Chapter 80 – Controlling the Undead
Nie Yan had fallen into a square room surrounded by prison cells. Above him hung several Night Pearls which illuminated the area below. As he took a good look at his surroundings, he then realized just what kind of place he had fallen into.
He was likely dropped into an underground dungeon. On either side of him were two enclosures with stout metal bars which firmly prevented escape. As he peered through the gaps and into the enclosures, he saw a gigantic set of bones in each one. The bone piles were over four meters high, and he could see an enormous tail, skeletal wings, and a lizard-like skull mixed in. These two skeletal remains had most likely been dragons when they were alive!
Since this dungeon wasn’t too far from the Sulgata Colosseum, it seemed these dragons were forced to fight in the gladiatorial arena.
As prisoners of the colosseum, all of their freedoms were wrested away, and they were made into tools of entertainment for the nobility. When Sulgata finally fell, they were most likely abandoned and kept locked in their cells, left to starve, and eventually turning into skeletons.
While Nie Yan was lost in thought, the two bone piles suddenly trembled and slowly began to reassemble.
「Roaaaar! Roaar!」
The two skeletons let out indignant cries which reverberated across the entire dungeon. They resembled two vicious beasts as they charged at Nie Yan.
「Bang!」The iron bars of their cells violently shuddered after being rammed by their large skeletal frames. Their cages slightly contorted as the bars had been bent askew from the collisions.
The skeletal dragons cried out furiously as they repeatedly slammed into their enclosure, causing the metal bars to warp just a little more each time. Nie Yan felt their cages wouldn’t be able to hold on much longer due to the continuous impacts.
These dragons probably held great resentment and vexation during their passing. Thus, their souls were unable to move on, and they became undead. They were much stronger than ordinary undead, and their dark red bones possessed a metallic lustre.
Nie Yan used Transcendent Insight to examine these skeletal dragons.
Undead Dragon Gladiator (Leader): Level 10
Health 600/600
They were Leader-class monsters, and they shared a common trait among most skeletal undead. Their healths were much lower in comparison to their living counterparts. Even then, these two Level 10 Leader-class monsters still weren’t something he could handle.
The Undead Dragons could easily kill him.
He glanced at the walls of the pitfall above him; it was too high. It would be impossible for him to climb out of it even with the aid of the Ring of Woven Silk. As he looked around for somewhere to escape, his eyes happened to fall on a tunnel in the distance that appeared to be the dungeon’s exit. However, the tunnel was sealed off by an iron gate. The gate was firmly clamped shut by a giant padlock. He didn’t have any thoughts of smashing the gate open, it simply wasn’t possible. He wasn’t like those Undead Dragons who possessed large bodies and robust frames.
After the repeated collisions from the Undead Dragons, many metals bars were visibly damaged and bent out of shape. The cages were becoming increasingly weaker with every passing second, and eventually, they collapsed, freeing the skeletal dragons as they charged towards Nie Yan.
Simultaneously facing off against two Level 10 Leader-class monsters in a such a confined space would undoubtedly mean his untimely death.
The two large skeletal frames came barreling towards him from the sky. They possessed strong bones that were stronger than metal, a powerful body that was full of strength, and a giant tail covered in bony spikes. No matter what he did, it would be impossible to defeat them.
It was hopeless to try and fight them directly; thus, he quickly scanned his eyes over his skill bar. He could only entrust his life into this final hope—Undead Rite!
This skill was the only thing that could save his life since it had a twenty percent chance of controlling a targeted undead. Whether he lived or died all depended on this skill succeeding!
Due to the level disparity between him and the Undead Dragon, he wasn’t sure he’d succeed in controlling it.
In the same instant the skeletal dragons neared, Nie Yan activated the skill and targeted one of them.
Undead Rite!
「System: You’ve targeted Undead Dragon Gladiator with Undead Rite. Your health has been reduced by 30%.」
「System: Undead Rite has failed!」
As soon as he read the system notification, Nie Yan activated Swift Retreat and rolled out of the way.
A giant tail whipped towards where he had just been standing.「Boom!」Clouds of dust rose into the air, and large cracks were left on the ground where the tail had struck.
Since the two dragons had charged at him at the same time, one of them ended up ramming against the other, and they were both sent staggering several steps back due to the impact.
