped in shock. "You can do this?" His gaze turned from the Elemental King to Liam. He looked as if he was seeing monsters everywhere. "How can you possibly block his attack? Oh, thank god. Oh, thank god." The man literally started weeping.
Liam's lips twitched into a small, wry smile. "Why don't you stop crying like a girl and help me here. We could use one more." The damned guy's attack was so strong that the heat was still seeping through. "Do you have any more of those talismans?"
Nolan, still sniffling and wide-eyed, glanced between Liam and the fiery chaos. "This is insane," he muttered, half to himself. "I never imagined we'd be in a firefight with an elemental king…and you're blocking his attacks. How are you blocking the attack of a king? Are you a true royal?"
"Just shut up and hand me a talisman," Liam shouted.
"No. I don't have it anymore. How many do you think I could sneak into an event ? Are you crazy?" Nolan shouted in exasperation, but the next second, he shut his mouth. "I am sorry, your highness. I shouldn't have. Please forgive me. Please."
Seeing that the man had completely lost it, Liam used every bit of power he had left in his cores to block the attack. Thankfully, they were not the only ones affected by the attack. He could sense the impenetrable metallic fortress crumbling under the assault of the Elemental King.
Holes appeared in the walls all over the place. The metallic golems were ripped into shreds. Liam grabbed the guy and used Minor Teleportation. They needed to get the hell out of there asap.
He did not stop or look back, only using the skill again and again to get as far away as possible. So far, he had only run into opponents he could easily deal with, but this time, he could feel that he was clashing with someone in a league of his own.
This would only result in more and more loss. Maybe it was time to get the hell out of here. Liam's mind spun as he continued to move through the corridors. He had no rhyme or reason to choose that path. He simply ran as fast as he could.
Thankfully, the Elemental King didn't seem to be following them. He must have been exploring this place just like they were and wasn't all that keen on chasing the two of them.
Liam only stopped after several minutes, and when he finally couldn't engage in minor teleportation again. He was almost fully spent and had only barely escaped, but that did not matter to the metallic walls around them.
Another round of protrusions started appearing on the walls as a new batch of fresh metallic golems emerged to take care of the intruders.