Chapter 660 - 419: A Bonfire Before the Big Battle (Part 2)

Chapter 660: Chapter 419: A Bonfire Before the Big Battle (Part 2)

RUMBLE... The ground swelled, and a three-meter-tall humanoid robot burst out of the earth. The eyes on its steel face suddenly glowed red as it swung a massive, spiked iron hammer at Zhou Chen.

’You’ve got to be kidding me. The guard for the Magic Academy’s secret tunnel is a giant robot!’

As he grumbled to himself, Zhou Chen rolled out of the way, summoned the Hammer of Forging, and flash-stepped in front of the large robot to bring the hammer down.

—Destruction of All Things!

BANG!

The Hammer of Forging dealt massive bonus damage to steel constructs. Combined with the astonishing destructive power of Destruction of All Things, a single strike was enough to instantly kill the large robot. Sparks flew from its mechanical body before it exploded into nothingness with a loud bang.

CLANG. A weapon the robot had equipped on its left arm but hadn’t had a chance to use fell to the ground.

—[Arm Cannon: A technological product capable of firing powerful cannon blasts.

Can be combined with different fire control modules and switched at any time, such as Energy Bullet, Electromagnetic Cannon, Laser Emitter, Missile Launcher, Flamethrower, Thunderbolt Gun, Frozen Ray, etc.

Required Attribute Value: Intelligence 3]

’Whoa, another piece of good equipment. Coming straight to the Magic Academy was the right choice; even random drops are high-end artifacts...’ Zhou Chen immediately equipped the Arm Cannon. The weapon currently had three fire control modules: Energy Bullet, Cannon, and Missile Launcher.

This thing was some serious advanced tech, too. If its stored missiles ran out, it would use an Energy Source to automatically perform Alchemy and quickly generate new ones. The Energy Source was also very durable; even if it was depleted, it could be replenished with Mana or Ore.

With the guardian monster slain, the path forward unlocked. Zhou Chen ran straight ahead. He encountered no traps or obstacles this time and easily reached the end, where he pushed open a large, long-sealed door.

Outside was a desolate wilderness. Not far away stood a grand, imposing ancient building with a forest of spires—the Magic Academy.

Zhou Chen had just taken two steps outside when a series of roars suddenly erupted. Dark energy swirled up from the ground, materializing into several Dark Living Dead with crimson eyes.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

He fired a few missiles, and the Dark Living Dead were instantly blown to smithereens.

’So the Magic Academy was invaded after all...’ Zhou Chen quickened his pace. He encountered many more of the same monsters along the way, all of which he dealt with easily. After some time, he arrived at the main gate of the Magic Academy, where a bonfire save point was located.

’A boss battle is next, for sure. It has to be...’ Zhou Chen grumbled to himself as he lit the bonfire. After getting ready, he walked toward the academy’s gate.

The area had been reduced to a desolate, dilapidated ruin. Traces of a brutal battle were everywhere, along with long-dried bloodstains.

Suddenly, a fierce gust of wind blew. Zhou Chen looked up to see a mass of deep darkness rapidly approaching from the sky, a sharp, piercing, bird-like shriek ringing out from within.

He rolled to dodge the attack, switched his weapon to the Demon-Breaking Sword, and plunged it forcefully into the ground.

Pure Anti-Demon Light bloomed from him like the sun. Myriad rays of intense light burst forth, purifying the darkness in the sky until it was nothing. A Harpy, its body covered in oozing black pus, was revealed within the vanishing darkness. It shrieked in agony as the intense light scorched it, its skin festering and its wings burned full of holes.

It fell powerlessly from the sky.

The boss’s name appeared: [Dark Stalker Lester]

Zhou Chen immediately switched to the Arm Cannon. A blinding light flared at the muzzle. After a brief charge—BOOM!

A thick, surging pillar of light shot out from the muzzle. The shockwave roared, sweeping out in all directions and kicking up the dust on the ground.

The Super Cannon fired continuously, and the Harpy’s health visibly evaporated. After seven or eight seconds, the Arm Cannon’s energy was depleted, while the Harpy had only a third of its health remaining.

Zhou Chen switched to the Magic Master’s Staff and cast "Thorn Entanglement" from a distance.

Emerald-green, spiked thorns burst from the ground, wrapping around the Harpy before suddenly constricting.

SQUELCH!

A large amount of blood spurted out, and the Harpy’s health dropped by another half.

"Aaargh!" The Harpy violently broke free from the vines binding it, flapped its wings, and flew high into the sky, entering its second stage.

SWOOSH SWOOSH SWOOSH!

