0p0 Chapter 44 Replicating the Actions of Those in Power
Chapter 44 Replicating the Actions of Those in Power
"Mortis, I never knew you were such a good cook. It's a waste of your talent to be a mercenary."
In a deserted corner of the ancient Holy Land of the Dragon Worship Cult, Elena held a large bowl and shoved soup into her mouth without any regard for appearances.
She no longer cared about being reserved or anything like that.
Because she discovered that Modi didn't see her as a woman at all, but clearly only as a comrade-in-arms.
She had never met a man who would pat her arm while saying:
"You're too thin and not strong enough. Eat more to grow."
After saying that, he actually served her a large bowl of meat soup, which was stewed with beef, radish and garlic.
According to Modi, the recipe was a gift from Mayor Burke of White River, and the ingredients are the same.
"Mayor Burke said it's his secret recipe, with garlic and salt as the key ingredients. Uh, I'm wondering why a pot of soup would need salt."
Frost salt is a specialty of the North, a rare alchemical material, and occasionally used as a cooking seasoning.
In addition to the broth, he also prepared soft bread and a bowl of vegetable salad for her.
Without exaggeration, this was the best meal Elena had eaten in the past seven days.
No need to worry about expenses, you can eat as much as you want.
"Head Chef, no, Mortis, the food here is amazing."
She chewed the beef, making indistinct sounds.
"If I could eat meals like this every day, I'd be willing to go through any danger with you guys!"
Modi ignored her and instead turned his gaze to the high platform of the Holy Domain, or rather, to the entire Holy Domain of the Dragon Worship Cult.
As a sacred site of the ancient Dragon Worship Cult, this place must have served as a place for sacrifices and ceremonies.
In other words, this is a natural site for certain ceremonies, an altar with excellent conditions.
With his Eye of the Soul, Mordi could see the cursed aura that had settled throughout the Sanctuary, as well as the countless souls that had been absorbed into the curse.
These souls have long since become part of the curse, forever imprisoned in torment.
For them, dissipation and death are the best relief.
"Judging from the appearance, a large-scale ghoul conversion ritual was once held here."
The more than one hundred ghouls guarding the sacred domain, as well as that dragon priest, were probably the result of the ritual.
"The cursed aura here has been accumulating for thousands of years. If it were to be unleashed at any moment, the nearby town of Baihe would likely be affected and turned into a wasteland."
If the dragon priests who have been slumbering here were to awaken naturally, they would surely unleash the curse that has been dormant for ten thousand years, thus announcing the return of the Dragon Worship Cult.
But now it is Mordi who occupies the Sanctuary, and it is he who decides the fate of the curse.
"Perhaps I was wrong before. The greatest treasure of this place is the curse that lies dormant here, not the Dragon Language Stone Wall."
If his moral standards were lower, he could unleash the curse without any scruples, creating a terrifying undead army for himself.
Unfortunately, his moral standards still need to be lowered.
Therefore, his idea changed from releasing the curse to utilizing it.
After dinner, Mordy put the bowl on the ground and said, "Elena, remember to wash the dishes later."
When Elena saw him walk towards the high platform again, she assumed he was going to study the Dragon Language Stone Wall. She nodded without saying anything and continued to concentrate on eating.
Sitting atop the remains of the dragon priest's stone coffin, Mordi surveyed the entire Sanctuary and the White Walker troops resting below, and an idea gradually took shape.
"I can't guarantee safety if I extract it rashly, but I have another plan."
He wanted to replicate an act that was etched in history, to recreate a special riot.
In the First Age, the God of Light, still a mortal, launched the first rebellion against the rule of the ancient dragons, an event known as the "Broken Shackles."
Legend has it that during the mortal era of the God of Light, he was a slave under the rule of the ancient dragons, responsible for the arduous task of digging.
Until one day, he rose up in rebellion, leading a group of slaves to smash their shackles and kill the ancient dragon priest who was overseeing the work.
He then distributed the power accumulated throughout the altar to himself and his subordinates.
This betrayal and revenge against Gu Long is known to the world as "Broken Shackles," and it is also the behavior that Mo Di wants to replicate.
Even though the God of Light has been gone for a thousand years, His words and deeds are still etched in the past and still carry extraordinary power.
Imitating the behavior of superiors is one of the origins of ritual studies.
"People call this a turning point, while Gu Long's admirers call it the beginning of a tragedy; in any case, it will become my strength."
Although he could not find the ancient dragon priest, he could summon the dragon priest's soul to serve as a substitute.
Mordy summoned the White Walker army and told Elena to stay in the corner and not ruin his plans.
Although Elena didn't understand why, she obediently did as she was told.
"There must be a reason why Mortis said that. Let's believe him first."
With everything in place, he did not hesitate and immediately took out a bag of the dragon priest's ashes and poured it on the ground.
At the same time, he triggered the immense curse that had been dormant in the sacred domain of the Dragon Worship Cult.
Some of them became active and, under his guidance, flowed into the dragon priest's ashes.
A sudden gust of cold wind arose out of nowhere, stirring up the ashes on the ground and gradually revealing a human-shaped outline.
