A mage's journey begins with a battle mage.

Chapter 298 Fierce Battle with Risco

"They're everywhere!"

"No! Why? We clearly..."

"Outside, the infected are attacking!"

Endless chaos struck Ricos, a city considered a safe zone, plunging it into fear and death in an instant.

"roar!"

The infected man with the scarlet infection roared as he swung his blade at a soldier standing nearby.

"You monster!"

"I may die, but not today, nor at this moment!"

The soldier parried the attack, then swung his sword and slashed powerfully at the infected.

The attack was highly effective; the infected were cut in two, but the severed body still struggled to crawl toward the soldier.

But the soldiers didn't give the infected a chance to attack; with a whoosh, the blade pierced through the infected's skull.

"That's all there is to it."

The soldier had a relaxed smile on his face, but it didn't last long.

"roar!"

In the distance, hundreds and thousands of infected people rushed toward him.

What he killed was only one in a billion.

"I will never admit defeat! Behind me are Rikos, and countless of my kin!"

The soldier's face was resolute, and then he engaged in a fierce battle with the infected.

However, given the sheer number of infected individuals, his fate was predictable.

Death was his final destination.

Amidst the chaos, Jiang Shuzhou strolled through, as if everything were nothing but a dream, having no effect on him whatsoever.

Cries and wails, shouts and battle cries, beliefs and prayers—none of these concerned Jiang Shuzhou.

He came here to obtain the core of the secret realm.

"Quickly, everyone who isn't infected, get into the secret realm!"

The center of Ricos is the entrance to the secret realm, and the entire city is built around it. It is also the most heavily guarded place.

Up to this point, this place is still considered safe.

However, it soon became unsafe here.

Because Jiang Shuzhou has arrived.

The soldiers used magical items one by one to carefully examine the condition of the merman civilians. Those infected mermen were all taken away and executed.

It seems the city lord here isn't stupid either.

But these magical items...

Jiang Shuzhou knew without guessing that this must be the work of the magic network mage.

The main reason is that the principle behind this thing is very simple. To put it bluntly, it is a terminal that can connect to the magic network. Through the magic network, it releases a group detection spell to detect infected people.

Perhaps after this, Jiang Shuzhou should upgrade the concealment mechanism so that these ordinary spells cannot detect traces of infection.

However, this is only one point; there is an even more important point.

There are magic network mages here, some even high-level ones.

The reason is simple: the instruments the soldiers were carrying were relatively new and showed signs of multiple adjustments, clearly indicating that they were custom-made.

Considering the relationship between the Fishman Empire and the Alliance of Saints, and the fact that the Goddess of the Magic Network is playing a resurrection match, it's not hard to guess that this is likely a trap.

Or rather, someone noticed that Jiang Shuzhou was planning to take action against the secret realm.

Jiang Shuzhou wasn't particularly surprised by this, after all, his purpose was quite easy to guess.

More than a dozen provinces fell, and all the dead and wounded were civilians. What was the purpose?

Without harvesting souls or taking any other actions, and at such a huge cost, could it be that it was only intended to kill ordinary civilians?

And these places are all places where one can plot against these secret realms.

This area was already a key protected site, and now that problems have arisen nearby, anyone with common sense knows what will happen.

Jiang Shuzhou's eyes flickered slightly as he figured out the key point: the battlefield couldn't be in the secret realm.

After all, the secret realm belongs to the other side, giving them a home-field advantage, and a significant one at that. They possess the key to the secret realm's core, allowing them to control elements and other aspects within the realm to a certain extent.

If there are only one or two high-level opponents, then Jiang Shuzhou is confident that he can kill them directly despite the weakening effect.

But the problem is that there might not be just one or two opponents, and there might even be magic network mages. If we fight inside, we will be in an extremely passive situation.

However, in order to prevent the other party from resorting to desperate measures and directly closing the gate to the secret realm, Jiang Shuzhou needs to find out the spatial coordinates of the secret realm. In this way, even if the other party closes the gate to the secret realm, Jiang Shuzhou can directly enter the secret realm through spatial jump.

After all, the essence of a secret realm is a modified demiplane, and it ultimately depends on someone or something for its existence. Theoretically, it is possible to jump in directly through spatial coordinates, although there may be some danger.

If this secret realm belonged to a mage, then Jiang Shuzhou was prepared to run away as soon as possible. After all, a mage's demiplane was full of various defensive measures, and it would be difficult to break through without sufficient strength.

But the magic network mages are different. First of all, most of these people have only recently been promoted and lack sufficient experience. As long as Jiang Shuzhou burns the magic network, ninety percent of their abilities will be lost.

Furthermore, this secret realm doesn't belong to the other side; at most, it's just for assisting in defense.

Figuring out the spatial coordinates of the secret realm is simple. Although Jiang Shuzhou cannot enter in person, isn't this place where people can enter on their own?

The spell is cast covertly, minimizing the fluctuations of magical energy.

Soon after, a problem arose.

"Sir, please have mercy! We're fine, please let us in."

An aged merman spoke to the soldier in a pleading tone.

"Due to special circumstances, please undergo testing."

However, the soldier's tone remained cold and unyielding, showing no sign of being moved.

"Aren't you supposed to be protecting us?! I need to go inside right now!"

"Please undergo testing."

The old merman started throwing a tantrum, attracting the attention of many soldiers.

Taking advantage of this moment, Jiang Shuzhou quietly approached a nobleman who was about to enter the building after passing through the inspection.

"Master Bai, don't you recognize me?"

"Huh? You are...?"

The nobleman was a little confused. This person had suddenly appeared in front of him and was saying some strange things. What was going on?

"I'm your mother's friend!"

"My mother?"

"Yes, your mother."

"You don't mean you want me to take you inside, do you?"

The nobleman looked wary; he didn't want to lose his qualification to enter the secret realm because of this.

"How could that be? This is something your mother gave you. Take it."

Jiang Shuzhou handed a small bag to the nobleman and gave him instructions.

"My mother gave it to me?"

The nobleman's mind was a complete mess; he wanted to say something, but he didn't.

"Take it."

Jiang Shuzhou, too lazy to pretend anymore, simply shoved the small bag into the other person's arms, gave a hint, and turned to leave.

"Oh, okay."

The nobleman looked bewildered, took the bag, put it away, and turned to enter the secret realm.

Now we have the spatial location.

Sometimes, simple strategies can play a crucial role.

In the face of life and death, such things seem extremely ordinary and commonplace.

It didn't feel abrupt at all, because everyone was saying goodbye.