Chương 142: Chapter 125 – The Mirage Lord

As Cade crossed the clearing at a sprint, he kept his focus on Sylvurn while also staying aware of the earthen mounds scattered across the clearing. Sylvurn was huge for a salamander. The Lord stretched nearly six meters from snout to tail. Even as it pressed low against its sunning rock, Cade could tell it was taller than he was. Its skin was slick black mottled by glowing orange-green splotches that pulsed with dense Mana. Four short limbs gripped the stone, each ending in an array of hooked black claws.

The clearing reacted as Cade charged. Acrid smoke spewed from the cracked mud vents and orange-green flames erupted in random bursts. Salamander-shaped forms moved through the haze, their bodies slipping between curtains of smoke as if Sylvurn had summoned a pack to defend it. Cade focused on the smoke through [Essence Sight] and saw only blue Mana with no traces of life essence. The shapes looked real enough to fool normal eyes, but Cade quickly saw them for what they were.

Mirages formed from smoke and Mana to make it seem like the Lord had minions closing in from every direction. They might be able to deal damage like Richard's shadows, but the Mana inside them was thin and wispy, barely more substantial than the smoke itself. Cade ignored the illusions and headed straight for Sylvurn. He dodged between two vents as one spat flames into the air, then cut left around a mound leaking thick black smoke. An illusion lunged from the haze, jaws open to bite, but Cade ran straight through.

The false salamander broke apart around him, smoke and Mana twisting in his wake. When Cade came within a few meters of the central rock, Sylvurn finally moved. The Lord's glowing splotches flared as orange-green flames erupted across its body. The flames crawled over its back, limbs, and tail without burning any of its flesh. Sylvurn lifted its blunt head and turned toward him. Its mouth opened wide, and a jet of orange-green fire roared straight at Cade. Cade willed his cloak forward.

Pearlescent ash flowed over his shoulders and chest to form a barrier in front of him just before the flames hit. The fire slammed into the cloak and vanished into the churning cloud of ash. Essence flowed back into Cade's channels a heartbeat later. Just like he thought. His [Mantle of Dissolution] easily handled Sylvurn's inferior flames, breaking them down and feeding essence back into him. Cade launched himself onto the rock, his axe already moving to strike. Sylvurn's eyes widened.

One second, a wall of white swallowed its flames. The next, an obsidian blade came up from below and sliced deep into its lower jaw. Burning blood sprayed from the gash. Cade's cloak intercepted most of it, breaking the liquid down before it could reach him. Even still, several drops managed to get through his defenses. Heat bit into his skin where Sylvurn's blood splattered against his torso, but it was far from the worst pain he had felt. Sylvurn scrambled backward in surprise.

Its claws frantically scraped against stone as blood gushed from the wound. It looked at Cade and hissed, the sound vibrated through him and he felt the Lord's command try to take hold. Flee! Cade smirked as his passive skill, [Unbroken Will], didn't even have a chance to activate. His Law Sprout of Inviolable Self easily rebuffed the intrusion. Cade lunged forward and swung his axe for Sylvurn's face. Before he could make contact, the Lord's body exploded into dark smoke, swallowing the sunning rock in an instant.

Through normal sight, Cade saw Sylvurn lunge at him from the haze, jaws wide and flames spilling from its mouth. But [Essence Sight] showed him the truth. The lunging Sylvurn had no life essence. The real Lord had already dropped off the far side of the rock, scurrying low and fast toward one of the earthen mounds venting smoke. Cade dodged the illusion anyway, more out of habit than any fear of it managing to land a bite. As the false jaws snapped past, he flicked his will through his cloak.

Pearlescent ash lashed through the mirage, dissolving it easily. The amount of essence that trickled back to him was next to nothing. Cade clicked his tongue and turned, searching through the smoke before he saw green life essence vanish into the vent mound. A moment later, Cade saw the dense life essence moving underground. So the vents are connected. Sylvurn was using an underground tunnel network to move around its domain.

Cade jumped down from the rock and followed the Lord's life essence, but it could move much faster than he could. Then he realized Sylvurn was heading directly toward Earl and Krystal.

"It's using tunnels!" he shouted in their direction.

"The vents are connected underground. Move! It's heading your way!" He had left Earl and Krystal at the perimeter, assuming both would stick to the treeline instead of entering the open clearing. As Cade ran, he saw Earl charge toward one of the salamander shapes moving through the smoke." [Unbridled Rage]!" His axe swept through the mirage with enough force to scatter the smoke. Earl stumbled half a step as he expected his axe to bite into flesh.

