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Chapter 788: Chapter 799: Priority Target
"Of course, Milko was the former Lord of the Dead, to be more precise, the one before the last," Kalalin apologetically smiled at little Isha, "I’ve been suspecting it since we saw the entrance to this place because the skeletons are indeed Milko’s emblem, and although the murals around this hall have been severely damaged, from some of the fragments, it is clear that various emblems symbolizing Milko were placed in revered positions, so I’m certain this is a temple dedicated to worshipping Milko."
"Before Milko’s church was destroyed, giant tomb-like structures were indeed a very common type of Grim Reaper temple," the Elf Priest also added, "Unlike the current Lord of the Dead, Milko’s core doctrine was that mortals should be filled with dread towards death, and being transformed into Undead was one of His intimidating methods. According to records, Milko could create any type of Undead, his minions included numerous Liches, Death Knights, and High-Rank Vampires, so it was indeed very likely that Peyton Derrick got the Secret Technique for transformation into a Lich here."
"I see," Lancelot nodded, "Do those murals reveal any useful information about how Peyton became a Lich?"
"Unfortunately, the murals have been severely damaged; a very fierce battle must have occurred here," Kalalin spread his hands helplessly, "and from the still intact fragments, it seems to only show the initial construction of this temple—men and women built the magnificent temple and offered rich sacrifices in the hope of pleasing the Lord of the Dead..."
Just then, a strange scraping sound reached everyone’s ears, a mysterious force began dragging the scattered bones on the ground, then assembling them into several skeletons armed with bone Longswords and Battle Axes. Not only that, but three skulls ablaze with green flames also floated up unsupported in the air, emitting not only a burst of insane laughter but also three dazzling green Fireballs.
"Watch out! Dodge!"
Lancelot shouted a warning to his companions, but he advanced instead of retreating, facing the attack with a green Light Shield. The Fireball crashed onto Qingyuan Sword and Shield with a bang, followed by a terrifying explosion, much more intense than any Kalalin had produced, Lancelot’s Light Shield flickered twice and could no longer sustain itself, disappearing into the air.
But he had ultimately blocked the spell, and the other two Fireballs were a bit off-target—they exploded about ten feet to each side of the four companions, the leaping flames scattering around like shattered plates.
All of them had made the correct response at the moment they saw the Fireball coming: they dropped to the ground at top speed. Despite this, the scorching shockwave still swept over everyone there, causing serious area damage. Kalalin was in the worst state, barely escaping and almost half-cooked by his favorite spell; whereas agile little Isha displayed an incredible set of moves, dodging all effects of the explosion, completely unharmed.
As for Bruto, the Dwarf was located on the other side of the room by the Stone Gate, far out of range of the spell.
"Hahaha! Turn to ashes, foolish intruders!"
Three Skulls of Flame cried out harshly, convinced that their spells had completely destroyed everyone, but that was not the case. Before their laughter had fully dispersed, the Human Knight had already charged through the flames still drifting in the air, slashing at the nearest floating skull. Behind him, several Skeleton Warriors, looking quite formidable, had already risen, but Lancelot believed his companions could handle them; these spellcasting Skulls of Flame posed the greatest threat.
The tip of his sword struck its target accurately, and a phantom Shield of Magic appeared around the flaming skull. However, Lancelot had struck with full force, and the shield shattered as easily as if it were made of paper, cleaving the skull behind it in two as well.
The green flames, like the monster’s life force, were extinguished instantly, and the skull split in two and fell toward the ground, turning to ash in mid-air. At the same time, a heavy thud came from Lancelot’s side; turning his head, he saw that Bruto had thrown his Warhammer, hitting another Skull of Flame. Although the blow did not destroy the enemy directly, it had sent it spinning away like a kicked ball, eventually crashing heavily into a wall.
On the other side, their companions rose from the ground; Alamir had completed a rapid Healing Divine Art while standing, summoning a beam of red light filled with life energy that enveloped Kalalin. It was just a First Circle Healing Word, and although it was very fast, its effect was only slightly better than that of a first aid bandage, so he immediately began preparing another powerful group Healing Divine Art.
The others were also taking actions of their own: Tanya, grasping her massive Shadow Glaive, fearlessly charged at two Skeleton Warriors, each three heads taller than her, well aware of her current duty—to buy as much time as possible for the Spellcasters; above her, tiny Isha, with two bat wings stretching from her back, swept across the hall’s dome like a shadow, directly targeting another Skeleton Warrior’s head; while Kalalin, not even bothering to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth, quickly pulled a scroll from his backpack and unrolled it—under pressure, Scholars preferred to cast spells using scrolls.
His hands began to emit dazzling blue light, and the last remaining Skull of Flame clearly noticed this. It opened its mouth again, sending out six Arcane Darts flashing with white light, perfectly designed to cause force field damage and ideal for interrupting the target’s spellcasting.
However, as soon as those darts appeared, the Scholar had already completed his spell, as if he had been prepared all along. Not only that, Kalalin also laughed smugly:
"Ha! Fooled you!" A translucent Protective Barrier appeared around the Scholar, "Shield Technique!"
The Magic Darts struck the Shield only to dissipate like raindrops falling into a lake, causing no damage at all. The Skull of Flame, frustrated, bellowed loudly, about to release another spell, but the Human Knight had already reached it.
With a swing of his Longsword, he extinguished the floating skull, leaving it no chance to fight back.
With the Spellcasters destroyed, the remaining giant Skeletons actually posed no real threat to the group. After Lancelot and Bruto joined the fray, the battle was completely over within a minute, leaving shattered bones scattered everywhere. Moreover, even the Skeletons that Lancelot had cleaved apart could not rise again, as Isha, with her agile skills, made sure to strike an additional blow before the negative energy animating these corpses dissipated, ensuring they would never stand again.
