Wizard: I crush legends with martial arts.

After thoroughly searching the earth dragon's lair, Alphonse returned along the same route with the magic sword.

They didn't encounter a single monster along the way.

However, there were some bite marks on the corpses of the monsters that were killed on the way here.

Clearly, some magical beasts discovered these remains.

The underground cavern was vast, and Alphonse couldn't possibly kill all the magical beasts or even explore the entire cavern. However, he didn't encounter a single magical beast on his way back, which puzzled him somewhat.

This question was answered by the Demon Sword.

When the earth dragon Fiar goes out to hunt for food, it will restrain its dragon might.

Alphonse, however, drenched himself in dragon blood, and the lingering dragon's might would not dissipate for a while, so the magical beasts naturally fled at the mere mention of it.

Although it saved some trouble, Alphonse still spent some time dissecting the magic crystal from the monster's corpse.

Previously, I felt I couldn't take it with me and was too lazy to collect it, but now that I have a spatial ring, of course I shouldn't waste it.

Even a tiny mosquito is still meat.

Alphonse also collected a few monster corpses to use as fuel.

We couldn't estimate how long it would take to get out of the cave, so it was better to be prepared.

Alphonse retrieved all the items he had previously collected, such as the giant python's gallbladder, the fire dragon's bones, and magic crystals.

Returning to the upper cave, with the help of the dragon's might, no monster dared to come and harass them. Those that couldn't dodge in time were trembling and offered their necks to be slaughtered, becoming members of the Shadow Legion.

However, this cave level seemed to be even more spacious than the two levels below, with a complex and intricate network of passages, like a large maze.

Alphonse left marks along the way to avoid getting lost.

Even so, they still had to backtrack quite a bit.

It took several days to find a way out.

With the talkative Demon Sword by his side, it wasn't too boring; they could chat whenever they had free time.

The demonic sword had been sealed away for a thousand years, and it must have been bored out of its mind. Once it started talking, it wouldn't stop.

Compared to when I was first teleported here and couldn't even find someone to talk to, things are much better now.

There is no next floor.

We have reached the exit of the cave.

However, to Alphonse's surprise, what he saw after leaving the cave was not a blue sky.

Above the sky were layers upon layers of dark yellow clouds, swirling in circles, with only the sunlight faintly visible behind them.

The world was shrouded in darkness.

As far as the eye can see, there is only yellow sand and huge rocks.

The rolling sand dunes filled the field of vision, and the surrounding sandstorms made it impossible to see anything in the distance.

The jagged rocks, resembling the countless twisted and struggling skeletons of giant beasts, stand tall beneath the sky, stretching as far as the eye can see.

This is a vast, boundless desert, where even the wind is incredibly dry and scorching.

Although Alphonse is immune to both heat and cold, he still felt a little uncomfortable in such a high-temperature environment.

The scorching temperature even caused the air to become misty.

But at least we've left that underground cave.

I just can't figure out where I am.

It doesn't look like there's anyone living there.

Through the magical contract, Alphonse could sense that Tessie and the Queen Ant were still in a very distant place, but he could only know their general direction.

"Falbankus, is this the Bakulam Plain you mentioned?"

"I think so?" The Demon Sword wasn't too sure either. "It's different from what I remember. This place should have been an oasis, but I've been sealed away for over a thousand years, and the oasis has turned into a desert."

Having already determined the way home, Alphonse didn't hesitate for a moment. He lightly touched the ground with his toes and leaped into the air, sword light instantly flashing beneath his feet.

At this point, the true energy could support flight for quite some time. Flying in the air, one could look down from a high vantage point and observe the surroundings more effectively.

In an instant, Alphonse felt a pressure as heavy as a mountain pressing down on him.

The toe sword can fly entirely because it is imbued with the wind element.

At this moment, however, I could not feel the support of the wind element at all, and I had no feeling of riding the wind.

Alphonse crashed heavily to the ground.

My feet sank into the yellow sand, the fine sand covering my feet.

That heavy pressure suddenly eased and vanished without a trace.

Only then did the Demon Sword offer a belated reminder: "Flying is prohibited here; there's a no-fly zone."

"Why didn't you say so sooner?" Alphonse felt a headache coming on.

"I'm still observing and sensing," Demon Sword Inui chuckled, changing the subject. He sighed with some emotion, "Such a large-scale no-fly zone... only the power of a god could create it. What on earth happened on the Bakuram Plains?"

If you don't know, how would I know!

Alphonse muttered to himself.

I tried it again.

It can jump, but it cannot fly.

If you can't fly, then you can only run on the ground.

"Master, take out that magic key. Shall we go find the Tower of Godin first? This desert is too desolate, it's hard to tell which way is which. With that key to guide us, at least we'll have a goal," the magic sword suggested.

Alphonse nodded and, as instructed, retrieved the key from his spatial ring.

The magic sword immediately infused the key with magic.

The direction the key was pointing was slightly off from the direction where Tess and the Queen Ant were located, but they were still on the same side.

Alphonse did not hesitate any longer and swiftly rushed out with the magic sword in hand.

I have no idea how long we have been traveling through this boundless desert. The monotonous scenery and the constant sandstorms seem to have interfered with my sense of time.

The only way to tell is when night falls.

In this place, the days seem particularly short, while the nights are exceptionally long.

The days are unbearably hot, but the nights are the complete opposite, chilling to the bone.

Fortunately, Alphonse's skill is so profound that he is no longer afraid of the cold or heat.

There's still plenty of earth dragon meat stored in the spatial ring, so there's no need to worry about food.

As for drinking water, we are self-sufficient.

Several more days passed, and the unchanging scenery finally began to change.

The number of continuous, piled-up gray-black boulders increased, and as far as the eye could see, there was only desolate rocky land, almost devoid of any vegetation.

The picture drawn by the magical lines is a valley, but Alphonse, following the key's guidance, finds a great rift valley instead.

The jagged, bizarre rocks spread like a jungle across the sandy land, their sharp edges pointing straight to the sky like swords.

Alphonse moved through the stone forest like a gust of wind, and suddenly paused at one spot.

He stopped in his tracks because Alphonse caught sight of someone out of the corner of his eye.

A person crouching in the shadow of a stone pillar.

The spiritual senses he released told Alphonse that there was only a rock there, and no living beings.

But his eyes clearly saw that a woman was hiding there.

She was a very beautiful young woman with a hot figure.

It's just a bit dark.

What surprised Alphonse the most was her appearance and attire.

Such a beautiful woman with black hair is a rare sight. (End of Chapter)