Gou is a dark elf in Warhammer

Chapter 159 9. Marus and his good friends

Marus Blackblade arrested Furlan Baler, the son of Barnes Baler, the admiral of the Black Ark Nagol, after Hanil Hara ended last time, and had a friendly exchange. He learned from Furlan that Malanur of the Hellscourge family in Krakarond was also involved, and the few Drucci dignitaries who watched him being ambushed at the city wall that day were probably the Hellscourge family of.That Maranul also brought back a group of Asur slaves because of his younger brother Dacus, and Maranur didn't want his younger brother and a black blade to be talked about and compared at the same time by Drucci of Krakarond , Only then did the ambush happen, how absurd it is!
Marus also learned from his half-brother, Nagalia, that it was his half-brother, Ulay, who planned this incident, and he knew in advance that he was going to Krakalond through a magical message. After that, Nagalia told him that Ulay had the key to a treasure house in his hand, and in a secret meeting under the darkness, an agreement was reached, and he and his sister had a wonderful relationship.He led his followers to raid Ulay's hidden treasure house in the family's underground, and led his followers to escape from Hagrid Grave, heading towards the Chaos Wasteland in the north.

Now that treasure house is within easy reach!But Malus' team was also attacked by a group of Beastmen.

Malus's Cold One, Venom, pounced on one of the Beastmen, and at the same time he struck the other hard in the back of the head.Malice tore the target with its sharp claws, and he slit the back of his target's neck. The beastmen screamed in shock and panic. Within minutes, the surviving Beastmen retreated.

"Get your repeating crossbows ready, and line up in front of the gate!" Marus noticed the jagged howls and roars of the Beastmen echoing in the dense and gloomy forest on the way they came, and he thought about it After a moment, he began to order loudly.

"I won't blame you, you stupid little pear." Malus rode on the road leading to the gate with Resentment, and Resentment refused to take another step after reaching a place ten meters away from the gate.He muttered something to himself and slid off the saddle.

Lunara, Vanhir, and Darvar, and the squires who set out with Malus from Hagrid Grave, strangled their Cold Ones by the side of Venom, and took out their repeaters to lean on the Cold Ones. Arrange in a formation.

A wild din echoed through the woods, and it sounded like the Beastmen prowling in the dark were coming after the Drutches.

Malus reached into his saddlebag and pulled out a strange skull.The pitch-black skull seemed to be glaring at him with obvious disgust, a feeling that might have disturbed him once, but now he had mastered how to resist that feeling.

Malus turned around and stared at the surging energy outside the gate, the air seemed to freeze sometimes, and suck energy greedily at other times.Purple and pink lightning bolts raged in billowing red and purple clouds above the vault.With the change of time, the scenery outside the gate kept distorting and flashing with strange light.In the last second, he saw the vast desert as red as blood, and in the next second, he seemed to see a vast starry sky composed of hundreds of ancient planets.With a flash, he saw a flat and boundless plain, baking under the merciless scorching sun, and a mighty army swept across the blood-stained plain.There was another flicker, and he saw a moonless land. Under the lonely starry sky, a ruined city composed of one-eyed giant towers was waiting for the sleeping gods to wake up and swallow the world with blood.

Malus looked at the maddening, dizzying chaos of images, and he knew what he was seeing was out of this world.He saw worlds that even the gods dared not set foot in, and he knew that if he stepped in, he would be lost forever, like a handful of sand thrown into a stormy sea.

"What can you create, damn soul, what can you destroy!" Marus thought arrogantly, he held the strange skull tightly, he could feel the energy of the skull lingering in his hand, he Gathering your mind, you began to approach the dreadful door slowly.

"You once spoke through my body. At that time, you were worried that you would get lost in the land of death! But that kind of danger is nothing compared to what you are facing now? Open the door! Or die together in this place In the vortex!" Marus stepped into the platform with one foot while thinking.

When Malus stepped onto the platform, he could feel a surge of new energy rushing through his body.Despite the rough exterior of the gate, he could feel some mysterious mechanism embedded in its stone walls, waiting for the right person to open it again.Holding the strange skull in front of him, he slowly approached the raging vortex energy.

"You think I'm weak, huh? Do you think I won't step into flames? Then you're a fool. I'll burn, but you'll be with me! Drucci will seek death in the face of failure. Open the door! Otherwise Let's die together!"

There was a humming sound in the air, and Malus could feel the skull trembling violently in his hands.So close to the vortex, he could even feel the skull twisting and pulling at his skin, as if the skull was reaching out to him.The vortex energy was constantly changing, and cruel, twisted faces emerged to stare at him hungrily outside the gate.Whether the faces hungered more for his soul than for the strange skull, he couldn't tell.

