Dragon's Soul
Chapter 54
As Zhang held the dragon heart necklace up, a pitch black brilliance emitted from it and enveloped everything around him.
“What’s happening!” Some of the attackers yelled as glowing blue translucent spheres began slowly coming out of the corpse on the ground and flew into the air. Even the corpses that Yuying were manipulating had blue spheres come out of them and would then fall lifelessly to the ground.
When one of the masked men tried to reach out and grab one of these spheres, to find out what they were, his hand phased right through.
Hundreds of blue spheres floated in the air and began flying toward Zhang, spiraling around him. An instant later the blue spheres were all sucked into the dragon heart necklace in Zhang’s hand.
“What was that!” Yu Zhao screamed at Zhang with a hint of horror present on his face. He had originally thought that the necklace was simply a ma.s.sive store of energy that he could tap into and transfer to the sect’s heirloom sword.
Although he did not know what Zhang just did, Yu Zhao was somewhat afraid of the outcome. “Maybe that brat knows the secret to that necklace.” Yu Zhao thought to himself as he stared at Zhang.
“You wanted to see the power of the necklace, so I’m showing you!” Zhang yelled back at Yu Zhao with a glare. Zhang had used the dragon heart necklace’s ability to store away energy to absorb the blue spheres, which were the souls of Yu Zhao’s henchmen. He of course made sure not to absorb the souls of his fallen men.
Oddly enough although Zhang fed the necklace a few hundred souls it did not have the reaction he wanted it to have. The voice that would emit from the necklace and into his mind did not sound out like it did in the underworld. Despite this, the necklace worked like it had when he was collecting the thousands of souls in the underworld.
Soon a few dozen black fire began to ignite in the air and float around Zhang. Since he was now in the mortal plane and not the underworld Zhang could only generate a few dozen black flames. Had he been in the underworld or possessed thousands of souls like he did before then perhaps he could have generated thousands of black flames once more.
“This will have to do.” Zhang thought as he made the black flames spiral around himself and then shot out into the skies above.
“Quickly kill him!!” Yu Zhao with bloodshot eyes yelled as he brandished a long sword with a blood red blade and charged toward Zhang.
However, it was too late, after only a few steps a black flame shot down from the sky and into him. After which Yu Zhao lost all color in his eyes, slumped over and fell down onto the ground. Soon the other dozens of black flames also descended. A few of the attackers tried to shield themselves with their weapons but it was useless.
Seeing this Yu Zhao’s subordinates fell into ma.s.s panic. It was one thing to be attacked by a sword or spear but the black flames were something totally different. One could knock away a sword or block a spear but these black flames could not be stopped. These men knew that if they continued attacking then it would simply become a slaughter and it would not be them who would be doing the slaughtering.
“Run!” One of the masked men yelled out as he tossed his sword to the ground and began fleeing. Soon, one by one, the attackers began abandoning their weapons and fleeing.
As the attackers fled towards the thick grove of trees, a green flare could be seen in the sky.
“They are here!” Lu Xun yelled after seeing the green flare. He quickly pulled out a flare of his own and shot it into the sky. Unlike the previous flare the one that Lu Xun shot out was red. This symbolized that a battle was occurring and that they were in trouble.
Moments later the rumbling of thousands of hooves. .h.i.tting on the earth could be heard approaching.
“Quickly men run!” One of the masked men yelled. With their leader dead the large group of attackers broke off into smaller groups each being led by a different person.
“Charge!!!” A voice rang out in the distance.
Soon a cloud of dust could be seen in the distance. As it came closer and closer one could can see thousands of soldiers donning black armor while riding on black stallions. Some of these soldiers were carrying a black banner with a golden dragon on it.
Zhang’s cavalry soldiers had seen the red flare that Lu Xun had fired and came as quickly as they could. Once they saw the enemy in sight the cavalry soldiers of Aurora a.s.sumed formations to initiate a cavalry charge. With spears in hand the soldiers formed into an arrowhead shaped formation.
“Make sure not to hurt our lord and the madams! Charge!!!” A soldier yelled out to the men behind him.
“CHARGE!!!” All the of the soldiers of Aurora yelled as they tightened their grip on their spears.
Seeing the cavalry soldiers approaching the masked men, who belonged to the Yu sect, fell into further panic and began dispersing in all directions. However, how can something with only two legs outrun something with four?
