Chapter 574: Pool of Secrets
Chapter 574: Pool of Secrets
—Black Mist Pouch: Special item. Formed when the Iceflame Black Serpent Man absorbed the black mist from the Black Serpent Cave during its cultivation.
Effect: When activated, the user is enveloped in black mist and becomes invisible. Only high-level monsters can see through the concealment. Attacking will break stealth, but once the user stops attacking, stealth will automatically activate again, regardless of whether the user is still considered to be in combat. Duration: 10 minutes. Uses remaining: 5/5.
—
Stealth that could be reactivated simply by stopping his attacks? Marcus didn’t need to think very hard to appreciate how useful that was. An effect like this could be incredibly valuable in both combat and exploration, especially when combined with his other abilities. The fact that the pouch had five uses remaining made it even better, and considering how troublesome the effect could be, it was hardly inferior to something like a Red Artifact.
Marcus stored the pouch and the rest of the valuable loot in his bag before turning his attention to the frozen soldiers. They were still watching him.
Their eyes moved constantly, following Marcus wherever he went, and after taking a closer look, he realized they were fully conscious. They had witnessed the entire battle from inside the ice. Now they were desperately trying to speak, their mouths opening and closing as they shouted at him, but the thick layers of ice muffled every sound before it could escape.
Marcus walked over and gave them a reassuring wave.
"I’m getting you out!"
They probably couldn’t hear him, but that didn’t matter. He took out the Jade Purification Vase and carefully poured the Millennium Fire-Apricot Wine over the frozen soldiers, letting the precious wine spread across the surface of the ice a little at a time.
The moment the wine touched the blue ice, a brilliant red light erupted. The ice began melting rapidly, streams of water running down its surface before pooling around the soldiers’ feet. One after another, the frozen figures broke free, stumbling forward as their stiff limbs finally regained movement. For a moment, none of them spoke.
They simply stared at Marcus with wide eyes, their expressions filled with disbelief and gratitude. After everything they had just witnessed, it was clear they were still struggling to process the fact that they had actually been saved.
Finally, a stocky young man with thick arms stepped forward, his expression earnest and his voice still heavy with emotion.
"I’m Ironstone, the town blacksmith and captain of the guard of Dragon’s Roar Town. Thank you, sir. You didn’t just save us from that serpent. You saved our lives."
"That’s right!"
"You saved the whole town!"
"You’re our hero!"
The other soldiers quickly gathered around, their voices overlapping as they expressed their excitement and gratitude. Yet while they were certainly grateful for being rescued, Marcus could tell that something else had captured their attention even more strongly: the battle.