Pestilence: Rise Of The Pure Undead
Chapter 874 - 874: Majestic

Both groups achieved victory, but it did not escape them, just like when the first battle had occurred and the two armies had clashed against one another, that the supposedly weakened undeads did not feel like they were enfeebled in the least, they appeared to be operating at their best without a single problem, or at least, they hoped that they were, as although skeletons of steel were a rare type of undead with great defence and attack power built-in, for five death hunters of this calibre to have to struggle in any capacity to take out a single corpse was rather embarrassing.

Back in the days, Tappduur could have eaten a hundred of those steely corpses for breakfast, with one hand tied behind his back, even if that one was clearly more skilled and powerful than those, it was still pretty clear that this guy had not been a lieutenant.

Things were a bit spotty about what method of ranking the undead used, especially since different units seemed to have their unique ranks, for example, the vanguard was the only place where a 'lieutenant' was a thing, there was no such thing in the core empire forces that guarded the territory.

But if one had to make a guess, then the best case scenario was that the tall skeleton of steel had been a 'high knight', if he had been anything lower than that, then the livings might have to consider the possibility that the so-called elites they had been facing, hadn't been the actual elites amongst the undead at all, but just some particularly accomplish soldiers, if true, a state of unrest might arise.

In fact, there were many things that could cause such a state to spread amongst the livings, but the two ancestors of the emerald folks did not allow for the such information to spread anywhere further than their own ears, the undeads were an absurdly tough enemy to take on, every possible aspect of warfare, they had covered and had ways to disrupt their enemies from partaking in them.

But Solzmimi could bypass most of those without being detected, so the ancestor of the sun worshippers had rapidly become aware that if not for the barrier standing so strongly, the corpses would have already launched a much more powerful assault, they only refrained from doing so due to the simple fact that even with the strongest they could go right now, actually destroying the barrier was not possible, and would merely serve to further reinforce it.

Though, the two ancestors suspected that the enemy general might be capable of doing it, but as long as they remained here, he would not personally take action, or at least they hoped that he wouldn't, it was hard to grasp just how powerful Loimos was, but they certainly would appreciate if their presence was a deterrent for him.

Tensions were rising, after the two lone undeads attempted to pass through the west, the undeads made many more tries, everytime, it felt like an obvious trap, and everytime it turned out not to be, the more worried the livings became that the next time would be a trap instead, no one believed that the enemy would ceaselessly repeat the exact same thing and expect something to change, but perhaps they were, as far as everyone was aware, the undeads were not truly defeated even when their remains collapsed into smoke or dust, so maybe it was just them playing mind games…

Eventually however, the path the undeads had created during their first attempt at launching at attack filled up with corpses once again, one moment everything was empty, and the next, without even the slightest of sound or any other telltale sign, an army was marching toward the barrier, unlike the previous attempt, during which the ranks of the dead had appeared somewhat disorganised and messy, meshing their various castes together into a cohesive, yet pathwork-like formation…

This time it was the complete opposite, the defenders present at the scene to witness it first gulped audibly, the emerald folks were in awe of witnessing a true army marching for the first time ever, whilst those who had already faced the undeads before saw flashes of what had happened to Tamaris.

However, things were simultaneously better and worse than they had been back then, the undeads had grown in power greatly since then, the frontline of shieldbearers seemed impenetrable, immovable, the tall spears and pikes looming above, some of them bearing flags or banners fluttering in the winds were omens of ruin.

Previously, the approaching corpses had been threatening, but had at least appeared like they could be stopped to some degree, no one was quite as certain this time, they were so neatly packed together, their very energies and rhythm seemed synchronised together, like their abnormal cohesiveness had further improved since the last battle.

Above them, flocks of rotten and skeletal birds flew in circles, some appearing like mundane avians, other like terrific monsters that could pick a grown adult with ease, some emerald folks quickly noticed that there were slight tremors coming from beneath the ground as well, meaning that a formation of soldiers was also coming from below their feet.

As all livings available rapidly gathered, readying themselves to face the undeads again, the congress of the dead came to a halt, the ranks split down the middle, and an undead that was far less threatening than the rest stepped out with its chin held high.

It was the most shiny, and clean skeleton they had ever seen, this guy was the closest thing to healthy a literal bag of bones could get to, amongst the decrepit, dusty, rotten, bloated and infested amongst many other unsavoury terms- Amongst the sort of corpses the livings were used to fighting, it certainly stood out.

With one hand on its chest, and another raised in the air, everyone almost expected the cadaver to start singing an opera, but reality was often disappointing.

"Your efforts are commendable, livings of this realm, but the initiatory stage of this war has come to an end!"

"Initiatory? What-" someone wondered in confusion, but the skeleton was not done speaking.

"Let us engage into the true essence of War, and to be certain that you understand what this means, General Loimos—Our glorious champion, will now release-" even the undead was cut off as in the far distance, a gigantic figure emerged from the dark keep, rising to the emerald skies with vile grace.

Everyone was forced into stunned silence as the gargantuan beast began to circle around the barrier from afar, a low, sweet hymn spreading across every corner of the Emerald Realm.

"I rest my case, we shall come back in three days, if you do not step outside to face us, another one will be released" the undead bowed, and the orderly army casually stepped away.

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