Chapter 88: Mobile Spellcasting

"That's too extreme, Captain!" Although Elia was also surprised by Luo Yong's combat strength, she couldn't quite agree with his viewpoint.
"As a curse witch, enemies usually don't dare get this close to me, so I think..."
"Don't think too much about it. Last time we ran into two minotaurs, if I hadn't protected you, you'd already be dead," Luo Yong said bluntly.
"I—I'm not as weak as you say..." Elia protested, clearly displeased.
"I understand. Once a certain mindset has formed, it's hard to change in a short time, so I won't force anything."
Looking at his team members, Luo Yong understood that the area in which they operated had greatly limited their horizons and experience, thus affecting their judgment. He spoke earnestly, "For now, just follow along and learn some basic combat techniques. In the future, you'll come across skill scrolls related to these. Whether you want to continue learning is up to you—no pressure."
"So this time..."
"This time, it's a team mission. Completing it earns a reward. If you fail, next round's team benefits are canceled," Luo Yong declared with no hint of emotion.
"..."
In truth, aside from Elia who was wholeheartedly devoted to advancing her curses and poisons, not everyone refused to learn combat skills.
"Actually, this is an opportunity for us to become stronger," Wendy said, her gaze toward the elven lady filled with fervor.
This was none other than the famous Elven Arbiter from the Mage Guild!
Among her peers, she was nearly invincible, and in her lifetime—so far—she had suffered almost no defeats.
Moreover, rumors said she could fight opponents above her own level; even heroes slightly higher than her weren't necessarily her match in battle!
"We work hard on missions, tirelessly slaying monsters, just to get access to a secret realm—it's all for the sake of growing stronger!"
"Now, the opportunity is right in front of us. We've already broken through the level eight barrier, found the key to the secret realm, and obtained those legendary potions to enhance our bodies and minds—things we only ever heard about before. All we're missing is a set of combat techniques suited to us!"
The more Wendy spoke, the more impassioned she became, her tone carrying a persuasive power that drew people in.
It seemed she was born to be a leader.
Ahem.
Thus, Luo Yong appointed her as vice-captain.
"My time is limited, so I'll only teach this once," the elven lady said with a hint of resignation. With her personal instruction—a privilege many could only dream of—these people were still making excuses! If it weren't for Luo Yong's sake...
Hmph!
"I know some of you have spent this time gathering combat skills that suit you, but still find them awkward to use."
"That's perfectly normal, because you're used to casting spells from a fixed position, not close combat."
"To truly master these things, besides investing time and a lot of practice, you also need a good teacher to guide you."
Ahem. Forgive the elves their directness—they mean no offense; it's simply their way.
They speak frankly, neither exaggerating nor glossing over the truth.
With these words, the elven lady began demonstrating basic combat techniques.
Though they were simple, in her hands they displayed extraordinary power.
After the demonstration, the elven lady left at once. As she put it, the Mage Guild required her to clock in and out; duty called, and she couldn't stay long.
Once she departed, the female team members all crowded around Luo Yong, peppering him with questions.
But it wasn't about combat skills—they wanted to gossip.
"Is the engagement real?"
"Can humans really marry elves?"
"Do elves have different standards of beauty than humans?"
"Ahem..." Luo Yong felt choked by that last question—clearly Elia's doing.