"Strange skull! Are you ready to face those waiting for you?" The blue flames of swirling energy began to lick the surface of the skull, blowing violently across the arc of the skull, as if the skull had been forcibly thrown into the furnace In the high temperature, Malus could even feel the skull start to heat up in his hands.

The strange skull touched the turbulent vortex energy, and the dark and empty eye sockets seemed to be burning with violent life. The skull pierced the flame spikes into Marus's brain like a spearhead, and continued to be angry in Marus's mind slapped.

Malus' body tensed, his head fell back, his mouth opened in a cold scream, and then began to utter harsh curses.

"No! You want to master this body? You can't control me! I am Marus of Hagrid Grave! I will not yield to anyone! Follow my orders! Otherwise you will suffer bad luck!" Maru Si felt the soul in the strange skull clenched like a fist in his mind, and manipulated his body to begin to back away from the vortex energy.he roared furiously as he wrestled with the spirit of the strange skull in a contest of will.

Screams of pain filled the air as swirling energy lashed out at the strange skull and extended into Malus' body.The soul of the strange skull turned into an incoherent howl under the touch of the vortex energy, and Marus saw an incredible scene in his mind, a strange eye was watching him!
The liquid-like powder-blue flame was boiling wantonly, and the terrifying and cold eyes were always watching Marus, piercing his soul through layers of curtains.

Blood started gushing from Malus' mouth, the strange skull jerked violently in his hand, he felt the skull start to crack, and the swirling energy began to change direction and rush towards him, splashing hiss on his breastplate Hissing sound.

A terrifying shudder passed through his soul, and the terrifying vortex energy began to expand. He seemed to realize that there seemed to be some immortal existence pushing the raging vortex energy away.The cry of the strange skull reached a frightening climax, and the foamy blood spurted from his throat, and he could feel the deep fear in the soul inside the skull.In a fleeting lucidity, Malus seemed to see the fate of the strange skull, and even his hardened soul trembled.

The gate began to shake, falling into pieces of molten rock, and the mechanism failed in a thunderclap.

A terrifying light flashed, and a huge eagle claw was condensed from the vortex energy, gripping the hot surface of the skull.The bone turned into dust under the touch of the untouchable eagle claw, the vortex energy disappeared, as if it had never existed, and at the same time it disappeared, it also took away the soul in the strange skull.

Marus knelt there, hot steam came out from the seams of his armor, he heard his own heartbeat again, before his numb mind tried to concentrate and think, this moment was so terrifying!
When Malus focused again, he saw a white road made of skulls stretching before him, leading to a huge stone building made of marble.There are no windows and no fresco reliefs.This is not a treasure trove!This is a temple of power!Built here not to worship unseen gods, but to serve worldly ambitions!

This temple ignited the fire of desire in Malus' chest!
Marus stood up, trying to suppress the pain from his body with ruthless will.This is a victory beyond imagination!He could feel his desire calling to him.Maybe with the power hidden in the temple, he can make the whole world bend to his will!
At this moment, Durucci called Marus' name loudly.Malus turned away, trying to focus on the sound.

"My lord! Those beastmen are ready to attack!" Lunara turned her head and shouted at Marus.

Marus saw the Beastmen preparing to attack a hundred meters away, and a trembling roar spread throughout the huge team of Beastmen, that piercing voice seemed to be challenging the Druccis.The beastmen uttered bloodthirsty howls again, and then launched an attack.

"Enter the temple and block the gate!"

The Duruccis led the Cold One into the temple and began to take defensive measures.

"This won't stop this pack of Beastmen forever! What will we do when they break through the gate?" Van Thiel asked, looking at Malus when he was ready.

"Then block them!" Marus simply said something perfunctory, and then disappeared into the temple.

The sound of Malus' footsteps echoed hollowly in the narrow passage leading to the center of the temple. There were no torches on the walls, no ironwork holding green fireballs.Instead, the black marble walls seemed to emanate an eerie power that somehow diluted the darkness, like water added to ink.He could see clearly in any direction, but that invisible force still weighed on his shoulders.

The temple was as silent as a tomb, but Marus could vaguely feel a faint force in the air.This force is not as raging, violent and uncontrollable as the outside.Instead, it appears to be relentlessly suppressed and patiently waiting to be called upon again.

