Chapter 150: The Basilisk Strikes

With Kael's Bubble-Head Charm, the poison gas in the surrounding air could no longer affect the Elven warriors. The Elven army no longer had any concerns and once again displayed their formidable combat power, rapidly advancing south and killing all giant spiders blocking their path. The rest all fled south in panic. The army drove straight forward, quickly reclaiming half of Mirkwood. But soon, everyone noticed something was wrong. Because no more giant spiders appeared ahead, and even the nests were empty. It seemed as if the giant spiders had abandoned this place. Continuing south for dozens of miles, it was the same everywhere. In the spider nests, besides some half-eaten animal carcasses, there were even spider eggs that hadn't yet hatched. It looked like they had fled upon hearing the news and hadn't been gone long. But no one was pleased. Instead, their expressions became grave and serious. Giant spiders were very cunning. The only possibility for such abnormal behavior of not remaining in their nests was that they had all retreated to the south. With giant spiders gathering together, their numbers would certainly be considerable, and what awaited them would definitely be a difficult battle. Kael stopped the Elves from destroying the spider eggs and collected these black pearl-like spider eggs instead. Some he froze as potion materials, some he kept for hatching as future sources of potions, and some he reserved for his basilisk, Herpo. Just as the army continued south with vigilant caution, suddenly there was commotion in the forest. The Elven warriors alertly drew their bows and shot arrows, which were quickly deflected by the newcomer. A wooden sledge pulled by large rabbits came rushing from the distance, then made an abrupt stop in front of the Elven formation. "Radagast! What brings you here!" Kael stepped forward in surprise to greet him. The newcomer was indeed the Brown Wizard Radagast, who looked somewhat deranged. His eyes lit up when he saw Kael. "Ah, it's you, Kael! What are you doing here?" "His Majesty Thranduil is conducting a campaign against the giant spiders in the forest, and I came to lend a hand," Kael explained, then asked in return, "But how did you get here, Radagast? Has something happened?" "Me? Ah, right, I almost forgot!" Radagast exclaimed, slapping his forehead as if remembering, then immediately said, "I came to warn! To find the Elves and warn them!" "What are you warning us about?" Thranduil inquired with a frown. As neighbors both living in Mirkwood, Thranduil naturally knew of the Brown Wizard. They just hadn't had much interaction. Seeing Thranduil, Radagast found his target and immediately said, "All the spiders are gathering toward the south! Thousands and thousands of them, countless numbers. All the animals in the forest are terrified, and I'm terrified too!" "Those spawn of Ungoliant are now preparing to attack. They're led by a Spider Queen, preparing to catch all the Elves in one net. You must be prepared..." "Wait, what did you say about a Spider Queen?" Thranduil caught the key point and inquired with sharp focus. "Spider Queen? Ah yes, the Spider Queen! Her name is Shelob, the largest giant spider in the entire forest! And the leader of all giant spiders!" Radagast answered somewhat incoherently. When speaking of the Spider Queen, his expression was particularly excited and somewhat fearful. "She's bigger than my hut! And she's also a minion of that Dark Lord! Now she's the one who gathered all the spiders, preparing to attack you!" Hearing Radagast's words, Thranduil's expression became grave. Kael was also very surprised. He hadn't expected there to be something like a Spider Queen in Mirkwood, and one connected to Sauron at that. Hearing that giant spiders were gathering, Thranduil didn't hesitate and directly led his army south, vowing to drive all spiders out of Mirkwood. The Brown Wizard Radagast also joined them. With Radagast's guidance, everyone pressed on without stopping, heading straight for the Spider Queen's lair. The Spider Queen's lair was located at the southern end of Mirkwood, not far from Dol Guldur. The trees here were taller and more forbidding. The sky was obscured by countless layers of webs and leaves, not letting in even a ray of light. It was so dark that the ground couldn't be seen clearly. Moreover, because giant spiders had bred and lived here for thousands of years, the entire forest was shrouded in countless webs, with only web tunnels specifically for giant spiders to traverse, forming an immensely vast spider kingdom. Other creatures could barely move here and often became food for the giant spiders. When Kael and the Elven army reached the valley, they saw the endless "spider castle" ahead. Such a spider kingdom could no longer be dealt with through pure destruction alone. Seeing the impregnable web fortress, Thranduil also frowned deeply, his expression grave. If they didn't take this opportunity to eliminate all the giant spiders in one sweep, this campaign could be considered a complete failure. Once the giant spiders bred again, they would sooner or later spread to the northern forest again, squeezing the Elves' living space and threatening the safety of the Woodland Realm. But to truly attack, the countless webs before them were a huge obstacle, and destroying them would be even more difficult. "Father, let