Chapter 146: Ghost King
Lin Yun was still in the air when Ghosts pounced over at him.
The River of Ten Thousand Ghosts was named this way due to the amount of ghosts within, far surpassing any place within Noscent. It could be said that the entire Bone Plane's Ghosts were already focused in the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts. It could be seen from how several hundred Ghosts were surging towards Lin Yun while he was still several hundred meters above the river.
Ghosts were unconventional undead lifeforms, monsters made up of negative emotions and shattered souls. They didn't have real bodies, they didn't have formidable power, and they didn't even have thoughts. They would end up drifting in the same area forever, continuously exuding an aura of death and resentment. Unless it was a special area, places where Ghosts were concentrated would definitely become sinister and full of death, just like the Flame Tyrant's Ghost City.
The fighting strength of Ghosts was actually not worth talking about. For the most part, they were around level 5, and furthermore, they didn't have the ability to think. They only had one fighting strategy, which was to tear at their targets like wild beasts.
But now, several hundred of them were pouncing towards Lin Yun.
This was certainly an amount that was enough to make a 5th Rank Great Mage nervous.
However, Lin Yun wasn't paying much attention to them. He urged his Magic Arrays and was computing at a shocking speed, analyzing the aura of these Ghosts.
Lin Yun wanted a brand new version of Spirit Defense.
There really were too many Ghosts in the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts, to the point that his Spirit Defense couldn't handle them, allowing these several hundreds to cause him to experience illusions. Wouldn't he go crazy when several thousands charged at him?
To Lin Yun, a satisfactory Spirit Defense was most important.
As for those several hundred Ghosts...
Before they were able to draw close to Lin Yun, they felt the pressure of Undead Predator. This was the pressure that the masses would feel when a ruler looked at them. Even if they were formed from negative emotions and fragments of souls, they had an instinctive fear of that pressure.
However, although those Ghosts could feel fear deep within them, they weren't like those Skeleton Warriors who would all bolt in defeat. They stopped charging at him, but they didn't flee, either. They only kept a certain distance from Lin Yun, trailing behind him like sinister puppies.
His Magic Arrays finished the complex calculations when he reached the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts.
A brand new Spirit Defense finally covered Lin Yun.
Lin Yun suddenly felt his surroundings quieten down, and there were no more strange hallucinations appearing around him.
Naturally, it would be impossible to completely avoid the harassment of the Ghosts in a place such as the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts. After the Spirit Defense had been reinforced by the Magic Arrays, it still could only block most of the illusions. For the rest, he could only rely on his staunch willpower.
Lin Yun's feet were already reaching the water surface. Under the support of the 4th Tier Spell, Water Walk, the water felt just like solid ground. From Lin Yun's current position, he could clearly see the countless Ghosts drowning in the river. Mournful howls and weeping kept echoing in his ears, sounding sinister and strange, making his heart tighten.
An endless amount of Ghosts covered the horizon. Although The River of Ten Thousand Ghosts flowed for about three kilometers, the Ghosts gathered there amounted to several millions.
It was also for this reason that even though the Ivory Tower was able to conquer the Bone Plane several millennia later, the members who had yet to reach the Archmage realm weren't allowed to approach this river. It was a true forbidden region.
Aside from a person on par with Archmages, only an abnormal existence like Lin Yun could enter this place.
And the main reason that he could get here this early was the Undead Predator ability.
For Great Mages, and even for High Mages, the assault of several hundred thousand Ghosts was inescapable. Even if they were around level 5, even if they fought like wild beasts, once the scale reached hundreds of thousands, those weak points would become meaningless.
But to Lin Yun with his Undead Predator ability, Ghosts didn't have the same meaning. As long as he was able to deal with the illusions and hallucinations, the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts would be the shortcut leading him directly to the Book of Death.
Lin Yun stepped on the surging waves as he followed the river, while countless Ghosts followed him. Yet none of the Ghosts dared to breach the ten-meter void around him. They only screamed, wept, and wailed with all their strength...
But in the end, they were unable to stop Lin Yun's progress across the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts.
He soon crossed over half of the three-kilometer-long river, with none of the Ghosts managing to get any closer to him during that time. Lin Yun's expression grew grave as drew closer to the Book of Death. He tightly held his Spiritual Magic Staff in one hand while clenching the Blood Heart in his pocket with the other hand.
