Badge in Azure

Chapter 286: Banchajanna (Part 1)

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Master, you will not like the fourth method of attack," the winged skeleton replied. Without waiting for Saleen's response, he continued, "This is an inborn attack from the turtle shell, similar to the sacrificial skill which the Tanggulasi cavaliers have. It is called Fatal Dash. When this attack is used, a rhombic ice shell will be formed around the turtle shell, then the shell will dash at full speed towards the enemy."

Saleen was obviously displeased when he heard that. This skill would cause heavy damage to both parties since Saleen would have to ram his own ship into the enemy's. The Tanggulasi cavaliers might have been willing to use their own lives to achieve victory, but Saleen was not. The cavalier class had already been ostracized in the other empires. Their attitudes were not to be encouraged and publicized.

"Master, in truth, this skill is fairly useful." Now that the winged skeleton could live aboard this ship, he was overjoyed and became chatty. Then, he explained to Saleen, "This ship is of superior quality, so it can withstand any kind of impact. Even if this ship crashes into steel or rock, it will not break. The crux is in its speed."

"Speed?" Saleen already understood the crux without needing to wait for Soldier's explanation. The alchemical boat could travel up to fifty miles an hour underwater, but due to the influence of its exterior, its highest speed was only close to sixty miles an hour. Even floating on the surface, the speed did not increase either.

If such a skill provided speed, then the ship would be able to escape from the enemy's attacks in a short time. Of course, the winged skeleton understood Saleen's thoughts, which was why he said that.

It was such irony that they would use this sacrificial method for escapes.

"Tell me about the fifth method of attack." Saleen did not continue talking about this topic. In any case, the other three methods were adequate for combat already, while there was only a low probability of utilizing the fourth method.

"The fifth attack is called soul projection. Without needing to go outside, the mages inside the cabin will be able to project a phantom onto the deck using their mental power. This phantom is able to cast spells."

"Isn't this a little impractical?" Saleen was doubtful. The previous few designs by Judikaka had seemed quite functional, but it did not seem to be the case with this one.

"Master, the soul projection is immune to physical attacks," the winged skeleton explained.

Saleen thought about it hard, then he suddenly said, "Isn't that the same as a ghost?"

"Ghosts cannot release elemental magic." The winged skeleton was extremely patient, explaining the characteristics of this death creature in great detail. After listening, Saleen roughly understood the function of the fifth attack.

The first four attacks were methods which were employed during war. On the other hand, the fifth attack was more peaceful, as its aim was not to sink the enemy's ship.

"Soldier, what is the weakness of the soul projection?" Saleen asked cautiously. He was afraid that such an ability might bring some underlying harm to the user.

"Master, this is very complicated. It is hard to explain. There is no real harm, because the mages are inside the cabin. Even if the phantom is destroyed, the mages' souls will not be damaged, and the mages will only suffer loss to their mental power. However, when humans use this spell, they might mistake the phantom for their real selves, and they will thus regard the nonexistent damage as tangible damage."

Saleen understood now. The winged skeleton had explained it to Saleen through the method of a mage.

In reality, what the winged skeleton meant was that if the phantom was shot by an arrow, the mage themselves would not sustain any injuries. However, the mage would truly think that they had really been shot. A mage would need to spend a long time getting used to such an attack method and familiarize themselves with the immunity towards physical attacks which the spell provided.

Even so, once a mage became accustomed to this ability, there would be another problem. The mage would potentially think that they were immune to any physical attacks, and thus would forget to put up a defense against physical attacks in the future.

This was called magic illusion. The psychological state of humans were difficult to interpret. Some spells could deceive the enemy, but they would deceive the mage themselves as well.

It was impossible for a spell to be perfect. If the soul projection had not had such a huge flaw, then it would have been the strongest skill on the planet already.

"Master, it would be better not to use this magic array. I feel that Judikaka does not have good intentions." The winged skeleton was straightforward, unafraid of offending Judikaka.

"Don't worry, he is only testing me. If I am too afraid of using this magic array, he will despise me, and there will be no more chances for cooperation in the future."

The winged skeleton hesitated for a moment, but he still mustered his courage and asked, "Master, I have noticed that you aren't too close to the mages who were given to you by Teacher Jason. Why is this so?"

Saleen was stunned, and said, "There is no particular reason. They are from Sregl Island while I have not joined Sregl Island. Unless my teacher controls the entire island, I will always be an outsider."

The winged skeleton continued, "Master, those mages have inferior talents. On Sregl Island, it is very difficult for them to become sorcerers. That is why Teacher Jason handed them to you. Have you ever thought of making them follow you permanently?"

"Follow me permanently? What can I give them?" Saleen smiled bitterly. He wanted to possess power like Lex so that he would have many followers, but what could he give the mages in return?

"At least on paper, you are the incumbent owner of this yet-to-be constructed city. Master, with the help from the three spirit kings, you will be able to acquire so much more."

"What do you mean?"

"You can build a spirit fleet. I am sure the three kings will be more than happy to lend a helping hand."

"Why are you so sure?"

