The inner corridors of the Molten Ruins.
Team leader Zi Wei led the team deeper into the inner corridors, arriving at an altar hall roughly the size of a soccer field. Due to magical traps and monster pursuit, the entire team had been reduced to fewer than thirty people. Of the original eight Tier 3 class holders, only six remained—casualties had been severe.
"Team leader, those monsters don't seem to dare come in." A Tier 3 Berserker watched the mechanical puppets prowling the corridor and couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. "That was close. I thought we were all going to die here."
In order to escape Battle Blood's pursuit, they had risked everything to charge their way inside. Along the way, they had fought even as they advanced, their nerves stretched to the breaking point at every moment.
Both their stamina and mental energy had been drained to the extreme.
Given another half hour, they wouldn't even need Battle Blood to come and finish them off—they would all be dead at the hands of those mechanical puppets.
Now that they had reached a place where no mechanical puppets dared to pursue them, they could finally catch their breath.
"This place might be a safe point set up within the inner corridors. Everyone rest here for now." Zi Wei, clad in silver-and-black armor and wearing a silver knight's helmet, swept a gaze across the hall and issued her orders. "Assassins and Rangers, sweep the area and check for traps."
Team leader Zi Wei's voice was, as always, imbued with an indescribable gentleness, as sacred and stirring as a heavenly melody, with absolutely no trace of exhaustion. The others couldn't help but feel a deep sense of awe.
After all, Zi Wei served as the team's main tank. Not only had she fought continuously for several hours straight, but she had also held off two High Great Lords on top of that. Her stamina and mental energy consumption far exceeded theirs.
They were all on the verge of collapse, yet Zi Wei looked as though nothing had happened at all.
Following Zi Wei's orders, the team's Assassins and Rangers set to work, sweeping the hall for traps. The others took out potions, seizing every moment to restore their stamina and mental energy.
"Team leader, what do we do next? Battle Blood can't be far behind us, but if we push any deeper, we might be completely wiped out." A Tier 3 female Elementalist looked at the explored map with deep concern.
Although they were in a safe zone now, Battle Blood had been hot on their heels. It was only a matter of time before they reached this point. According to the map, they were now near the center of the inner corridors, where monster levels universally exceeded 110—a far cry from the creatures they had faced before.
If they died, not only would all the Tree of Life branches they had gathered drop, but they would also suffer significant losses to their levels and equipment.
"If it really comes to it, we can always charge in and die. Either way, I'm not going to let those Battle Blood people benefit from this no matter what," said the Tier 3 Berserker, Hu Lao.
He had already made peace with the situation. Death was inevitable either way—at least this way, Battle Blood would get nothing for their efforts.
The others nodded in solemn agreement.
Originally, Blade of the Firmament could have shot to prominence using the Tree of Life branches, but because of Battle Blood, they had been driven to this. They certainly weren't about to let Battle Blood have their way.
"I'm afraid that decision isn't yours to make!"
Hardly had the Tier 3 Berserker Hu Lao finished speaking when a deep, resonant voice echoed throughout the entire hall.
"Who's there?!"
Hu Lao was startled and immediately bellowed, his gaze fixed intently on the direction the voice had come from.
But no one was visible from where the voice had originated, leaving everyone bewildered. Yet in less than two seconds, the space in that area grew hazy, and faint, translucent figures could be glimpsed.
Within three seconds, these translucent figures had fully materialized—more than thirty in total, each one radiating the unmistakable aura of a genuine Tier 3 class.