Chapter 95: Suppression by Firepower

“So, how are we supposed to continue this mission now?” The Storm Sorcerer looked at his teammates, troubled. “If we open a portal here, we’ll have to face those furious Death Reaper Dragonflies. If we go from somewhere else, we might have to deal with angry human wizards…”

Everyone fell silent once again.

“I’ll go,” the Wild Hunter volunteered, stepping forward with a fearless spirit. Several scrolls appeared in her hand. “I’ll scout ahead, then use tactical scrolls to bombard the area. If it gets too dangerous, I’ll retreat.”

“But that’s still risky!” the Storm Sorcerer protested.

“Um…” The usually quiet Fatty spoke up, glancing at Wendy before saying, “I’ll go first. I’ll use my shield for protection, should be able to buy us a little… a little time.”

“Even with your shield, your defense is only at level ten. Technically, it’s just nine plus, completely inadequate,” Wendy replied.

“If only we had skills like Royong’s, that instant berserk ability,” Elia said wistfully.

“Even with such skills, you’d be weakened afterward—seriously so. Our tactical scrolls are better; they can crush anything below level twenty,” Wendy said, pulling out several scrolls. “Let’s go together. Open multiple portals to confuse them, and once we’re through, just blast everything!”

The plan sounded solid, but her teammates’ expressions turned somewhat awkward.

“You… didn’t sell all your tactical scrolls at the general store, did you?” Wendy asked.

“Well… hehe…”

“Not all of them. We still have a few left, just not many…”

“Yes, not many.”

Wendy couldn’t help but roll her eyes—something she hadn’t done for a long time.

Fatty was amazed. He never imagined the goddess in his heart would ever roll her eyes. In his mind, a goddess surely didn’t need to visit the restroom herself… anything less would shatter the illusion.

“All right, use what we have, but we must finish this mission and bolster the reputation of our [Swiftwind Squad], so no other team dares underestimate us!” Wendy declared.

“That’s right! We’re going to become the strongest squad in the world!” Elia chimed in, shouting without a shred of decorum or sense.

Whoosh!

The portal opened. The Wild Hunter didn’t hesitate, gripping a tactical scroll ready for activation, and stepped in.

Fatty, eager to impress Wendy, followed right behind.

“Hurry, everyone, follow!” Wendy and Mira activated their teleport scrolls as well, abandoning any elaborate deception. Each teammate had their own opinions, and once they made up their minds, nobody could talk them out of it.

Wendy sighed deeply. Perhaps only Royong could persuade them.

Buzz!

On the other side of the portal, it was like stepping into another world. Giant dragonflies, three or four meters long, truly lived up to their Death Reaper name, swiftly harvesting the lives of intruders…

Ahem. For now, they’d only claimed a wounded coyote.

The trap made by Mira and Lillian had been completely destroyed. Technically, there was nothing wrong with the construction, it was perfectly adequate. But in terms of strength, it simply wasn’t enough; these Death Reaper Dragonflies crashed through it, wrecking it with ease.

Boom!

Stepping out of the portal, the Wild Hunter immediately activated her scroll, unleashing a large fire spell. A massive fireball exploded in midair like a miniature sun, scattering damage everywhere.

Some dragonflies, slow to evade or just unlucky, were blasted to bits. Those a bit further away had their bodies shattered by the magical shockwave, falling to the ground in pieces.

The once-buzzing Land of Divine Lament fell silent in an instant. The ferocious Death Reaper Dragonflies seemed stunned, their wingbeats grew faint.

But as Wendy and her companions emerged from the other two portals, the dragonflies became truly berserk! Their wings vibrated at high frequency as they dived, intent on slaughtering the intruders.

Whoosh!

Fatty immediately raised his magic shield.

Wendy and the rest activated their tactical scrolls.

“Lillian!”

“Understood!”

Boom boom boom!

With a simple call and response, the ground trembled lightly. While the others activated their scrolls, Lillian swung her staff and chanted a spell.

In moments, walls of earth rose up, shielding the group.

