Chapter 35: Act 27 – The Soul Crystal
A gigantic wilted beast raised a claw nearly half a human’s height and slammed it down, but Brendel ducked to avoid it. The gust of wind created by its withered branches swept like a knife over his head, striking a slab of shale with a mighty ‘bang’ that sent rocks flying twenty to thirty meters away.
Brendel watched as the rock changed direction three times in the air before finally crashing into a pile of sharp stones, kicking up a cloud of dust. He couldn’t help but be astonished at such power. If someone were to be hit by that—every bone in their body would shatter from the impact, splintered bones piercing internal organs, which would deform and rupture under the pressure, causing massive internal bleeding—a simple way to say it would be instant death.
The elite wilted beast’s strength, rated at 8.9, was already at the peak of creatures below level 20. In Brendel’s memory, aside from berserkers and dwarven iron guardians, there were hardly any professions that could match it in strength at this level.
However, he never intended to confront it head-on. He instructed Freya to provide cover from the side while he took advantage of agility to roll in and strike at the left foot of the tree monster with the Amber Sword—this massive shrub creature stood nearly five meters tall, with claws over three meters long, possessing an extremely wide attack range. But as it lowered its head, it found it difficult to attack the crouched Brendel beneath itself.
Brendel swung his sword, and the bright Purification Flame only left a burn mark on the creature’s lower leg, making him sweat nervously—while the elite wilted beast had high physical stats, its resilience and resistance couldn’t possibly be this high. This indicated that there was still a power suppression between him and this monster, something inherent in the Amber Sword’s design that he didn’t expect to see here.
Nevertheless, the sword still hurt the massive wilted beast, causing it to raise its head and emit a long howl—a buzzing sound that made nearby grasses tremble violently.
Brendel felt a pressure in his chest, while Freya nearby coughed up blood. The intimidation roar—the effect in the game wasn’t as pronounced; was it because their levels were too low? Brendel felt as if his internal organs were about to shift, and his retina displayed that some of his organs had sustained varying degrees of damage.
“Brendel!” The Merchant Miss’s voice came from not far away.
Brendel turned his head and noticed she had already tied the rope and secured the hook. He felt a wave of relief; Romaine was indeed reliable in critical moments, remaining calm in a tough situation, and she truly had the potential to become a merchant.
He glanced in another direction, seeing that the wilted beast’s larvae had already gotten very close; it was time to retreat—only a few seconds left.
“Freya.” He called out immediately.
“I’m fine, cough cough.” The ponytailed girl stubbornly wiped the blood from her mouth, picked up her sword, and assumed a defensive posture again.
“The finishing blow, you cover me as I exit its attack range—”
Freya nodded, gripping her sword. Imitating the training regulations, she let out a low shout and moved in from the side. The massive shrub monster was about to lift its foot to stomp on Brendel, but then had to pay attention to the other side—in terms of its intelligence, it was difficult for it to discern which side posed more of a threat, but instinctually, Freya seemed more formidable.
So it quickly unfurled the branches on its body, ‘whoosh’, launching countless sharp projectiles towards Freya.
The future Valkyrie had been prepared for this move thanks to Brendel’s warning, and immediately covered her head and chest with her arms. Though the spikes knocked her back into a nearby rock, causing blood to seep from her body, she gritted her teeth, somewhat gratified—at least she bought time for Brendel.
Brendel had no time to worry about Freya’s injuries. As soon as he left the giant shrub beast’s attack range, he crouched down, raised his right hand with the gleaming silver ring, and aimed at its injured left foot.
“Oss!”
The air was stifled as a blast of wind pressure slammed into the elite wilted beast’s left leg with a ‘bang’, sending wood chips flying everywhere. A portion of its body exploded, shattered branches and leaves scattered like petals from a celestial maiden. No matter how high its defenses, this monster could not withstand a 20Oz empowered strike, and after losing its entire left half, its entire body lost balance and toppled backward—
Brendel activated his charge skill, leaping underneath the giant beast before it fell—he knew it was not dead yet; the elite wilted beast still had 42 hit points, which was not far from the gargoyle. He lifted the Amber Sword upward; he heard a series of light snaps as the blade pierced into the monster’s neck.
The elite wilted beast let out a wail, wanting to resist, but Brendel twisted the sword, and a brilliant silver flame burst forth from the blade—finally, the shrub monster’s head drooped helplessly, succumbing to its demise. The Purification Flame lifted its vitality and resilience suppression and surged upward, engulfing it in a roaring inferno.
Then countless golden sparks flew up from the massive fireball, merging into Brendel’s body—
17 experience points.
He suddenly felt a chill in his palm and instinctively opened his hand, noticing a plume of black smoke rising from the wilted monster, coalescing into his palm. The mist gradually solidified into a cold black crystal.
A Soul Crystal!
He had not anticipated this item to drop here, sending a shock through him, quickly followed by a wave of joy. Soul energy was the purest form of energy in this world; not only utilized by the undead wizards of Madara, but also studied and developed by wizards from other schools—within the game, Soul Crystals could be transformed into experience through a ritual, and could also activate certain items and recharge magic equipment.