It flicked its wings, and a volley of feathers rained down like arrows. Zhou Chen used Flame Jump to teleport around, dodging the feather shower while switching to the Dream Light and Shadow, aiming at the Harpy as if he were about to throw a javelin.

The Harpy seemed to sense the danger. It wrapped itself in its wings and dove in a high-speed spin, creating a spiraling, shredding hurricane.

Seeing this, Zhou Chen had no choice but to roll away in a panic, narrowly dodging the blow. But it wasn’t over. After its attack missed, the Harpy changed direction in mid-air and dove again, determined to shred him in its spiral attack.

’So persistent.’ A pair of vibrant, rose-red wings suddenly extended from Zhou Chen’s back. The feathers were made of fire, their brilliant tongues licking through the air.

[Phoenix Fire Feather]

With a flap of his fiery wings, Zhou Chen shot into the sky, dodging the Harpy’s diving shred attack. He switched his left-hand weapon back to the Arm Cannon and used his Mana to refill its energy—with his Intelligence at 41 points, his Mana pool was now quite large. Even if he ran out, he could drink a Blue Bottle to replenish it. And if he ran out of Blue Bottles... well, then he’d have no choice but to shamelessly use his wish-granting cheat.

BOOM BOOM BOOM!

Missiles shot out one after another, trailing flames. The Harpy flapped its wings, unleashing a powerful gust that quickly formed a mighty gale. The chaotic wind coalesced into countless wind blades, which dismembered the missiles and caused them to explode in mid-air.

Zhou Chen spun, dodging the gale while simultaneously flinging out a volley of fiery feathers that rained down like a firestorm.

Just as the Harpy was about to dodge, it heard a piercing whistle. It felt as if a sharp knife had been stabbed into its brain and was being twisted, causing it to freeze for a moment.

BOOM BOOM BOOM!

The Phoenix Fire Feathers exploded violently upon hitting the Harpy. The force of a single feather’s explosion was comparable to a High-Explosive Alchemical Bomb. With dozens of feathers now detonating, the Harpy’s already low health bar was instantly depleted.

’Got it...’ Zhou Chen put away the Soul-Shocking Copper Whistle and slowly landed where the Harpy had exploded into nothingness. Lying there were a pitch-black heart and a Magic Master’s Staff inlaid with white crystal.

—[Harpy’s Heart: Its appearance is ferocious and terrifying, yet it possesses a certain elegant, bloody beauty. Even though the creature is dead, the heart itself continues to beat slowly.

It contains a terrible demonic power. If one were to swallow this item, they would transform into a Harpy, but would lose their humanity in the process.

Lester was a reclusive Magic Master who lived far from the Magic Academy. All contact with her was lost a short while ago. When people from the academy saw her again, she had already become a cruel, bloodthirsty Harpy.]

—[Lester’s Master’s Scepter: A Magic Master’s staff. The wielder of this staff can communicate with animals and borrow the power of magical creatures.

A Magic Master’s scepter, containing immense magic power. The power of any magic cast with it will be amplified by 20%.

Only those rich in wisdom can wield it.

Required Attribute Value for Equipping: Intelligence 30

Intelligence +6 when equipped.]

’Another Dark Stalker...’ Zhou Chen fell into deep thought. There were now three known Dark Stalkers, and the actual number was likely even higher. The organization that created them was called the Desecration Church.

Moreover, every Dark Stalker had been a top-tier expert as a human. Laurie was a Quasi-King, and Lester was a Magic Master. They were already extremely powerful to begin with, and their strength only grew after being corrupted by the Abyss. The natives of Gaia would surely have a hard time resisting them.

Just two Dark Stalkers had been enough to force the Magic Academy to seal itself off. If a few more showed up, couldn’t they just wipe out the entire Magic Association?

However, that seemed unlikely. The Desecration Church couldn’t possibly capture that many top-tier experts to transform.

As Zhou Chen was pondering, the tall gates of the Magic Academy suddenly glowed with an azure light. Figures clad in magic robes emerged one after another. Their leader was an old man with a long white beard, dressed in a clean white robe. He held a magic staff that looked little better than a broken tree branch, yet it pulsed with astonishing magic power.

An owl stood on his shoulder, staring with wide, cute eyes and tilting its head from time to time.

In the crowd, there were also several bipedal cats in simple clothing, pushing a small cart as if to rescue the wounded.

Besides them, there were also Green-skinned Orcs, Elves, Half-Dragon People, Dwarves, Giants, Half-Mechanical Transformed People, and even a few low-resolution Pixel People. They were also wearing magic robes and were clearly mages from the academy.

’What the hell is this lineup...’ Zhou Chen stared, dumbfounded.