Chapter 775: The Magic Sphere

Nie Yan seemed to witness the birth of a high-growth pet that was no less impressive than the Golden Earth Dragon.

A Mutant Energy Crystal could lead a pet down an entirely new and unique growth path.

Nie Yan tossed the Mutant Energy Crystal into his backpack and said to the group, “Let’s move on to the second target.”

The group flew toward the direction where Watercolor Smoke was located, locking their sights on one of the Dark Druids and rushing toward him.

Nie Yan and others continuously flickered around that Dark Druid, bombarding him with a relentless chain of control skills, keeping him frozen in place. The Dark Druid’s health steadily dropped, decreasing in large chunks.

Soon, another Dark Druid fell lifelessly to the ground.

As Nie Yan and his team eliminated the second Dark Druid, the two players Lei Su and Cui Can Dao Guang (Radiant Blade) were under immense pressure, facing dangerous situations. Holding off two or three level-160 bosses simultaneously was indeed a tremendous challenge for them.

“Beige, Xiaorong, go assist Lei Su and Cui Can Dao Guang!” Nie Yan ordered through the team chat.

“Got it.”

Dark Beige and Xiaorong (Smile) quickly rushed to support Lei Su and Radiant Blade, while Nie Yan and the others continued to deal with another Dark Druid. The entire operation was proceeding in an orderly fashion.

On Cui Can Dao Guang’s side, he was holding off three Dark Druids, rapidly dodging attacks. Thanks to his agility, he could evade over 80% of the attacks from the three level-160 bosses. However, the massive damage output from the three bosses rapidly drained his health, and without healing, the situation was extremely difficult.

As his health dwindled dangerously low, Radiant Blade quickly drank an Expert-Grade Instant Healing Potion, restoring his health to full. Just as a Dark Druid swung a thick wooden staff toward him, he dodged sideways, but unexpectedly, two other Dark Druids flanked him. He raised his heavy shield to block.

With a loud thud, one of the Dark Druids struck him from behind.

Under normal circumstances, the damage from a Dark Druid’s attack would have been minimal to him, but an unexpected event occurred—the attack triggered a stunning effect, leaving Radiant Blade in a stunned state.

Dark Druids had approximately a 5% chance of triggering a stun with their attacks. Encountering such a low-probability event was simply bad luck.

The three Dark Druids surrounded Radiant Blade, repeatedly attacking him. Thud after thud, a flurry of attacks rained down upon him. During this, another Dark Druid triggered the stun effect again. About seven seconds later, Radiant Blade was knocked flying and collapsed onto the ground.

“Dao Guang is dead,” Xiaorong (Smile) reported in the team chat.

With Radiant Blade’s death, the three Dark Druids lost their target and turned their gaze toward Nie Yan’s group, preparing to charge forward. At that moment, Xiaorong swiftly loaded three bolts into his crossbow, pulled the trigger, and with a series of “swooshes,” the bolts shot forth. While shooting, Xiaorong rapidly adjusted the direction of his crossbow fire.

Thud! Thud! Thud! The three bolts nearly simultaneously struck the three Dark Druids. The Dark Druids shifted their attention to Xiaorong and started chasing him.

Xiaorong immediately turned and fled.

At this point, Nie Yan and his team had already eliminated the third Dark Druid.

“Let’s deal with the Dark Druids near Lei Su first,” Xiaorong said while running. Although thieves generally had difficulty drawing aggro, Xiaorong was a Shadow Dancer, possessing special skills that allowed him to effectively draw the attention of these three Dark Druids.

Nie Yan assessed the situation. Xiaorong was calmly escaping while leading the Dark Druids, so he should be fine. Nie Yan then led Sun, King of the World, and others toward Lei Su’s location.

Big Brother Qi Zi, Killer Bad Guy, and others could only watch from a distance. They were unable to assist, but at least the situation was still under control despite a few mishaps.

Nie Yan and his team surrounded and attacked the fourth Dark Druid. After a while, another Dark Druid fell.

Then the fifth.

Watercolor Smoke and Lei Su were now free to fight, becoming major damage dealers. Their rate of eliminating Dark Druids significantly increased.

One after another, the Dark Druids fell to the ground.

About twenty minutes later, all ten Dark Druids had been defeated. Without hesitation, they immediately turned their attention to the remaining Hell Hounds.

With all the Dark Druids eliminated, the remaining Hell Hounds were no longer a significant threat, especially since they lacked ranged attacks.

Sun and others casually each took on one Hell Hound individually. Nie Yan bypassed these Hell Hounds and noticed that the stone pillars binding the Hell Hounds looked peculiar. They were engraved with numerous demonic patterns. The five pillars were evenly spaced apart, and each had an ancient rune inscribed in its middle—approximately palm-sized, each rune differing in shape.

