by Zhuang Bifan
Although the three forces had cooperated to push the 36 Double-Realm Psychic Towers to destruction, the process was quite difficult and thrilling. After all, apart from a Lich that was at the peak of the Legendary-level, each Double-Realm Psychic Tower was also protected by a large number of high-level Undead creatures which were all at about level-20. With the addition of the Double-Realm Psychic Tower Domain and the fearless creatures, the expedition faced great trouble.
Other than the Alchemy Colossuses that had been completely destroyed, almost every remaining Alchemy Colossus of the Rotterdam's team had to be put through overhaul, or else they might have to be scrapped at some point. There were also more than 10 mages and Knights that were killed in the battle, while half the team was wounded.
The situation of the Brilliance Shrine was slightly better. Although the Power of Light was greatly suppressed there, its restraint against Undead creatures had not been completely removed. However, due to the fact that they were in the domain of the projected world of Undead creatures, it was difficult for them to obtain the Power of Light. As a result, many of the members of the Brilliance Shrine's team were wounded, though they had fewer casualties.
In any case, with this situation in front of them, all of them could tell that immediately exploring the Central Tower of the Sky Castle would be no different from courting death. Now, the combat power of the three teams was probably not even half of what it was at its peak. Hence, they urgently needed to stop, rest, and recuperate.
However, after the teams began to rest, Archbishop Martin of the Brilliance Shrine and Donald of Rotterdam again went to the Tower of Dusk's side to discuss the next step of the plan with Lin Li.
Of course, the so-called next step of the plan was not about the team resting and entering the central area of the Sky Castle. Archbishop Martin and Donald mainly wanted to take the opportunity to search the other areas of the Sky Castle while the team was resting, especially the 36 Double-Realm Psychic Towers that had been destroyed.
The initial plan for the exploration was to enter the central area of the Sky Castle as soon as possible and get rid of Osric who worried them the most. Then, they would seek the so-called treasures of the Immortal King. Hence, the route chosen was to advance almost directly towards the central area of the Sky Castle while temporarily ignoring the other areas.
However, in that battle just now, the expedition had almost run through every area of the Sky Castle in order to destroy the Double-Realm Psychic Towers that were scattered all over the Sky Castle. At that time, they had been pressed for time, and couldn't care less about other issues, but now that the crisis had been eliminated, and they had nothing to do during the recuperation, they might as well take the time to explore all those towers rather than do nothing.
However, while the 36 Double-Realm Psychic Towers had been destroyed, and the enemies in those areas were basically purged, no one could guarantee that there really would not be any more danger. Besides, both teams were severely injured, and basically most of the people had to stay behind to rest and recuperate, while some had to stay on guard. They did not have enough available manpower.
Hence, Archbishop Martin and Donald proceeded to look for Lin Li because they wanted the Tower of Dusk to join them. After all, the three forces were now cooperating.
Although Lin Li's main target was the Sky Castle, and he did not take the so-called treasures seriously, he did not turn down Archbishop Martin and Donald's suggestion. Since he still needed them to help him deal with Osric, he felt that he ought to let them get some benefits in advance.
However, Lin Li did not participate in the exploration, and instead told Master Basel and Alan to join them together with some mages. Lin Li did not specifically instruct them to collect any treasures, and left it to them to decide.
Seeing that Lin Li had only sent his men to participate in the exploration while acting uninterested, Archbishop Martin and Donald did not say anything else. Donald, in particular, was even more relieved. Regardless of whether or not Lin Li was pretending to be generous, he probably would not be calculative in terms of distribution of the gains.
After a series of battles, Donald began to have some misgivings about Lin Li and the Tower of Dusk. Lin Li had killed an Elemental Dragon and Ghost Mages, and stopped the army of Undead creatures with his own strength. Regardless of what techniques he used or what secret weapons and equipment he had, it was undeniably a reflection of his ability.
