“Ulsor!” Shelk activated the first part of Blood Tide, draining the world energy in his surroundings and with it the darkness element that gave substance to the lost souls.
The Demons of the Abyss disappeared, leaving the Wendigo free to jump at Lith’s back. The bloodline ability also nullified enchanted items by depriving them of the power they needed to work but it didn’t affect Ulsor’s cold aura nor the hardness of his Adamant mace.
Both the Dread and the Immortal Flames remained, but neither would last long since Lith’s core alone couldn’t sustain one of them for long, let alone both at the same time.
He used Ragnarök to deflect Gustwind while his black and silver eyes conjured the energy stored in the gemstones studded on the Voidwalker armor. The crystals dimmed as they made up for the missing elemental energy with their own power.
Void Magic turned the darkness element into beams of light that followed those produced by the silvery crystal and they both turned into Plague Arrows upon hitting the Nightwalker.
Thanks to the Blood Maelstrom and the amount of energy he had spent to boost his physical power, the Wendigo was almost as strong as Lith. Adamant couldn’t compete with Davross and with every hit more emerald tongues of fire stuck to the mace, but Ulsor didn’t care.
With the skill accumulated through centuries, the Wendigo kept blocking every hit while exploiting the smallest opening for a counterattack. The cold aura he emitted was no match for the Immortal Flames but he didn’t care.
He was just buying time for the Blood Warlock.
The Tiamat grunted, releasing elemental energy from the remaining crystals on his armor and activating the corresponding eyes. Water element soaked the Wendigo so that it turned the thick fur and undead skin into a perfect conductor for a stream of lightning bolts.
‘Verhen must have gone insane. Water boosts my bloodline abilities and electricity does nothing to me.’ Or so Ulsor thought until Lith activated his tier four Void Magic spell, Burning Cage.
The bolts of lightning connected with the dust and debris collected by the water wave as it swept the corridor and then turned into solid rock. The Wendigo found himself trapped inside a thick layer of stone that was filled with water.
With no space to move or lever, even with his strength, he would have a hard time breaking free. On top of that, his own cold aura froze the water which increased in volume, filling what little space of maneuver he had left.
Then, Void Magic turned the water into steam and Burning Cage became akin to a pressure cooker.
Sure, Wendigos didn’t suffer from heat either, but the temperature inside the stone prison was rising quickly. The remnants of Ulsor’s first meal resting in his intestines were still damaged by Ragnarök’s fire so when the raw flesh started to get cooked right inside his body, it hurt even more.
The agonizing screams of the Nightwalker and the Wendigo forced the Blood Warlock to play his hand earlier than he would have liked to.
“Two against one and you can’t even buy me some time. You two are damn useless!” He Blood Blinked right in front of Lith and found Ragnarök waiting for him.
Shelk released the Blood Tide he stored inside his body, the force of the impact great enough to push the burning blade aside before it could deal him any arm. The crimson blast freed the Wendigo and pushed the Nightwalker away, giving them the time they needed to recover.
Lith’s Immortal and Dread Flames fought against the Blood Tide to a standstill but in the end, they were both snuffed out. The Blood Warlock could feed upon the infinite energy of the mana geyser whereas Lith had to use the power of his mana core wisely.
The blast sent him flying away as well, giving the undead the opportunity to regroup.
“Stop doing that! What point does having spent countless hours to master Source Magic if you don’t leave enough world energy for us to use it?” The Wendigo said in outrage.
The Blood Tide had freed him from the Burning Cage but it had also opened even more wounds on his already battered body.
“I’d love to, but without me, you two morons would be already dead.” Shelk replied. “I’m the one who dealt with those annoying Demons and has rescued you. Now shut up and follow my lead!”
He drew once again what little world energy the mana geyser had pumped in the corridor but this time, he released it pure, igniting it in a stream of Blood Flames.
Lith tried to counter them with his own but due to the lack of world energy, nothing came out of his mouth.
Also, the gemstones on Ragnarök had all turned dull from sustaining the Immortal Flames, and with the blood scabbard consumed, Lith would have to provide both the life force and mana.
‘This is risky, but I have to try!’ His Spirit Eye lit up, bathing the three undead in the mystical flames that were supposed to be the first step for their counterattack.
There wasn’t enough world energy to kill even the weakest among them so Lith divided the Blood Flames evenly between his enemies, breaking their formation in surprise and forcing them on the defensive again.
However, it was only half a victory.
Lith had avoided using Domination until that point because he had no idea if someone was watching him and if they did, he couldn’t afford to leave a witness alive.
Domination was a secret art that would lose most of its importance if its existence were to become public knowledge. Anyone with an elemental affinity could use it, undead included.
Its discovery would mean an arrow less in the quiver of Tiamats, Hydras, and Tyrants and one more for their enemies.
Lith had resorted to using it solely because the lack of world energy depowered any surveillance device and he couldn’t allow Shelk to keep monopolizing the world energy.
Ragnarök was running on fumes which meant that he couldn’t use its enchantments anymore without the risk of the blade losing part of its semi-sentience. His mana would guarantee the minimum to hold the power core together, but only if Lith used Ragnarök as a regular blade.
Powerful enchantments needed a lot of energy. It was what runes and mana crystals were for but without world energy to absorb, they were useless.
Lith had been forced to use Domination because he had no other option but now, he had to kill the three undead at all costs.
‘Starting from the Blood Warlock.’ He thought, knowing how much was at stake and that Shelk was the biggest variable. ‘The other two can’t escape the dimensional sealing arrays and the moment I get rid of Blood Tide, they are finished.’
Lith checked the energy reserves of his armor, finding them lacking as well. The Spirit Crystal could project a barrier for a couple of seconds before running dry. As for the elemental crystals, each one of them had enough juice for a single tier five spell, three tier four, or ten tier three.
