Picking up the resurrected young man, the two quickly walked out of the cave. Unas said to the two women, "You two go to the mine first. I'll take Ashina to the stronghold and then come back."
Whitemane said, "I'll take him back to the base; you guys go to the mine first."
This kind of proactive help wasn't her style. Unas looked at her suspiciously. "You'll come back, won't you, Miss Whitemane?"
"No, I'm just a superfluous presence in the mine. Namelia is perfectly capable of handling the healing," Whitemane tilted his head. "After settling Ashina, I should go home too."
Unas flew into a rage upon hearing this, "Do you know we are currently at war? The Flamewaker could attack again at any moment. No one is superfluous, especially a High Priest. What you're doing is tantamount to desertion, and according to military law, I can execute you on the spot!"
Whitemane didn't argue anymore; he just watched him quietly, his mind made up to leave.
Unas couldn't possibly court-martial her. Not to mention his relationship with Darian, the other two men in the Mograine family were not people he could afford to offend. Moreover, Whitemane had always been a free woman, following him entirely voluntarily, and of course, she had the right to leave at any time, but the timing was really not good.
Unas calmed down, a deep-seated disgust for this childish and willful woman rising within him. He gently placed Ashina on his horse and said coldly, "I will not entrust the safety of my men to a woman like you. If you want to get out, then get out of here. I don't want to see you for another second."
The silver-haired Priest remained silent, without arguing or insulting. She struggled to hold back her tears, mounted her horse, and galloped away, leaving behind only a desolate and humiliating silhouette.
"Weren't those words a bit too harsh on a lady?" Natasha stepped forward and gently patted the Warden's shoulder, trying to comfort him. "She's just an immature noblewoman; there's no need to get so angry."
Unas had harbored a sliver of hope for Whitemane, but now that hope was completely shattered. Free from that burden, he felt much lighter. He nodded and said, "We have more important things to do. You can handle the treatment alone, right?"
Natasha smiled and said, "Although I switched to Shadow magic midway through my training, I can definitely handle a small team of a dozen or so people. Don't worry."
The two left the cave separately. Unas rushed back to the stronghold to settle Ashina. There were also a few Priests accompanying the Argent Dawn, but they were all trainees. Taking them to the Crystal Cave might be a hindrance. After thinking about it, just in case and not wanting to alarm too many people, he only transferred a hundred-man squad to leave the stronghold with him.
He rushed to the mine and, judging from the calm outside, nothing should have happened during this time. He ordered the troops to stay put and stood on the Teleportation Circle, instructing Helen to notify Du'an to cast a spell. Soon, he was teleported into the underground cave.
The same people were still inside the cave. Perella, who was whispering with Natasha, rushed over when she saw him return and asked, "How is Ashina?"
"His injuries have fully healed. He's much luckier than us. He's currently sleeping soundly in the medical Tent. Don't worry, I guarantee he'll be able to walk tomorrow."
"Thank you so much, Lord Unas," Perella's joyful voice echoed through the cave. She turned around, "And Miss Natasha, you must be messengers of the Holy Light! Praise be to the Holy Light!"
Unas coughed lightly, "And Priest Whitemane, she's exhausted and staying at the outpost to rest; she won't be coming over for the time being."
Telling everyone that Whitemane had deserted at this point would severely damage morale, so he had no choice but to make up an excuse to get by for now.
Perella said worriedly, "Priest Whitemane always seemed so aloof, I never expected her to be so warm-hearted. I hope she recovers soon."
Unas didn't respond to that question and quickly walked to the lava pool in the corner. Following his orders, the members of the elite squad moved several huge boulders to block the lava pool. The mages were working together to cast a spell to seal it. In addition to Angela, Du'an, and Huoye, there was also a Blood Elf mage.
Unas asked Marcus, "What happened after I left?"
"The Flamewaker hasn't made any moves. We've thrown a lot of stones into the lava pool, but it seems bottomless. We had to move some large rocks to block the opening. The new mage is the only water-specialized Blood Elf. It was Huoye's suggestion to bring him in. Their sealing spell has been going on for a long time and should be ending soon," Marcus reported in detail.
Unas nodded. "Stay vigilant; we mustn't let our guard down, especially as we get closer to the end."
After saying that, he also drew his weapon and joined the ranks of those on guard. A moment later, the mages' buzzing incantations finally ended, and Angela and Du'an shouted simultaneously, "Seal!"
The radiant pentagram began to spin rapidly, generating a considerable suction force. The four mages immediately lost their footing and swayed from side to side. The guards beside them quickly pulled them apart.
The blinding light at the center of the seal faded abruptly, and when everyone looked closely, the lava pool and the boulder blocking it had vanished instantly, leaving only an ordinary flat area.
As Du'an had previously stated, the lava pool was a result of spatial displacement and shouldn't have existed in this cave. Now it seems that this displacement has been corrected, so the ground has returned to its original state.
The mission was accomplished, but Angela and Du'an showed no joy. Unas, knowing there was more to the story, asked, "What's wrong? Wasn't the seal successful?"
"It wouldn't be very meaningful if only our side succeeded in sealing it. The other side was thwarted and failed. The enemy also has spellcasters who are proficient in Spatial Magic." Du'an wiped the sweat from his brow, feeling somewhat lost.
After some explanation, Unas realized that the Spatial Rift was bidirectional, so both sides had to be repaired during the sealing process to completely eliminate it. The current situation was simply that a cover had been added on this side, and the spatial passage remained. As long as the enemy's mage broke through this cover, the two sides would be connected again.
So, does that mean they can still come at any time?
Before Unas could finish his question, a red phantom suddenly appeared where the lava pool had been. The team members instinctively drew their bows and fired, and several arrows pierced through the phantom, creating small craters in the rock wall behind it.
Angela shouted, "Stop! That's just an illusion!"
Unas waved for everyone to cease fire. The red shadow gradually became clearer, and another Flamewaker appeared before them. Unlike the previous three, it was neither too big nor too small, with two black curved blades hanging at its waist, confirming that it was a new face.