The passage led to a large, equally undecorated room, with rows of raised shapes lining the floor on either side of the passage, and it took Malus a moment to realize that these might be the shapes the servants had once been.In life, these servants wore some kind of metal tunic and cloak, but those ceremonial garments are still retained, bending over the narrow aisle in a pose of prostration.He wondered what kind of force could drive more than a hundred servants to put their heads on the floor and stay there forever, waiting in vain for the return of their terrible master, until they finally died there.The same was true of the two great suits of armor that still stood flanking the doorway at the far end of the room, their masters long since reduced to dust.

Marus walked through the door and entered a room that seemed to be praying and offering sacrifices to the four gods of chaos. Huge statues stood in four different positions in the room, and each position had its own altar.The darkness here was palpable, like the weight of hundreds of bloody hands on his shoulders.The great statue glared at him with merciless hatred, demanding his obedience and adoration.After praying in a low voice, he quickly walked across the room.

The heat and the stench of sulfur in the distance came to Malus, and he stepped on the stone slab to see a huge, winged demon statue crouching on the edge of the cliff, the statue's forehead bent towards the stone slab in a supplicant gesture.Frowning, he walked over, walked around the statue, and stared at the abyss below, which was empty except for the boiling fire and lava.He stepped back and looked at the statue again.He noticed what appeared to be a set of intricately carved steps on the back of the statue.Carefully placing one boot on top of the demon's head, he took a step upwards, the statue supporting his weight with ease.

Malus climbed a short flight of steps along the back of the statue until there was nothing in front of him but the stinking sulfurous air.He looked down and saw a floating boulder, perfectly aligned with the statue's back, and tried a few things, but nothing happened.

"In, in the name of Tz'arkan! Rise up!" The lava of the abyss began to spew, and by the firelight Malus saw the writing on the floating boulder, and a roar spewed from his mouth.

In the next second, Marus felt the energy in the air vibrate like a plucked chord, and the rows of floating boulders in front of him suddenly moved, and then began to rise.

"Zakhan? Huh? I wonder what kind of name that is?" Malus smiled smugly.

A few minutes later, Malus climbed the floating boulder and up the stairs.Every time he walks over each floating boulder, the floating boulder will fall back to its original position.When he reaches the crooked stairs, he feels like a god!

"This is a place for conquerors!" The stair steps seemed to be carved from a strange kind of stone, and each step was artfully carved with dozens of tiny naked figures writhing in pain.The little figure looked up, begging for mercy, the shoulders and back of the little figure supported the weight of each step of the stairs, Malus looked at the relief and thought.

Malus's smug smile vanished abruptly as he walked up the stairs to find the body, clad in finely tailored robes and jeweled cloaks, mummified almost perfectly by the dry heat.He froze in horror. There were corpses everywhere in front of him, all of which were well preserved by the high temperature.

On the second floor of the temple, there are rows of huge and broad marble columns carved into terrifying demon figures, supporting the vaulted ceiling, and icy braziers made of bronze and black iron are erected at regular intervals along the wide corridors.Dark sandstone is embedded between the black marble of the walls, each containing a bas-relief depicting a corpse-covered field or a ruined city burning under a double moon.

The door of each room is also engraved with magical runes, but these runes have long been destroyed.Marus found the charred body that had tried the magic power. The room was torn apart by the out-of-control runes. Marus stumbled into a room that had been turned into a slaughterhouse.An oak table has been pulled into the center of the sparsely furnished room, next to an assortment of carving knives and saws.A mummified body remains bound to a table, its right leg and arm sawed off.Ancient bloodstains left crimson marks on the thick tapestries on the walls, some rooms were filled with treasure, urns full of gold and silver coins were placed among the tattered bookshelves and piles of ancient books, complete armors and fine weapons Scattered on the ground, apparently these things had been overlooked in the frenzy of carnage.

"What price would Nagalia or Ulay be willing to pay for an hour alone in these rooms?" Malus thought viciously, looking at the magical wisdom contained in those pages.

At one end of this level there is a ramp, surrounded by five chambers, which leads upwards to the third level of the temple.The ramps are carved with hundreds of skulls and inscribed with hundreds of runes, while the doors to the third level are made of pure gold.

"Ten years of looting can't get so much gold, I can get the gold!" Marus's eyes showed greed, thinking curiously.

Malus pushed open the door, and in the distance was a large room, with terrifying demon statues with wings on both sides of the door.The floor was also made of polished black marble slabs, blacker than the deep darkness, inlaid with a series of intricate and interlocking magical enchantments, made of gold, silver and precious stones.The largest enchantment, though, was only a third of a larger circle, which apparently stretched under the far wall and encloses part of the room outside.At the foot of the gate lies a pile of mummified bodies, one of which still has its arm stretched over the gate.Crimson, dried blood formed five perfect lines across the door, extending from the golden doorknob to the mummy's tattered fingertips.