"Master, those spirits were summoned over. They will not really die during battle. Even if the soul flames are dispersed, the flames will simply return to the death dimension. There will be no loss to the three kings if they help you build a spirit fleet."

"But what can I give them?"

"You can give them whatever they desire. Anyway, the three kings don't have many desires. They just hope to get some clues regarding their personal affairs."

"Soldier, a person will have to pay an equivalent price for whatever they desire. If the three kings help me build a spirit fleet, I will have to pay out substantial rewards as well. If these mages follow me, I won't be able to guarantee their futures, and by then, how will I be able to compensate them?"

"Master, in the death dimension, the strong obtain everything. No reasons are needed. I haven't seen those kings paying any prices yet," the winged skeleton argued. At this moment, the winged skeleton was inside a gigantic crystal, and his height was now about two meters, just as it had been in the past. Nailisi stood outside the crystal and stared at him with ill intentions.

"If there was no price, then would the three kings have come onto the Myers Mainland? Do you really think that Daniel has the ability to summon them?"

"But, Master…"

"Don't go on anymore. I will treat those mages kindly, but I will not make them my followers. If I really want to use them, I will think of a way to gain control of Sregl Island. As for the three kings, I will figure out what are they searching for, then I will negotiate with them when the time is right."

At first, the winged skeleton had been worried that Saleen was so conservative that he would remain under other people's thumbs his entire life. However, after listening to Saleen's plan, he stopped nagging. The winged skeleton stimulated the images of the surroundings through the magic array. The images were still in black and white, and they appeared in front of the colossal crystal.

It was pitch darkness outside the alchemical boat, and the visibility underwater was extremely low at night. If not for the eye of the dead, the original magic images would have been less clear.

Banchajanna was nowhere to be found, while the lightning dragon had not appeared yet.

"Soldier, let's go out to sea and take a look." Saleen wanted to test the new capabilities of the alchemical boat. Even though there were an insufficient number of mages onboard to power the ship, the winged skeleton alone could already steer the ship.

"Master, the spirit pool has not started producing bone spirits. Magic nuclei need to be fused into the machinery cabin in order to move the alchemical boat."

"Nailisi," Saleen instructed Nailisi, and Nailisi removed her gaze from the crystal which housed the winged skeleton. She thought to herself, If I swallow a spirit, then I will have power to steer this ship, right? A pity the winged skeleton is Master's contract creature. He won't let me eat the winged skeleton.

"Soldier, what's the difference between using bone spirits and magic nuclei to power this ship?"

"By using bone spirits to move the ship forward, the ship will be slower than when magic nuclei are used. But, the ship will not be easily discovered. A fixed number of bone spirits will be depleted every single day. If magic nuclei are used, the ship will be able to travel at its maximum speed. But if we run into a sorcerer, it will be difficult to conceal the elemental vibrations, and the ship will be easily discovered." The winged skeleton was truly well versed in the capabilities of this ship.

After Nailisi mosaicked the magic nuclei, the winged skeleton began to steer the ship farther into the river. When Lex had been refining this ship, she had faced many limitations. Hence, whenever the ship was powered up, loud noises from the alchemical machine could be heard throughout the ship. But at this moment, the ship moved forward with almost no noise at all. Without a sorcerer around, it would be difficult to discover that there was such a huge ship traveling underwater.

This anonymous river was deep and fast flowing. As the river was quite narrow, the alchemical boat did not increase its speed. It simply followed the current and avoided the rocks in the river, floating out into the sea.

Saleen stared at the images transmitted from the eye of the dead. He felt that after the refinement by Judikaka, the ship was completely different from how it had been before. This ship was abnormally agile and lively with the winged skeleton at the helm. With four propellers driving the turtle shell, it was as though the turtle was still alive as the ship navigated the complex underwater terrain and did not run into any obstacles.

None of the other ships which could travel underwater did this, and they did not dare to travel on the river bed. This was because once the ship came into contact with the rocks on the river bed, the ship would begin leaking water, and it would thus be difficult for the ship to float up again. At this moment, the alchemical boat was not doing so not because the turtle shell was tough, but because it did not even hit any protruding rocks in the first place.

The alchemical boat did not travel towards the ocean. Instead, it traveled along the shore and advanced towards the lightning dragon's nest. Saleen was not so afraid of the lightning dragon anymore. Even though the ship had been refined by Judikaka, it could still be possible for the lightning dragon to sink the ship. There were no other mages onboard, but Saleen was not afraid of water while Nailisi could move about underwater for a long period of time. Furthermore, the winged skeleton was a spirit, so it did not need to breathe at all. Even if the alchemical boat was destroyed by the lightning dragon, no one would be hurt.

In the waters ahead, Banchajanna's massive stature came into view of the eye of the dead. In the water, Banchajanna had transformed into another appearance. He had six bone arms, all fanned out, while there was a white tail over ten meters long behind him. From afar, Banchajanna could already sense the presence of the alchemical boat approaching. He then turned around and looked. Those red flames from the soul flames in his orbitals were unusually clear, and blinding when observed from the black and white images.