The Oracle Paths

The second threat was of a completely different nature. While scanning the tunnel they were trying to reopen his Oracle Scan had detected signs of alteration in the rock structure.

At this depth, the earth's crust should have been relatively uniform with explainable variations as they moved from one layer to the next. Except that here, all the metals and ores seemed to be mixed together like a homogeneous mashed potato, artificially solidified to form a stable structure that was anything but natural.

Hade didn't know if it was Lost Divinities or some other faction that had the same idea as them, but what he was certain of was that their stealthy inaction was about to end.

'They at least have a powerful Earthmancer or something along those lines.' His brows furrowed in concern as he realized what that could mean.

Without Jake, Gerulf and the other three Kintharians (only two left now) they were indeed vulnerable underground to this type of opponent. Even Tim, Haynt, Ruby, Rogen and the other two Throsgenians had stayed with them to help contain the radiation.

Unfortunately, there was a third threat that denied them any chance of idleness, and one that anyone with a brain and some math skills could foresee. The curtain of black clouds closing in on them in a sphere rather than a circle, they could already predict to the exact millisecond when the black clouds and subsequently the Mana Storm would arrive beneath them.

Three minutes was all the time they had before they had to slowly work their way back up to the surface. If the mass of black clouds surged from below as fast as the black curtain on the surface, it would swallow the distance between it and the surface in another 8 minutes, a total of eleven minutes.

"What are you fretting about Hade?" Asfrid inquired suddenly as she noticed his forehead covered in beads of sweat twitching and then loosening nonstop from concentration.

The Fluid Grandmaster hesitated for a moment, then shared his concerns with the group, revealing his findings. The Myrtharian Nerds' expressions changed, especially the large animals like Dumbo and Immyr who were not confident that they could escape in time.

"Forget about three minutes, the magma lake will reach us in a minute or so." Asfrid confirmed with her mental sense. "Even if the faction hiding underground near us wasn't Lost Divinities, we wouldn't be able to go straight up without running into them. To save time, we'll have to get closer to them and place ourselves in the center, right under the Celestial City. This is the safest position before the clouds catch us from below, but it also means that all the Players and natives who had the same plan as us will converge in the same place."

"Do we have a choice?" Lucia sneered as she swung her sword against the ground to warm up while producing a spray of sparks.

"I'm afraid not..."

"Then what are we fussing about? Jake, Gerulf and the others won't die because of a cave-in and a few explosions. They'll join us sooner or later, so let's show them what we can do by taking charge of the first round.

Then someone who had been keeping a low profile suddenly cleared his throat. The Myrtharian Nerds turned in the direction of the culprit and recognized Remus Dracul, or rather Jen, the Mimic who had impersonated this Vampire clan leader. Next to him, Melion also stood with a reluctant expression as if he wanted to say something but wasn't sure if it was the appropriate thing to do.

"Anything to say?" Crunch snorted. Ever since he had learned that the Mimic had become his master's new slave he had felt a deep antipathy towards this devious opportunist.

"Before the final battle, my master allowed Melion and I to shapeshift into him." Jen explained anxiously. "We have several drops of blood with his genetic material in our possession just for this purpose. Not just Jake, but from almost all of you."

"Why wasn't I told about this?" Lucia pursed her lips in displeasure.

"I was informed." Hade confirmed.

"So was I." Asfrid chimed in.

"Me too..." Svara nodded.

"Me to..."

A vein throbbed on Princess Myrmidian's forehead as she saw that most knew about it. Apparently it had been decided while she was sparring with Gerulf. When she fought, her thirst for victory and competitive spirit made her virtually unapproachable. Swallowing her sarcasm, Lucia crossed her arms and snapped coldly,

"What are you waiting for then?! Time is running out."

The rock vault above them was indeed starting to grow porous like a piece of Swiss cheese. Streams of lava were trickling down from it, but Dumbo's fur and the other dragons could handle such a temperature without any problem for the time being thanks to the Myrtharian Body passive.

Jen was about to say something, but Melion interrupted him with a wave. More composed, he stepped in front of the others and flatly explained,

"I can copy bloodlines of Grade 11 or less, but I expend a lot of energy with each transformation based on the power of the person I'm transforming into. Jen is limited to Grade 10. The original plan decided by Jake, Asfrid and Hade was that I would transform into a powerful Player like the Nullifyer or Vexa when the opportunity presented itself. I just need a bit of genetic material. Even a hair is enough."

At that moment, the rock vault gave way completely and a cascade of magma poured down Dumbo's back, quickly expanding until it encompassed the dragons, then Mufasa and the other Aristocats.

"Jen turn into Jake and open that tunnel." Lucia ordered decisively upon seeing this. "Melion, don't transform for now. Prepare for battle. We attack with full power anyone who gets in our way. For the course of action I propose..."

Because of the critical emergency in which they found themselves, no one challenged Lucia's orders. Through telepathy, a coherent plan was immediately devised. They would assume that it was an enemy like Lost Divinities and in that case they had no reason to hold back.

A blast from another antimatter explosion blew away what little remained of the earth's crust around them and Lucia shouted,

"Now!"

Jen momentarily resumed his treasure chest form, and his long tongue darted out of the gap to gobble up the drop of blood from his master. A heartbeat later, an individual identical to Jake but with a far weaker aura stood before them.

Aware of the dire situation, Jen took control of the lava with a thought and instantly opened a deep tunnel, providing them with a clear line of sight for over 500 meters. At that very moment, those at the other end of the tunnel met the eyes of the Myrtharian Nerds.

It was Lost Divinities!

"Fuck..." Hade cursed as he recognized Felphi, the Player named the Disrupter who had beaten him up a few weeks earlier.

"What a coincidence, hehe..." His nemesis giggled as she recognized the Fluid Grandmaster.

She was not at all surprised to meet him again. Somehow, Lost Divinities had detected their presence long ago.

But unfortunately, their mistake was not attacking them first. If Ruby hadn't disrupted the predictions of their Oracle Paths they would never have been so careless. Everyone locked on to their targets in perfect sync.

"NOW!" Lucia roared as she crossed the distance in a supersonic blur.

SLASH!

Her stroke of victory sliced through the air with unimaginable speed, crashing onto Deimos, the Spartan-looking God of War. The warrior's hair immediately stood on end as he sensed the immense danger and reflexively parried it by summoning his spear. A dense stream of dark red energy erupted forth from his body and coated his weapon.

As their weapons collided a shower of blinding sparks shot out in all directions, accompanied by a shockwave even more destructive than the detonation of an Antimatter Bug. Several Lost Divinities Players were blown away, their bodies shattering or ending up severely injured by the blast.

Simultaneously, Asfrid grabbed Jen's wrist and teleported above Nucnar, the giant gem-covered golem manipulating the earth and maintaining the stability of the underground cavern. Knowing what he had to do, the Mimic opened a second tunnel, this time leading straight into the depths of the planet.