Above the mage

"You're right," Gao De chimed in at the opportune moment, offering the information he possessed.

"At the very center of the island is a fixed source of wind elemental energy, which is continuously emitting violent wind elemental energy."

It was violently eroding the island, and it was perhaps this energy that attracted the Ironfeathered Eagle Beast.

After listening to Evan and God's account, Cedric's expression turned serious: "Then we can't be reckless. We must first find out the origin and situation of this energy, otherwise, rushing in could easily lead to danger."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Caution is an essential lesson for battle mages.

As elite battle mages, though young, they weren't arrogant or lacking in self-control; on the contrary, they understood this principle even better. Being elite wasn't just about rank; it was about comprehensive excellence in all aspects. Evan pondered for a moment, blew away the stone dust from his fingertips, and volunteered for the task, saying softly, "How about I go and investigate the situation in the center of the island first, find out the source of the anomaly, and also check the number and distribution of the eagle beasts?"

"Wait here for me to come back. Be quiet and don't disturb them."

"I think it's a good idea," Gareth said.

The others echoed his words. Cedric looked at Evan and cautioned, "Be careful. If you notice anything unusual, don't act rashly. Return to the meeting immediately." "Don't worry," Evan nodded and stepped back, his expression becoming focused.

The next instant, a light green magical energy wave swirled around him, gentle yet concentrated, enveloping his body.

[Transformation Technique].

His body rapidly shrank and shrank, his bones making a faint creaking sound.

Under everyone's gaze, his long limbs became slender, and his fingers transformed into sharp claws.

The clothing gradually melted away, replaced by a layer of fine, smooth, grayish-brown short down, blending seamlessly with the surrounding rocks and sand. The head deformed, growing pointed ears and a small nose, with bright, alert, round eyes.

A moment later, the human form completely transformed into a sand fox the size of a palm.

This small mammal is agile and adept at stealth, and its fur color is perfectly adapted to the shallow island environment, making it the ideal form for exploration.

After transforming, Evan, now in his sand fox form, nodded slightly to the group, a sharp glint in his eyes.

Then, his figure blurred, and he darted behind the rock like a gray-brown afterimage.

Using the low bushes and jagged rocks as cover, the soles of their feet landed silently. They lowered their bodies, skillfully avoiding exposed pebbles and sticky sea mud and moss, and stealthily made their way towards the center of the island.

Before long, they completely disappeared from everyone's sight.

The group stood still, their eyes fixed on the direction Evan had disappeared in, while simultaneously scanning their surroundings warily for any Ironfeathered Eagle Beasts that might appear. Shallow Island was a small island, and the distance from their position to its center wasn't far.

So they didn't have to wait long.

Half an hour later, a very faint rustling sound came from the bushes.

Everyone immediately turned to look at them with suspicion.

Immediately afterwards, a small, grayish-brown figure leaped out of the bushes and landed steadily on a flat rock.

It was Evan who had transformed into a sand fox.

Its fur was covered with a little stone powder and grass clippings, and its eyes held a solemn expression.

The moment he landed, Evan stopped hiding his true nature, and his body was instantly enveloped in magical energy.

The sand fox, originally the size of a palm, quickly stretched and grew larger, regaining its human-like shape.

The fine grayish-brown down on its body slowly melted away and reformed into its original clothing.

In an instant, Evan fully returned to human form, though his breathing was still slightly rapid.

He strode up to the group and lowered his voice: "It's confirmed, this is indeed the lair of the Ironfeathered Eagle Beast."

"Right in the center of the island is a huge cave with a hollowed-out bottom, leading directly to the sea."

"I dare not get too close. Eagle beasts have extremely strong senses. They will detect you if you get within a hundred meters. I can only investigate from a distance."

"As far as the eye can see, there are fifty-seven Ironfeathered Eagle Beasts in the cave. Most of them are perched in the depressions on the rock walls on both sides of the cave, and a few are guarding the entrance."

"Furthermore, I saw an individual inside the cave that was a size larger than a normal eagle beast, with jet-black feathers. It should be the eagle beast leader." "Most importantly, at the very center of the nest, there was a fist-sized bluish-gray sphere floating."

"It was slowly rotating, surrounded by a faint yet violent wind energy. It emitted a very faint humming sound as it rotated, continuously releasing wind element energy."

"It must be this energy that attracted the Ironfeather Eagle Beasts to gather here. They built their nests on this island to be close to this wind element aggregate, because they instinctively believe that this energy can enhance their strength."

