Chapter 1145 Corvac's Deadly Gambit

Chapter 1145 Corvac's Deadly Gambit

A monstrous quake brutally jolted the ground beneath their feet right after his last word, throwing off their balance. Soldiers from both sides, gathered at the site of the former hill, toppled to the ground one after another with shocked cries, only their superiors and other renowned warriors managing to stay upright.

"An earthquake?" Jake frowned doubtfully, considering this development underwhelming after all the suspense.

Hephais, Lysandra, and Ceythie seemed to share his sentiment as they all projected their mental senses into the ground below, searching for the cause. A serious light passed through their eyes as they sensed the ground beneath them was as perforated as Swiss cheese. Even deeper, they could feel a vast expanse of water...

"An aquifer? No, Lumyst Water!" Ceythie realized, finally understanding what Corvac was planning. All right! The man had guts! As expected from an old, faithless trickster!

Yet, it wasn't the enemy general's risky, double-edged plan that unsettled her, but rather how he managed to hide the existence of all this water. An aquifer covering the entire region of the battlefield and filled with Life Lumyst Water should not have eluded their vigilance.

It was well known that battle zones were thoroughly examined and regularly inspected to avoid any such surprises. To hide his plan, Corvac had to pull out all the stops, sparing no expense.

"If you were as strong as a Saint, you'd have been sitting in the Radiant Conclave long ago," Ceythie acknowledged softly, her face devoid of earlier condescension. The old strategist deserved her respect.

However, after delivering her compliment, she jolted her head with pity. As impressive as it was, such a plan couldn't defeat a Great General like her. Even if the Lumyst Water was pure enough to kill her, she'd still need to be touched by it. Her physical abilities might not match those of a Lifemancer or Light Warrior of equivalent cultivation, but they were more than enough to escape before everything collapsed.

Let alone her, none of the guards and officers accompanying her were in real danger either. The Light Warriors facing them were even athletically superior, also able to escape without issue.

It was rather the small fry who needed to worry. Coincidentally, a large number had been wiped out when the region was reduced to ashes by two consecutive forbidden spells cast by the battalion of opposing Radiant Mages.

This meant that Corvac's trap involved everyone, not just the cannon fodder. Once the ground completely collapsed, even the strongest warriors would end up in the water.

Even so, there was still an unknown factor in the equation that troubled him. It was the smug grumble of Lord Phoenix, far from the epicenter, who thought no one was paying attention to him, that gave him the answer:

"Hehe, even if the ground goes, I don't care, I can fly..."

So that's what was bothering me. Jake understood, exchanging a look reflecting the same wariness with Hephais and Lysandra.

If they could fly, then they wouldn't have to fall into the water. So, if their sense of alarm continued to intensify, there was only one possibility: Not only could they not escape this trap, but something even more terrible than the Lumyst Water below awaited them.

[The spiritual impulse of the Oracle Scan struggles to penetrate Life Lumyst Water.] Xi added, without a hint of teasing this time. [If the enemy has planned something to get rid of us, it's in the water.]

VRRRRRRRM!

As Jake and the others wondered what kind of horror awaited them, the water level, which had been dropping faster and faster to support the barrier, suddenly began to swell in the opposite direction, as if something massive was expanding inside, pushing it towards the sky.

Soldiers from both camps, clinging as best they could to the exponentially fracturing ground, sensed the rumble of the earth intensify again, followed by a deafening roar comparable to that of a waterfall pouring directly into their ears.

The next moment, the barely cooled magma exploded like a champagne cork. A geyser of high-purity Life Lumyst Water expanded quickly, filling every corner of the bubble-barrier that had become their tomb in the blink of an eye.

Ceythie, Jake, the other Players, and all the soldiers from both camps were helplessly submerged, swept away without being able to resist the power of the torrents. And as soon as the mystically charged water made contact with their skin or clothes...

The Russian roulette began!