Perhaps she was thinking that since Yan Bao'er, despite being an elf, chose Luo Yong over the handsome elven men—choosing someone who, in looks or strength, was clearly at a disadvantage—
Did that mean—
She too had a chance?
Could the flat-chested curse witch finally see a springtime of her own?!
"You all..."
Luo Yong sighed deeply. "You'd better focus on increasing your strength!"
"Huh?"
Sensing something off in Luo Yong's tone, the beauties stopped their questioning, exchanged glances, and then all turned their eyes to Wendy—and the barbarian priestess.
One was the vice-captain and had a say; the other, thick-skinned and always acting like family, was naturally nosy—
"Luo Yong, what's happened?" Wendy asked.
"It's nothing, just remembered the last time I ran into Ivan..."
"Speaking of Ivan," the barbarian priestess interjected, "I heard he was captured and will be executed with a group of felons in a while..."
"But nobody knows who did it. Rumor has it he was taken back to the Mage Guild by that elven arbiter..."
"Let me explain."
Seeing the look in his teammates' eyes, Luo Yong shook his head helplessly. "While you've been gossiping here, you have no idea how much has happened lately."
"The last time I met Ivan, his sword was bloody—he had just killed someone."
"At first, I couldn't beat him at all. Later, Bao'er gave me a scroll, I learned the skill from it, and only then managed to defeat him after a hard struggle."
"..."
"Ah!" Elia suddenly shouted, "I get it! It's that skill that lets you unleash immense power in a short time, right?!"
"That elven arbiter really treats you well—willing to give you anything..." the barbarian priestess muttered.
"No, what I used then was this."
Whoosh!
As soon as Luo Yong finished speaking, he blinked ten meters away in an instant.
"To beat Ivan, I used a combination of these spells."
As he spoke, wind magic surged around him, and he flashed again, appearing beside a large boulder and swinging his sword down!
Crack!
With a crisp sound, the boulder—about the size of a wagon wheel—was cleaved cleanly in two.
His longsword still trembled from the force of the blow.
"That's Blink plus wind magic plus Gravity Spell."
"Eh? Why are you floating again?" Elia exclaimed, pointing at Luo Yong, who was now three feet off the ground.
"That's Anti-Gravity Spell."
In front of his team, Luo Yong recounted the details of his fight with Ivan.
"The Blink skill was from Bao'er. As for Gravity Spell, I got that from Mira in exchange."
"The skill with the explosive burst was a drop from Ivan after I beat him. He probably couldn't bear to use it himself—otherwise..."
"Friends, times have changed. If you don't keep up, you'll be left behind!" Luo Yong said with some emotion.
"I wonder if that's really true. It all sounds so dramatic, like something out of a story..." the barbarian priestess muttered softly, though in her heart she believed it. She just wasn't happy about Luo Yong and that elven Yan Bao'er making lifelong vows in private.
"I don't expect you all to reach any particular level in combat skills, but at the very least, you need to be able to cast spells while moving."
"Huh... Moving spellcasting?" Elia asked in surprise.

"It just means not getting hit—dodging while counterattacking," Luo Yong explained.
"But we're just fighting monsters, not dueling anyone..." Elia replied.
That ingrained idea wasn't going to change overnight.
"I want to know, who was Ivan's victim?" At this moment, the Storm Sorceress asked, her voice trembling.
"No one knows—"
Luo Yong was about to reply offhandedly, but suddenly something occurred to him.
It seemed there was still one more person in their team...
But in all this time, caught up in their own affairs, everyone had forgotten about him.
"Ice!"
"Oh no, could it be him?"
"No, no!"
The Storm Sorceress cried out and ran into the distance, but she hadn't gone far before she turned back—Lilian had already opened the secret realm's gate.
"Meilin, come with me. The rest of you stay here and practice your combat techniques," Luo Yong said.
"Alright." The Storm Sorceress responded at once, rushing out first—she had never seemed so anxious before.
"Looks like something's up between Meilin and Ice, judging by how worried she is..." Elia whispered.
"They just grew up together," the Wild Huntress said, gazing into the distance. "Really good friends, that's all."
She glanced at the barbarian priestess.
If it weren't for her, maybe those two would have ended up together.
But Ice himself wavered.
Before anything could start, before friendship could cross the line, it was already over.
Besides, the barbarian priestess had no interest in the Ice Archer whatsoever—she felt nothing for him.
What a sorrowful story...
"Ice!"
When the Storm Sorceress and Luo Yong returned to camp, they went straight to the inn where the Ice Archer used to stay, only to be told he had left long ago.
"This is bad—something must have happened to him!" the Storm Sorceress said, uneasy.
"No way, the guy's tough—last time he was fine, wasn't he?" Luo Yong tried to comfort her.
They searched the camp but found no trace of him.
The magic shop was now run by elves; after a series of "cooperative" ventures, Luo Yong had lost interest in managing it further.
There was no useful news from their inquiries.
"Where could he have gone?"
Leaving the camp, the Storm Sorceress summoned a giant wolf, using it like a hound to track the Ice Archer by scent.
The two of them followed behind.
A short while later, not far from camp in a dense forest, a wolf's howl rang out.
At the same time, shadows flickered there, along with surges of magical energy—someone was fighting.