Chapter 407 One Down, Five To Go!
Dave ignored the fighting soldiers and hopped over Tiny who was mid-transformation. The Grave Lord changed shape immediately and took to the skies, avoiding the incoming arrows and projectiles shot at him.
They dared to annoy his Undead when they were already winning? The Draugr was not about to let his enemy gain an advantage in this battle, no matter aerial or on the ground.
Once Tiny was high up in the skies, the Tengu joined Dave. The mighty creature shouted, "Lord, let me aid you!" and drew his sword, preparing his ultimate move.
Amongst the chaos and sounds of battle, the Tengu's voice rang clear: "Thou who dare desecrate this land, with my advent, I the Great Tengu, shall lay waste to your defilement with this blade! ZAN!"
The Tengu's hand tightened around the grip of his sword and pulled the blade out by a finger's length...a blink, then he slid the katana back into its sheath with an ominous 'click.'
A strong wind kicked up dust and debris as the whole area shuddered. Everything in front of the Tengu had been split down the middle. Clouds and even space itself found itself divided. For an instant, it was as if the world was an enormous melon that had been cut in two, one half sliding away from the other, then they rejoined a moment later. In that division, three of the wyvern riders had lost their lives alongside their mounts, leaving the dozen or so others perplexed at the fate of their comrades.
Dave didn't give them time to think. Tiny dove in like the wind, howling and screeching like a true dragon, as it followed after a hapless wyvern that was too afraid to act according to his rider's commands. Dave's mount bit hard on the wyvern's neck. The unfortunate creature fought to regain its freedom from the massive maw of the Grave Lord, but after a powerful tightening of Tiny's dragon jaws, the wyvern's neck snapped. The creature's howls and resistance ceased a moment later, allowing Tiny enough to swallow it whole.
The rider risked his life by climbing on the face of Tiny who was busy enjoying his snack. His decision to abandon his wyvern may have saved him from falling to his death or ending up in Tiny's abyss of a stomach, however, he met a smiling Draugr who had patiently waited for his ascent.
The Draugr balanced himself on the dragon's head, pulled one leg higher than the other and shouted, "THIS! IS! SPARTA!" then kicked the man in the chest, sending the soldier to meet his worst fears.
"Heh, I always wanted to do this," Dave laughed, then turned his attention to another wyvern rider who was aiming his bow at him.
Dave failed to dodge, and the arrow imbedded itself surprisingly right through his left eye.
***
You have been partially blinded!
-160,000!
You cannot use your left eye for five (5) minutes. This effect can be removed by using a Skill or drinking a potion to regenerate the affected area."
***
Dave cursed, "Motherfucker!" the shot was painful, even through the damage numbing of the system, a shot to the eye hurt.
Out of frustration, Dave hurled his sword at the rider who was pretty far away.
The rider was totally surprised at the suddenness of Dave's reaction and was unable to steer his mount in time to dodge the massive sword. The weapon struck him right through the chest, detaching him completely from his saddle and throwing him down to his death.
Dave however cursed, he had just thrown away his weapon, and it would be a hassle to retrieve it. However, fate gave Dave a nice surprise as a notification popped up in his impaired vision.
***
You have performed a successful sword throw.
You have learned the basic skill [Sword Throw].
You may use the follow-up skill [Recall] to recall your weapon.
Cooldown 20 minutes.
***
"Oh, that's pretty nice," Dave grinned and activated the new skill [Recall]
His weapon came back, with a surprise attached to it.
Dave tilted his head as he realized that Durandal had struck through the rider, and due to him having recalled the weapon, he brought the rider back with him.
"Burh, you're too clingy, get off," Dave kicked with his leg at the rider, peeling him off of his weapon, and throwing him back to the ground. His mount was not too impressed about the waste of food.
"Next one Tiny, you'll get to eat more!" Dave shouted, and the creature obliged.
The hunt for wyverns ended almost as soon as it started. The remaining riders fell back as they realized that their aerial superiority was fended off easily by the Grave Lord and his Undead rider. Meanwhile, the fight at the ground was turning into a culling massacre.
Jeffery's Mecha had an easy time taking down the remaining Elite Soldiers. His aggro level was high enough to leech all of the Elites, but the massive numbers of Undead kept him safe and free to shoot as many bullets as he wanted. The same was true for the rest of Dave's party. They killed and leveled up with ease with the help of Dave's army.
...half an hour later, the last Elite Soldier, who also happened to be the last surviving Qin Soldier fell to Mercy's daggers.
"Great job everyone!" Dave called, "Legionaries! Take the city!"
He had to be quick before any more support troops could reinforce the city making it harder to capture. Dave needed to break through and lock down the gate.
This was easier said than done. Accessing the city was still difficult. There were many soldiers hidden atop roofs and many of the streets were barricaded in case the Undead defeated the vanguard.
