Chapter 175: Serial Corpse Explosion
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Although Lin Li did not know what method she had used, one thing was certain—the heavy footsteps earlier on were absolutely an illusion that she had created in some way. There was no Silver Storm, nor a level-15 Gryphon, at all. From the beginning, it was a play scripted and performed by the beautiful captain herself.
The chips she had in her hands were at best those archers…
This woman was really brave. She had the guts to charge into the inn to rescue others with only eight archers. The men from the Rising Sun Mercenary Corp could be said to be well-equipped and well-trained—including Rode, who was level-12, and a group of level-nine men, plus a figure close to the level of an Archmage eyeing them outside the inn.
If there was a slight mistake in this process, the whole troop would be wiped out in an instant.
But that was what she did, and it was very successful…
The Rising Sun Mercenary Corp, which seemed to be a strong contingent of fighters, was swept clean in a moment. Of the 19 people that came up, including Rode the bandit, none was able to run away. Every one of them fell in a pool of blood.
“Hank, you go and gather everyone. We have to get to the Fire Plume Ridge tonight,” Serena ordered Hank as she wiped the blood from her sword.
“We’re not resting in Blackhills Town?” Hank was stunned.
“Thuzadin will be back soon. If you don’t mind him chatting with you, you can rest here…” Serena pulled a rope out of her backpack, and slowly lowered it down the window. Meanwhile, she muttered to herself, “Anyway, I do mind…”
“Thuzadin is still there?” Hank’s hair stood up in horror, and his face was full of panic upon hearing this.
“I’ve asked someone to draw him away just now; I expect him to be back soon…” Serena’s pretty face froze mid-sentence. She looked at the stairway, and pursed her lips. “Uh… I mean, he’s back now…”
As soon as Serena’s voice fell, everyone felt a cold aura coming from the stairway. Thuzadin walked in a very strange way—his pace was light and fast, with no sound at all, and his legs couldn’t be seen moving. They could only see the long, black robes dragging on the ground, and he seemed to levitate like a ghost…
Thuzadin stood at the end of the corridor, and looked at the pool of blood on the ground. There was still no expression on his pale face. No one knew what he was thinking.
“Unfortunately, none of you can leave.”
At the moment of Thuzadin’s appearance, the expression on Serena’s face was absolutely fascinating. She stood there, tongue-tied, for a long time as if she had been caught stealing. Finally, she squeezed out a smile that was uglier than crying. “Sh— Did you have dinner, Mage Thuzadin?”
“…” Several members of the Silver Hand almost b.u.mped into the wall when they heard this.
“Cut the c.r.a.p, Captain Serena. You know what I’m here for.”
“Actually, Mage Thuzadin, what prospects do you have, following Caledra? Why not join the Silver Hand? How could his idiotic mercenary corps be compared to us, the Silver Hand? Look at you, still not married at such an age. If you’re willing to join the Silver Hand, this matter is on me. I’ll introduce you to some beautiful women in the corp some other day… Huh? You don’t like beautiful women? What about handsome guys? What do you think of this fellow, Hank…?”
Lin Li listened to it with his mouth wide agape. Only then did he understand where Hank had learnt the persuasion skills he had used on himself…
Everyone’s expression went blank. Several members of the Silver Hand turned their heads. If possible, they really wanted to climb to the top of the inn and shout “We don’t know this woman!” thrice.
n.o.body noticed that Serena’s pet.i.te hand had quietly reached behind her, slowly grasping the handle of the sword…
“Yes, but it’ll have to be next time.” Thuzadin stretched out his thin fingers, and an electric arc flickered lightly on his fingertips. Then, Serena’s sword fell to the floor with a clang. “Besides, Captain Serena, it’s not a good habit to handle weapons when discussing business…”
Serena gritted her teeth. “Thuzadin, you’ve got guts!”
Thuzadin said nothing, but pulled back his lips to reveal a stiff smile; together with his pale face, the smile looked really creepy. The strength approaching the level of an Archmage was too powerful. Thuzadin stood at the end of the corridor, but everyone could feel a tremendous pressure.
The archers hiding in the room dared not move at all. With their strength, they could attack the mercenaries who had their guts frightened out. If they wanted to sneak an attack on Thuzadin, who was close to the level of the Archmage, it was almost the same as seeking death. A magic spell from him would be enough for them to die several times…
“Mage Thuzadin…” Serena turned her eyes, and tried to struggle with a few more words.