me lead a squad along those spider passages to go in and force them out," Legolas requested with firm resolve. Thranduil shook his head in refusal. "No, there's no telling how many giant spiders are inside, not to mention the Spider Queen. Going in would be like walking into a trap!" "But if we let these giant spiders continue to exist, Mirkwood will never be at peace. Before long they'll breed again and move north, threatening us!" Legolas worried. "Besides, I now have the magic Kael taught me. Even if I go in, I have the power to protect myself." But no matter how Legolas tried to persuade him, Thranduil wouldn't let Legolas take the risk. Watching the argument between Thranduil and Legolas, Kael spoke up. "Your Majesty Thranduil, since we can't break through the webs, could we choose a fire attack?" Hearing Kael's words, both Thranduil and Legolas looked at him in surprise. Thranduil shook his head. "I've considered your suggestion, but once we set fire, one careless move could affect the entire forest. Then not only would the creatures in the forest suffer disaster, but we would also be left homeless!" "But your army could create a firebreak in the forest, then ignite this southern part. That should prevent the fire from spreading north, shouldn't it?" Kael suggested. But Kael underestimated the Elves' love for nature. The Elves of Mirkwood were closely connected to the forest and depended on the forest environment for survival. The forest was their home and sanctuary. So Elves rarely even cut down trees, let alone choose to burn large areas of forest to eliminate giant spiders. Besides the Elves, the Brown Wizard Radagast also vehemently opposed this suggestion. As a Maia of the plant goddess Yavanna, Radagast loved plants even more than Elves, so much so that he forgot his mission to Middle-earth and chose to stay in the forest with animals and plants. So he couldn't bear to see trees harmed. Seeing this, Kael reluctantly abandoned the suggestion. Otherwise, a direct fire would have sent all these giant spiders to their deaths in the flames, simple and convenient. Moreover, he was confident he could control the fire and prevent the flames from spreading outward. But since fire attack wasn't feasible, Kael simply switched to a slightly more troublesome method. "Your Majesty Thranduil, I have another way to force the giant spiders out, though it's somewhat risky. I wonder if you'd be willing to try?" "What method?" Thranduil knew Kael wouldn't speak without purpose and asked curiously. Kael took out a leather case from his space bag. "What's inside this?" Thranduil frowned slightly. He sensed the aura of a dark magical creature from within, a species he had never encountered, and very dangerous, giving him a sense of mortal threat. "It's a creature I bred, called a basilisk," Kael explained. "Its eyes are somewhat dangerous. Ordinary life cannot look directly at it, or they'll die instantly. Even looking through a mirror will cause petrification." "There's actually such a creature?!" Thranduil was extremely shocked. Just from Kael's description, he could tell how dangerous this creature was. Legolas, Arwen, and the others were also very surprised. They had never heard Kael mention that he kept such a creature before. "So if Your Majesty is willing to try, I can have the basilisk go into the spider nests to force them out. But beforehand, everyone must be warned not to look directly at the basilisk, or I cannot guarantee everyone's safety!" Kael said very seriously and solemnly. Hearing this, Thranduil hesitated for a moment but ultimately agreed to Kael's method. He immediately issued orders that no one should look directly at the basilisk and explained the basilisk's dangers in advance. Only after everyone was prepared did Kael open the case and step back several paces. The next second, a massive serpent head topped with a blood-red feather emerged from the case's space. All the Elves present except Kael, including Thranduil, closed their eyes. Though they closed their eyes, the Elves could still sense everything around them with their superior perception. Powerful ancient Elves like Thranduil could even perceive with mental power, seeing pictures not much different from what their eyes would show. So in the perception of Thranduil and the other Elves, a green giant serpent fully ten meters long and as thick as an adult's torso emerged from the case, emanating a powerful dark magical aura throughout its body. Kael didn't close his eyes at this moment because he had signed a "Blood Oath" contract with the basilisk Herpo, so the basilisk couldn't harm him in any way. So when the basilisk saw Kael, it actively closed its eyes. The basilisk had grown rapidly, especially after eating the two giant spiders kept in the tower. Its size had increased dramatically and was close to adult proportions. Like other serpents, even with closed eyes, the basilisk could sense its surroundings and track prey through its forked tongue, smell, and heat sensing. At this moment the basilisk was very excited. It used its forked tongue to sense the surrounding air and immediately became excited, slapping the ground with its tail. "Master, I smell the scent of food! So much delicious food!" it hissed in Parseltongue. Hearing this, Kael gently patted its head. "Then go find your food. Use your eyes to kill them and force them out!" he replied in Parseltongue.