Supreme Magus novel Chapter 688

The activation of the ancient elevator had also triggered a device placed several hundreds of meters below them. It awoke the Odi from their long slumber, signaling to them that rescue had finally arrived.

They were many and there was only one monitor, so they crowded in front of it while shoving each other away to see which one of the ancient noble families had managed to find a cure for their condition and repress the revolt.

What appeared in front of their eyes was much worse than the dreamless sleep they had just escaped from.

"What does this mean?" A male asked. "Those aren’t even Odi possessing human bodies. According to the sensors, they are actual humans, or at least most of them are."

Nimble feminine fingers ran across a keyboard, activating the surveillance devices scattered throughout Kulah. The cameras showed them the camp on the outside and how many buildings had been breached.

"These people are no helpers, but raiders." A female said. "We need to exterminate them before going back to sleep."

"Don’t be so hasty." Another woman replied. "Look at their equipment. I’ve never seen anything like that. They might hold the key to resume our research."

After a quick debate, an agreement was reached.

"Fine. Let them come like lambs to their slaughter, but we must make sure that no one of their slaves manages to escape." A second male voice said while pressing a button which activated their ultimate defense mechanism.

***

In the meantime, Lith could see with Life Vision that something was terribly wrong. The world energy compressed and accumulated inside Kulah’s buildings was being released all at once while more was being pumped from the mana geyser below.

"This is a quake! We must make sure that the people at the camp are alright." Yondra said, worried about Rainer.

Yet it was no quake. The world energy was being converted into a thick, black miasma that was flooding the whole underground cave and its tunnels, consuming every form of life on its path, even the moss they had painstakingly grown during the last few weeks.

The camp was already submerged in darkness element and the only reason its occupants were still alive was the multi-layered array that Neshal and the other Professors had left. Yet it wasn’t going to protect them for long.

The dark energy was eating at the magical formation, whereas the miasma could slowly pass through it. Barriers wouldn’t prevent air and light from entering, making the situation of those at the camp even more desperate.

Luckily, the cave was now filled with air, allowing them to use fire magic to destroy the toxic gas before it got too close. Without all the moss they had planted, they would have had no defense against such an attack.

Jerth was about to contact Phloria, but she beat her second in command to the punch.

"Is everything alright at the camp? The quake..."

"Is caused by a mass destruction spell that’s consuming the whole cave." Jerth cut her short, the external layers were already crumbling. "What do we do?"

Jerth pressed a few buttons on the amulet, allowing Phloria’s group to take a look around.

Lith didn’t waste time, opening a Warp Steps right in front of Quylla, quickly followed by both Phloria and Yondra who had started to chant as soon as they had seen Jerth’s terrorized expression.

Only thanks to the three dimensional corridors did the rest of the expedition team manage to get to safety before the array collapsed.

"I haven’t forgotten, but have you seen how low have we stooped? What we have become to remain alive and preserve our magical talents? I’d say that even a monkey’s body is better than this thing you call life." _{freewёbnoνel.com}