Chapter 450 - 360: Why Must You Rush to Your Death?

Chapter 450: Chapter 360: Why Must You Rush to Your Death?

’The mists of history are truly bewildering...’

Marcus’s finger accidentally brushed against the hanging gauze curtains.

"HSSSS..."

Like a shattering dream, the pristine white gauze curtains instantly disintegrated into fine ash, which drifted gently down before settling into silence.

"Probably because they’ve been here for too long..." Valles said, shaking his head at the sight.

The huge wooden statues hidden by the gauze curtains were completely revealed.

They were all carved in the likeness of Knights.

Wearing Plate Armor and visored helmets, their hands crossed before their abdomens in a majestic pose.

After wandering around the hall for a while longer and finding nothing special, the group prepared to move on.

Suddenly, Hill raised his right hand, his voice dropping to a whisper.

"Someone’s coming..."

Sure enough, a moment later, footsteps echoed from the passageway at the far end of the hall.

The other party was coming from ahead, which meant they had already finished exploring and were on their way back to camp.

The five members of the squad exchanged knowing glances and remained silent.

Soon, the newcomers appeared in their line of sight.

It was another Adventurer Squad.

Those who could make it to the third level of the ruins were basically no longer Junior Professionals.

The leader was a tall, burly man, built like a giant bear, with short, dark blond hair.

Like Marcus, he carried a thick Tower Shield; he was clearly a Vanguard.

Zelir’s gaze passed over him to the people behind.

The other four appeared to be two Assassins, one Swordsman, and one Ranger.

’Hmm... no Mage.’

When the opposing Vanguard saw Zelir’s squad, he was clearly taken aback for a moment, his expression a little awkward.

The once-relaxed atmosphere in the hall suddenly grew tense.

The Vanguard’s gaze also swept quickly over the members of Zelir’s squad.

His eyes lingered on Zelir for a particularly long time, his brows furrowing slightly as if he were trying to recall something.

Suddenly, his brow smoothed, and he forced a smile onto his face.

"Ah... if I’m not mistaken, you must be Zelir, right?"

"You know me?" Zelir was a little surprised.

"Of course! Zelir the Kaleidoscope! The genius Mage who defeated the Nine-headed Dragon Snake!"

Convinced he was right, the Vanguard laughed and pounded a fist against his Chest Armor. "My name is Weber!"

Hearing Weber say the word "Kaleidoscope," Zelir found it a bit amusing.

’This title is spreading really fast.’

"You’re really getting famous," Gray nudged Zelir with his elbow.

Although Weber had a burly build, he appeared very friendly—or rather, he was trying his best to appear friendly.

He held his arms open, showing that he meant no harm.

"I didn’t expect to meet you here. Did you guys choose passageway number thirteen too?"

"Yeah... thought we’d see if we could find any treasure chests," Zelir said.

"What a coincidence. We just finished exploring up ahead,"

Weber said earnestly.

"There are no treasure chests in this passageway, and there are a lot of traps... It would be better to switch to another one. I heard number seven is pretty good."

"That’s not for you to worry about," Zelir said.

"Really, there’s no need to go up ahead and waste your time..." Weber tried to say more.

"I said, you don’t need to concern yourself," Zelir said, his tone hardening slightly.

"Well... alright then..."

Weber pursed his lips, as if having made a decision.

"Since fate brought us together today, let me share some information with you for free..."

"Oh?"

Zelir raised a slight eyebrow. "Information?"

"It’s nothing, just the locations of some traps. It’s a small gesture to save you some trouble."

Weber laughed heartily.

"You’re a famous Mage, after all. If we run into each other again in the ruins, I’ll be counting on you to look out for us, too."

But at that moment,

Hill’s warning suddenly rang out.

"Watch out!"

The danger came not from Weber’s hand reaching into his coat, but from behind him.

While Weber had been walking up to cozy up to them and draw their attention,

the Ranger in his party had already made a move.

The two Assassins and the Swordsman had intentionally used their bodies to partially block the view of the Ranger, obstructing the line of sight of Zelir’s squad.

The Ranger, thinking his actions were seamless, stealthily reached for the quiver at his waist.

But the ever-vigilant Hill had already noticed.

