Chess Mage of Faerûn

Chapter 275 Hidden in the Stone, Ghostly Form Revealed; Beauty and Power, Snake Woman Draws Carved Bow

More importantly, Captain Zhang made an exception tonight, setting aside his daily meditation and choosing instead Qi Dao meditation, which is more sensitive to his internal and external perceptions than communicating with the magic network.

Before the training, the cautious mage wore the Stone Skin Technique and mage armor on his body, fully armed, while all the other team members slept fully clothed, ready for battle.

Nothing happened all night.

Nothing.

When Zhang Yuan gathered everyone for a discussion in the morning, his expression was not very good. It wasn't because he had made a mountain out of a molehill and lost face, but because he couldn't find the hidden entity, which made him feel like he had a bone stuck in his throat.

As for whether it was a misunderstanding, there was actually nothing in the house. The previous owners were just unlucky, and he nipped the idea in the bud as soon as it crossed their minds.

If the previous two owners died here by sheer bad luck, who can guarantee that there won't be a third unlucky one among us?
Moreover, Zhang Yuan had felt something was wrong ever since he arrived here, though he couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he trusted his intuition.

If it were just him alone, it wouldn't really matter. He didn't think that this thing, hiding in the house and not daring to show its face, could be his opponent. But he absolutely did not want to see his teammates get injured or even die because of his decision.

"Wait one more day, tonight will be the same as always."

And so the Canaan squad spent another night on high alert.

Nothing happened.

The teammates didn't complain, but the mage was a little embarrassed.

"Are you being so patient, or did you shrink back because you saw that we outnumbered you and were heavily guarded?"

If you can only be a thief for a thousand days, how can you prevent a thief for a thousand days?

After re-examining their approach, the team members had thoroughly searched the entire house over the past two days. The most stressed member, Old Pervert, led the team in carefully checking every space and confirmed that there were no hidden rooms. There was, however, a secret passage leading to the riverbank, and there was nothing unusual inside.

The mage himself used spells like Detect Undead and Detect Secret Doors, but still found nothing.

This situation only means two possibilities. One is the most troublesome: there are factors within the mansion that attract unknown dangers. If they cannot find the key, leaving or risking danger to lure the snake out is a viable option.

The second possibility is that the monk's gaze was cast through the window lattice towards the outdoor garden.

"Everyone follow me!"

However, after a short while, the entire team stood in the garden, fully armed, with a group of chess pieces standing guard on either side, some curious and others indifferent.

"Check the entire yard."

At the leader's command, the team members acted swiftly, and the pieces dispersed to provide support.

Got nothing.

The mage's brow furrowed even more at the disappointing outcome. He stepped back a few paces to ensure the entire residence was within his sight and activated Arcane Vision to examine it closely.

Everything was normal. There were almost no traces of arcane activity on the exterior of the mansion, and the same was true after walking around the yard. The interior of the mansion had already been tested.

"This is unbelievable! What could be hidden so well? Even if it were hidden inside a rock, it should have been found by now!"

After two consecutive days of fruitless efforts, Kegan, an impatient person, couldn't hold back any longer.

"Hmm?" The mage turned his head and looked at the short fellow thoughtfully.

Sweat immediately beaded on the dwarf's forehead, and he quickly tried to explain it to himself:
"Boss, it's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. I was talking about that sneaky, treacherous guy, not blaming you."

"Alright, I'm not blaming you. On the contrary, I should thank you." Zhang Yuan's words surprised Kaigen. He wondered if his boss was being sarcastic in anger.

"Everyone gathers and forms a circular formation, with melee classes protecting ranged classes within the circle."

After issuing the command, the mage immediately began summoning, and the brilliance of the spellcasting created ripples in the space.

"Are you still calling them?" The teammates were a little confused, but they still skillfully arranged their formation, with Kagan eagerly moving next to the captain to provide cover and support.

"True beauty lies in standing out from the crowd!"

Upon hearing such a confident statement, the teammates couldn't help but look at the face of the person who had just appeared.

Goodness, girl, your face is huge. Let's not even talk about snake tails and snake hair, since there are those with a taste for the bizarre and unusual. But even if you exclude other factors, your face is definitely not beautiful.

The mage himself knew that Medusa's concept of beauty was equivalent to power, and that her power came from sacrificing her appearance. This was why her values ​​were different from those of ordinary people, and the pieces modeled after her also retained this catchphrase.

The Gorgon with Medusa has appeared!
"Shoot at those two stone sculptures on the roof!"

Somewhat puzzled, Tylinda and Lawrence acted swiftly, drawing their bows and arrows, which flew towards them.

Two creaking sounds, like rusty bearings turning, rang out, and cracks appeared on the surfaces of the two stone sculptures struck by arrows. But this wasn't a sign of damage; rather...
"Gargoyle!"

"Moradin, he really was hidden in the stone."

The statues, which were originally placed at both ends of the roof ridge as decorations, suddenly spread their wings and came to life!

Upon being attacked, they immediately targeted the instigator, the old thief, and the elf ranger, and pounced upon them.

The arrows fired one after another had no effect. The gargoyles' bodies were clearly made of a different material than ordinary stone. The female elf's arrows could only penetrate the surface when they hit them. As for the old pervert's crossbow bolts...

The biggest achievement would be scraping off some stone chips.

The gargoyle, having reached its highest point, adjusted its posture and swooped down, its target clearly the ranged archers surrounded in the inner circle.

"Petrified gaze."

Just as everyone raised their shields and weapons to repel the aerial attack, the Gorgon, under the mage's command, unleashed her ultimate attack!
Sizzle sizzle~~~
Medusa stared wide-eyed and opened her mouth. With the sound of her forked tongue trembling, her heterochromatic eyes, like rose-colored gems, suddenly emitted thousands of gray rays of light, which almost covered the entire garden as she turned her head to scan the surroundings.

"Oh my god! Don't look at her, turn your gaze to the gargoyle!"

Having heard of Medusa's fearsome reputation, Kegan had also heard of the Petrifying Gaze, a weapon that inspired terror in all who heard of it, and immediately alerted his teammates.

Being seasoned veterans, none of the people present panicked or simply covered their eyes like fools; instead, they all focused their attention on the approaching enemy in the air.

But using the petrifying gaze to deal with gargoyles?
genius!

"Boss, will this petrification technique work on gargoyles?"

Facing the gargoyle, Lawrence felt a chill run down his spine as he looked at its scarlet eyes and black steel dagger-like claws. Fortunately, he had his teammates protecting him, which gave him a lot of confidence.

"Oh, shit!"

Before the mage could respond, what happened next left Lawrence speechless.

Amidst the overwhelming gray radiation, the gargoyles' originally jet-black bodies gradually became stained with a layer of gray, as if they had been smeared with furnace ash or cement.

(End of this chapter)