Chapter 391: Hellfire

Chapter 391: Hellfire

"Whoosh!"

Mud splattered everywhere!

Two massive clay hands emerged from the ground, one on each side, and forcefully pried open the ground that was still glowing with a yellowish light.

Suddenly, a colossal creature, humanoid in its upper body but cylindrical in its lower half, swiftly burrowed out of the ground.

The creature stood about three and a half meters tall, its brownish-yellow form resembling an obsidian giant, but without complete lower limbs, it looked like an unfinished elemental giant.

Ren watched the opponent's spellcasting technique with great interest.

Clearly, this clay-based witchcraft was not a simple puppet technique.

Or rather, it differed significantly from the puppet techniques of the Metal Affinity, seemingly combining some form of summoning magic.

As soon as the clay monster appeared, it rushed towards the Malevolent Flame Elemental.

"This clay monster has combat power comparable to an Advanced Battle Puppet, Paul, you are truly formidable," Alicia exclaimed, her beautiful eyes widening in surprise.

According to reason, it wouldn't be surprising if Paul, at his level, summoned a mud monster, but the appearance of a clay monster was indeed astonishing.

At this moment, Paul nodded politely and said slowly, "Yes, Senior Alicia, it's a clay monster. In terms of combat power, after being enhanced by this Earth Summoning Crystal, it surpasses even your advanced battle puppets."

Although his tone was calm, the pride and arrogance that flashed in his eyes were hard to conceal.

"The Earth Summoning Crystal?" Alicia exclaimed softly.

"Is this the Earth Summoning Crystal that increases the power of Earth-based summons by about twenty percent? Isn't this the magical artifact once used by Master Scott, the Clay Master?"

In fact, this Earth Summoning Crystal also had the function of reducing summoning difficulty, making it a well-known magical artifact within the school, once the signature artifact of the Second Rank Liquidation Wizard Scott.

Magical artifacts, even the lowest-grade ones, could only be crafted by Second Rank Liquidation Wizards.

Unexpectedly, Master Scott had given this artifact to Paul, who had just joined the school, indicating his high regard for him.

"Yes, my mentor was concerned about my safety on this mission, so he gifted me this magical artifact," Paul said, glancing at Audrey.

However, to his disappointment, the pure-looking young lady didn't seem very surprised, maintaining a calm demeanor.

"No wonder the clay monster summoned by Paul is taller and larger than a typical clay monster," Alicia nodded with realization.

At this moment, Ren spoke up, "I think it's best to retreat to our camp for safety."

"Hmm? Don't you trust the combat power of my clay monster, Junior Ren?" Ren's words naturally displeased Paul.

"You're right, with your strength, you probably don't even know the true combat power of my clay monster."

"If you're afraid, you can retreat first."

He was just about to demonstrate his combat power in front of Audrey, and now they wanted to retreat?

That was a joke!

Moreover, over the past few days, he had subtly sensed something.

Audrey seemed to pay extra attention to this junior, perhaps because he was younger and more dashing than Ren, which made Paul even more displeased with him!

"Since Junior Ren thinks it's unwise, then let's retreat," Audrey agreed without hesitation upon hearing Ren's suggestion.

However, at this moment, the clay monster had already engaged in combat with the Malevolent Flame Elemental.

"Boom!"

Facing the larger clay monster, the Malevolent Flame Elemental immediately unleashed a ring of 'Malevolent Flame Blast'.

The scorching ring of energy waves blasted the surroundings, and the shockwave instantly scorched the outer layer of the approaching clay monster.

But Paul wasn't boasting; his clay monster indeed possessed greater combat power than ordinary ones. After the hardened mud on its surface cracked and fell off, it unleashed a jet of mud.

A powerful stream of mud, like a high-pressure water jet, sprayed from the clay monster's mouth, dousing the burning body of the Malevolent Flame Elemental, causing a thick cloud of gray mist to rise.

As the Malevolent Flame Elemental took the hit, its flame-composed body visibly shrank.

"Did you see that?" Paul's face lit up with satisfaction.

Just as Alicia was about to say something, Ren pointed to the distance, "What about those two on the left and right?"

At this moment, they were standing in a clearing, but it was located in a depression, surrounded by numerous fallen rocks, some of which were quite massive, obstructing their line of sight.

Upon hearing Ren's words, all three of them were startled and looked up.

Dozens of meters away, two more Malevolent Flame Elementals had emerged, seemingly alerted by the commotion of the battle. But the more serious issue was what this represented.

