CHAPTER 56: CHAPTER 56: ENCOUNTER

Herag found a concealed place to hide based on the surrounding terrain feedback from Shenlan, while simultaneously observing Bessie’s situation through Shenlan.

Rock walked at the forefront, stopping when he was still forty to fifty meters away from where the Stone Giant was sleeping. He pointed ahead, quickly reciting the syllables of a spell, and then said, "Wake up, big guy, Stone Spike Technique!"

A muffled rumbling sound came from the Stone Giant’s resting place, and a humanoid creature, seemingly composed of numerous large stones, catapulted from the underground. A massive stone column was beneath the Stone Giant, appearing as if the Stone Giant had been propped up by the column.

Roar!

The Stone Giant let out a deep growl, stared at Rock for a moment, then charged at him.

"Quicksand Trap." Rock, unhurried, used another spell.

The area where the Stone Giant stood transformed entirely into quicksand, and due to its weight, it quickly sank into the quicksand, with only a third of its body remaining above the surface.

Emma then made her move, tossing a bottle of black potion onto the Stone Giant. Upon breaking, the black liquid spread out.

"High-tier Corrosion Technique!"

After Emma chanted a few incantations, the black potion suddenly expanded, enveloping the entire Stone Giant.

The Stone Giant emitted cries of agony as the stones on its body were rapidly corroded, soon revealing some blood-red muscle tissue underneath.

Herag was not surprised by this scene; he knew that the Stone Giant’s surface was stone, but its interior still had organs and muscle tissue.

The Stone Giant was immobilized in the quicksand, its entire body covered with corrosive potion, continuously howling until its voice grew faint.

Seeing it was almost done, Rock said to Bessie, "Go call Herag over."

Bessie breathed a sigh of relief. They had rehearsed the plan many times before coming, and so far, everything was going smoothly.

After Herag came over with Bessie, Rock waved his hand: "Rock Spike!"

A few mud-yellow spikes rapidly formed in front of him and shot towards the Stone Giant, stabbing its neck and other vital parts, avoiding the heart.

The Stone Giant’s body convulsed continuously after being hit by the spikes, and after a while, its head drooped powerlessly.

"That’s it, hurry up and extract the heart." Rock said as he lifted the effect of the Quicksand Trap, and the ground returned to its hard, muddy appearance.

"Shenlan, is the Stone Giant dead?" Herag didn’t rush over; he first inquired with Shenlan.

"The Stone Giant shows no signs of life," Shenlan replied.

Only then did Herag approach the Stone Giant’s corpse with ease. He took out a set of special dissection tools from his Space Ring.

He first sliced open the stone shell at the Stone Giant’s heart area, revealing the blood-red heart inside.

The difficulty in harvesting the Stone Giant’s heart lies in the seventeen blood vessels surrounding it. They must be cut in a specific order, with each cut followed by sealing the vessel opening with pre-made Magic Potion Mud.

The entire process must be completed within a minute, which is very challenging and requires precise skill; any mistake is unacceptable.

With Shenlan’s assistance, Herag performed each step with pinpoint accuracy, making this task fairly easy for him.

A minute later, Herag held a faintly pulsing blood-red heart in his hands. He placed it into a crystal jar, then poured the prepared Broad-spectrum Potion into it, sealed the jar’s lid, and thus completed the processing of the Stone Giant’s heart.

In the crystal jar, the Stone Giant’s heart, soaked in the Magic Potion, pulsed gently, able to maintain its vitality for two months.

"All done." Herag handed the crystal jar to Bessie.

With the completion of the mission, Bessie felt her burden lifted. She placed the jar into her Space Ring and then took out a bag of Magic Stones: "Herag, this is your payment."

Herag accepted it, and Shenlan quickly scanned through to confirm that there were indeed twenty Magic Stones.

"Let’s hurry back." Now in possession of the Stone Giant’s heart, Bessie grew anxious again, eager to return to Moonlight Forest to commission someone to concoct the potion and advance.

Rock once again took out the Hourglass and began walking back.

Every location in the Thousand Needle Stone Forest looked similar, making it easy to get lost without special methods.

Herag trailed behind, observing the map in his mind without speaking. Even when Rock went off course several times, he didn’t point it out because the hourglass in Rock’s hand would eventually indicate the deviation.

After walking for half an hour, Herag suddenly slowed his pace.

According to Shenlan’s feedback, there were people hiding behind two stone pillars up ahead, a total of three, each exuding a strong Magical Source.

Herag couldn’t call out a warning, so he merely slowed his steps, ready to bolt at a moment’s notice.

Rock had his Magic Sense activated and would soon discover the hidden enemies ahead.

Soon enough, Rock indeed stopped, and then suddenly stepped on a rock and swiftly retreated.

Not only him, but Herag, Bessie, and Emma also rapidly retreated.

A rain of fire immediately fell on the spot they had just occupied. Rock glanced at Herag, slightly surprised that he had sensed and dodged it.

Herag kept an eye on the movements of the three individuals, and as one of them silently cast a spell at them, Herag used the Wind Elf’s blessing to accelerate his retreat immediately.

"What luck! I never thought we’d actually encounter people from Moonlight Forest here. Lord Malcolm did say that there’s a reward for killing people from Moonlight Forest. Killing a First-Class Wizard Apprentice earns five Magic Stones, killing a Second-Class Wizard Apprentice earns twenty Magic Stones, and killing a Third-Class Wizard Apprentice earns fifty Magic Stones."

A man with a face mask said as he emerged from behind a stone pillar, followed by the other two.

"Shenlan, assess the strength of these three," Herag ordered.

"Power 5.8, agility 6.5, constitution 6.8, spirit 17.2."

"Power 5.1, agility 6.8, constitution 7.0, spirit 18.6."

"Power 6.2, agility 5.0, constitution 6.7, spirit 17.8."

"Three Third-Class Wizard Apprentices!" Herag, seeing Shenlan’s results, felt the situation was a bit dire.

On their side, there were only two Third-Class Wizard Apprentices, one Second-Class Wizard Apprentice, and one First-Class Wizard Apprentice. The combat power difference was glaring.

More critically, Rock and Emma might have the ability to protect themselves; if things went south, they could escape, but Herag was unsure if he could run away safely.

Without hesitation, Herag decided to retreat.

With Shenlan mapping the way, he had no concerns about getting lost.

Bessie, noticing Herag’s immediate retreat, didn’t comment; it was a wise decision anyway, as Herag’s presence wouldn’t have added much combat value.

The three adversaries didn’t mind Herag’s departure; a First-Class Wizard Apprentice wasn’t worth much. What mattered were the two Third-Class Wizard Apprentices in front of them - they were the true prizes.