Returning to the Mysterious Era

Chapter 310 - Completely Crushed

The Blood Race members saw the three figures standing against the moonlight, firmly blocking the path. Although they stood motionless, a layer of icy blue and crimson red Qi swirled visibly around their bodies, making them look like demonic shadows with outstretched claws.

"Intruders!!!"

"They're not the blue-eyed hunters?"

"Kill them all..."

"No, don't kill them, capture them alive for a good interrog—"

Before the Blood Race member could finish speaking..

Boom!

A powerful arm grabbed his head and slammed him into the side of the wall. Half of the cave wall trembled violently, sending powdered dust cascading from the ceiling.

Rumble!!!

A figure bulldozed through the tunnel, the ground shattering beneath every step as if an elephant herd was charging through. A trail of deep, straight footprints remained, as if the ground had been stamped by iron feet.

There were about twenty Blood Race direct bloodline members in the tunnel. They were all elite fighters, yet they were no match for the figure. They were instantly smashed against the walls like insects, unable to dodge or resist. They died instantly.

At the end of the tunnel, Cassius abruptly stopped in front of the only unscathed Blood Race member and turned around. Behind him, the young Blood Race member clutched his throat, his face turning blue as if he couldn't breathe. His eyes were bloodshot; his veins bulged like spider webs; and foamy saliva dripped from his mouth. He resembled a fish suffocating on land.

"Hrrr... hrrr..." The Blood Race member gasped, emitting a wheezing sound.

He collapsed to the ground with a thud, convulsing violently. Moments later, his legs kicked one last time, and he was dead.

This Blood Race member had essentially been scared to death. His mind had shattered after locking eyes with Cassius, who had the aura of a blood falcon condensed to the extreme in his gaze. Coupled with the life magnetic field emanating from Cassius, which carried the force of a top predator, the young Blood Race member's heart had stopped in sheer terror. His mind and body crumbled under the dual pressure.

Tap tap tap...

Feng Liusi and Saint Feinan walked up to him. Feng Liusi glanced at Cassius, who had dispatched the group in mere seconds, and nodded. "You're far more efficient than Saint Feinan and I."

Feng Liusi pulled out a map, checking their route in the dim light.

"This is a narrow and enclosed space, perfect for combat artists with strong physical prowess," Cassius commented, wiping the blood from his palm onto the Blood Race member's black robe.

He was right. Combat strength was influenced by many factors, and the environment played a key role. Fighters using long weapons would be restricted in tunnels like this, reducing their effectiveness, whereas those relying on their fists and physical combat abilities would have a significant advantage, especially those with tough bodies, high stamina, and strong defenses. Their overall strength would only be enhanced.

"We entered Akaba Ruins from the west entrance, closest to the starting point of the first safe route," Feng Liusi explained, pointing to the map. It was a detailed, enlarged version drawn by Cassius himself. Red dots and lines marked the starting points, endpoints, and the entire path.

After confirming the location of the starting point, the group calculated that they were about two zones away. If they moved at full speed and avoided interference, it would take about three hours to reach their route. However, since parts of the western entrance were occupied by the Blood Race, it might extend to four or five hours.

"Let's go. I'll lead since my physique is the strongest. Saint Feinan, your long weapon won't be as effective here, so you stay in the middle. Feng Liusi, you bring up the rear," Cassius suggested, reorganizing their formation. Although they were all top-tier combat artists of the outside world, the ancient ruins were riddled with danger. Overconfidence could easily lead to death. Being cautious wouldn't hurt, and they were confident they could safely reach the fifth level with the map in hand.

"Let's move."

Cassius took the lead, and they swiftly exited the narrow passage. They left behind the corpses of Blood Race direct bloodline members who hadn't even had time to transform, their black robes crumpled like discarded sacks.

Half an hour later.

"Ahhhhh!!"

A Blood Race member had his face forcibly slammed into the cave wall and scraped against the rough surface. When his body hit the ground, half of his skull had been worn away.

