"Our souls are chains, forged in the flames of war. What binds us is stronger than bone and magic – we do not break, we become the blade that cleaves the darkness." – The Fighter Brothers
Rain pelted down on the gruesome battlefield. Bone dust was gently carried away by the icy cold air, a witness and eternal reminder of the brutal slaughter that had taken place that day. But the battle was far from over. Azrael stood on the dark hill, almost invincible. No matter how much damage was done, he would always regenerate from black liquid. As long as his entire body was not destroyed in one attack, Azrael's life would go on and on. Azrael was truly a god of the undead.
Episode 6 - God of the Undead (Part 2)
While the battle on the hill slowly reached its climax, Morvan was still busy fighting the skeleton traitor. The black slime around the sword didn't bother the traitor at all. Nevertheless, the massive bone frame lunged and managed to deliver a heavy blow to the ground, which Morvan himself only just managed to dodge. With a single blow to the ground, the traitor was finally able to shake off the slime, bringing the fight back to square one. Morvan was desperate. The skeletal traitor was so strong that Morvan's slime was useless against him.
Morvan's heart pounded violently in his chest as he fixed his gaze on the giant skeleton traitor standing in front of him. The air was filled with the sickening stench of death and decay. The black slime he had so often used successfully against powerful enemies seemed meaningless against this opponent. The traitor, a gigantic skeleton whose eye sockets glowed with an ominous, bluish light, held his massive sword in one hand as if it were as light as a feather.
With a bloodcurdling growl, the traitor raised his sword again and the weight of the blade hissed through the air as he brought it down with such force that the ground shook beneath Morvan's feet. He rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding the blow that threatened to shatter the ground beneath him. Clods of earth and dust flew into the air as Morvan tried to regain his balance.
"Damn it!" he whispered breathlessly. His opponent was too strong and his attacks too fast. He couldn't dodge much longer.
The traitor, unflinching and relentless, stepped forward and swung his sword again in a wide arc. This time Morvan could only partially deflect the blow. His weapon, already badly battered, burst under the enormous force of the attack and left him defenceless. The blow hit him in the shoulder and he was thrown back, tossed through the air like a toy, until he hit the ground hard.
Pain shot through his body as he tried to get to his feet. The traitor came closer, his massive body casting a menacing shadow over Morvan as he stood over him, sword ready for the final blow.
Morvan felt the despair begin to overwhelm him. But at that moment, when all seemed lost, a thought occurred to him. He had been relying on the slime all this time, but the traitor was different. The key to this foe was not brute force or magic, but something deeper - the traitor was a being bound to his comrade by betrayal. A debt that forced him to exist in this form forever.
Morvan lifted his head, his eyes glittering in a moment of clarity. "You have broken your own oath, traitor," he shouted, his voice quivering. "You are no longer a warrior, just a shell trapped in death. You can fight, but you can never be free again!"
For a moment, the traitor paused, as if the words touched something inside him, something deeply hidden in his rotten mind. The light in his eye sockets flickered briefly. Morvan sensed the opportunity and leapt to his feet, mobilizing the last of his strength.
Instead of attacking directly, he began to circle the skeleton's sword, taking each step with precision. The skeletal traitor tried to follow him, but his movements became more sluggish, as if something was holding him back. The guilt he had carried in his life now seemed to weigh down his existence in death.
"You can't escape," Morvan said softly, reaching out his hand. The black slime, which had been useless before, began to move as if reacting to Morvan's new plan. He sent the slime not at the traitor's sword, but at its legs to grasp the roots of its existence in death. The slime slowly crept up, first wrapping around the bones of the legs, then the ribs, until it reached the skull.
The traitor roared in rage and pain, his massive body began to tremble. But this time, instead of shaking off the slime, he seemed to be encased and held by it, as if struggling against the weight of his own betrayal. The traitor could no longer move. His unholy strength, which had held him up until now, began to fade.
Morvan strode closer, panting and bleeding, but with a purpose in mind. "You will never find peace, traitor. Not in this life, and not in the next."
With a final tug, the slime pulled the skeletal traitor downwards, as if it were being devoured by the shadows themselves. The huge body disintegrated into dust, as if the guilt that had once bound it to this world had finally come to an end. The ominous blue light in his eyes went out, and the skeletal traitor was no more.
Morvan sank to the ground, his hand pressed to the wound on his shoulder, the battlefield around him shrouded in grim silence. The battle was over - at least this one. But the war against Azrael, the god of the undead, continued to rage on the hill. Morvan knew that his greatest battle was yet to come.
The fighter brothers stood firmly together as the three elite bone warriors approached them. These skeletons were different - bigger, stronger, their movements imbued with dark magic. The eldest brother tensed his muscles, while the middle brother held his blade loosely in his hand, ready for any attack. The youngest brother looked calm and focused, but determination glowed in his eyes.