Given the strength of the Rotterdam Kingdom, they naturally did not take the Tower of Dusk, a small force, seriously. However, the problem now was that they were in the Sky Castle, and it would be impossible for the Rotterdam to provide any help for the expedition at this moment. Hence, Donald had no choice but to be wary of the Tower of Dusk.
Soon, the impromptu treasure-hunting team formed by the three forces left the recuperation point under the lead of Archbishop Martin and the rest.
Actually, even if Archbishop Martin and the others pocketed all the treasures from the 36 towers, it might not be able to compare to what Lin Li had gained so far. Although Lin Li didn't go for any treasures, precious magical equipment and treasures were all for increasing one's strength and competency.
For others, those battles might've been an all-or-nothing deal, but it meant something different to Lin Li.
The mages from the Tower of Dusk had gained some experience, but that was considered an intangible gain. The greatest gains were made by Lin Li's Undead servants and the Holy Death Knights.
The Holy Death Knights that Lin Li had brought with him on this expedition were basically at level-19 where they had reached the threshold of being promoted to Retribution Knights. If they were ordinary Death Knights, the other Death Knights would stagnate at a certain level forever once one of the ordinary Death Knights had been promoted to a Retribution Knight, unless the latter died.
However, the Death Knights under Lin Li were different. They coincidentally mistook Lin Li for the Retribution Knight, but Lin Li could not really draw power from them like a real Retribution Knight could. Even though the Death Knights would offer their power to him voluntarily out of their nature, Lin Li would not be able to use it at all unless he became a Necromancer.
Chapter 945 - Retribution Knights
Hence, even though the Death Knights treated Lin Li as the Retribution Knight and became his subordinates, they did not have their pathway to becoming Retribution Knights cut off. However, it was still very difficult for them to be promoted to Retribution Knights. Throughout such a long period of time, only one Death Knight managed to become a Retribution Knight, while the others were stuck at the peak of level-19.
However, in order for all the Death Knights to be promoted to Retribution Knights, each one of them would need to have a large amount of soul fire, which was very difficult to find in Anril. Even if all the Undead creatures of the Shadowglen were destroyed, it would at most only allow three to five Death Knights to be promoted.
In the past, after obtaining the first batch of Death Knights, Lin Li never thought that he would one day have a group of Retribution Knights. However, the thought was rather far-fetched then, and it was an idea that was distant or even unreal. Hence, it remained an illusion.
However, there was the Undead Domain that the Undead creatures had projected in the space created by the Double-Realm Psychic Towers. That was a heaven that the Undead creatures dreamed of. After the seemingly arduous battle, half of the 40-odd Death Knights broke through to level-20, and successfully became Retribution Knights. The remaining ones who did not get promoted merely needed a certain period of time to digest the large amount of soul fire that they had devoured. The doors to level-20 were already open for them.
Lin Li believed that it wouldn't be long before he could truly have a group of Knights made up of Retribution Knights. That was not a simple change of name, and it was not a matter of how much each Death Knight's strength had increased, but a huge surge in overall strength.
Since Lin Li was not an actual Retribution Knight, many of the skills that were inherently owned by Retribution Knights for increasing combat power could not be used by Lin Li. Hence, even if all of the Death Knights were at the peak of level-19, they would still be incomparable to the group of Death Knights under Rodhart.
However, it was different now that the Death Knights had been promoted to Retribution Knights. Perhaps the skills of a level-20 Retribution Knight might not bring a huge improvement to the team, but what about the combined efforts of 40 Retribution Knights? It was safe to say that the combined combat power of 40 Retribution Knights would definitely not be inferior to the Death Knights under the Retribution Knight Rodhart.
Most importantly, Lin Li's Retribution Knights could still continue growing. Once all of them became Retribution Knights that were at the peak of the Legendary-level, what would they be like? Although Rodhart's Death Knights were powerful, their combat power was limited by Rodhart, the Retribution Knight. It would be difficult for those at Rodhart's level to be promoted by one level.
Of course, in addition to the promotion of the Death Knights, Lin Li's Undead servants and the Crimson Humerus Wyrm had gained great advantages during the battle. After devouring plenty of soul fire, the Crimson Humerus Wyrm naturally gained a great deal of strength.
