The Paladin in the Abyss

Chapter 764: Chapter 785 Ambush

Bulger Village was a gloomy place, surrounded by a solid fence made of logs, as if there was some terrible threat lurking in the wilderness. Many dark chains dangled from the top of the fence, each ending with a black silhouette. As the group approached, they realized those were all reanimated zombies, emitting a pungent tar odor, wriggling under the not-so-bright light like worms on a hook.

Even though everyone was accustomed to grand scenes in the Abyss, this sight still touched a nerve.

"I don’t like this village," Bruto muttered, "even I can feel the evil inside..."

"This isn’t the place where Uncle Barrend is imprisoned," Kalalin spoke up, "Shall we bypass it? The terrain to the south is flatter, the horses should be able to ride over it."

’No! We must go in!’ an almost zealous female voice echoed in everyone’s mind, ’Evil must be purified!’

’Ignore her,’ another graceful male voice rang out, carrying the distinctive elegance of the Aira Celestials, ’I will properly educate her.’

"I don’t want to go in either," Lancelot gazed at the grim village, then turned to look at the hill to the south of the village, "It feels very wrong, but I can’t quite put my finger on why. Let’s set off and stay alert."

The group left the road and maneuvered through the wilds surrounding the village. Inside the fence were stone watchtowers, with guards grimly watching them from the top, making no move, perhaps because the Human Knight’s mount, a nightmare with fire blazing from its hooves, that iconic creature dismissed any foolish thoughts they might have had.

Lancelot soon understood why he felt so uneasy. The hill was scattered with numerous tombstones, and a fog began to envelop them insidiously, obscuring their view of the distance. Fortunately, this did not cause Lancelot to lose his way. As a Spiritual Cultivator at the High Rank of the Foundation Establishment Stage, he could sense a very faint but undisturbed Spiritual Field, which allowed him to accurately identify directions even with his eyes closed.

However, he still cautiously slowed down, letting his mount switch to a safer, slower pace, while carefully watching for any anomalies on the ground. Disconcertingly, most graves were dug up, the coffins half-buried in the ground, and many of the coffins were open and empty.

Suddenly, a burst of firelight pierced the mist to their left, accompanied by a ghastly scream no living person could make. Lancelot sharply turned his head to find an undead hung by chains on the village’s fence set ablaze, violently struggling within the orange-red flames.

The next moment, his mount let out a panicked neigh, its front hooves rearing up high, almost throwing Bruto—who was sat on the horse’s haunches—off. Fortunately, the Dwarf had earlier hooked his belt to Lancelot’s saddle, which kept him firmly in place. Suddenly, the lid of a coffin by the road flew open, revealing a skeleton wielding a black short spear, viciously thrusting towards the nightmare’s belly.

Lancelot had been on high alert since the beginning of the skirmish, and the surprise attack came from the right. In an instant, he drew Frostslash, its tip neatly hooking the rusty spearhead and severing it from its shaft when it was still half a foot from the horse’s body, sending it rolling to the ground. There was no need for the Human Knight to strike again; his enraged mount had already retaliated. The Nightmare’s flaming hooves came down hard, the first blow kicked the skeleton’s skull into the air, and the second crushed its breastbone completely.

However, the screams from the village walls awakened more enemies. Amidst the rasping of bones against wood, hordes of skeletons and zombies crawled out of their shallow graves and surrounded the group in an instant.

"Take up arms! Prepare for battle!" Lancelot shouted, his voice inspiring calm and determination, "Alamir! Channel the Divine Power! Everyone else, protect the Elf Priest and prepare to break out with me!"

Everyone heard his command, including the Nightmare beneath Lancelot. The black demonic warhorse let out an excited neigh, leaping forward to knock down a skeleton dragging a long-handled Battle Axe. Then it opened its smoke-belching maw and spat out a ball of phlegm-like flames, setting another zombie in ragged chainmail ablaze.

As the Nightmare was about to indulge itself against a third enemy, Lancelot finally pulled it back. He had to admit that he had been somewhat negligent here; a wild horse’s temperament wasn’t so easily trained. He had mostly used it as a means of transportation before, and there was much work to be done to make it a qualified warhorse. At that moment, Lancelot could only force the Nightmare to follow his intentions by using his strength, which was far superior to the beast’s.

Elsewhere, Bruto was the first to unfasten the buckle on his belt and rolled off the Nightmare’s rear. Landing with his Shield, he crushed a skeleton, then got up and charged towards Kalalin, throwing his Warhammer as he moved; little Isa took to the air, transforming into a winged assassin girl, and dove at the nearest Zombie; and Kalalin, as a Spellcaster, chose to protect himself first—he conjured an Illusionary Technique around himself, creating four identical copies to confuse the enemy, and then prepared to cast a blurring spell to make himself harder to hit.

Meanwhile, Alamir, protected in the middle of the group, was focusing on chanting his prayer. Although the gods could not actually hear his prayers here, they could still respond to his request to perform Divine Arts. The chestnut horse beneath the Elf Priest, a summoned creature of the Divine Arts, remained calm in the chaotic battlefield, allowing the Priest to maintain critical focus on his spellcasting.

He didn’t keep his companions waiting long, and the Shield bearing Shuni’s Emblem shone with a dazzling golden light. Alamir held the Shield aloft and shouted,

"In the name of Lady Firehair, return to your graves!"

Centered on the Priest, a vast Holy Energy surged outward, sweeping over the surrounding Undead creatures like a tsunami—except for a little Vampire who had been favored by the Grim Reaper. The light twisted around her body’s edges, bubbling like air in water. Ninety percent of the enemies collapsed under the Divine Power’s assault, their animating energy dispersed, turning them back into an inanimate pile of dead matter; most of the remaining enemies also fled in panic, with only a few still making motions to attack the group.

"Bruto, get up here!" Lancelot’s commanding voice rang out again, "Let’s go!"