Deep within the recesses of the valley, a river nestled itself, surrounded by a variety of flora and fauna.
This area was an oddity, as it was clear of any poison. It was one of the few poison-free areas within this section of the forest. Nevertheless, the potent Dragon Force saturated the surroundings, making it difficult for the weak of the heart to stand there.
The river contained an odd purple liquid that flowed ceaselessly downstream while no creature dared to swim within.
There was a large stretch of barren earth from the river bank to the nearest tree about 100 metres long, almost as if no plant dared to grow near the purple waters.
A small group of 100-odd warriors and mages had gathered themselves in preparation for an important event.
Most of these men and women were using shovels and other tools to dig the ground, clearly in search of something. They all wore a pendant on their chest and worked tirelessly on the soil beneath them. A few dozen of these cultivators stood watch while casting disdainful gazes at a handful of cloaked individuals who stood a distance away from the others.
They were split into two groups. One group in charge of digging consisted of a variety of cultivators, while the other group of only a handful of cloaked individuals stood by the side in silence.
The cloaked individuals did nothing except meditate where they stood, gaining the ire of the other group that worked away on the ground.
"I don't understand why Prince Michael would trust strangers with this mission. They aren't even helping us dig. It's not like we are looking for pennies."
The speaker was a petite warrior with narrow eyes. He was one of the overseers of the dig site along with a few others.
"I don't know who they are, but the frigid auras they are releasing are no joke. If you have the balls to antagonise beings Prince Michael was willing to be polite to, be my guest. But I won't attend your funeral." said a burly mage covered in tattoos.
A round of laughter followed the mage's words, causing the petite man to frown.
The cloaked individuals didn't speak much but the cold auras their bodies released were enough to intimidate even the toughest of cultivators. The petite man would be lying if he said he was not intimidated by their presence.
Michael Bellingham had, as Will's group suspected, a method of reaching the corpse without going through many difficulties. Thanks to this method, the group not only arrived there much earlier than Mercedes' group, but they also arrived without expending any energy.
One of the overseers patted the short man and said, "Prince Michael's wisdom is beyond middle management like us. Just be glad you are on his side. If Mercedes does send anyone here, they will probably be very tired by the time they reach us. Odds are they are not expecting us here anyway as the corpse isn't even that valuable to most."
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The others revealed expressions of contentment revealing their agreement with the man's words. They believed they had the advantage of surprise and stamina.
"Plus these hooded people are nothing to scoff at. Even if Ulysses Rijkaard himself were to show up, we would still-"
Before the man could finish his sentence, a concentrated blade light flashed through the miasma that surrounded their section of the riverbank.
It was night time and they were surrounded by light-absorbing miasma but the blade light was as bright as the midday sun.
The blade light tore a hole through the miasma, through which an aura with a terrifying momentum leaked out. The momentum carried with a heavy suppressive aura that most of the cultivators did not understand. The blade light disappeared into the miasma on the opposite side of the river, its large form fading into darkness.
"Enemy attack!"
No one knew who shouted and no one cared. The others quickly got into formation, ready to face the intruder.
Tanks summoned their shields and activated their defensive skills, lining up at the front. Healers and support stood far behind them whole long damage dealers stood in the centre, ready to attack whatever was coming.
This group consisted of those that were digging. They shifted from shock to a martial stance within seconds, revealing their training and proficiency in the art of war. They were confident in their ability to handle whatever came their way. Unfortunately, a feminine voice with an arrogant tone doused their hopes.
"You fools would never be able to stop a Macedonian Charge."
The speaker was one of the silent cloaked individuals a few dozen metres away. No one had seen how or when this individual had arrived near them, but that did not matter. What mattered was their words.
Macedonian Charge was a famous skill known for being incredibly difficult to deal with, especially if the caster had enough time to gather momentum. It was often a one-hit-kill ability that brought dread to all those who faced it.
"It looks like the Macedonian Charge is carrying a few puppies."
Another cloaked individual appeared in front of the panicking group. This one seemed female from her high-pitched voice.
Everyone knew of the other group's expedition members, hence it was clear that by puppies she meant the children of Remus.
" A Macedonian Charge carrying the children of Remus. Heavens! "
Many of the cultivators started to panic as the aura leaking through the hole became more intense. The pendants on their chests protected them from the Dragon Force, but it could do nothing in front of the dense killing Intent that was headed for their position.
The short man from before swallowed a mouthful of saliva before shouting, "No need to panic, we just need to block it once! Once the charge is broken they will be weak!"
The others brightened up at these words, but the aura's ever-increasing momentum caused their faces to become ugly. It was clear to everyone observing that this was not something they could block without quite a bit of preparation.
"It's here." warned one of the cloaked individuals. Her ethereal voice was calming by nature, but the danger was still present, keeping everyone on their toes.
With a large boom, an arrowhead of green light burst onto the shore of the river bank and headed straight from the observers. The green arrowhead released undulations of Truth that stifled the air. But that was not all!
At the tip of the arrowhead was a silhouette. Its body had been pierced through and was being pushed back by the Macedonian Charge!
'That's a Devastated Banshee!'
The fact that a Sector Boss had been dealt with so easily by the charge caused shivers to go down everyone's spines. They knew that they had no chance in hell of stopping this attack.
One of the robed individuals reached out with her small and delicate hand in the direction of the charge. A burst of mana came out of her palm resulting in a matrix the size of a cottage. A large scaly palm manifested, releasing a huge torrent of oppressive frigid mana into the environment.
Boom!
The palm and arrowhead clashed resulting in an explosion of energies that rocked the environment. Winds kicked up a frenzy as pebbles and rocks were thrown about.
The other cloaked individual released a wave of mana and clapped her hands, dispersing the cloud of dust that had been kicked up. From the arrowhead appearing to the dust cloud being cleared. This all took time to describe but only took a few seconds to occur.
The fast reaction speed and prowess displayed by the cloaked individuals caused the diggers to sigh in relief. The short man tripped and fell on his backside as he stared wide-eyed at the scene in front of him. He could not believe what his eyes were revealing to him.
There was no doubt that this was a battle that none of them were qualified to take part in. The remaining cloaked individuals joined the fray and stood next to their partners. 4 cloaked individuals stood between the intruders and the diggers. Signalling the beginning of the upcoming storm!