Chapter 1238: Cage Match
Evo Ponson inwardly cursed at his bastard of commander as another crack appeared on his soul. He'd been forced to toil like a dog for weeks because these haughty tyrants wouldn't heed his warnings. They thought themselves above the dangers of the graveyard because of the creature they'd brought and the grandeur of their background. Foolish. He was the one who'd spent over eight centuries in this treacherous environment.
No one was above it, not even the Pope.
Had they just listened when he said something was wrong with currents, they wouldn't have been reduced to such a sad state. Now, the Lucent Voyage was destroyed, and the Void Leash controlling their guide had snapped. And yet, Pantiro was still playing around. What could he do except hear and obey, ignoring that the crew he'd painstakingly raised was growing even thinner?
They might both be Remoulded, but Evo knew his home-field advantage would do him little good in case they came to blows. Pantiro wouldn’t need to bother ripping him apart personally. The scene of Lord Evori detonating their old Captain's companion with a single look remained fresh in Evo's mind. Being a member of the Chapter of Tripartite Truth meant nothing when the Black Heart Curses held absolute dominion over all Kan'Tanu curses.
The poor man had been sacrificed the second he went against their orders, and Evo had no intention of following after having endured so long. So he erected the domain against his better judgment. The pain from the dimensional pressure added to his misery and made his companion writhe with fury. Evo's overtaxed mind lacked its usual ability to fight back, and his thoughts grew chaotic as he was forced to fight an inner war of control. He held onto his sanity by focusing on their target: the undead bastard who'd been caught in his net.
Evo was in a bad state, but not bad enough to miss the greed and elation in Pantiro's eyes when their target entered [Hidden Domain]. Evo was too far removed from the war, and he had no idea who these people were. Pantiro clearly did, and this black-eyed creature had to be a sealbearer. Three seals had already slipped through Pantiro's fingers in the months Evo had guided the outsiders from the breach, and he would rather sacrifice half their crew than let another one go.
Their target had managed to leave a domain skill in his wake. It had to be a Late D-grade skill, further empowered by an Earthly Dao. The spatial instability would deal with the skill even if his subordinates couldn't. Only, dozens would be dead at that point—something they could ill afford in their current situation.
They were already running precipitously low on the personnel necessary to make it out in one piece. Accomplishing the task sent out to all vessels in the region was even more out of the question. Thankfully, they should meet the minimum quota of sacrifices today. Since there was one sealbearer, there were most likely more. Such as that skeletal monstrosity duking it out with Lord Evori.
The faster they dealt with this mess, the sooner Evo could return to his original plan; sifting for benefits on the bodies of the Early and Middle Hegemons. Being too old to accept a seal didn't matter. Just the merit from unearthing one would let him trade for enough tonics to deal with decades of accumulated sequela and claw back centuries of longevity lost to his companion.