Prevention Before Trouble Strikes

"Hasn't it started yet?"

Kalin stretched out her arms and gave a long, languid stretch, fully revealing her beautifully curved body, causing everyone to swallow hard. Although she still looked the same, her long elven ears were nowhere to be seen. From any angle, she appeared to be nothing more than a young and beautiful human girl.

"Five more minutes..."

Answering Kalin's question in a low voice, Anna sat in her seat, swinging her legs. Her petite, slender body was completely wrapped in a black lace robe, making her look like a young lady from a wealthy family. Behind them stood a man who was not young. Unlike the two women's relaxed expressions, the man's face was serious, solemn, and even somewhat fearful.

He is the president of the Mages' Association.

For this unfortunate guild leader, the current situation was far from his intention. In fact, after sealing off the Mages' Association, the guild leader himself was at a loss for what to do. Although he wanted to contact other mages, Li Lin's previous statements had completely terrified them. Some were unwilling to continue, while others were already planning to start their own factions. In their view, the return of Arcane Mage was equivalent to the restoration of the mages' glory, and they naturally wanted to find a better backer. Compared to the guild leader who was subservient to the Five-Nation Alliance, Arcane Mage were clearly a better choice.

Faced with this situation, the guild leader, who had essentially lost all power, not only had to confront the rebellion of his own subordinates but also the pressure from the Five-Nation Alliance and the Temple. The Five-Nation Alliance and the Temple were also furious about the Mage Tower's rebellion, and the current guild leader naturally dared not send himself into the tiger's den to die. However, the poor guild leader did not expect that trouble would come to him even though he did not seek it out.

Just a few days ago, Anna and Kalin appeared before him, not only killing all his subordinates but also demanding his "assistance": they wanted the guild master to hand over all the artifacts left over from the Magic Empire era within the Mage Mages' Association and to help them find any Magic Empire artifacts that might have fallen into other hands. Faced with such demands, the guild master naturally refused, but soon, the all-seeing divine bow and the elusive dagger changed his mind. As the Mages' Association master, he naturally knew that the two girls before him were members of the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys. Although he had seen descriptions of them in records, he had not expected them to be this powerful. They even completely ignored all of the guild master's magical attacks, as if those things had no effect on them.

When you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head.

Thus, the guild master was forced to hand over all the relics related to the Magic Empire hidden in the treasury. In the days that followed, he had to take the two girls back and forth between other mage towers, searching for hidden items. It must be said that although these two young ladies appeared delicate and frail, when working, they were acutely aware of their non-human nature. Even tasks requiring a large workforce were completed by them in a very short time. More troublesome was that the guild master could not hide or deceive them; after all, no one was more familiar with the artifacts of the Magic Empire than they were.

The association president was inwardly groaning, and Kalin was equally distraught. They had originally planned to lure Anna out for a trip, but no sooner had they left Ringwraith City than they received a telepathic message from Nia, instructing them to collect all the items the Magic Empire had left behind on the continent, to be stored or destroyed as appropriate. Moreover, Nia didn't intend for Kalin to search aimlessly; instead, she provided a list so long it would make one dizzy just looking at it, which was then directly crammed into Kalin's mind. Clearly, having traversed the continent for millennia, the Eternal Library knew the whereabouts of these items intimately.

Thus, Kalin's grand plan to travel was a complete failure. Anna would absolutely not refuse Nia and Li Lin's orders, and she was too embarrassed to go out and play alone. Besides, Nia had already made it very clear that Ringwraith City was currently in financial straits. There was no money to buy back the looted items, nor was there any need to spend money to buy them back... It was up to them to decide for themselves.

Kalin and Anna were naturally penniless, so Kalin quickly thought of the president of the Mages' Association. Given that he likely possessed the largest collection of items from the Magic Empire, he became their primary target. After thoroughly looting him, Kalin discovered that the guild president was quite wealthy, so she set her sights on him... Anyway, Nia had only said she couldn't use her own money, and it wasn't her money.

During Li Lin's absence from Ringwraith City, Kalin, along with Anna and the Guild Master, traveled extensively and managed to recover most of the remaining items. However, some were kept by the Temple, and even the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys couldn't easily take them. Others were collected by wealthy individuals... Kalin decided to deal with these first before considering whether to steal or rob from the Temple.