"They're coming," the eldest brother said curtly.
"Let them come," the middle brother replied with a slight grin, his hand twitching over the hilt of his sword.
The skeletons charged forward, their huge swords ready to destroy the fighter brothers with a single blow. The first of them lashed out, the air hissing as the huge blade hurtled towards the eldest brother. But at the last moment, he disappeared in a lightning-fast movement and shouted: [Ghost Blade]! His blade became a blurred silhouette as it sliced through the bone soldier's sternum. The skeleton staggered back, but the dark magic continued to hold it upright.
"This magic is holding them together," the middle brother shouted, dodging a blow from the second skeleton. "We have to destroy it quickly!"
"No problem," replied the youngest brother, leaping into the air and enveloping his foot in flames. "Let's go!" With a bloodcurdling scream, he kicked directly into the second skeleton's hip with a powerful [Flaming Kick]. Bones splintered and the undead creature was thrown to the ground, but it immediately put itself back together. "Damn it," he cursed. "They keep coming back!"
The eldest brother gripped his axe tightly, looked at the first bone warrior, who was already regenerating, and shouted: [Berserker Charge]! With a wild, thunderous roar, he charged forward and struck with unstoppable force. His axe struck the skull of the first skeleton with such brutal force that it exploded in a shower of bone dust. But here, too, the remains immediately began to reform.
"That's not enough!" the middle brother gasped, ducking under another attack from the third bone soldier. "We have to destroy them before they reassemble."
The youngest brother leapt forward again and shouted: [Thunder Strike]. A bright bolt of lightning flashed from his hands and struck the head of the second bone soldier, which shattered with a loud crack. The light of the bolt penetrated the dark magic that kept the skeleton alive, and this time the body began to regenerate more slowly.
"That's it," the middle brother shouted. "We have to break through the magic!" He concentrated and summoned his ability: [Shadow Slash]. His blade became one with the shadows, and with a deadly slash, he cut through the connection between the third warrior's bones. The magic holding the body together was torn apart, and the skeletal warrior crumbled into a lifeless heap.
The last elite warrior stopped, his eye sockets glowing brightly as the dark magic raged within him. He roared and raised his axe to land the final devastating blow. But before he could strike, the eldest brother charged forward, his axe in his hand now glowing with an intense light. With a mighty blow, he shouted: [Earth Shatter]! The ground trembled beneath his feet as he smashed the axe into the skull of the last bone soldier. The dark magic was extinguished in a sudden flash, and the skeleton crumbled into a pile of lifeless bones.
Panting and exhausted, the fighter brothers stood over the remains of their enemies. The battle was over. The once mighty elite warriors were now nothing more than broken piles of bones, slowly being carried away by the icy air.
"It's over," said the eldest brother as he put away his axe.
"At least these enemies are," the middle brother added, his eyes fixed on the hill where Azrael was still enthroned.
The youngest brother nodded and clenched his fists. That guy is our next target."
Meanwhile, Liang Wei watched as one skeleton after another disintegrated and the life drained from the skeletons. "Azrael, the game is over. You made a huge mistake taking as many skeletons with you as we have fighters." However, the young man grinned incessantly. Gradually, he began to laugh hysterically. Liang Wei asked the young man what was so funny, whereupon the young man stared at him with a rapturous, sinister grin. "Do you seriously think I didn't think it through? Of course I thought that through too. The fact that there are as many skeletons as warriors was part of my plan to destroy the forbidden army!" When Liang Wei heard this, he was shocked. Azrael stretched his right hand forward, which couldn't mean anything good. So Liang Wei cried out in desperation and panic as he tried to stop Azrael's attack - but it was already too late. The gloomy man closed his previously flat hand into a fist.
[Lifetime Legend]
Blue flames sprang from Azrael's fist. In single pillars of flame, they enveloped the entire battlefield in an ominous, light blue hue. Each small pillar of flame landed in one of the skeletal warriors, causing it to glow blue. Each of the soldiers was shocked. "W-What's happening here?" muttered one, while another tried to escape. Would the skeletons just get up again? What happened was much worse than that. The bones of each skeleton began to float and attach themselves to one of the army soldiers at a time. Even the bones of the opponents of Lina, Morvan and the fighter brothers began to fly. The only ones without skeletons were Liang Wei and Aiden. "Damn it, what's happening now?" Azrael slowly raised his hand into the air. Liang Wei was losing his mind. Tears flowed from his eyes and he screamed as if his own life depended on it. "NO, STOP IT! LET HER GO!" He quickly grabbed the sword lying on the ground and stabbed Azrael in the chest. As the man's body consisted only of the black liquid, the attack simply slipped through him.
