Chapter 247 - 161: Epic Skill—Shadow Splitting
Chapter 247: Chapter 161: Epic Skill—Shadow Splitting
Lute, who rarely spoke, ordered, "The slower Mages and Warriors retreat first. Rangers and Assassins, go rescue them..."
He then took the lead, rushing deeper into the Cave.
"I want to go too!"
Torren was about to follow, but Landon stopped him. "Listen to Lute. Have the Warriors and Knights evacuate the wounded first!"
"But..."
Torren clenched his fists, his face filled with bitter reluctance.
’If we can’t save them, then what was this whole difficult journey for?’
"Don’t let your emotions get the better of you!"
Landon rebuked the young man in a rare, lecturing tone. "Saving people is important, but the lives of all these Adventurers are more important! You’re the leader of this operation. As such, you must make a level-headed decision at a time like this!"
"I understand."
Torren’s fists finally unclenched in defeat. He glanced into the depths of the Cave and shouted, "All Warriors and Knights, retreat immediately with the wounded! Rangers and Assassins, you may attempt a rescue."
The implication was clear: if they didn’t want to go, they didn’t have to.
The lives of powerful Adventurers were worth far more than those of commoners. It was a cruel, but indisputable, fact.
This was a point that Uncle Joel and even the Lord City Lord had stressed to him more than once before they set out.
If they encountered overwhelming danger during the rescue, their top priority was to ensure the safety of the Adventurers.
The moment he finished speaking, the group stopped lingering and began to retreat.
This included most of the Assassins and Rangers.
They weren’t fools; they knew what the tremors meant. If they didn’t leave immediately, they would die here when the Cave inevitably collapsed.
While there was no shortage of chivalrous souls among the Adventurers, risking one’s life for a good deed was another matter entirely...
After all, their main reason for coming was the mission reward.
Only a few, like Lute, continued to press deeper into the Cave.
COUGH, COUGH—
Lin Mo coughed incessantly, spitting up blood with each wracking cough.
"Are you okay?"
Shefilya was badly injured as well. With her speed, she could have put enough distance between herself and the explosion. But in the instant before the blast, her first instinct was to run back for Lin Mo, so she was caught in it too. Fortunately, she was farther away and behind him, otherwise her injuries would have been far more severe.
She clutched one arm. Though covered in blood, the sight was more frightening than the wound itself; she wasn’t seriously hurt.
Lin Mo shook his head, cast two Healing Techniques on himself in succession, and then drank a Basic Life Potion. He immediately felt much better.
As he stood up, his vision went black from the severe mental strain, and he nearly stumbled.
Even so, he cast a Healing Technique on Shefilya.
"That’s enough! Stop using Magic!"
Shefilya snapped, rushing to steady him. She prepared to lead him out of the Cave.
"Lin Mo!"
Ali and Feney hurried over as well, their faces etched with anxiety as they looked at him.
"Ali, you take Feney and go first."
Lin Mo glanced deeper into the Cave. It was a large one and seemed relatively stable; the collapse wasn’t happening that quickly. With their Agility, they still had plenty of time.
"Understood!"
Ali was never the indecisive type. She nodded solemnly, hoisted Feney onto her shoulder, and quickly retreated with the other Adventurers.
Lin Mo let out a heavy sigh, feeling slightly better. He and Shefilya exchanged a look and headed deeper into the Cave together.
Hardly any Goblins remained; the few that were left had begun to scatter and flee. Time was short, and Lin Mo had no time to hunt them down.
Shefilya held a torch she had just pulled from a wall sconce. By its light, they quickly spotted Lute, who had arrived first. He was flanked by several other Assassins and Rangers.
"What’s the situation?"
Lute’s brow was furrowed, his eyes filled with frustration.
He nocked an arrow to his bow. "We have to break down this iron door first," he said.
Lin Mo strode forward and saw that at the end of this passage was a dungeon.
Behind iron bars, numerous young women were bound in chains. Most were covered in scars and wounds, especially...
’Damn Goblins!’
"I’ll do it."
Lin Mo’s face darkened with anger. As he spoke, he strode forward and, with a single Punching Fist, sent the iron door flying. The blast shattered the stone walls on either side.
"Save them!"
There weren’t that many young women, as the only ones kept here were those still alive... or rather, those who still had value, who could continue to reproduce.
Many more had already been brutalized to death by the Goblins.
The near-dead captives they’d seen on their way in were likely those who wouldn’t survive another birth, so they’d been tossed as "rewards" to the stronger Goblins.
There were sixteen or seventeen captives in total, and seven or eight Adventurers had come to help. Each rescuer carrying two should be manageable.
"Give them a little Life Potion first... Not too much, or their bodies won’t be able to handle it."
Alchemy Potions weren’t something to be used carelessly, especially on ordinary people. These girls were extremely weak; their bodies might not be able to withstand the Medicinal Power if they drank too much.
They broke the chains as fast as possible, each rescuer taking two captives and retreating quickly toward the Cave’s entrance.
The tremors in the Cave grew more pronounced, feeling like an earthquake. Rubble fell intermittently from above, and cracks began to spiderweb across the rock walls.