Paul's face paled, "How can there be so many?"

"Oh no! Could it be that the passage has gone berserk?"

Paul quickly calculated in his mind, then said, "There are too many of them, Audrey. We should split up; otherwise, staying here will only lead to a dead end."

After saying this, Paul's expression turned anxious, and without looking back, he started running!

The clay monster followed closely behind, blocking most of the narrow corner, paying no heed to Alicia, Audrey, or Ren.

"Paul, you...!" Alicia had assumed that Paul wouldn't abandon them, but she had expected him to at least stick together.

She never imagined that he would leave them behind so casually, despite her efforts to build a good relationship with him.

It seems the saying 'You can't judge a book by its cover' holds true.

"Ren, Audrey, let the combat puppets take the lead. We'll retreat to the left and head back to the camp," Alicia gritted her teeth and said.

Although they couldn't stop the enemy, this was their only option.

"No need, leave it to me!"

Ren casually removed the advanced witchcraft item, the 'Cloak of Concealment', from his body and handed it to Audrey, who stood by his side.

It wasn't that Ren was worried about these Malevolent Flame Elementals damaging his cloak, but rather, he had sensed something behind them, something that was continuously emerging.

When Audrey, like a maid, respectfully took the cloak from Ren, Alicia was left baffled by this unexpected scene.

What's going on?

Why aren't they running? Just as Alicia was about to panic, she froze in the next second.

At the same time, back at the camp, an unexpected change occurred.

"Not good! The passage has gone haywire again!" A wizard on the watchtower in the camp immediately noticed the unusual activity deep within the Inferno Canyon and cried out.

Another wizard, who had been dozing off beside him, suddenly woke up and quickly cast the Eagle Eye Spell to observe the situation. After a few seconds, his face paled, and he exclaimed in shock, "Oh my! It's even more outrageous than last time! There are over a hundred Malevolent Flame Elementals!"

Instantly, the camp was filled with the sound of urgent alarms.

Several wizards who had been resting rushed out, and many of them quickly used the Eagle Eye Spell to observe the distant threat.

"So many Malevolent Flame Elementals!"

"Not good, there are Inferno Rock Golems behind them!"

"Five, six... seven! So many!"

"Even Lord Bradley couldn't handle this many Inferno Rock Golems!" someone said, their voice trembling slightly.

"Don't panic!" Deputy Head Bradley, dressed in a gray robe, emerged from a room with a stern expression and scolded them.

After the previous incident, even though it was initially deemed a coincidence, the academy naturally couldn't be unprepared.

"Everyone, get the Ice Magic Scrolls immediately."

A wizard standing next to Bradley began distributing precious Ice Magic Scrolls, one by one.

These scrolls were the academy's strategic reserves and wouldn't be used unless absolutely necessary.

Only a small portion was created by the academy's sole Second Rank Ice Wizard; most were obtained at a significant cost by trading with other wizard schools.

Although they were primarily Tier 1 Ice Magic Scrolls, such as Ice Blade Spell and Ice Arrow Spell, they were highly effective against fire-attributed elemental creatures.

"Activate the Slowing Array and the Swamp Array in front of the camp!"

These were preparations made earlier.

They were meant to slow down Malevolent Flame Elementals attempting to break into the camp, making it easier for their side to attack.

"Ulysses, open the warehouse. I'll activate the Obsidian War Golem."

With each command from Deputy Head Bradley, the guards at the camp, realizing the academy's prior preparations, quickly calmed down and began to actively prepare according to his instructions.

---

On the other side, Ren's aura suddenly became deep and powerful, transforming him into an entirely different person.

His aura was beyond that of a First Rank Wizard, even surpassing the Second Rank Liquidation Wizard that Alicia had seen at the academy.

"Bang!"

The hard ground suddenly cracked, and in an instant, Ren's figure disappeared from Alicia and Audrey's sight.

When the two women snapped back to their senses, they found Ren had already reached the first Malevolent Flame Elemental that had appeared at the beginning.

Ren, seemingly unaffected by the scorching heat of over two thousand degrees, thrust his hand into the core of the elemental, and quickly pulled out a light green core.

This move didn't even seem like an attack.

It was as casual as reaching for a glass of water on a table.

The Malevolent Flame Elemental suddenly deflated like a punctured balloon.

Alicia was completely dumbfounded.

She watched as Ren directly grabbed the Malevolent Flame Core, which had a temperature of over two thousand degrees.

