"Master Bawei, Master Booker and the others have been out the entire day and haven't returned yet. Could it be..."

A young man wearing glasses said worriedly to the middle-aged man beside him.

Bawei pondered, "Indeed, there seems to be some problem. They might have run into trouble. Booker has a bi-directional teleportation witchcraft artifact. In theory, they should be able to return immediately after exploring the ruins. The fact that they haven't returned yet can only mean they're either trapped or have encountered some issues."

"But even if Master Booker encounters any danger, he should be able to teleport back using the witchcraft artifact, right?" Sean, the young man with glasses, said.

Bawei shook his head, "The witchcraft artifact takes time to activate. If something special happens, there won't be time to slowly initiate teleportation back."

"Master Booker is a Level 2 Wizard. What could possibly trouble him so much that he doesn't even have time to activate the artifact..." Sean realized the situation might be more complicated than he imagined.

They were all official members of the Eye of the Storm, which is one of the Pioneer Squads of the Eye of the Storm.

The captain of this Pioneer Squad is Bawei, and Booker serves as the vice-captain.

A Pioneer Squad consisting of two Level 2 Wizards is generally considered quite powerful and usually wouldn't encounter overly troublesome incidents.

Most issues they can resolve.

This time, Booker specially brought a few apprentices with the purpose of giving them some training.

Bawei had some opinions on this, but given Booker's deep experience, he didn't interfere.

Regarding Booker's actions, Bawei had little to say and could only let him proceed as he wished.

After all, if anything happened, it wasn't his problem; Booker would have to handle it.

Booker mentioned during the day that they'd go explore the recently discovered ruins, so Bawei and the others stayed put to wait.

Bawei knew the ruins, just judging by the castle's design, it didn't seem like there would be excellent finds there.

Accordingly, the risk would be significantly lower.

So, Bawei and the others set up a protective witch array at their location to wait for Booker and the others' return.

Who could have guessed that after waiting an entire day, there would still be no news from Booker and the others.

Looking at the pitch-black night sky, Bawei felt a foreboding sense rising within him.

A Level 2 Wizard not returning is not a trivial matter.

Bawei and the others were currently in a bare, small mountain.

From the outside, it appeared to be an ordinary small mountain with no difference from other barren mountains in the polluted district.

Neither could one perceive the presence of Bawei and the others inside the mountain, nor would any sound or smell leak out.

This was a commonly used protective witch array by the Pioneer Squad for temporary resting and providing a relatively safe shelter.

Despite the small mountain looking ordinary, it was actually a Level 3 Witch Array.

Having this witch array enabled them to have greater safety spending the night in the polluted district.

Once the witch array was activated, it would automatically adapt to the surrounding scene to conceal those inside.

At the same time, this Level 3 Witch Array had a strong defensive capability, such that not even a Level 3 Wizard could easily break through it.

Bawei hadn't expected Booker to be away for so long without returning.

His current issue was deciding how long to keep waiting there.

Booker's witchcraft artifact's location was here; if Bawei left, he couldn't provide Booker with a safe return spot.

But if he stayed, even with the Level 3 Witch Array, it was tremendously dangerous to linger in one spot in the polluted district for too long.

Bawei had to remain responsible for the other five team members at the camp.

"One day... If they haven't returned by the day after tomorrow, I'll have to leave first."

After much consideration, Bawei decided to wait another day there.

If Booker still hadn't returned, it would signify something happened to him.

Should Booker encounter a mishap, it's also likely beyond what Bawei could resolve.

Bawei wasn't reckless enough to run off looking for Booker; his duty was to relay the news back, leaving the decision to higher authorities.

And besides, he didn't have the best relationship with Booker, even somewhat disliked him.

So, under no circumstances would he risk going after Booker. Waiting another day was already commendable.

"Master Bawei, did you hear some kind of noise?" Sean suddenly asked, interrupting Bawei's deep thought.

"Noise?" Bawei seemed puzzled, then listened intently.

After careful listening, his expression changed. He indeed heard disturbances coming closer from afar.

Bawei quickly extended his hand, channeling magic power to condense into a blue mirror.

Within the mirror appeared distant scenes, revealing hordes of Crawlers rushing forward in a frenzy.

Bawei maneuvered the mirror to adjust the view angle, and soon he saw whom the army of Crawlers was pursuing.

It was a young man flying mid-air, clad in dark golden armor, seemingly a lone individual.

Bawei found it odd how a loner appeared in the polluted district.

In the Land of Dawn, no matter which faction, their Pioneer Squads always operated together and never acted alone, as it's a huge taboo.

Given the high danger and uncertainties in the polluted district, even entire Pioneer Squads risk annihilation, let alone individuals.

Bawei didn't recognize the young man, nor did he see any faction insignia on his garments.

He could only surmise the individual got separated and somehow attracted such a massive number of Crawlers.

"Crawlers! Why are there so many of them!" Sean exclaimed in shock, stunned by the scene.

Sean had encountered Crawlers before, but never witnessed such a scene with countless Crawlers filling his view.

"Master, the Crawlers are heading this way, we..." Sean looked worriedly at Bawei.

Bawei understood his concern.

A Level 3 Witch Array would naturally withstand these Crawlers, regardless of their numbers.

The issue wasn't the Crawlers but the tremendous commotion they created.

In the polluted district, the golden rule was to maintain a low profile.

Fire cannot be lit at night, as it would make you an easy target.

Similarly, making too much noise would attract unknown entities.

With such an enormous number of Crawlers, they created a commotion akin to a plague of locusts sweeping through.

This immense commotion would undoubtedly draw the attention of many existences in the polluted district.

Bawei and the others might be safe temporarily within the Level 3 Witch Array but not indefensibly so.

If a Legendary Demon were to arrive, even hiding inside the witch array wouldn't suffice as it would still detect their presence.

In that case, even a robust Level 3 Witch Array wouldn't withstand a relentless attack from a Legendary Demon.

Staying within the witch array would then turn into a deathtrap, ensuring doom.

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