My inventory is full of monster materials.

Chapter 138 A Great Battle Is Imminent

Back at the camp, Mark immediately spotted the attack array that Gray had just set up. His curiosity piqued, he stopped to observe it closely.

The ground was outlined with molten metal powder, forming a neat pentagram. The points of the star were filled with intricate flame runes, and crimson magic stones were inlaid at the nodes of the runes.

A red sphere the size of a human head floated in the center of the magic circle, its intense light baking the surrounding air and accompanied by dense fluctuations of fire elemental magic.

Mark asked.

"Gray, what's the effect of this attack array?"

Gray wiped the sweat from his brow and explained with a smile.

"This is the 'Burning Energy Array,' which can autonomously release 0-ring 'Flame Arrows' and 2-ring 'Burning Rays.'"

"More than enough to deal with these kobolds."

Perhaps on a whim, Gray paused, then continued to add details about the advantages and disadvantages of the magic array.

"In fact, the biggest advantage of the magic circle is that it provides ample preparation and assists the caster in casting spells beyond their level."

"But it also has a major disadvantage, which is that it consumes a lot of resources, often requiring a large amount of magical materials and magical crystals. To put it bluntly, it's a money-burning thing."

At this point, Gray shook his head with a sigh.

Mark now understood that Gray must be a professional mage specializing in magic arrays, which explained why he was needed to build the 5th-level "teleportation array".

Suddenly, Mark had a thought and remembered his trump card.

4th Ring Spell "Ice Spirit Dragon"!

Mark has not used this spell since the battle of Merito Falls.

To be precise, this is not a spell that Mark can control at his current level. After forcibly casting it last time, he suffered a severe spell backlash from "Ice Scar Blood".

Things are different now. Mark is now a full-fledged mage and has a maximum ice elemental affinity of +80%.

Even if one were to cast a spell beyond their level again, they would never suffer such a fatal backlash. Although there would still be a slight backlash, it would be within a tolerable range.

However, Mark had an idea at this moment—by setting up the magic circle in advance, he could not only avoid the backlash damage, but also turn this powerful move into a regular method, adding an extra layer of protection to this operation.

So Mark looked at Gray and asked earnestly for advice.

"Grey, can you construct summoning magic circles?"

Gray nodded and pondered for a moment.

"You need to tell me the specific summons, such as their strength and attributes. These are all crucial, as the requirements vary drastically depending on the summon."

Mark carefully considered his words before speaking slowly.

"Second-tier...Dragon form...Ice elemental creature."

"Huh? A second-tier elemental creature?"

Gray's eyes widened suddenly, and he repeated in a trembling voice.

"You can summon elemental giants?!"

Elemental giants are the elite among elemental creatures, considered top-tier second-tier combatants, with strength equivalent to a guild leader.

It's astonishing that Mark, a mere first-tier professional, could summon such combat power.

Mark immediately realized his slip of the tongue, quickly coughed twice, and explained in a low voice.

"I did summon a second-tier elemental creature once, but the circumstances were special; it was only successful because of the instantaneous burst of energy generated when I awakened the Frost Giant bloodline within me."

Upon hearing this, Gray gradually calmed down and muttered in a low voice.

"Was it the one at Merito Falls?"

Mark didn't say much, he just nodded silently.

Gray understood.

When they were invited to witness the "White Eagle" team being awarded the "Medal of Outstanding Adventurer", Guild Master Conrad and the guild's senior members all went to learn about the behind-the-scenes details of the Merito Falls quest.

Combined with Mark's bloodline awakening, Gray had already had a vague suspicion, but he was still somewhat surprised to receive confirmation from the person in question.

However, Gray quickly composed himself and said with a serious expression.

"This matter is too important. We must discuss it with Killian. Perhaps we can add another layer of security to this operation."

Mark immediately nodded in agreement.

Gray snapped his fingers loudly, and Killian, who was not far away, immediately noticed the signal and strode over. Seeing the two of them looking serious, he asked.

"What do you want?"

Mark and Gray exchanged a glance, and Mark took the initiative to speak.

"That's right, when my bloodline awakened, I obtained a 4th-level summoning spell, and I want to use a magic circle to cast it..."

The three of them then huddled together and discussed the matter in hushed tones for a moment.

Killian nodded repeatedly as he listened, his expression obscured by the full-face helmet, but his movements grew increasingly serious as he turned to Gray and asked.

Do you think Mark's idea can be realized?

