"Woo—woo—"
What awaited the adventurers was a howling gale, a force so immense it was hard to fathom. Just after being transported, Drew was thrown off his ground dragon by the violent winds. Da Qing Shan curled himself behind his left-hand shield, struggling to maintain his stance. Even the dwarf's coarse yellow beard was swept wildly in the tempest. The members of the Purple Heart Sword Mercenary Group, all clad in white, looked as if they were waving white banners in the storm.
Before them lay a dark, gaping hole. The fierce wind seemed to never relent, and the cave was stark, devoid of even a single stone. Amy attempted to conjure a wizard's fire, but the furious winds prevented him from even opening his mouth, let alone reciting an incantation.
"Boom—" The blue wizard's fire burst forth nonetheless. As a grand mage, the elf could unleash first-level spells at will without incantations. The dim light of the wizard's fire flickered tremulously in the storm.
Drew struggled to get back on his mount, and A Feng made a labored gesture. Everyone formed two lines, using the backs of those in front to shield themselves from the wind, moving forward slowly while supporting each other.
Suddenly, blue light appeared, revealing two azure elemental spirits in the cave. The brilliant blue wind elementals floated steadily in the gale like eagles soaring in the skies—motionless, with upper bodies resembling humans and lower bodies formed of rapidly swirling winds. Blue-purple light shimmered around them.
The spirits emitted sharp whistles, and every 20 meters, two azure wind elementals flashed into view on both sides of the wind cave. The entire cave was illuminated by the blue lightning, and it appeared to stretch at least 500 meters deep. The number of spirits within this cave was simply unfathomable.
The faces of level-one mage Jess, grand mage Laislink, A Feng, and Amy changed drastically. No wonder the winds in the cave were so immense. According to Reger, higher-level spirits could evoke corresponding elemental phenomena. For instance, ice spirits summon snow, and wind spirits summon tempests. Wind elementals capable of dancing with lightning were at least mid-tier spirits, each possessing immense destructive power. The summoned gales could obliterate entire villages. With so many wind elementals appearing simultaneously, the storm they conjured could easily tear the entire adventurer team to shreds.
The wind intensified, a relentless onslaught.
For the unfamiliar human intruders, the wind elementals clearly had no intention of hosting a banquet. The foremost elemental spirit didn't bother to inquire why they were there. Instead, it manifested a glimmering wind blade over a meter long, dancing toward the dwarf at the front of the team amidst the howling winds.
Despite being significantly shorter than the average person and having a lower center of gravity, Old Rock found his movements frozen in the gale. He managed to move his head slightly, but the wind blade grazed his beard, severing half a foot of hair. In an instant, the fierce winds whisked the severed hairs away into the distance.
Da Qing Shan charged forward, using his steel shield to block another incoming wind blade meant for Rock.
Death's shadow loomed over everyone's faces. In this storm, no one could fight the wind elementals—not even dragons. Even dragons would be torn apart by such gales—unless it was a wind dragon, capable of wielding the tempest as effortlessly as the wind elementals.
Now, retreat—there was no way back. The magic portal they had just entered had vanished. Advance—only to face certain death. The two wind elementals before them could easily deal with the adventurers, let alone the long line of wind spirits behind them. Stop—also a dead end; the adventurers couldn't open their mouths to communicate with the spirits in this gale, let alone plead for their lives.
Could this be the end of their quest? Was there no dragon here, only wind elementals? Would these four mercenary teams meet their demise here?
The howling winds suddenly began to slow, as if something was stubbornly blocking their path. The adventurers, engaged in a desperate struggle against the wind elements, noticed this change, but no one had time to turn around. The two wind elementals, now less vigorous, brandished their wind blades, and one swordsman found his face sliced open, while Amy felt the blade skim across his shoulder, blood immediately seeping out.
At that moment... the wind diminished further, nearly vanishing altogether.
