Chapter 226: Battle with the Pursuers

After prolonged meditation, the bands of spirit power and magic power had grown thicker and longer than before. The pentagram arrays within the two spaces were now connected by threads of silver light intertwined with spirit power and magic power. This situation reduced Shaoke's spellcasting costs, mainly because the threads linking the two spaces did not dissipate after each advancement.

A few small spell structures rotated rapidly on the pentagram arrays within each space. These spell structures had initially floated inside the arrays, but when Shaoke advanced to a Fifth Tier Mage, the structures, when they were re-outlined, could no longer integrate into the arrays. Fortunately, these small spell structures were not detectable by outsiders since they were suspended above the pentagram arrays, as the purple light hid them.

Deep meditation lasted for five magic hours. As scheduled, Shaoke came out of it. The two female mages who'd stayed here the night before had already left early, but they'd left some meat soup warming on the rack over the fireplace for him.

Just as Shaoke finished breakfast, a hurried knock interrupted him. "Mage Xueye, the Blizzard Legion's army is back. The legion commanders are calling for us!" a rushed voice announced the news.

After a quick cleanup, Shaoke followed the messenger mage to the meeting point designated by the legion commanders. A huge tent, big enough to hold thousands, was set up near the city wall. Mages quickly arrived from their camps, and Shaoke even spotted many archers and infiltrators wrapped in black cloth. All of this made the mages realize this wasn't going to be simple.

Over two thousand professionals of all kinds gathered quietly in the tent. The infiltrators, after a quick adjustment, melted into the shadows where the light couldn't reach, vanishing. Some powerful infiltrators even vanished by using other people's shadows. The archers kept their distance from the mages, since the two professions didn't get along and were even a bit hostile.

Even though mages had the most numbers, they were weaker in quality than the other professions. At least the archers and infiltrators were Sixth Rank or even Seventh Rank.

Luckily, a lot of Seventh Rank mages were also gathered here, and even two or three Eighth Tier Mages sat in the front.

The five legion commanders had been waiting here a while. After another half magic hour, the commander of the Blizzard 33rd Corps stood up. As he moved, the few Eighth Tier Mages quickly chanted a spell, and a faint black barrier wrapped around the tent, covering everyone. But no one panicked, since the legion commanders wouldn't hurt them under these circumstances.

"This time, the Blizzard Legion took heavy losses, so we had to ask the military to let you professionals on rear missions join the upcoming battles," the commander said, straightening his slightly hunched back to look more energetic. "I hope none of you will refuse, as you are temporarily under the Blizzard Legion's jurisdiction." After speaking, he saluted the crowd and sat down, his back hunched again.

The commander's words caused great dissatisfaction among the various professionals. Of course, the archers were not too displeased, as on the battlefield, they were positioned furthest back, making them safer than the mages. As for the infiltrators, they lacked the ability to assassinate high-ranking enemy commanders in large-scale battles, as concealment was useless in such crowded conditions, and every commander was heavily guarded by soldiers. Without specific environments and close cooperation, infiltrators were merely throwing their lives away on the battlefield.

Naturally, the mages' dissatisfaction was even greater. If high-rank mages appeared on the battlefield, these slower-moving mages would be the primary targets.

"This time, you are not being sent into large-scale combat," a pale-faced legion commander stood up, loudly silencing the murmurs. "This is only small-scale combat. I think you should understand that top-tier professionals will not appear on our battlefield. We are merely providing auxiliary support." After saying this, the commander sat down somewhat dejectedly.

The remaining legion commanders took turns providing supplementary explanations. Finally, after confirming that it was not a large-scale battle and that no top-tier professionals would appear, the various professionals agreed. After all, in their understanding, there was no great danger in those small cities and towns.

After confirming that no one would withdraw from this operation, the few legion commanders left under the protection of some soldiers. The Eighth Tier Mages removed the black barrier and flew away.

"The legion commander is injured," a nearby mage frowned, voicing his observation. To convince his companions, he added, "When the commander left just now, the last soldier supported him. Moreover, the soldiers protecting the commanders have all been replaced with new faces." He sighed softly.

"Perhaps the Blizzard Legion has begun to decline," an archer coldly stated his guess, then ignored the glaring mages and left the tent with the crowd.

Shadows mingled with the crowd as they left, and Shaoke, accompanied by a few familiar mages, quickly returned to their camp.

A few days later, the mages ended their rest and followed the Blizzard Legion onto the battlefield. This large-scale war mission lasted for over a decade, only stopping after the Esuoer Empire fell. By then, many mages and other professionals had been permanently lost in those countless missions.

"Mage Xueye," the necromancer who always liked to follow Shaoke quickly stepped forward, pointing at the front of the column and shouting, "Should we slow down a bit? Many mages can't hold on anymore." He looked back at the mages, who, despite being under support spells, were still exhausted. They had just fought a battle, and although there were no losses, the continuous trek through the forest was too much for the physically weaker mages, especially the clerics.

"No need. In another magic hour, we'll be out of this forest," Shaoke frowned, looking at the mage column behind him. Although they often encountered this situation after joining the Blizzard Legion, some mages still couldn't adapt.

"Enemy spotted," a Seventh Tier Mage, who was scanning the rear, quickly announced. "Soldiers, a large number of soldiers. About twenty thousand meters away," he shouted, alerting the commander and other professionals to prepare for battle. Since they were still within the Esuoer Empire's controlled territory, there was no possibility of friendly forces, and the enemy lacked any identifying magic items, leading the mage to this conclusion.

Upon receiving the news of pursuers, the several-thousand-strong column quickly halted. A group of soldiers carefully protected the three hundred or so mages, including Shaoke. The infiltrators quickly dispersed, forming groups of three to five and vanishing into the forest.

The archers kept their distance from the mages, preparing their weapons for battle. Five or six Sixth Tier Mages began releasing their spirit power to scan the surroundings, while the few Seventh Tier Mages released their spirit power or magic power to perform a vague lock on the direction of the enemy's approach.

Seven or eight area-of-effect spells were quickly released by the mages: ice-laden storms, bird-shaped flames, and large flaming boulders falling from the sky. The distance of about twenty thousand meters was enough for these Seventh Tier Mages to release four or five area-of-effect spells. Unfortunately, these Seventh Tier Mages were not proficient in area-of-effect spells, or they could have launched more attacks.

As the pursuers dispersed, the Seventh Tier Mages stopped their attacks, sensing that the enemy had deployed a large number of ritualists. These ritualists were mostly former mages who had lost their ability to cast offensive spells but excelled in defensive spells and some bizarre magical attacks. Such attacks had cost Shaoke's column nearly two hundred mages and other professionals over the past few years.

The news of a large number of ritualists made the atmosphere tense. In a battle last year, a Seventh Tier Mage had been successfully hunted by enemy archers due to the relentless harassment of ritualists.

"I hope there are no archers this time," the White-robed Cleric said nervously, gripping Shaoke's arm after casting a spell to reduce spellcasting consumption for a Sixth Tier Mage. Although she had been on such missions for years, she always inexplicably worried whenever the enemy pursued them, as she had never forgotten the female cleric who was hunted by enemy archers during their first mission.