Sam woke up from the strange meditative state he was in, the next morning. Even though, twelve hours had already passed by, it felt like a few seconds to Sam.
After this strange experience, Sam could feel that there was something different about himself but he just could not pinpoint what.
Other than that, he felt that his sense had become sharper than usual due to which he felt some strange connection to the essence energies in his surrounding, he could even perceive the changes in the essence energy and their nature.
It was a odd yet realxingly familiar sensation!
'After the meditation last night, I seem to have develop a strange ability. My control over my essence energies have also increased, balancing life and death essence energies doesnot pose any difficulty to me anymore which means I can also execute the fist technique that I had in mind'. Sam contemplated over his situation.
All the essence energies are unique and possess different nature. Thus, one must understand the nature and grasp it profundities and changes in it to gain the minute control over the essence energies.
Control - It is one of the factors that can influence the battle prowess of a cultivator. A cultivator with better control over the essence energies can use the minimum amount of essence energy required to execute a martial skill or any other move thus, increasing his preserverance in battle and precision of the martial techniques. A cultivator with good control over essence energy can decide the area of effect, attack power and speed of his martial techniques easily. Thus, making him stronger than those of the same cultivation level.
Sam had gained some enligtenment and understood the nature of life and death essence energy after entering the state of comprehension last night. He still did not have full and minute control, but it was improved by several level.
Sam rotated his cultivation base and channeled life and death essence energies throughout his body. Waves after waves of essence energies spread out from his body covering a distance of ten meters around him. Soon, two fishes: one black and green was formed from his essence energy which started rotating around him.
Sam closed his eyes. He could feel the thrumming of essence energies around him, the life and death essence energies in the surrounding, he could perceive it clearly and with a little effort control it according to its wishes.
He had absolute control over the life and death essence energies in the ten meter domain around him.
As he willed, green lotuses started to form in his left side while black lotuses bloomed around his right side. With the fishes swimming around him, it looked like he was surrounded by a pond with black and green water.
'hmm... If I can control essence energies in my domain that means I could use them to heal my allies and launch attack on my enemies. It can increase my battle prowess to another level'. Sam smiled as he put his hand in his chin in contemplation.
'A ten meter radius. That's the range of first level of my movement technique. Absolute control and unpredictable movement. If I combine it further with shadow merging technique, I could probably kill anyone at my level without them even noticing".He mused.
'hmm... Since this new ability of mine is a domain type, I will name it life and death domain. If I experiment with it and improved it further, it could be one of my trump cards'.
Sam mulled over the matter for a while before dismissing his thought entirely.
He hadn't forgotten that today was the day of battle, the day they would launch attack on the ruins of abyss.
He became a bit restless and jittery, he would soon experience a bloody battle, the first of his life. He was a bit excited too. After all, who doesn't have the dream to achieve victory in large battles and be worshipped by the soilders for their brilliant contributions in battle? Well, Sam did have those dreams and the opportunity to achieve it had arrived.
When he exited the room and walked around the large palace, he saw no-one around. Normally, one or two undeads would be walking around patrolling the area but today, it was silent, eerily silent.
Sam walked through halls, climbs down the stairs and exited the palace though the main door. However, just he walked out of the palace, he halted his footsteps.
Looking at the sight before him, he exaled heavily.
A thousand soldiers were standing before the place arranging themselve in a rows of hundreds. Each of them were donned in a black armor covering every inch of their body. Each of the soldiers in the front were holding spear and shield, the soldiers in the middle were holding swords while the ones at the back were holding a bow while carrying a quiver filled with arrows.
They were all armed to their teeth. This added with the black flames burning through their eye sockets made them look scary and intimidating without even trying.
Each of the undead soldiers were well trained and had back as straight as rod. Their body were emitting strong murderous intent, a result of constant wars they had been through before their death and being reborn as as undeads. Each undead soldiers were emanating strong battle intent. Just their presence alone was making the death essence energies in the air chaotic.
Even if the strongest army from the outside world was faced with this undead army, they would have misgivings about their sure victory.
A thousand undead soldiers, each one with the cultivation base of peak core formation realm. This force could be considered unrivalled inside swordridge valley where everyone's cultivation base is suppressed at the core formation realm.
Sanchez, the Oldman and ninety nine undeads were standing in front of this army. Those ninety nine undeads were the one who had practiced undead warrior formation with Sam.
