Not long after, the water surface churned, and the figure of the archmage darted out.
"How is the situation now?"
"That woman just sealed off the dungeon, and all the adventurers inside have been cleared out. What are you going to do? That woman won't be satisfied until she finds you."
"We still have a dark magic mage, has he been captured?"
"We couldn't find him; he must have escaped."
"That's good! I have enough supplies to survive for several months, they can't blockade us for too long. Take this ring with you, just in case anything unexpected happens."
"No problem. I'll be going now. Leaving for too long will attract their attention. Take care!"
Seeing him leave, the wind mage slipped back into the water and disappeared from Luo Fan's sight.
Interestingly, Luo Fan discovered that the two of them didn't seem to be as united as he had imagined, and the person in the water was even on guard.
The ring that guy handed over wasn't Roy's at all. Could it be another feint? Luckily, I activated the recording stone beforehand, so Caitlin can arrest him now.
After flashing to Caitlin's side and telling her what he had discovered, Luo Fan turned back again, transforming into several black earthworms and diving into the water.
The lake was so deep that he couldn't see the bottom at all. However, he soon spotted a hidden rock with slight signs of movement.
Haha, I found you!
Caitlin, having received Luo Fan's message, became cautious again and even asked Sean, who was standing next to her, about it.
The Fifth Special Forces Squad of the Empire was an elite unit entrusted to her command by the Emperor to protect her. It consisted of only a dozen or so members, but the weakest among them were either Level 1 Archmage or Level 1 Martial General, and the leader was already close to becoming a Grand Archmage.
The special operations teams have a very strict selection process, and they still carry royal secrets. It is precisely for this reason that the empire invests enormous training resources in these individuals.
She hadn't expected that someone in the special operations team would betray her. No wonder the enemy knew her whereabouts and personnel movements in advance, and no wonder she hadn't been able to find any useful information during this period.
Caitlin was furious, glancing every now and then at the other end of the cave, wondering who that person was.
Not long after, the figure that Luo Fan had described finally appeared. He greeted his companions who were providing assistance and stood there as well, looking perfectly normal.
"Uncle, who is that person? When did he join the team?" Caitlin asked Sean beside her.
Sean glanced at him. "That's Carlo, the eldest son of Marquis Zeke. He's been in the team for two years. I remember he broke through to the level of Archmage three years ago. He's around forty years old and has pretty good talent."
Marquis Zeke, seemingly one of the emperor's most valued ministers, had a son who was actually colluding with hostile forces.
How did he perform?
"Very proactive. He's arrested quite a few people in the past two years and is quite popular within the team. What, is Your Highness interested in him?"
Caitlin handed over a small photo stone.
After reading it, his expression immediately changed, and he even summoned his confidants.
"Carlo, come here for a second!" Sean called out naturally.
"What's wrong, boss?" Carlo acted normally, showing no sign of nervousness.
"It's nothing, I just wanted to ask, since you were the last to get back, did you find any trace of the criminal?" Sean walked over.
“No, I suspect that guy must have hidden in the puddle.” Carlo remained calm and even offered his analysis.
"Oh~!" The team leader acted instantly, activating the mark left on his body, and Carlo's face turned deathly pale. Before he could resist, he was subdued by the group.
"Why, why are you attacking me!" Carlo struggled and shouted.
Sean threw the recording stone over, and Carlo was immediately filled with despair. He had clearly searched all the locations and found no one there.
A quick search revealed the ring hidden in his anus; he had actually concealed it there. Had they not confirmed he had taken the ring, they likely would have returned empty-handed once again.
"There's a restriction on the ring, Your Highness. Should we force it open?" After having Carlo dragged away for interrogation, Sean asked Caitlin, who was beside him, while holding the cleaned ring.
No one knows how she obtained the photographic stone, but the way many people looked at Caitlin changed slightly.
Your Highness is so mysterious!
"No rush. Send someone to investigate that pool. We need to find the person, alive or dead."
Yes!
Luo Fan crawled into the crevice in the rock and soon discovered that there was a hidden world inside.
The space, several dozen cubic meters in size, was filled with aquatic plants. On the stone wall, there was a small bed, and the mage was squatting on it, carefully examining the contents of his ring, seemingly quite pleased.
On the cave floor, Luo Fan could also sense traces of a magic circle, which turned out to be a reconnaissance type. His chances of successfully launching a sneak attack were too low.
How should we proceed?
Lying motionless on the rock face, Luo Fan became one with the stone.
If that guy goes back, Caitlin will definitely make her move immediately. If she forces her way through to find the ring, this guy will definitely become alert and might even move to another location.
Perhaps we can only rely on Warcraft's help again. Hopefully, the creatures underwater aren't too weak.
They returned the way they came, sprinkling a very small amount of cold marrow into the cracks in the rocks, which slowly froze the gaps.
Back on shore, Luo Fan hid in a dark corner overhead, quietly waiting for things to unfold. He had already left a spatial node at his previous location, preparing for a sudden attack.
Before long, the leader arrived with a number of mages and surrounded the puddle.
But just then, a violent collision occurred underwater, as if a monster was crashing into the rocks below.
"Boss, what should we do? Should we go into the water? There's the aura of a monster down there."
The impact below intensified, causing the entire puddle to shake violently. Before long, a figure suddenly darted out – it was the wind mage, looking somewhat disheveled.
A magical net enveloped the still somewhat bewildered archmage, and several people quickly stepped forward to subdue him. Seeing the puddle shaking more violently, these people retreated rapidly, rushing towards the exit.
Luo Fan, who was hiding in the shadows, immediately teleported and discovered a monster underwater holding a weapon, frantically pounding on the stone wall, seemingly trying to dig out more of the Frost Marrow.
The previous opening was too small, and it is rapidly widening the path in.
A level 68 Azure Wave Shark! Luo Fan glanced at it and quickly searched the cave, soon finding the ring left behind by the other party in a corner.
After confirming the situation, Luo Fan splashed some more water spirit liquid before leaving.
It's best not to leave this cave open, lest it attract the attention of those with ulterior motives.
Back with Ellie, they were gathered in a tent, having changed their clothes. Lofan arrived too late, missing a good show.
Following Ellie out of the tent, they only found the mage's corpse. Caitlin stood beside it, examining the ring; she seemed to be in a good mood, probably having discovered other clues.
"Lift the blockade and we'll return the way we came!" Caitlin said upon seeing Luo Fan appear.
Soon, the underground city of Tianshui returned to calm, except for a corner where a vicious shark was attacking recklessly, which quickly attracted the attention of many adventurers.
However, the perpetrator, Luo Fan, had already left.
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