"Fifty-seven. Too bad we haven't encountered any high-ranking Blood Race members, just these small fries," Cassius muttered, brushing the dust off his hands as he tallied the number of Blood Race direct bloodline members he had killed along the way.

The three of them hadn't brought any food for this expedition. While fighters could go long periods without eating, extended combat would drain their stamina. However, they needed energy to maintain peak condition.

Cassius's life vibration energy could act as a substitute, although it was somewhat wasteful. These low-level dark creatures no longer provided Cassius with significant enhancement. Using their life vibration energy for healing or energy reserves was a more practical approach.

An hour later.

The trio had now ventured deep into the Akaba Ruins, leaving behind the territory controlled by the Blood Race. They occasionally encountered elite patrols or guards sent by the Blood Race, but the outcome was predictable. Cassius had now dispatched over a hundred bats. That was a conservative estimate, considering they had captured and interrogated a particularly weak-willed guard to locate the Blood Race's lair.

However, the lair was located in a remote corner of the northwest section of the first level of the ruins, far from their planned route. Cassius had no choice but to temporarily leave them be. The Southern Dipper Covert Martial Inheritance was the priority.

The Southern Dipper Sonic Snake Fist in the fifth level was their primary target. Everything else was secondary, and replaceable.

Two hours after entering the ruins.

Clang!

Cassius struck a long metal spear that jutted out from the cave wall, bending it. He quickly grabbed it by the shaft and yanked it out. The tunnel walls cracked, and a long metal device was ripped out inch by inch, twisted into a knot by Cassius's hands until it became a ball of iron, which he casually tossed aside.

"We should be in one of the more dangerous areas of the first level now. We've encountered five consecutive traps in the last three minutes," Cassius noted, recalling the map in his mind. It hadn't marked the exact locations of the dangers, only providing a general warning that certain areas or narrow corridors were hazardous.

"Let's go."

The three continued, rounding another corner and advancing several hundred meters. When they walked around a bend, they were met with a steep upward slope.

Cassius's eyelid twitched, suspecting what was coming. Sure enough, a massive boulder suddenly began rolling down the slope. It scraped against the walls of the tunnel, producing a loud rumble.

The boulder picked up speed, barreling down with a force of nearly ten tons.

Boom!

A blast of air erupted as a two-meter-tall, blond giant met the boulder head-on. Cassius braced both hands against the massive boulder, instantly absorbing its momentum. His clothes rippled like waves, and the powerful energy flowing through him surged violently. Cassius' arms, as sturdy as white marble pillars, bore the weight of the stone. He took a deep breath before he started moving uphill, pushing the boulder upward.

He started to gain speed as he pushed, his slow walk quickly turning into a sprint. Feng Liusi and Saint Feinan followed close behind.

The trio, along with the boulder, charged forward through the tunnel.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Tiny holes suddenly opened in the tunnel walls as the boulder triggered a mechanism. Poisonous arrows shot out like a rainstorm. The arrows were as fast as bullets as they struck the stone, creating a rapid series of metallic clinks.

Golden sparks ricocheted off the boulder as it steadily rolled forward. After covering a third of the tunnel, the floor was littered with thousands of ruined arrows.

Creak! Creak! Creak!

A teeth-grinding sound echoed as sharp spikes suddenly shot out from the ground. The black spikes were as thick as a baby's arm and packed quite a punch. If a normal person had been caught, they would have been impaled through their feet and body, dying in agony.

But now, the spikes were pushing against a nearly ten-ton boulder. It was an awkward scene. The spikes failed to lift the stone and were instead flattened as the boulder rolled over them, just like a steamroller leveling the ground.

The once-straight metal spikes bent completely, and many snapped off at their bases.

Cassius maintained his expressionless demeanor as his muscles bulged, veins popping as he continued exerting his monstrous strength. The boulder steadily crushed everything in its path. The walls and the ground echoed with more cracking and shattering sounds, signaling the failure of the tunnel's mechanisms.

Once they cleared the dangerous tunnel, Cassius gave an approving nod—sometimes, a boulder could be quite useful. Since pushing required less energy than lifting, he didn't even need to maintain his explosive strength. He only needed a few thousand pounds of force to keep the boulder rolling, making it almost enjoyable.

