Mushroom Lord in the Underground City-Chapter 385 - 377: Out of Control

When Lin Jun at the bottom of the Underground City began gathering the Puki troops, the battle at the entrance had reached a fever pitch.

Apart from the two engaged in combat, nearby elves had long since fled far away.

One elf who couldn’t assess the situation and didn’t run away was already a corpse by now, having been killed by someone’s stray attack. The remaining elves could only wait from afar for the battle to end.

Upon realizing he couldn’t fully counter Ilo’s Double Casting and was being suppressed, Eco’s tactics became increasingly aggressive.

Despite severe injuries to himself, he managed to leave two wounds on Ilo.

But that was all.

Though the wounds were deep, under the recovery of Full Level Natural Magic, these injuries did not truly impact Ilo.

On the other hand, Eco suffered significant setbacks from his attempts to fight hard twice. Even after constantly consuming Healing Potions, he was gradually unable to sustain himself.

He knew he had only one last chance.

At the instant Eco moved at high speed, the roots controlled by Ilo burst from the ground, causing his figure to pause slightly.

At the same time, a scorching ray charged at the tip of the Magic Staff burst forth!

Facing this deadly strike, Eco hurled the Curved Saber in his hand with all his might.

The blade transformed into a silver wheel aiming straight at Ilo’s face, but Ilo was already prepared. With a flick of the massive vine protecting him, at the cost of the vine being chopped off, the Curved Saber was deflected away.

Eco, losing a weapon he had prepared, was greatly reduced in combat power. Ilo was about to quickly finish the battle and search for the Divine Artifact when he heard a metallic clash from the direction where the Curved Saber flew.

Ilo realized something was wrong. As he turned his head, a spinning silver blade had already pierced through his shoulder!

His left arm flew off, landing on the ground far away alongside the Curved Saber. At this time, the other Curved Saber fell powerlessly to the ground.

And by now, another Curved Saber fell to the ground weakly from the air.

"Ah, that... brute!"

Ilo never expected that, faced with the deadly scorching ray, Eco would not leave a blade for defense but instead would use the second blade to collide with the first deflected Curved Saber in the air, changing its trajectory to attack him.

And the price was...

The smoke cleared; Eco was charred all over, his chest armor melted into a pit, a mix of metal and flesh producing a burning smell.

Ilo wasn’t even sure if he was still conscious.

He stumbled back two steps, tumbling into the spiral of the Underground City. By the time Ilo reached the edge, he could see nothing.

No concern for the severed hand, Eco’s dual sabers had "destructive" attributes. Even if retrieved, they couldn’t be reattached, and the two sabre wounds on his body were suppressed with continuous Healing Techniques.

Time was pressing. Ilo quickly stopped the bleeding and, face pale, rushed downward.

After he left, when the commotion finally disappeared, the other elves hurriedly came over. Looking at the traces of battle all over the place but the empty Underground City entrance, they were left bewildered.

After some searching, they only found Eco’s dual sabers and Ilo’s severed arm.

"Could it be... they both perished?"

If that were the case, with the Elf King, Chief Mage, and Royal City Guard Captain all dying on the same day, it was tantamount to the sky falling for the elves.

Eventually, the Royal City Guards returned to report the current dire situation to Galadriel, the daughter of the Elf King staying back at the Royal City, while the Rangers entered the Underground City hoping to find the missing two.

...

Three days later.

Due to the Giant Tree’s movements becoming increasingly sluggish, the previously trapped Ranger troops finally moved again.

After walking not far, they bumped into Ilo hurrying down.

"Old... teacher?" Salian looked in disbelief at the scene before him; he never expected to meet again with Ilo in such a state.

Pale-faced, disheveled hair, the most crucial being the empty space in the sleeve of his severed left arm, indicating the loss of an arm.

"Salian, you’re here too..."

Another mage student of Ilo spoke, stretching his neck among the crowd, but Ilo did not notice him.

"Salian, I know you have many things to say, but now I must first find the stolen Divine Artifact. Don’t stop me!"

"The Divine Artifact was stolen?!"

Salian was unwilling to be hostile to his teacher. Even in that situation, the teacher didn’t go all-out against him; it was just a difference in opinions.

If his sister ultimately came out unharmed, then for him, the conflict hadn’t reached an irreconcilable point.

In fact, if everything were as Ilo planned and they were eventually released, possibly not Eco, but Salian would most likely begrudgingly accept the situation.

Hearing news of the stolen Divine Artifact, and seeing the teacher’s miserable state now, Salian instinctively stepped back.

But not all elves made way.

Eco’s adjutant blocked Ilo, coldly looking at his severed arm.

Though Eco never mentioned Ilo’s conspiracy to him, the elf adjutant had his own judgment.

"If I didn’t see wrong, the wound was caused by the Captain of the Guard’s Curved Saber, right?"

At these words, all the Rangers simultaneously focused their eyes on Ilo’s severed arm.

They might not necessarily recognize the difference in wounds, but they clearly trusted their commander’s words.

"Chief Mage, can you tell me where the Captain of the Guard is now?" The adjutant placed his hand on the hilt of his Curved Saber, while nearby the sound of swords being drawn echoed.

Ilo gripped the Magic Staff, struggling to suppress the anger building within him: "You fools! One by one! Can’t you just wait patiently without stepping out to trip me up at critical moments?"

Massive vines rose from the ground amidst the Ranger troops, and a chaotic clash of magic and blades accompanied by cries and shouts unfolded.

When Ilo finally reached the central Divine Wood sapling at the spiral center, he already bore several more wounds.

The deepest one at his waist was left by that elf adjutant, while the adjutant was pierced through the chest by a branch.

Ilo’s purpose was merely to break through, not to stalemate with the Ranger troops, and not every Ranger dared to go all out when facing the Chief Mage. In the end, Ilo managed to shake them off and reach here.

His magic mark vanished here. It was obvious where the Divine Artifact was taken.

Given the opponent hid in the Abyssal Space, releasing Eco was most likely orchestrated by that individual.

Ilo felt he had been manipulated!

It seemed like an entire conspiracy, an unknown entity exploiting him!

Even though he didn’t yet know who that opponent was, the hatred within Ilo had already peaked.

Along with hatred, his fear reached its peak!

The opponent’s strength might be inferior, but cunningly treacherous, with unpredictable methods. Even if he couldn’t acquire the Divine Artifact, it must not fall into the opponent’s hands!

He knew his current state was dire, arguably never this weak in a hundred years, and what lay ahead might be a trap.

But he had no choice, there was no turning back now, it’s either success or death!

For the Ark Plan! For the future of the Elf Race!

After setting up the ritual, multiple enhancement magics were cast on him, and he drank the Potential Activation Potion from his waist.

The potion’s stimulus restored Physical Strength, and Magic Power became active again. Except for missing one arm, Ilo was back at peak condition!

Time was limited. He adeptly communicated with the Magic Array, and in the next moment, Ilo arrived in the empty Abyssal Space.