Free Web NovelChapter 126: Chapter 92: The Mouths on the Wall (Part 2)
Pei Ze couldn’t guarantee he had enough Fog Crows to last until he reached the Maze Center.
’I have to think of another way.’
Pei Ze’s gaze swept across the surrounding walls. Suddenly, an idea struck him. He walked over and knocked on the wall.
TAP TAP!
’Judging by the sound, the walls aren’t very thick. It shouldn’t be too hard to break through them.’
Pei Ze mused to himself.
’If I could just break through the walls and cut straight across, I could save a ton of time on scouting and detours, and reach the Maze Center much faster.’
’But could it really be that simple?’
’Would the maze’s designer really leave such an obvious loophole for participants to exploit?’
Pei Ze was skeptical.
But despite his doubts, he decided to give it a try.
Just in case, Pei Ze decided against using spells like the Fireball Technique or Magic Missile, which would create a huge commotion and risk attracting a horde of monsters. Instead, he opted to cast Acid Corrosion.
After chanting the incantation in his mind, Pei Ze pointed, and a basketball-sized glob of acid instantly materialized, shooting like a cannonball toward the corridor wall.
A loud SIZZLE filled the air as the wall spewed clouds of green smoke, a pit visibly corroding into its surface.
However, at that exact moment, the wall began to tremble violently, like someone vigorously shaking out a thick blanket. Its surface twisted and warped, and then, mouths—dozens of them, with pale, bloodless lips—began to appear.
The next instant, the mouths flew open and unleashed a chorus of sharp, ear-piercing, agonizing shrieks.
The deafening sound swept through the entire corridor, echoing far into the distance.
Caught off guard, Pei Ze felt a sharp pain in his eardrums and hastily covered his ears.
The noise lasted for a good ten seconds before finally subsiding, the shrieks fading into low sobs and mournful wails.
Frowning, Pei Ze looked over. Centered on the spot where the acid had struck, a hundred-meter stretch of the wall was now covered with a dense mass of mouths, opening and closing incessantly. The sight was utterly terrifying.
But he had no time to dwell on it.
A flurry of dense, chaotic footsteps was already echoing from the corner at the far end of the corridor.
A few seconds later, a huge swarm of monsters surged around the corner.
Bear Goblins, zombies, Skeleton Warriors, Boda Corpses... a motley collection of monsters that would never normally coexist peacefully were now crammed together, charging murderously toward Pei Ze.
Pei Ze’s gaze fell on one of the Bear Goblins.
The creature’s condition was clearly abnormal. Its eyes were blood-red, saliva dripped unceasingly from the corners of its mouth, and it seemed to have fallen into some kind of frenzy.
’It’s obvious now. The sound from those mouths must have some ability that not only gathers monsters but also drives them into a frenzy.’
’I knew it wouldn’t be this easy.’
Pei Ze sighed. His finger danced through the air, and in the blink of an eye, an arcane and complex blue rune materialized from nothing.
He then reached out, grasped the rune, and slapped it onto the flat of his blade. With a sharp CRACKLE, countless tiny arcs of electricity erupted across the sword’s surface.
Immediately after, Pei Ze quickly drew an earthy-yellow rune and a cyan rune, slapping them onto his body in quick succession.
As the cyan and yellow lights intertwined around him, his aura swelled dramatically.
With his preparations complete, Pei Ze’s gaze hardened. He shot forward like an arrow, fearlessly charging to meet the monster horde.
BOOM!
The two forces met in the middle of the corridor in an instant, colliding with brutal force.
Despite the monsters’ superior numbers, the collision sent them flying into disarray.
The dozen or so monsters at the front were instantly incinerated by the spreading arcs of electricity, their charred bodies falling stiffly to the ground.
Pei Ze was a tiger loosed among sheep, mercilessly reaping the lives of one monster after another.
The flashing arcs of electricity lit up the entire corridor, making it as bright as day.
Empowered by the Gale Rune, Pei Ze’s speed was extraordinary. He moved like a phantom, weaving and leaping between the densely packed monsters. The vast majority of their attacks couldn’t even graze the hem of his clothes.
The few attacks that did land were blocked by the yellow halo enveloping him, failing to even leave a scratch.
The high-pitched roars of beasts and the sharp crackle of lightning echoed ceaselessly through the corridor.
The one-sided battle lasted less than five minutes.