Taking advantage of this brief window, Nie Yan activated Undead Rite once again, though the attempt was shortly followed by an announcement of the spell’s failure. Thus, before the dragons recovered from the collision, he rolled past their legs. Managing to stabilize himself with some difficulty, he then fled to the nearest corner.
Not only did the Undead Dragons miss with their attacks, they lost track of their target as well. Ghastly green flames flickered in their eye sockets as they searched for Nie Yan’s whereabouts, eventually finding him hidden in the corner.
Shortly after discovering Nie Yan, one of the skeletal dragons lifted its leg and attempted to crush him.
Nie Yan hastily ducked out of the way.
「Boom!」The stomp left a deep imprint in the floor.
Following the first one’s attack, the other skeletal dragon attempted to stomp him as well.
He was frightened half to death as he continuously evaded their attacks. Fortunately for him, the narrow passages of this dungeon further limited the movements of the already clumsy undead, and since their attacks were relatively slow, he was able to barely hang onto his life. However, if this battle continued to drag on at its current pace, he would probably end up dead regardless.
Undead Rite!
「System: You’ve targeted Undead Dragon Gladiator with Undead Rite. Your health has been reduced by 30%.」
「System: Undead Rite has failed!」
Now that Undead Rite had failed three times in a row, Nie Yan only had a tenth of his health remaining. While evading the attacks, he pulled out a Basic Recovery Potion, downed its contents, and then applied a Combat Bandage to himself.
After evading the skeletal dragons’ attacks for several breaths of time, Nie Yan cast Undead Rite once again when his health bar recovered to fifty-two percent.
In the same moment, the two skeletal dragons attacked!
「System: Undead Rite has succeeded!」
Shortly after the system announcement appeared, Nie Yan felt a strange energy being birthed in his mind. The energy rose above his head and shot straight at one of the skeletal dragons, disappearing into its body.
With Undead Rite succeeding, Nie Yan rolled out of the way and evaded the oncoming dragons.
「Boom!」The dragons missed their target and rammed into each other, the impact stunning both and sending them staggering several steps back.
In the meantime, Nie Yan hid in a corner and attentively gazed at the dragon he had taken control of using Undead Rite.
Did I actually succeed? What’s the result?
Nie Yan didn’t have high expectations in successfully controlling the Undead Dragon due to the level disparity between them. Thus, despite the announcement, he didn’t dare to confirm whether he had truly succeeded. This was possibly his last chance at survival; if he missed this opportunity, there would be no more.
Two skeletal dragons and Nie Yan formed a triangle as they stood in this narrow underground dungeon.
However, at this moment, the two dragon were staring at each other.
Time seemed to flow in reverse. returning Sulgata to its prime, when beasts and gladiators fought in the barbarous colosseum. Blood splattered everywhere, painting a vibrant scenery of crimson red.
The dragon who had been targeted by Undead Rite stood there blankly, staring out into space. The ghastly flames in its eyes seemed to be affected by some sort of foreign energy.「Boom! Boom!」It slightly shook about as if trying to break free of the fetters binding it.
“Please, God… Please let it succeed!” Nie Yan prayed for the skill to succeed. In reality, he was an atheist and didn’t actually believe in God or any divine deities. However, there was a certain entity in Conviction—God of Light—that could be considered God, and at this point in time, he became a devout and pious follower.
The other dragon suddenly took action and leapt at Nie Yan.
It pressed toward him and aimed to end his life.
Just as the skeletal dragon leaped into the air, the other dragon, who had been targeted by Undead Rite prior, rammed into its side.「Boom!」The two dragons collided again, and the one that was attacking Nie Yan was sent flying.
Perhaps some divine existence took pity on Nie Yan and answered his prayers because Undead Rite had unexpectedly succeeded in controlling the dragon just in the nick of time!
Under the effects of Undead Rite, a glowing black aura emerged over the dark reddish hues of the skeletal dragon’s bones, transforming it into a huge metallic beast that brimmed with berserk power.
「System: Please name the undead under your command.」
Nie Yan thought of a moment and decided to name this dragon, Dark Gladiator. It seemed appropriate, considering its appearance.
After being successfully controlled by Undead Rite, Dark Gladiator’s stats rose by ten percent. The already formidable skeletal dragon had become even more of a matchless powerhouse. Its only weak point was it could only act as a temporary companion and only lasted for three hours, whereupon its soul would be consumed by Undead Rite.
It was hard to imagine that someone could possess control over such a terrifying monster.