Chapter 461

The two retraced their steps.

Karg followed behind Saruman, his stride steadier than before. The life force Saruman had shared with him was still working, temporarily suppressing the black patterns that clung to him like a shadow. Yet he could feel that the suppression was far from perfect. The coldness and throbbing that came from deep within those patterns had never truly vanished.

Like a dormant volcano, they could erupt again at any moment.

For now, it should be fine. Karg had no time to worry about it anyway; most of his energy went toward carrying Lina and resisting the corruption within himself.

The man was silent as a stone.

In comparison, Lina was in far worse condition.

Because her mutation had come so suddenly, Saruman had failed to stop her aberration. Even now, her body seemed to be undergoing some irreversible transformation. Scales covered more than half her skin, and her joints occasionally made unnatural, faint sounds like bones slipping out of place.

Her unconsciousness was no longer peaceful. From time to time, she let out muffled whimpers that seemed to rise from the depths of the sea, sounds that sent chills down the spine of anyone who heard them.

They went through several more battles. In one, they fought an "Unlight Walker" that could control shadows and merge itself into the darkness of the corridors.

Saruman had no choice but to employ large-scale radiance magic, nearly exhausting his reserve of mana gems before he could drive it away.

In another, they encountered a swarm of twisted gargoyle puppets that seemed to have been spawned by the corridors themselves. They were endless, impossible to kill completely. In the end, Karg had to unleash astonishing strength, smashing apart one corner of the passage with his greatsword and causing a small