Volume 8, Chapter 71 – Struggling Undead

However, by the time the Thirteen Attendants arrived outside the great hall, their tone no longer carried its initial sharpness. The ghostly blue flames in everyone’s eyes abruptly shrank, as disbelief and tension simultaneously spread through their hearts.

Directly above the Interception Hall, an exceptionally massive sphere was slowly coalescing. Its volume was so enormous it occupied half the sky. Its pitch-black, perfectly round form didn’t inspire a sense of closeness; instead, it was like a sovereign descending upon the world, filled with intimidation. Just looking at it caused a terrifying pressure to spread through one’s heart, making people feel uneasy and fearful, afraid it might surge into action at any moment.

This feeling was akin to seeing a massive, unknown warship hovering over a city. The pressure it brought made one want only to flee this place and find somewhere to hide, utterly devoid of any thought of fighting.

Not only that, but below the Interception Hall, an endless stream of black viscous liquid, like mosquitoes, was flying towards the airborne sphere. The Thirteen Attendants naturally recognized this as Chaos. However, now the Chaos was like worker bees having found their queen, flying towards the sphere suspended over the city in a trajectory that defied gravity. They transformed into nourishment for the massive sphere, even emitting squeaking sounds like bats, painting an atmosphere of gloom and terror over the entire kingdom of the dead.

The aurora of souls above the kingdom of the dead had vanished. On the ground, all buildings near the black sphere had disappeared, and the area was still expanding. Whether bridges or stone houses, they collapsed like plastic melted by the sun. Even the undead weren’t spared; their screams had barely begun before cutting off abruptly, merging with the surrounding melted structures.

Simultaneously, even more Chaos surged out from beneath the Interception Hall. They devoured all nourishment along their path, converging into the black sphere in a cone shape. From the Thirteen Attendants’ perspective, the current Chaos was like placing a sphere larger than the pyramid’s base atop a pitch-black pyramid. An aura of destruction permeated the entire world.

The reaction was even more pronounced among the undead.

A great number of undead in the city began to gather towards the gray palace, emitting panicked cries and roars. The streets were packed with people, and the ghosts in the sky constantly let out piercing howls. Their movements whipped up a storm over the city, blowing large amounts of sand and wood chips, further plunging the already chaotic city into disorder. It seemed this place was no longer a kingdom of the dead, but a place truly called hell.

No one knew who first swallowed non-existent saliva. Even from several kilometers away, the Thirteen Attendants could sense from the black sphere magical power far surpassing their own.

“That’s… Chaos? Aren’t they supposed to be under Lady Fia’s control?”

“Never mind what happened, stop it first! Its momentum is getting stronger!”

“Look over there!”

Just as the Thirteen Attendants prepared to advance, Afla pointed towards the distant horizon of the kingdom of the dead. A black line was rolling towards them from there. Although it was still a considerable distance from the kingdom, everyone understood that a black line visible from this distance—just how massive would it be when it actually arrived before their eyes?

“Is that Chaos too?!”

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One of the Thirteen Attendants lost their voice. The terror of Chaos lay in its endlessness. He believed that the surging tide of Chaos in the distance was definitely more terrifying than the black sphere before them.

“The Chaos here must be commanding them! Even if we can’t kill that thing in the sky, we need to curb its momentum and stall until Her Majesty and Lady Fia return!”

“Agreed!”

Reaching a quick consensus, the magic casters among the Thirteen Attendants began chanting spells at the fastest speed of their lives, while the warrior Attendants raced off with the aim of drawing the black sphere’s attention. The undead’s detection magic told them the black sphere’s magical power had already condensed to the deep red of the Ninth Rank. Even going all out, they couldn’t possibly destroy it. Therefore, eliminating the ordinary Chaos still converging on the black sphere, slowing its growth, was the only thing they could do.

Yet even recognizing the disparity between themselves and the black sphere, when the Thirteen Attendants arrived beneath it, they were still awed by its enormity. They felt like mosquitoes standing before an elephant. Even looking up, they couldn’t see the top of the black sphere; the entire sky overhead was obscured by it. A pressure originating from the ancient past slowed even their movements.

Its diameter must be measured in kilometers, right? Three kilometers? Four kilometers? Or even ten kilometers beyond that?

Unable to see the end, the Thirteen Attendants couldn’t even estimate the black sphere’s size.

