Wizard: I crush legends with martial arts.

Chapter 118 Strange Insects

"Don't do anything reckless. If something really happens, I can't always be there to rescue you in time," Alphonse warned Midio, pointing to the skeleton next to the treasure chest. "The owner of that skeleton died here, so something must have happened. Let me check it out first."

Midio nodded hastily. He had already encountered danger twice since entering the ruins, and he was still shaken by the thought. He dared not act recklessly again.

Alphonse then walked toward the two treasure chests.

Before anyone even got close, he flicked his finger and unleashed a sword-like energy pellet that shot towards the unopened treasure chest.

I've seen it in anime; Frillien, that old scallion, is often bitten by mimics, so you have to be careful.

Frillie's body was incredibly tough, and it was unclear whether she had some kind of permanent magical armor. Even the mimic's row of sharp teeth couldn't bite through her. Alphonse, however, didn't think he had such a strong physique.

With a muffled "thud," the sword pellet struck the treasure chest, leaving a dent, from which frost spread.

It's not a mimic monster, it's just a treasure chest.

Alphonse felt a little relieved.

Upon closer inspection of the skeleton, there were no obvious injuries on the bones.

That means these gold and silver treasures may be contaminated with deadly poison.

This explains why his bones are black.

No one knows how he managed to avoid those ghostly armors and reach the treasure chest.

Could it be a thief who can use stealth?

The person is dead, so there's no way to know the truth now.

Alphonse is not afraid of poison.

He crouched down and picked up a crystal-clear blue gemstone.

Before I could even look closely, I felt a slight tingling sensation at my fingertips.

The internal energy within the body instantly surged, expelling the poison.

It is indeed poisonous.

But the stinging sensation wasn't from the poison invading the body; it felt like being bitten by something.

Alphonse couldn't help but squeeze harder, and the texture was somewhat unusual. Although it was very hard, tiny worm-like segments actually emerged from the gem.

This is actually a bug?!

Alphonse was startled. He activated his true energy and immediately squeezed the jewel-like insect until a spurt of liquid gushed out, turning it into a flat piece.

The gold and silver treasures inside the chest remained completely intact.

Alphonse, however, did not want to examine them one by one. He flipped his hand, and a thick dark light instantly enveloped his palm before slamming it down.

If it were normal treasure, even if it were struck by the Xuan Tian Wu Jin Palm, it would at most be damaged, but would still have value.

If they were all insects, the flames ignited by the Xuan Tian Wu Jin Palm would be enough to incinerate them.

"What's going on here?"

Before Midio could finish his questioning words, the treasure inside the chest burst into flames.

With a "squeaking" sound, countless gold coins and gems cracked open and flew up, engulfed in flames.

Even the pearl-like beads began to wriggle, but as soon as their feet stretched out, they were burned to ashes by the flames, leaving only their bodies struggling and rolling in the fire, turning charred black.

"Eek!~~" Midio couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

Alphonse flicked his pinky finger, and several thin, silvery sword energies shot out with incredible agility, chasing after the strange insects flying erratically through the air.

Any fish that managed to slip through the net were swiftly struck down by Mia's sword.

The smell of burning permeated the air.

A chest of treasure, but it was full of insects.

The other unopened treasure chest is probably not much better.

Alphonse didn't even bother to open the box; he simply slammed down another Xuan Tian Wu Jin Palm strike.

As soon as the flames ignited, a series of creaking sounds came from inside the box. Just as the lid was about to be opened, Alphonse unleashed a series of powerful palm strikes.

Now, all was completely silent, with only the flames still burning.

"What the hell is this?" Midio was extremely frustrated; the treasure had turned into a trap.

"I think these are the legendary treasure worms." Tessie scratched his beard. "I've seen descriptions of these worms in literature, but this is the first time I've seen them in person. According to the literature, there are several kinds of treasure worms, such as gold coin worms, gem worms, pearl centipedes, and so on. These worms usually disguise themselves as gold and silver jewelry and lie dormant. Once touched, they will bite the enemy, inject paralyzing venom, and turn them into food."

He clicked his tongue and sighed, "What a pity. It's said that the Treasure Insect is a highly nutritious and delicious ingredient. It was all burned, and we didn't even have a chance to try it."

Alphonse's face fell, a look of exasperation on his face. "Can you please stop thinking about food all the time?"

"It's just my hobby," Tessie said with a helpless shrug.

"I don't want to eat bugs!" Mia rarely said a rebuttal. She didn't object to eating slime, but she was very reluctant to eat bugs.

"What a waste of time, all I got were bugs." Midio was extremely disappointed.

"It's not entirely without gain." Alphonse flicked his fingers, sending several sword pellets flying towards the burning skeletons affected by the flames.

A hissing sound.

As soon as the frost spread, the flames on the skeleton were instantly extinguished.

It was only after a fire was lit, burning away the cloth hanging on the skeleton, that Alphonse discovered a sheathed dagger underneath it.

The leather sheath was burned, and the handle was charred black, but the blade and guard looked fine.

Alphonse picked up the dagger, applied a little force, and flicked it with his finger.

With a "buzzing" sound.

The dagger trembled incessantly, and black ash fell from its hilt in a rustling sound.

The quality is good, and the blades on both sides look quite sharp.

Alphonse casually handed the dagger to Tessie, "Here you go, you can use it by changing the handle."

Although Tethys doesn't know how to forge iron, as a dwarf, he has a very good eye for art and aesthetics.

He wiped away the ash left on the dagger from the burning leather sheath, examined it carefully, and let out a soft exclamation, "Wow, this dagger is infused with refined gold."

He had only intended to casually put it in his package, but this discovery changed his mind, and he carefully put it away.

It was a pleasant surprise; it's great for chopping vegetables.

"Let's go, let's move on to the next place." Alphonse walked out.

One side of the stone chamber was visible, with a two-panel metal door.

Mia cleaved the door in two or three strokes with her sword, shattering it into pieces.

The scene behind the door surprised all four of them.

Inside, there was only a thick, white fog.

Now I finally understand why there was mist in that stone chamber earlier; it was from here that the mist had dissipated.

Alphonse roughly estimated the direction; it seemed that they had moved back into the previous forest.

In other words, the fog in the forest could also be from this strange place, seeping up from the soil.

The fog had become so thick it was milky white, obscuring visibility to the farthest point.

Looking around, all you could see was thick white fog, making it impossible to tell how far it covered.

The dense fog had completely impaired Mia and Midio's senses.

"Stay close, don't get separated." Alphonse wasn't too worried about Mia and Tessie, since they were both quite strong. The one he needed to worry about was that brat Midio.

We walked a short distance through the thick fog.

Alphonse suddenly noticed a slender figure gracefully approaching.

It's getting a little closer.

Suddenly, a voice rang in my ears.

"My husband, it's been so long since we last met. I didn't expect you to be as well as before. I'm truly overjoyed."

These words struck Alphonse like a bolt from the blue, leaving him stunned and frozen in place.

(End of this chapter)