Chapter 10-321: Just Rewards (2/2)
The Forbidden City was probably the only area truly left intact, as well as Tiananmen Square, and even they had... additions. Mounds of skulls and bones, mostly, helping that Death Qi settle in nicely.
The Shroud roiled above as that dark power gathered, and I grinned wider, making sure Sama was watching this in the distance. The clouds above suddenly blazed with hate lightning... that suddenly went all purple as the incoming entity asserted its mastery over the power of the death, and the Shroud went, ALL RIGHTY!
“<WHAT?!>”
The force of the word blew past us, carrying a stench even more foul than Death Qi, forcing everyone to put vivic Weapons in front of themselves to burn the odor away. The clouds above rumbled and danced in happy acknowledgment about finding another sucker to enslave.
That bastard was at least five miles away, and even with Raised Eagle Eyes, there was too much crap in the air to see clearly what was going on.
“What do you think they are doing now? Screaming for mercy and understanding?” Briggs asked loudly, drawing some laughs from the men below, who’d naturally been alerted to what was going on.
I felt the tug on the Qi, and we all watched the Shroud suddenly pull down towards that dark figure in the distance. There were distant screams carrying on the wind with supernatural speed as a silent explosion went off over yonderbouts, and suddenly a great black sphere of pure negative energy blossomed forth, gaining in height and vanishing into the Shroud as it exploded like an overdone black Pyroclasm.
Briggs and Commander Haru’Ara grabbed a rod each, and separated instantly, the Wall of Fire, laced with vivus and holy energies, igniting and raging forth between them, right in front of the assembled men.
Yes, it was indeed safer behind the two of them.
I looked at the incoming wave, watched its true area of effect hit, and then the remnant energies raged forth, devouring earth and sky. It turned the Hellcloud above purple and red and black, sucking out more death energy, as it came howling for us.
Just a negative energy wave, nnn, 20d6. Completely handled by Death Ward, and out-powered by the Wall.
It blew past us, the vivus on the ground first igniting, flaring with too much fuel, and then extinguishing, painting the ground a pasty black as it did. I saw buildings crumble, stones shatter, and everything natural in the area was pretty much wiped away instantly.
The Wall burned even brighter, and my personal Death Ward kept it away without difficulty. The Old Steed wasn’t affected by this at all, of course; Briggs just ignored it, and the planetar was immune to negative energy attacks.
The Wall was burning twice as intensely as normal for the full six seconds the wind howled past us, the men watching the show up above and to the sides, and glad the Wall was there.
They were a long way from all of them being able to afford Death Ward Amulets, after all, or having Vajras at 40.
Briggs glanced over at me, completely unruffled, his Vajra keeping him untouched by bone grit or necrotic shit. “Well?” he asked me rhetorically.
“Legendary-level effect, ultra-specialized necromantic ability.” I squinted, hands on my temples as Clavus floated beside me. Using ultra-high magnification Eagle Eyes took great concentration, as even a heartbeat made your view jump around. The difference between a Transmutation spell supercharging your eyes and a Divination spell Scrying over there, as it were. “Not an Eternal, but touching it, kind of like using a Wish or Miracle, except he tapped the Shroud to do it.” My eyebrows rose as I caught my first sight of the Cultivators over there, heads suddenly shiny bone and their eyes glowing purple-green. “Yeah, the twat just necrofied the lot of them.”
Broad grins broke out of the fighters below as the three of us drifted down to a lower position, the Wall falling with us and letting them view what was far ahead of us. The black star of that incoming Daoist pulled the eye-
I felt the divinatory effect of a powerful Divine Sense sweep over us. I promptly reached out and broke it, and felt a very surprised jolt out there in the distance as the new Shroudlord ate the feedback damage.
Don’t try to Scry someone who used to be part of a Diviner Spec, sheesh!
“So, he’s got the Dark Clergy, the Congregants, and the Cultivators here to work with,” Briggs rumbled. “Can we handle them?”
“From a certain standpoint, they made themselves easier to handle.” The Purgers all grinned and nodded, holding up Baneskulls and Tokens and Baned Weapons and the like. They were all good at fighting undead, much better than fighting Daoists, who could have all sorts of unpredictable abilities. Even if they just became untiring life-sucking killing machines, they’d actually be easier to fight!
“The Dark Congregants and Clergy have lost almost all their power with the supporting undead exterminated. They are basically just enhanced combat undead. The Cultivators will be more dangerous, as they’ll keep most of their ability with Death Qi, and there will be hundreds of them.” I glanced at the Purgers. “I don’t trust their Nulls and Sources to carry them through yet.”
“Well, then,” Briggs smiled, “It sounds like we should take out the Cultivators first, and let the lads handle everyone else. I think we should go get some help for that job.”
I had to agree with him. Time to gather some muscle!