The two had arrived at a rare and exotic item auction in a southern city. According to the association president, this was the place where items from the Magic Empire most frequently appeared. After all, while the Magic Empire didn't pay as much attention to aesthetics as the elves, who would create unprecedented works of art even for their own tables, their creations all possessed magical power. Although most of these items had turned to ash after a thousand years, those that hadn't become quite valuable. This demonstrated the immense power they contained, and naturally, such items also possessed unique characteristics. Therefore, they were easily regarded as strange and unusual. In the past, the Mages' Association had sent many mages to participate in such gatherings, buying any items they sensed as possessing Magic Power for research.

It's a pity that all this money came from the association president. He was not only forced to hand over all his treasures, but he also had to use magic to change his appearance and accompany these two powerful ladies around. He had considered luring them to the Five-Nation Alliance or the Temple to kill them, but after Kalin shot and killed a mage a thousand meters away with an arrow right in front of him, the association president never considered such a thing again. The Tear of the Meteor's light arrow is not just for watching as fireworks; as one of the Seven Ring Spirit Envoys, its quality is naturally guaranteed.

"How boring. We can only sit here doing nothing. Heaven knows what fun things you and your companions are doing."

With her shapely, long legs draped over the terrace, Kalin paid no heed to the blatant, lewd stares of the men around her, and grumbled listlessly.

Fun may not necessarily be fun, but it's definitely thrilling.

If Li Lin could hear Kalin's complaints, he would definitely answer in this way.

After completing their preparations and entering the dark cave, the group proceeded with extreme caution, trying to avoid conflict with the undead creatures. Everyone knew that entering this place was tantamount to walking into the clutches of an evil mage. If discovered, the three of them would likely be swallowed up by the hordes of undead in the pitch-black cave. The cave was narrow and the paths limited, making escape difficult. Along the way, they encountered many undead creatures. However, thanks to the female priest's "Protection from Evil Detection," they fared relatively well. This divine spell could block the undead's senses, ensuring they wouldn't detect them. Of course, this spell wasn't foolproof; if an undead creature touched them, the game would be over.

Li Lin walked at the front, choosing paths to advance as the female priest instructed. The female priest followed behind him, while Geligao Li was responsible for the final defense. Although he was large and carried a greatsword, he moved as silently as Li Lin. Of course, undead creatures do not have hearing; they find their prey by sensing life force. Therefore, even if they made a sound, as long as they were not exposed, there would be no problem.

Gradually, the number of undead creatures on the road decreased, and the three became increasingly cautious, indicating that they were about to enter the central area. An evil mage like this would not allow lowly undead creatures to roam freely in such an important place. Moreover, the further they went, the more they could feel the evil aura surrounding them as if it were a tangible presence, with gusts of icy wind that even seemed to freeze their souls.

"It's just ahead."

At the entrance to a passageway, the female priest stopped. Her voice was very soft, almost too soft to speak. Her pale lips trembled slightly, and the malevolent aura emanating from her was more intense than she had ever seen in her life. She even wondered if she was about to face some demon king from Hell.

A sense of fear began to creep into the pastor's heart. She swallowed hard, trying to suppress her tension and unease.

Li Lin took her hand, a gesture that made the female pastor feel much better. She looked at Li Lin, smiled, and nodded at him.

Geligao Li witnessed all of this.

Then, the three of them went inside.

Turning the corner of the narrow passage, the three found themselves in a spacious cavern. Several torches burned within, their eerie flames casting a cold, greenish light into every corner. The cavern was empty except for a desk and a magic altar.

"... It seems like nobody's here."

Li Lin carefully observed the depths of the surrounding shadows and then came to a conclusion.

"However, the atmosphere here is thick with evil."

The female pastor answered through gritted teeth. She felt a tightness in her chest and a sense of panic. For some reason, a bad premonition kept lingering in her mind.

"Since the person isn't here, we'd better finish our mission quickly and leave this place."

Geligao Li said casually, but as he stared at Li Lin's retreating figure, it was unclear what he was thinking.

The three of them warily surveyed their surroundings before approaching the magic altar. Angela seemed to have put in considerable effort; on the dark altar, stark white bones were arranged to form a six-pointed star, with a complete human skull in the center. Blood was splattered all around, giving the scene a rather sinister, ritualistic feel.

"What, what is this?"

Even with the pastor's extensive knowledge, she had never seen this strange symbol before. She stared warily at the six-pointed star, unsure what to say. However, she quickly composed herself and turned to the desk beside her. There, several letters lay—"props" prepared by Angela and the others beforehand. Li Lin suppressed a laugh, looking at the bizarre setup, unsure what to say. Although the little guy was clever and capable, he clearly hadn't acted in a movie. Even a casual glance at the arrangement was enough to spot the problem. Fortunately, the dense, terrifyingly evil aura added a certain charm to the overall ambiance.

"This is... the symbol of a northern country?"

