Translator: AnubisTL
Sensing an endless stream of lava giants converging on the area, and with enemies constantly stomping the ground to release shockwaves and probe the cavern, Jieming knew he couldn't hide for much longer. He pulled out a fourth-tier defensive spell artifact, cast a shield around himself, and decisively burst from his hidden burrow.
As Jieming leaped from the ground and into the flame-wreathed battlefield, the pungent smell of sulfur mixed with the scent of scorched rock assailed his nostrils.
He saw a second-tier wizard barely holding his own against a third-tier lava giant, with over a dozen second-tier lava giants providing fire support. Another first-tier wizard was being forced to retreat under pressure from a group of enemies.
Yet, as Jieming charged into the fray, he felt no impulsive urge to join the fight.
He had already analyzed the situation before emerging.
The third-tier lava giant lurking deep within the gathering point was locked in a fierce battle with the second-tier wizard. This, combined with the overwhelming numbers of second-tier lava giants and the extreme heat amplifying the giants' power...
Fighting here would be a disastrous, hard-won battle, even if he joined in and won.
"This is getting too messy. And this place is too cramped. If we have to fight, we can't do it here!" Jieming decided instantly.
In this deep underground cavern, the lava giants drew power from the earth meridian, their strength greatly amplified.
Only by dragging the battlefield outside could they strip away this advantage and weaken them.
Moreover, his strongest escape trump card—the "Light Transformation" ability of the Five Aggregates Rainbow Transformation Mirror—would be useless against the thick earth crust!
He had to leave this dangerous underground cavern and move the fight to the open, scorched earth above.
"Concentrate your strength and retreat!" Jieming no longer cared about revealing his hand. He sent a powerful mental wave, crude and direct, into the minds of the two wizards locked in desperate combat. "Drag the battle to the surface! This environment is working against us!"
"Alright! Retreat!" the second-tier wizard roared, his staff slashing forward. An Ice Cone Technique erupted, temporarily repelling the third-tier lava giant that had been grappling with him.
Meanwhile, the first-tier wizard silently tossed a High-Explosive Rune Bullet, forcing back the charging enemies.
Seizing the opportunity, the two wizards strained against their opponents, desperately preparing to charge back toward the lava pool entrance they had previously entered.
Jieming, leading the charge, bore the brunt of the pressure.
His six autonomous floating cannons traced elegant arcs through the air, unleashing a torrential downpour of energy beams that instantly engulfed the lava giants attempting to swarm him.
The first-tier and second-tier lava giants were tossed about like leaves in a gale, their bodies battered by the relentless firepower until some exploded outright.
While casually blasting away any lava giants that dared to approach, Jieming focused most of his attention on maintaining communication and monitoring the wizards' retreat path.
He used his firepower to carve a path for them, drawing as much enemy fire as possible to cover their withdrawal.
The rune-imbued magical artifact on Jieming's wrist continued to emit high-frequency sonic waves, suppressing the lava giants overall.
Amidst the fiery downpour of lava, Jieming's figure flashed like lightning, enveloped in a miniature elemental storm, as he sprinted straight toward the lava pool at the entrance.
To the three wizards, the boiling lava lake represented their only chance of survival.
He sensed the other two wizards rapidly closing the distance, and his heart eased slightly.
However, just as he neared the lava pool, a sudden, terrifying surge of energy forced Jieming to halt abruptly, his face tensing with vigilance.
His scalp tingled, and a primal sense of dread, deep within his soul, struck him violently.
Simultaneously, the two wizards behind him, who had been struggling with their opponents and were about to reach the lava pool, sensed something.
They froze mid-stride, their faces contorting in horror, pupils shrinking to pinpricks as they turned toward the blazing lava pool.
From the very lava pool they had entered, a massive, grotesque lava head erupted from the boiling depths!
Its surface was riddled with irregular lava fissures, and its crimson energy fluctuations were so intense they seemed to coalesce into a tangible substance. Two massive lava eyes blazed with a bloodthirsty and ferocious light!
Then, a colossal lava body surged forth from the depths, shaking the very foundations of the earth!
The creature stood five meters tall, its body wreathed in viscous magma. Each step sent tremors through the ground.
The terrifying energy fluctuations emanating from it clearly indicated another third-tier lava giant!
"There are... actually two third-tier ones here..." The second-tier wizard's face drained of color as he stared at the colossal newcomer.
