A sprig of purple grass was distributed to each person.

Freya gently pinched the seemingly ordinary grass in her hand, a faint meaty aroma mingled with a peculiar mint scent emanating from its leaves.

"Scorpion grass has an allure for scorpions similar to catnip's effect on cats, but it's far more potent. It seems that Land has made thorough preparations."

Freya toyed with the grass in her hand, casting a deep gaze at the departing backs of Aishburn and Lena before she too rose and walked in a similar direction.

At the edge of the Earthheart Lake, there were many pits of varying sizes. Land had mentioned looking for pits about a meter in diameter to test, considering the size of the flame scorpions.

Freya's position was about ten meters away from Aishburn and Lena. Though she appeared to be searching for flame scorpions, her gaze never left the pair.

As they separated, she noticed the once affectionate duo had fallen silent.

Aishburn had put away his perpetual smile and walked steadily in a specific direction, while Lena followed him expressionlessly.

Observing their direction, Freya paused, retrieved a small vial from her waist pouch, uncorked it, poured the liquid into her hand, rubbed it slightly, and then applied it to herself.

A faint white glow flashed across her body with a soft hiss.

Feeling the energy particles on her body slowly assimilate into the surrounding energy aura, Freya contentedly stowed away the empty vial.

"Phosphorescent essence, besides effectively neutralizing necromantic negative energy, can also temporarily confuse one's energy aura to blend with the ambient energy—its supposed drawback is now perfectly suited to my needs."

Taking a deep breath while gazing at the still-visible pair, a gentle wind coalesced around her.

As an almost Grand Knight, Freya could easily evade detection even by a third-grade apprentice, who, being more scholars than combatants, lacked expertise in such matters.

Deliberately lowering her profile, Freya advanced while remaining in their blind spot.

As the distance grew, Aishburn's pace quickened significantly.

Surveying her surroundings, Freya noticed that though she was still in the Earthheart Lake area, the rocks were now more numerous and larger, resembling a stone forest.

Aishburn walked slowly through this stone forest, seemingly confirming directions.

Turning around a massive rock, he abruptly halted.

Before him lay an unusual empty space, its flat surface unnaturally formed, with crooked lines etched upon it.

He squatted, gently wiped the lines, and his expression grew darker.

Suddenly, he took a red crystal from his waist, placed it in the center of the space, and chanted an incantation in an unknown language.

Hidden nearby, Freya furrowed her brow at his actions.

She recognized the red crystal as a common fire energy storage crystal, favored by fire spell apprentices and wizards for spellcasting aid. However, she did not understand Aishburn's incantation.

Of all the spell languages, she had only learned Elvish and Abyssal, and Aishburn's chant did not belong to either.

As his deep chant continued, the red crystal on the ground slowly melted into red liquid, flowing into the crevices. A faint heat wafted from that direction.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

A soft snap echoed as Lena, who had been following Aishburn, suddenly shuddered. Her lively eyes turned jet-black, and she walked dully towards the increasingly red lines.

Thin red marks appeared on her face, as if countless fine red ropes bound her from head to toe. Blood oozed from these lines, merging with the crystal liquid and flowing into the crevices.

"What is this..." Freya murmured, frowning.

Though she didn't know what Aishburn was doing, Lena's sudden dullness reminded her of a necromantic spell she had seen in Leonde's lab—a corpse preservation spell, a zero-level spell only third-grade apprentices could learn, meant to maintain a corpse's vitality for a period after death under the caster's control.

Unexpectedly, Aishburn had used this spell meant for experimental subjects on Lena, and had likely applied additional necromantic spells to make her indistinguishable from a normal person during this period.

A crack! The red light grew stronger, and as Aishburn's chant reached a crescendo, a sound like something breaking emanated from the front.

A red stone gate suddenly materialized before him. Aishburn's face lit up with joy at its appearance, and he chanted even faster.

Standing in the center, Lena's entire body had dissolved like a candle into the crevices, leaving only blood, flesh, and bones.

