Chapter 1146 God of Darkness to the Rescue II
Michael tapped the skull medallion on his chest, and his armor began to cover him, spreading seamlessly across his body in a fluid motion. Fully armored, he used his shadow teleportation ability to appear before the temple door. With a swift movement, he closed the door, sealing the room.
The orc, caught off guard by Michael's sudden appearance, started in surprise. His eyes widened as he tried to comprehend the unexpected intrusion.
Without hesitation, Michael raised his hand, activating the potion dispenser integrated into his armor. A thick cloud of dark smoke sprayed forth, quickly filling the hall and engulfing the space in an impenetrable veil of darkness.
The orc, now surrounded by the smoke, coughed and stumbled, losing his bearings in the sudden obscurity. The hall, once clear, was now a domain of shadows and confusion, perfectly suiting Michael's strategy.
The orc, engulfed in the dark smoke, let out a furious roar. "Guards! To me! We have an intruder!" he bellowed, his voice reverberating through the hall.
Michael, calm amidst the chaos, activated his Eyes of Darkness. Through the smoke, he saw the guards as green auras, indicating they were mortals he could dispatch without resorting to his godly powers. The orc, too, had a green aura, but Michael noticed something peculiar: a glowing vial dangling from the orc's neck.
Cain, concealed behind Michael's cape, whispered, "That looks like the Grace of Rainar. It's a powerful artifact."
"Kill him before he fucking consumes the grace and gains the power of a level 3 god. We can't afford that kind of escalation." Ayag chimed in urgently, Michael nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation. The Grace of Rainar could tip the scales drastically in the orc's favor. It was imperative to neutralize him before he had a chance to use it. Michael, with swift precision, lunged at the orc using his Lightning Dash technique, hovering a meter above the ground. This maneuver allowed him to avoid the people scattered on the hall floor, who were now panicking amidst the chaos.
Strategically, Michael used the crowd to his advantage. The throngs of praying and now terrified worshippers restricted the movements of the orc and his guards. Aware that these people were vital worship energy generators for Rainar, neither the orc nor the guards dared to harm them, further complicating their ability to navigate through the crowd.
To Michael's surprise, however, the orc and his guards adapted quickly to the situation. They began hovering above the crowd, moving upward to counteract their disadvantage. This unexpected move momentarily leveled the playing field, as they sought to escape the constraints of the panicked worshippers below.
Michael, observing their adaptation, couldn't help but be amused. "Adaptable, aren't they?" he remarked to Vedora, a hint of respect in his voice. "But not adaptable enough."
Panic ensued among the people in the temple as they found themselves enveloped in dark smoke. Their cries and shouts filled the air, echoing their confusion and fear.
"Help! I can't see anything!" a woman cried out, her voice trembling with panic.
"What's happening?!" shouted a man, his voice rising above the din of the crowd.
Amidst the chaos, the orc barked orders to his guards, "Use wind spells to clear this smoke! Now!"
The guards, quick to obey, began casting spells. "Ventus Purge!" one guard chanted, while another followed with, "Gale Sweep!"
The spells materialized as powerful gusts of wind, swirling through the hall. The Ventus Purge created a vortex that momentarily dispersed the smoke, revealing glimpses of the terrified crowd. Gale Sweep sent a sweeping rush of air, pushing the smoke back and providing temporary relief.
However, Michael was quick to counter their efforts. He continuously released clouds of smoke through the potion dispenser on his armor, replenishing the smokescreen faster than their spells could clear it. The hall quickly filled with smoke again, maintaining the advantage of obscurity.
The orc, realizing the futility of their attempts, turned his attention to Michael with a killing intent. "Intruder, your tricks won't save you! I'll tear you apart myself!" he growled, his voice laced with menace.
Michael, seizing the opportunity, swung his dark sword in a swift arc, aiming to decapitate the orc. However, the orc, despite his bulky frame, performed an unexpected acrobatic maneuver in mid-air. He twisted his body with surprising agility, dodging the lethal strike with a backward somersault that defied his size.
Observing the orc's nimbleness, Michael couldn't suppress a chuckle. "Impressive," he remarked. "Didn't take you for a gymnast."
Not missing a beat, Michael shifted his tactics. His eyes glowed ominously as he fired dark beams directly at the orc. The beams sliced through the air, cutting into the orc's skin. The orc roared in pain as the beams made contact, the chain holding the Grace of Rainar snapping and sending the vial flying.
Enraged and in pain, the orc bellowed, "You'll pay for that, intruder! I'll crush you!"