STOP! STOP! THEY'RE... THEY'RE MY FRIENDS!" Liang Wei stabbed Azrael's chest again and again, but each of his attacks was in vain. ,,STIR! PUNCH! STIR!" Azrael's grin changed to a gloomy, almost melancholy look. "Liang Wei, I will redeem your friends. Not even paradise is a nice place. This is probably the best way I can relieve them of their pain." In a final act of desperation, Liang Wei fell to his knees and cried out in tears and agony. He had no choice but to watch as Azrael's hand closed and fate took its course.
Blue detonations ripped through the battlefield like starry nights, while the soldiers' souls faded away like smoke, leaving only the motionless skeletons in eerie silence.
Liang Wei's cries gradually died down before he looked up at the sky and another single tear streamed down his cheek. "Is this what it feels like to lose everything you have?" There was a small glimmer of hope, however. Next to the warriors, a dome of black slime retreated back to the body of a fighter - it was Morvan! At the moment of detonation, he had pushed himself between the bones at Lina's back and created a dome of slime from his own body, pushing the bones away. It was this dome that had saved him and Lina. Lina is still alive! I'll take her with me and check on the fighter brothers!" Morvan continued without hesitation. The man knew exactly what he had to do. He quickly threw Lina onto his shoulder and sprinted towards the fighter brothers. All hope was not lost. However, Azrael raised his hand once more. Once again he used [Lifetime Legend], but this time all the bones of the entire battlefield flew to him. Lifetime Legend is a skill that allows me to move and control the skeletons at my will. In return, I sacrifice part of my lifespan and one of my emotions each time I use the skill. The emotion I just sacrificed was pleasure, the last emotion I had left." Aiden quickly had a thought in his head. What if Azrael wasn't evil at all, but simply a victim of his own skill?
Immediately, Aiden was knocked to the ground by Liang Wei. A sharpened bone almost hit the thoughtful boy. "Take care of yourself, Aiden!" Aiden immediately wanted to attack the necromancer directly, but was prevented from doing so by a flying bone. Now Azrael was unbeatable in both attack and defense. The body parts of each skeleton floated in the air like a large cloud of bones. Azrael could stop every attack from Aiden and break through every blockade from Liang Wei. It seemed unstoppable. At some point, however, the boy had an idea. "Wait a minute... Body reinforcement... That's it!" So the young Aiden used [Body Enhancement] again. This time, however, everything was different. "So far, I've had a mental block that has kept my body enhancement at a level that my body can withstand. But now that's going to change." Aiden's entire body was filled with energy. His hair stood on end and his muscles almost seemed to burst. Pain and agony spread throughout his body as he simply couldn't cope with this endless energy.
"I still can't get my maximum... But at least I can unleash 250% of my potential power!" It didn't stop there. The boy combined this power with the technique of concentrating his body reinforcement on one part of his body. So the street fighter stretched out his right hand and concentrated all his body energy into the five fingers. "Liang Wei... Just charge at Azrael now and punch him hard in the face!" With confidence in his comrade, the army leader nodded and prepared for a fierce sprint. Azrael blocked the way with a few bones. "You won't get that far!" Aiden, however, smiled slightly before making his fist into a flat hand and a huge shockwave sent all the bones in the way whirling away. Azrael barely managed to stay on the ground. When he opened his eyes again, all the young man saw was a fist smashing into his face. Liang Wei had listened to Aiden's command and trusted him completely. "Haha, surely that won't be enough to defeat me!" With a slight smile, Liang Wei bent down, allowing Azrael to see Aiden, who had already rushed towards him in his blind spot. With a fist full of 250 percent body enhancement, the boy landed a punch right in his friend's face, causing him to fall down the hill. "That's really it."
Azrael grinned briefly before using [Lifetime Legend] one last time. All the bones gathered in one place. It was as if a huge ocean of skeletons had formed around the hill. A huge beast consisting of each skeleton quickly rose from this ocean. The monster was about 500 meters long and incredibly massive. It was like a mixture of a Chinese dragon and a worm. "Is he a soul boss now or what?" Liang Wei gave Aiden a stern look. "You know what to do, don't you?" The boy closed his eyes and nodded. "We have to... get inside him and find Azrael's body..." The army leader nodded with confidence. "We can do that, Aiden. The real fight..." Aiden knew how the sentence would continue. So he finished it for Liang Wei: ,,... begins now."
Oh man... Getting pretty emotional, isn't it? Well, that's how my stories are. Looking forward to the next episode where the final showdown against Azrael takes place!
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Stay tuned for the next chapter and don't forget to share your thoughts and feedback in the comments. See you next time!