The air here quivered with energy, and Malus tasted copper and ash on his tongue.As he stepped across the threshold, he caused ripples in the air, like he was wading into a sea of ​​invisible energy.Energy surrounds him, tugging at his hair, rolling with his breath.The feeling made him dizzy with greed, but a part of him was also troubled.He moved forward cautiously, and when he crossed the first barrier inlaid with runes, he felt a new energy enveloping him, like an iron fist on his chest, the energy was so powerful that As for the moment when he felt like he couldn't breathe, then he suddenly realized that his heart wasn't beating either.He just stood in this mysterious space, the energies intertwined in incredible complexity, effectively stopping his heart from beating from one time to the next, and he felt like he could stand here for thousands of years without dying and being immortal .

"The energy here is so great, why don't these poor people succumb to the will of the energy?"

Malus tried to walk towards the door, he could feel the energy flowing past him like an ebbing tide, and before he could push it, the door opened itself with a faint click.

This room looks more like a huge treasure room, with piles of gold and silver, jewels and ornaments everywhere, surrounded by a huge faceted crystal in the center of the room.Unlike the green crystal that the Beastmen held sacred, this crystal shone with a shimmering pink-blue light, energy condensing around the crystal, and powder-blue arcs of electricity flickering across the crystal's surface.

"I think I'll get a taste of this power in a short time, it's enough to handle my family and make me Hagrid Grave's Nightwatch! That's enough! Sister, you're so sure I'll Fail! But you don't know who you're dealing with!" Marus approached the crystal, with a greedy light in his eyes, and his ambition, which had nowhere to rest, began to expand wantonly.

"A blood ring suitable for a conqueror, this is my glory! My trophy!" Marus smiled triumphantly, staring at the huge wealth surrounding him.Enough gold to buy Hagrid Greve, and that might just be the beginning!His eyes fell on a gold ring with a baguette ruby ​​set almost as long as his finger.The shimmering light of the powder blue crystal shines on the smooth surface of the ruby, taking on the dark color of blood.He took the ring from the pile of treasures and held it up to admire its weight and the color of the ruby.

Malus put the ring on his finger, and the moment the ring was put on, the energy surrounding the crystal hit his chest.Fire, ice, and black corruption burned all over his body, a horrible feeling stronger than pain, fear, and madness combined.

The energy that engulfed Malus was relentless, as relentless as the chilling winds of Naggaroth.Not only was his soul shattered, it was wiped out, as if his soul had never existed.

Terrible energy emptied Malus's soul in one horrific moment, and he screamed in pain and numb terror.He fell to his knees and twisted, only to realize that the thunderous laughter echoed in his mind.

"Praise my lord! You are such a fool, Marus Blackblade. For such a little thing, you willingly became my slave!" A voice echoed in Marus's mind, with the intimacy of a lover whisper.

Malus barely rolled over, mist rising from his body as he fought the presence that had forced its way into him.The existence attached to him seemed to seep into his flesh and blood, coiling around his heart like a poisonous snake, making his former soul disappear without a trace.He was furious at the cold touch of his soul, and concentrated all his will to force this existence out of his body, but that existence was not affected at all, and the low-pitched laughter echoed wantonly in his mind.

"Let me go!" Marus moaned.

"Let you go? But I just got you, do you know how long I have been waiting for a servant like you?" Zakan made a playful voice in Marus's mind.

With a roar, Malus lunged at the crystal, drew his sword from its scabbard, and slashed at the crystal's shimmering surface.The collision of steel and crystal sounded like a bell. He exhausted his strength and began to stagger back, but there was no trace on the surface of the crystal.

"That's a terrible way to treat such a fine sword, Malus. I won't mind if you keep doing it!"

"What the hell are you?" Marus cried out in a frenzy of anger.

"Me? Compared to you, I am simply a god." Zakhan's grim laughter echoed in the room, "You creatures, with the most primitive cognition, would call me a demon. Even if you have 1000 years Come and try, you can't pronounce my name correctly either. For our common purpose, you can call me Zakan, and that will suffice."

"Devil? In my body? No, I won't allow it!" Marus was stunned when he heard this. He fell to his knees, pulled out the sawtooth dagger from its sheath, and pressed the tip of the sawtooth dagger against his throat. , "I! Malus! Not anyone's slave! Whether they are demons or gods!"

"Mortal, if you go down with a dagger, you will not only die as a slave, but you will be my slave forever!" Zakhan said flatly.

"No! You're lying!"

(End of this chapter)