Chapter 42: Open the Door, Let Me Visit!

The ground beneath began to tremble, as if some colossal creature was stretching its body underground; the stone pillars supporting the cavern started to crack under the immense strain, unleashing terrifying fissures.

There were, of course, no monsters down here; instead, there were other, much ruder and more barbaric entities.

Vilyric had sensed this early on; beneath the innermost and most expansive cave lay an abundance of magic crystals that had been specially modified, now in chaos after a surge of magical energy.

Magic crystals are exceedingly valuable rare commodities, usually mined from the depths of the earth’s core, enriched with magical energy. Even the lowest level 1 quality is worth more than gold when weighed.

Just like when Philena made a payment after the auction on the Island of Spris, magic crystals serve as a basic common currency across the continent.

Whether it’s for forging magical equipment, refining potions, or anything related to the concept of “magic”, magic crystals are indispensable in the manufacturing process.

Only those exceptionally large factions could afford to modify them for use as explosives. Even the Ghost Thieves, a sizable force, wouldn’t necessarily have such financial power.

I remember Lester mentioning that a legendary adventurer team called “Grim Reaper’s Scythe” encountered something similar; while no one died, they were severely injured and are still recuperating, even having a falling out with the official authorities of Demon Town.

It was clear that this situation was not an accident. Most likely, both instances involved the Demon Town authorities discreetly providing financial support. To become a legendary adventurer, “Grim Reaper’s Scythe” mustn’t be foolish; they’ve surely noticed this point by now.

That being said, the force they were up against last time was likely connected to the Ghost Thieves as well. Was it just a coincidence…?

Just as Vilyric was drawing some intel from the situation, she heard Little Dragon Daughter’s emotionless inquiry.

“Master, aren’t we going to act? This place is about to collapse.”

At this, the Priestess redirected her focus to the immediate scene.

The rumbling and explosions intensified; several thick support beams had completely collapsed, and countless huge stones began their relentless descent. Although the remaining members of the Ghost Thieves hadn’t been wiped out, the battle had been abruptly halted.

Even the dumbest demons could now comprehend that this was a trap, and that these guys were essentially meaningless pawns. Even if they did nothing, the imminent chain explosions and collapsing structures would cost these humans their lives.

It was better to think of a way to save their own lives before that happened.

Standing at the cave entrance, Vilyric swatted away a piece of debris that was crashing down with her Priestess staff, shaking her head.

“No need. Taking this opportunity is actually better for us to see just what kind of guys come out from the Mountains of Ten Thousand Demons. If they can’t hold up, we can save them then.”

The demon wielding a machete, with a horn on its head—Nan Dao—seemed to be roaring; although he was some distance away, Vilyric could still make out that he was likely calling for other demons to gather around him.

These demons had quite good teamwork and adaptability. Sensing the surrounding changes, they simultaneously abandoned their current opponents, preparing to deal with the remnants of the Ghost Thieves as they quickly formed a circle back-to-back.

Just as Vilyric was wondering what they would do next…

“Boom boom boom boom boom!!!!!!!!!!”

Accompanied by a terrifying roar far beyond what had come before, countless flames tore through the ground, surging forth in a furious rage, engulfing everything in the cavern and instantly burying the fleeing, cursing poachers and demons!

At that moment, an unusual yet somewhat familiar fluctuation spread out, though it was masked by the falling rocks and fire in the cavern.

Vilyric casually opened a barrier of “Radiant Protection”, the intense explosions rushing toward her. These bomb blasts within the enclosed space rivaled fifth-tier large-scale magic, even more powerful, yet they failed to inflict any harm on the golden curtain.

It was as if she sensed something; the black-haired girl frowned, mustering her strength against the overwhelming resistance to push the barrier outward until it spread to where the demons had been.

There, nothing remained, as if the opponents had never existed.

“…Playing this game again?”

There was no indication of spatial magic, but she was sure that feeling wasn’t new to her.

This time, the Priestess wouldn’t just wait around idly.

The fantastical and arcane tree in her palm sprouted rapidly, transforming into a shimmering silver scalpel-like weapon. Vilyric grasped it, a hint of nostalgia flickering in her silver-blue eyes.

This was one of the signature items of her friend, who specialized in spatial magic—an artifact known as “Void Trace Blade”. Although it appeared to be a knife, it was really an auxiliary piece of equipment that came in extremely handy in certain situations.

Ignoring the violent collapses outside and the wails of the poachers, Vilyric moved her “Radiant Protection” and, alongside Little Dragon Daughter, arrived at the location where the demons had vanished, slicing the scalpel through the air.

“Swish~”

With a sound like a blade slicing through fabric, the space beneath her cut opened up, revealing a visible tear.

Unlike the deep, unstable gaps that appear when normal space collapses, the interior torn by the “Void Trace Blade” glimmered with silver light, seemingly defying the laws of the world and gradually expanding outward, finally forming a peculiar door just large enough for a single person to enter.

This was one of the special abilities of the “Void Trace Blade”; it could capture coordinates that had been connected to a given space for a time and create a special passage, allowing the user to voluntarily reach the corresponding location.

That might sound too abstract, so to illustrate, if Vilyric had previously used an “Invisible Space Portal”, anyone holding the artifact could open a separate passage to follow her to the priestess’s teleportation spot within a certain time frame.

It was precisely because such a method existed that when Philena once said it wasn’t safe to have the portal near the queen, Vilyric could understand her concerns.

Whether it was spatial jumps or traversing small planes, though fundamentally two different concepts, they both needed coordinates; as long as there were recently opened coordinates, this special artifact could leap to them.

Holding the “Void Trace Blade” simulated from the “Kabbalah Tree of Life” temporarily in her hand, Vilyric needed to keep this change just in case; that way, no matter what happened on the other side, they could at least ensure a way back to the present world.

She nodded towards Xiao Guang, and the two stepped through the silver door.

Then, the golden curtain and the silver door vanished simultaneously, and the long-suppressed chaotic flow of magical energy along with the collapsing boulders surged forth, engulfing everything in the cavern!

   

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