Gray hesitated for a moment before answering.

"In theory, as long as the two of us work together, we can build a temporary summoning circle of the fourth ring, but the magical materials required are far beyond what we have on hand."

Killian made a quick decision.

"You don't need to worry about the materials. I will contact Madeline and have the logistics department send them over as soon as possible."

"Take advantage of the free time now to communicate and work together to refine the details of the magic array."

As soon as he finished speaking, Killian remembered something and solemnly gave him instructions.

"Also, this matter must be kept secret. It's just speculation right now, and there's too much uncertainty. Don't let it interfere with the judgment of other team members."

"clear."

Mark and Gray responded simultaneously.

Eris and his companions, who were some distance away, saw Killian and his two companions huddled together whispering and were curious, so they were about to come over and ask what was going on.

But at that moment, Mark's expression suddenly changed, and some different images flashed through his mind.

In the dim and damp passage, countless small, black bodies wriggled, their densely packed crimson eyes flickering like will-o'-the-wisps, accompanied by sharp hisses, and surged wildly toward the cave entrance; there were at least a hundred of them.

"Eye of Surveillance" is just basic visual magic; it does not have night vision effects.

But Mark knew exactly what was going on without even thinking, and immediately shouted.

"They're here!"

The sound broke the silence of the camp, startling everyone. They quickly realized what was happening and turned to look at the cave entrance.

Without a word, Killian shouldered his greatsword and led the way out of the camp, followed closely by the rest of the team. As they approached the cave entrance, they heard a cacophony of roars coming from inside the cave, and a pungent, fishy smell assaulted their nostrils.

The next second, a dark mass of kobolds surged out from the depths of the cave.

They were short and stocky, covered in jet-black scales, with grotesque, twisted lizard-like heads. They wore neat iron armor and carried rusty iron spears and crossbows.

There were also seven or eight kobold warlocks hiding in the back row, holding bone staffs and chanting obscure spells.

Compared to the outpost, these kobolds are superior in both quantity and quality.

At this moment, a large number of kobolds lingered near the cave entrance, their sharp roars deafening, like a black tide about to overflow.

At the cave entrance, light and darkness formed a sharp dividing line, and the air was thick with tension, making it hard to breathe.

The elite squad quickly took their positions, with four melee professionals—Killian, Eris, Nolan, and Theresa—forming a solid defensive line at the front.

Mark and Gray retreated to the back row, gathering magic in their hands, ready to unleash their power.

Adele rode her griffin, flapping her wings nervously in the air. Lacking experience in battle, she gripped the large sandalwood bow tightly, her fingers white from the force of the arrows, her eyes filled with tension.

Everyone knew that the previous raid on the outpost was just an appetizer; the real battle was about to begin.

The seven of them had to face two or three hundred kobolds, including many kobold sorcerers who could cast spells.

Just as a great battle was about to break out, the kobold army inside the cave suddenly became restless, and they all spontaneously retreated to both sides, making way for a narrow passage.

A colossal creature slowly crawled out of the darkness, almost blocking half of the cave entrance.

Its body was covered with thick black scales, its muscles were as tough as iron, its head was several times larger than that of an ordinary dog-headed man, its fangs were exposed, and its limbs were as thick as pillars. Every step it took made the ground tremble slightly.

On its back, a golden throne was firmly fixed by several iron pillars, and a black figure was faintly visible on the throne, exuding a tyrannical sense of oppression.

The moment Gray saw the giant dog-headed man, his face turned extremely ugly.

"It's a giant kobold!"

Mark's time in the wilderness was still short, and he had little contact with the kobold tribe, so he repeated his questions with confusion.

"A giant kobold?"

"Um."

Gray explained in a deep voice.

"It is a rarer atavistic mutant than the winged kobolds. It has completely abandoned intelligence and strengthened its body to the extreme. It is more like a dragon beast than a kobold."

"But the fact that such a brainless beast would behave so obediently can only mean..."

Before Gray could finish speaking, a figure slowly rose from the throne on the back of the giant kobold, stepped out of the shadows, and into the light.

The team members stared intently, and were all shocked.

The figure's claws were as black as ink, and its scales were deeper and brighter than those of ordinary black-scaled kobolds. Its orange-yellow vertical pupils were cold and ruthless, and its wings on its back were fully spread, with a wingspan of two meters.

These fleshy wings are definitely not the decorative fleshy wings of ordinary winged kobolds; they clearly possess the ability to fly.