“Serena, you talk too much.” However, Thuzadin did not give her a chance. Just as Serena was about to open her mouth, the dark staff in Thuzadin’s hand was raised high. In a moment, a violent magical wave spread out, and the crystal at the top of the staff emitted a dazzling light, turning Thuzadin’s face into a ghastly white.
Almost at the same time that Thuzadin staff was lifted, the eight archers hidden in the room moved.
They had to move; once a mage of Thuzadin’s rank took control of the fight’s rhythm, the only thing that awaited everyone would be death.
For a moment, the reverberations from the bowstrings being loosened sounded unceasingly. A speck of cold light burgeoned in the dark, dazzling like the evening star in the dark sky.
“Swoos.h.!.+ Swoos.h.!.+ Swoos.h.!.+”
The sharp sound of breaking the atmosphere sounded continuously; however, what followed was not the m.u.f.fled sound of sharp arrows piercing the body, but clanking like the chime of gold and iron upon contact with each other. Sharp arrows tore open the air, only to encounter a pile of dead-white skeletons. Sparks flew in the twinkling of an eye, and the sound of gold coming in contact with iron resounded endlessly. The razor-sharp arrows seemed powerless in the face of the impenetrable skeletal s.h.i.+eld.
Necromancer! Lin Li’s heart tightened involuntarily at the sight of the dead-white skeletal s.h.i.+eld. No wonder the aura on this fellow was so weird—he turned out to be a Necromancer, a distant relative of the Lich!
It was a profession rarer than a dinosaur…
Forsaking mysterious knowledge and turning to darkness for power—few mages were willing to do such a thing. There was an essential difference between being buried in the laboratory all day and dealing with the undead. The former was admired, while the latter abhorred.
Lin Li was curious—what would cause a person to give up on elements and turn to darkness?
Unfortunately, Thuzadin was not intending to tell him why for the time being.
Why not? Simple. Thuzadin was busy—he was busy reciting a spell.
One of the greatest characteristics of the Necromancers was that the time spent reciting a spell was very short.
It sounded urgent and quick—just like a scream.
There was only a scream from Thuzadin, and a m.u.f.fled explosion sounded in the corridor. There was a spatter of blood and flesh where Rode fell, and in a flash, two archers who had just come out of the room were swallowed up. It was a horrifying scene—the flesh and blood splashed like shrapnel into the archers’ bodies. They were blown up like honeycombs before they even had time to scream out.
“Corpse Explosion!” Even Lin Li did not expect this fellow to be so cruel. It seemed that he was going to kill not only Serena, but all the people in the inn…
There were more than a dozen bodies lying on the ground. If he was really going to use a serial Corpse Explosion, let alone the people in the corridor, perhaps even the inn would be torn down by him.
It seemed like Lin Li could not go on just watching anymore.
Taking advantage of the b.l.o.o.d.y fog that shrouded Thuzadin’s sight, Lin Li quietly retreated a few steps. He slowly took out the crossbow that was hanging on his back with one hand, all the while feeling more or less nervous. Since transmigrating, he had not used this thing for a long time. It’d better not miss at a critical time like this…
On the other side, Serena picked up her sword on the ground, and there was a silver flame all over her body. This was Combat Energy unique to a warrior above level-ten. In Gerian’s words, only a warrior with Combat Energy could be regarded as a real warrior. Until then, they were just a bunch of barbaric rascals.
Combat Energy not only brought about the improvement of combat effectiveness, but also greatly enhanced the resistance of the warrior to various magic. The Combat Energy could even absorb some relatively low-level spells, which would not even cause any harm to the warrior at all.
Serena, shrouded in the silver Combat Energy, seemed to be bathing in the moonlight. The sharp sword turned into a silver stream, and split open a large piece of dead-white skeletons in an instant.
Thuzadin did not even bat an eyelid in the face of Serena’s sword. He held his magic staff high up in the air. With a shrill recitation, several corpses that were lying in the pool of blood suddenly moved. Although their movements seemed slow and stiff, they had covered the opening made by Serena as soon as they stood up.
These two bodies were undoubtedly more frightful than the skeletal s.h.i.+eld.
Serena’s reflexes were quick—as soon as the two corpses stood up, she quickly withdrew.
