Wizard: I'm leveling up by AFK in another world

The atmosphere inside the cavity reached a breaking point.

The gurgling sound of the magma was particularly jarring in the silence.

Rhodes huddled in the corner, helplessly watching the four advanced apprentices.

In this situation, he couldn't even get a word in edgewise.

Although Simon and Barton did not speak, they had silently adjusted their positions and moved behind Isabella.

Clearly, whatever the final outcome of the discussion, their commitment as guardian knights will never waver.

Claire looked at the three guys and sighed deeply in her heart.

He certainly wanted to turn around and leave, but that was hardly a better option.

First, although the information obtained from the orc prisoners indicated that Duke Taro had deployed his main force to guard the area near the altar.

But who knows if it might have set up an ambush outside?

Without the help of Isabella and her two other high-ranking apprentices, he wasn't confident he could protect Rhodes if they were surrounded by orcish forces.

More importantly, these three people had saved his life.

Strictly speaking, he repaid Isabella and Barton, but he still owes Simon his share.

And as Isabella said, three squads, nearly thirty people, went out together, but in the end only she and Rhodes returned.

Even if the legion doesn't investigate the two, their reputation in the camp is doomed.

After much deliberation, Claire finally agreed to continue the mission.

"But I have one condition."

"The maximum distance you can infiltrate is the farthest location your memory crystal can record of the altar and magical fluctuations."

"Once the record is complete, regardless of the outcome, we will immediately withdraw."

……

……

As the depth increases, the number of branching paths also gradually increases.

The vast majority of them are not man-made mine tunnels, but rather the result of some powerful force.

These passageways frequently collapsed, so much so that the orcs did not seem to have fully explored them.

They overlapped and intersected with each other, with the lower passageway blocked by the collapsed rock wall, while at the same time a completely new upper passageway was opened up.

Therefore, the beastmen in this area did not station themselves at the crossroads, but instead patrolled back and forth.

Thanks to Simon's earth elemental magic, the five of them were able to sense the location of the orc patrol from afar by observing the vibrations in the rock wall, and thus avoid them.

Enamel powder continuously adheres to the rock walls in this area.

However, the beastmen clearly did not recognize that these glittering little things shared the same origin as the power they revered, and had no intention of mining them.

The five people felt a little more at ease.

This phenomenon shows that orcs cannot directly use psionic energy.

Their so-called conspiracy is probably just creating an opening for the eruption of psionic energy. As long as the wizards are prepared beforehand, they won't fall for it.

"We're almost there."

Claire slowed her pace; she could already sense the unique aura of psionic energy.

"What about the memory crystal?"

Isabella nodded and took out a transparent, diamond-shaped crystal from her pocket.

"There's a cave ahead!" Simon pulled his hand back from the rock wall and pointed in a certain direction.

The five of them concealed their presence and moved in that direction.

Soon, a crack appeared in the rock wall ahead.

That was a cliff.

Below the cliff, a deep blue lake, like a sapphire, is quietly embraced by dark red rock walls.

At the edge of the lake, there is a ring of giant totem poles, each of which is wrapped with black iron chains several meters thick.

At the other end of each of these chains was a dark red crystal that resembled living tissue.

These crystals are covered with cracks that resemble blood vessels, and through the translucent crystal walls, one can glimpse the violent energy contained within.

"These lunatics..." Simon's eyes widened.

He sensed the connection between these crystals and the volcanic rock walls.

They are likely the crystal nuclei formed from the energy of this volcano, each one containing energy comparable to that of a volcanic eruption.

These orcs truly didn't know how to utilize this psionic lake.

But they clearly understand one thing: an explosion can produce an even bigger explosion.

The problem is that psionic energy is special because it is a completely illogical form of energy.

These terrifying volcanic crystal explosions could indeed cause this psionic lake to explode, replicating the creation of the world in ancient times.

Even if it were all blown up, it wouldn't cause the slightest ripple in this lake.

Another possibility is an unprecedented explosion that could destroy the entire Silver Tree Ring!

The bad news is that even the spirit-gathering wizards from Five Flower Island couldn't figure out which possibility was more likely to occur.

Thinking of this, the five of them couldn't tell for a moment whether the sound of swallowing saliva was their own or someone else's.

Just then, a group of wolf riders arrived at the totem pole closest to them.

A tall figure slowly emerged from the wolf rider ranks.

It was covered in heavy, dark gold armor and held a battle axe burning with blood-red flames.

It was Duke Tarot.

It talked with the guards of the totem pole for a while, then suddenly turned its head to look at the cliff where the five people were, as if it had a premonition.

After squinting for a moment, Duke Taro looked away, gave a few more instructions, and then mounted the wolf.

The two groups bowed to each other. The wolf riders escorted Duke Tarot away to the next totem pole.

Although the altar was unharmed, Duke Tarot remained on high alert, personally leading a team to repeatedly inspect it.

"Alright, hurry up and record it." Claire urged as soon as the wolf riders were completely gone.

Despite being a fellow Saint-level expert and having already advanced to the level of advanced apprentice, the pressure emanating from Duke Tarot was even stronger than that from the old orc priest he had encountered when he was still a mid-level apprentice.

Even though they hadn't made any moves, this powerful Saint-level being still sensed something.

Fortunately, wizards are naturally gifted at concealing their aura and magical fluctuations.

Isabella immediately channeled magic into the memory crystal.

Time ticked by, and the atmosphere grew extremely tense.

"That's enough, cut off the magic now!"

However, the instant Isabella severed the magic, Duke Tarot, who was watching the suspended crystal core from afar, suddenly turned his head!

Their gaze swept across the vast rock face and then settled on the cliff where the five people were hiding.

"wizard?!"

Duke Tarot let out a deafening roar that reverberated throughout the underground world like thunder.

"Chop them into mincemeat!"

The orc warriors closest to the cliff face roared and charged forward, hurling grappling hooks toward the cliff top.

"Damn it, how did it find me!"

Simon tapped the ground with his wand, shaking back the grappling hooks that had fallen around them.

He was about to cast a gravity spell to punish the orc warrior who was about to climb when he felt himself being locked onto by something.

Boom!

A solid, blood-red battle aura blade traversed a distance of over a thousand meters, slashing towards Simon, whose position had been exposed.

Duke Taro, fearing this was a diversionary tactic, did not choose to pursue personally, but he did wield his battle axe.

His strength was already close to the peak of the Saint Realm, and he was also blessed by the totem pole.

This all-out axe strike is unstoppable, even by the gods!

Simon instinctively wanted to dodge, but he immediately remembered that Isabella, whose magic was exhausted, was behind him.

"Be careful!"

A rock-built fortress rose before him, absorbing the fatal blow.

puff!

Barton threw his head back and spat out a mouthful of blood. His rock-hard arms cracked with a series of popping sounds as they were shattered into powder.

The man sobbed as he tried to say something, but his body shattered on the ground before he could.

The rocky barrier failed in its duty to protect its master. But its master did.

"Isabella..."

"No!" Isabella cried out, her eyes wide with fury. She reached out to grab something, but was pulled back in the opposite direction by a force.

One rock after another collapsed from above, burying all sound.