With their backs toward the cavalry, the masked men were taken out one after another by the charging soldiers.
“Quickly run into the woods! They can’t get us if we run into there!” One masked man yelled.
Soon a ma.s.s of masked men all ran toward the woods fleeing from the cavalry soldiers.
Seeing this the cavalry soldiers gave up chase and instead moved to where their lord was.
“My lord, are you okay? I apologize on behalf of everyone for coming late and endangering you, my lord. A captain in Zhang’s army said after dismounting and kneeling on one knee.
“At ease. It is not your fault that we were ambushed.” Zhang said.
“What"s the status on the enemy?” Zhang asked the soldier.
“My lord, they fled into the woods.” The soldier said. Cavalry soldiers generally only have an advantage in open plains but when fighting in close s.p.a.ces they are at a total disadvantage.
Although cavalry soldiers could dismount it would not be very wise to chase the enemy into a thick grove of trees.
“Have all of our men regroup.” Zhang said as he stared at the woods where the attackers fled into.
“Brother are you ok?” Ling with a concerned face asked as she walked up to Zhang and wiped some blood off his face. This was the first time she"s ever seen Zhang kill people and when they were surrounded a sense of dread filled her heart. Although she very much wanted to run to his side and fight with him, the opportunity did not present itself.
A short distance away Yuying and Ai would be seen sitting on the ground panting due to exhaustion. Although they themselves were extremely fatigued they still looked to where Zhang was trying to see if he was okay.
Zhang seeing the worry in Ling’s eyes showed a smile on his face to rea.s.sure her. Then in an instant he swooped her off her feet and carried her towards where the magical carriage was.
“What-what are you doing.” Ling asked shyly as he carried her. A storm of thoughts rushed to her head and hundreds of different scenarios played out in her mind. Soon Ling’s cheeks turned pinkish red.
Following that he picked up Yuying and Ai one after another like princesses and placed them inside the carriage.
As Zhang was carrying her, Ai jokingly said, “Perhaps we should do this more often then I won"t have to walk so much.” With a corky smile appearing on her face.
“Perhaps we should. But next time it"ll be me carrying you to a bridal room.” Zhang with an equally corky face.
Hearing this Yuying couldn"t help but laugh despite her exhaustion.
“Hey what are you laughing about. I"ll be carrying you on that day too.” Zhang said as he picked her up and carried her to the carriage where the other two are.
Lu Xun who was standing a bit away from them couldn"t help but shake his head. “How can you guys joke around like that after almost dying?” He thought as he looked at Zhang and the three beauties joke and talk as if nothing had happened.
After a short while, the three girls walked out of the carriage in fresh clothes, because the clothes they were wearing before were stained in blood.
Zhang could be seen sitting on the ground wiping the blood off his armor. He had changed into fresh clothes and would don his armor once more after cleaning it.
As he wiped his armor Zhang drank some essence water to relieve himself of his weariness and fatigue.
“My lord all of our men have been a.s.sembled and all of those who fell in battle have been burned and their ashes has been gathered to bring back home. As for the men we sent to the city to find the location of the Yu Sect’s headquarters, they have just returned.” Lu Xun said to Zhang.
“Good, no one should be left behind, dead or alive. Now ready all the men, I think we should pay the Yu sect a visit so I can return this sword to them.” Zhang said as picked up a long blood red blade from the ground.
“Yes, my lord.”
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A few miles north from the capital of the Heilong kingdom there is a mountain range with a certain mountain which the locals call the Tiger’s peak. This mountain was home to the midsized sect called the Yu Sect.
In the beginning the Yu sect had been established on righteous principles such as “the strong should help the weak”. But time pa.s.sed, and after many generations their principles became warped.
The current Yu sect, instead of helping the weak, used their power to oppress the common folk living on the mountain and established a mini kingdom in which they were placed at the top. Everyone who did not submit to them would be mercilessly killed.
The Yu sect had established an almost absolute control over the mountain range thanks to their many thousands of disciples and ruthless tactics.
Today, the usually quiet mountain had fallen into chaos. The thousands of members of the Yu sect that had left early in the morning returned. Some of these men were heavily injuries and had to be carried back by their comrades.
