105: Chapter 105 The Mysterious Black Tide

"If you're so brave, why don't you go ahead? You're a High-Tier Knight too, aren't you?"

Upon hearing this, Ivy immediately felt a bit displeased.

Hearing this, the others couldn't help but exchange glances.

They hadn't expected that the powerful Nie Ning was actually a High-Tier Knight as well.

They had initially thought Nie Ning only came because of Ivy, but now it seemed he might also be after that Blood Flame Secret Art.

"A wizard should act like a wizard. Have you ever seen a wizard standing in front of a knight?"

Nie Ning curled his lip and retorted defensively.

In reality, a wizard's physical body was quite strong; their physical fitness would improve under the influence of mana.

Perhaps not as formidable as a current knight, but they were certainly not weak.

However, for someone like Ivy, who didn't have good grades, she likely wouldn't have had the time to read books on this subject.

Sure enough, after hearing Nie Ning's words, Ivy grumbled and said no more.

...

The group continued on their way and soon arrived at a closed alley.

Compared to the corridor obstructed by soil, this place was significantly more spacious.

But the further they went, the more corpses they found, all still appearing to have died as if suddenly petrified.

Gradually, Nie Ning and the others discovered a problem that wasn't exactly a problem.

Aside from the suspicious poses at the time of death, there didn't seem to be any other wounds on the bodies.

For some reason, Nie Ning inexplicably thought of the Coffin Nail Old Man.

'It shouldn't be that easy to run into that kind of character...'

The Coffin Nail Old Man's own strength might not be great, but combined with the coffin nail, he was practically heaven-defying.

Nie Ning felt that if the coffin nail's inherent weaknesses were removed, even someone two tiers higher than him might not necessarily be able to defeat him.

As they were walking, Nie Ning saw Ivy's cowering appearance, and his eyes suddenly darted around as an idea struck him.

He then reached out and flicked his finger, sending a drop of water onto Ivy's neck.

"Ah!"

Ivy let out a scream, drew her longsword, and turned around to strike.

Fortunately, Nie Ning was quick-witted and fast-acting, grabbing Ivy's wrist just in time to avoid being hit.

However, this scream gave Eden and the others a huge fright.

"What happened? What's wrong?"

"Something just fell on my neck—wait, water?"

Ivy touched her neck and found it seemed to be water, then instinctively looked up.

With the light of the torches, they could only see pitch-black darkness on the ceiling.

Nie Ning pretended to be nonchalant, looking around with the others, with no intention of telling them he was the one who had spooked Ivy.

"Let's keep moving. I have a bad feeling about this. Let's finish searching and get back quickly."

Dasleen squeezed into the middle of the group, her eyes constantly scanning their surroundings.

Hearing this, the others also felt a chill.

Just as everyone was about to leave, they noticed Nie Ning had stopped, his eyes fixed intently on the ceiling.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

Ivy walked over to Nie Ning's side and asked, puzzled.

Nie Ning's expression was grave; the malice coming from above was growing more intense.

Moreover, this malice was very strange, feeling somewhat similar to the Human-Faced Balloon.

It was weak and scattered, yet it covered a vast area.

Within the vision of his Tiger Pupils, it looked as if something was writhing on the ceiling.

He had thought the ceiling appeared black because it was too dark, but now it seemed there really was something up there!

The reason they hadn't noticed anything unusual along the way was clearly that those damn things were sleeping, and the noise just now had happened to wake the slumbering creatures here.

It also triggered the alarm of his Malice Perception.

Nie Ning grabbed Ivy, intending to retreat, but a concentrated wave of malice was approaching the group from behind.

"Move, quickly!"

Feeling that something was wrong, Nie Ning could only urge everyone to keep moving forward.

Though Dasleen and the others didn't know what was happening, seeing Nie Ning's grave expression, they could only hurry to catch up with him.

But before they could run very far, a "buzzing" sound suddenly came from behind, as if a swarm of insects was following them.

In Nie Ning's sight, a black wave-like mass was surging toward them.

Seeing this, Nie Ning waved his hand and released a blade of lightning.

Where the Lightning Edge Blade passed, he still only saw a pitch-black, light-absorbing tide, unable to discern what it actually was.

In an instant, the light of the Lightning Edge Blade was swallowed by the darkness.

But suddenly, Auston, who was running, came to a halt.

"Go! Why did you stop?"

Seeing Auston stop, Eden, who was beside him, grew anxious.

Hearing the voice, Nie Ning turned his head and saw Auston in a running pose, yet he had inexplicably frozen in place.

"Keep running forward!"

Nie Ning shouted to Eden while quickly making his way to Auston's side.

At this moment, Auston's body was stiff, and only his eyes could move; this sudden change filled his eyes with terror.

As Nie Ning's spiritual perception spread, he immediately detected a trace of corruption aura lingering on Auston's neck.

Nie Ning's gaze moved to Auston's neck, where a small black dot caught his attention.

To the naked eye, the small black dot appeared blurry.

Seeing this, flames ignited in Nie Ning's hand and swept toward Auston's neck.

To Nie Ning's surprise, although the small black dot was right before his eyes, the flames didn't touch anything as they passed over it.

The small black dot remained clung to Auston's neck.

Sensing something was wrong, Nie Ning's expression tightened slightly, and the flames in his hand turned gray.

Unlike before, under the burning of the Corruption Flames, the small black dot was instantly incinerated.

Without the restraint of the small black dot, Auston's body went limp, and he fell to one knee.

Sensing the black tide drawing closer behind them, Nie Ning could only pick up Auston and chase after Ivy and the others.

...

Nie Ning ran for a while but couldn't find Ivy and the others, when suddenly a voice came from inside a nearby wall.

"Over here!"

Nie Ning looked toward the sound, and an inconspicuous crack appeared before them.

Ivy poked half her head out of the crack, waving at Nie Ning with an anxious face.

Without any hesitation, Nie Ning threw Auston into the crack and squeezed in right after him.

Seeing the two of them enter, Dasleen hurriedly moved a large rock to block the crack.

No one dared to make a sound, not even daring to breathe loudly.

It wasn't until the "buzzing" sound faded into the distance that everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you for saving me, my lord."

Auston looked at Nie Ning with a face full of gratitude and spoke in a low voice.

Thinking back on the experience just now, Auston felt a chill run down his spine.

If it hadn't been for Nie Ning's rescue, he would likely be dead by now.

"We're out on an adventure together; how could I just leave you behind?"

Hearing this, Nie Ning waved his hand, signaling Auston not to overthink it.

They had no grievances with each other, so if it was within his power, Nie Ning didn't mind saving their lives; after all, it cost him nothing.

...