The stone gate grew clearer as Lena's body fully melted, emitting a suffocating mix of fire and necromantic energies.

Even hidden, Freya felt a stifling sensation, her face transforming from calm to shock.

The red stone gate seemed composed of countless pieces of flesh, with twisted veins writhing on its surface. As the red light faded, these veins twitched and moved.

Aishburn's chant continued.

With a ripping sound, the stone gate burst open at the end of his chant, revealing rows of massive teeth above and below. Two enormous, closed-eyed heads extended from the gate.

These heads resembled skinned dogs, with blood-red fangs exposed, and a nauseating stench of blood and sulfur spewed from their nostrils.

"What kind of monster is this!" Freya gasped, instinctively wanting to flee. The primal fear filling her heart suggested she should escape, as if this simple familiar quest had turned into something far more dangerous. Aishburn had obviously had ulterior motives in gathering them here.

Though driven by fear, her strong will overcame it. Even Aishburn, merely a third-grade apprentice, faced the creature's overwhelming presence without flinching, instead showing deep satisfaction.

As Aishburn prepared for his next move, one of the twin-headed dog's eyes twitched, as if about to wake.

This sudden change caused Aishburn to pause, cold sweat dripping from his forehead.

However, the dog head's eyes did not open but returned to their previous state.

Everyone, including the hidden Freya, sighed in relief. No formal wizard had ever evoked such fear in her before.

And from the creature's origin, she had a vague idea, making her reconsider her presence here.

But as Freya slowly retreated, Aishburn suddenly turned around and shouted in her direction with a grim expression.

"Come out! I've noticed you, little mouse. If you wake this creature, we'll all perish!"

Freya's heart skipped a beat, not understanding when she had been detected.

But as she hesitated, another figure appeared from behind a hidden boulder, a girl in a gray robe holding a thick book.

"So, you found me," Lanny said calmly, retracting her book into her robe.

"Ha, Lanny, you brought your grandfather's invisibility manual? Did you know my plans from the start?" Aishburn asked, unperturbed.

"I suspected, but when my foolish brother mentioned capturing the red snow bat, I confirmed it. The last disappearance at Earthheart Lake was indeed your doing?"

"And so what if it was? Confronted with such resources, wouldn't you be tempted? Those people were traitors planning to flee the academy and hoard everything. I merely cleaned house. The gate is open, and the energy from your brother and the others will attract its attention. Once inside, we gain everything, even if it means being hunted by our families and the academy."

Freya, relieved at not being discovered, realized the implication—he intended to use them.

But Lanny merely shook her head.

"What? Unwilling? You know what's inside and it doesn't tempt you?" Aishburn's voice grew cold and menacing.

Lanny's usual calm turned to intense hatred. "Aishburn, you killed my tribe's genius, who had a chance to become a wizard this year. Among the apprentices you murdered at Earthheart Lake, one was as talented as you but died because of your greed. If not for you..."

Aishburn's lips moved, "You mean Constance... you really are..."

Ignoring his words, Lanny activated her communication ring, sending a mental pulse.

Seeing her action, Aishburn realized she had transmitted their conversation.

"You cursed wretch!" Enraged, he summoned a black staff, necromantic energy emanating from it. He pointed at the twin-headed dog, chanting rapidly.

"It's the waking spell!" Lanny shouted at Freya. "Stop him quickly!"

Despite following Aishburn, Lanny's invisibility had fooled even Freya. But now, with Lanny's warning, Freya acted, rushing towards Aishburn with her energy flaring, causing stones to whirl.

If Aishburn succeeded, waking the creature would lead to unimaginable consequences.

Drawing her sword, she channeled fiery energy, forming a blazing serpent as she charged.

A loud clash echoed through the stone forest as Freya's sword struck a black semicircular shield, with Aishburn continuing his chant inside.

Freya's eyes narrowed as she concentrated her chaotic energy, then unleashed an even stronger aura.

"Final thrust—Burst Blade!"