Soul of Burning Steel

Starfall 833, June 11th, night, Moldavian Territory, Nissie Snow Mountain, Hoarfrost Forest.

Looking down from the sky, the Hoarfrost Forest is a triangle. It is a lush pine forest located between the snow-capped mountains and the ice field. It grows among rolling hills, with a meandering river passing through it. The products of the Hoarfrost Forest are not rich. Before Winter Castle College was established here, even hunters rarely came here to hunt, but even so, there were many creatures, including monsters.

From the gaps in the leaves, faint starlight can be seen in the sky, which proves that the night is gradually approaching, and the stronger and stronger southerly wind will also disperse the clouds in the mid-air. Therefore, the monsters lurking in the daytime , will also enter its active period.

Somewhere in the forest, a tree that had already collapsed and was now slowly decaying, faintly had a light blue light appear.

As the dim moonlight became brighter due to the gradually dissipating clouds, the light blue fluorescent light emerging from the tree became more and more eye-catching. With the sound of 'gudong' that seemed to flow like a liquid, almost half a person As big as jelly, the light blue translucent jelly-like creature drilled out of the gap in the tree and came to the outside world, silently absorbing the magic power contained in the moonlight.

This gel-like soft-bodied creature is the most famous and weakest monster in the world, slime.

It can be seen from its appearance that this is a frost slime unique to cold regions.

Creatures like slimes are like jellyfish. They have no brains, only instincts, but they have strong adaptability. Whether it is deep sea, glacier, swamp or volcanic spring, as long as there is water or even liquid, they can survive. down, and adapt to the local environment.

Some magic scholars believe that slime evolved from some jellyfish stranded on land during the ancient geological changes, but this argument is not supported by any evidence. also denied this statement.

The argument of another group of scholars is even more horrifying. They believe that slime should be formed by some ancient super creature, or even the blood of an ancient dragon. Although this argument is also unreliable, it can be found unexpectedly There are several plausible evidences, one of which is that such a weak creature can successfully carry a huge amount of magic power. As far as we know so far, slime is the only low-level monster that can survive in the area of ​​severe magic radiation. And it can also rapidly proliferate and evolve according to the strength of the magic power of the location.

But no matter what, a slime is a slime, because it is essentially a mixture of gelatin, water and magic power. They are generally the bottom of the monster food chain, and they can be regarded as some kind of high-end drink, so It's hard to grow and there aren't many of them.

Most of the slimes are hiding in various dark corners, absorbing dew and magic power to gradually grow bigger, but because they have no brains, they will not respond to the call of the Kuroshio to attack the human fortress, that is history. The only time Lime can recuperate is by absorbing the flesh and magic power of dead monsters. This kind of creature will grow, split, and multiply rapidly, and will expand to a terrifying extent in a short period of time.

In the Hoarfrost Forest, the more powerful monsters were all expelled by a group of human mages a few days ago, and the slime group immediately began to develop with all their strength because they lost most of their natural enemies.

On the tree, this Frost Slime was quietly absorbing magic power, preparing for splitting and breeding in the near future, but in the bushes not far away, a pair of gray eyes were watching it closely.

Ivan Makarov, the young magician from Winter Castle, was holding his humble staff tightly in his hand, waiting for the opportunity to attack, and his target was naturally the only monster in this area. The huge frost slime in front of him.

Today is the second day of the Wilderness Survival Test at Winter Castle College. Since they are forced not to bring any food, all students can only get food by hunting and picking fruits. As the son of a hunter, Ivan naturally knows that in the northern woods The means of survival, through a few crude traps, has caught enough rabbits and squirrels to feed him for two days.

But this is not enough, as the notice said, for this test, just surviving is not enough, if you want to get a higher score, you must hunt other monsters.

In the Hoarfrost Forest, the powerful monsters have long been expelled, and the only ones left are slimes, frost butterflies and big wild boars.

Among the three remaining monsters, the big wild boar is strong, the number is small, and the range of wandering is too large, so it is not the first target, while the frost butterfly is too small to be used as food, and the natural spell-like [Icicle] It is also too dangerous for mage apprentices, so it is not considered.

