Chapter 933: Ghosts

Hiraku had been rescued, and it was only a matter of minutes before some of his Soultrait Symbols were upgraded. The influx of SoulStar Fragments would strengthen Hiraku and grant him enough power to deal with a few more Dragys without Michael's intervention. Michael was overflowing with energy. Death Call and the energy influxes provided him with more energy than expected. However, the combination of Death Call, the Nature Heart, and the energy shares was even more impactful. Michael earned a portion of power from every death within the Untamed Jungle and its proximity. The energy shares provided by his subjects were still substantial and couldn't be ignored, but the mammoth portion of power surging through his body and entering his Energy Vortex came from Death Call.

But that was necessary. Michael needed more power to rescue his people and defeat the Dragys.

He closed his eyes and summoned the Undead Souls, abominations that formed from the resenting souls of the deceased Dragys. They didn't want to obey Michael and attack him instead, but the Soul Grimoire manifested next to him, protecting its owner. Michael sensed instinctively what he could do with the Undead Souls using the Soul Grimoire, and the corners of his lips curled upward.

'This is interesting. Is that the combination of Soul Grimoire and Death Call? Is that how I can use them? Nice!

The Undead Souls were incorporeal and shifted shapes at all times. However, most Undead Souls would retain the same upper body they used to have while their lower transformed into fog, clouds, tentacles, tails, or more. Michael was not sure what he should consider those Undead Souls, but they were decent combatants. Hel said so.

[They retain half of their former power for several hours - you can stop the countdown by storing them in the Soul Grimoire - until they disperse and their souls regain freedom. Undead Souls can attack the souls of other creatures and possess the bodies of weak-willed beings. You might not think much of them, but they're fast, and their attacks work wonders against those who didn't refine their souls with powerful techniques. Furthermore, physical attacks cannot harm them, and elemental attacks do little damage.]

"Why can I only control them with the Soul Grimoire? You seem to know so much about Undead Souls. I sincerely doubt you cannot control them well," Michael asked Hel, ignoring Hiraku's confused expression.

[I use my Authority of Death to control them. You are not yet capable of that. Maybe in the future. For now, however, you must rely on the Soul Grimoire to control the Undead Souls and store them in the Soul Grimoire. For the records, you can also use your other Soultraits to mix, mash, and tear the Undead Souls apart. It will be interesting if you try Insert on two similar Undead Souls, but...don't use Insert on Undead Souls and the Soul Grimoire. You will permanently bind them to the Soul Grimoire. That can be helpful, but permanently binding Undead Souls will occupy your Soul Grimoire's space.]

Michael listened intently but shrugged at last. He sent the Undead Souls out, ordering the ghost-like abominations to rescue his people. He deployed the Undead Souls where they could cause the most harm to the Dragys while indirectly rescuing as many residents of his territory as possible. How could the Undead Souls achieve that? By killing the weakest enemies, possessing their bodies, and inflicting friendly fire. The Dragys wouldn't be able to trust their backs to their comrades once the news of friendly fire spread like wildfire. At the same time, the Dragys might be stronger than the Untamed Awakened and Untamed Armies, but not all of them were strong. The Dragys' forces contained Lesser Lifeforms and weaker Higher Lifeforms as well!

The Undead Souls shot in all directions, ready to spread fear and wreak havoc all over the outer parts of the Untamed Jungle.

"Michael, you better move fast. The first Pentagon Fort has already fallen, and-..." Michael stopped Hiraku with a hand gesture and a sad smile.

"I know. I know everything." He said before disappearing into thin air.

Michael's senses spread all across the Untamed Jungle. Every creature other than the remaining Lords and their subjects was now linked to him. He had access to all monsters and plants. They were all...subordinate to him. He could feel them. He had undisputed dominion over them!

Hiraku stares at Michael's location, his eyes narrowed to tiny slits. Something about his friend was different. Michael was more.

A few seconds of silence passed, which his subconscious used to distribute the SoulStar Fragments and upgrade some Soultrait Symbols to a higher star rating. At last, Hiraku received a new order from Michael via Whispering Energy.

[Go south. Sun Demos and Icarus will require your help in...40 seconds.]

Hiraku tilted his head but moved regardless. He trusted Michael. His friend would never abandon his people or betray them. If anything, Michael would rather carry all responsibility alone and carry all wounds than letting someone else be hurt. But that was not possible. Michael couldn't be everywhere simultaneously. Hiraku reached Sun Demos and the Monkey King's subordinates. They were busy fighting some Lesser Lifeforms led by some weaker, Higher Lifeforms. 'They can handle this. Why did Michael tell me to come here?' Hiraku wondered, his eyes flicking to Icarus and the other Minor Typhoon Rocs, who released a typhoon shrouded in razor-sharp wind blades. As the typhoon reached them, they wreaked havoc and tore several Dragys into bits and pieces.

Hiraku couldn't help but think that his help wasn't needed when a group of Dragys, mostly Higher Lifeforms at the 4th and 5th Tier, arrived at the scene. Hiraku tensed up and used Creation and Titan Spirit instantaneously. He summoned his Artifacts and activated his newest Soultraits, transforming the veins and roots covering him, changing their color.

Hiraku was ready to fight the Dragy unit with his life on the line.

However, the towering Titan wasn't alone. He slowed down when the scrub to his right rustled. A cacophony of sounds reverberated, taking Hiraku by surprise as a small horde of jungle monsters pushed through the shrubs and bushes. They emerged from the undergrowth and attacked the Dragys valiantly.

There weren't many High Beasts among the monsters, but their numbers were already enough to take the Dragys by surprise. The Dragys had been surrounded and were now occupied dealing with the High Beasts and their subordinates, and they didn't even perceive Sun Demos, Icarus, or Hiraku.

Hiraku tapped into his Titan Spirit power to control the surrounding nature with the Great Nature Spirit's help. The Dragys were restrained for a quarter of a second, creating countless opportunities all over the battlefield. Sun Demos ripped a Dragys' throat open. Icarus and his family cut them into countless pieces using hundreds of highly compressed wind blades, and the High Beasts pounced at the Dragys. Simultaneously, Hiraku charged into the mess of jungle monsters once he realized that the monsters didn't attack him or Sun Demos. They left enough space for Hiraku, showing him they didn't mean to attack him. His eyes widened in surprise.

'The Untamed Jungle is on our side!'