It took me about an hour to gather all the necessary components. During this time, the girls managed to rest, so we headed further with renewed strength. On the way, we encountered various monsters a couple more times. Sometimes we bypassed them, and sometimes, like with the spiders, I killed them and collected all the body parts I needed. Fortunately, we didn't encounter any sand tigers, which was a great stroke of luck. A fight with one would have definitely exhausted me, which could have affected the success of the entire mission.
As night fell, it quickly became cold. We set up camp under a rocky ridge so as not to be easily seen. This significantly reduced the probability of being detected by monsters. As in Qinglin, I stayed on watch all night. Jiaxing Er needed a good rest, and…
"Zhou Min, you're staying to cultivate all night long," I told her as she was about to go to sleep.
"What? But why? I already spent a long time on it in the evening," she asked innocently, completely not understanding why I was forcing her to work so hard.
"Because, even though it's gotten colder, the fire elements in the air haven't decreased, so being in this desert is an excellent chance for you to develop your abilities," I quickly explained. "Most mages don't cultivate outside of safe territories because it's very dangerous. But everyone agrees that it can be more effective. So, take advantage of the moment and cultivate here while you have the chance."
"Uh… Alright then," she replied, slightly shocked and surprised. "You really sounded like a teacher just now."
Fortunately, the night passed quietly and without major problems. The further journey to the territory inhabited by fire scorpions also went smoothly. Which was quite lucky, considering the danger of this place. Only mages above the peak of high level or a team of quite strong high-level mages could feel completely safe here. I didn't waste time on unnecessary rest and immediately went in search of scorpions. Here my carefully planned route ended, and we could be in great danger.
This time, luck turned slightly away from us. Although we found a fire scorpion, not one, but three! They were doing something, digging in the sand and clay. These scorpions are true leaders with the power of fire, and dealing with even one is very difficult, but with three? Although I killed three Tibetan wolves, it was largely luck.
As much as I regretted losing my prey and the opportunity to leave here quickly, dealing with such opponents is very difficult. We moved on, trying not to attract the attention of these scorpions. We found the next target a couple of hours later. This time, it was more successful: only two scorpions were engaged in some kind of dance with each other in the sand. By their external signs, I realized that they were a female and a male, so were the dances mating rituals?
"Shall we move on?" Zhou Min asked with a hint of disappointment on her face.
"No, they'll suit us just fine," I stated confidently, drawing my daggers.
"Are you sure? There are two of them, and they are at the true leader level?" Zhou Min asked with concern, but without any complaints or shouting as usual.
"Believe in your brother more," Jiaxing Er said with a smile. "Even though it will be difficult for him, if he said he could handle it, he can handle it!"
"Well, okay, maybe I…" she didn't have time to finish before she realized that I had already left our hiding place and was quickly heading towards the fire scorpions using a wind step. "You idiot! What kind of mage gets so close to the enemy at the very beginning of the fight!"
Although I heard her words, I paid no attention. The scorpions were busy with a very important matter for them and had slightly lowered their vigilance, which meant I could get closer to them. Why do this? It's simple, it's easier to attack the enemy that way. I only have one spell that doesn't depend on distance, and that's a lightning strike.
Approaching them to about thirty meters, I used a wind dash and found myself above the engrossed scorpions. They didn't even notice a small bug like me, which marked the beginning of their end. Reaching maximum height, I used a gust of wind blades to simultaneously damage both and push them further away. Along with the spell, I also released my two daggers, aiming for the scorpions' heads.
From the gust of wind blades, they flew back about ten meters, spinning in the air. At the same time, their chitin on one side and my daggers hit exactly one of the two eyes of both scorpions, partially blinding them. However, as expected for true leaders, they quickly oriented themselves and got back on their feet, turning to face me. I, meanwhile, also landed and, using space magic, pulled the daggers out of the scorpions' eyes. From the new dose of pain, they roared, and their remaining eye filled with hatred. The scorpions pointed their stingers at me and released a stream of fire, equal in power to mid-level magic.
I had known how to dodge such attacks for a long time, so I instantly used a wind dash and found myself in the air again. The scorpions did not want to let me go so easily and began to direct the stream after my movement. In the air, to avoid being hit by fire, I used wind boots. This spell doesn't require support, so with its help, I could simulate flight.
Using a couple of such spells, I found myself directly above the scorpions and once again released my daggers into their remaining eyes. Shortly before that, they stopped releasing their fire and immediately covered it with their tails. The dagger struck the scorpion's strong chitin tail and, leaving cracks, bounced aside. I landed a little further from them, retrieved my daggers, and upon landing, saw that both stingers were already aimed at me.
There were two options to avoid this attack: either dodge with a wind dash or respond with a gust of blades. I chose the second option, as I had already started composing a star map during the fall, and by this time it was ready. Waving my hands, I released a powerful gust of wind blades, which threw both the stingers and the scorpions themselves about five meters away, severely damaging their chitin. Of course, it's a shame that such good material is being damaged, but it will be useful to me in any form, it will still go through melting.