Only slimes, which are weak, slow-moving, and edible in large quantities, are the best targets.

At this time, some people will definitely think, can slimes be eaten?

The answer is that some can and some can't.

For example, magma slimes that grow in volcanic springs, covered with sulfur and heavy metal toxins, are absolutely inedible, and venom slimes in swampy areas are also inedible, but in most forests, those that grow on tree sap and fruits Slime is edible, not only edible, but also very nutritious.

As a mixture of magic power, mucus and water, slime's body fluids are the raw materials of primary magic potions after processing. Drinking a bottle can quickly restore magic power. As a mage apprentice, Ivan naturally knows this. In order to continue casting spells for the next few days and try to hunt more powerful creatures, he must not let go of the frost slime in front of him.

"Terrain, unknown, possibility of slime counterattack, retreat route..."

After thinking about everything possible and rehearsing it in his mind, Ivan tidied his hair again to prevent the overly long hair from blocking his vision later in the battle—then, he clenched his hands tightly. With the staff in his hand, he concentrated his mind, let the magic power in his body flow, and began to prepare for the first spell.

...

...

"Joshua, what do you think?"

In the sky above the Hoarfrost Forest, above the endless cold wind blowing, there are two figures standing on the clouds. They look down on this land, and each of the flames of life that is active in it is reflected in their eyes.

There was a faint blue magical brilliance in his eyes, and Nostradamus, who was paying attention to each student, noticed that the soldier beside him didn't reply, so he asked again: "What do you think of these children?

"...in my eyes?"

Repeated in a low voice, Joshua narrowed his eyes. He thought for a while, then shook his head and said, "I don't have much experience yet. Whether it's survival, hunting or fighting, they are too immature."

"More than half of the people chose to stay and lit the bonfire in the wrong place, without considering the wind direction and poisonous insects-I won't talk about these, let me just talk about fighting."

With a casual finger, the soldier motioned the old mage to look in the direction where Ivan was, and he said softly: "This little guy can't use fire and thunder spells because he wants to get the body fluids of the frost slime. Frost resistance, so Frost Evocation cannot be used, and most of the attack methods of mages at low levels are immediately useless, leaving only one arcane missile."

Speaking of this, Joshua couldn't help showing a gloating smile: "Without actual combat, how does he know that slimes have a certain ability to absorb magic power? Both fireballs and thunder arrows may be immune, not to mention pure Magic impact?"

"good."

Nostradamus looked in that direction and couldn't help but nodded. He said with some emotion: "All the students think that the huge boar is the strongest monster, but in fact, it has a certain history of magic resistance. Lime is the most hated opponent of low-level mages, but the big wild boar can directly paralyze it to the point of immobility with the simplest lightning bolt."

"It can also be regarded as a small education, telling them not to trust appearance too much."

"It's actually pretty good."

Shrugging his shoulders slightly, Joshua pointed out the mistakes of these students mercilessly, but he was not unhappy, on the contrary, he was a little relieved: "The first time I walked out of the academy and came to the forest, I have such a behavior, it is already considered It's excellent."

"yes."

The wrinkled face stretched slightly, and Nostradamus also looked at the young mage in the forest who lost his upper hand due to the failure of the arcane missile, but was not afraid of danger, using the complex terrain in the forest to fight with slimes , showing a smile: "They are all good boys."

And when Joshua and Nostradamus were watching the mage apprentices in the College of Winterhold in the Northland surviving in the wilderness, the far south, the east of the distant holy mountain, the Abyss of Anos.

A whole body of holy white, it seems to know that the extremely strong ship is driving in the wind and waves, against the tide of the sea.

The Abyss of Anos in the middle of the night is like hell. The dizzy wind rages above the dark sea water, causing waves and screams. The dark clouds are crazily churning in the sky, and it rains heavily. The cold rain is mixed with salty wetness. The water vapor obscured all human vision.

The power from the abyss stirs the ocean currents in this sea area, forming large and small eddies and always stormy weather. If the ships sailing here are not strong enough, they will be easily scattered by the strong wind and tide, and the crew members will die. His soul will be imprisoned by evil, turning into a wandering ghost ship, wandering in the mist of the night.