The wind elementals' speed in the air slowed, their movements growing increasingly sluggish. Deprived of the wind, their combat prowess resembled that of a mere kitten. Despite more wind elementals pouring in from the distance, they stumbled into battle, only to be struck down by the adventurers in the first clash, quickly retreating back to the safety of their wind barrier.
The adventurers discovered the secret behind the fading wind: the massive cave suddenly brimmed with plants. Column-like vegetation shot straight up from the ground, while climbing vines covered the walls. All the plants bore the same leaves and color, rapidly growing as new shoots replaced those blown away by the wind. As the dense foliage created a network, the wind naturally came to a halt—the winds were stifled by the thriving plants.
The few wind elementals that approached the adventurers exchanged glances and disappeared into the cave without engaging in combat. Even nature spirits had to bow before overwhelming strength.
"Old buddy—" Old Rock, kneeling on the ground, hugged his large axe and began to weep. It was said that no one had ever seen a dwarf cry because they lacked tear ducts. Clearly, that myth had been shattered.
Except for Old Rock, everyone turned around.
Behind them, in the center of the cave, stood a solitary plant—grand mage Laislink. His legs had transformed into deep roots embedded in the cave's stone walls, while his body had become a brown trunk. The once kind and ever-smiling face was now carved into the bark, and his flowing gray-brown hair resembled a net, sprawled across the cave's ceiling. His arms reached out as if grasping for something, firmly turned into vine-like tendrils that clung to the cave walls. From the vines extending from his arms, roots shot straight down into the ground.
"Why?" Old Rock's tears streamed uncontrollably, his voice shifting from a sob to a full-throated cry. "Three hundred years ago, when we first met, you said all your efforts were aimed at becoming a high-tier elf, to enter the higher realms of the elven world as a forest elf... Yet all these years, you remained a B-tier mercenary. Who knows how many easily accomplished tasks you turned down? Who knows that you've already surpassed grand mage status to become a magus? You once told me you wished to be someone who kept a low profile, so why didn't you do so this time?"
According to legend, among the highest magics of forest elves was one that required a life as its price—"Oasis of Life." If a forest elf cast this spell with a resigned heart, dense forests would sprout in desolate wastelands, snowfields, or on peaks above the snow line. The Fairy Forest in the continent of Aiminol, it was said, came into being from similar over-tier magics cast by elven elders and the elven king.
Life is magnificent, but sacrificing one's life for comrades is undoubtedly even more noble, especially for elves. To bravely embrace death, relinquishing centuries of life, requires unimaginable courage. Otherwise, he might have been the only mercenary in the entire team with a chance of survival—elves typically wouldn't attack their own without a compelling reason.
Though the wind had ceased, the leaves continued to rustle joyfully, as if Laislink was responding to Old Rock's question. Suddenly, a red flower bloomed on a nearby tree trunk—just a single blossom. The trunk gently moved closer to Old Rock's head, and the flower trembled, dropping onto the dwarf's shoulder.
Tears streamed down Old Rock's face like beads slipping from a broken string.
A Feng, Xue, Da Qing Shan, Amy... all of their eyes filled with tears. A Feng stepped forward, slowly lifting Old Rock's arm, urging him toward the other end of the cave. "Old buddy—" The old dwarf looked back at Laislink's form with each step, his anguished voice echoing in the cave.
Thick branches and leaves parted to create a path for the adventurers, all pointing in the same direction.
Behind the last cluster of leaves, a massive magic circle reappeared.
...Without a doubt, Old buddy Laislink had provided one last safe magic circle for his comrades.
After the adventurers left, the "Double S Mission" became a widely sung ballad among bards, with B-tier mercenary Laislink shining brilliantly in the legendary tales of the quest, even outshining the already renowned A Feng in his white attire.
For countless years thereafter, many mercenaries would come to this cave to pay homage to a lush tree. It was said that leaf-made amulets obtained here were the finest protective charms for mercenaries, as they were imbued with the flesh and blood of an elven magus mercenary.