Chapter 219: No Evil Deeds go Unrewarded
Warden had to agree; this was really somewhat evil. However, it was nothing worse than what the Forsaken had done against the humans.
The Moonspawn rampaged through the ranks of the Forsaken. Even though it was unable to break free from the chains, it wreaked havoc like an unstoppable force. With a crash, it left more than a few goblins and orcs crushed in its wake, while the trolls and the orc chiefs were the only Forsaken who came close to finding purchase against the monstrous creature.
However, considering they had once captured the Moonspawn, albeit losing many in their rank, the Forsaken would likely be able to capture it again. Warden saw nothing wrong with it. After all, it would leave them terribly strained from battle fatigue, making it way easier to deal with them.
So, they waited as the battle unfolded before them. Unfortunately for the Forsaken, it seemed they were unable to entrap the Moonspawn again, as they had no way to fix the lock. In order to save their lives, they had no choice but to go for the kill.
The trolls roared, their great wooden clubs with spiked edges thrummed against the massive creature mercilessly. Orcs too joined in and attacked the vulnerable spot where they had already left it wounded.
"Moonspawn gave a lot of boost to the killer on the death," Agnes said, narrowing her eyes. "You cannot let them kill it."
Warden found it a waste too. Thus, he brought another arrow from his quiver and shot. The giant hound had already slowed down under the pressure from the Forsaken, so Warden's arrow found no trouble in plunging into its red, bleeding eyes.
The streaks of light from the arrow burst open against the dark power of the monstrous creature, prying it open in a spatter of blood and gore.
Warden and Agnes came out of the shadows and joined the fray.
"You deal with the Moonspawn, I'll take care of the Forsaken," Agnes said.
Warden nodded and shot another arrow to impair its other eye. While the Moonspawn had far greater regeneration power compared to even the likes of trolls, they were unable to regenerate eyeballs quickly as the contrasting force of light invaded its system.
Warden didn't waste any more of the consumable arrows, even though he felt like he could recreate them given the resources. Unfortunately, he had no way of getting the resources within the subspace, so it was better to leave the useful items for later trouble.
Instead, he brought out his blade and cloak, which seemed to have a mind of its own, wrapping itself around Warden when he triggered [Void Shroud].
Ignoring the orcs that came to block his path, he surged forward to the demonic hound, plunging his sword deep into the wound left behind by the light-attributed arrows. Warden didn't have much experience using light attributes; he didn't take chances and drew upon his ever-trustworthy and destructive void energy. It did not disappoint.
The Moonspawn howled in agony, its blindness finally invoking fear into the creature's twisted soul.
Warden's void energy disrupted the construct of its void essence, finding the process rather easier. From a technical point of view, the manifestation of a Moonspawn wasn't natural. It was bits of the dead spirit of a traitor wolf taken in this form. Other than having an overwhelming amount of dark essence, its existence wasn't as solid as other creatures.
When Warden exerted his Intent, it felt like a hot knife through butter. Warden had a sudden epiphany about the direction he wanted his Intent to take. It wasn't a solid insight, so he didn't push himself into reckless abandon and let the void energy and the Intent do their job, all while he activated [Reaper's Edge].
The goblins launched their bombs at him, which didn't have the effect they had hoped for. The [Void Shroud] could likely defend against anything, as long as he provided enough void energy. With his power growing, the force from the bombardment was nearly nullified after filtering through the shroud.
The blade extended its length, digging deeper into the head of the massive creature. Warden twisted it, stabilising his movement as much as he could with [Void Shroud].
He sensed danger from behind; two trolls were approaching, swinging their clubs. But he wasn't worried as the figure of the captain flew in to his rescue. Sleek blades of darkness shot out from her wings, assaulting the trolls, digging deep into their limbs, and hindering their advance.
Warden focused on the Moonspawn, with dark blood oozing out of its head like a fountain. Thankfully, he was wearing the [Cloak of Void Radiance] correctly, and with [Void Shroud] activated, none of the filth found purchase on him.
"Just die, already!" Warden roared, twisting his sword in an arc to behead the creature.
Warden beheaded the creature, and yet the headless body writhed, its dark blood showering like torrential rain. There were signs of its head healing... But even with all its power, the Moonspawn was a false existence. Warden's attack had broken through its essence construction; it would never be able to heal its wound.
Still, it took a good couple of minutes to fully stop struggling and die. The captain had mostly dealt with the situation by then, as Warden joined her to help with the trolls.
[High grade energy harvested.]
[You have slain a shred of divinity. . .]
[Your aura has been slightly straightened.]
Warden felt a terrible pull against his spirit, as the dark murky power trying to find purchase in his soul. His Void core acted up and swallowed all the energy before Warden could think of what to even do about it.
[+7.3 Strength.]
[+3.5 Dexterity.]
[3.4 Spirit.]
[+5.6 Recovery.]
Now, this was some growth. Indeed, no Evil deeds go unrewarded...
If he hunted down a couple more Moonspawn, he was pretty sure he would reach the peak of Iron rank. And from the look of it, it would be worth it.