She knew that even a peak Grand Knight might not dare to attempt such a feat, as it was akin to seeking death, with a high probability of the hand being burned to a crisp.

Ren had, in that instant, used Metal Transformation to cover his palm with a piece of enchanted silver.

While grabbing the core directly might not have burned him, there was no need to take that risk, especially without his transformation, which would have provided better defense.

The two other Malevolent Flame Elementals, with their limited intelligence but extreme ferocity, didn't retreat but instead advanced, their flames intensifying as they charged towards Ren.

And with a roar, they launched two light green Malevolent Flame Balls at Ren.

"Ren!" Alicia cried out in alarm.

Although Ren had just displayed formidable strength, it didn't guarantee his defense.

But in the next second, a large, dark metallic covering appeared on Ren's body.

An Infernal Flame Blast struck the black covering, but it remained unmoved, not even a crack appearing.

"Pfft!"

Ren's figure flickered, and he suddenly appeared in front of the second Malevolent Flame Elemental, his hand darting out like a venomous snake.

Then, the third...

One per second! Within three seconds, Ren had dispatched three of them. To Alicia, these Elementals, which required several people to deal with, were effortlessly handled by Ren.

Witnessing Ren's clean and efficient methods, Alicia was stunned, as if struck by lightning, unable to recover for a long time. Her beautiful eyes kept examining Ren, as if trying to recognize this 'junior' anew, her gaze filled with shock, surprise, and disbelief.

Seeing Ren reveal his strength, Audrey slightly bowed and asked, "Ren, what should we do next?"

"Audrey, what did you just call me?"

Alicia finally snapped out of her daze upon hearing Audrey's words.

But when she heard Audrey's address, she realized that Audrey seemed to have known the identity of this mysterious junior long ago.

"You knew Ren's identity?" Alicia couldn't help but ask, her voice filled with surprise, and she also used honorifics.

"Yes, but Alicia, I'm sorry. According to the master and the head of the party, Ren's identity is top secret."

As Audrey spoke, her fair chin lifted slightly, showcasing her slender, pale neck like a white swan.

It was as if she was saying, "Only three people in the Academy know Ren's identity, and I'm one of them."

Upon hearing this, Alicia fell silent.

She had been seeking Paul's attention, unaware of the powerful connection right before her eyes.

But then, a thought struck her. Why worry?

The next moment, Alicia smiled coquettishly and quickly walked to Ren's side, saying, "Ren, I'm sorry I didn't know your identity before. It's good that you exposed Paul's hypocrisy, or else both Audrey and I would have been deceived."

Alicia's words left Audrey stunned.

Who was deceived? Why bring her into this?

However, Audrey didn't dwell on this and instead asked Ren, "Ren, shouldn't we go back to help?"

"No rush, let's wait a bit longer. The Academy isn't as unprepared as you think. Moreover..."

Ren smiled slightly and continued, "The mastermind behind this hasn't appeared yet, and if we leave now, they might get scared and not show up."

Ren's words left the two women beside him exchanging glances in surprise.

Scare the mastermind into not showing up? Such a bold statement!

Who was this mysterious 'junior'? Alicia's heart was filled with curiosity, as if a cat was gently scratching at it.

"What? You mean the tunnel explosion wasn't an accident but was controlled by someone?" Audrey exclaimed.

"Yes, although I'm not sure of their method, someone is definitely controlling it," Ren nodded.

"By the way, let's take cover first."

Ren led the way to the edge of the clearing, and after navigating through a pile of rugged boulders, he transformed the Tempered Mithril in his hand into a greatsword and swiftly carved out a recess in the dark brown, hard rock wall of the gorge, providing a hiding place for the three of them.

Once they were inside, he transformed the Tempered Mithril again, sealing the entrance like a door.

As a gentle breeze blew by, Alicia's voluptuous body subtly leaned towards Ren's side.

Through the breathing holes in the Tempered Mithril, they heard heavy footsteps outside.

"This is..." Alicia's face showed surprise as she spoke softly.

"It's an Inferno Rock Golem," Audrey said, her face turning serious as she nodded.

They saw a five-meter-tall rock giant, its body engulfed in faint green flames, striding towards the Academy camp. With each step, its several-ton body left a clear, several-inch-deep, charred, circular footprint on the ground.

Following closely behind, more Inferno Rock Golems emerged, and from the sounds, there seemed to be more coming.

"Hiss~ So many!"

"This is more than last time!" Alicia's eyes widened in surprise.

