Chapter 935: Deadly Ambush
The team started advancing again, but before they could go far, a few gray Alchemy Colossuses emerged from the fog again. This time, there was no need for a special order from Donald, as the Alchemy Colossuses at the front rushed forward and took the initiative to pounce on the enemies without hesitation. They launched a ferocious attack and aimed to destroy the enemy in the shortest possible time.
Of course, the combat style of the Alchemy Colossuses was not just a brutal melee. They would also cast offensive spells using the Alchemy Arrays on their bodies. However, the thick fog around them not only blocked their vision, it also greatly affected their other senses. It was impossible to extend their detection radius with mental strength too.
The fog had greatly reduced the range of danger detection of the team, and by the time the enemy emerged, the latter would already be only a few hundred meters away. Such a distance was considered very short for ordinary warriors and mages, let alone the massive offensive spells. Usually, the enemies would appear right before them after they cast just one offensive spell.
The two types of Alchemy Colossuses collided forcefully again with incessant loud sounds. The Alchemy Colossuses of the Rotterdam Kingdom soon got the upper hand, and suppressed the gray Alchemy Colossuses ferociously. However, at this moment, one of the Alchemy Colossuses of the Rotterdam Kingdom suddenly stopped. Not only did it disturb their own battle tactics, it also turned around to attack its companions.
“Watch out, it’s a mental spell. There are still enemies in the thick fog!” Archbishop Martin cautioned as he raised his staff, after which a pillar of Holy Light descended out of thin air, and landed on the berserk Alchemy Colossus of the Rotterdam.
It was a ray of Light of Salvation which could dispel fear, confusion, charm, and other various negative spiritual influences on the target. As the pillar landed, the Alchemy Colossus that was attacking its companions immediately stopped all of its movements.
Following Archbishop Martin’s movements, the Holy Light priests around him raised their staffs together, and chanted a short verse of a prayer, scattering the Light of Salvation onto the other Alchemy Colossuses that were fighting the enemies.
The Light of Salvation was not only used to dispel negative spiritual influences, but also served to strengthen one’s willpower and faith. After the Light of Salvation vanished, a layer of Holy Light halo faintly engulfed the massive bodies of the Alchemy Colossuses. The controllers of the Alchemy Colossus gained a certain immunity to the negative mental spells for a while.
At the same time, a bunch of corporeal Vengeful Spirits charged out of the thick fog behind the erupting offensive spells while roaring. Although they were Undead creatures of the lowest level inferior to Skeletal Warriors, they would have Legendary-level power once they condensed into physical form. Such entities were extremely immune to both magical and physical attacks. At the same time, they were also stronger in martial arts and Necromagic. The changes in the Alchemy Colossus of the Rotterdam Kingdom just now were undoubtedly caused by them.
If someone from another profession were to encounter those Vengeful Spirits, they would definitely have an extreme headache. When Lin Li first explored the Sky Castle, Master Cheyenne of the Malfa Family, who was a level-22 Legendary-mage, was so miserable after being put in a pathetic state by the Vengeful Spirits. However, at that time, the number of Vengeful Spirits was very low, and most of them were only ordinary Vengeful Spirits. Otherwise, Cheyenne probably wouldn’t even have been able to reach the Central Tower.
Now, with the awakening of the Ghost, most of the Vengeful Spirits had clearly condensed into physical entities, and become the strong corporeal Vengeful Spirits. Fortunately, the Brilliance Shrine was part of the expedition this time, and could deal with the Undead creatures, which was what they were good at. Otherwise, Lin Li would have to take action himself.
According to the previous cooperation agreement, if the enemy appeared with Undead creatures, it would be the Brilliance Shrine’s duty to deal with them. When Archbishop Martin led the team of priests to give the Alchemy Colossuses some Light of Salvation, Prince Jeremiah waved his sword in his hand, and a group of knights of Holy Light formed. They walked past the Alchemy Colossuses that were in battle, and charged towards the corporeal Vengeful Spirits that had just emerged from the fog.
There were 40 Holy Paladins that fought in the battle. They were divided into four teams, each led by a Legendary-level leader. The other knights were at level-18 or level-19. The four teams of knights were facing nearly 20 Legendary-level corporeal Vengeful Spirits. In terms of level alone, the Holy Paladins were at an absolute disadvantage.
However, was that the truth?
Although the knights had not been able to even sustain a single round in the battle against the Tower of Dusk, it was mainly because the latter was too strong, and the other reason was that they had underestimated their enemies.
