DING!
YOU HAVE ENTERED THE ASTRAL DOMAIN!
CONQUEST BEGINS!
ADVANCE!
Jazmel stepped into the domain, with Paldane sitting on his shoulder and awake.
Advance! Paldane uttered through their mind link and Jazmel simply agreed, sending his affirmation across their connection.
He drew his sword, one blade this time. Nozarashi gleamed in the stray lights of the myriad above. The astral domain was a giant field, it had no boundaries that Jazmel could see. But he didn’t need to focus on anything but what was in front of him.
A knoll appeared, waving its wooden club. It rushed at him, mid swing. He cut through the club and its owner, not even using a skill. The keen edge of his blade barely caught onto the knoll, it died before Jazmel even passed it.
Two appeared, he cut through them both. Then they multiplied and four rushed him, but he simply danced around them. His steps fluid and his movement graceful. They had tried to hem him in, but he was greater than their numbers. He broke free and his sword sailed through wind and air, killing them all.
A group appeared now and before Jazmel could call forth a skill. Paldane leapt off his shoulder and soared through the air.
Aeonic flame!
He torched them with black and blue flame, a sign of his own nature mixed into the flames. the group was turned to ash and Jazmel watched as they dispersed on the wind, like wheat. Double their number appeared, but this time it wasn’t just knolls. Armoured sentinel appeared.
“You take the knolls; I will deal with the sentinels.” He told Paldane who soared above him. The first sentinel approached him, its rusted edge whimpering through the air. He dodged a strike, another and then another and before the other sentinels could reach him. He spun on his heel, the first spiral he carved through the knees of the sentinel. It dropped down in front of him, on his second turn, he swung his blade through the head and sliced through the scalp of the sentinel.
The rushed him, this was still too easy for him. One fell to a crushed helm; gripping his hilt he smashed down on the head, and it crumpled with no restraint. Another was cut to pieces like the first. Three grouped together and rushed him.
Lacerate
He swung his blade, carving through them in a wave and flick of his wrist. They crumpled; their rusted armour rent from his sword.
Paldane had torched this group of knoll and they burned, screaming, and crying at him. whimpering as they died from his aeonic onslaught. A new enemy appeared now, stronger than the others. A harbinger, Jazmel checked his blade and inhaling. Rushed in, the harbinger was tier III. But to Jazmel that just meant he had to try a little harder, humanoid tier III were just not that strong to him anymore. No now he could face a tier III on his own and though the battle might be tough. He would surely survive.
Lacerate!
Raven’s cleaving descent!
He struck two skills, one to disarm the harbinger, its dreadful scythe spinning out of its grasp and on the second strike. He cut and smashed the harbinger into the ground, the cleaving descent; dismembering his foe.
Three more harbingers appeared and Paldane spewed flames on them, but it only hindered them.
Sunder!
Swinging his blade across his body, he decapitated all three and they died in the flickering flames of his dragon.
You got strong!
“So did you!” he countered and Paldane careened above him, as it flew circles around him.
He heard it before dodging to the left, a chain darkened with horrid Mana and flecked with blood or rust. Swung for his head, he dodged and leapt into a roll. Creating distance, he rolled to his feet and looking at his new opponent. Saw that it was one creature, something he hadn't seen before. It moved slower than Katie, he was grateful. It whirled three chains though, then another appeared and soon it was whirling six. All about it and they snaked through the air, striking at him like a viper.
Great rumbling dragon!
The skill which usually created a spectral dragon roaring, made out of Mana. Burst forth but this time it was far denser and more materialised than before. The dragon reared its head, horns curled from his head like a tiara of keratin, and it roared, blasting Mana all about. It darted forward and crashed into the chain wielding creature driving it into the ground with all the pressure of his skill. The chains broke and rent under the assault. He quickly moved over to kill it, swiping his sword, and decapitating it.
A new enemy appeared, a hovering thing wearing a darkened cowl and hood. It cast orbs of dark green and black. He darted out of the way, not knowing what it would do, and he burst forward dodging. As he sailed past, his body flying through the air. He looked back, quickly. Seeing where the orb had landed, the ground twisted and malformed.
He leapt forward, rushing at the hovering horror. It tried ascending but Paldane was there.
Aeonic flame!
The cowl burst into flame, as if it were kindle and it hurtled to the ground. Where Jazmel was waiting. He watched it come and before it could right itself. fixing its descent and dodge him, he leapt up to reach it.
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Sunder!
He struck, cutting it from shoulder to hip. The thing fell to the ground and while he was in the air, he perceived new enemies appearing. Three more like that with the weird Mana orbs, and five others. These were attuned to wind; they threw small tornados and storms at him. But still had stamina and some Mana to spare, while in the air. He struck his vambraces together, his armour melded onto his body and from above. He cast his strongest skill.
Great rumbling dragon!
DING!
ALL DRACONIC SKILLS ARE AMPLIFIED BY NIGHT WING ARMOUR!
The dragon appeared, an entire body bellowing a challenge and transfixing the hovering horrors. They cowered from the dragon’s dirge and were torn to shreds from the Mana of the spectral dragon. He landed, bending his knees on impact but his body stood strong, and the ground broke beneath his fall. He kept forgetting, just how sturdy his tyrant tempered body truly was.
The temperature dropped; a new enemy appeared. Hovering like the last, but this one’s cowl was tattered, rent, and ripped almost every but the hood remained full and within it. the entire face hidden in the darkness of the cowl.
It through its skill or spell at him, not having enough time to dodge. He brought his blade up and cut through the spell. It split about him and hit the ground on either side, it hissed like acid and at a quick glance. He saw the ground withered, desiccated as if rotting.