The Akaba Ruins' tunnels were fairly standard, and this boulder was the perfect size. It was not too small or too large to get stuck.

So, Cassius played with the boulder for another half hour. They encountered many more traps, but everything was flattened by the boulder. By the end, the surface of the boulder was pitted and scarred, but it was still intact and usable.

***

In the first level of the Akaba Ruins, in a relatively dangerous area, a monstrous dog hovered above the ground in the shadows. Standing a meter and a half tall, its muscles bulged like slabs of granite. Its upper body sported three heads, each with dripping saliva and menacing fangs the length of daggers. Its lower body emitted eerie smoke, and its limbs seemed to fade in and out, as though it was not entirely solid.

The three-headed black mist dog wandered aimlessly through the area. Any intruder would be mercilessly torn apart. These creatures possessed strong physiques, a bloodthirsty desire to attack, and an unrelenting drive to kill anyone who entered their territory.

Rumble... Rumble...

Suddenly, the ground across the area began to tremble, dust falling from the walls as if a train were thundering down the tracks.

The black mist dog immediately sensed the intruders and spun around, its six blood-red eyes locking onto the corner. The mist surrounding its body surged, releasing a dangerous aura that spread in all directions. It raised its three heads, letting out an excited roar as if preparing to hunt its prey.

"Awoooooo... Gah!"

From the corner of the dark tunnel, a massive shadow suddenly rushed through, almost filling the entire space. The shadow moved fast and furiously. After all, it had just come down a slope.

The black mist dog was crushed before it could even activate its battle mode. Its body was flattened by the nearly ten-ton boulder and burst into a cloud of black mist as it dissolved into a mixture of air and shadows.

The boulder rolled on, leaving a smear of black ash on the ground. The trio followed the boulder down the dim tunnel.

Cassius glanced up, puzzled. "Did you guys hear something just now? Like the sound of a beast in the distance?"

"I think so, sounded like a wolf... no, maybe a dog," Feng Liusi replied, thinking for a moment.

"What wolf? It was clearly a duck—I heard a quack," Saint Feinan disagreed, voicing his own interpretation.

"Whatever it was, we should stay cautious. This area is marked as a dangerous zone with unusual creatures on the map. We've just encountered our first one, but we have no idea how dangerous the others could be. Let's not lower our guard. If needed, we'll fight with full force!" Cassius said seriously, glancing at Feng Liusi and Saint Feinan.

"Understood," both men replied.

The three of them remained vigilant, their energy naturally extending around them as a defensive shield against any potential attacks. Yet, they encountered no further ambushes as they left the area.

After three and a half hours in the Akaba Ruins, Cassius flexed his arms, the wind and thunder echoing faintly around him. The battered boulder flew down the tunnel and collided head-on with a charging wooden-armored rhino.

Boom! The long-suffering boulder finally shattered under the pressure.

A cloud of stone dust instantly filled the tunnel.

A powerful figure darted through the dust like an arrow, moving faster than the boulder had. The already injured rhino was sent flying and crashed into the tunnel's end.

A minute later, Cassius crouched over the torn apart rhino, examining it. Its exposed insides, however, were not flesh and blood, but white and green plant roots. This massive beast was not an animal—it was a strange plant creature.

"This is getting stranger and stranger... The Ao Yin civilization..." Cassius muttered as he stood up, his eyes flickering.

After four hours in the Akaba Ruins, Cassius and the others stood at the end of a tunnel, looking ahead. They were greeted by a vast, cylindrical cavity that was the size of a basketball court.

The entire cave wall was grayish-white, dotted with oval-shaped openings leading in various directions. The sight was eerie, like a sinister beehive or ant nest.

This was the starting point of the path, and also a key transfer station within Akaba Ruins. Staircases lined the cave walls, leading downward, where a fountain stood at the bottom.

The fountain not only spouted water but also occasionally spewed out bugs.

These bugs were called scarabs!