That's right, that's what adventure is like!

Chapter 104 Road Closure

Time passed by, second by second.

Celine's dark red robes fluttered slowly in the deep blue cave. Her steps were light, yet each step had a unique rhythm, stepping in the gaps between everyone's heartbeats.

Or rather, everyone's heart rate was beating in sync with her pace, completely beyond their control.

Cole was drenched in cold sweat, but he still stayed close to Celine, about two steps away. He dared not stray too far from the powerful mage, for a surprise attack could come at any moment.

Unexpectedly, Celine's anger arrived even before the surprise attack.

puff-

The nearest Imperial soldier didn't even have time to utter a scream before his chest was pierced by the staff.

The dark red crystal shimmered, and countless drops of blood gushed from the wound, turning into fine threads that seeped into the staff, making the crystal's luster even deeper.

The soldier's body visibly shrank, turning into a dried-up corpse in the blink of an eye, and he collapsed limply to the ground.

"Tell me," Celine said, her gaze sweeping over all the Imperial soldiers around her, her voice chillingly calm, "we've been walking here for eight hours, circling five times, why haven't we found the Blue Heart?"

silence.

No one dared to speak up at that moment.

After a long silence, one of the rangers finally spoke hesitantly: "Sir, is the intelligence confirmed? Is the Heart of the Blue Crystal really here?"

Celine narrowed her eyes slightly.

As one of the top commanders in this war, she was naturally aware of the source of this intelligence.

Those were the words of the king's second son, which were overheard by three scouts who risked being crushed to break into the kingdom's fortress.

"I must go. The Blue Heart is in the mines controlled by the Empire. If we can get it, we'll have a chance."

She can even repeat every single word perfectly.

Unfortunately, the king's second son died.

He died in a passage where the kingdom was preparing a surprise attack, at the hands of an assassin, or under a forbidden sword that could tear even the soul apart.

This deprived her of the opportunity to interrogate him to find out the exact location.

"—Keep searching," Celine said softly, tapping her staff with her fingertips. "We've been guarding this place for a long time. Even if the assassin got the exact location, there's no way he could have taken the Blue Heart beforehand."

She paused, pondered for a moment, and said, "Since it wasn't taken beforehand, there's only one possibility: it's not the right time yet."

The swordsman paused for a moment, then nodded, acknowledging the assessment.

The Blue Crystal Heart is a rare object that can only be born once every thousand years in the entire mountain range. Naturally, it will not lie quietly like an ordinary ore, but will only appear in the world when its energy accumulates to a certain level.

Now, all they need to do is wait here.

Celine glanced at the empty space in front of her and was about to turn around and walk to the other side when she suddenly stopped and almost bumped into Cole behind her.

Her gaze fell on the direction of the mine entrance.

There was a deep, silent blue there, with only the occasional sound of dripping water. She stared at it for a long time, so long that Cole couldn't help but look over as well, but he saw nothing.

"interesting."

Celine murmured a sentence, then raised her palm. A drop of blood fell from her fingertip and quickly turned dark, as if it had lost all life.

"Dunchi is dead," she said calmly. "The man killed him in just three seconds."

Cole paused for a moment before realizing that the name referred to the officer Celine had sent to the entrance, who carried Roland's nameplate.

Instinctively, his heart skipped a beat.

Celine noticed, turned around, and her cold gaze fell on Cole.

Are you nervous?

Cole opened his mouth, but found his throat too dry to make a sound.

"snort-

—

Celine sneered, her gaze sweeping over all the officers around her: "Leave half of you here, the rest of you come with me."

After saying that, she took the lead and walked towards that dark blue area.

Cole, on the other hand, felt his blood boiling and followed without thinking.

The mine tunnel is dark.

Roland had been crouching there for over four hours.

He suppressed his breathing to a minimum, his heartbeat almost inaudible. In front of him was a gap between two blue crystal mines, just enough for him to turn sideways and hide. From the outside, he was just a shadow.

He saw the barbarian professional.

It's at the fork in the road, just thirty feet away.

The barbarian was tall, about seven feet, with a bare upper body covered in blood-stained bandages, and he carried a giant double-edged battle axe dripping with blood.

Seven corpses lay at his feet. The leader, clad in heavy metal armor, had a deep gash in his chest exposing bone, his entrails spilling out and piling up. A look of astonishment lingered on his face, as if he hadn't realized death was imminent.

-

It has come.

Roland knew them.

Three hours earlier, this group of soldiers emerged from the depths of the mine. The officer, holding his name tag, searched several times but found no trace of him, so he set up camp here to keep watch.

Until a minute ago, this barbarian from the kingdom barged in.

It was a battle that was almost a massacre. None of the Empire's elite troops could last a single round against him. If a few hadn't managed to escape a couple of steps, it might not have even taken three seconds.

After the battle ended, the barbarian first quickly searched the spoils, then picked up Roland's nameplate and sniffed it.

Then, he casually tossed it aside.

Roland knew why; none of the barbarian professionals were good at reading and writing, and he probably didn't recognize the meaning of the words on the nameplate.

After discarding the nameplate, the barbarian did not find Roland's presence and continued deeper into the mine.

Roland did not move.

He counted his heartbeats three hundred times to make sure the barbarian was indeed far away before sliding down from the crevice and landing on the ground.

The bodies were still warm. He retrieved his nameplate and then listened intently.

Soon, the sound of chaotic footsteps, mixed with the roars of barbarians, came from deep within.

In his magical perception, crimson energy surged forth like a tidal wave, causing his blood to freeze briefly.

Celine arrived and clashed head-on with the barbarian.

Without the slightest hesitation, Roland turned around and began sprinting towards the entrance.

Three minutes later, he finally stopped and looked up at the rock layer above him, where a crack had appeared, as the snow piled up at the entrance came into view.

This is the only support point near the entrance. As long as it is blown up with magic crystal cannonballs, the entrance will be completely blocked. Although it can only block a mage like Celine for three to five minutes, it is enough.

Take out a magic crystal cannonball, embed it deep in the crevice, trigger it with a coin, and then turn around and return the way you came.

Roland's series of movements were methodical, as if he had rehearsed them a thousand times.

The energy emanating from the magic crystal projectiles grew stronger, and his pace quickened.

Boom! The entire mine shaft trembled violently, the sound of falling rocks was deafening, and shockwaves carrying smoke and dust rushed in from behind.

Roland didn't look back, but used the force of the shockwave to leap a few more steps and continue running forward.

The map provided by Casper was very detailed, marking all the forks in the road, every crevice, and every passable corner in the area.

He knew that on the side of the fork in the road ahead, there was an abandoned cave blocked by a landslide, which could bypass the battlefield between Celine and the barbarians and appear in the area behind them.

After 130 steps, he stopped in front of a pile of dusty, rubble.

Take a deep breath, raise the Blazing Pulse Javelin, and throw!

call out-

The javelin transformed into a streak of crimson light, striking the weakest point of the rubble. The rocks loosened and collapsed with a crash, revealing a gap just wide enough for one person to pass through.

Roland rushed over, picked up the javelin stuck in the rocks, and squeezed into the crevice.

Now, he has circled around to the back of the battlefield.

The sealed entrance was in front, and he was behind.

In the middle is Celine, engaged in fierce combat.

If this road is blocked again, Celine will be completely trapped, and he will have a chance.

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