What plunged Jieming and the other two wizards into icy dread was the fact that this newly appeared third-tier lava giant was clutching a charred, unrecognizable head in its hand!
The head had been almost completely vaporized by the intense heat, its features blurred beyond recognition, leaving only twisted bones and scorched flesh.
A faint residual mental power fluctuation lingered on the remains—it was the first-tier wizard who had departed earlier!
He had clearly been ambushed while trying to relay intelligence to the camp, and was utterly annihilated by this lava giant, which had been lying in wait!
"Invader, die!"
The third-tier lava giant erupted onto the battlefield without a word. Its icy gaze swept across the battlefield, instantly locking onto Jieming, the closest target in front of it.
Its massive arm, forged from pure lava rock, shot upward with earth-shattering force, trailing streams of molten rock. In a single, devastating strike, it slammed toward Jieming.
Boom!!!
A deafening explosion, like a thousand tons of dynamite detonating simultaneously!
Jieming's vision blurred as he was engulfed by a raging inferno of fire elements.
Feeling the air-rending strike bearing down on him, his body was sent flying like he'd been hit by a speeding train!
His body arced through the air in a fiery trail of flames and rock fragments, streaking like a meteor at unimaginable speed before crashing violently against the cliff wall hundreds of meters away!
Boom!!!
Another earth-shattering explosion shook the cavern. The rock wall was blasted into a humanoid crater several meters deep, sending countless fragments of stone and a billowing cloud of dust into the air.
Jieming's figure was completely swallowed by the debris.
For a moment, the entire underground chamber fell into deathly silence.
On the other side, the two wizards were completely overwhelmed by despair.
"It's over!" the second-tier wizard cried out, his face contorted in terror.
He stared fixedly at the collapsed rock wall, then at the third-tier lava giant blocking the exit, and finally at the charred, broken head in his hand. A wave of helplessness washed over him.
Lava giants were naturally formidable combatants, their bodies perfectly adapted to the high-temperature underground environment.
The second-tier wizard had been confident in his combat prowess. Even when fighting opponents of a higher tier, he had never feared a third-tier lava giant.
Yet even with his full strength, he believed he could only achieve a marginal advantage in a direct confrontation.
Moreover, he had now mastered a downgraded but targeted destructive spell: lava annihilation. Even a third-tier lava giant would perish if struck by this second-tier spell.
The problem was that the situation wasn't a one-on-one battle between him and the third-tier lava giant.
Besides the third-tier lava giant he had been struggling with for a long time, a group of second-tier lava giants stood nearby as support.
As a combat wizard, he still hadn't figured out the underlying principles of this spell. He couldn't construct it independently, so he simply copied the witchcraft model in his mental sea, like tracing a picture.
While this method didn't weaken the spell's power, it severely hampered its release speed and controllability.
With the interference of the other second-tier lava giants, even using a weakened version of the second-tier "Lava Annihilation" spell without holding back, he could barely maintain his current state. Breaking the stalemate seemed impossible, let alone turning the tide.
Now, the situation grew even more dire.
Another third-tier lava giant had appeared!
And it had blocked the only exit! This was an unsolvable, desperate situation!
If he continued to stall, once his mental power was depleted and his magic potion reserves exhausted, he would face almost certain death!
Meanwhile, on the other side, Jieming, who had been sent flying by a massive impact and was now completely embedded in a deep pit in the rock wall, was contemplating a different question.
He had indeed been struck by an astonishingly powerful force. Yet, apart from a violent shock at the moment of impact and a ringing in his ears, he had sustained no injuries.
The Fourth-Tier Shield's effect was indeed extraordinary, ensuring his safety for the time being.
However, being sent flying backward was also a deliberate choice by Jieming—he needed space to prepare.
"Two third-tier monsters and so many second-tier ones..." Jieming lay at the bottom of the deep pit, shaking his head.
The lava giant wouldn't notice him for a while after that attack, giving him time to deal with other matters.
From a rational perspective, fighting now would be extremely difficult.
He had several trump cards, but engaging in a desperate battle in this confined space with limited strength would be foolish.
Since the entrance was blocked and the only exit was intercepted, charging outward would be suicide.
If he couldn't leave through the "front," he'd have to find another way—a way out of this underground cavern from an "unexpected" direction.
Jieming couldn't help but sigh. "It seems I have no choice but to use this method."
With a slightly pained expression, he quickly pulled a seemingly ordinary metal plate from his robes.
(End of the Chapter)
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