A m.u.f.fled boom followed, and the two corpses exploded in the middle of the corridor; blood and flesh splattered on the walls on both sides. The clapping sounds continued, and the heavy force made everyone’s scalps tingle.
The Necromancer, who was standing in a pile of corpses, was like a warrior whose pockets were filled with the Bull’s Strength Potion. He was almost invincible under the same level.
Moreover, Serena’s Gryphon mount was not around at present. In terms of personal strength alone, she was still a long way from Thuzadin, who was almost at the level of an Archmage. Serena was sent flying when the corpses exploded; if it wasn’t for the protection of the silver Combat Energy, this serial Corpse Explosion alone would have cost her half her life.
Hank and others wanted to go forward and help, but before they could rush up, they were already blocked by several corpses. The Necromancer—who was standing among the corpses—was indeed fearful. He could control the corpses to fight at will and blast them up whenever necessary. When three or four corpses exploded in tandem, the power they released was perhaps no less than a spell of a Magic Shooter.
“Looks like this guy really wants to tear down the inn…” Lin Li quietly moved back a few steps. After making sure there were no bodies around, he stopped carefully. Then, he slowly took down the crossbow on his back, and loaded the slot with a Sun’s Spike.
When everything was ready, Lin Li only had to wait for an opportunity…
And Lin Li hadn’t been kept waiting for too long.
After another series of Corpse Explosion, the opportunity suddenly presented itself.
Annoyed with Serena, who was struggling on obstinately, Thuzadin seemed to have lost his patience. He controlled six bodies at the same time with a shrill recitation. When these six bodies wobbled up from the ground, almost everyone present felt their scalps go numb. If they were to explode all at once, wouldn’t the floor be blown up as well?
Then, they saw the six staggering bodies surround the people from the Silver Hand.
This time, Thuzadin’s recitation seemed to be slower than before.
After all, it was a serial Corpse Explosion with six corpses. It was impossible for even a figure of the Archmage level to complete the recitation in an instant. In theory, a necromancer could control countless undead army. However, the more undead creatures one controlled, the more mental strength and mana would be required. For a battle that involved thousands of undead creatures like the one in the Shadowglen, perhaps only the two horrifying Undead Lords could do it.
In this aspect, Lin Li was actually well-suited for the Necromancer profession…
With his innate superiority in mental strength and mana, only a little more research was needed to attain achievements that most necromancers could not attain in their lifetime.
Granted—he had to be willing…
There were many ways to pursue power, and it was not necessary to a.s.sociate with undead creatures in order to obtain formidable power.
Almost everyone’s hearts were raised as the six bodies approached.
Thuzadin had too great an advantage…
If this was a close battle, he would never have imagined controlling six corpses at the same time. But, unfortunately, the power of both sides was not at the same level at all. Thuzadin’s strength was close to that of the Archmage, while on the Silver Hand side, the strongest of them, Serena, was only level-12. Without the help of the Gryphon, she was not much stronger than Rode.
With this tremendous advantage, Thuzadin had spared no effort at all. He sealed them up easily with a few Bone Spears and a Skeletal Wall. They could neither advance nor retreat, and could only watch as the six corpses staggered towards them while Thuzadin recited the spell for Corpse Explosion.
The speed of Thuzadin’s recitation increased; glittering sweat fell from Serena’s pretty face. The serial Corpse Explosion just now had injured Serena a little. At this time, a cut on her arm was bleeding profusely. Blood was trickling down her arm, making a “drip-drop” sound as it fell onto the floor…
However, Serena paid it no heed at all. She held her sword tightly in her hands and chopped at the Skeletal Wall in front of her again and again.
It felt like an ant biting an elephant.
The futile struggle was sad to behold.
“Clack! Clack! Clack…”
The blade made monotonous and dull sounds upon contact with the Skeletal Wall.
Serena’s efforts could be said to be in vain. The disparity in strength between both sides was too great. The Skeletal Wall Thuzadin released was enough to trap her firmly. By the time she split the one-meter-thick bone wall, Thuzadin’s Corpse Explosion would have been released long ago.
But Serena refused to give up. She clenched her teeth, and under the cover of the silver Combat Energy, she pounded on the wall again and again.
At present, Serena was like a moth plunging into fire. Almost every impact would leave her badly battered, but she seemed to have no sense of it at all. She wiped the bloodstains off her forehead, then bent over to pick up her sword and started a new round of pounding.