However, it was different for the Holy Paladins to take on those Vengeful Spirits. Holy Light Magic itself had a great restraining effect on Undead creatures, and although they did not specialize in the Holy Light Magic like the priests did, they still had high attainments in it.
Moreover, the equipment of the Holy Paladins, such as their armor that was equipped with the Power of Light, which had great resistance against Necromagic, and the Holy Cross Spear that could emit Light of Purification, also provided them with great assistance.
Therefore, even though they were all facing Legendary-level corporeal Vengeful Spirits, the Holy Paladins had the absolute upper hand right from the start of the battle.
The 40 Holy Paladins split into four teams of 10, each led by their Legendary-level captain, and charged towards the corporeal Vengeful Spirits. They didn’t stop at one place, but instead urged their Longma Beasts to shuttle through the Vengeful Spirits continuously, cutting them in no time. Although there were only 10 Holy Paladins in each squad, they seemed to have formed a chain of light with their rapid movements, trapping the corporeal Vengeful Spirits on the ground.
Every Holy Light Knight was covered with a layer of Holy Light which they scattered to the first corner of the battlefield during their movements to and fro, thus forming a Light Domain with powerful purification power. There was an incomparable soul-cleansing music playing above the Light Domain. It was the Holy Light Battle Song, which was exactly the origin of the name of their battle formation.
Under the shroud of the battle song, the Vengeful Spirit entities seemed to have lost their ability to cast Necromagic spells. At the same time, their power was being purified by the Power of Light. They roared and frantically attacked every Holy Paladin that moved past them, but they still couldn’t avert their fate: destruction.
Those corporeal Vengeful Spirits continuously went up in black smoke that drifted away and disappeared into the Holy Light, as if they were burned by fire. Every wisp of black smoke that dissipated meant the loss of a portion of the Vengeful Spirits’ power. That was the powerful purifying power of the Holy Light Battle Song. Even if the Holy Paladins did not attack, the corporeal Vengeful Spirits would not last long simply under the purification of the Holy Light Battle Song.
Although they had become partners with the Brilliance Shrine first, the people of the Rotterdam did not know much about the power of the latter, nor did they bother to understand it. In their opinion, the Brilliance Shrine was essentially just a religion, and their being able to be called the top power in the world of Anril was all because they had a lot of devotees. Besides, having more devotees did not mean that they were stronger. Even a farmer who grew crops could become a devotee. So what if they had plenty of them?
In fact, not to mention the Brilliance Shrine, the people of the Rotterdam even despised and looked down on the Supreme Council, which was said to be above all else in Anril. In their view, alchemy was the future of the world, and theurgy and magic would eventually be eliminated.
The only time the people of the Rotterdam saw the strength of the Brilliance Shrine was during the minor conflict they had with the Tower of Dusk. The defeat of the Holy Paladins made them certain of their previous judgment. Their previous scruples were mainly because of the Legendary powerhouses of the Brilliance Shrine, especially Archbishop Martin who was at the peak of the Legendary-realm. Another reason was that it involved international relations.
However, as Donald watched the group of Holy Paladins defeat the nearly 20 corporeal Vengeful Spirits that were at the Legendary-level with a single blow, he couldn’t help but change his opinion despite knowing that it was because of the restraining effects.
Indeed, the people of the Rotterdam were not Undead creatures, and the purification power of the Holy Light Magic did not have that much restraint on them. However, the Holy Paladins managed to create a powerful Light Domain using the Holy Light Battle Song. Just like the Magical Domains of mages, the Light Domain already involved the use of nomological power. Hence, it was not as simple as restraining and purifying Undead creatures.
As a Legendary-mage who was at the peak of the Legendary-realm, Donald definitely knew how powerful and useful a Magical Domain was. Mages created Magical Domains using their understanding of the Laws. Magical Domains were spaces that they had complete control over, and they would greatly strengthen their power while suppressing the power of the enemies in the domain.
Generally speaking, among the many professions in Anril, only Legendary-mages could create their own domains. The clergymen of the Brilliance Shrine could actually be considered a type of mage, except that unlike mages that used Elemental Laws, they used Holy Light Laws. Professions like Paladins, Sword Sages, and Assassins were all in pursuit of pushing their power to the limits. Even if they reached the Legendary-realm, they wouldn’t be able to create a Magical Domain.
On the other hand, a Paladin of the Brilliance Shrine could create a Light Domain through the use of battle formations. While possessing great combat power, he could also gain the many benefits brought by the Light Domain. That was simply something that would leave others green with envy.