Chapter 108: Chapter 108: The Trap (Part 1)

A few more days passed in the blink of an eye.

On that same Floating Island, in the magnificent palace, the leaders of various races gathered once again.

Within the grand hall, light and shadow interchanged, yet the atmosphere was even heavier than the last meeting.

The assault by the wizard forces had become increasingly aggressive, and the war reports from the front lines piled up like mountains, each one shocking to the core.

“The Rune Fortress in the Northern Realm has already pushed to the ’Giant’s Shoulder’! If things continue like this, the barrier leading to the Central Plains will be completely breached!” The Human King’s voice carried a clear note of anxiety.

The Elf Queen also wore a worried expression: “The shadow creatures they summoned are corroding our Ancient Forest, and the Natural Energy has been severely polluted.”

After a lengthy and intense discussion on countermeasures against the main forces of the wizards, the topic naturally shifted to the “Adventurer Strategy” proposed last time.

“However, the strategy of ’bounty hunting for Foreign Demons’ that everyone suggested last time has indeed proven effective,” the Beastman Chief said gruffly, with a hint of satisfaction in his tone.

“Those greedy adventurers, driven by the bounty, indeed brought out many hidden strong individuals, hunting down numerous invaders. Even though some wizards were not completely dealt with at first, they were held up by the adventurers, eventually being finished off by the powerful warriors who arrived.”

The hall echoed with murmurs, clearly, the tangible benefits brought by this strategy made them temporarily put aside their disagreements.

However, soon a noble expressed dissatisfaction.

“Your Majesty!” A lord, dressed in splendid attire, stood up abruptly, his voice agitated, “I must point out that this policy has also caused severe negative consequences! Those adventurers are nothing but a pack of bottomless jackals! For the sake of the illusory bounty, they dared to claim false merits by killing our loyal subjects, mistaking them for ’Foreign Demons’ to claim rewards!”

He continued indignantly: “This is simply an unheard-of atrocity! Several tragic incidents of innocent civilians being murdered have already occurred near my manor! They have severely disrupted the peaceful lives of the common people!”

The Dwarf Elder beside him also complained: “Similar things have happened in several of my mining areas. Those adventurers barged in, plundering resources at will, even taking my people as those from the Otherworld, trying to deceive us!”

These leaders, on the surface, were passionately advocating justice for the “innocent civilians” and “miners,” as if they were genuinely concerned about their people’s suffering.

But in reality, what truly enraged them was how these adventurers severely infringed upon the rights of the local lords!

The lives of innocent civilians were indeed important, but the real reason for their heartache was the loss of their manors and taxes.

The so-called “wizards” who were falsely claimed for merits were mostly exposed on the spot—because the humans of the Wizard Civilization, in fact, didn’t resemble those from the Elorcia Plane.

After centuries of artificial manipulation and aptitude modification, the humans of the Wizard World generally appeared more handsome and taller, with an aura leaning towards an extraordinary elegance.

One could say, except for not having pointed ears, the humans of the Wizard World were more akin to an elegant race like the elves.

In contrast, ordinary humans from Elorcia were rougher and more unsophisticated.

So, although occasionally a couple of unlucky ones were falsely claimed, most of the time, those greedy adventurers were left with nothing but empty efforts.

Yet, even so, their actions greatly disrupted the order in various regions.

“These adventurers are indeed too vile and truly despicable!”

A priest donned in luxurious red robes stood up, his face filled with compassionate sorrow: “I suggest that the Divine Hall deploy forces to form Holy Knight Patrols to prevent such incidents in major cities.”

“Ha, pfft! Sounds nice, just trying to sell more Penance Coupons, aren’t you?!” someone sneered.

“What nonsense are you spouting? I’m doing this to promote justice and punish evil!”

“Then why don’t you go handle those wizards!”

“That won’t work; those wizards are indeed too powerful…”

…

After a round of fruitless arguments, ultimately, the leaders reached a consensus: since employing adventurers had indeed been effective, the policy would continue.

But to curb the “false merit claims” and stabilize the rear areas, they decided to find a way to deploy additional forces, setting traps in regions where wizard apprentices were active, drawing the wizards deeper, and then focusing on encircling and annihilating them.

…

…

On the other side, the team of Jeming, Amy, and Victor was actively operating in this plane, relying on the latest intelligence provided by Viola.

The value of this information network had been fully demonstrated in the past few days.

No longer wandering aimlessly like headless flies, they could now precisely avoid dangerous areas and specifically target valuable objectives.

Each operation was efficient and highly rewarding.

This time, based on the intelligence provided by Viola, they came to a mine situated deep within the forest.

The intelligence indicated that it might contain some minerals with rather unique properties, greatly beneficial for Alchemy and Magic Potion research.

However, the mine lay behind the front lines, and the main forces couldn’t reach it for now—only the Wizard Squad could infiltrate to retrieve samples.

The entrance to the mine was crudely arranged with wooden stakes and simple burlap, clearly the property of a certain Indigenous people’s lord.

Jeming used the Eye of the Micro-Light to confirm there were no large guards around, and the three quickly infiltrated the mine’s interior.

The mining tunnel twisted and turned, filled with the musty scent of damp earth and ore in the air.

The further they went, the more palpable a sense of heat became.

“It’s kind of hot in here, isn’t it?” Amy couldn’t help but wipe the sweat from her forehead.

“Be careful; the minerals have associated Energy, and the presence of the Earth-Fire Element is quite strong,” Victor reminded.

As the three delved deeper, the tunnel became increasingly spacious, ultimately transforming into a cavernous setting.

“Is this really a mine?” Amy marveled as she stared at the stalactites hanging overhead.

“The Elorcia Plane has an extensive Underground World, where most mineral veins are located. So the so-called mining passage is a direct route to the Underground World…”

Jeming paused, suddenly frowning.

“What’s wrong?”

“Enemies are coming, stay alert!”

Proceeding cautiously, just as the three were about to reach the core area indicated by the intelligence, a surge of violent Energy erupted from deep within the tunnel.

With a rough and angry roar, the ground beneath them shook violently:

“Intruders! This is the territory of the Magma Clan!”

A towering figure suddenly stepped out from the shadows.

It was an Underground Demon Elder, towering over three meters in height, with skin as coarse as rocks molded from lava, covered in crimson patterns.

(To be continued.)

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