Just as the Snowbear Beast had warned, the two lion-bodied, human-faced statues had fully come to life!
Kael hadn't paid much attention to them earlier—after all, in his eyes, such carvings held little value. Naturally, he'd overlooked them.
But now…
"Damn it, what kind of monsters are these?!"
The statues were majestically crafted, exuding an aura of solemn authority. Standing nearly three meters tall, their bodies were those of crouching lions, but atop their maned heads rested human faces—one strikingly handsome, the other breathtakingly beautiful. Both wore golden crowns, their expressions stern and regal.
And now, they had broken free from their stone forms!
"Human intruders… It has been millennia since any have set foot here." The male-headed Sphinx's voice boomed, deep and resonant, as it spoke in the human tongue.
"Sphinxes! Those are Sphinxes!" The Snowbear Beast trembled violently, its eyes bulging in terror as it stammered incoherently.
The Sphinx unleashed a deafening roar, its lion's cry erupting into a shockwave of sound. Kael and his companions felt as if struck by lightning, barely suppressing pained grunts as they hastily channeled magic and combat aura to withstand the assault.
"What's a Sphinx?" Kael frowned. As an "outsider," much of this world's lore remained unfamiliar to him.
Ethan let out a heavy sigh, his expression grim. "Sphinxes are legendary beasts that guard treasures. They're said to have close ties with the elves. We're in serious trouble—these two are definitely not weak…"
Mythical treasure-guarding beasts!
Finally, Kael understood why the male and female Sphinxes had awakened. They were the guardians of the chest's contents—and now that the trio had looted it, the creatures had risen to reclaim their charge.
This was undoubtedly the work of advanced magic, likely cast by the treasure's original owner. The Sphinxes had been sealed within the statues, programmed to awaken the moment greedy hands plundered the hoard.
The two Sphinxes advanced, their thunderous roars shaking loose the last remnants of stone clinging to their bodies as they charged straight toward Kael's group!
"They're coming!" Amelia hissed, her combat aura swirling around her like a surging tide. A blast of frost-laden energy erupted from her palms, engulfing the male Sphinx in a swirling mist of ice—only for the attack to screech harmlessly against its hide, leaving nothing but a faint white scratch.
The Sphinx didn't even flinch.
Danger!
"Flame Ward!" Kael instantly cast a defensive barrier, shielding Amelia just as she reinforced her own aura shield. The male Sphinx's maw gaped wide, unleashing a crimson beam that morphed into dark-red flames mid-flight. The fiery torrent crashed against Kael's magic shield and Amelia's barrier—
CRACK!
The spell shattered like eggshell, but Amelia's defense held, barely weathering the residual flames.
"Their offensive power is at least peak seventh-tier," Amelia panted, her voice tight. "And their defense is absurd—my full-force strike didn't even leave a dent!"
Kael and Ethan exchanged grim looks. This was bad. Worse than bad. What they'd assumed were mere guardians were, in fact, nightmarish relics of an ancient era. Kael's stomach churned—if these monsters were this formidable after millennia of weakened封印 (seal-induced dormancy), how terrifying must they have been at full strength?
"Snowbear! How do we fight these things?!" Kael barked, desperation creeping into his voice.
"I-I don't know! They're practically immortal! Are we just—just food now?! I didn't sign up for this!" The beast wailed, its words dissolving into incoherent sobs.
Immortal. The word echoed in Kael's mind. If killing them was impossible, then escape was the only option.
But the Sphinxes were ruthlessly strategic. They'd split up, flanking the trio to cut off every retreat path. And with speed matching their brute strength, outrunning them seemed just as hopeless.
"We can't hold out like this," Kael realized, his jaw clenching. The real horror wasn't their power—it was their indestructibility.
Kael acted decisively. In a flash, he retrieved the four seventh-tier spell scrolls from his spatial ring—the very same defensive scrolls they'd looted earlier. Without hesitation, he activated them all. If they didn't act now, all three would perish here.
"Flame Ward!"
"Aqua Veil!"
"Earthen Bulwark!"
"Dark Barrier!"
Four powerful magical shields erupted into existence simultaneously, each from a different elemental school, forming layered defenses in front of the group. Seventh-tier spells were formidable—enough to buy them precious time.
But it wasn't enough.
Though the Sphinxes' offensive power paled in comparison to their near-immortality, their attacks were still devastating. The scrolls' protections would only hold for a short while.
"Amelia! Ethan! Buy me some time!" Kael shouted.
Amelia gave an almost imperceptible nod, her lithe figure positioning itself as his shield, while Ethan clenched his jaw and readied his stance. Neither knew what Kael planned—but they had no choice but to trust him.
As Amelia and Ethan engaged the two Sphinxes in fierce combat, Kael began chanting. Beneath his feet, an intricate magic circle flared to life, its runes glowing with arcane power.
From the depths of the spell formation, a high-tier spirit began to manifest.
"Flame Summoning—Nine-Tailed Firefox!" Kael's staff struck the ground, and a colossal figurematerialized in the air.
The earth trembled violently as a piercing screech tore through the battlefield. The summoned beast—a crimson-furred fox with nine blazing tails—unleashed a torrent of swirling flames, its savage eyes gleaming with a ferocity that rivaled even the Sphinxes'.
The Nine-Tailed Firefox!
Back during the Magic-Martial Tournament, when Kael was still a sixth-tier mage, the Nine-Tailed Firefox he summoned had already been borderline seventh-tier in power. Now, with his increased strength, the beast he summoned was even more formidable!
With a deafening roar, the fox's savage eyes locked onto the two Sphinxes before it pounced with terrifying ferocity.
In terms of sheer presence, the Nine-Tailed Firefox dwarfed the Sphinxes—its massive body stood over ten meters tall, instantly seizing their attention.
"Go!" Kael's plan was simple: let the fox occupy the Sphinxes while they made their escape.
Amelia and Ethan didn't hesitate. The moment Kael gave the order, the Nine-Tailed Firefox lashed out with its claws, raking deep gashes across the Sphinxes' hides and provoking their fury.
"Move, now!" Kael urged. Amelia and Ethan sprinted after him as the trio fled the cavern, the sounds of earth-shaking combat echoing behind them—the Nine-Tailed Firefox locked in a frenzied battle against the two legendary beasts.
Normally, summoned spirits require constant control from their summoner; without it, they'd cease attacking or even dissipate. But Kael's summoning magic was different. The Nine-Tailed Firefox possessed its own intelligence, acting independently without needing his direct command.
This was the power of The Book of Immortality's summoning arts—and the very reason they'd survived today.
Though Kael had expended all four seventh-tier scrolls in one go, he felt no regret. If he hadn't, they'd already be dead.
"We… we actually made it out alive! I knew I wouldn't die! But damn, that was terrifying—those were actual Sphinxes! Do you know how unlucky I am?!" The Snowbear Beast whimpered, still trembling from the ordeal.