Chapter 2: The Secret Door Unlocked
By this time, the magicians who had already sensed the formidable strength of the two Skeleton Wyverns realized the severity of the situation. If they did not unite, those two Skeleton Wyverns could inflict unimaginable damage on the group. A series of Gravity Spells and Dark Bindings were cast almost simultaneously by the Mystic Mage and Mihajevic. The Puppet Mage, who rarely used his staff, immediately raised it high into the air. Two Skeleton Trolls emerged from the clouds of darkness, their massive black scythes emitting a dim glow. Following the Puppet Mage’s commands, the Skeleton Trolls roared as they swung their huge scythes wildly at the other Skeleton Wyvern, which was dodging frantically from side to side.
The Skeleton Wyvern let out an angry roar. The combined pressure from light and darkness made it unable to move freely for a moment; a powerful binding force locked it in place. As the dark knight’s lance created a cloud of darkness approaching, the enraged Wyvern had no choice but to raise its sturdy tail whip and meet it head-on.
With a loud, resonant crash, sparks flew as the impact sent strange ripples spreading outward through space. The intense vibration of the force field caused cracks to appear in the space itself. Vladkov was shaken so badly by the whip’s strike that he could barely hold his lance, nearly losing it. A feeling of suffocation in his chest made the dark knight experience pain he hadn’t felt in ages. The burning pain in his palms proved that he had both internal and external injuries.
The Skeleton Wyvern was also suffering greatly. The dark knight’s powerful strike was not something any ordinary creature could withstand, especially since its strength had been severely restricted by the multiple magic bindings cast by the enemy’s magicians. The lance’s strike nearly shattered its indestructible black whip, leaving it swaying in the air like a drunkard—clear evidence of the severe impact it had taken.
Attacking a weakened opponent was Kommer’s strongest skill. While the Mystic Mage and Puppet Mage continued to cast spells to restrict the enemy’s power, Kommer seized the opportunity to gather magic for an attack. After the dark knight’s powerful strike succeeded, he stepped forward boldly, facing the terrifying Skeleton Wyvern alone. A cunning smile appeared on his lips—a smile that would send chills down even a skeleton’s spine. “Snake Dances in the Nine Abysses, but my heart remains unchanged. Fire Spirits, without distinction between front and back! Transform!”
This time, the power of “Golden Snake Dance” was far greater than when it was used against the Gray Wolf. Although this higher-level fire magic wasn’t Kommer’s most advanced technique, it was the most suitable in terms of proficiency. Kommer chanted it three times in a row; the overlapping rings of fire formed a trapezoidal, fortress-like fire tower. With the help of Rebrí’s continuous application of acceleration spells and supporting magic, the fire tower eventually encased its target after several difficult dodges by the Skeleton Wyrm.
Golden rings of fire enveloped the enraged, roaring Single-Thorn Wyrm. Under Rebrí’s almost endless support of magical spells, the golden fire tower shrank smaller and smaller, yet the flames it emitted grew more intense, even taking on a nearly cyan-blue hue. This peculiar color appeared only when the fire element reached its peak concentration—a result of Rebrí’s continuous casting.
Like chains of fire tightly binding it, the furious Single-Thorn Wyrm didn’t seem to be restrained by its transformed skeletal body. It thrashed wildly in the air, and gravity spells and dark binding spells seemed ineffective at this moment. The Wyrm’s movements became extremely agile, as if trying to break free from these chains of fire. The cyan-blue flames had spread to every bone of the Wyrm’s body, and its grayish-white skeleton emitted shrill, eerie noises as it burned.
Kommer kept intensifying the fire waves, pushing them deeper and deeper. The flames, which had shifted from cyan-blue to nearly cyan-white, gradually penetrated into the depths of the Wyrm’s skeleton. Each bone seemed to serve as perfect fuel for the fire, burning endlessly from the outside in.
Almost simultaneously, the two Dark Knights chose the Skeleton Wyrm, which was now trapped by the magical fire and struggling desperately. The dark flames emitted from their knightly lances merged at that moment, completely surrounding the Skeleton Wyrm. A series of sharp impacts and strikes echoed unmistakably to everyone’s ears.
The single, bamboo-thin spike of the Spine Dragon hadn’t even had a chance to be used before it was shattered under the combined attacks of nearly three mages and two dark knights. Its already weakened skeleton, scorched by magical fire, finally collapsed under the open assault of the two dark knights, breaking apart before hitting the ground. Meanwhile, the two skeleton trolls entangling another skeleton dragon were also crippled by the wind blades unleashed by the Spine Dragon—losing limbs and strength. One of the skeleton trolls was even hit in the head by a powerful whip from the Spine Dragon, causing its body to explode. The other skeleton troll fared no better; after dodging the dragon’s sharp claws in mid-air, it was knocked down by a sweeping tail whip. This time, it lacked the luck of before; its spine, already struggling to support its body, was shattered, leaving it to twist on the ground before turning into a pile of bone fragments.
The combined efforts of the expedition members dealt a devastating blow to the formidable Spine Dragon abomination. The second skeleton dragon wasn’t as lucky—every magical attack rained down on it. In particular, the Mystic Mage’s Holy Light Purification spell reduced this abomination’s abilities significantly with just two blasts. The dark magic, weak against such pure celestial light, was utterly overwhelmed. The holy light, targeting the very core of dark creatures, swept away all darkness without reservation. Without the support of dark magic, the skeleton dragon could barely stay aloft. Coupled with the thunderous attacks from the Rebrí Hurricane and the coordinated efforts of the dark knights, it was swiftly sent on a path to destruction.
