Chapter 26: The Sea of Stars—The Mutated Demonic Vine
After once again setting up numerous traps around the campsite, Du Xin and Xian Yue sat upon a massive, flat-topped boulder situated a hundred meters from the lake's edge. Most of the mercenaries had also chosen to pitch their camps atop similar rocks; there were no bonfires, nor any cooked meals—dry rations accompanied by hot water constituted the mercenaries' dinner for the night. Only Du Xin and Xian Yue were different.
Sitting on the boulder, Xian Yue ate just like the other team members; however, only upon drawing closer could one see that what she held in her hands was, in fact, bread and milk.
Wearing a faint smile of contentment, Xian Yue swallowed the last morsel of bread.
"Well? How is it? Is it tasty?"
"Mm-hmm. I've never eaten anything like this before—or that 'cho... chocolate' from yesterday! I imagine your hometown must be a truly magical place!"
Gazing at Du Xin, Xian Yue's face suddenly flushed crimson; she abruptly averted her eyes, though fortunately, the thick veil of night concealed the telltale signs of her embarrassment.
"Why do you have to venture deep into the Demonic Beast Forest just to hunt down that... *thing*? Is it really that important?"
"It is a 'Patterned Wood Beast.' An adult Patterned Wood Beast possesses a 'Heart of Wood'—an artifact considered a supreme treasure by any Wood-elementalist."
Xian Yue leaned back, tilting her head to gaze up at the starry sky as it gradually rose into view. Catching an inadvertent glimpse of her graceful figure, Du Xin abruptly turned his head away; Xian Yue, however, remained oblivious to this awkward moment and continued speaking.
"A Heart of Wood aids a Wood-elementalist in attuning themselves to the Wood element. The number of 'patterns' etched upon it indicates its rarity and value; a Heart of Wood bearing three patterns can boost a mage's elemental comprehension by thirty percent—a surge in insight equivalent to a minor epiphany. The only reason I was able to ascend to the rank of 'Arch-Mage' at such a young age was thanks to a single-pattern Heart of Wood left to me by my mother."
Du Xin couldn't quite grasp it. If Xian Yue missed her mother so dearly, couldn't she simply have gone to visit her in secret? After all, she was a member of the Mage Guild—surely no one would have dared to object. Why, then, had she come all the way out here to undertake such a perilous endeavor? "Did you know? I was all alone when I was very young; it was my teacher who took me in. Yet, my dream isn't simply to reunite with my own mother—or rather, that isn't my *greatest* dream. What I truly hope for is that, one day, I can bring every family in the world back together, so that war may exist no more."
Xianyue turned her head to look at Du Xin, a wondrous light shimmering within her beautiful eyes.
"That is why I must strive—strive with every ounce of my being. Only by becoming a Grand Archmage, or even a Saint of Magic, will I possess the standing and the power to make that dream a reality. I believe my parents would support me in this."
For a fleeting moment, Du Xin was deeply moved by this girl who was striving so earnestly to realize her dream.
"I'll help you, Xianyue!"
Du Xin declared solemnly. Their faces were barely ten centimeters apart; the instant they both realized just how close they were, their cheeks flushed crimson, and they abruptly turned their heads away.
But turning away only brought a truly breathtaking sight!
The night sky was already blanketed in stars—though, unusually for this night, the moon had yet to make an appearance. All the starlight spilled down onto the lake's surface, reflecting directly into their eyes. The lake seemed like a mirror forged by magic, bridging the gap between heaven and earth. Everyone felt as though they were immersed in an ocean of stars—a scene so wondrous, so awe-inspiring, and so beautiful that it felt as if their hearts might stop beating one moment, only to pound furiously the next.
Beneath this magnificent sea of stars, Xianyue found herself involuntarily leaning closer toward Du Xin. By the time she realized what she was doing, she saw that everyone else was watching the two of them amidst the starlight. Just as she was about to pull away, Du Xin suddenly swept her into his arms; her face instantly turned a vivid shade of red.