From up above, Dave noticed that his worst worries were becoming reality. The Teleportation Gate kept lighting up and numerous Qin Soldiers were pouring out. He needed to clog the portal before the Qin Army sent in a rescue squad composed of more Elite Soldiers as Dave did not have access to another Boss Skill and Jeffery's Mecha was also running out of juice.
"Tiny, to the Gate!" Dave ordered and the creature followed.
Once Dave was flying over the Gate, he dropped down from Tiny's back landing in a three-point hero landing.
-260,000!
The damage from the fall wasn't low, but he opted to endure it in pursuit of style points. His [Aura] brought terror upon the Qin Soldiers. Any that tried to force him out of the Gate either burnt due to the heat emanating from [Infernal Tyrant's Oppression] or ran away due to the fear effect it caused out of the city and into the Undead.
Dave found himself free and in control of the Gate, and before more enemy troops could emerge, he used the Gate himself to reach the Undead Frontier. Once he was in, he beckoned for the Abyssal Knight Dagla who was waiting at the Frontier for this very purpose.
"We have another Gate! I need your help Dagla," Dave hurriedly pleaded.
"As you wish," The Abyssal Knight followed after Dave had used the Gate. Once the two of them were back in the city Dagla took a look around.
"Too many living beings..." The Arch-Lich dismissively waved his hand.
This mere gesture caused black waves to burst out from under Dagla's feet, latching onto the soldiers and dragging them into the ground. Their fates, unknown to anyone.
"Much better," Dagla said with what seemed to be the equivalent of a smile on his face.
When Dave realized that the enemy forces were no more, he disabled his aura. The mana drain had been starting to become too much for him to sustain.
"There are many other living soldiers within this city…" Dagla spoke while he was tampering with the Gate.
"Yeah, we are still in the middle of a conquest," Dave explained.
"Indeed... Once your Undead control the city, what do you plan to do next, young Draugr?" Dagla asked.
"I'll head for the nearest city, there are five conquests I need to do before I can take on the capital," Dave shared his plan.
"You won't succeed this way; you'll lose too many troops. The enemy still has many soldiers to contend with your force." Dagla stated bluntly.
Dave took a moment to think about the Arch-Lich's words: "You may be right. Perhaps I won't succeed completely. However, I won't give up just because I could fail in the end. At the very least I shall use this opportunity to deal them a heavy blow!"
"That is an admirable conviction you have. Yet it cannot change the fact that they outnumber you. If you try to raid through the heart of their Kingdom, I cannot see an outcome different you suffering losses just as great. Nevertheless, I support your decision. Don't waste your chance in punishing them for attempting to take your city. It is the way of us Undead, to never fear the enemy and always be relentless in seeking their destruction. Even if you don't succeed at first just rise again!" Dagla rarely spoke many words, but when he did it was always important and full of wisdom.
"I'll do as you say," Dave nodded and turned back to an incoming ruckus. His Undead had managed to mow through the barricades and had advanced deeper into the city. Now nothing can interrupt this conquest.
Singund approached first, his body was covered with scars. Dave believed that the fearsomeness of the High-Orc must have surprised the Elite Soldiers, for even if he was lower level than them, his tenacity was unparalleled, he could battle many without dying, and he could kill as he pleased unfaltering and unrelenting.
"Lord! We bring news of victory, what is our next task?" Singund was keen to know his next target. It hadn't even been long and yet the Orc Chieftain was ready to continue fighting. Fortunately, Dave did not disappoint.
"We march to the next city. It's going to be a one day march. Lead the army, I'll follow soon after. I also need this city to remain under control. Send word to Delvina and have her come and compel the remaining living people to our cause!"
"As you command!" Singund gave Dave a salute and strode away.
"Lord Dagla," Dave turned around: "I'll be leaving soon. I'll be counting on your assistance for the next city as well."
The Arch-Lich nodded, "I am looking forward to it. I have many benefits to gain by taking control of the enemy Gates. It will also help the Legion prosper as a whole!"
"Great, alright see you later," Dave walked away from the Gate and the vanishing magician, while a brigade of Undead began breaking through the doors and pulling out the survivors and citizens who had remained inside, lumping them together for imprisonment.
Dave moved out of the city and toward his party.
"Guys, we'll be heading to another area soon. Jeffery, when will your Mecha be ready for use?" Dave inquired.
"In 24 hours," Jeffery answered.
"Great. We don't have to worry then. The nearest city is pretty far. The Legionnaires will need about a day's march to arrive there."
"So, it's time to go already?" Lone asked.
"Yeah, we have to strike while the iron is still hot. Right now the Qin Kingdom is struggling with controlling their lands due to the monster outbreak. So far, they can't assemble a force strong enough to break our guerilla tactics, but once enough time has passed and the situation is back under their control, we'll face a pretty strong resistance." Dave explained.
"Then why waste time talking? Let's go, man! The EXP so far has been delicious and easy, we can't waste this chance," Ralph hurried them on.
"Right then, everyone ready?"
His party members all nodded or spoke in agreement.
Dave looked around, his Undead were readying up for the next march.
"Alright then. Everyone, roll out!!!"