Chapter 89: Dimensional descent
Wuxia looked across the battlefield as the evolved Authority settled throughout his soul.
The western wall had already collapsed in several places, exhausted soldiers were being forced away from the battlements, while winged beasts continued dropping behind the defensive line faster than the remaining participants could stop them.
Han Zhen, Miao Tianhe and the others were still fighting, but every section of the wall was slowly being pushed backwards.
Beyond the fortress, the two black knights had also reached their limits.
Varkhiel’s armour was covered in cracks, while the living impression preserved within the Last Sanctuary had lost one arm and most of the armour around its chest.
The Demon Dragon stood above them, its claws tearing apart the ground each time they tried to rise.
Above the city, the Fortress Commander was barely holding back the Beast Commander.
Wuxia understood the situation with a single glance.
It seems I need to take things into my own hands for a while.
His attention settled upon Varkhiel and he activated the newly evolved skill.
[Dimensional Descent activated.]
[Target selected: Varkhiel.]
The distance between them vanished as Wuxia’s consciousness passed through the connection and descended into Varkhiel’s body.
Dark light erupted from beneath the Soul Sentinel’s armour.
The cracks covering him closed one after another and his fading soul core stabilised and the greatsword inside his hand became solid again as Wuxia took complete control.
At the same time, the Demon Dragon raised one claw and brought it down upon the living impression.
The black knight tried to lift its broken greatsword, but the last power remaining inside its body had already begun to disappear.
Just before the claw reached it, the impression turned toward Varkhiel and a strange pull spread through Wuxia’s Authority.
The fading will inside the black knight did not return to the Last Sanctuary, instead its damaged body broke apart into streams of dark light and rushed toward Varkhiel.
Wuxia was startled, but before he could stop it the remaining will entered the Soul Sentinel.
There were no complete memories within it, only the original Varkhiel’s refusal to fall while the sanctuary remained under attack.
The two identical existences touched.
[Compatible origin remnant detected.]
[The living impression of Varkhiel has acknowledged your Soul Soldier.]
[Origin remnant fusion beginning.]
The greatsword dropped from Varkhiel’s hand as power burst through his body.
His armour expanded around his shoulders and chest, the red markings across its surface darkened, while the pressure released from his soul forced the surrounding beasts away.
[Soul Soldier quality increased.]
[Varkhiel: Mid-Tier Soul Sentinel → Top-Tier Soul Sentinel.]
[Several level restrictions have been broken.]
[Current Level: 150.]
Wuxia felt the increased power spreading through every section of Varkhiel’s body, but Dimensional Descent had strengthened far more than his previous skill.
[Dimensional Descent synchronisation complete.]
[All attributes increased by 600%.]
The increase was already greater than Final Death, the strongest temporary enhancement Wuxia had possessed while he was still alive.
He activated Varkhiel’s combat skill and dark-red light poured from the openings in his armour and wrapped around his entire body, increasing the weight of his presence until the ground beneath him began to crack.
[Varkhiel’s inherent combat skill activated.]
[All attributes increased by 400%.]
Wuxia opened his right hand and summoned the Death Monarch’s Scythe, grey mist gathered between Varkhiel’s fingers, forming a long black shaft before the pale curved blade emerged above his shoulder.
[Bound weapon resonance established.]
[All attributes increased by 100%.]
Before Wuxia could properly feel the combined power, the Demon Dragon’s claw descended.
The attack buried Varkhiel beneath the battlefield, stone and soil erupted around the dragon’s foot, while the impact sent cracks spreading toward the fortress walls.
Several soldiers stopped fighting and turned toward the crater, their expressions falling when the black knight disappeared beneath the creature.
Xingluo stepped toward the battlement. "Wuxia!"
The Demon Dragon pressed its claw deeper into the ground but then a pale flash crossed the battlefield and the claw split through the centre.
Both halves separated and fell beside the crater as burning blood poured across the surrounding beasts. Varkhiel rose from beneath it, his black armour untouched while the scythe rested loosely inside one hand.
The Demon Dragon pulled back and released a roar that shook the entire fortress. Wuxia raised his head as Death Perception passed across its body.
[Demon Dragon.]
[Bloodline: King.]
[Level: 299.]
[Stage: Peak Third Transition.]
[Classification: Mini-Boss.]
Wuxia remained silent for a moment, a peak third-transition creature with a King Bloodline could fight against most newly advanced fourth-transition experts.
Was this trial even supposed to be cleared through direct combat by the chosen challenger?
There had probably been another condition hidden within the Last Sanctuary, but Wuxia only glanced toward Xingluo before looking back at the dragon.
There was no reason to search for another method when the easier one was already standing before him.
The Demon Dragon swept its damaged limb toward Varkhiel, trying to crush him with the remaining section.
Wuxia stepped forward and swung the scythe and the pale blade passed through the entire foreleg above the shoulder, severing flesh, bone and scales before the limb crashed into the army below.
The dragon roared and opened its wings, forcing itself into the air as dark fire gathered inside its throat.
Varkhiel bent his knees and jumped, the ground collapsed beneath him as he crossed the distance between them.
The Demon Dragon released its flames, but Wuxia scattered Varkhiel’s body before they could reach him. Dark soul particles passed through the fire and condensed above the creature’s back.
The scythe descended across the base of its left wing.
A thin line appeared through the scales before the entire wing separated and fell toward the battlefield.
The dragon lost its balance and crashed into the beast army, crushing hundreds of creatures beneath its body as the impact sent blood, earth and broken limbs across the plains.
