Elite BOSS

Hearing this heartfelt praise, a subconscious smile bloomed on Vereesa's pale little face, though she reined it in after only a fleeting moment. "Hmph, isn't it only natural that I would win against a coward like you?"

Knowing that the other party wouldn't say anything pleasant given their relationship, Lanlos shrugged indifferently. Without another word, he turned and walked in the direction from which the Mana Spring Leopard had come.

"Hey, where are you going?" Seeing this, Vereesa stowed her arrows and stood up, steadying herself against a tree trunk.

"This Mana Spring Leopard was clearly corrupted by a powerful surge of magic, but since we are so far from the Western Temple, it shouldn't be due to the Ley Line nodes." Recalling what Velania had mentioned about the Conduit Crystal being ejected, Lanlos's expression gradually darkened. "In any case, stay here and don't move. I'll go take a look first."

Mana Spring Leopards cannot wield magic; unless it had swallowed a Conduit Crystal, it would not suffer such a degree of corruption. Yet, it had happened, which meant there was an entity in the middle capable of wielding magic.

If it were an elf, they wouldn't have let it wander this far, so there was only one possibility.

"You want me to wait here? Are you joking?" Vereesa had recovered by now, and perhaps due to some complex impulse, she blocked Lanlos's path. "Are you trying to take the chance to run away?"

Lanlos was busy contemplating how to deal with a powerful elemental using a Conduit Crystal and had no desire to bicker with Vereesa. He paused, then took the curved blade from his waist and handed it to the young girl. "Your mission is complete; return to the temple. If I haven't returned in a day, have Velania bring people here."

Almost subconsciously taking the curved blade, Vereesa stared blankly at the weapon—the Windrunner Blade she had been trying to reclaim all this time. Yet, with the sharp edge now in her hand, she felt no joy in having her wish granted. His words stirred up an incredibly conflicted turmoil within her.

He had phrased it so righteously; how could her personality possibly allow her to just walk away like this?

By the time she snapped back to reality, Lanlos had already passed her and walked far ahead.

"Hey!"

The mage turned his head, only to hear a soft whistling sound through the air. He reached out and caught the Windrunner Blade thrown toward him. "What are you doing?"

"You're just a mage. If no one buys you time, you can't even handle this Mana Spring Leopard, so why act like a hero?" Although he was a teaching assistant, after recent observations, Vereesa had roughly gauged his strength. Of course, only on the surface.

"Now is not the time to show off, Vereesa." Looking at the Windrunner Blade in his hand, Lanlos felt deeply puzzled, yet his mouth didn't stop. "In all seriousness, I can't even guarantee my own safety from here on out, let alone yours."

Whether in close-quarters combat or archery, Vereesa's strength was sufficient to deal with beasts or trolls, but elemental creatures had an infuriatingly high resistance to physical damage. Even if she emptied her quiver, it would be difficult to inflict effective damage.

"Who said I wanted you to protect me?" The girl glared at him fiercely, then proudly lifted her chin. "I am a Windrunner. I am born with the obligation to protect the land and people of Quel'Thalas from harm. This is my mission, and even more so, my duty."

"By the sound of it, you're going to protect me, then?" Lanlos was stunned for a moment, then amused to the point of nearly laughing out loud.

"Don't flatter yourself." Vereesa rolled her eyes at him with disdain. "I am merely obligated to investigate whether there is any danger here that threatens the apprentices, so that I may report it to the person in charge of the Western Temple."

Lanlos didn't reply. Once the beautiful girl walked up to him, he rested his elbow on his hand, pinched his chin, and let his gaze roam unscrupulously up and down her body. Just as a vein began to bulge on her forehead and she was about to lose her temper, he clapped his hands together and shouted as if suddenly enlightened: "Oh, so you like me!"

BOOM!

The words that tumbled out of this shameless man's mouth caused Vereesa's sanity to collapse in an instant. She nearly shattered her teeth, drew her weapon, and lunged at the villain who had insulted her purity with a slash.

"I'll cut you down!"

"Calm down!" Fortunately, the distance was close enough that Lanlos, in his panic, grabbed her wrist. "That's not what I meant!"

"Today, either you die or I do!" Vereesa's free left hand turned from a fist into a claw, striking out like a predatory viper with lightning speed...

Charisma 8's taunt ability, perfect score...

"It should be just ahead." A muffled whisper sounded quietly in the woods.

Under the shadows of the trees, Lanlos covered his right cheek and peered outward.

Ahead lay a fairly open clearing, and at the end of the clearing was a sunken cave. Although it was pitch black inside, Lanlos could still feel a trace of magical aura overflowing from it.