But fortunately, they were trained warriors. Even with fear of the leviathan in their hearts, they didn’t stop their actions.

The first were the warriors dashing towards the black sphere. Their intention was to skim beneath it, cutting off the ordinary Chaos converging from below. However, these warriors, moving like shooting stars, had barely entered the hundred-meter range around the black sphere when their forward speed abruptly slowed. It was like someone jumping from a height into water; their bodies made loud impact sounds in the air.

The fact was, they were indeed mired in a quagmire. The space within a hundred meters of the black sphere was extremely viscous. Though the air held nothing visible, the Attendants could feel a powerful, formless force pushing them away. They struggled forward, but the repulsive force in the air only increased. Eventually, their speed slowed to no different from walking normally.

“Chaos can slow us down using magic?”

“If we can’t get close, use magic. We won’t miss at this distance!”

“Seize the opportunity while this thing is still dormant. Once it wakes, it’ll be over!”

Even the warrior Attendants weren’t completely incapable of ranged magic. With the black sphere currently unresponsive, this was the perfect chance to blast it from afar with magic.

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But they discovered with horror that no matter what elemental magic they used, even necromantic magic based on death energy, the spells dissipated the instant chanting finished. They immediately realized they might be in an environment where magic couldn’t be used. They placed their hopes on their companions behind them, who had begun chanting high-tier magic early on. Their companions did not disappoint; magical light capable of illuminating the sky quickly entered their eyes. Excitedly, they turned back, seeing their comrades’ spectacular magic surging towards the black sphere.

It didn’t matter if these spells affected them as well. Undead, as negative lifeforms, cannot kill their own kind. That was a rule of the world.

A shrieking crimson fire bird and a great sword formed of pale white bone approached from left and right. Both were Seventh-Rank spells, over a hundred meters in length. Whether the scorching heat carried by the fire bird or the chilling aura emanating from the bone sword, the Attendants within the affected range felt relief. Precisely because they were in the attack range, they could better sense the reassuring power within the spells. Had these two spells reached them, they would have been instantly turned to charcoal or torn to shreds.

A thick smell of scorching filled the air. The piercing shrieks made one want to cover their ears.

But the Attendants’ actions weren’t over. The two remaining magic casters targeted the Interception Hall. Since Chaos was surging from beneath it, sealing the Interception Hall’s entrance would prevent more from spilling out.

An earth-shaking explosion accompanied a visible swelling of the ground. The entrance to the Interception Hall was completely buried by the suddenly rising hill. At the same moment, the fire bird and pale bone sword, bringing heat and shrieks to the world, finally reached the black sphere.

Then came a scene that left the Thirteen Attendants stunned.

Whoosh—

As if a red-hot iron ingot were plunged into ice water, a sizzling sound filled the air. The fire bird illuminating the sky evaporated in an instant, vanishing before even touching the black sphere. On the other side, the pale bone sword, carrying terrifying wind pressure, also disappeared without a trace. The magic dispersed on its own the moment it neared the black sphere, leaving only a gentle breeze, as if they had never existed in this eternal night world beneath the earth.

“Impossible.”

“Even the Citadel of Silence doesn’t make magic disappear suddenly!”

“Di… Divine…?”

As a companion grew hysterical, one of the Thirteen Attendants uttered the word that plunged them all into silence. The expressions of the previously stunned Attendants instantly froze. The ghostly blue flames dancing in their eye sockets rapidly extinguished—a sign of violent turmoil in their spirits. Groaning moans escaped all their throats, their expressions growing uglier by the second.

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If something possessed divine protection, it could indeed cause magic to dissipate. The essence of magic is the directional convergence of elements. Divinity is the manifestation of being blessed and protected by the world. The elements in the air are part of the world; the world does not harm those it blesses and protects. Consequently, magic disperses on its own before those possessing strong divinity. Moreover, anything attempting to harm those with strong divinity would be rejected by this world. This was the case when Fia had dealt with the Elf God back then—even large-scale magic struggled to truly harm him.

The air fell into a deathly silence, broken only by the squeaking of Chaos flowing into the black sphere and the chaotic cries of distant undead. Two seconds passed. The Thirteen Attendants finally snapped out of their shock, bitterness rising in their throats.

“How could Chaos possess divinity… Isn’t that the privilege of gods?”