Nie Yan couldn’t tell what these runes meant. He passed through the pillars and approached a nearby treasure chest.

It was an ancient-looking chest, covered in thick layers of dust. Though small, it was exquisitely crafted entirely from golden metal and inlaid with many differently colored gemstones. Once the dust was wiped away, it would surely shine brilliantly.

Nie Yan examined the chest. It was locked.

This was a level-160 legendary chest. Nie Yan checked the lock and confirmed his Lockpicking Expert level was sufficient.

System: Opening treasure chest… 3%… 6%…

Nie Yan’s heart was filled with anticipation and nervousness, feeling time crawl unbearably slowly, unsure what this legendary chest might contain.

As Nie Yan worked on opening the chest, the rest of the team began discussing among themselves.

“Wonder what items Brother Nie will get,” Killer Bad Guy rubbed his hands together excitedly.

“We’re exploring a new map, so the loot shouldn’t be too bad.”

“I think so too.”

“The Dark Druids dropped some decent items. Nie Yan even got a Mutant Energy Crystal, two gems that reduce level requirements by 10, and a few other decent pieces of equipment.”

As the group was chatting, Nie Yan’s legendary chest clicked open with a “clack.”

Everyone felt their hearts tighten simultaneously.

Finally opened, Nie Yan exhaled deeply and smiled slightly. He reached into the chest and pulled out a scroll of parchment. It was aged and quite worn. Examining it, Nie Yan noticed many symbols resembling the runes on the pillars, though their meaning was unclear. Below the symbols was a line of text written in an unknown race’s strange pictographic script that he couldn’t decipher.

He decided not to dwell on it for now and placed the scroll into his backpack. Continuing to rummage inside the chest, he pulled out a magic orb the size of a fist.

A Magic Sphere!

Seeing its shape, Nie Yan’s heart leaped with excitement. He confirmed its attributes—it was indeed the legendary Magic Sphere of Earth.

Excellent item!

It was the Earth-element Magic Sphere.

This Magic Sphere was entirely composed of crystal, very clear, shaped into a perfect sphere. Inside, some earth-yellow magical elements continuously transformed into various shapes. Touching it gave an indescribable sense of weightiness—the Earth element was always known for its heaviness and resilience.

Magic Sphere (Earth Element): Legendary Item.

Attribute Description: The wielder automatically learns all Earth-element magic, without occupying a skill slot. Magic casting consumes 60% less mana. It drops upon death and can be traded.

Synthesis: Elemental Sphere. Required items: seven Magic Spheres. Once combined, it becomes bound.

Limitation: Usable only by Magisters.

There were a total of seven Magic Spheres, representing Earth, Fire, Ice, Water, Lightning, Light, and Darkness. There was a legend about the Magic Spheres: it was said that the Elemental Goddess had created an Elemental Sphere, a powerful divine artifact. During a divine war, the Elemental Goddess perished, and the Elemental Sphere shattered into seven Magic Spheres, each representing a different element. Possessing a Magic Sphere of a specific element allowed one to learn all magic of that element. Though Earth magic had fewer spells, it still included over 500 spells, among them twelve forbidden spells. Other elemental magics had even more spells. One could imagine the immense temptation the Magic Spheres held for Magisters. Possessing a Magic Sphere of a certain element was equivalent to becoming a scholar-level mage of that element, even capable of creating new spells. Moreover, legend had it that collecting all seven Magic Spheres would make one a true master of all elements.

It was a great find. Nie Yan searched the chest further but found nothing else.

“Does anyone here want the Magic Sphere?” Nie Yan asked in the team chat.

Killer Bad Guy, Xiachong Yubing (Summer Ice), Mu En, and others exchanged glances.

“Give it to the missus,” Killer Bad Guy suggested.

Xiachong Yubing and Mu En nodded in agreement.

Nie Yan looked toward Xie Yao, who quickly waved her hands. “No, give it to Bad Guy and the others. If I take the Magic Sphere, all my current equipment, which boosts Light-element magic damage, would become useless.”

Killer Bad Guy and others also declined.

Nie Yan knew that an item like the Magic Sphere was highly coveted. Even without using Earth-element magic, the 60% reduced mana cost alone was an incredibly tempting attribute. However, none of them wanted to claim it outright.

“How about this,” Nie Yan proposed, “we’ll store this Magic Sphere in the guild vault. Whoever needs it can use it for a while and then trade it to the next person.” Since there was only one Magic Sphere, and many people wanted it, this was the only feasible way to share it. If they could find other Magic Spheres, the problem would be resolved.

“Does anyone recognize this writing?” Nie Yan spread out the parchment he had just obtained and asked the team.

After scanning it, they all shook their heads.

“I do. It’s Koradi Minotaur language,” Xie Yao said after taking a look.