Chapter 403
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Chapter 403: Time Is Running Out
Through the deep dark forest, everyone quickened their pace and journeyed for less than an hour. At this moment, Jesse could already see a swirling Dark Energy ahead in the depths of the darkness, resembling a strange snake. Could it be a summoning magic?
At that moment, the ranger also noticed the distant dark magical powers. He said to the captain, "We seem to be very close now. I can feel the fluctuations of Shadow Magic, Captain."
Jesse said, "The ritual must have already begun, Captain. The Shadow Power that Orc Warlocks manifest when summoning demons is very distinctive, like a conduit connecting with the Twisting Nether. They use the souls of the living, aiming to establish this connection."
Captain Quinton said, "Therefore, we must decide immediately whether to take action. Delaying any longer could lead to facing more demons."
He looked at the elves and said, "Farstriders, I hope one of you can scout from a northern vantage point to assess the situation. If it’s safe to attack, send a signal. We’ll be lying in wait in the dense forest to the west for your message."
"I will go," the female elf said. "Dolyr, you go with the captain."
The male elf nodded and said, "Take this mage with you, don’t go near those demons alone."
"So, mage, are you coming with me?" the female elf asked.
"Sure," Jesse nodded.
He followed the steps of the elves, passing through a patch of short trees covered with vines, getting closer to the area radiating dark shadowy light. It was slightly higher here, and by moving forward a bit, they could see the situation in the low-lying area clearly.
But at this moment, they could already hear countless sharp cries from inside seemingly calling out Demonic spells.
Jesse could even make out the murmurs of Demonic, just as Saenor had said, summoning spells indeed made it easier to understand the meaning inside.
Souls were waiting here, summoned from the Twisting Nether…
"This is the place, the ritual here uses souls as spell materials, and it seems the ritual has already begun," Jesse whispered.
"Let’s get closer and have a look," the female elf said.
Jesse nodded, and the two of them walked closer. Jesse carefully watched the demons inside the seemingly abandoned Murloc village. There were small huts everywhere and a pile of Murloc bodies in the middle.
Near these bodies, there were small, skinny shadow creatures – a group of imps, performing a summoning ritual.
Behind the imps, there was a big, powerful demon shadow watching over them.
They could hear whimpering from the camp, but only one person was crying. If there were many captives, they either had died or cried themselves out.
What was that demon?
They moved back a bit. Jesse whispered, "There might be over twenty demons inside, mostly imps. There’s one big troublemaker, the largest one. Have you seen it?"
"A Mo’arg Demon," the female elf nodded. "We’ve encountered one before. These demons always come with a group of smaller demons to help them."
While the Mo’arg Demon was strong and tall, it was not as powerful as an Eredar. The imps kept chanting spells, but no demon appeared in the center of their summoning ritual. Were they trying to summon an even stronger demon?
Jesse whispered, "Their ritual has been going on for a while. I think we need to attack soon, or we might face not just more imps, but an even stronger Demon Lord than that Mo’arg."
"If you’re sure, mage…" the ranger whispered quietly.
Jesse said, "No matter what, now is their weakest moment. Every minute that passes, they could bring more reinforcements. If we want to save people, we can’t hesitate."
The elf nodded, softly chanting a spell and shooting a Demonic Rune glowing with Arcane light into the sky.
As the arrow flew, there was a disturbance at the shadow ritual site. In the distant woods, there were cries of "For Azeroth!" and "For the Alliance!" as they launched their attack.
Jesse and the ranger quickly retreated from the area, preparing to circle around to join the attack, but they heard the sounds of Felhounds approaching from several directions.
Oh no… why are there so many Felhounds?
Earlier, Jesse had seen many small demonic shadows and thought those short creatures were all imps within sight. He hadn’t expected a group of Felhounds lurking elsewhere!
He immediately recited the evil protection spell of Tenebrous, the Mage Armor. After a flash of dark magical flames flowed over him, he disappeared.
Seeing the young mage next to him casting a protective spell, the elf said, "Go north, where there are no sounds of the Hellhounds! Go meet with the captain, I’ll hold off these demons for you… mage, you wouldn’t want to fight Felhounds here, would you?"
Jesse pulled out the Azuresong Mageblade and said, "That’s what I thought."
The elf glanced at the sword, momentarily stunned. Even she couldn’t immediately recognize the sword, the Arcane aura on the sword was enough to surprise a High Elf like her for a moment.
But she couldn’t ask anything as a group of Felhounds were rapidly approaching from three directions.
"Be careful with using magic, it’s best to avoid it," she reminded.
"I know," Jesse said.
The elf nodded and quickly shot a few arrows, taking down two Felhounds. She then pulled out two long knives from her back, swiftly slashing one Felhound’s tentacles all over, before stabbing through its head with another knife.
Jesse had previous experience dealing with Felhunters, knowing that these creatures relied on their tentacles to absorb mana. As long as she didn’t cast spells to get countered and stunned, her sword and strength were enough to handle two or three of them.
With one hand holding a staff to deal with the approaching Felhounds and the other hand mercilessly chopping off the tentacles reaching towards him, Jesse and the elf quickly killed five or six of them. The remaining ones hesitated and one was easily shot down by the elf.
At that moment, a golden light burst in the distance. The scent of Shadow Magic had weakened to the point of being barely detectable, indicating that the ritual was probably halted. Human and demon screams echoed from the woods.
"They’re already fighting the demons. We must hurry to support them," the elf raised his bow and stared at Jesse’s sword for a moment, then asked him, "Are you okay?"
Jesse sheathed his sword and picked up his magic wand, saying, "I’m unhurt, let’s go."
The elf walked ahead, with Jesse following behind. He occasionally saw flashes of golden light in the distant forest and thought to himself that there was no priest in their group…
Could Captain Quinton be a Paladin of The Silver Hand Knights?
