Resistance

Hearing this, a faint light flickered in Sutton's single eye, and a flash of joy crossed his face as he immediately chimed in, “Then there is no mistake! According to the information I gathered earlier, the master of this tomb was indeed a Fifth-Grade Apprentice, and one born with an extremely high earth attribute affinity.”

The corner of Herbert's mouth curled into a faint, calculating smile, his gaze measuring the golems like a precise ruler. “Judging by the energy fluctuations they emit and the residual traces of mana, the combat strength of these constructs is at most at the level of a Third-Grade Apprentice, definitely not reaching the Fourth-Grade. In front of the two of us, they are nothing more than clumsy live targets.”

Sutton nodded in agreement, his low voice echoing in the empty hall. “Indeed. However...”

Changing his tone, his single eye narrowed slightly as he scrutinized the rock bodies that were still “awakening.” “For a Fifth-Grade Apprentice to be able to set up so many earth golems as guards in his tomb, his wealth must far exceed our previous estimates. Moreover, even if these are crude imitations, if we can cleanly extract their core structures and bring them back to the academy to sell, it will still yield a decent amount of magic stones.”

Hearing this, Herbert's smile took on a more practical tone. “Exactly. For creations of an old era whose mana is nearly depleted, their core rune structures and energy circuits still hold considerable research value for today's alchemy workshops and the Puppet School.”

The two did not deliberately lower their voices, and their conversation clearly reached Matthew's ears from behind.

Matthew quickly turned this information over in his mind. It seems these things are highly valuable, far beyond ordinary tomb burial goods. He silently estimated that with his current strength and standing in this exploration, it would likely be difficult for him to lay hands on such treasures.

He calmly accepted reality, but his thoughts did not linger on disappointment. However, since the tomb owner could leave behind defensive measures of this scale, his wealth must be immense. Perhaps the other gains from this trip will still exceed expectations.

This deepened his understanding of the wizarding world once more—besides schools like elements, alchemy, and summoning, there was actually a school that specialized in puppet manufacturing.

The spiritual map given to him by Nathan subconsciously flashed in his mind. It did indeed mark quite a few traps and mechanisms, but the environmental descriptions were entirely different from this damp, rocky tomb passage before him.

This thought brought him a touch of regret, but the immediate crisis ahead quickly pulled his attention back.

Just as he was lost in thought, a low, brief chant interrupted his mind. Immediately after, he keenly sensed the water-attributed mana particles in the surrounding space suddenly become active and gather, producing a distinct ripple of energy.

He saw Herbert in front of him already make a move. Herbert casually pushed his right hand forward, the air in front of his palm warping slightly. A water bomb about the size of a human head, shimmering with a deep blue luster, condensed in an instant. With a low whistle, it shot straight toward the nearest earth golem that had just fully stood up.

The golem stood about ten feet tall, its body crudely pieced together from countless irregular greyish-black rocks and rusted metal frames. Dried, solidified glue was visible at its joints, making it look clumsy and menacing. The water bomb struck the center of its chest with pinpoint accuracy.

The expected scene of shattering rocks or a violent clash of energy did not occur. The moment the water bomb hit the golem's torso, an extremely thin, nearly transparent earthy-yellow halo suddenly surfaced on its body, like a tough mana shield.

The deep blue water sphere crashed against it with a dull splash. The halo rippled violently, actually dispersing and neutralizing most of the water bomb's impact and corrosive water elemental mana.

The golem's massive body was merely pushed back a step by the force, its rocky feet scraping harshly against the stone floor. Only a slight damp mark appeared on the surface of the rock where it had been hit, with no actual damage.

This scene made both Sutton and Herbert's expressions tighten simultaneously.

The composed smile on Herbert's face vanished instantly. His brow furrowed as his sharp gaze locked onto the golem, as if trying to peer through its rocky shell to see the secrets within. His face was as calm as water, his thoughts unreadable.

Seeing this, a trace of alarm and caution flashed deep in Sutton's eye.

Quietly stepping back half a pace to Matthew's side, he lowered his voice and spoke his doubts in a rapid tone:

“Reasonably speaking, although the water element is countered by the earth element, dead things like earth golems—which lack intelligence and rely entirely on fixed runes for movement—should not have such high resistance to elemental counters... and certainly shouldn't possess such a solid passive defense. This scene is somewhat unexpected.”

Matthew also furrowed his brow slightly upon hearing this.

He naturally understood the principle of elemental counters, but what made him even more alarmed was the power displayed by Herbert's strike just now—the mana intensity and condensation of that water bomb clearly surpassed the 【Fireball spell】 he could cast with all his might.

And this was merely a casual blow from Herbert.

He warned himself, but an even greater doubt arose. Even so, this golem's defense is still abnormally strong...

Just as Matthew and Sutton were filled with doubt and uncertainty, Herbert in front of them seemed to have reached a conclusion from his contemplation.

The solemnity on his face eased slightly, replaced by an expression that was a mix of realization and heightened interest.

“So that's how it is,” Herbert's voice rang out in an analytical tone. “When the spells collided just now, the fluctuation rhythm of that protective halo was not simply a piling up of earth element mana... I'm afraid some kind of rare mineral with ‘mana-conducting’ or ‘resistance-enhancing’ properties, or even specially treated magic metal, was mixed into the golem's crafting materials. The master of the tomb must have spent quite a fortune on them during his lifetime.”

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the other golems that were also beginning to move over, and continued, “But because of this, it precisely proves that their value far exceeds that of ordinary earth constructs. Outstanding defense is originally one of the characteristics of earth-attributed creations, but this level of reinforcement is indeed rare.”

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