The earth shook violently!

The scorching lava shock wave exploded in a circular shape!

The imprisoned orcs were like straws in the wind, blown away by the violent force and crashed into the hard stone walls on both sides. The sound of bones breaking could be clearly heard.

The high temperature of the lava burned their fur, and the air was filled with a burning stench.

The dizziness and severe pain prevented them from even uttering a complete scream.

"Holy Light, Judgment!"

Mark's figure appeared in the center of the battlefield like a ghost. The huge cross sword, with a whimper that tore through the air, was held in his hands and pierced into the rock ground under his feet!

Buzz——!

The sword was nearly halfway into the ground, and instantly turned into a black cross emitting a heavy pressure!

With the cross as its center, a condensed and substantial seven-colored black ripple suddenly spread out, like the ripples that spread out when a huge rock is thrown into a calm lake.

With a sacred yet cold breath of annihilation, it swept across the bodies of all the orcs who were knocked away and stunned by Enzo.

Puff! Puff!

The protective magic that the orcs tried hard to maintain was shattered and destroyed like rotten wood under the ripples of this higher level of magic!

As the ripples swept past, Monica's figure appeared silently beside the orcs who were already unconscious but still twitching, like a breeze blending into the shadows.

The cold edge of the dagger swept across the opponent's thick neck without any hindrance, leaving a trail of tiny blood beads.

She didn't even look down at the fallen body. Her long wine-red hair fluttered in the bloody wind, and her cold eyes swept across the battlefield.

The dust has settled.

From the moment Anna fired her first shadow arrow to the moment Monica completed the final blow, the entire process took no more than a dozen heartbeats.

The bodies of five orcs were scattered on the charred, broken rock ground in various twisted postures.

Some were scorched by lava, others had their internal organs shattered by the ripples of Holy Judgment, but all had their throats cut.

The air was filled with a strong smell of burnt food, blood, and sulfur.

The canyon returned to dead silence, with only the whimpering of the wind blowing through the stone pillars.

Mark pulled out the cross and the giant sword retracted into the necklace.

He shook his wrist, as if just brushing off a little dust, and the charlatan smile on his face reappeared, with a hint of lingering desire.

"Tsk, by the Holy Light, this 'Trial' of the Rotten Ivy Alliance... isn't exciting enough."

…

Mark weighed the rough bone token in his hand, which was still stained with orc blood, and walked into the blacksmith shop filled with the smell of cheap coal smoke and rust.

"Holy Light bless you, mission accomplished."

Mark slapped the dominoes on the greasy chopping board with a "snap". The sound was not loud, but it made old lame Buck, who was hammering iron ingots by the fire, pause.

Buck's cloudy eye swept across the dominoes, then he raised his eyelids and glanced at the four members of Mark's team.

Especially lingering for a moment on Mark's priest robe, which seemed to have not changed at all since he left, and Anna's pointed ears.

He snorted a foul smell of rust, said nothing, and limped to an iron cabinet in the corner that was also covered with oil. He opened it with a key and took out a roll of something from it.

That thing looked like a tanned animal hide with rough edges, but it felt extremely heavy and cold to the touch, with extremely faint, almost imperceptible magical patterns flowing on its surface.

"Here, a map." Buck casually tossed the animal hide scroll onto the chopping block, next to the dominoes. "It can be activated by injecting a trace of magic power. It covers the entire Lor Swamp battlefield, including the approximate areas of activity of the main forces of both armies, as well as... a few smaller targets 'worthy of attention.'"

He grinned, revealing his yellowed teeth, his smile filled with undisguised greed and calculation.

"Good stuff, right? But don't be too happy too soon."

His calloused hand tapped the edge of the chopping board, making a dull sound:

"According to the rules of the Alliance, this map is maintained by a special magic circle. Every seven days, the magic markings on it must be updated, otherwise it will become useless. There are only two ways to update it."

Buck held up two fingers, staring at Mark with cloudy eyes: "First, pay the money obediently. It's not much, just one thousand gold coins at a time. One hand pays the money, and the other hand replenishes the magic."

When Enzo heard this, his thick eyebrows instantly turned upside down, and he growled in a gruff voice: "Fuck! A thousand gold? Why the hell don't you just go and rob it?"

Although Mark and his friends are not short of money.

However, compared to the consumption level of ordinary adventurers who only have a few dozen silver coins for a large glass of beer, a thousand gold coins is definitely a huge sum of money for ordinary adventurers, enough for a team to live comfortably for half a year.

Buck scoffed, ignoring the irritable dwarf. His gaze remained fixed on Mark's face. "The second thing... is to do something for the Alliance. The Alliance will award you contribution points based on your performance and the difficulty of the task. With enough contribution points, not only can you replenish your mana for free, but you can also upgrade your membership level. The higher the level..."

He deliberately dragged out his words, lowering his voice to a whisper, "The more you can see on the map, the more 'detailed' and 'timely' it is."

The smile on Mark's face remained unchanged, but his fingers gently stroked the cross necklace on his chest.

Behind him, Monica's wine-red eyes flickered slightly, and the [Ring of Truth (IX)] on her fingertips emitted a barely perceptible halo of light, while invisible waves of identification quietly swept across the animal skin map.

Monica had never identified this map before and hadn't discovered the secret hidden in it. It seems that the people of the Rotten Ivy Alliance use this method to control the many adventurers in the Lor Swamp.

One thousand gold coins? Mark sneered in his heart.

Not to mention that Monica, the rich woman, has a bottomless treasury. Even the huge sums of money "earned" from Osborne Town lying in his own space ring are enough to buy this broken map hundreds of times with some money left over.

Ever since Enzo joined their team, they only needed to regularly purchase some low-cost materials to repair their armor.

They don't need much money at all. The money earned from occasionally hunting monsters can make up for their daily expenses.

So, money has never been a problem for them.

But Buck's next words hit the nail on the head about their real needs.

Detailed? Timely?

What they need is the most accurate and timely intelligence to avoid the large-scale meat grinder-like battlefield, accurately locate the small orc tribes or human mercenary teams suitable for their trials, and at the same time avoid possible pursuit by high-level orcs.

A basic map, which can only provide a vague outline, is far from enough.

"Raise the level... to see more detailed information?" Mark said, his voice filled with just the right amount of interest, like an ordinary adventurer attracted by profit.