Chapter 232: The Undying Lich

"Just a dying struggle!" Seeing the lich release a group of golden-level undead, mixed with two soul-intent-level undead, Muria shook his head in disdain and waved his hand again.

"Go and assist Orianna. Make it quick. After clearing this city of undead, we need to move on to the next one without too much delay."

"As you command, Your Highness!" The green dragons that had appeared with the red dragon Altres, upon receiving Muria's instructions, flapped their wings and surged forward.

Three soul-intent-level green dragons and twelve golden-level green dragons faced off against the lich's undead army. It wasn't really a battle but a slaughter, a crushing defeat.

A lich's combat capability is assessed not only by its spellcasting and combat abilities but also by the number and strength of the undead it controls. In fact, much of a lich's power lies in the undead it commands.

For instance, the lich that Fiona was battling, with its skeleton almost shattered, was a prime example of this type. A single lich represented an entire legion. It was a typical example of a mass-attack tactic.

The lich sent to Cecil City by the Dead Spirit Council controlled over a dozen golden-level undead and two soul-intent-level undead. Although their levels were low, only first or second tier, this was still considered quite substantial among its peers, making it an elite lich. However, against Muria, it met the same fate as any ordinary lich.

Muria, aside from casting an eighth-circle spell to seal the space in the area, did not intend to make another move. A mere lich was not worthy of his personal intervention. The group of green dragons he had subdued was more than capable of handling it.

If he had to personally deal with such low-level liches, what was the point of having these chromatic dragons under his command?

... The green dragons obliterated or tore apart the high-level undead one by one. With the physical prowess of dragons against undead of the same level, it was a one-sided beatdown, and the outcome was never in doubt.

It didn't take long for Muria to see Fiona, now back in her voluptuous mature woman form, carrying a half-skeleton and holding a black crystal, fly towards him, bow slightly, and present the items in her hands.

"Your Highness, the lich has been dealt with."

"Hmm!" Muria took the black crystal, which faintly flickered with blue flames inside, played with it for a moment, and then stored it away.

This crystal sealed the soul fire of the lich they had just defeated. As it was affiliated with the Dead Spirit Council, its soul could not be simply dispersed.

It wasn't out of consideration for the Dead Spirit Council but because the liches of the council had a frustrating characteristic: they couldn't be killed. Ordinary liches had phylacteries, and typically, even if killed, they could resurrect through their phylacteries.

However, this method of resurrection lost its effectiveness against certain beings and their weapons. For example, weapons exclusive to Titans could permanently destroy a lich, preventing resurrection and completely annihilating the soul.

Titan weapons, sentient in their own right, would seek out the connection between the lich's phylactery and its soul, completely obliterating it.

In fact, not only Titan weapons had this effect, but certain spells and combat techniques did as well.

But the liches of the Dead Spirit Council were different. No matter how they were killed, they would resurrect after a period, almost without exception.

All methods of attacking a Council lich's phylactery through soul connections were ineffective. It was said to be blocked by one of the founders of the council.

The Death Dragon Rider, Bertelain, was a typical example. When many ancient dragons jointly pursued it, their ultimate goal was to seal it.

But this lich, notorious for slaughtering many dragons, was ruthless. When it realized it couldn't escape, it self-destructed, giving the ancient dragons no chance to capture it. So, this nemesis of the dragon race could once again roam free.

Therefore, sealing was the best method to deal with Council liches, forcing them to endure endless loneliness through the long years. However, as undead, liches didn't care about such torment as ordinary people might.

"Why bring this thing to me?" After storing the crystal containing the lich's soul fire, Muria looked curiously at the other item in Fiona's hand: a half-skeleton consisting only of a head, chest, and two arm bones.

"Your Highness, this lich was quite interesting. It carved runes into every bone of its body. Not only did this enhance its affinity with the elements, but in critical moments, it could also disassemble them to use as spell scrolls."

"If you find it interesting, keep it." Muria waved his hand somewhat speechlessly. He had witnessed the battle between Fiona and the lich. This was a lich that was extremely harsh on itself, frequently detaching its own bones to use as bombs against Fiona.

"Your Highness, don't you want it? This is equivalent to a bunch of high-grade necromancy spell scrolls." Fiona held the half-skeleton, shaking it slightly.

"No, it's too broken." Muria looked at the half-skeleton with disgust.

To be fair, the lich's body, nurtured with pure death energy for hundreds of years, resembled a sculpture crafted from high-purity crystal, enhanced by the runes carved into it, and was quite pleasing to the eye.

But since it was broken, Muria, as a being with slight OCD, naturally refused to collect it.

"Your Highness, would you like a complete one? I will definitely find one for you when I have the chance."

"Alright, I appreciate your thought, but focus on the task at hand." Muria shook his head helplessly, "Quickly, lead your kin to clear all the undead from this city and search for surviving humans."

"Understood!" Fiona bowed and went off, leading the green dragons who had just been in action to cleanse Cecil City of undead.

"And you," Muria stamped his foot, "Altres, go clear the undead tide outside the city."

"Why am I always the one to clear the undead outside the city? I can clear the undead inside the city too." The red dragon complained somewhat discontentedly upon hearing Muria's instructions.

"Because your breath is too destructive, suitable for clearing the undead tide." Muria looked down at the thorn-like bone spines and dragon scales, "And stop staring at that girl. Wipe your drool."

"I'm just looking!" Altres murmured, "I'm not doing anything."

"Then why are you drooling?"

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