Evan's tone carried a hint of barely perceptible apprehension: "That energy was far too violent; it didn't feel like something ordinary."

As soon as he finished speaking, Cedric stepped forward: "Based on the form of its energy fluctuations and the shape you described, it is most likely a stable aggregate of wind elements."

"A wind element aggregate?" Gao De raised an eyebrow.

Cedric glanced at God and explained, "It's the materialized form of wind element under specific conditions, such as when elemental fissures leak or natural energy abnormally converges and condenses. It contains pure yet violent wind energy."

"It is somewhat similar to elemental species, but elemental species are rare treasures for mages, which can be used by mages to enhance their power, while wind elemental aggregates do not have this function."

"As for why this wind element aggregate on the island formed, it is currently impossible to determine, but there are most likely two possibilities."

"First, there are tiny elemental fissures underground on the shallow island, causing wind elemental energy to continuously leak out and accumulate over time to form this wind element aggregate. Second, there are external factors, such as a high-level mage researching some high-level spell here, or some wind-type magical item being damaged, causing the wind elemental energy to accumulate uncontrollably."

Cedric's tone became increasingly serious: "However, judging from the stability of the energy fluctuations, although it is violent, it is in a relatively balanced state, and there are no signs of energy going berserk."

"Based on my understanding of elemental aggregates, their greatest danger lies in their instability."

"Because unstable elemental aggregates are prone to energy outbursts at any time, which could trigger elemental storms or attract the attention of powerful elemental creatures."

"Although the energy fluctuations of this wind element aggregate are violent, they have not exceeded the critical value."

"As long as we don't actively touch it or disrupt its balance, its energy radiation range will not expand, and under normal circumstances, it will not have much impact on our extermination operations."

"The only thing to be careful about is that these eagle beasts are natural wind elemental ley line creatures and are within the energy radiation range of the wind element aggregate."

"Under the influence of wind elemental energy, my strength may be enhanced." Cedric paused, then continued.

"However, this shouldn't pose a threat to us, right?"

"Of course," Gareth said calmly, fully confident in his own abilities.

Everyone else agreed.

Cedric gave his final decision: "Based on a comprehensive assessment, the danger is manageable."

"Then let's continue our journey to the lair and, according to our previous division of labor, prepare to begin clearing out the Ironfeathered Eagle Beasts."

"Okay." *5

Although Evan's description gave him some understanding of the eagle's nest in the center of the shallow island, Gao De was still quite surprised to see it in person. The massive rock formations were hollowed out to form a network of interconnected caves, with the ceiling even penetrating directly to the seabed.

A beam of sunlight poured down from a crack in the cave ceiling.

Here, you can even clearly hear the sound of waves crashing against the rock walls.

The air was filled with the salty smell of the sea and the stench of eagles and beasts.

Numerous Iron-Feathered Eagle Beasts inhabit the recesses in the rock walls on both sides of the cave.

They curled up, their feathers tightly closed, yet one could still sense the ferocious aura emanating from them.

Several eagles on guard stood at the entrance of the passage, their sharp eyes scanning the surroundings, their beaks slightly open.

Gao De glanced at it with his Mandora's Eye and immediately obtained the specific number.

Fifty-seven.

Evan did not miscount.

"Get to work, according to the previously agreed-upon division of labor!" Cedric's voice was clearly transmitted to everyone's minds through [Communication] spell. Everyone instantly sprang into action, each performing their assigned tasks.

A fierce battle to exterminate the beasts erupted instantly.

The first to make a move was Cedric, who had given the order.

He gently raised his staff, and among the twelve crystals at the tip, one emerald green crystal gleamed slightly.

Gareth was now standing next to Cedric, his gaze calm.

His task was simple: he absolutely could not allow anything to approach or interfere with Cedric and Feng Lin's spellcasting.

Feng Lin was also casting a spell.

She held the purple staff horizontally in front of her, the crystal at the tip of the staff gleaming slightly.

Her lips parted slightly, silently weaving a spell.

Clearly, Feng Lin was not about to cast a low-level spell, otherwise the pre-casting process wouldn't have been so lengthy.

Moreover, she had to wait until Cedric made his move before she could act.

Evan's body began to change again.

Muscles and bones were silently remodeled, feathers returned to his skin, his arms transformed into giant wings with a span of nearly two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters), and his legs bent into sharp claws. He did not become an ordinary bird.

He transformed into a thunderbird.

This is an extraordinary bird of prey that inhabits storms.