Hill’s warning cry marked the sudden start of a fierce battle!

The Ranger clearly hadn’t expected to be noticed the moment he reached for his quiver.

In a moment of panic, he could only hastily nock an Arrow and draw his bow; the process of infusing it with Fighting Qi was also extremely brief.

His target was crystal clear: the core member of the opposing squad, Zelir!

But it was too late.

Marcus moved in a flash, planting his Shield in the direct line of fire to Zelir.

"THUMP!"

An Arrow hastily infused with Fighting Qi only managed to blast a small crater in the Shield.

Its lethality was very limited; Marcus stood firm, unmoved.

As for the master actor, Weber, he hadn’t pulled out a piece of paper with trap locations, but two black pellets.

He threw them forcefully, and they exploded on the ground.

"BOOM! BOOM...!"

Two muffled explosions, and a massive cloud of white smoke instantly erupted, filling the entire hall.

As the smoke bombs went off, the two Assassins and the remaining Swordsman from the Weber Squad attacked at the same time!

They moved swiftly, intending to rush into the white smoke to hide their movements and take out Zelir in the confusion!

However, a fierce gust of wind rushed towards them, its powerful force blowing all the white smoke away!

Vortex Skill!

The battlefield, which had been shrouded in white mist, was instantly clear again.

Everyone’s position was exposed!

"CLANG! CLANG!"

The sound of blades clashing rang out.

The ambushing Assassins, one on the left and one on the right, were both intercepted by Hill and Gray!

This was the first time Hill had given up on ambushing the enemy, choosing instead to protect Zelir.

The Swordsman was slightly slower, charging from the rear. What greeted him was Valles’s Thunder Arrow!

"BOOM!"

He was already in a forward-charging posture, and the Thunder Arrow shot towards him at extreme speed.

The Swordsman had no time to dodge.

It hit his right shoulder, and the Fighting Qi exploded!

"BANG!"

Along with a pained howl, the right side of his upper body, including his right arm, was blown away!

Another brilliant blue light suddenly shot across the battlefield, striking the Weber Squad’s Ranger squarely in the back.

Rampant Arcane Magic Power tore his upper body to shreds. His fragile Leather Armor and flesh exploded together into a cloud of blood mist!

After his first surprise Arrow failed, he hadn’t thought about fighting alongside his teammates, but had immediately turned to flee.

It was a pity he couldn’t outrun Zelir’s Arcane Missile.

Likewise, Weber failed to fulfill his duty as a Vanguard.

He didn’t throw himself in front of the Ranger to block for him, but instead allowed the team’s damage dealer to be targeted and killed on the spot by Zelir.

The Swordsman was heavily wounded, and the Ranger was eliminated.

The two Assassins who had tried to attack under the cover of smoke were also stopped by Gray and Hill.

The stone slabs cracked as incredibly resilient vines shot out, wrapping tightly around the two Assassins’ ankles.

In a battle like this, once movement is hindered, death is sure to follow.

A swift Wind Blade flashed past, and the two Assassins’ heads were separated from their necks, falling to the ground with a "THUD."

The battle ended as cleanly and decisively as it had begun.

Now, only the last Vanguard—Weber—remained.

It made no difference whether he was alive or dead. A Vanguard who had lost his teammates was just a punching bag.

Zelir’s Night Peace was locked firmly on Weber, his gaze cold.

He was in no hurry to take his life.

Under the immense pressure of Zelir’s powerful Spirit locking onto him, Weber didn’t dare make the slightest move.

His face was pale, his lips trembled, and his whole body was shaking.

’Heh, so you are afraid of death after all,’ Zelir thought with contempt.

’If you’re so afraid of dying, why would you dare to pull something like this?’

Gray strode forward and threw a punch, knocking out two of Weber’s teeth.

Then he kicked the back of Weber’s knees, forcing him to the ground.

A dagger slid from Hill’s sleeve and was pressed against the back of Weber’s neck.

The skin was broken slightly. A thin line of crimson blood trickled out, and a Blood Pearl slid down his neck.

"The reason I’m letting you live, for now, is because I’m very curious..."

Zelir walked up to Weber, looking down on him from above.

"Tell me, why did you rush up here to throw your lives away... even when you knew my identity and strength?"