The aftermath of the sea of flames, like an invisible ripple, completely changed the internal dynamics of this temporary team.
Barret and his mercenaries now looked at Lin En with eyes that had shifted from initial equality to an almost reverent awe, as if worshipping a deity.
They addressed him as “Master Lin En” with utmost respect, fearing that the slightest misstep would anger this mysterious being capable of unleashing calamity.
Ella, however, was a different story altogether.
There was no fear in her eyes—only the burning fervor of a scholar.
Like a sponge, she spent all day trailing behind Lin En with a small notebook, desperately trying to absorb the knowledge that shattered her understanding from Lin En’s occasional remarks.
It was in this delicate atmosphere that the team’s march was suddenly interrupted.
At the front, Barret abruptly raised his hand and lowered his body.
“Wait,” he rasped warily.
“There’s something up ahead…”
Everyone immediately fell silent, carefully parting the bushes in the direction he indicated.
Not far ahead lay a relatively flat clearing in the forest, and the sight upon it made everyone hold their breath.
It was a temporary camp.
Barret’s brows instantly knit into a scowl.
“Damn it… Who would set up camp in a place like this?”
Ella’s face also grew grave.
The depths of the Endless Forest were fraught with danger; any experienced team would choose a more concealed or defensible location.
To camp here was like lighting a torch in the darkness, declaring one’s position to every hungry beast.
But what unsettled them even more was the camp itself.
It was small, yet orderly—the angles of the tents, the way the campfires were extinguished, the simple outer warning lines—all spoke of utmost professionalism.
Strangest of all, none of the tents bore any flag or insignia to indicate identity, making it even more eerie.
“Not an ordinary mercenary group or adventurer squad,” Ella whispered.
“Their discipline is too strong.”
As everyone speculated about the origin of this mysterious team, Ella, sharp-eyed, suddenly stopped, her gaze locking onto a muddy patch at the camp’s edge.
There, half-buried in the mud, was a water pouch carelessly dropped by a guard.
On the leather surface was an extremely subtle insignia—a gryphon with outspread wings, encircled by vicious thorns.
The moment she saw the insignia, the color drained from Ella’s face.
All the confusion and speculation just now resolved into the most unsettling answer.
She grabbed Barret’s arm, her voice low but trembling with tension.
“It’s the Thorn Guard… The Crown Prince’s direct escort! This is the Kingdom’s top-secret operation!”
Barret inhaled sharply.
As a mercenary leader who had danced on the knife’s edge in the Kingdom, he understood the weight of the Thorn Guard better than anyone.
This unit never moved lightly; every appearance signified events grave enough to shake the nation.
Their presence here was itself an extremely dangerous signal.
However, their observation had clearly not escaped the eyes of professionals.
“Are you lost in this forest, friends?”
A cold female voice rang out from behind them without warning.
Barret and the others spun around in shock, only to see a five-person patrol standing less than ten meters away—when had they arrived?
Led by a woman with a sharp, cold aura and eyes like blades.
She wore mithril chainmail suited for movement, her long black hair tied high, one hand resting casually on her sword hilt, yet exuding an overwhelming sense of readiness to draw at any moment.
“I am Fiona Graham, Vice-captain of the Thorn Guard.”
She nodded slightly in self-introduction, but her gaze was as piercing as a hawk’s.
“Now, may I ask why you are here?”
Her tone was polite, but beneath the courtesy was an undisguised threat.
Ella forced herself to remain calm, stepping forward with a merchant’s practiced friendly smile.
“Lady Fiona, we are an exploration team from the Silver Moon Trading Company, surveying new trade routes. We entered here by mistake. Please forgive us.”
“Silver Moon Trading Company?”
Fiona’s lips curled into an almost imperceptible, icy arc.
“To my knowledge, this part of the Endless Forest is far beyond the scope of any trade route. Beyond here lies Mist Gorge, where even high-level magical beasts roam frequently. I can’t imagine what cargo would be worth the risk for the Silver Moon Trading Company to venture here at the cost of total annihilation.”
One sentence utterly blocked Ella’s prepared excuse.
Fiona’s patience was clearly thin; her sharp gaze swept over Ella’s pale face, Barret’s wary stance, and finally settled on Lin En, who remained calm from start to finish.
“Since you are unwilling to speak honestly,” she said, slowly drawing her sword.
A cold gleam flashed along the blade in the shifting forest light.
“Then lay down your weapons and come with us for investigation.”
With that order, battle erupted instantly!
The well-equipped Thorn Guard soldiers beside Fiona lunged forward.
Barret roared, and he and his mercenaries chose resistance without hesitation.
However, against the Kingdom’s most elite Thorn Guard, it was a hopeless rout.
In a flash, the clash of steel and battle aura rang out and was silenced.
The Thorn Guard soldiers moved with flawless coordination and fierce skill. In just a few breaths, Barret and his mercenaries were disarmed, their joints locked, pressed helplessly to the ground.
Ella too was subdued without ceremony by a female guard, unable to move.
The area was cleared.
In the center of the camp, only Lin En remained standing.
Two burly guards turned toward this final target, striding over to subdue the seemingly least threatening member.
Lin En didn’t even look at them.
He merely lifted his right hand and gave a small wave.
“Vmm—”
A ripple like thick air, invisible to the naked eye, instantly spread.
The two charging guards slammed into an invisible wall, their momentum cut short, shock written on their faces.
They felt as though countless invisible threads were binding them tightly, lifting them off the ground, unable to move even a finger.
This was the basic Magic, [Wind of Stagnation].
But with Lin En’s current mastery, its power far surpassed before.
Now, his Wind of Stagnation could easily bind any warrior below the Silver rank as helplessly as an insect in amber.