“Mira!”

“Understood!”

Though unsure of Wendy’s exact intentions, Mira knew what was expected. After Lillian set up the defensive stone walls, her role was to encircle the perimeter with thorns. This was her task, as always.

Boom!

Crack!

Whoosh!

Scroll after scroll was activated—fire, lightning, wind—waves of powerful magic ravaged the Land of Divine Lament.

One after another, Death Reaper Dragonflies were torn apart by powerful spells, yet countless more swarmed forward.

It was impossible to say how many years had passed since the Land of Divine Lament had seen such chaos.

Boom!

Suddenly, from another direction, a surge of intense magical energy erupted—no weaker than their own.

“It’s Royong!”

“He’s supporting us!”

“Sisters, hold on! Once your scrolls are spent, dive straight into the portal!”

“Fatty, stop standing there holding that worthless shield. If you have tactical scrolls, throw them all! If not, get your teleport scroll ready!” The Wild Hunter snapped at Fatty.

“Huh? Oh! Got it, right away…” Fatty lowered his energy shield, fumbling through his storage gear for more scrolls.

By now, the others had almost finished throwing their scrolls.

Smack!

At that moment, Wendy was ready to call for retreat.

The Wild Hunter’s giant wolf had already shuttled back and forth several times, retrieving the remains of nearby dragonflies and delivering them through the portal to the camp.

But Fatty had so many scrolls spilling out onto the ground.

“So many?” Wendy muttered, letting go of any curiosity about why he hadn’t sold them at the general store, and made a quick decision. “Gale, get all your tactical scrolls out—everyone, together!”

No sooner had she finished speaking than everyone sprang into action.

The Wild Hunter, closest, was fastest. In fact, she’d already started before Wendy finished speaking. As Wendy finished, she activated a lightning scroll—an enormous chain of lightning flashed brightly.

Taking advantage of their reduced firepower, the dragonflies surged forward, the closest already within prime hunting range.

Normally, a single burst of speed—faster than the blink of an eye—would let it strike, devouring prey.

But this time, a brilliant bolt of lightning pierced its body, the previously shimmering compound eyes instantly dulled.

It dropped to the ground, half its body falling through the portal, startling the giant wolf on the other side.

But the wolf, long accustomed to the Wild Hunter, knew what to do. It grabbed the dragonfly’s body, dragging it fully through the portal and into the camp.

Boom boom boom!

With everyone’s combined firepower, they held off the dragonflies’ assault once again. Those that made it close were blasted apart, the rest never got through.

They held out for quite a while, burning through all the tactical scrolls in Fatty’s storage, before finally diving into the portal and returning to camp.

Boom!

With their withdrawal, the Death Reaper Dragonflies surged forward, crashing against the portal.

A few managed to push parts of their bodies through, but their wings got stuck and they struggled helplessly.

Their cries were inaudible to humans.

This was the origin of their Death Reaper name.

Swift, silent predation, harvesting life like a reaper. Most importantly, they acted in swarms—when they moved, they blotted out the sky…

“Shouldn’t we worry about the captain?” Back at camp, Lillian casually asked as she watched Wendy slicing dragonfly heads with her flaming longsword.

“After all, he just supported us.”

“No need…” Elia looked at her with a mysterious gaze. “Are you worried about him? Didn’t we say he’s equipped so monsters can’t sense him? Besides, he can use tactical scrolls while picking up newly dropped ones, so there’s no risk of running out.”

“The captain really is convenient!”

“How can anyone have such luck?”

While they chatted, a crowd gathered nearby, discussing them.

“See, those heroic beauties—earlier, everyone targeted them, they were stuck here in the camp, almost trapped. But then, somehow, they met a benefactor and suddenly…”

“Shh! Keep it down!”

“What’s there to be afraid of? Everyone’s talking about it. I heard they all own shares in the new general store—they’re all bosses!”

“Sigh, makes me want to retire and enjoy a few peaceful days!”

“This monster-hunting life… who knows when it’ll end…”