The dark passage finally returned to its usual silence. Those who had just witnessed the fierce battle felt as if they had survived a catastrophe. Even the usually brave Rebrí began to consider that if they faced such dangers twice more, this so-called expedition to Damorlensk Fortress might well be the end of their team. The Mystic Mage’s almost monstrously powerful light magic sent chills down Rebrí and Komer’s spines, who were already on high alert.
The dark passage lay quietly ahead, but the members of the exploration team no longer harbored the arrogance and confidence they had at first. The appearance of those exotic magical beasts had undoubtedly served as a warning to them. Although it was just an abomination, it also indicated that they might face even more difficulties ahead. To complete this expedition, greater courage and thorough mental preparation were undoubtedly needed.
At Komer’s suggestion, the exploration team reorganized itself. The dark knight Sorenberg remained at the forefront, but Vladkov was moved to the middle position, while Newman was placed third. In front of him was the mysterious mage Lomei; her powerful light magic made it impossible for him to refuse. Mihajic and Komer stood beside Newman, with Rebril covering the rear.
As they ventured deeper step by step, the gloomy atmosphere underground grew increasingly dense. The team could already feel its impact on their bodies. They had to constantly cast minor spells to relieve their stiff limbs, while the knights used their inner strength to resist the encroaching darkness and prevent harm. The spiral-shaped passage continued to descend. According to Newman’s calculations, they had already descended at least three floors below, before the slope finally leveled out again.
When a faint blue light shone from deep within the darkness, everyone realized that another checkpoint was likely approaching.
At the end of the arc-shaped passage was a door made of an unknown material. The blue light came from the lintel above the door. Rebril, skilled in identifying materials, immediately recognized it as an extremely rare magical stone—Linglang, a precious gem used in creating light-based magic. It could absorb light flames, and once it had absorbed enough, it could release them. Its quality varied depending on the duration and intensity of the absorbed light, but regardless, any stone capable of releasing light flames was invaluable. Based on Rebril’s observation, this Linglang was certainly among the finest of its kind. Using it as lighting in front of the door was like wasting such a precious gem.
Three meters away from the entrance, everyone could already sense the intense magical aura surrounding the area. Undoubtedly, numerous magical traps and mechanisms had been set up here. Newman immediately crawled to the ground and began searching for the sources of these traps, showing unparalleled skill in this regard. Without him, even if they discovered such traps, they would have to resort to crude methods like triggering them first before destroying them, with unpredictable consequences.
After carefully neutralizing two magical crossbows, three magical traps, and two dormant exotic magical beasts—aberrations of the Earth Wolf—everyone, including Rebrí, realized they were drenched in sweat. They might have managed to deal with the magical crossbows and traps, but the Earth Wolf aberrations were a nightmare. As the king of earth-based magical beasts, the Earth Wolf was not only immensely strong and invulnerable to weapons but also naturally immune to ordinary magic. Apart from lightning magic, which could cause some damage, ordinary magic elements like water, fire, wind, and earth couldn’t harm it at all. Even normal combat energy would likely be ineffective against it. Perhaps even the person who set up these traps didn’t dare wake it up casually and had to use space magic to seal it at the entrance to another dimension. No one could imagine the consequences if the Earth Wolf woke up and entered that space.
After Newman and Rebrí used space magic to send the two Earth Wolf aberrations back into another dimension, everyone, including the mysterious mage Lomei, couldn’t help but sigh in relief. If they had to face those ferocious Earth Wolves, none of them would have had the confidence to escape that passage.
It seemed all the obstacles were over, and a smooth path lay ahead. Yet, the group still felt like frightened birds. They couldn’t understand how such an ancient castle could have so many magical traps and mechanisms. The cruelty and cunning of its designer were almost pathological—unknown to them, the designer had summoned numerous exotic magical beast aberrations through specialized spells and hidden them along the paths. If it weren’t for the extraordinary strength of these explorers, ordinary adventurers would have been doomed many times over. Just one Aberrant Flying Dragon was more than enough to wipe out an entire group of adventurers.
The hexagonal light pattern gradually dimmed under Newman’s continuous casting of spells. It was a spatial trap—should anyone reckless push or break through the door, they might be swallowed by the spatial magic trap and sent to another dimension. Newman clearly had more experience in this area than anyone in the exploration team; even the mysterious mage watched with interest as Newman deciphered this spatial magic. Powerful magical forces kept changing forms in front of the door—sometimes producing various illusions, sometimes turning everything dark and silent. Eventually, the hexagonal light shrank into a single point before disappearing from the door. Only then did Newman wipe the sweat from his forehead and breathe a sigh of relief.
The door slowly opened under Sorenberg’s tentative push. Everyone had repeated protective spells several times to guard against potential dangers once the door opened. Newman moved to the back, hiding behind Reby. Sorenberg’s knight’s sword had a faint glow on its blade, pointing straight ahead. The mysterious mage raised his right hand, twisting his index and middle fingers into a strange gesture—clearly having gathered enough magic power, ready to launch a magical attack at the slightest sign of danger.
Once again, a skull enveloped in black mist appeared in front of the puppet mage. This skull was different from the previous two skull trolls—it appeared much more refined, about the size of a normal person, clad in beautiful magical armor. Its small round shield was as smooth as a mirror, and its short sword exuded a chilling aura. A red band was tied around its bare skull, giving it an unnaturally eerie appearance. The skull warrior stood in a fighting stance, legs apart, body tilted to the side, its round shield carefully covering its upper body while the short sword was held horizontally in front of its chest. Its empty eye sockets stared straight ahead, ready to launch a full-scale attack, prompting the mysterious mage beside it to instinctively step back.
Reby also didn’t dare underestimate it. Judging from its gestures, its attack magic was already ready to be unleashed—the moment a target appeared, it would attack without hesitation.