Chapter 461: The Kill

Jim stared at the ground littered with murloc corpses. Was this what Helag called a stroll?

In such a short time, Helag had slain so many—it was almost unbelievable.

Meanwhile, from another direction, the sound of footsteps and voices approached.

Soon, three figures emerged from the fog—three other exorcists.

Leading the group was a gaunt man holding a short sword, its blade stained with blood.

Upon arriving, they first scrutinized Helag and Jim, then glanced at the murloc bodies scattered around.

“Did you two take out all these murlocs?” the man asked.

Jim glanced at Helag, choosing not to speak.

Helag replied, “More or less.”

The man with the short sword didn’t seem pleased, but seeing there were two of them, he didn’t press the issue and turned to leave.

The three hadn’t managed to kill many murlocs themselves. After clearing their area, they came over only to find this side already cleared.

They decided to head toward the lake, hoping to find more murlocs to eliminate.

Helag looked at Jim and said, “I’m going to check it out. You coming?”

“I’ll go with you,” Jim replied.

Jim’s path had been similar to Helag’s, so he hadn’t encountered many murlocs himself.

He wasn’t ready to head back empty-handed and wanted to see what else he could find.

Helag, with his long sword in hand, moved with agility and grace, leaping several meters at a time, as light as a feather.

Watching him, Jim realized he was indeed in the presence of a master.

Helag’s movements indicated that his physical strength and control were at an exceptionally high level, a result of years of training.

Jim hurried to keep up, knowing the dense fog could easily cause him to lose track of Helag.

Helag moved swiftly, and upon reaching the front, he found only murloc corpses on the ground.

Looking up, he used his environmental scan to see the three exorcists dealing with the remaining murlocs in the fog.

The murloc bodies at his feet were their handiwork.

Helag quickly joined them, continuing to slay the remaining murlocs.

These murlocs seemed fearless, charging mindlessly at any human they saw.

Even after witnessing the slaughter of their kind, they showed no fear and continued to attack.

Before long, Jim caught up.

He had gotten lost earlier but had followed the trail of murloc bodies to find his way back.

Seeing the others engaged in battle, Jim refused to be left behind and charged in with his sword.

The gaunt man with the short sword killed a murloc, then vanished, reappearing in front of another.

His short sword glowed with a dark energy, not from poison but from some special enchantment.

Helag noticed the difference—it wasn’t like Aed’s black sword.

Aed’s sword was part of his ability, lacking physical form until summoned.

The gaunt man’s short sword was tangible, with its special energy likely tied to his ability.

The two groups worked in harmony, each clearing their own area of murlocs.

With so many murlocs, there was no need to fight over them—it would be a waste.

In less than an hour, the murlocs were nearly wiped out, leaving none behind.

As Helag sheathed his sword, he casually asked, “Jim, have there been murlocs here before?”

Jim shook his head. “I’ve been here many times and never encountered murlocs. I don’t know why so many appeared this time.”

“I see…” Helag pondered.

Something felt off. Such an unusual event likely had a hidden cause.

The gaunt man with the short sword turned and said, “Gentlemen, these murlocs probably came from the lake. Interested in checking it out?”

The other two hesitated. The situation at the lake was unclear and potentially dangerous.

But given how weak the murlocs were, they posed little threat, so they agreed to go.

The three reached a consensus and quickly disappeared into the fog, heading toward the lake.

“What about us…” Jim seemed tempted, having tasted success against the murlocs and wanting more.

Helag looked at him and said, “There might be trouble over there. I’ll be fine, but if something happens, you’re on your own.”

Helag had a gut feeling that something was amiss at the lake, possibly hiding danger.

With his spatial teleportation ability, escaping wouldn’t be too difficult for him.

After speaking, Helag moved on, leaving Jim to ponder. Eventually, Jim decided to follow.

“Strength +4.2, Agility +4.4, Constitution +3.6.”

“Helag Merlin: Strength 43.6, Agility 43.9, Constitution 44.2, Spirit 79.5, Magic 100%.”

Helag glanced at his status panel, noting the significant boost in his attributes.

The murloc battle had increased his stats by an average of six to seven points.

With his base attributes so high, using Titan Power would elevate them to an extraordinary level.

As he considered this, Helag advanced quickly through the fog.

The fog obscured his vision, but Helag could still perceive his surroundings clearly.

Through his environmental scan, he saw the three exorcists nearing the lake, where more murlocs emerged from the water, charging at them.

The exorcists were overjoyed, seeing the murlocs as walking sources of demonic aura, and eagerly began their attack.

Helag raised an eyebrow, sensing something was off, and decided not to proceed further.

While tempted by the murlocs, he wouldn’t let greed cloud his judgment.

He felt there was something in the lake.

Before long, Jim arrived.

“You’re not going over?” Jim asked, puzzled by Helag’s hesitation.

Helag replied, “Go if you want, but I sense something’s wrong. I’m staying put for now.”

In the past, Jim might have gone on his own.

But knowing Helag was a master, he took Helag’s words seriously.

If a master thought the lake was dangerous, charging in blindly would be foolish.

Jim chose caution. While demonic aura was valuable, he needed to survive to enjoy it.

He stood by, watching the lake.

The fog was thinner here, allowing a glimpse of the lake.

The gaunt man and his companions were swiftly dispatching murlocs emerging from the water, absorbing their demonic aura.