The terrifying screech reverberated across the underground chamber, sending chills down the spines of everyone present.
It was a screech that did not belong to the living. Nor did it belong to the dead.
But this was just the beginning. Several more screeches followed the first one, resulting in a cacophony of unbearable noises that threatened to burst open one's eardrums.
Rotten and withered arms reached out from inside the pool one by one. Soon, one zombie after another emerged from the pool. The common thing amongst these zombies was that all of them were women.
To be precise, they were the sacrifices that had once been offered to the devil known as Malzar, Lady of the Crimson Veil!
When the Duskfall couple, as well as the guests they had brought down to the chamber, laid eyes on these hundreds of zombies emerging from the bloody pool, their bodies trembled involuntarily.
Moreover, they could even see the few dozen zombies wearing red dresses—the women they had just offered as sacrifices a few minutes ago.
This was the wrath of the devil! This was the consequence of interrupting an ongoing sacrificial ritual!
Even the Magi from the Cult of Bones were astounded by what they were witnessing. They were instructed by Olin Barrett to take care of Adam during the bloody ritual.
By all means, it should have been an easy task considering there were fourteen of them—sixteen if they included the Duskfall couple—and there was only one Adam Constantine.
Yet, they now found themselves in a situation where their own survival was somewhat questionable!
It was fine if they had to deal with a couple dozen zombies. However, the number of zombies that were emerging from the pool numbered in the hundreds. These were the sacrifices that they had offered to the devil in the past couple of years.
"My brothers and sisters!" Adam called out once again, trying to rally the dozen or so guests that the Duskfalls had invited.
"If I hadn't done what I did, your fate would have been the same as these zombies. Now, I know that the situation looks dire, but I assure you, if we work together, we can come out of this alive!"
Qamara, who was standing right beside him all this while, glanced at him with a dumbfounded look on her face. She had completely lost it at this point and couldn't even be bothered to use Mind Whisper.
"You fucking… You madman!" She screamed. "What the hell are you trying to do? Are you planning to get us all killed?! Was this your plan all along?! You must be out of your damn mind!"
Adam turned to look at her and shamelessly spoke with a disappointed expression, "That's not very ladylike."
"To hell with decorum!" Qamara roared.
At the same time, all of Duskfall's guests gathered around the pair. They looked at Adam and asked anxiously, "Magus Constantine, how do we deal with the zombies?!"
Adam glanced at the man who had just spoken. Hiding the disgust and loathing in his eyes, he assured him with an encouraging look, "As long as we work together and combine our spells, we'll be able to take care of the zombies. The only scary thing about them is their numbers. Remember, they cannot wield mana."
"But what about those black-robed Magi?!" A woman nervously spoke. "We have to deal with them as well! Or I'm afraid…"
"Leave them to me," Adam spoke selflessly. "I will make sure they pay for their crimes."
There was a ruthless glint in his dark eyes and he indirectly said those words to the Magi around him as well. However, they were too nervous to notice.
"You…" Qamara looked at Adam while gritting her teeth in indignation. "I should have never come with you here! I knew you were going to—"
However, Adam interrupted her. He placed his hand on her shoulder and assured her with a smile, "Qamara, I told you that I'll protect you. I'm not going to abandon you now."
"You…" Once again, the elf was put into a conflicting position by the raven-haired youth. She wanted to hate him, but she was unable to.
While she was reeling with her complicated emotions, Adam had already weaved a very complex series of hand signs. A portal opened in the area covered by his shadow and the two serpents from before emerged from it.
"Damn you, slaver! Where is the payment!"
"Hungry! Hungry! Won't work! Won't Work!"
The red and yellow snakes coiled around Adam and hissed in his ears. Adam sternly reprimanded them in snaketongue, "What did I tell you about getting the payment upon completion of work?"
The snaked hissed at him with indignation. They then looked around and saw the horde of zombies coming at them. There was no fear in their eyes, however. Their powers were a perfect counter for these undead creatures.
"You both assist her," Adam commanded them.
Then, he weaved another set of hand seals. A small portal formed right beside his face and, from it, Yavia, the wood spirit emerged!
The little pixie-like creature flapped her wings and flew a circle around Adam. She looked at him with a beaming smile and spoke enthusiastically, "It's been a while, Adam!"
Adam smiled back at her and nodded. "We'll have enough time to catch up later. For now, I need you to do something for me."
Yavia looked around her and understood what was going on. "You want me to support all these Magi around you?"
On the surface, Adam smiled and nodded. However, through Mind Whisper, he instructed the wood spirit, 'Only help this elf beside me. The rest of them can die!"
Yavia raised her eyebrows in slight surprise before solemnly nodding. She then flew and stood on Qamara's shoulder. "Alright, little elf. Let's work together!" She said while clenching her tiny fists.
Seeing the wood spirit on her shoulder and the two snakes on either side of her, Qamara knew that she had now found reliable allies. She looked at Adam and asked, "What do you plan to do—"
However, her words got caught in her throat when she saw a thin layer of fog envelop his body and, before she knew it, he had already teleported away.
Rank 2 Spell: Foggy Step!
"I'll be back in a minute," his departing words rang in her ears.