It forced itself upright and struck toward Varkhiel with its tail, Wuxia caught the attack against the shaft of the scythe, but the force still threw him through several beasts before he landed upon the broken ground.
The dragon rushed after him with its jaws open, threads extended from Varkhiel’s hand and wrapped around the wounds across its neck and shoulder. Wuxia pulled himself forward instead of retreating, passing beneath its jaws before they closed.
The scythe cut upward through the side of its neck and burning blood poured across Varkhiel’s armour, but the dragon twisted its head and struck him with the remaining horn above its eye.
Wuxia crossed the scythe before himself and was driven backwards, his boots tearing two trenches through the ground before he stopped.
The Demon Dragon opened its mouth again and dark fire gathered inside its throat, while the remaining wing spread behind it and forced the surrounding beasts away.
Wuxia lowered the scythe and the dragon released the flames.
Varkhiel disappeared.
The fire crossed the battlefield and burned through thousands of beasts before the Soul Sentinel condensed above the dragon’s head.
Wuxia brought the scythe down with both hands and the pale blade entered through the centre of its skull and continued into the neck, while Death Energy exploded through the wound.
The dragon’s body stiffened and black cracks spread from its head and crossed its entire body as Soul Severance tore through the connection between its flesh and soul.
The Demon Dragon tried to roar, but only a low groaning sound escaped its throat.
Its remaining legs collapsed beneath it, and the massive body struck the battlefield with enough force to shake the fortress walls.
When dust covering the area cleared, Varkhiel stood upon the dragon’s head with the scythe buried beneath him.
The soldiers upon the wall stared at the scene without speaking, those who knew Xingluo slowly turned toward her, their expressions filled with suspicion and disbelief.
Qiao Xueyi lowered her staff and looked between Xingluo and the black knight.
"Damn, what the hell is your summon?" she asked. "Are you sure that thing is only a summon? It feels more like an independent necromancer."
Xingluo did not answer, her attention remained fixed upon Varkhiel as Wuxia pulled the scythe free and pointed its blade toward the dragon.
"Soul Harvest."
Monarch Threads spread from the scythe and entered the corpse, the Demon Dragon’s soul struggled beneath the remains, but the threads tightened around it and dragged the entire imprint from its body.
Dark power gathered across the battlefield and rebuilt the creature’s missing limbs and wing, forming a massive soul body above its corpse.
[Soul Harvest successful.]
[Target: Demon Dragon.]
[Bloodline: King.]
[Level: 299.]
[Soul Soldier created.]
[Quality: Low-Tier Soul Sentinel.]
The newly formed dragon lowered its head before Varkhiel as another notification appeared immediately afterward.
[Inherent quality limit reached.]
Wuxia’s expression changed, this was the first beast he had harvested that directly reached the Soul Sentinel rank.
It had possessed a King Bloodline and stood at the peak of the third transition, yet Low-Tier Soul Sentinel was already the highest quality its soul could support.
Varkhiel had awakened as a Mid-Tier Soul Sentinel while Wuxia’s Authority was still at Level 0 and after absorbing the living impression, his quality had risen to Top-Tier.
The difference between their foundations was far greater than Wuxia had expected. The roar of the remaining beast army pulled his attention back toward the battlefield.
The Demon Dragon’s death had shaken them, but thousands were still pressing toward the walls.
Wuxia raised the scythe and moved through the army, the newly harvested dragon charged ahead of him, crushing entire groups beneath its claws while dark flames swept through the creatures blocking its path.
Every beast killed within Wuxia’s range was caught by Soul Harvest.
Threads spread across the battlefield faster than his old Soul Threads ever could, entering dozens and then hundreds of corpses at the same time.
Soul forms rose wherever Varkhiel passed, wolves, serpents, winged monsters and heavily armoured beasts emerged from their remains before turning upon the army they had once followed.
Wuxia continued harvesting without stopping to examine them.
His army expanded with every step.
[Soul Army: 3,426/10,000.]
[Soul Army: 5,731/10,000.]
[Soul Army: 7,964/10,000.]
Within several minutes, thousands of dark soul forms covered the battlefield and pushed the remaining beasts away from the fortress.
[Soul Army: 10,000/10,000.]
[Maximum Soul Army capacity reached.]
Soul Power and Death Energy continued entering Wuxia, while several Soul Shards appeared inside his Authority.
The amount would have seemed enormous before his advancement, but compared with the five million Soul Power required for Level 3, it was barely noticeable.
Wuxia released a quiet sigh, the pressure upon the defenders had decreased and the soldiers had begun reclaiming several damaged sections of the wall.
However, the battle would not truly end while the Beast Commander remained alive.
Wuxia turned toward the figures fighting above the fortress, the Fortress Commander was still being forced backwards, while the Beast Commander continued blocking his spear without showing any visible injury.
Wuxia focused upon him and activated Death Perception but as the skill touched the Beast Commander a sharp pain tore through Wuxia’s mind.
His perception shattered before it could enter the man’s body, forcing Varkhiel to stagger as the failed attempt struck back through their connection.
[Death Perception failed.]
[Target exceeds the limits of your current perception.]
The Beast Commander stopped in the middle of blocking another spear strike and slowly turned his head toward Varkhiel.
Their eyes met across the battlefield and a calm smile appeared across the Beast Commander’s face, as though he had clearly felt Wuxia trying to examine him.
Wuxia tightened his grip around the scythe, his attention becoming sharper instead of retreating.
A timer appeared at the edge of his vision.
[Dimensional Descent elapsed time: Thirteen minutes.]
[Remaining duration: Seventeen minutes.]