Michael's eyes quickly located the glowing Grace of Rainar as it landed among the panicked crowd. He noted the orc's sudden shift from aggression to panic, aware that one wrong step in the crowded hall could lead to the Grace being crushed underfoot.
The orc, realizing the precarious situation, roared at the people, "Don't move! Stay where you are!" His voice boomed across the hall, commanding and fierce.
His shout had the desired effect. The people, already paralyzed by fear and confusion, froze completely, too terrified to move a muscle. The hall, once filled with chaos, became eerily still, the tension palpable.
Michael, seizing the moment, taunted the orc, "Nothing will save you from me today."
The orc, his eyes narrowed in anger and confusion, shot back, "Who are you to challenge me?"
Michael's response was cool and confident, "Ask Rainar when I send him to join you in hell. After I send you to hell first,"
The orc, infuriated by Michael's disrespect towards Rainar, entered into a berserking frenzy. His rage was palpable as he roared, "You dare insult Lord Rainar? I'll rip you apart!"
He then shouted to his guards, "Attack! Cast every spell you know at this intruder!"
The orc himself prepared for a direct assault. He chanted, "Golden Fist of Fury!" and his massive fist began to glow with a golden radiance. The air around his hand crackled with energy, hinting at the immense power he was about to unleash.
With a battle cry, the orc launched a series of rapid punches towards Michael. Each fist, glowing with golden light, moved with surprising speed for his size, creating a blur of strikes.
Michael, however, matched the orc's ferocity with his own agility and precision. He deftly avoided each punch, moving with fluidity and grace. As he dodged, he taunted the orc, "Is that all you've got? I expected more from Rainar's champion."
Meanwhile, the guards began casting their spells. "Aqua Vortex!" one yelled, creating a swirling torrent of water aimed at Michael. "Rain of Arrows!" another shouted, as sharp, water-formed arrows rained down from above.
As the spells converged on Michael, the Responsive Shield activated around him. The pale blue, translucent shield sprang to life, absorbing the water-based attacks with ease. The shield pulsed with each impact, its energy dissipating the force of the spells.
Michael, seizing a momentary opening, aimed his dark sword at the orc's glowing golden fists, intending to cut them off. However, to his surprise, the dark sword bounced off the golden radiance with a clang, failing to make even a scratch.
The system's voice sounded in his head, [Upgrade required: Dark Sword lacks sufficient rune enhancements for effective combat against certain spells]
Ignoring the system's suggestion for the moment, Michael quickly reacted as the orc's golden fist bore down on him again. He lifted his wrist, and the Black Shield retracted from it, springing up just in time to block the punch. The impact of the golden fist against the shield sent Michael reeling into the air, the force behind the punch far greater than he had anticipated.
As he stabilized himself mid-air, Michael felt a numbing sensation in his hand from the impact. "That's quite a punch. Didn't see that coming." He commented wryly.
The orc, emboldened by his successful strike, taunted Michael with a menacing growl. "There's more where that came from, intruder! I'll rip you to shreds and offer your blood to Lord Rainar as a tribute!"
Michael, unfazed, responded with a smile and a sigh, then casually cracked his neck, signaling a shift in his demeanor. "Playtime is over," he declared coolly.
As he spoke, the hall began to darken ominously. Michael cast Death Range, enveloping the area in an eerie darkness that seemed to swallow light itself. This sudden shift in the environment was disorienting and unsettling for everyone in the room.
Simultaneously, Michael activated the potion dispenser on his armor, releasing a potent fear toxin into the already darkened hall. The combination of the darkness and the toxin began to take effect on the guards. They started to tremble, their resolve faltering under the influence of the overwhelming fear now gripping them. The once-confident soldiers, who had been casting spells with determination, were now visibly shaken, struggling to maintain their composure in the face of this new, terrifying threat.
The orc, sensing the unnatural quality of the darkness enveloping the hall, growled uneasily, "This darkness... it's not normal. What have you done?"
Meanwhile, the guards, having inhaled the fear toxin, were visibly affected. Their bodies began to shiver uncontrollably, and they ceased casting their spells. One guard, his voice shaking with fear, stammered, "What... what is this? I... I can't think straight."
"It's like my worst nightmares are coming to life! I can't fight this!" Another guard, succumbing to the effects of the toxin, cried out in a panic.
Their resolve crumbling under the combined assault of darkness and fear, the guards were rendered effectively helpless, unable to continue their offensive against Michael. The scene had turned completely, with the tables now turned in Michael's favor.
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