Chapter 681: Give Me One Hour

“You’re not going to die. Stop mourning and move aside.”

The suddenly appearing severely injured team member startled everyone. The captain and Lanna immediately went over, looking like they wanted to wake him up with their voices, continuously calling their unconscious teammate.

Only when Hilia’s voice came from behind did the two hastily step aside.

“You deal with the corrosion. Let me save her.”

“Sure, please, Miss Xi.”

The two weren’t the sort to only focus on grief at crucial times. Upon hearing this, they both nodded and quickly stepped up, giving the spot for healing to Hilia.

The natural faction also has healing spells, but compared to the holy and life factions, they fall short. They can only be said to be better than nothing.

While standing against the tendrils’ corrosion, the two also paid attention to Hilia, watching as she extended her hand above the injured teammate, a faint life element blossoming from her hand.

It was a spell recorded from the magic puppet, Life Bloom, a group healing spell that, under Hilia’s control, became a single-target healing with a more potent effect.

Soon, the traces of corrosion on the injured person’s body were slowly removed, and their vital signs gradually stabilized.

Compared to the healing effect, Lanna and the captain were more concerned about the spell Hilia used.

Life magic!

In their minds, the words of the Elf King flashed by.

Miss Xi had received the blessing of the Gods.

Perhaps they weren’t so certain before.

But now, they could be sure that Miss Xi truly had received the blessing of the Gods!

Only those blessed by the Gods can use life faction magic, a special ‘common knowledge’ within the Elf Royal Court.

As to whether this common knowledge was true, they didn’t know.

After the easy healing, Hilia rejoined the line resisting the tendrils’ corrosion.

“By the way, where are the other two?”

Hilia looked at the captain.

The captain’s expression was complex; he said nothing.

Charging out meant facing the tendrils directly.

Either they do what they’re doing now, using defensive magic to resist the tendrils, delaying the tendrils’ strengthening time, or they force their way back like the captain and that team member did.

However, the remaining two are about as capable as the one lying down.

This mage who forced their way back almost died, and the other two haven’t come back. They are likely in dire straits.

In this seemingly divine domain, as a Tier Five Mage, the captain felt powerless for the first time.

Outside, where he could call the shots and destroy a town with a simple gesture, here he dared destroy nothing.

In earlier explorations, they had naturally tried to destroy the tunnel structure here, but regrettably, they found it impossible to destroy.

“Looking on the bright side, if they have a stronger will to survive, they might slowly make their way back.”

Hilia comforted.

“Thank you.”

After an indeterminate time, the severely injured team member slowly awoke and joined in the resistance.

By then, the tendrils’ corrosive power had become even more terrifying, and beyond corrosion, the tendrils would carry out other attacks, such as lashing directly or releasing death spells to destroy the defensive network.

Multiple attacks in parallel caused trouble for Hilia and the others.

At this time, they no longer had the luxury to care about where those two remaining were, focusing seriously on resisting.

“Half a day more.” Hilia looked at the time, exhaustion in her voice.

Even though her magic power was abundant, and her spiritual power far exceeded her peers, the prolonged consumption left her mentally fatigued. If she were alone, she thought she couldn’t hold on this long, probably having to pray for Rose’s help.

But now, victory was in sight.

With others watching her, she couldn’t help but persist.

“Take a break, Miss Xi, you’ve been at it without rest from the start. Can you really endure it?”

Lanna worriedly asked.

Hilia gently shook her head, “I’m alright, I can hold on. You guys continue to rest, don’t worry.”

The captain opened his eyes from meditation, a look of embarrassment and shame flashed across his face.

A dignified Tier Five Mage outpaced in magic consumption by Hilia, a Tier Four. If there was a crack in the ground, he wished he could dive into it.

He got up, replacing Lanna’s position, looked at Hilia, and asked, “Miss Xi, can we only hold out until time is up?”

Hilia said, “I’ve found some clues, maybe we can end this early, but…”

She looked at Lanna, thought for a moment, and said, “Your state doesn’t support it, it’s better to stick it out to the end, just five or six more hours, it’ll be quick.”

Five or six hours…

Quick, is it?

The captain looked at Hilia’s pale face, hesitated, and gritted his teeth, “Please, tell us, what do we need to do?”

“You all need to face it alone for an hour, give me an hour.”

“An hour…”

The captain felt the scorching heat around, his eyes slowly narrowing.

“Don’t underestimate us, Miss Xi, we are, after all, the elite of the Elf Royal Court.”

Hilia replied, “I’m not underestimating you; it’s just that once I start, it might trigger a strong reaction, and these tendrils’ assault could become even more intense.”

“No problem.” Lanna’s voice sounded.

She hadn’t entered her meditation state yet.

An hour is better than five or six hours.

Neither she, the captain, nor the other team member was already at their wi’s end.

Even alternating the resistance, the mental fatigue, and magic recovery couldn’t keep up.

Enduring for five or six hours is less preferable than condensing the storm within an hour.

To exhaust the potential of the body, enduring an hour is still feasible, especially with all three acting at once, instead of taking turns.

“Can it be done?” the captain asked Hilia.

Hilia nodded, “I wouldn’t attempt anything I’m not confident in, but if you want to endure an hour, that’s an option too.”

“Don’t worry, leave it to us.”

The three stood up, and their aura began to rise.

“Alright.”

Hilia didn’t waste words, nodded, and then let the released ice shield be corroded.

She then turned to the direction of the ‘heart’, closing her eyes.

Her spiritual power formed into a thin line, slowly moving towards the huge ‘heart’ lying on the ground.

Thump thump! Thump thump! Thump thump!

Under the high temperature, the heartbeat became rapid and subtle, irregular.

Hilia attempted to make the frequency of her spiritual power align with the heartbeat frequency, slowly creating resonance.

“Divine favor often only befalls the ‘lucky ones’ with a high degree of divine contract. My divine contract level is no different from Phil’s, both are full. If she can obtain God’s favor, I naturally can too.”

Hilia slowly felt it.

She didn’t intend to snatch Phil’s divine relic; she only sought to make the God of Life and Death see her as a believer or ward through this method, so that this incomplete divine body wouldn’t reject them.

“I remember, when underground near the pollution source before, an elf unintentionally resonated with the ‘heart’ there and almost got into trouble. Here, it’s a pure divine shell, unlikely to pose such fatal issues. So, if I can just find the feeling that the elf had back then, I can gain acceptance…”