More importantly, scattered in the center of the clearing were the blood-soaked corpses of three Mana Spring Leopards; clearly, these were the kin of the beast from before. As for who the killer was, that was hard to say.

After all, wandering beside these corpses were two pale blue energy entities.

Their slender figures resembled skeletons wrapped in blue gauze. They had no legs, no lower bodies, and their arms were nearly as long as their torsos. From their palms extended long, narrow claws like daggers embedded in them, sharp enough to make one's scalp tingle.

Mana Wraiths. Some say they are the ghosts born after elves corrupted by magic die, while others believe the opposite—that they are the product of local spirits being infected and assimilated by magic.

Lanlos had read in books that there were deep, reliable studies and conclusions: this thing, like an Arcane Aberration, is a pure elemental creature.

In Azeroth, or rather, all the worlds on this plane, the elements that exist are not just wind, fire, earth, and water, but also soul. This "soul" does not refer solely to the spirit on a mental level. As one of the basic elements that compose the world, the soul exists in every corner of this world; it is, in the true sense, the animism of all things.

Unlike the inherent chaos and restlessness of elements like wind, fire, earth, and water, the soul bestows upon all things a tendency toward rationality and order. The existence of elemental life is direct proof: sufficiently powerful energy attracts soul power, allowing it to develop the ability to think on the basis of chaos.

Evidence of the existence of soul power also includes the most intuitive ghosts, the Loa, the ancestral power of shamans, and even the instinctive opposition of Light and Void from the dawn of chaos, which manifested as the Naaru and the Void Lords, including the birth of the Titans...

These are all proofs of the existence of soul power.

Mana Wraiths are likewise elemental creatures where energy has developed consciousness, but it is precisely because of their eerie appearance and similar ethereal nature that people categorize them alongside the undead.

However, these things do not avoid light.

"Only two?" Vereesa, standing to the side, scanned the front with a cold expression.

"There should only be two left." Seeing several piles of mana residue on the ground that had not yet fully dissipated, Lanlos felt as if he could see the fierce battle that had taken place here not long ago.

"Give me your weapon and arrows." After a moment of contemplation, the mage reached out to the ranger.

Vereesa frowned first, her gaze subconsciously falling on the face he had exposed by letting go of his hand. Not knowing what she was thinking, she actually turned her head away with a hint of a guilty conscience. "What for?"

This scene naturally did not escape Lanlos's eyes. His mouth twitched violently, and a burning, searing pain radiated from his stretched cheek. In the spot he had just been covering, four scarlet claw marks extended from his cheekbone all the way to his chin.

So you do know shame!

The disfigured Lanlos looked even more fierce and menacing: "Do you want to use ordinary blades to deal with these things?"

Although not completely immune, physical strikes to ethereal creatures were no different from a tickle. To deal with these things, Vereesa had to listen to Lanlos.

"It's not like I'm not giving them back, so stingy..." Taking the arrows and short blade from the icy elf girl, Lanlos muttered to himself while casting magic. But at such close range, and with her professional training, Vereesa heard almost every word.

Hold it in, settle the score later!

Her small but powerful fists were clenched tight, and her eyes, which seemed to speak volumes, were fixed on the back of the mage's head, radiating undisguised fury and killing intent.

After focusing all his attention to barely discern the faint shimmer on the blades and arrowheads, Lanlos nodded in satisfaction and returned them to the ranger.

Level 1 spell, Magic Weapon.

Although it was only a temporary arcane enchantment, it would at least ensure that Vereesa could inflict effective damage on these elemental creatures during the fight.

"You stay in the woods and use your bow to draw their attention; I will take care of them. Make sure you don't get close to that cave." Glancing at the pitch-black opening behind the Mana Wraith, Lanlos's expression grew increasingly grim; the thick arcane aura emanating from it made him deeply uneasy. "If anything goes wrong, I will use Invisibility and Speed Dash to leave immediately. Don't worry about me; just retreat."

Despite her strong objections to this man, Vereesa nodded, suppressing her displeasure given the circumstances.

Once Lanlos had found a concealed spot to hide, the ranger took a deep breath, drew her bow, and loosed an arrow.

Whoosh—

The speeding arrow cut through the air with a faint whistle, striking one of the Mana Wraith right in the forehead. The collision of magic produced a sound like tearing fabric, and the creature let out a mournful wail before it and its companion transformed into two elongated shadows, slithering forward rapidly.

As expected.

Seeing that her arrow hadn't even diminished the magical glow on the monster, Vereesa couldn't help but frown. Though she questioned her own abilities, her physical movements remained flawless; she continued to draw and nock arrows without the slightest tremor in her hands.

On the other side, seeing the two Mana Wraith charging toward Vereesa's position, Lanlos silently drew his Windrunner Blade.

