After taking a shortcut with the Storm Warrior, the two of them didn't reach the front of the Chasm Palace until nightfall.
The palace here was very well-preserved; instead of dilapidated walls and ruins, it consisted of many intact building complexes.
The palace gates were tightly shut, but the Storm Warrior knew how to enter. After making a few turns through a side entrance, they successfully reached the palace interior.
"It really is spectacular," Lara exclaimed, looking at the magnificent decorations inside the palace. "Himiko might have truly been a great queen; otherwise, her subjects certainly wouldn't have built such a magnificent palace for her."
"Hmm... or maybe she was a tyrant."
Xia Yu held a contrary opinion, but he didn't say much more on the subject. Instead, he turned to the Storm Warrior and spoke.
"Take me to your companions!"
He remembered that in the game's palace hall, there were hundreds of Storm Warriors guarding the place. They were orderly and disciplined, seemingly performing a never-ending ritual.
Although he didn't know what they were sacrificing, Xia Yu didn't want to let these tool-men go.
Hearing this, the green-eyed Storm Warrior nodded and led them directly toward the Legion Hall of the palace.
If they encountered Solarii members along the way, the Storm Warrior would proactively step forward and hack them to death before Xia Yu even had to lift a finger.
After advancing for about half an hour, the light of torches suddenly appeared ahead. In the night, the glowing torches were very conspicuous.
The Storm Warrior stopped as well and pointed forward with his hand.
Seeing this, Xia Yu cracked his wrists and said, "Lara, you wait here for a bit. I'll be right back."
With that, green mist rose from his hands once again. Seeing this, Lara already knew what Xia Yu was planning to do, so she didn't say anything more and turned to look at the murals on the side.
In fact, just now, these relief-like murals had already caught her attention. They seemed to depict Himiko's life story, so she took the opportunity to study them.
On the other side, Xia Yu walked toward the entrance with an arrogant swagger and then kicked it open!
"Bang—!"
The door at the entrance went flying, spinning through the air, and slammed heavily into one of the Storm Warriors.
In the next moment, dense red lights flickered to life. It was the bloodthirsty glow in the eyes of the Storm Warriors as they all turned their heads to look at the entrance.
To be honest, this scene reminded Xia Yu of a somewhat eerie video where a large field of sunflowers suddenly turned their heads to look at the screen simultaneously, appearing both weird and terrifying.
"Kill..."
The Storm General sitting at the head of the hall coldly uttered a single syllable. Upon hearing this command, all the remaining Storm Warriors drew their katanas from their waists with a series of metallic rings.
"Heh, look at you acting all tough."
Xia Yu raised both hands and gave the international gesture of friendship. Then, green smoke began to drift from the corners of his mouth. Since Lara wasn't here, he no longer needed to hide his true colors.
After scanning the positions of all the Storm Warriors, Xia Yu's figure flickered and he vanished from his spot.
He moved so fast that none of the Storm Warriors could react. In the next instant, green mist suddenly erupted from the center of the Storm Warriors' ranks!
The Plague Domain spread instantly. The Storm Warriors within the domain hadn't even seen the enemy's shadow yet, but they were already being invaded by the plague.
"Roar—!"
Screams of pain rang out one after another. Under the erosion, the Storm Warriors began to attack indiscriminately.
Xia Yu didn't have the patience to control them one by one. If he had to control over a hundred Storm Warriors individually, his palms would probably cramp from all the slapping.
He simply activated the Plague Domain for an area-of-effect erosion. Although it might be a bit painful, it wasn't him who was hurting anyway.
The Storm General sitting on the high platform couldn't sit still anymore. Watching his subordinates begin to slaughter each other indiscriminately, he grabbed the giant spiked mace beside him and stood up.
Standing at least two meters tall, the Storm General exuded an intense pressure just by standing up, not to mention the giant spiked mace he held in his hand.
The combination of the two gave the Storm General an unparalleled sense of oppression.
"Raaargh—!"
With a roar, the Storm General's massive silhouette burst through the swirling green mist. Before any nearby Storm Warriors could even get close, they were smashed into the floor by his mace.
The giant spiked mace swept through the surroundings, forcibly clearing an open space. Those eroded Storm Warriors were too terrified to step forward, even though their minds were no longer clear.
"Come out!!"
The Storm General shouted loudly, his voice like a gale of thunder that shook the dust from the ceiling beams.
"As you wish."
Like a shadow demon in the mist, Xia Yu appeared behind the Storm General without making a sound.
Before the Storm General could react, Xia Yu condensed a black Ghost Hand from his palm and thrust his claws through the gaps in the Storm General's helmet.
soul knight Xia Yu's study of Necromancy Spells had only just begun, so he could only condense a Ghost Hand on his own hand. In the soul knight world, the Necromancer lady could directly summon Ghost Hands to assist in battle.
Furthermore, the Necromancer lady's Plague Domain could even summon Calamity Stones to fall from the sky and deal area damage, leaving behind Plague Spiders upon impact. At the same time, enemies who died within the Plague Domain would be converted into skeletons to assist the summoner.
Having used a budget version of the Plague Domain, Xia Yu's combat style could only be described as amateurish. However, for these Storm Warriors, it was an irresistible special attack against the undead!
"Puchi!"
The pitch-black Ghost Hand pierced into the Storm General's neck without any resistance. Then, Xia Yu jumped nimbly, dodging the Storm General's counterattack.
The Ghost Hand had already injected the plague into the Storm General's body. Now, he just had to wait patiently; sooner or later, these Storm Warriors would be dyed in his color.
As time slowly passed, the green mist gradually seeped into the bodies of all the Storm Warriors. Their eyes, flickering between red and green, showed their struggle.
But this struggle was in vain. After a few more minutes, the green mist dissipated completely, and the Plague Domain was deactivated.
The Storm Warriors lying on the ground twitched from time to time. Almost all of them were injured, but their glowing green eyes clearly indicated that their current master was now Xia Yu.
"A little exercise is nice. These Necromancy Spells are indeed useful."
Xia Yu, the only one standing, clenched his fists, feeling the consumption of mana within his body.
Then he took out a Healing Spell Potion, took a sip himself first, and then dripped a drop onto the ground.
Spell potions could all be ingested. Of course, no one would be stupid enough to drink a lightning spell potion unless they were confident in mastering that violent thunder.
As the healing aura expanded, the dying Storm Warriors gradually recovered. Although they were immortal and indestructible, it still took time for them to either resurrect or recover from their wounds.
Once the healing aura vanished, the Storm Warriors knelt on one knee to offer their loyalty. Even the Storm General, who was the most loyal to Himiko, had to bow his head to Xia Yu at this moment.
Tsk, I feel like I've NTR'd Himiko.
Looking at the Storm Warriors swearing fealty to him, this thought suddenly popped into Xia Yu's head.
But forget about NTR-ing Himiko; he didn't even plan to let Himiko off.
But Xia Yu shook his head vigorously. A Sun Queen? Forget it; he wasn't into such extreme tastes.
"Alright, go and kill all the Solarii members in the palace, and then find me at the Chasm Shrine."
Looking at the Storm Warriors before him, Xia Yu waved his hand and issued a new command.