The pastor frowned even more as she stared at the symbols on the envelope. She didn't know what they meant, but it was certainly an ominous sign.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh..."

Just then, soft laughter from a girl emerged from the darkness.

The performance has officially begun.

Who is it!

Geligao Li turned his head first, gripping his longsword tightly and staring warily into the empty cave. At that moment, the originally harmless shadows began to writhe as if they had come to life. They extended and condensed with absolutely unnatural movements, finally forming a small human figure. The pair of bright red eyes looked especially terrifying against the backdrop of darkness.

"One, two, three. I never expected there to be three... Hmm, I am quite surprised. Where did you all come from?"

"!!"

At that moment, Li Lin swiftly protected the female priest, while Geligao Li stood in front of her, raising his two-handed greatsword, his eyes filled with doubt. Geligao Li had actually forgotten his dream from the previous night after waking up; after all, it's rare for ordinary people to remember their dreams after waking up. However, a faint sense of unease still lingered in Geligao Li's heart. Geligao Li was now wondering where he had heard that voice before, but couldn't quite place it.

"Evil spirit!"

The pastor seemed initially overwhelmed by Angela's aura, but she quickly regained her composure and then shouted sharply.

"This is not a place for you. Leave immediately! Return to the eternal darkness! Undead!!"

With the priestess's angry shout, a powerful Holy Light shot from her hand toward Angela. But Angela wasn't even afraid of Catherine's holy light, so how could she possibly fear the attack of a mere priestess? She chuckled a few times, and the shadows around her suddenly surged up like waves, completely engulfing the holy light into darkness.

"--!"

Seeing this, the female priest became increasingly nervous. Although she had prepared herself mentally, this was still beyond her capacity to bear. Her most powerful divine spell had vanished without causing the slightest damage. Having reached this point, the female priest no longer had the courage to fight back, but her clergy instincts prevented her from showing any sign of retreat.

"A very interesting little girl..."

Angela's voice was full of satisfaction. Her bright red eyes swept over the three people in turn before settling on Li Lin's face. In just a short moment, their eyes exchanged a great deal of information.

Would you like me to play with this toy?

This is just for Catherine to play with; didn't you have enough fun before?

I could play this game for years and never get tired of it.

Then let's go back and settle things with those two sisters first.

After a brief exchange of glances, Angela smiled coldly again and disappeared into the shadows. Under her manipulation, these shadows grew increasingly dense.

"So, what shall I do with you? Little girl? With your delicate skin, I really don't want to turn you into Ghoul..."

"You... you..."

The priestess trembled even more at the thought of the terrifying undead creatures outside. She desperately tried to utter a complete sentence, but couldn't. Just then, Li Lin spoke.

"We're sorry to have disturbed you, Miss Mage."

"Hmph, what a polite man! Do you really think this will make me let you go?"

No, what I mean is...

As he spoke, Li Lin took a small ball out of his pocket.

"I'm so sorry to disturb your rest. Well then, we'll be going now."

As he spoke, he threw the ball forcefully onto the ground.

A dazzling holy light instantly filled the entire cave, and accompanied by Angela's screams, everyone immediately felt that the evil aura that had been suppressing their bodies had dissipated considerably.

"Quickly! Get out of here!!"

Li Lin grabbed Catherine's hand, then picked up the letters on the desk and ran quickly outside. Geligao Li followed closely behind, unaware that he was gripping his greatsword and almost stabbing Li Lin from behind.

"Mr. Li Lin, that is..."

"Her Highness was worried that such a thing might happen, so she told me to carry it with me at all times, just in case."

At that moment, the undead also heard Angela's call and began frantically searching the cave for the intruders. Fortunately, the priestess's detection spell hadn't completely worn off, so aside from a few undead that needed to be dealt with, the three were able to barely evade attacks from the others. However, when they reached the cave entrance, they discovered to their despair that a dark mass of undead had completely surrounded it; even if they managed to get out of the cave, they might not be able to leave alive.

"What... what should we do?"

The priestess's face grew even paler as she gazed at the undead army that had been sealed off from the cave entrance.

"There's no other way, this is the only option."

Li Lin sighed, then handed the letter to the female pastor.

"Mr. Geligao Li, the rest is up to you."

"What do you want, Mr. Li Lin?"

The female pastor, who had been pushed into Geligao Li's arms by Li Lin, turned around in a panic, but what she saw was Li Lin running alone towards the cave entrance.

"I'll lure these guys away. From now on, it's up to you two. Be careful."

As Li Lin spoke, his figure disappeared into the white sunlight.

Then, the roars of the undead creatures rang out.