Although an Empowered Fireball could easily kill one of them from a distance, his mana was already low, and the aura emanating from that cave forced him to conserve as much as possible. While Shocking Grasp was a melee-range spell, it dealt high damage for low cost and had a short casting time. To prepare for emergencies, he had to take the risk of using Shocking Grasp to finish these two enemies.

Crackle!

The moment the two Mana Wraith swept past his position, a flash of green fire flickered in the elf mage's eyes. His strength and speed surged, and he swung his curved blade, lunging forward as a blurred afterimage.

The lightning vanished in an instant. With a shrill electrical crackle, the slower Mana Wraith was sliced in two. Accompanied by a piercing shriek, it dissipated rapidly, leaving behind a puddle of powdery mana residue.

The surge of magic caught the attention of the other Mana Wraith. It stopped its pursuit, raised its grim claws, and swiped fiercely at the mage who posed the greater threat.

Clang!

The sensation of colliding with real steel traveled up the hilt. Lanlos gave a disdainful smirk, stepped forward, easily parried the creature's claws, and followed through with a downward slash.

Lightning flashed, and the Mana Wraith's bisected body churned under the powerful strike. Yet, it did not disappear!

This thing had actually split its own body in two just before the Windrunner Blade struck!

The biggest difference between elemental creatures and ghosts is that energy can be converted into matter. As the concentration of energy increases, the elemental creature's body becomes larger and more solid, allowing it to switch between ethereal and physical forms to a certain extent.

Realizing he had been played by this monster, Lanlos spat internally. But seeing a wisp of energy rapidly condense into a claw and swing toward him, he had to painfully abandon the fading Shocking Grasp and retreat.

Just then, a faint whistle cut through the air, slamming hard into the razor-thin claw.

Clang!

The deflected arrow tumbled through the air. Under the force of the impact, the solidified claw was snapped clean off, turning into a wisp of smoke that drifted back toward the Mana Wraith's body.

Opportunity!

Lanlos stomped his retreating right foot hard into the ground and shot forward like an arrow from a bow. His lightning-charged Windrunner Blade sliced upward, cleaving the Mana Wraith in two.

Awoo!

The magic dissipated, and the forest returned to its initial silence.

Picking up two Arcane Shard, Lanlos squeezed them tightly in his palm before the ranger could get close, quietly sacrificing them with Fel energy. Seeing his mana recover a small fraction, he felt slightly relieved.

"Nice work, especially that last arrow." Turning to the approaching Vereesa, Lanlos praised her without hesitation.

Vereesa curled her lip impatiently, about to say something, when her forward steps suddenly froze and her eyes widened in shock.

"Look out!"

But it was too late. Hearing the warning, Lanlos instinctively turned his head. What met his eyes was a pale green beam of light, fast as lightning, extending from the cave directly toward his back.

Puff!

Magic and flesh seemed to turn into gasoline; a violent, scorching fire erupted from his chest, instantly invading his internal organs. Struck by the impact, Lanlos couldn't help but cough up blood, his body convulsing as he collapsed to the ground.

"Lanlos!"

ROAR!

Seeing the mage fall after blue flames erupted on his body, Vereesa gasped instinctively and moved to rush forward, but a roar filled with fury and madness erupted from the nearby cave entrance.

Following it were two intersecting beams of purple light.

Seeing the familiar Arcane Blast hurtling toward her, Vereesa tensed and immediately dodged to the side.

BOOM!

Before he could recover from the agonizing, searing pain throughout his body, Lanlos was startled by a loud crash. Turning his head, he saw a large tree toppling over, kicking up a cloud of fallen leaves and dust.

Thankfully, Arcane Blast was a targeted spell; since it was the tree that fell, Vereesa should be fine.

Lanlos stood up, enduring the lingering pain, and looked solemnly at the man-sized Arcane Aberration slowly emerging from the cave. He did not hesitate to expend his scarce Sargerite energy to perform a detailed scan.

Arcane Aberration
Elemental Creature
Health: 81%

Mana: 100%

Spirit: 37%

Metamagic:

Mana Burn: Fires an anti-magic bolt at the target, burning 20% of their current mana and dealing equal damage to their health.

Spell List:

1st Circle: Unknown

2nd Circle: Mana Shock

Special:

Mana Shield: Spell damage hitting the shield is absorbed by mana.

Ley Line Connection: While active, all spells and spell-like abilities cost nothing, casting time is halved, effects are increased by 50%, cooldowns are reduced by 80%, and spell vulnerability is increased by 200%.

This is not good.

As the feedback from the Keystone echoed in his mind, Lanlos's heart sank to the bottom of the abyss in that instant.