In a certain ancient and rugged underground hall, more than a dozen enormous projections formed from Magical Energy floated in mid-air, one of which displayed Gosdo's every move.
Several figures, each with a different posture, stood in front of the projection.
One of the strangely-looking, gaunt men stood with his hands behind his back; he was Kanpasi, the leader of the Red Stone Canyon Chosen Ones, a wanted criminal by the Alliance.
Looking at the projection on the right, Kanpasi sneered, "Heh, this brat is the Crimson Alliance's last Joint Entrance Examination champion, right? Seems like he's joined the Infinity Academy."
"That's right, Curse Realm Gosdo, with an SS+ talent, has a more than 90% chance of reaching the Epic rank if he doesn't perish prematurely." A burly man in khaki armor said slowly, a hint of jealousy flashing in his eyes.
Victor, deputy leader of the Red Stone Canyon branch of the Chosen Ones.
"It's a pity that such a genius, who should have led us Transcendent beings to break free from the shackles of mortals, willingly degenerated and sank into the mire. How tragic and lamentable," Kanpasi shook his head, his tone full of regret.
Victor's eyes flickered slightly, but he didn't say anything. He joined the Chosen Ones purely because he had no other choice, and he didn't have any similar ideas as Kanpasi.
"Compared to the Curse Realm Gosdo, this Thunder Demon Lancelot is a much bigger fish. According to the intelligence sent back by our insiders at the Holy Sword Academy, he already possesses High-Rank Transcendent combat power," said the hunched figure to Kanpasi's left slowly. He came from the Ashes and called himself Black Fox.
"High-Rank Transcendent combat power? This kid has only been enrolled for less than a year, right?" Victor exclaimed in surprise. As a former citizen of the Alliance, he had dreamed of entering one of the six top universities when he was a child.
Unfortunately, reality was too cruel. He didn't get into the top university, but his name was added to the Alliance's wanted list.
"To be precise, it's been less than half a year since he enrolled, and this kid has already broken the Holy Sword Academy's 53-year record for the fastest time to climb 400 steps of the Holy Sword Stairway. If we can sacrifice Lancelot, our god will be very satisfied." Black Fox stared at Lancelot, a greedy look appearing in his turbid eyes.
"Now is not the time to act. These are just reconnaissance teams from the four academies. There are still large forces behind them. We can maximize our gains by wiping out these geniuses in one fell swoop. I want to let the Alliance's higher-ups know what pain is." Kanpasi grinned menacingly.
Black Fox nodded slightly. "Of course I know that. Neither the main course nor the side dishes can be missing."
"The four academies have sent out these geniuses and elites, and they must have a protective force secretly accompanying them. At least they must be Legendary- level combatants, and they will most likely be epic -Epic. Our Redstone branch does not have such strong individuals. Black Fox, you'll have to see what happens to you Ashes then," Victor said in a low voice.
"Rest assured, no one can touch the offerings of my god," the Black Fox said calmly.
Under the cover of Nightfall, Lancelot used the camouflage ability of the Molecular Aggregation Insect to advance steadily towards the Core Zone of the manor.
Unlike Gosdo, Lancelot was headed for the Underground Space. Although he didn't possess the Demonic Puppet Curse Seal that controlled people, his Molecular Aggregation Insect abilities were equally powerful.
Through the Insect King, Lancelot can share vision with the Molecular Aggregation Insect, but the distance between them cannot exceed 100 meters, otherwise they will lose contact.
Because of this restriction, Lancelot risked being discovered and continued to advance towards the Core Zone.
Normal reconnaissance is generally limited to the outer and Inner Zone and will not enter the heavily defended Core Zone.
Of course, this is also partly because he has two bodyguards with him, giving him the means to act recklessly.
If all else fails, I'll just unleash my Unrivaled and wipe out the entire field.
Along the way, with the help of the Molecular Aggregation Insect, Lancelot collected a lot of intelligence, but most of it was not very confidential.
The good news was that as they went deeper, they obtained more classified information, which undoubtedly excited Lancelot and strengthened his desire to continue exploring.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
In the underground hall, Kanpasi frowned and said, "What's wrong with this kid? Everyone else has retreated, why is he still trying to squeeze in? Isn't he afraid of being discovered?"
Following his gaze, the projection showed Lancelot's blurry figure.
"It's strange. He doesn't arrest or interrogate anyone; he just keeps moving forward. Could it be that he has a wide-ranging reconnaissance capability?" Victor wondered.
The Molecular Aggregation Insect that Lancelot released to scout were not detected by Kanpasi and the others.
These tiny insects are visible to the naked eye when they are clustered together, but when separated, they are hundreds or thousands of times smaller than dust particles.
Although the manor was equipped with an eleventh-ring detection magic circle in advance, the detection range was too large, and the focus was placed on Lancelot and the others, so these small insects were overlooked.
However, the fact that it could be ignored by the eleventh-ring detection magic also demonstrates the power of the Molecular Aggregation Insect, living up to its rank and high price.
"No, we can't let him go any further. Otherwise, if the patrol finds us and a conflict breaks out, our ambush plan will be ruined." Kanpasi's face darkened, looking rather grim.
In this strategic move, all the defensive personnel in the middle and outer layers, as well as most of the defensive personnel in the Core Zone, were sacrificed.
The aim was to lure Lancelot and his companions into a trap.
The intelligence these expendable foes possessed was also true.
In order to eliminate the Alliance's geniuses, the Chosen Ones organization did not hesitate to abandon this branch base.
However, if Lancelot clashes with the unsuspecting patrol prematurely, the situation could drastically change and spiral out of control.
After all, this Alliance genius is a force to be reckoned with; if the hidden guardians were to reveal themselves prematurely, things would be disastrous.
"Notify patrol teams 31, 34, and 36 to change direction and try to force this guy back," Kanpasi ordered, a hint of helplessness in his eyes.
His orders were quickly relayed.
Lancelot, who was stealthily moving, paused, leaping onto a nearby tree to observe the area below. He asked in bewilderment, "Huh? This isn't what we expected. Shouldn't these patrols be taking different routes?"
"Could the reconnaissance be wrong?" Lancelot frowned. After the patrol left, he jumped down from the tree and continued his advance towards the Core Zone.
Click!
Kanpasi clenched his fists, "That brat..."
"Keep the 21st and 19th patrols changing direction. I don't believe he'd have the guts to go any further."
What drove Kanpasi crazy was that Lancelot was incredibly daring, risking being discovered to sneak into the Core Zone. Right now, beneath his feet was the Underground Space.
At this point, Lancelot also sensed something was off. "Why does it feel like these patrols are after me, but their expressions..."