Chapter 383: Re-Uniting 1
Uriel shattered the skull of a defiled dark feline pouncing his way, his frame zipping in the wind as the glow of astral light coated him and his steed.
A cold rush flooded his veins, his muscles twitching as the fibers grew tighter and denser, the stat rewards flowing through his being, it all settled in the core of his soul.
And he felt gorged, almost as though he had become bloated...
Uriel stared at his hand, fingers flexing, feeling the rush of strength, yet the barrier of strength that restricted further development was palpable.
He clenched his fist, sighing, "It seems even a bronze human still suffers from energy saturation..."
His stats flickered into view, his chin lifting slightly as he read through them.
[Name: Uriel Mormont!]
[Rank: Awakened]
[Class: Astral Cavalry Knight (Lvl 35)]
[Attributes:]
Strength: 942
Speed: 981
Defense: 895
Stamina: 390/695
Health: 908/965
Intelligence: 993
Will: 876
Essence Unit: 456/900
Spirit (New!): 10
Uriel’s eyes lingered on the new stat, this was the only two-digit stat he had, and he realized, despite how many kills he had made so far, it still hadn’t increased.
It seemed the human race had been bestowed a new rare stat that would be more difficult to farm.
He exhaled through his nose and shook his head, every benefit of this reality seemed to have a downside to it somehow, now with this the rapid ascension of most human prodigies would begin to slow.
Just as he was having this thought, his ears twitched and he caught the faint noise of a critter crawling through the earth so fast it was keeping up with his speed.
He frowned, feeling the ominous presence weighing on his mind...
"Charmed beast," he growled through the night, his energy bursting back to life as the astral armour clad on his body began to simmer with starlight.
His hold over his lance grew steady, as his other hand rolled the glowing gold silk material of his steed’s bridle around his arm.
Getting a firmer control over the mount as it let out a war cry, rising and trampling against the air.
But just as he was battle-ready, his will firmly cloaking his mind just in case, even though will wasn’t an effective shield for the mind, it still helped.
It was after all a force that allowed the mind of lifeforms to interact with the world around them.
But just then, he felt a flicker, not externally but internally, a ringing hum resonating from his inventory.
He was forced to cut back on preparing for a clash, spurring his steed up to move faster as the clash transitioned into a chase.
His mind bled into his personal pocket space anchored to his soul, his focus shifting briefly.
And he saw it, his genetic armour helm, still damaged, housing scars and cracks across its metallic frame.
Yet it flickered with life, the receiver was active and was receiving a transmission.
He blinked, his mind stalling for a second, he didn’t know the battle suit could receive a transmission despite residing in a closed dimension.
Regardless he knew he had to receive it, that might be one of his friends reaching out to him.
Uriel didn’t immediately summon the armour, doing that meant equipping it, and that would mean abandoning his astral cavalry knight set.
Which in turn would lead to a sudden dip in speed, and with that thing hot on his tail there was no way he’d win a clash wearing a still damaged battle suit.
Fortunately he was alone, with a sharp yank on the bridle, the steed swerved, bursting into a curve.
He made a direct U-turn heading back to the others, at least Lukas and Dorian could handle the enemy while he took the time to settle this.
The steed galloped through the dark haze of abyssal force, the wind flowing heavy, carrying his hair back.
His senses stretched taut as the creeping presence, burrowing through the dark, moved fast, trailing right behind Uriel, the beast losing to speed, but its relentlessness remaining top-notch.
Within seconds Uriel covered a distance of hundreds of miles, traces of his team visible from his vantage point, as he burst through tree lines catching a full view of the raging soldiers fighting against the corrupted.
Their auras noticeably more palpable, and their presence more grounded and tempered, now this was an army of elites.
Each soldier held an estimated strength of what Uriel and the rest of Team alpha had boasted before all this began.
Thinking about it, even Uriel found it hard to believe merely a week had passed, to think the soldiers had come this far.
This level of growth, even he hadn’t estimated it to be possible, maybe there really was a blessing in every disaster.
After all, none of them would have grown so strong if not for this abnormal zone, filled with corrupted and defiled.
The presence haunting him never once trailed from Uriel’s tracks despite the fact that there were more targets now within range.
This alone showed this monster seemed to have an overly persistent side... But Uriel still paid it no heed, nor did he give it a chance to pounce, keeping it at an acceptable distance, the temporal flow undulating around him, acting like a shield straining all mental attack streams flying his way through time.
His eyes finally locked on the person he was searching for, bursting with a jade glow was none other than Dorian, radiating a palpable might.
Even Uriel had to admit his instincts were tingling, the hairs along his arms standing on end... Uriel leaned forwards, guiding his steed towards his fellow captain.
Within two strides the distance had been swallowed, Uriel’s voice ringing as he blitzed right past Dorian.
"Dorian! Six o’clock on me! I need a break!" brief words tossed over his shoulder without a backward glance.
And Dorian, wasting not a second to waver or question Uriel, his eyes glowed even brighter, glyphs glistening with the cadence of jade green illuminating across his skin, some visible from beneath the captain’s Noble-grade armour.
His muscles bulged as he activated a powerful gene skill, he leaped into the air, both arms raised up high, a voice thundering from his helm.
"DISPLACE!"
The moment the word resonated loud, his frame collapsed to the earth, both arms striking down with a horrid amount of force...
The surroundings went still for a split second, as air itself was displaced, cracks ran through the earth, some terrain rising, some sinking, trees falling, and soldiers holding steady from the rocky mayhem that followed.
And bursting from the depths of the earth, an insect the shape of an armoured bug blasted right out, releasing a jarring screech that shook the very mind.
Dorian winced hard, as jolts of pain pulsed through his skull, yet his focus didn’t waver, the beast’s red, beady eyes were now locked onto him, while his essence stirred.
Meanwhile back on Uriel’s end, now free of his foe, he drew his steed to a halt, instantly unequipping his astral armour set and equipping the damaged genetic battle suit.
His hands moved to tap on the receiver, manually activating it, and the moment the static hum on the other end settled, a familiar voice called to him.
A grin split his face, it was Elaine, but before the joy of finding a teammate safe could settle, his expression twisted grim as she didn’t pause and kept on speaking