After a period of digestion, Vampire Norfeller had also finally broken through the bottleneck, and stepped into level-24. He was even near the pinnacle. The Iceblast Wyrm Sindera's dragon blood essence contained power that was almost comparable to that of the Dragon Aspects. It was no exaggeration to say that it was a major change for Norfeller. Not to mention letting him advance to the peak of the Legendary-level, as long as he had sufficient soul fire, he might even enter the Sanctuary-realm easily.
Due to the essence of the Iceblast Wyrm Sindera's blood, the power of Norfeller, who had advanced to level-24, had become even more intense, and there were even dragon scales looming on his skin. At this moment, he looked more like a wyrm than a Vampire in every aspect. He did not look like a descendant of any wyrm. His ancient vibe made him look just like a wyrm. He could be considered an unprecedented, brand-new species in Anril.
Fusion of bloodlines was the specialty of Vampires. Compared to the mixed bloodline of the Blood Moon Clan, it was a completely different concept. Of course, it was because he was Norfeller. Other Vampires would not be that lucky. Even if they had the blood of an ancient wyrm, they would not be able to find a pharmaceutics Guru like Lin Li to help them neutralize the overbearing power of the dragon's blood. One drop of it would cause them to die.
Hence, even though the teams from the Brilliance Shrine and Rotterdam had suffered great losses after the intense battle, the power of the team of the Tower of Dusk was still increasing.
However, that degree of increase was still not enough to satisfy Lin Li. It wasn't that he was too greedy, but he realized after that battle that there was a more serious problem. The power of Highlord Osric was probably far beyond what he had originally imagined.
36 Double-Realm Psychic Towers should be considered important facilities in the Sky Castle, yet Osric could control them. He was probably not far from completely controlling the Sky Castle. More importantly, since Osric was able to manipulate the 36 Double-Realm Psychic Towers, there was no reason for him not to use them to restore his own power. Hence, if Lin Li were to face Osric now, he would not have any faith in his power.
Thus, during the recuperation, Archbishop Martin and the others were thinking of exploring the Sky Castle to get more treasures, while Lin Li was thinking about how he could use the time to increase his power. Of course, Lin Li did not dream of gaining the ability to destroy Osric immediately, but having more power would at least give him a higher chance of survival.
At the thought of this, a nail-sized magical crystal which looked like a small gem often inlaid in rings appeared on Lin Li's palm. That magical crystal was exactly what he had obtained when he had killed the Elemental Dragon. Although it looked rather small, the mana it contained was terrifying even to Lin Li.
Lin Li originally intended to give the magical crystal to the tender Elemental Wyrm, Xiao Hua, and did not plan to use it now. Although Xiao Hua was powerful, it was still growing, and devouring such a huge amount of mana all at once would be a boost to its growth.
According to Lin Li's vision, he wanted to wait until he returned to the Tower of Dusk and set up an Alchemy Array that could restrict the output of mana of the magical crystal before letting the tender Elemental Wyrm Xiao Hua slowly absorb the mana. Although it was slow, it would only take a few years at most for Xiao Hua to digest all of the mana in the magical crystal and enter a.d.u.l.thood.
However, Lin Li had to change his plans now. If he could not overcome the ordeal of Osric, then no matter how good his future plans were, they would be useless.
Thinking of this, Lin Li gave a few words to his men, and got up to leave the place where the expedition was recuperating.
He arrived at a place where there was no one else, and enveloped it with his mental strength, silently incorporating it into his domain. At this time, anyone below the Sanctuary-realm would not be able to detect the slightest change in this area. However, in reality, Lin Li had already become the master of that space, and all the Laws were subject to his will.
Making sure that he wouldn't be disturbed by any accidents, Lin Li's heart skipped a beat. The tender Elemental Wyrm, Xiao Hua, which was sleeping in Dream Garden, yawned and stretched before wriggling out of Dream Garden.