"Everyone, watch out! Something is coming!"
Du Xin's shout snapped Xianyue back to reality. She realized with a start just how careless she had been; at some point—she knew not when—the traps they had set had been destroyed. Black vines were now lashing out to attack them; even as Du Xin had pulled her into his embrace, he had simultaneously conjured a blade of ice to sever one of the incoming vines.
Still holding Xianyue, Du Xin leaped back to rejoin the main group before gently setting her down. Du Xin's loud shout jolted everyone awake. Beneath the starlight, black vines could be seen spreading rapidly toward them. The mercenaries, evidently experienced in such matters, swiftly produced barrels of oil and doused the area surrounding the massive boulders they stood upon. As roaring flames erupted, the encroaching vines recoiled and retreated with astonishing speed.
"Demonic Vines! But... why are there so many of them? Don't they usually parasitize other trees?"
Zhong Shan frowned deeply as he gazed down, voicing his confusion.
"It appears they've mutated. Everyone, stay alert! It's highly unlikely that this lake harbors *only* these Tier 2 Demonic Vines; there is almost certainly a 'leader'—a high-tier magical beast—present as well. Ordinary flames like these won't be enough to threaten *that* kind of creature!"
Xian Yue explained, simultaneously shouting out orders to the mercenaries.
"Damn it... if only we had a Fire Mage right now—even just a Great Mage would suffice."
Xian Yue muttered under her breath.
Du Xin spotted a vine extending from the distance that differed distinctly from the others; it radiated the unmistakable aura of a Tier 4 magical beast. The mercenaries' faces instantly turned ashen. Creatures capable of such wide-area attacks were typically the stuff of nightmares for mercenary guilds; many mercenaries would sooner face a single, powerful Tier 4 beast than confront an entity like this.
Despite their apprehension, the group steeled themselves and made full preparations; the flames burning around them intensified even further.
"Power of Ice! Glacial Surge!"
With a resounding shout, a streak of azure energy shot forth from Du Xin's hand. The magical energy soaring through the air absorbed the ambient Ice-elemental particles—amplified by the dense concentration of Water-elemental energy present in the area—and coalesced into a massive magic circle spanning nearly a hundred meters in diameter. The runes at the center of the circle began to rotate slowly; the previously placid lake waters stirred into a turbulent swell as columns of water rose and converged beneath the magic circle, ultimately transforming into a towering wave of ice that surged forth toward the sea of vines.
The glowing blue wave possessed formidable destructive power; everything in its path—including the vines of the Tier 4 Demonic Beast—was utterly pulverized. Moments later, nothing remained before the group but a scene of utter devastation.
"Tier 4 Magic!"
Overwhelmed by profound shock, someone involuntarily blurted out the exclamation—a cry that was immediately followed by a chorus of triumphant cheers. "Watch out—the Demonic Vine isn't dead yet!"
Xianyue called out a warning to the group. The others immediately braced themselves once more, though this time with a touch less fear; after all, they had two Fourth-Tier mages on their side.
However, the scene that unfolded next utterly shattered their confidence. It blotted out the sky and eclipsed the sun—it was as if even the starry firmament itself had been swallowed whole. This was the Demonic Vine! Its true, massive form surged forward, bearing down upon the mercenaries.
Despair—absolute despair. Facing a power rivaling that of a Fifth-Tier entity, the group saw no hope of victory; indeed, some had already let their weapons fall from their hands.
Xianyue, too, abandoned the spell she was in the midst of casting. As a Wood-elementalist, she knew she could inflict virtually no damage upon the Demonic Vine anyway. Halting her efforts, she turned her gaze toward Du Xin, thinking that perhaps—dying like this—wouldn't be such a bad end after all.
Then, a flicker of firelight ignited in Du Xin's hand. Xianyue's eyes instantly widened in astonishment; a sense of utter disbelief surged through her—accompanied, at last, by a glimmer of hope for survival.
"Holy Fire: Bursting Meteor!"
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