CHAPTER 173: CHAPTER 173: BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL [2]

Chapter 173 – Battle for Survival [2]

Kaden observed the Black Knight and couldn’t stop a deep shudder from coursing through his whole body. The Knight’s aura was too strong, too encompassing, and too... corrupted.

He was having problems keeping his heartbeat calm and steady, and would’ve hoped to have more time to gather himself in front of this aura that looked ready to corrupt him whole but—hélas!—the moment Asael finished his taunting words, his elf undead grabbed her bow with masterful ease, a white flaming arrow appearing on the strings of the bow before she pulled it and launched it.

The arrow exploded through the air, leaving a trail of white smoke and struck directly the peak Master undead to the right of the Knight, knocking him back until he slammed hard into the already cracking wall. A cloud of dust erupted from the impact, showing how powerful it was.

Chaos erupted.

"ROOOOOOAAAAAARRRR!!!!"

The corrupted undead—both humanoid and beastly—erupted with their own roar of madness, shaking the very air with thunderous intensity. Each of them began attacking with their own skills. In an instant, the room was blinded by a cornucopia of attacks raining down on Kaden and Asael like falling meteors.

The sky lit up like fireworks as fire, ice, lightning, and all types of power worked seamlessly to bring them down.

For corrupted undeads in rage, they were weirdly coordinated. Each of their skills was specific, and they seemed to enhance the techniques of their fellow undead, making them even more dreadful.

Kaden looked at the coming avalanche of attacks with icy eyes. Reditha flashed into his hand as both Crimson Sword Intent and Death’s Envoy Intent wrapped around her in a protective embrace, enhancing the blade with lethality beyond imagination.

He performed the Bloodflame Descent, and its gaping maw of a beast devoured almost all the attacks, leaving the rest to Asael.

The shadows beneath the hordes of corrupted darkened like void before the ground turned watery and slippery as half of them plunged deep into the shadows, the rest killed by a rain of blood and crimson flame as Soulbrand acted.

In the first few seconds of battle, Kaden and Asael killed the mobs with dreadful ease. They turned their eyes simultaneously toward the Knight, who was looking at the scene with indifference.

Asael smiled stiffly. "Ready, my friend?" he asked as he grasped tightly his twin longswords.

Kaden returned his smile with a grim one. "Do I have a choice not to be ready?"

"I guess not!" Asael laughed and lunged toward the Black Knight, leaving behind a trail of black light.

Kaden followed closely behind, looking like a flash of crimson hue, and his two undead summons went to fight the other two Masters as the other one was incapacitated with a single white flaming arrow.

Asael swung his twin swords ferociously in an X-shape directly toward the creaking armor of the Knight, who didn’t even try to block his attack. He simply raised his right arm, now covered in black muddy light that corrupted the very air around it, and moved it with a speed faster than thought, reaching straight for Asael’s throat. The latter acted decisively and bent his back unnaturally, escaping the hand by a hair’s breadth.

Kaden arrived at that moment to the Knight’s left, Reditha already in motion as he stabbed the Knight in the neck with bloody eyes. A clank of metal against metal echoed through the space—but neither strike left a single dent on the armor.

They stood there stunned for an instant, but that was enough for the Knight to form two deadly black spears with pointed teeth and hurl them toward the duo.

Asael reacted rapidly and plunged both of them inside the shadows, reappearing a couple of meters behind.

"Fuck..." Kaden cursed as his hand trembled from the echo of the strike.

For an armor that looked like it might crack at any moment, it was exceptionally solid.

"An idea?" he asked Asael as he breathed heavily, the Knight still not even bothered to get up from his throne or touch his weapon.

He was looking down on them.

But neither Asael nor Kaden cared about that lack of respect. In fact, they were happy with it. They just needed a single opportunity to land a good attack.

But the Knight was no fool. He didn’t give them time to plan as black spears began raining down on them endlessly, making it impossible to discuss anything. Kaden was focused on saving his dear life, as any of these spears could leave him half-dead.

His body was like a mirage on the battlefield as he used his speed and perception to the max. Clanking sounds of steel against steel echoed as he parried some and dodged others.

It looked like a beautiful dance with death as spectator.

The surrounding air was filled with the explosive noise of other battles. White flaming arrows were whipping through the wind with dreadfulness, making the air suddenly hot and blistering. The other battle was one of pure brawn, where fists met fists and knuckles slammed against bone.

The very air vibrated with each clash, sending violent soundwaves crashing all around, drowning the world in deafening silence.

Asael was like a pool of shadows moving through the decaying spears.

But they couldn’t go on like this forever. After a while, the Knight began to predict their next positions, causing some ugly wounds and gouged blood.

Kaden parried a black spear with Reditha, causing flying sparks to erupt on contact, and took a step back from the recoil—but another spear was already coming, targeting his forehead. He cursed under his breath as blood formed six barrier layers instantly, reinforced by both his Intents, but the spear cut through them like a knife through rubber.

But Kaden didn’t complain. The barriers slowed the spear just enough to buy him a couple of seconds—enough to condense a sword of blood and, alongside Reditha, protect his forehead just before the impact sent him flying like a ragdoll.

A fountain of blood and organ fragments gushed from his mouth as Kaden shakily stood up again. His breath was ragged as the attack had knocked out the air out of his lungs.

His eyes were hazy, but he couldn’t stay in one spot for too long. He raised his head and saw Asael giving him a weird glance before exploding toward the Knight with bristling speed.

At a hundred meters before the throne, he slammed his left foot hard into the ground causing it to throb madly and jumped into the sky like a primordial puma while spinning at the same time.

A pointed spear appeared in his right hand as he hurled it forward at the Knight with the force of all his momentum.

Nothing was visible except a black flash that dimmed the world as the spear tore through the air and arrived just an inch from the Knight’s right chest.

This time, the Knight raised his hand to block it, seemingly aware of the threat—but just at that moment, a blood-red spear flashed at impossible speed and struck the black spear at a unnatural angle, causing it to deviate slightly and pierce through the left side of the chest with a deep, creaking sound.

The Black Knight... had been wounded.

—End of Chapter 173—