Its entire body is bluish-gray with a wide wingspan, a hook-shaped beak, and claws like iron hooks.

Although it is not as large as the leader of the eagle beasts, its speed and agility far exceed those of any ordinary bird of prey.

The Thunderbird silently took off from the reef, without flapping its wings, but simply gliding into the sky-covered airspace above the cave, carried by the swirling air currents. Its route had been carefully calculated.

Evan planned to wait until the battle broke out, then slip through the darkest shadows of the upper cave level, avoiding the entrance, and silently slide along the dome-shaped stone wall into the depths of the cave.

The recess where the eagle beast leader is located is at the deepest part of the cave.

Then we can strike at the heart of the enemy's lair.

Evan selected a protruding rock above the recess, landed silently on it, and looked down at the eagle's nest below.

He is waiting.

Once Cedric's spell is complete, wait for the optimal moment to decapitate him.

Cedric's spell entered its final stage.

Four more of the twelve crystals lit up in succession: crimson, azure, earthy yellow, and luminous white.

Cedric swung his staff sharply.

The five crystals simultaneously emitted a dazzling light, and a surge of powerful magical energy erupted from the staff.

【Elemental Summoning Technique】.

The fourth-circle conjuration spells can summon elemental creatures of different attributes.

Five distinct elemental beams of light instantly detached from the staff, taking shape in five separate areas in the air, their radiance dazzling.

A burst of pure white light erupted first, and a whirlwind about two people tall condensed out of thin air.

Gas element.

Its form is not fixed; it is like a storm imbued with will, with two eyes formed from condensed air currents faintly visible at its core, coldly watching the eagle-beast herd ahead.

The appearance of the air element instantly startled the eagle beast in the cave.

Two watchful eagles near the cave entrance let out a sharp cry, alerting their companions as they took flight and swooped down on the air elemental. Their iron-gray wings whipped up turbulent air currents within the cave, their sharp talons outstretched, their iron beaks like spears, aimed straight at the swirling vortex. But the air elemental ignored them.

Following Cedric's instructions, it hovered in the air in the center of the cave, and the whirlwind around it began to contract and expand rapidly, gathering a denser force of wind element.

Its movements are rhythmic, like breathing.

A shimmering white whirlwind flickered within the cave, like a deliberate provocation, intended to attract the attention of more eagle-like beasts.

The eagle pack reacted faster and more ferociously than expected.

"They've all been alerted." Feng Lin's voice remained calm, but a serious look had appeared in her eyes.

In the depressions on both sides of the rock wall, dozens of Ironfeathered Eagle Beasts opened their eyes almost simultaneously.

Their pupils gleamed coldly in the darkness, and their wings spread, their iron feathers striking each other with a metallic clang.

One after another, the eagles and beasts soared from the rock face, circling in the cave, forming a torrent of black iron.

A sharp hissing sound echoed throughout the cave, mingling with the crashing of waves, making it even more unsettling.

Cedric's spell was not over yet.

A crimson light exploded, and a ball of flame burst forth in mid-air.

The intense heat instantly swept across the surroundings, and fire elements emerged from the core of the flames.

Its shape resembles a burning giant, its entire body composed of pure flames.

Flames leaped and burned on its surface, displaying a fiery red and orange hue.

Unlike air elements that float in mid-air, it is grounded in reality.

With each step, the air beneath our feet is scorched and distorted.

The water on the ground was instantly evaporated into white steam, which spread out and carried a pungent, scorching smell.

The ochre light sank into the rocks, while the azure light shone on the surface of the sea at the bottom.

Earth elements burst forth from the rocks beneath the reef.

Its body is the largest, like a giant made of rock and soil, with uneven textures covering its surface and thick arms like two stone pillars.

The water element slowly rises from the seawater at the bottom of the cave, its shape resembling a human figure made of pure water.

Its body surface was constantly flowing with water, shimmering with a crystal-clear azure luster.

Finally, a verdant light rose from the dust.

The emerald light gathered at the edge of the reef, drawing power from the cracks in the rocks and soil, and rapidly expanded and grew.

A giant made of ancient vines and thick tree trunks rose from the emerald light.

Wood element.

The five elemental creatures were like five giant spirits descending from the sky.

Five beams of light—pure white, crimson, ochre, azure, and emerald green—intertwined, creating a striking visual contrast with the dark, swarming herd of eagles. Cedric stood before the nest, the elemental light on his staff already fading.

But the five elemental creatures continued to operate, acting according to his commands.