But it is obvious that this pure white ark will not be easily crushed by huge waves. There are dense sacred runes floating on its body, with holy light flowing on it, resisting the bad weather, and hidden in the The evil power behind it.

In addition, on the top of this ark, there is a half-human-sized round gem, which releases hot positive energy like the sun, and the light illuminates the sea area within a radius of nearly a kilometer, even if it contains abyssal power The rain and fog can't stop it.

Next to this jewel, there are many magical circles in operation, amplifying and guiding its power, calming the surrounding wind and waves, and guiding the Ark forward.

If Joshua came here, he would be surprised to find that this jewel is exactly the fusion star hanging in the holy emblem hall of the Imperial Palace of Morlaix, but it appeared on a ship that was obviously a church. above.

"well."

A sigh came from the deck of the ark.

The deck at this time can be regarded as the most dangerous place on this holy white ark. The restless strong wind and the sweeping wind can easily drag people into the cold and dark sea water. If the strength of the person is not strong enough, then it is tantamount to death, because no one can find the person who fell into the water under such circumstances.

Obviously, the blond knight who was sighing on the deck was strong enough. He was wearing a white armor and stood at the front of the deck, staring at the dark distance with deep eyes. He doesn't.

"Why, Loranda, why sigh."

Beside this man, there is another person, this person is also not afraid of the strong wind, he is wearing a silver magic armor, with a huge cross steel hammer on his waist, this middle-aged silver-haired knight spoke in a calm tone Asked, even the howling wind could not cover his voice: "Are you worried about whether the plan will be successful?"

"One point, Captain Robzek."

Without hesitation, the blond knight, Lolanda admitted bluntly: "The storm in the Abyss of Arnos is getting more and more violent, and the huge waves can't even completely overcome the magic circle inscribed on the [Time], and the wave from the empire The borrowed Fusion Star is also somewhat unable to hold on, you see, under the power of the abyss, its light has begun to dim."

"In addition to the Fusion Star we borrowed specially, we also have other holy artifacts that can overcome the influence of the abyss and guide us in the direction."

Shaking his head, the silver-haired middle-aged knight, Robzek calmly answered the question of his junior: "And we still have time, if we can't do it this time, we will return to the holy mountain and prepare again, try a few more times, we will always be able to Successfully found [Central Maelstrom].”

"But that's not what worries me..."

Sighing softly, Lolanda frowned, looking at the dark sea, amidst the surging clouds, the sound of rolling thunder came from the sky, and blue lightning pierced the sky, but could not penetrate the rain and fog above the sea .

——This is his third voyage after leaving Moldavia and returning to the Holy Mountain. Every time he sails, the time that the [Time] Ark will last in the rainstorm will be shortened. This is not because it has been damaged, but Because the dark forces in this sea area are gradually strengthening.

What's more, before reaching the central great vortex, the Fusion Star is unable to bear the load, so after finding it, what holy artifact should be used to resist that concentration of abyssal power? Do you want His Majesty the Pope to do it himself, using the pure white stick in his hand, or use other artifacts?

Thinking of this, Loranda shook her head. These are unrealistic. Pope Eagle has to deal with the impact of the dragon disaster, and other sacred artifacts must be prepared for that time. Most of the sacred artifacts they carry this time are secondary First-class, so it cannot resist the evil power in the Abyss of Anos.

At this time, he couldn't help thinking of a friend he knew well.

If it is that friend, the power he possesses is definitely more suitable for the current situation than the Fusion Star. That kind of holy and orderly power is undoubtedly the natural nemesis of the power of the abyss.

The paladin recalled what he said when he bid farewell to himself not long ago——

"...It may be a little difficult to accept this kind of thinking."

The black-haired, red-eyed warrior said with a smile while drinking wine: "But, if you need my help, don't hesitate to come to me anytime——I won't refuse a friend's invitation."

"Good luck on your journey."

"--perhaps."

Looking at the dark and violent sea in front of him, Lolanda nodded thoughtfully, and said softly to himself, "It's time."