This kobold leader is definitely not simple!

The elite team members were already secretly cursing the investigation team in their hearts.

This kobold force is even more ferocious than a large tribe.

At this moment, the kobold leader did not immediately order an attack. Instead, he spoke in a low, hoarse voice, like the friction of grinding iron, uttering a string of ancient and unfamiliar syllables.

"Warum meine Heimat!"

Why are you invading my territory!

The team members looked at each other, seemingly unable to understand the language.

Mark, however, frowned slightly, feeling that the tone was strangely familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had heard it before.

Gray immediately realized what was happening and loudly reminded his teammates.

"It's speaking dragon language, which I don't quite understand, but I have a 'Skill of Eloquence' scroll!"

After saying that, Gray pulled out a yellowed roll of paper and threw it hard at the front row.

Killian reached out and caught it steadily, exchanged a knowing glance with Gray, and tore open the scroll without hesitation.

A pale golden light instantly enveloped his entire body. Killian took a deep breath, looked up at the kobold army at the cave entrance, and roared, word by word, in the same stiff and ancient tone.

"Entweder fliehen! Oder sterben!"

(Get out of here! Or die!)

The echo reverberated at the cave entrance, and the dragonblood kobold leader was startled. The kobolds around him instantly fell silent, and even their roars disappeared.

A dozen seconds passed, and the scene remained silent.

Adele couldn't help but ask in a low voice from mid-air.

"Captain, what did you just say?"

Killian ignored him, raising his greatsword high with both hands, his voice resounding throughout the arena.

"Prepare for battle!"

At the same time, the leader of the dragonblood kobolds finally reacted, letting out a piercing, snake-like laugh, and then roaring to the sky.

It suddenly raised its paw, and a dark purple magical aura instantly spread out, enveloping all the kobolds in the arena.

That was the group buff spell "Raging Power". Affected by the spell, all the kobolds' eyes turned blood red, their muscles swelled, and their aura suddenly increased several times. They let out a deafening roar and charged towards the squad's defensive line like madmen.

"kill!"

Killian charged ahead, his greatsword sweeping out with a whistling wind, instantly sending several kobolds in the front row flying. The crisp sound of bones shattering mingled with the kobolds' screams.

Eris moved like lightning, her rapier piercing with precision, each strike aimed at the kobolds' throats, her figure weaving nimbly through the horde of beasts.

Nolan gripped the heavy hammer tightly with both hands and slammed it heavily onto the ground. The earth shook violently, and swarms of kobolds were smashed into a bloody pulp, their blood splattering everywhere.

Theresa, wielding a paladin's longsword, shone with holy light as she parried the kobolds' attacks, the holy light continuously repelling the approaching monsters.

The squad held firm at the narrow entrance of the cave, preventing the kobold army from encircling them. Like a solid reef, they blocked the surging tide of beasts and defeated the kobolds at the forefront one by one.

And at the rear of the squad.

Adele nocks her arrows and aims at the kobold archers and sorcerers, or rides her griffin to swoop down and slam the kobolds to the ground.

Mark chanted rapidly, and one after another, crystal-clear ice arrows materialized out of thin air and shot out with a sharp whistling sound.

Each shot pierced the kobold's skull with pinpoint accuracy, scattering ice shards and instantly freezing the fallen kobold in place.

At this moment, the "Burning Energy Array" completely erupted, the suspended red light sphere shone brightly, and the flame runes on the array flickered violently, almost igniting the surrounding air.

The next second, a dense barrage of fire arrows shot out from the magic circle, crashing down on the kobolds like a meteor shower. Each fire arrow struck a kobold, producing a sizzling sound and a shrill scream.

Ice arrows and fire arrows instantly wove together a dense, impenetrable net, mercilessly reaping the lives of the kobold army.

Moreover, every minute, a crimson ray as thick as an arm would condense in the center of the magic circle. The ray shot out like a fire dragon, and the kobolds that blocked the path of the ray were instantly burned and carbonized, even their bones turned into a black charcoal.

At this point, Gray himself did not stop either.

On one hand, he had to quickly replace the magic crystals on the magic circle; on the other hand, he held a ball of azure light in his palm, from which three finger-sized magic missiles would emerge each time, killing the kobolds that broke through the front line and tried to get closer to the back.

Despite having only seven members, the elite squad, relying on the advantageous terrain and their tacit cooperation, managed to hold back the frenzied charge of hundreds of kobolds inside the cave entrance.