“Don’t lose focus! The magic on the ground succeeded, meaning the Chaos down there lacks divinity. Stay away from the monster in the sky. Let’s go to the ground and eliminate the Chaos!”

“Ah… Ah! You’re right!”

The encouragement rallied the Thirteen Attendants. Although the fire bird and bone sword had failed, the earth magic targeting the Interception Hall on the ground had succeeded. This showed that only the massive sphere in the air enjoyed divine protection; the ordinary Chaos did not.

And after the initial minute of shock, the undead warriors stationed in the kingdom at the Queen’s call also reacted. Looking down from above, one would see countless undead warriors, like ants, flowing against the panicked crowds through the streets towards the battlefield. Other undead warriors began directing the evacuation of non-combatant undead fleeing in all directions, buying time for more warriors to reach the front.

As for the undead warriors originally near the Interception Hall who hadn’t been melted by the Chaos magic, they were already engaged in battle. Roaring, they hurled fireballs and pillars of various shapes into the rivers of Chaos flooding the streets. Some even imbued flame magic to their weapons and armor before charging headlong into the torrential Chaos.

Explosions sounded one after another within the rivers of Chaos. As more undead, and even the Thirteen Attendants, joined in, the Chaos flowing into the black sphere rapidly diminished. The rivers of Chaos became sparse, reminiscent of plant stalks gnawed by insects. Especially after the butler-attired male among the Thirteen Attendants used the Seventh-Rank earth magic [Fortress Creation] to cut off the street, completely blocking the Chaos’s advance route, no more Chaos could deliver nourishment to the black sphere.

The Chaos trapped within the high walls could only fight desperately, locked in combat with the undead that charged in. But the undead felt no pain; as long as their bodies weren’t completely corroded, they could restore to full condition over time. They feared not Chaos. Even with only half a body left, they would set themselves ablaze to burn the Chaos clinging to their bones. Those undead overwhelmed by Chaos and unable to escape on their own would be grabbed by comrades with spare strength and flung out of the battlefield. Everywhere inside the high walls echoed with the curses and battle cries of the undead.

“Damn it, Lord Attendant, how did Chaos get up to the surface?!”

“Where is Her Majesty?!”

“Shoot down that thing in the sky too!”

Rising and falling roars infused strength into the undead. While continuing to clear the Chaos on the streets, they constantly looked up, warily watching the black sphere suspended in the air. The terrifying pressure the Thirteen Attendants felt, they felt even more keenly. But they believed that once their Queen appeared, everything would be alright.

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In fact, some Nightmare Knights were already riding skeletal horses high into the air. Along with vengeful spirits, they charged the motionless black sphere. Especially after glimpsing the increasingly distinct black line on the distant horizon, the flames dancing in their eye sockets grew even fiercer—they too could foresee that if that tsunami of Chaos struck the kingdom, the entire realm would be submerged.

But the result was obvious.

If even the Thirteen Attendants couldn’t harm the black sphere, they stood even less chance of getting close. The powerful repulsive force sent them rebounding faster than they had charged. Any magic they used also dissipated upon nearing the sphere. As more and more failed to harm it, gradually realizing the disparity in power, the battlefield grew quiet. The high morale among the undead slowly shifted into an eerie, unspoken consensus.

What in the world is this thing?

It remained unharmed even while they attacked it relentlessly. If it were to attack, what would that look like?

Everyone pondered this, yet no one dared voice it, fearing that speaking it aloud might make it real. They had successfully stopped the Chaos on the ground from continuing flowing into the sky, yes. But to the black sphere above, this seemed a negligible effort.

The black sun pressing down from above intensified the unease in the undead’s hearts. They looked up nervously, watching the Nightmare Knights charge the sphere, fail, reform ranks, and fail again. Powerlessness and anxiety brewed at a terrifying speed.

Until three figures abruptly appeared in the air.

Naturally, it was Fia, Lucitine, and Ruth, having rushed over immediately. The latter two were astonished by the kingdom of the dead, which resembled an apocalyptic scene. Fia, however, raised an eyebrow with considerable interest.

Her gaze fixed on the most conspicuous black sphere. This leviathan before her gave Fia an exceptionally familiar feeling. Besides that, it maintained a faint, elusive connection with the ruby ring on her finger. She looked it up and down, twirling Laevateinn, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

“Oh? Rise from the dead? Should I call you Milan, or… Elf God?”