Xiao Hua, which was originally complaining that Lin Li had disturbed its beautiful dream, grimaced and seethed before suddenly twitching its nose twice. It finally found the magical crystal in Lin Li's other hand. Xiao Hua immediately stopped looking unhappy, and its eyes glistened before screaming and pouncing on the magical crystal like a woman who saw a diamond.
However, just as Xiao Hua was about to pounce on the magical crystal, Lin Li suddenly clutched the magical crystal in his hand. Poor Xiao Hua collided with Lin Li's fist and rolled backwards for two full revolutions. It then shrieked and flapped its wings before leaping towards Lin Li, hugging his finger and scratching it in a bid to make him let go.
Seeing how eager Xiao Hua was, Lin Li was amused. However, there was no time to play with it. Hence, he pushed Xiao Hua away with his finger, and said, "Don't worry, this is meant for you. However, can you chew on it like this!?"
Xiao Hua quieted down after hearing that it was for it. However, it was still l.i.c.k.i.n.g its lips with its tongue, and its lips were glistening with saliva.
Although Lin Li did not know the origin of the Undead Elemental Dragon, he knew that it was definitely transformed from an a.d.u.l.t Elemental Dragon. The only reason it couldn't exert its Sanctuary-level power was due to the fact that it had become an Undead creature. However, the mana contained in its magical crystal was tens or hundreds of times stronger than Xiao Hua's.
Although the magical crystal was only fingernail-sized, and looked like it could be swallowed by Xiao Hua easily, Xiao Hua's small body would immediately expand like a balloon and then explode to pieces if it really did that.
Hence, Lin Li did not plan to let Xiao Hua chew it like other magical crystals. There was no time for it to absorb slowly, but it would be impossible to devour it completely too. Hence, after some consideration, Lin Li decided to go for the craziest method, which was fusion.
After painstakingly holding Xiao Hua back from swallowing it at once, Lin Li immediately began the first step of fusion according to his own plan.Find authorized novels in , faster updates, better experience, Please click #%E2%80%99s-versatile-crafting-master_11275087605321405/retribution-knights_49412478660046964 for visiting.
Fusion might sound very simple, but those with knowledge of magic would know how insane and impractical it was. It was a ridiculous idea that defied the supreme Laws of Anril.
The magical crystals of magical beasts were not just a fusion of mana. Every trace and particle of one had the Soul Brand of a magical beast. It was the same for human mages. Through meditation, they would mark the stray magical elements absorbed into their bodies with their own Soul Brand and make it their own mana.
That was also the reason that the flames cast by mages would not burn them, and the ice element magic spells would not freeze them. Without the Soul Brand, casting magic spells would be akin to suicide.
Hence, in order to absorb the mana in the magical crystal, the most important thing was to erase the Soul Brand on the mana, which was a process that was neither difficult nor easy. For ordinary magical crystals that were above level-10, Xiao Hua would erase the Soul Brand on them while gnawing and digesting them. It would take more effort for ordinary Legendary magical crystals.
The magical crystal of Elemental Dragons could not be compared to ordinary Legendary magical crystals. Although it was at the peak of the Legendary-level, the mana it contained was not much inferior to that of Sanctuary-level creatures. With Xiao Hua's power alone, it would probably take at least several to more than 10 years of effort to erase the Soul Brand.
Lin Li now had to fuse the Elemental Dragon's magical crystal with Xiao Hua's body, but that was not erasing the Soul Brand slowly. Instead, it would be trying to completely erase the Soul Brand from the nearly infinite mana within a short period of time.
However, even powerhouses like the three arbitrators might not be able to do that, let alone Lin Li. Perhaps only mythical figures like the Immortal King and Geresco could do it.
Furthermore, the Soul Brand of the magical crystal was also a restriction of mana. Once gone, all the mana would instantly explode. What scene would the explosion of a magical crystal that contained tens or hundreds of times more mana than an ordinary peak-Legendary-level magical crystal look like? Its power was even more terrifying than the full force of a Sanctuary powerhouse. Perhaps even the Sky Castle would explode, let alone Lin Li.
