Chapter 387: Strangers in the Mist
Chapter 387: Strangers in the Mist
After wiping out the Corrupted Crayfish, the members of the survey team emerged one after another, covered in mud and looking utterly exhausted, to greet them.
Phield swept his gaze across the group. Seeing that the casualties were minimal, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
The squad captain, Newte, immediately saluted.
"Greetings, Baron."
"I..."
Alexia walked over, filthy from head to toe, and lowered her head apologetically.
"I’ve disappointed you. We underestimated the strength of the corrupted creatures, and we still failed to locate the ore. The Holy Light Ore seems to lie even farther north."
"We followed the river upstream but were attacked by Corrupted Beavers. They drove us straight into the territory of the Corrupted Crayfish. We had no choice but to form a wagon fortress and hold our ground. We used up a great deal of supplies."
"Failure is part of the job. We’ll talk about it after we get back."
Phield waved his hand, unwilling to dwell on it.
"Pack everything up. We’re going home."
"Thank you for saving us, my lord."
Everyone thanked him in unison, their eyes glistening with tears.
The ordeal had left a deep scar on all of them.
What troubled them even more was that they had failed their mission and forced their baron to come rescue them personally.
"My lord, I only managed to save one sailor. Those giant crayfish are devastating against ordinary people."
After dispersing the remaining Corrupted Crayfish, Ashina returned with a single surviving sailor.
The Drakewolf opened its jaws, and the pale-faced sailor tumbled onto the ground.
Thinking he was about to be eaten, he scrambled backward in terror.
His sun-tanned brown skin, long face, and dirty pale green rope-tied tunic made it obvious that he wasn’t from the Sacred Griffin Empire.
"Where are you from?"
Phield looked down at him with curiosity.
The sailor immediately knelt and gestured frantically with his hands, but when he spoke, it was nothing but incomprehensible gibberish.
"Gurble gurble... aba aba..."
No one understood a single word.
"...Right. That was very... eloquent. Please stop talking."
Phield sighed helplessly.
"Take him back with us. Maybe someone else will understand his language."
Before anyone could leave, a powerful blade of wind suddenly slashed toward them with an ear-piercing whistle, splitting the muddy water apart along its path.
"An enemy Divine Chosen is launching a surprise attack! Second Tier Divine Art, Spear of Frostpierce!"
Thanks to her sharp instincts, Ashina reacted instantly.
With a shout, she thrust out her left hand, instantly forming a massive lance of icy energy before hurling it straight toward the incoming wind blade.
Boom!
The two attacks collided violently, erupting into a tremendous explosion.
Countless shards of ice scattered like a raging storm, shredding everything nearby.
Before the splashing mud and water had even settled, Ashina vanished as though she had dissolved into thin air, racing through the mist.
When her figure became visible again, the tip of her spear had already locked onto her target.
"So fast. How did she find me immediately? Is this really the combat ability of a Sacred Griffin Empire Divine Chosen?"
Hidden within the gray mist, a woman dressed in a long sailor’s uniform flashed a look of disbelief before swiftly drawing her Divine Artifact naval saber.
A deafening clang rang out as Ashina’s spear collided with the saber.
Violent surges of divine power exploded outward, obliterating everything around them.
Before the clash had even ended, the woman suddenly felt a chill beneath her.
Without hesitation, the Drakewolf lunged forward and sank its jaws toward her thigh.
"A living Divine Artifact?"
Alarm bells immediately rang in Airkly’s mind.
She instantly leaped backward.
Fighting a Divine Chosen with a living Divine Artifact was equivalent to battling two enemies at once.
She had absolutely no chance of winning.
"Dragonflame!"
After missing its first bite, the Drakewolf immediately unleashed a sea of dragonfire.
Blue flames illuminated the flooded battlefield like the fires of hell.
Even stranger, Airkly couldn’t feel any heat whatsoever.
Instead, the surrounding water rapidly froze over.
"So it’s not actually a flame-type Divine Chosen?"
The thought had only just crossed her mind when she noticed her movements becoming sluggish.
Glancing downward, she froze in horror.
At some point, both of her legs had become covered in frost.
Whoosh!
A silent arrow shot out from within the flames.
"Damn it!"
Watching the arrow rapidly enlarge before her eyes, Airkly realized she no longer had time to dodge.
"Third Tier Miracle, Water God’s Protection!"
A cold, elegant voice suddenly echoed through the gray mist.
Moisture in the air rapidly condensed into a constantly rotating sphere of water, completely enveloping Airkly.
Ashina’s arrow pierced into the water sphere but only advanced a few inches before losing all its momentum.
"What terrifying combat instincts... I couldn’t even react in time."
Airkly’s heart pounded wildly as cold sweat soaked her back.
"Please stop, ladies and gentlemen."
A Divine Chosen dressed in flowing blue robes slowly floated out of the mist.
Speaking accented Sacred Griffin Empire common tongue, she called for an end to the fighting.
"A Third Tier Divine Chosen."
The moment Ashina sensed her opponent’s strength, she immediately abandoned any intention of continuing the fight.
She swiftly retreated to Phield’s side and quietly reported,
"Another enemy Divine Chosen has appeared. They’re not from the Sacred Griffin Empire."
"Kill them. Kill every last one."
Without even furrowing her brow, Firomina spoke in an icy voice and waved her hand with the commanding aura of an empress.
"Wolf cub, keep them occupied while I bombard them. Blow their clothes off, then throw them to the Corrupted Crayfish so they can breed."
Ashina refused without the slightest hesitation.
"My priority is protecting my lord."
If the enemy attempted to break through, she would abandon the battle without hesitation and carry Phield to safety.
Patting Ashina gently on the head, Phield thought to himself,
Her divine power seems even stronger than before. Just how exactly do Divine Chosen advance?
"That Third Tier Divine Chosen isn’t entirely human."
Alice frowned as she studied the woman across the battlefield.
"She looks more like a merfolk from the Inner Sea disguised as a human. The Purple Gold Empire once bordered lands inhabited by merfolk. That style of robe looks very familiar."
"So many Divine Chosen keep appearing in my territory..."
Phield’s eyelids twitched.
Suppressing his growing irritation, he calmly reassured everyone.
"Since they didn’t charge at us immediately, there’s no need to panic."
Besides, constantly showing weakness would only encourage the other side to become greedy.
Signaling everyone to remain where they were, Phield strode forward with a stern expression.
"Where are you people from? Both Nightfall Domain and Dawnfall Territory belong to the Sacred Griffin Empire. Entering without permission is considered an act of war."
After hearing Phield’s words, the two women exchanged a few sentences.
They then each took out a strange fruit and ate it.
"Greetings, sir. Please don’t be alarmed. Our fleet got lost."
The Divine Chosen dressed as a sailor suddenly spoke fluent Sacred Griffin Empire common tongue.
"I am Airkly, a naval commander of the Storm Sea Commercial National Fleet."
The Stormsea Mercantile Nation lay south of the Sacred Griffin Empire. Beyond it stretched the Storm Sea, the Inner Sea of the continent, while the Purple Gold Empire lay to the east.
"Lost?"
Phield raised an eyebrow.
"I am Phield, the Empire’s Sword Saint. Don’t insult my intelligence with such a ridiculous excuse. If you refuse to tell the truth, I don’t mind feeding all of you to the fish."