Draconic roar!
Paldane appeared, entrenching the thing with his howl. A roar for a dragon but as Paldane was still so small, it sounded like the howl of a beast. But the skill was attuned with his essence, and he was a dragon, a true one. The creature was stricken, Jazmel used the moment to leap into the air and strike. The creature dodged a little too slow, while it survived. It lost an arm in the process; it screeched the sound like teeth chattering in the wind or the cold. Jazmel winced but spun his body like a top and with a backhanded slash he beheaded the creature.
He landed again and the next creature that appeared, forced all the wind to stop. He had never seen anything like it, it was as if the storm itself had formed into the upper half of a man and bore down on him. the pressure was immense, the intensity of the tension in the air almost stole the breath from between his lips. But he urged his body to move, he broke free from its pressure and the creature roared. It reared its head back and bellowed, the sound was like tempests and tornadoes. They howled in the air and Jazmel closed his eyes beneath it, he looked up and watched as Paldane tried to fly in the storm but was cast out of the sky. falling like a rock.
He himself was struck, the creature hurled a fist which was just a whirling maelstrom of energy and hit him.
He blacked out.
When he came to, he was outside of the domain. He was sitting on the floor at the entrance of the domain and when he looked up Mary and Katie was staring at him with wide grins.
“So? How far did you get?” Katie asked, intense and excited.
He was about to respond when the system notification popped up.
YOU LOSE!
YOU WERE EXPELLED FROM THE ASTRAL DOMAIN
SEE YOUR DEFEATED FOES!
SEE WHO QUASHED YOUR VICTORY!
…
X18 TIER II BLOODY KNOLL DEFEATED
X5 TIER II ARMOURED SENTINEL DEFEATED
TIER III CHAIN BEARER DEFEATED
X3 TIER III ARCANE WARDENS DEFEATED
X5 TIER III WIND WARDENS DEFEATED
TIER III WITHERED WARDEN DEFEATED
…
TIER IV STORM COLOSSUS REMAINS UNDEFEATED!
He looked over the system and shook his head, he flicked it across so Mary and Katie could look.
“No way! You got to the colossus? Mary is the only one who has done it!” Katie blew out a big breath of air in defeat.
“Who has tried the astral domain?” Jazmel asked and Mary answered.
“Everyone, except Sadé because she isn’t here. Tango because he hasn’t returned and Baek, who refuses. He said we should continue to try and break the domain ourselves.” Mary explained and Jazmel grinned.
“Who holds the top spot?” Jazmel asked with a smile and Mary buffed up her shoulders.
“Me! I didn’t beat the colossus, but it didn’t blow me away straight away.” She answered and Jazmel had to admit, he was impressed.
“What about you Katie?” he asked, and she sulked before stepping up.
“The arcane wardens got me; I hadn't seen them before. I thought they were liches, but that arcane chaos orb they threw at me almost burst the links of my chains. Then they swarmed me, but I am going back in right now!” she said and stepped into the domain.
Jazmel got up, holding Paldane in his arms, who was purring like a cat and pretending to sleep.
“I am going to put this guy down, and then read up on some things. Let me know how she does?” he said, and Mary waved him away, watching at the domain gate.
Jazmel climbed the steps, to his room and without any hindrance. He was in his room and alone, he placed Paldane on the bed and then took the moment to look at the other notifications he got.
DING!
X18 TIER IIBLOODY KNOLL DEFEATED!
EXP ACCRUED
…
X5 TIER II ARMOURED SENTINEL DEFEATED!
EXP ACCRUED!
+1 DEX
…
TIER III CHAIN BEARER DEFEATED
+2 AGL
…
X3 TIER III ARCANE WARDEN DEFEATED!
+1 STR
+1 WIL
+2 INT
…
X5 TIER III WIND WARDEN DEFEATED
+2 WIL
+2 INT
+2 PER
…
TIER III WITHERED WARDEN DEFEATED
+3 DEX
+3 AGL
EXP ACCRUED!
…
He had gained so many stats from the astral domain, he grinned at the screen. But he thought about the colossus, a tier IV that he could not manage at all. He needed to get stronger, he wondered how strong he would need to be to face a tier IV creature.
This was the first time he had, had some alone time for a while. He took the moment to look at some of the items he had got as a reward from stopping the awakening of the primordial and defeating the dread heretic.
Elixir of Arcane light, an essence draught that will greatly improve your Mana points and your Mana stats!
Phoenix life draught, made from the essence of a phoenix’s rebirth. This draught will add 1000 points to whoever consumes it’s health.
He had been to consume them both, but he hadn't had the time just yet. So he did it now, while he could. He took the draught of the phoenix life first; the bottle was solid glass and inside the draught moved with the consistency of honey. But it didn’t matter to him, he had taken in entire corpses during tier tribulations. He uncorked it and swallowed, to his surprise it tasted nice. Like a honey that had a little fire to it, it burned as it went down but he didn’t mind. It invigorated him, he felt stronger and a little better after it burned.
PHOENIX LIFE DRAUGHT CONSUMED!
1000 POINTS ADDED TO YOUR HEALTH!
…
Jazmel felt the system do something and then his body filled with vitality, he felt his body strengthen as if his life force had just increased slightly. He felt robust and healthier, the draught had been a good item for him.
He uncorked the elixir of arcane light and downed it in seconds.
DING!
TIER III ELIXIR OF ARCANE LIGHT CONSUMED!
…
…
500 POINTS ADDED TO YOUR MANA
He was incensed, his Mana core flexed like a muscle and pulled the system energy into itself. He let it do its own thing and he meditated, let the Mana move around his body and thrum the vessels it moved around to let him use skills.