This unexpected sight brought instant silence to the once chaotic scene.
For the first time, shock appeared on Fiona’s usually cold face.
She stared hard at Lin En, finally understanding that this seemingly harmless Magic Apprentice was the most formidable one among them.
“Who are you, really?”
Fiona’s voice carried true gravity now.
“A passing traveler,” Lin En replied calmly.
“We don’t want trouble, so please don’t invite it.”
“Arrogant!”
Fiona’s pride ignited completely.
With a shout, silver battle aura erupted from her like flames, her entire form becoming a blinding silver flash. Her sword screamed as it tore toward Lin En’s heart.
Yet, facing this thunderous strike, Lin En’s figure drifted aside like a willow in the wind.
Fiona’s sword narrowly missed his clothes, striking empty air.
It was [Lightwind Technique], the most basic wind movement spell, yet in Lin En’s hands, it displayed an almost supernatural elegance.
Having missed, Fiona’s fury only grew, her sword slashing with increasing ferocity.
She swept her blade in a silver arc, enveloping Lin En entirely.
“Clang!”
A heavy metallic sound reverberated, enough to numb the ears.
Before Lin En, a translucent ice crystal shield materialized, precisely blocking Fiona’s powerful downward slash.
Yet the expected scene of the Ice Shield shattering did not occur.
The fragile-looking shield remained unmoved, not even a crack showing under the full force of a Silver-ranked warrior!
The immense rebound from the blade nearly numbed Fiona’s grip.
This was no longer a contest of technique but absolute dominance in strength!
Again, it was the basic [Ice Shield].
A trace of disbelief flickered in Fiona’s eyes, swiftly replaced by humiliation.
“I’ll say it again,”
Lin En’s voice remained calm, now tinged with coldness.
“If you don’t stop, I won’t show mercy.”
To Fiona, this warning was the final straw breaking her reason.
She, a dignified Vice-captain of the Thorn Guard, a future star of the Kingdom, had been easily blocked by a so-called apprentice wielding only basic Magic—such contempt was worse than death!
“Shut up!”
Fiona snarled, unleashing her battle aura without restraint, ready to use her trump card.
Lin En’s brows drew together.
He saw it—the other party had lost control.
He no longer dodged.
Instead, he reached out, grasping the air toward Fiona as she charged again.
“Vmm—!”
Wind of Stagnation, ten times stronger than before, burst forth!
Fiona felt the air solidify into a swamp, a terrifying pressure crushing from all sides. Her prized battle aura shield was shattered instantly, as fragile as paper.
She was lifted by the invisible force and slammed against a massive tree trunk.
“Bang!”
Pinned in a humiliating star shape, her limbs were locked by unseen power, as helpless as the soldiers on the ground, unable to move a finger.
Humiliation surged, shattering her composure.
She glared at Lin En, fury blazing in her eyes, and forced out a hoarse command.
“All units! Form the [Thorn Strangling Formation]! Take him down!”
The soldiers snapped from their shock at the Vice-captain’s roar, instinctively shifting into formation.
A deadly, dangerous energy began to flow and connect among them, the formation of destruction imminent.
Lin En frowned.
What’s wrong with these people?
If they insisted on courting death…
Deep within his Spirit Sea, the Crystal Core began to turn, summoning a spiritual power vast as a star field, far beyond mortal comprehension.
At that moment, in the main tent of the camp.
Grand Alchemist Elaine was bent over a huge workbench, delicately adjusting a magic circuit inside a complex alchemical device with a mithril probe.
He was conducting a vital experiment, allowing no distractions.
“Vmmm!!!!”
A shrill alarm suddenly pierced the silence, shattering concentration.
Elaine’s hand jerked, nearly destroying the device.
He looked up, furious, ready to curse whatever fool had triggered the camp’s warning barrier—when his gaze caught on the large monitoring crystal across the table.
It was flashing blood red.
On its surface, the standoff outside the camp was clearly displayed.
He saw Fiona pinned to a tree in humiliation and fury, the soldiers forming the [Thorn Strangling Formation], and—a wildly fluctuating readout on the crystal, with a line of glowing text beside it:
[Detected ultra-high-level spiritual force! Danger level: Destruction-Class!]
Elaine’s face went white, cold sweat soaking his back.
He burst from the tent, shouting with all his strength:
“Stop! Fiona, do you want us all to die here?!”
His voice thundered in everyone’s ears.
Seeing Fiona pinned, powerless, and the young man across from her radiating a terrifying, icy aura, Elaine’s heart pounded.
He had no doubt that a moment’s delay would erase the camp and the surrounding forest from the map!
Ignoring the urge to scold Fiona, he found a way out, pointing to the subdued Ella and shouting to the formation:
“Look closely! That’s the Silver Moon Trading Company’s insignia! Since when did we draw swords on the Kingdom’s legal trading companies? Put your weapons down! This is a misunderstanding!”
The soldiers, as if granted amnesty, immediately broke formation.
The coldness in Lin En’s eyes receded, and the spinning of the Crystal Core in his Spirit Sea slowed.
The aura of destruction dissipated.
He waved his hand, and the Wind of Stagnation binding Fiona disappeared.
Fiona slid from the tree, gasping for breath, face shifting between pale and flushed as she looked at Lin En with a complex expression, unable to say a word.
Only then did Grand Alchemist Elaine turn fully to Lin En, his gaze filled with lingering fear, amazement, and a deep wariness.
“It seems this was an unpleasant misunderstanding. Since you are friends of the Silver Moon Trading Company, let’s leave it at that. Fiona, release them.”
He paused, then addressed Lin En in a solemn tone:
“Young mage, your power… is formidable. I hope, one day, we can sit and talk peacefully.”