For example, the Queen Wind Ring.
This soul crystal, estimated to have at least 30 points of experience, was enough to recharge the Queen Wind Ring with surplus. How could Brendel not be pleased? He thought he would have to hide for three hours in a safe place without the ring after using it early due to unforeseen circumstances. Without it, he would not dare to run around this valley.
However, regardless, three hours had already been wasted.
Yet unexpectedly, there was still a turn of fate.
Putting away his sword, he glanced back, realizing that the nearest wilted beast larva had already crawled onto the platform, startling him. At this moment, both he and Freya were exhausted and couldn’t withstand another fierce battle; one would be manageable, but if they were surrounded, it would be troublesome.
Meanwhile, Freya, covered in wounds, had just felt relieved when she saw Brendel slay the giant shrub monster but became alarmed again as those spiny monsters reappeared on the other side of the rock platform. She frowned, ready to struggle to stand up, but saw Brendel jogging over, picking her up without giving her a chance to protest, and ran toward Romaine.
“Ah.”
“Put, put me down—”
The future Valkyrie, who now felt like just a village girl from Buche, felt her face heat with embarrassment. She struggled, but Brendel wouldn’t listen; she had no choice but to turn her crimson face away and allow him to carry her.
By the cliffside, Romaine had already climbed up. This future Merchant Miss was not the type to shy away; she handled matters decisively, but Brendel had no doubt that if he and Freya hadn’t managed to ascend, she would have come back down alone.
More and more wilted beasts were climbing up; he had only a few seconds left.
He looped the rope around Freya’s body and then around his own waist. He sensed the girl in his arms go tense all of a sudden, but he couldn’t worry about that now; thankfully, he had enough experience to level up, bringing his mercenary skill to level 3, granting him 2.5 strength levels, enough to pull both of them up with one hand.
It was a moment of critical urgency; a wilted beast larva even jumped up and grabbed his foot, but Brendel reacted faster, driving his sword straight down and knocking the creature back into the pile of monsters.
The three of them climbed to the top of the cliff, collectively sighing in relief. Brendel looked down to see those shrub monsters grabbing the rope trying to climb up; he wasted no time, cutting the rope to let them fall back down. After all, there was plenty of rope left, and as long as the hook was saved, it was fine.
Brendel knew this cliff extended thousands of meters long; for these golden magical tree minions to continue looking for trouble, they would have to circle into another valley. He had some time yet, so at this moment, he finally couldn’t help but sit down and let out a long sigh.
“Well done!” he couldn’t help but give Romaine a thumbs up; the Merchant Miss had really performed admirably—Brendel had found a treasure in her.
“Really? Aunt often says that; Little Romaine, you are the best.”
The Merchant Miss couldn’t help but puff out her little chest, feeling a bit proud, but soon her concerned gaze fell on Freya. Brendel knew she was worried about her friend’s injuries and replied, “Don’t worry, it’s just superficial wounds. Once we find a safe place to clean and bandage them, it will be fine.”
Freya, still blushing, didn’t dare speak.
But now that Brendel had finally caught his breath, he looked at the future Valkyrie, feeling a bit exasperated. He originally wondered how this future Valkyrie had survived in such a brutal war; was it due to her admirable qualities of strength and calmness?
In the past, Freya indeed gave him such an impression, though simpler, she displayed a calmness that others lacked. Perhaps she had her reasons for being here, but her stubbornness over that backpack had irked Brendel immensely. Freya was too obstinate; perhaps it was that very stubbornness that had forged her strong character, but on the battlefield, it was not a good trait.
“Why did you come?” Nonetheless, as a companion, Brendel didn’t want to hurt her feelings. After thinking for a moment, he asked in a gentle tone.
Freya fell silent for a moment, removing a ring from her hand: “It’s the Chief of Security’s signet ring. You should go to Ridenburg to report; Uncle asked me to bring this to you.”
Brendel slapped his forehead. It wasn’t that he had forgotten this matter; he knew very well that his chances of being regarded in Ridenburg were slim. The civilian militia, like Freya, didn’t know, but veterans like Marden surely understood? If the nobles of Ridenburg had valued the defenses toward Buche, today’s situation wouldn’t have materialized.
His reason for going to Ridenburg was largely because of Romaine’s aunt, but he hadn’t expected that Marden would actually be moved by his actions and send the signet ring. That was also a lapse in his judgment; he should have told them flat out to reject the offer.
After all, this ring was also of great use to the refugees.
“You asked for it yourself, right?” But Brendel thought again that with that old soldier’s character, he wouldn’t have sent Freya to her death—despite the ring’s importance.
The girl adjusted her ponytail and nodded.
“Why bother?”
“Brendel, you’re not from Buche; what excuse do I have to evade? I am the captain of the third squad, so naturally, I must lead by example.” Freya lifted her head and answered.
“What’s inside that backpack?”
The future Valkyrie lowered her head, cradling her backpack but hesitated for a moment.