"You are here". The Oldman noticed Sam who standing dumbstruck after witnessing the valiant display of the u dead warning. He waved at Sam signalling him to come.
Sam nodded and walked to the side of Sanchez.
The Oldman smiled and looked at the undead soldiers before him. He spoke in a loud voice filled with which reached each and every undead soldiers before him.
"Its been more than ten thousand years since we lost in the battle at righteous country. More than ten thousand years since we lost our master, venerable twosword. More than ten thousand since our brother and our master departed from this world".
"We have died fighting for light and reborn as darkness. More than ten thousand years, a lifetime has passed yet the burning hatred in heart, our desire to exact vegence have never extinguishes from our undead heart".
Sam felt completely shaken upon hearing those words. A hatred and desire to exact vengeance that transcended life and death!
"Today, we will march again. We will launch another expedition, one not to conquer but to destroy. To destroy everything in our path, destroy the vermin who had harmed our master, our lifelong brothers. Today we will show him might of our undead blood, the darkness that surpasses the depth of abyss".
"There will be death in this battle. Even I may perish and join the darkness. However, any one of us who fall in the battle will be the heroes of our undead race, a hero of our righteous army. Those who fall will join our fallen brother and master in heaven".
"This war is the fight for the justice for our fallen brother so they can rest in peace".
"This war is our battle, our purpose in life, the reason we were reborn again!"
"Our fallen brother and our master is watching us. We will show them the might of our righteous army again. We will show them the vengeance of our undead souls".
"Raise your weapons and follow me. Tonight we will fight until hell freezes over and then we will fight over the ice".
"Power up the teleportation formation!"
Everyone undead felt their undead blood boiling in response to the Oldman's word and joined together to shout,"Fight!!! "
"Fight!!! "
"fight!!!"
Now that the Oldman, as the city master of the city of undead had officially declared war, the transportation formation which filled the palace sprang to life, sending boundless black light shinning up to the sky.
RUMBLEE....
Spatial energy enveloped the army of undead as boundless black light started to shine on the ground and different kinds of runes of the transportation formation were activated.
Whoosh..
The army of undead vanished from the city of dead!
Outside the destroyed city inside the ruins of abyss, a teleportation formation was opened. The Oldman wearing donned in a black armor and carrying the immortal slaying sword stepped out from the portal. Soon, he was followed by Sam, Sanchez and ninety nine undead warriors. A thousand armed undead soldiers soon marched out in a orderly manner. Each of them looked fierce and ready to kill.
The army of undead brought a unstoppable momentum along with them. It was as if the whole momentum of the swordridge valley were focused on them. The sky turned dark as blacked clouds made up of death essence energy starts to churn and roil in the sky.
On the built platform, several cultivators were fighting against the black scorpions but all of a sudden, all the black scorpions started to flee in panic as if sensing the arrival of the catastrophe. After all, the beasts relied in their keen instinct to survive and they could death approaching closer.
The ruins of abyss was always dark and eerily silent but today, it was shrouded in a invisible pressure as if a invisible hands were pressing on the throat ready to choke to death. Even the cultivators who had entered the ruins of abyss started to feel uneasy.
Outside the destroyed city, the Oldman looked intensely at the destroyed city. Several emotion started bubble out of his closed undead heart. Shaking his head, he stretched out his palm. Soon, a Saber flew out from the destroyed city and landed on his palm, it was the devil decapitating saber which Sam had left inside the city after the battle last time.
Stroking the edges of saber, his candle flame like eyes turned a tad bit sharper as he said in a commanding tone,"Unit 1,step forward and receive your commnad".
A row of hundred step forward and bowed to the Oldman. "Unit 1 reporting. Ready to receive your command".
"Lay down the formation sealing array". He commanded.
The soldiers acknowledge the command and each one carrying a formation flag spread around the destroyed city.
The Oldman watched everything with calm eyes. He then turned to Sam and Sanchez and said, "You two stay behind with the battle formtion. Make your move when you receive my command".
He turned turned to the soldiers as he raised his voice by a few octaves. "This is where we will put an end to it all by killing our enemy. Those who have bravery, courage and hot blood left in you, follow behind me to Kill. CHARGE! ".
he let out a battle cry and carrying a sword and saber in each hand flew directly towards the center of the destroyed city.
"CHARGE! " The undead soldiers also let out a loud battle cry in unison and followed behind the Oldman.
It was the prelude to the beginning of a battle, the battle to end a ten thousand years old grudge!