The scorpions roared with anger and rage. They were being defeated by one single person, what a blow to their pride! While I was catching my breath from the complex sequential combinations, the scorpions stomped their feet, and flames began to form beneath them. They are truly masters of fire; Zhou Min has something to learn from them. Using a wind dash, I rushed towards them again, simultaneously creating a concentrated lightning rage, wanting to finish them off with one blow, frying their brains. But it wasn't that simple; they raised their fire and directed it at me with a combined attack. It was damn dangerous!
I quickly released the lightning rage without finishing concentrating it on the scorpions' heads, after which I instantly summoned the Tan Yu shield and poured a huge amount of wind energy into it, also using the wind step energy to protect myself from the fire. Trying to dodge was useless, as the fire had already engulfed me and thrown me aside after just a moment of my preparations. I flew back fifty to sixty meters, almost crashing into the wall, but I managed to land on my feet and stand on the vertical surface under the pressure of the fire. But my legs were experiencing huge overloads, my muscles were almost bursting, and I could also hear the creaking of my bones. What titanic force was put into their fire!
Fortunately, it lasted only a second, and I endured it. The shield lived up to its cost, but there were minor burns, but these were trifles. Also, when I finally landed on the ground, I felt a slight tremor in my legs. Looking up, I saw the scorpions. Although my lightning rage didn't pierce their skulls, it left a good dent and cracks, and their second eye was swollen. The scorpions also stood, catching their breath after such a powerful attack, which was comparable to the peak of mid-level! It's amazing how the Tan Yu shield could withstand it at all!
I didn't get much rest. The scorpions understood perfectly that if they gave me a little more time to recover, they would die immediately, so they rushed at me with all their might, crushing the clay under their feet. I also didn't sit idly by and began to concentrate the energy of lightning rage. The final blow should finish them off!
When the scorpions approached within twenty meters of me, I used a wind dash and was almost instantly above their heads. This time, along with the lightning rage, my daggers were also sent. Although space magic wasn't used on them, my physical strength was at the level of a high-level servant, and considering their injuries, this should have been enough to kill them.
The scorpions, despite being creatures of true pack leader level, couldn't do anything about such speed. Although they began to slow down, turn towards me, and pull their tails to protect their heads, it was too late. The daggers and the lightning rage reached their heads almost simultaneously, shattering their skull boxes and frying the contents thoroughly, while slightly embedding their front parts into the ground.
Landing, I immediately turned towards the scorpions, at the same time retrieving my daggers. Despite losing their heads, the scorpions were very resilient; they continued to move towards me by inertia. I wasn't entirely sure of their death, so I attacked again with lightning rage, this time not as concentrated, directly where their heads used to be. After that, the scorpions took a couple more steps, and a soul shard flew out of their bodies, as well as a whole soul, which was a great stroke of luck. Moreover, the soul was female, perfectly suited for Zhou Min. I left the shard for my tooth to eat, but I placed the whole soul in a recently purchased vessel. This was truly incredible luck, as we got everything we needed thanks to just one pair of scorpions.
Considering the difficulty of fighting them, another one could have caused huge problems, and what if I had to kill a dozen to get the necessary soul? Although I had ideas to use something else for this purpose, this was much better!
"Brother, you are incredible as always!" Jiaxing Er ran out of hiding and rushed to hug me.
"Ouch!" When she grabbed me, I felt pain all over my body, and my legs started to buckle. "That was nowhere near as easy as it looked."
"Just shut up!" Zhou Min came out of hiding, scolding. "You just killed two true leaders with fire element! You're only at the first stage of mid-level wind magic and the third stage of beginner-level lightning magic, right?"
"Well, yes," I smiled a little awkwardly, realizing that it was simply impossible. "Level isn't always decisive in battles. Besides, thanks to a certain stroke of luck, I was able to obtain spiritual seeds, so I'm stronger than an ordinary mid-level mage. Just don't tell anyone about it; I want to make a surprise. And the contract won't let you do that either," I said, deciding to remind her of her obligation to remain silent.
"Okay, but how could you get your daggers back! They seemed to fly into your hands on their own! And why am I the only one surprised by this! Jiaxing Er, you're his sister, and you're not worried at all?" Zhou Min continued to fuss. "It looked like space magic; I've read about it in books."
"Well, brother is incredible, and that's enough for me," Jiaxing Er declared innocently, hugging me even tighter, which made Zhou Min's face contort slightly.
"Alright, jokes aside," I said with a smile, pushing Jiaxing Er away slightly. "These are my special artifacts, made with the help of a master. They contain a small magical formula that can imitate space magic and return the daggers to my hands," I said with a completely poker face. Although it was a lie, it was partially true; such a formula does exist, and it's incredibly complex and requires the mage to possess space magic themselves. I seem to have used something similar in my artifact. But I think this explanation will be enough for Zhou Min.
"I understand, I'll take your word for it; after all, you're the teacher here," Zhou Min said, throwing her hands up in helplessness.
"Oh, you guys are still alive!" a strange, unfamiliar voice suddenly rang out. "We've been tracking these scorpions for two days. What a shame they attacked you!"