Volume 8: Super Mission 'Vitality vs. Death Intent' - Chapter 8: The Horrors of the Terror Knight

Li Bin did not make a move, instead turning to Ted, who was eager to jump into the fray. "Ted, the rest is up to you."

Upon hearing this, Ted exclaimed with excitement, "Just watch me! Behold my special ability: Black Crystal Heavy Armor!"

As Ted roared, every Dread Knight was suddenly encased in a suit of armor forged from black crystal. Ted remarked with satisfaction, "As I thought, only Dread Knights are strong enough to support this heavy armor. If it were those Death Knights, they would have been crushed flat by the weight."

Li Bin smiled and commanded his mages to cast Vampire Touch on all the knights. He then turned to Holy Judgment and asked, "How about we make a wager on this battle?"

"A wager?" Holy Judgment was no fool and instantly grasped Li Bin's intent. "Not a chance. You would surely demand I reveal the location of our headquarters. I’m not that stupid."

Li Bin chuckled, offering no further comment. At that moment, Ted nodded to him, signaling that the Dread Knights had fully adjusted to the weight of their black crystal armor.

Only then did Li Bin smile at Holy Judgment and say, "Very well, as you wish. No bet. Can we begin now?"

"Of course." Seeing the situation, Holy Judgment stopped talking and began casting his own skills on the unicorns behind him, causing a divine glow to shimmer above their heads.

"Then let us begin." With a slight wave of Li Bin's hand, Ted charged forward. Naturally, Li Bin did not pin all his hopes on Ted; he had already sent Gru and his Phantom Undead Archers to infiltrate the nearby woods.

Ted was exhilarated as he led his troops into the charge. The strength of these newly acquired Dread Knights far exceeded his expectations. Not only did they follow his commands perfectly, but they could also utilize his special ability. If he could defeat the enemy before him, he, who had always been limited to using Skeleton Knights, would finally prove his worth to Li Bin.

However, his opponent, Holy Judgment, was equally confident of victory. Charging ahead to meet Ted, he lowered his head, and the horn upon his brow extended to a length of one and a half meters.

Seeing this, Ted brought his heavy hammer down with a crushing blow, striking the horn directly. The horn did not shatter; instead, it reflected a blinding white light.

Caught off guard, Ted’s eyes were instantly seared white, rendering him temporarily blind. Panicked, he swung his hammer wildly to fend off any follow-up attacks from Holy Judgment.

But the anticipated attack never came. When his vision finally began to clear, he saw Holy Judgment shaking his head and attacking empty air.

Ted paused, suddenly recalling the properties of the black crystal armor he had just donned—a skill he hadn't used in so long he had nearly forgotten its effects. He could only summon this heavy armor for thirty minutes, and its weight was so immense that anyone lacking sufficient strength would be unable to move freely while wearing it.

Curiously, this armor offered no defensive bonus. Its sole purpose was to reflect any spell cast upon the wearer back at the caster. This meant that if someone successfully cast a curse on the wearer, they would suffer that curse themselves; if they cast a blessing, they would receive that blessing as well.

Even Ted had nearly forgotten about the armor, and he would not have deployed it had he not been so determined to showcase his strength before Li Bin.

Now, Ted was overjoyed. He shouted, "Dread Knights, begin the first wave of attacks! Ignore their blinding skill!"

The Dread Knights raised their massive scimitars and charged recklessly toward the silver unicorns at the front.

Holy Judgment, initially troubled by the reflection of his skills, hesitated for a moment, but quickly gritted his teeth and shouted, "Never mind! The Holy Light doesn't affect us much anyway! Counterattack, everyone!"

However, his order came a moment too late. The three lead silver unicorns were cut down instantly by the fastest Dread Knights. The speed was so shocking that even Li Bin, watching from the rear, was taken aback.

He had only seen the Dread Knight lift his blade; he never even saw it fall. There was merely a flash of steel above the heads of the three silver unicorns, and their heads simply tumbled to the ground.

"What a fearsome double-strike," Li Bin sighed, marveling at the terrifying power of the Dread Knights.

By now, the other Dread Knights had launched their own assaults, though the double-strike did not occur again.

Holy Judgment had regained his composure and directed his unicorns to counterattack. His regular unicorns were one level higher than the Death Knights under Ted’s command, and with the added advantage of numbers, they dealt significant damage to the Death Knights charging behind the Dread Knights.

Watching his newly acquired Death Knights suffer heavy losses, Ted’s good mood turned to anxiety.

Li Bin’s expression grew grave as well. He received a message via the Spirit Bell: another, significantly stronger force was rapidly approaching their position.

Knowing he could no longer afford to drag out the fight with Holy Judgment, Li Bin shouted, "Ted! If your Dread Knights don't finish them off quickly, I’m sending in the Bone Dragons!"

Upon hearing that Li Bin intended to deploy units one level lower than themselves, the Dread Knights were indignant. One of them turned his head and roared at the Bone Dragons hovering behind Li Bin, "They aren't Heavy Corpse Dragons! If they dare to move up, I’ll chop them down right along with the enemy!"

This infuriated Reed, who was standing nearby. He yelled, "What did you say? If you've got the guts, let’s see who gets more kills!"

The Dread Knight snorted coldly, "I’m not competing with someone like you. Brothers, let’s kill them fast to spite those guys!"

With that, the Dread Knights shed their cumbersome black crystal armor, raised their scimitars, and surged forward.

Seeing them discard the troublesome armor, the unicorns charged with renewed vigor. But they were met with blades moving at even greater speeds and a deafening roar: "Prepare to witness the true horror of the Dread Knights!"