He knew that he only had one chance!
Under the impetuous waves, several hundred meters were crossed in an instant. From his position, he could already see a huge figure standing at the end of the river.
That was the Ghost King.
It was the ruler of the countless Ghosts within the river, and its strength far surpassed that of the Giant Blood Tree he had battled earlier. It was only a step away from reaching level 30. In the entire Bone Plane, the only existence stronger than this Ghost King was the Bone Dragon slumbering at the Bone Peak.
Besides that slumbering Bone Dragon, the only thing that could restrain the Ghost King was the Blood Heart in Lin Yun's hands.
'It's time!' Lin Yun's grip tightened on the Blood Heart. One opportunity would decide between life and death...
300 meters, 200 meters, 100 meters...
The distance between them was slowly shrinking. Lin Yun who was softly walking on the surging waves felt cold sweat on his palms. 50 meters, 30 meters, 20 meters. Lin Yun could already see the Ghost King's sinister face, a pair of window-sized eyes staring at him. Sharp teeth were visible in that bloody maw.
"I dare you to bite me!" The Elemental Incarnation prepared in Lin Yun's Spiritual Magic Staff was released, and he instantly transformed into a flowing stream of water.
In his Water Elemental Incarnation state, Lin Yun used the waves of the river to transform into a sharp arrow shooting towards the open maw of the Ghost King.
Just as he went in, Lin Yun poured mana into the Blood Heart, and with the help of a prepared alchemy array, a huge amount of life energy gushed out.
That was the entire Blood Forest's life energy.
Even if the Ghost King was already a frightening existence approaching level 30, it could only let out a blood-curdling screech under the attack of such powerful life energy. Life energy was a source of power that all animals and plants yearned for. But for the Ghost King, it was like a fierce poison piercing it from the inside.
That's right, piercing from inside.
The Blood Heart surging with life energy almost instantly gouged through the Ghost King's chest, and Lin Yun, who had just been swallowed by it, used this wound to flow out. An angry roar echoed behind him, but Lin Yun didn't throw a single glance back and directly leapt down the end of the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts.
It was a bottomless cliff. The River of Ten Thousand Ghosts was flowing down this cliff as countless Ghosts were screaming amidst the misty water. While still being surrounded by these Ghosts, he poured mana into the Lava Dominator and the pair of flaming wings spread out again, fiercely flapping, leading him towards the place he remembered from the notes.
The Ghost King's roar sounded more and more distant and the illusions before his eyes gradually faded away. As he flew away, Lin Yun was eventually certain that he had left the range of the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts.
After Lin Yun touched the ground, he raised his head and looked around. His surroundings were filled with bones. There was a majestic palace several hundred meters ahead. However, that palace hadn't been built from brick, but rather from ghastly and sinister bones.
That was Lin Yun's destination, the Bone Peak.
The summit of the Bone Plane, the location where the Book of Death resided, and also the place where the Bone Dragon was slumbering.
Several millennia later, the three young Mages from the Ivory Tower would drive a worn-out magic battleship, and the first volley of cannon fire landed exactly on this Bone Peak, conveniently ending the life of the slumbering Bone Dragon.
Unfortunately, Lin Yun didn't have a magic battleship right now. Thus, Lin Yun had no choice but to be cautious, approaching the Bone Peak very slowly. But at least he had gone through a shortcut by ending the Blood Forest and forcing his way through the River of Ten Thousand Ghosts before finally standing in front of the Bone Peak.
The Bone Dragon's lair was a place that ordinary undead creatures didn't dare to approach. After avoiding a few groups of Bone Knights, he smoothly entered the Bone Peak.
Then, Lin Yun used Haste on himself.
Lin Yun knew that the Bone Dragon was slumbering, so he had to be careful. It wouldn't be that easy to grab the Book of Death once the Bone Dragon awakened.
After being melded in the Magic Array, this Haste spell made Lin Yun's speed reach its limits. He managed to pass through the entire Bone Peak in less than ten minutes and stood in the middle of a spacious hall made of bones.
This hall was a few hundred meters wide, feeling spacious and cold. Besides a hexagram star array flickering with a dazzling light, there was only a black book hovering above the ground.
Lin Yun knew that this was the Book of Death...