Initially, she thought this tunnel riot was similar to the previous one, but judging from the number of Inferno Rock Golems, it had already exceeded the last time, and not by a small margin, but by nearly half.

"Ren, do you think the Academy camp can hold out?" Audrey asked, her brows furrowed.

With Ren by her side, Audrey wasn't worried about her own safety, but as a member of the Academy, she didn't want to see it suffer too much damage.

"It shouldn't be a problem. The camp is prepared. We'll head over soon," Ren reassured her.

After some time, the sounds of the Inferno Rock Golems stopped.

As Ren put away the Tempered Mithril, he led the two girls towards the camp, quickly moving forward. After navigating through several turns, the camp came into clear view.

The camp was surrounded by massive boulders, with green flames and various magical auras clashing. It was evident that the academy had made sufficient preparations for the sudden collapse of the tunnel. A fierce battle was underway!

The most striking sight was a gigantic, all-black War Golem, engaging in an intense fight with three Hellfire Rock Giants.

"Obsidian War Golem!"

"This should be Master Bradley's golem, and the opponent is a Tier 3 Crystalized Wizard. In the entire camp, only he can control such a golem," Alicia said.

Ren nodded slightly.

The Obsidian War Golem before them was indeed extraordinary, with a height exceeding seven meters, while the three Hellfire Rock Giants it was fighting were only up to its shoulders.

Moreover, the Obsidian War Golem would flash with magical auras at regular intervals, re-covering itself with a layer of'stone skin' for defense.

This was likely the result of the golem's energy source being matched, allowing it to synchronize and cast spells for attack or defense, as mentioned by Master Mogaro earlier.

However, the overall situation of the academy was still extremely dire.

Despite the academy's wizards putting up a fierce resistance, the lack of high-end combat power meant that several Hellfire Rock Giants were rampaging through the camp, unopposed.

In a few minutes, the enemy would break through the camp's magical defense arrays, and even the Obsidian War Golem would be unable to change the tide of defeat. The camp would be destroyed, and the academy's wizards would be defeated!

As a member of the academy, Ren couldn't just watch as his own side was annihilated.

"You two stay here, I'll go take a look."

Ren's body was covered in a layer of magical silver, not only concealing his face but also making him appear like a dark silver metal puppet.

"Be careful, Ren," the two girls cautioned.

Ren nodded and disappeared the next second. When he reappeared, he was behind one of the Hellfire Rock Giants. With a swift kick, he jumped up and reached the giant's back.

With a swift punch, Ren shattered the giant's thick rocky spine and pulled out a green crystal with internal flames.

The Hellfire Rock Giant suddenly began to tremble violently, as if it had Parkinson's disease, and then collapsed.

This scene left the two girls and several nearby academy wizards stunned.

The two girls were shocked by Ren's method of killing the Hellfire Rock Giant, which was identical to how he killed the Evil Fire Element. It seemed that, in Ren's eyes, there was no significant difference between the two.

The nearby wizards, on the other hand, were amazed by the fact that Ren had killed a Hellfire Rock Giant with a single strike.

With Ren's arrival, the battle turned around in less than half a minute.

At this point, all the academy wizards, including Paul, who had just escaped, saw Ren, the'metal man.'

As the last Hellfire Rock Giant fell, the scene was left with only a few Evil Fire Elements.

"Ren, sir," Vice Master Bradley approached Ren, speaking in a respectful tone.

Originally, Bradley was unaware that their team had a powerful member like Ren, until Mogaro informed him before leaving. This was why, despite the battle being at a disadvantage, Bradley never gave the order to retreat.

The others were too far away to hear, but Paul, who was relatively close, caught the name "Ren" and suddenly widened his eyes, as if he had thought of something. His face turned pale, and he trembled.

It's him!

"Things are not over yet, take the others and hide for now," Ren said, as he sensed someone sneaking into the illusion array.

"Yes, Ren, sir," Bradley agreed.

As the time estimated for the Black Flame Cult's arrival passed, they began to enter, unable to directly observe the situation outside due to the large-scale magical array.

"Wow, this is better than the Bius Armory School. They can kill so many Hellfire Rock Giants," a Black Flame Cultist said, seeing over a dozen piles of giant rocks still burning with green flames.

"So many?!" Another cultist exclaimed, followed by excitement.

This was almost double the number they had anticipated.

However, when the main cultist, Gregori, arrived, he frowned, saying, "Something's off. There are no academy wizard corpses, and someone is still alive!"

"Indeed, it's you who's been causing trouble," a young voice suddenly responded from behind them.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end