"What the hell?" Fuck, I didn't tell them about the illusions. To them, the mirages probably look just as real as Sylvurn. Before Cade could shout a warning, the ground behind Earl erupted. Sylvurn's head burst from one of the vents in a spray of smoke and hardened dirt. The Lord's blunt snout swept toward Earl, its lower jaw still bleeding from Cade's first strike. Orange-green light flickered at the corners of its mouth.

"Move!" Cade shouted. He hoped Earl could dodge in time, he was still too far away to intercept the attack. Sylvurn opened its mouth. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there." [Stillwater Javelin]!" Krystal yelled. Water surged from the treeline in a long, glassy spear and slammed straight into Sylvurn's gaping maw. Steam exploded outward. The javelin did not stop the fire completely.

Sylvurn was twice Krystal's level and a Lord of the Swamp. But its impact bought Earl a heartbeat. Sylvurn's flames pushed through the steam in an orange-green stream as Earl threw himself to the side, swinging wildly as he moved. His axe clipped Sylvurn across the snout, carving a shallow line through its slick black skin. Even that small wound sprayed blood. Burning droplets splattered across Earl's shoulder and chest. The stream of flame from Sylvurn's mouth caught his right arm as he twisted away.

The orange-green fire clung to his skin. Earl screamed in agony. Cade reached them a second later. He drove his axe down into the back of Sylvurn's neck. The obsidian blade bit deep, and burning blood sprayed up around the wound. Cade's cloak surged forward and swallowed most of it, breaking the blood down and feeding essence back into his channels. At the same time, the flames crawling across Sylvurn's body caught the wooden haft of Cade's axe. Heat bit into his palms.

The rhizome wood blackened beneath his grip, orange-green fire chewing through the surface faster than ordinary flame. Cade forced essence into the handle, trying to reinforce it. The wood regrew but the fire kept burning. Cade yanked the axe free and swung again, but Sylvurn ducked back into the vent in a rush of smoke and dirt. Through [Essence Sight], Cade saw the Lord's life essence streak back toward the central rock. For half a second, he considered jumping into the tunnel after it.

Then he dismissed the thought. Sylvurn would just surface somewhere else, and he would be underground while Earl and Krystal got roasted above. He turned toward Earl instead. The large man was still on his feet, but barely. Smoke rose from burns across his chest and shoulder. His right arm was still alight with orange-green fire, and his face was tight with pain. He's lucky that fire didn't hit him head-on. Cade reached into his pocket and threw Earl the Primordial Bead Dewdrop.

"Use that and get back to Krystal," Cade said. Earl caught it against his chest and a wave of revitalization rushed through his body.

"I can still fight. There's dozens of smaller salamander minions, you can't take them all."

"They aren't minions," Cade said quickly.

"They're illusions. Just smoke and Mana." Earl looked toward the smoke shapes, then back at him.

"Well, that explains why my axe went through one."

"Get back to Krystal and have her put that fire out," Cade said.

"I don't know where she got that water from, but hopefully she has more. I have a plan, and I'll need your help." Earl grimaced and glanced at the flames still crawling over his arm.

"What do you need me to do?"

"We're going to collapse the vents," Cade said. Earl frowned.

"The vents?"

"It's using underground tunnels to move," Cade said.

"The vents are openings. That's where it'll pop out and try to roast you. You can't hit the illusions, so there's no use in attacking them. I need you to cut down some trees and when I give the signal, throw the trunks into the vents I point out." Cade turned toward the treeline.

"Krystal! I'll need your help too if you have more water. Douse the fire on Earl's arm and get ready." Krystal nodded from the trees, already pulling water toward her hands. Cade noticed the trees around her looked even drier than before. Earl looked at the burning arm again, then at the bead in his hand.

"It doesn't hurt that bad when you get used to it. Besides, your axe is still on fire too." Cade looked down at his axe. Orange-green flame still clung to the wooden haft, eating into the rhizome despite the essence he had been pushing into it. The fire stung his hand, but it wasn't dealing any real damage. Between his Ash-Tempest tempering and his reforged body, he must have picked up resistance to more than just the flames of desolation.