In the corner, Elena suddenly felt a chill and instinctively hugged her arms.
Then, her eyes widened as she witnessed an unbelievable scene.
"The Dragon Priest has resurrected. Could it be that he won the resurrection match against the Prisoner?"
Accompanied by the wails of the dead, the dragon priest in his demonic form slowly spoke:
"I didn't expect someone to summon me so quickly, pulling me out of the realm of oblivion. Speak, you... how is it you?!"
He looked like he'd seen a ghost, and couldn't help but take a half step back, his finger trembling as he pointed at Modi.
"Of course it was me, otherwise how could anyone have pulled you out?" Modi smiled as he told him a cruel truth:
"I remembered that you still have some value that hasn't been exploited, so I summoned you back. Alright, let's begin our forced game."
With that, he placed one hand on the dragon priest's face and forced the man to kneel down.
"No, you can't, you mustn't...!"
Modi ignored his futile struggles. He was no match for the man when he was alive, and he was even less likely to defeat him now that he was dead.
"Come, help me complete this final ritual."
After whispering softly, he suddenly exerted his strength, and the shackles formed from ice on his hands smashed down on the dragon priest's head, shattering instantly.
The dragon priest, who was the vessel of the curse, was attacked, causing the dormant curse underground to erupt.
One by one, the cursed souls rose from the ground, repeating their dying cries, and began an indiscriminate massacre.
They first ran into the White Walker army, which was already prepared.
The White Walkers roared, smashing the icy shackles in their hands, and clashed with the undead.
They shattered not only the shackles on their bodies, but also their past selves as members of the Dragon Worship Cult.
On the high platform, Modi pressed down on the dragon priest's head, sensing that the ritual was now on track.
He decided to proceed to the next step of the ceremony.
Extending his icy claws formed from crimson ice crystals, he pierced through the dragon priest's soul and tore it in two with a slight effort.
The dragon priest had completed his mission, and his soul vanished without a trace. It's estimated that he won't have to return to the Forgotten Realm to suffer anymore.
Feeling grateful for having done another good deed, Modi used a ritual to leverage the connection between the dragon priest's soul and the curse, thus breaking the massive curse deep underground.
Beneath the sacred ground, the souls slumbering deep within the curse are awakened one after another, realizing that their dwelling place is constantly being lost, and that they themselves are being torn apart.
Finally, the curse was poured into a group of undead creatures, just as the God of Light had seized the power of the altar for his subordinates.
Under the curse, the hundred-strong White Walker army fought with ever greater ferocity.
They learned the skills of the deceased from the curse, from swords and spears to spellcasting; even if they weren't masters of everything, they were certainly skilled.
In just three minutes, they tore the rioting souls to shreds.
In them, Mordy could vaguely see the figures of the first slaves who broke their shackles at the end of the First Era.
After eliminating the enemy, the White Walkers quickly lined up and stood in front of him.
Their eyes seemed to gleam with wisdom, which puzzled Modi.
Could it be that those torn-up souls have an intelligence-boosting effect?
It's unclear, since he didn't absorb any fragments of dead souls in order to avoid defiling his own soul.
Naturally, there is no way to investigate this.
"Having absorbed only a portion, I and my White Walker army have already improved so much. The dormant curse here is not to be underestimated."
Even after replicating the [Broken Shackles], he only extracted a portion of the immense curse here; the rest remained dormant underground, awaiting further development.
The special curse here is different from the curse he received from Krishnamurti.
The curse of Krishnamurti brings uncontrollable regeneration and targets the physical body, while the curse here causes the soul to wither and specifically targets the soul.
Modi named it "The Curse of Withering," a name derived from the "Curse of Distortion" of Krishnamurti.
The Mortis's Chill Curse has been upgraded. Those afflicted by this curse will not only experience muscle spasms and icy coldness, but will also suffer from mental exhaustion and frequent hallucinations.
This can be considered as making up for the psychological harm.
The ritual is not over yet. Breaking the shackles is just one part of a larger ritual. The next part will be...
Just then, a strange roar entered the Holy Domain.
The roar was so loud that even the stone walls within the sacred domain trembled slightly.
As if sensing something, Mordi looked in the direction of Winter's Throat and softly uttered a word:
"...Slaying dragons."
Legend has it that shortly after the God of Light shattered his shackles, he engaged in a fierce battle with an invading ancient dragon, ultimately tearing the dragon's immortal scales apart with his spear of light.
This also marked the first time in history that an ancient dragon had died.
If he can continue the ritual and complete the dragon-slaying, even if he doesn't kill an ancient dragon, he will surely gain immense benefits.
"Elena, the plan has changed, I need to move out ahead of schedule."
Before leaving, he specifically handed the package containing the jade dragon carving to Elena, instructing her to take good care of this valuable item.
Elena took the package containing the things that stirred her emotions, but her mind was not on it at all.
"Why so suddenly? Shouldn't you rest for a bit before going?" Her tone was tinged with worry.
"Did you hear that roar just now? It means someone is causing trouble for that dragon."
Modi didn't know who was causing trouble for the Ice Dragon. Although this disrupted his plan to approach Winter's Throat, it also gave him a strong premonition.
This will be his chance.