Once, twice, thrice…
Even Lin Li did not think that the seemingly eccentric beautiful captain was so tenacious. Lin Li developed a tinge of respect for her as he gazed at the thin figure. Serena was perfectly demonstrating to everyone the true meaning of the word “perseverance” in her own way.
With Serena’s continuous. .h.i.ts, Thuzadin’s recitation became louder, sharper, and harsher; it even carried with it a hint of hoa.r.s.eness.
A strong death aura surged wildly, and a wisp of substance-like black mist gradually diffused. The previously bright corridor became pitch-dark all of a sudden.
Everyone’s hearts sank concurrently as the black mist pervaded the air. Everyone from the Silver Hand knew that after the dark clouds gathered, it would be raining cats and dogs…
They even saw Thuzadin slowly raising his staff.
But, at that moment, the fluent recitation suddenly stopped. It was like a person singing at the top of his lungs was suddenly being strangled.
The men from the Silver Hand were dumbstruck, and so was Thuzadin…
The difference was that Thuzadin knew what had happened to him—and he was clearer than anyone else.
This was Mana Retroaction!
Thuzadin’s pale face showed for the first time a look of astonishment.
He was a level-14 Magic Shooter. Someone who could use the Mana Retroaction on him had to be at least level-12.
This was what really puzzled Thuzadin.
There were only a few living people in this corridor, and they were either warriors or archers; where did this Magic Shooter with a strength beyond that of level-12 come from?
Though in doubt, Thuzadin was a figure approaching the level of an Archmage, after all. Even if he was suddenly afflicted with a Mana Retroaction, he was still able to keep his calm, for he knew that Mana Retroaction couldn’t affect himself at all.
Even if there was a Magic Shooter above level-12 in the room, and even if he had encountered a Mana Retroaction, what about it? The Skeletal Wall that was previously erected could buy enough time for him. As soon as the effect of Mana Retroaction was over, he could regain control of the rhythm of the battle immediately.
It’s nothing—this is just a little hitch.
Or so Thuzadin told himself…
However, just a moment later, he found that it was not merely a small hitch.
At the moment when his mana was interrupted, Thuzadin suddenly felt that a ma.s.sive and incomparable Divine Power coming at him.
At last, the look on Thuzadin’s face changed—from surprise to shock, and from shock to despair—while all of this happened only in a moment. Since the time that he had chosen the Necromancer profession, the expression on Thuzadin’s face had never been as splendid as it was today.
“Swis.h.!.+”
Following the shrill sound of breaking the air, a ray of silver instantly tore away the thick black mist. The strength of the thick skeleton was like a thin veil in front of this silver light—completely torn with merely a slight poke.
And then, there was a splash of blood…
“Impossible!” Thuzadin screamed; the scream sounded like the cry of a night owl.
The Sun’s Spike shot through the chest and out from the back. The small bolt left a b.l.o.o.d.y hole the size of a bowl in Thuzadin’s chest. Blood gushed out from the hole in the chest—even for a half-dead creature like Thuzadin, whose blood was almost dried, he still had blood, albeit it didn’t seem to be particularly in an upsurge…
Despair froze Thuzadin’s face. He staggered back a few steps, trying to cover the wound with his hand. But how could such a large wound be covered by a thin palm? With blood pouring out, Thuzadin could only bow his head to see what had killed him.
The expression of despair on Thuzadin’s face seemed to relax suddenly after seeing that half a Sun’s Spike, and it was replaced by a look of sudden enlightenment.
“So… so it’s you…”
After saying this sentence, the Necromancer, who was rarer than a dinosaur, fell to the floor just like that. Under the purification of the Divine Power that was contained in the Sun’s Spike, his body seemed to be on fire, burned completely in a flash.
“…”
The corridor was surprisingly quiet. Everyone stood dumbfounded—including Serena, who was holding her sword tightly.
At the moment when Thuzadin released the Corpse Explosion, almost everyone thought they were going to die; they didn’t expect that things would turn around in the end. Before they could figure out what was going on, the mighty Necromancer was suddenly turned into a ma.s.s of ashes, disappearing without a trace as soon as the wind blew over…
It was without warning or reason—it felt like a heart attack patient who suddenly fell to the ground while talking…
This was simply too bizarre…
Serena slowly turned around and looked at the end of the corridor. Near the window, there stood a man clad in red leather armor, holding a crossbow in his hands. He asked meekly, “He’s not going to revive, is he?”