"I'll deal with my axe, you go put out the fire on your arm," Cade ordered. He willed his cloak over the haft. Pearlescent ash wrapped around the burning wood and consumed it in seconds. The orange-green flame hissed, then vanished as it too was broken down. Cade caught the obsidian axe head before it could fall, then willed the rhizome from his palm and formed a new handle around it. He knew this was a temporary fix.

Sylvurn's fire might not have damaged his body, but it kept burning through the wood even as Cade fed essence into it. He needed another solution other than just dissolving and regrowing the handle over and over. Cade swept his gaze across the clearing, ignoring the salamander-shaped mirages moving through the smoke. Through [Essence Sight] he could see Sylvurn's bright life essence beneath the ground. The Lord moved through the tunnel network near the central rock.

For a moment, Cade considered ending the fight the easy way. His [Flames of Desolation] and [Mantle of Dissolution] would tear into Sylvurn until nothing was left but pure essence and ash. [Prismatic Conduit] would work too. But Aquelion wanted Lord Cores. If he wasn't careful, Cade could easily damage Sylvurn's Core with any of those skills. He had gotten lucky with Kharvaxis. Besides, he wanted a challenge. He wanted to push himself, not take the easy way out. No.

He would still use his [Mantle of Dissolution] defensively, but he wouldn't rely on his skills to finish the fight unless he had no other choice. Cade broke into a sprint, ignoring the blasts of orange-green flames and smoky illusions coming from the vents. As soon as he got close, Sylvurn's life essence veered left, darting toward another vent. Cade followed and saw an opportunity. Sylvurn's life essence streaked beneath the cracked ground ahead of him.

Cade chased it toward the nearest vent, but the moment he got close, the Lord veered away and shot toward another opening. He followed, only for Sylvurn to change direction again. The Lord was using the tunnel network to keep him moving, dragging him from vent to vent in an effort to tire him out. Cade pushed faster, tracking the bright life essence beneath the ground until Sylvurn darted toward a vent flanked by two others. Cade saw his chance.

"Earl! Krystal!" Cade shouted, pointing to the vents on either side of Sylvurn's path.

"On it!" A few seconds later, a desiccated tree trunk flew across the clearing. It slammed directly into one of the raised mounds, blocking the entrance as smoke burst from the vent. Krystal shouted from the treeline." [Stillwater Javelin]!" A lance of water punched into the second vent. Steam exploded upward as the water hit the heat inside. Perfect. Sylvurn had nowhere else to run. The vent in front of Cade erupted. Sylvurn burst from the mound in a spray of smoke, dirt, and orange-green flame.

Cade willed his [Mantle of Dissolution] tight around his body and lunged, landing on the Lord's back before it could fully drag itself free.

Cade grabbed a handful of burning black skin with his left hand and drove his axe down with his right. The obsidian blade bit into Sylvurn's flesh, and burning blood flooded from the wound. His cloak surged, dissolving the gore before it could touch him. Essence flowed back into his channels. Cade redirected all of it into the rhizome, reinforcing the handle as orange-green flames chewed through the wood. Sylvurn bucked but Cade held on with a vice-like grip.

Cade struck again, burying the obsidian blade deeper into Sylvurn's back. The handle cracked in his grip and he realized the rhizome was weakening faster than the meager essence in his channels could restore it. Still, he refused to tap into his Core. Instead, Cade drew on his Law Seed of Renewal, pushing it and his intent into the living wood. The handle regrew beneath the flames, knitting itself together as fast as the fire tore it apart.

Cade felt like he was missing something, but Sylvurn thrashed before he could chase the thought. The Lord twisted its long body across the cracked ground. Cade tightened his grip and hacked down again. Sylvurn slammed sideways into the central rock, trying to crush him against it, but Cade held on. He shrugged off the Lord's efforts as he buried the axe into its back again and again. Sylvurn rolled but Cade refused to let go.

His cloak kept dissolving the blood, pouring essence into his channels which went straight to reinforcing his axe. For almost a full minute, Cade clung to Sylvurn's back and carved into it every chance he got. But as time went on, he saw the problem. The obsidian blade easily cut through Sylvurn's flesh, but the Lord's highest stat was Vitality. Cade could hurt it. He could make it bleed. He could force it to thrash and hiss and keep it from diving back into another tunnel.

But the small axe head was not enough to brute-force a kill. If he wanted to beat this Lord, he had to find another way.