Today, the tyrannical members of the Yu sect did not bully any of the common folk like they normally did after returning from a mission.
Today, they walked up the familiar mountain paths with their heads down and a sense of dread filled the air.
Seeing this the common folk were struck with confusion. They, who have lived on these mountains for many generations and were always oppressed by the Yu sect, had eventually began to think that the Yu sect was invincible.
One could say that these people are the fish in the pond, the frog in the well, the bird in the cage, none have yet to see the sea. Because out in the vast world the Yu sect is nothing more than a speck of dust.
The members of the Yu sect made their way up the mountain to a large mansion at the very top. This mansion has been the headquarters of the sect for hundreds of years and was a symbol of fear and power in the mountain range.
As the members of the Yu sect walked through the large twin gates of their headquarters a sense of fear fell over them. The Yu sect was in fact not under the control of the sect master, but instead the grand elder who happen to be the sect masters father.
With that being said none of these men wanted to be the one to report the news of the sect master"s death to the grand elder. The grand elder was a man named Yu Jia who had reigned over the sect for hundreds of years. His long reign was thanks to the fact that Yu Jia had reached 8th rank of cultivation which increased his lifespan by roughly eight hundred years. So despite his age Yu Jia looked very much like a regular middle aged man.
Yu Jia had over the course of hundreds of years had many children, but the one he dotted on the most was Yu Zhao, to whom he finally gave the position of sect master to. But of course just because he dotted on Yu Zhao did not mean that Yu Zhao was a good leader.
Yu Zhao lacked one essential thing when it came to being in control of a sect, that thing being foresight. He never bothered to plan anything carefully and simply did as he pleased. Knowing this, Yu Jia manipulated the sect behind the scenes to ensure a stable reign for his favorite son.
“Maybe we should just run away.” Some of the men murmured amongst themselves as they walked into the sect headquarters. The thought of fleeing and not returning to the sect ran across their minds many times however for many if not all of these men they knew they could not make leave.
“Fools do you not remember? When we joined we had to eat the heavens rebirth pill. How many days can you last without taking a regular dose of it?” One man yelled out.
All of the members of the Yu sect, besides its masters, had taken the heavens rebirth pill. This pill had been created by the masters of the Yu sect and anyone who took it would forever be bound to the sect. Without a regular dosage, anyone who had taken one of these pills would be sent to heaven and be reborn as another person. In other words, they would die, but only after suffering extreme pain and agony for days.
Only the grand elder possessed the cure and there was no way he would give it away.
As these men contemplated their fate, a loud bang sounded out from inside the main hall.
“Who did this! Who killed my son!!!”
A few brave men had carried the lifeless body of Yu Zhao into the main hall and broke the news to the grand elder. One of these men happened to be laying lifeless in the doorway to the main hall.
“Who was the b.a.s.t.a.r.d that did this! You useless good for nothing dogs! You couldn"t even protect your own sect master you all deserve to die!” Yu Zhao could be seen yelling from the inside of the main hall with one hand choking the life out of one of the sect members.
“Gra-grand elder please spare me.” The man begged as his life was slowly being choked out of him. However, it was a futile attempt. Yu Jia continued until he at last tossed the man’s lifeless corpse onto the ground.
“You! Tell me what happen or you"ll end up just like him.”
The timid looking man Yu Jia pointed to began recalling the events that happened earlier. As Yu Jia listened, the wrinkles on his face increased.
“That is everything that happened grand elder, please spare me.” The timid man pleaded.
“Good, you will be spared the same fate at him.” Yu Jia said as he pointed to the lifeless corpse on the ground.
“Many thanks grand elder!” The man said overjoyed. However, before he could take another breath, a sword came flying from Yu Jia’s sleeve and pierced his neck.
“I said you are spared from the same fate, I never said that I would spare your life.” Yu Jia sneered.
“You go gather all the men and get them ready for battle, I want the head of the b.a.s.t.a.r.d who killed my son.”
Just as Yu Jia finished his sentence a panicked looking man ran in from the outside.
“Grand elder! Grand elder! The mountain has been surrounded!” The man yelled with panic filling his voice.
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Chizinha: Next time on Dragon’s Soul: One way, or another, I’m gonna get ya~~
iEndWorlds: Give me your thoughts! Yes you the reader!!!!! Also thanks Chizinha for proofing lol