The beastly roars soon waned, gradually weakening before disappearing entirely.
As the last monster fell, silence returned to the corridor.
Standing amidst the corpses, Pei Ze flicked his Longsword, shaking off the blood that stained its blade.
He glanced at the blade; only a few faint arcs of electricity remained.
The yellow and cyan halos around his body had also grown extremely dim, on the verge of dissipating completely.
Clearly, the three Elemental Runes were at their limit.
Still, Pei Ze was quite satisfied.
The monster horde had numbered at least two or three hundred, and more than half of them were at the Grand Knight level.
To be able to annihilate so many monsters with just three Elemental Runes... their combat effectiveness was even greater than he had anticipated.
’And these are just the standard Elemental Runes. Once I improve them with the Eye of Omniscience, their effects will be even more potent!’
A flash of anticipation lit up Pei Ze’s eyes.
Snapping out of his reverie, he turned to look back at the wall.
The dense mass of strange mouths had vanished, leaving only an ugly pit in the stone.
’It seems breaking through the walls won’t work after all.’
Pei Ze sighed with a hint of regret.
’As expected, the maze’s designer wouldn’t leave such an obvious loophole.’
’Destroying the walls just provokes a massive siege from monsters.’
’Once or twice might be fine, but if it happens too often, even I won’t be able to hold out.’
’If I travel this way, even if I manage to reach the Maze Center quickly, I’ll likely be completely exhausted by the time I arrive.’
’And if there are other dangers waiting where the Rainbow Gemstone is, the consequences would be unthinkable.’
’Taking it a step further, I’m not even in the deeper parts of the maze yet, and I’m already seeing Mid-to-High Tier Grand Knight Level monsters.’
’Once I get to the deeper sections, there will almost certainly be Magical Creatures at the Legendary Knight level.’
’If I get surrounded by a horde of Legendary Knight-level Magical Creatures because I broke a wall, I doubt any Wizard Apprentice would be able to break out.’
’Myself included.’
’I’ll just have to rely on the Fog Crows to scout the path.’
Pei Ze withdrew his gaze from the wall and headed toward the end of the corridor.
As he continued on, he summoned Fog Crows to scout the path ahead as usual.
As the number of Fog Crow casualties mounted, he ventured deeper and deeper into the maze.
At a certain point, Pei Ze suddenly noticed the color of the surrounding walls had changed from grayish-blue to a pale, bluish-white.
He had a faint realization that he must have passed from the outer area of the maze into its depths. ƒreewebɳovel.com
The monsters he encountered next confirmed his suspicions.
From this point on, without exception, every monster he encountered was a Grand Knight-level Magical Creature.
"Weaker" monsters like Bear Goblins and zombies were nowhere to be seen.
Facing so many Grand Knight-level monsters, Pei Ze was starting to struggle relying on his Swordsmanship and Elemental Runes alone.
He decided to cast the Level 1 Monster Summoning Technique, summoning a Fierce Wild Boarman to act as a vanguard and clear a path through the monsters for him.
The Level 1 Monster Summoning Technique could summon one external being (typically an Otherworldly Creature, Elemental Creature, or Magical Creature native to another plane).
The summoned creature would obey the Caster’s commands, fighting or guarding as ordered.
Its power level and duration depended on the Caster’s Spirit and proficiency with Magic.
Pei Ze had tested it before. With his current Spirit, using his improved version of the Level 1 Monster Summoning Technique, he could summon a powerful monster approaching the level of a Tier One Legendary Knight.
"A Fierce Wild Boarman," he noted.
Looking at the giant before him—over five meters tall, with a burly, powerful build and an overwhelming presence—Pei Ze nodded in satisfaction.
The Fierce Wild Boarman was a subspecies of the Hill Giant. A natural-born Beastman, it possessed immense strength from birth and delighted in smashing its enemies’ heads with a giant wooden club.
An adult Fierce Wild Boarman’s physique was in no way inferior to a Tier One Legendary Knight’s; its only failing was its lack of any Magical Power, which was why it couldn’t match a true Legendary Knight.
But compared to an ordinary Peak Grand Knight, they were unquestionably, crushingly powerful.
’It’s a shame the Level 1 Monster Summoning only allows one creature at a time. Otherwise, I could use this spell to assemble a small army of monsters.’
Pei Ze thought with a tinge of regret, then led the Fierce Wild Boarman onward to continue exploring the maze.
