Alice took a glance at the man and chuckled, her aura burst out as she instantly merged with her Seelie.
Reynolds sighed softly and said, "We shouldn't rush into this."
He also merged with his Elemental Warrior. He knew this man wouldn't be an easy opponent and he didn't want to take any chances and then have to be forced into a tight spot.
The man saw the increase in the strength of the duo and laughed, "You think you can defeat me with this? I've been alive for so long and two little kids think that because they have a method of increasing their strengths, they can fight me on equal footing?"
"You two must be delusional." The man scoffed, he looked at Alice and said, "Especially you. At least he has what it takes to talk to me, although he's still not on my level, but he has what it takes. You little girl do not. I'll let one of my toys play with you."
A lightning bolt shot at the man, it was an attack from Alice. But before the attack could strike the man, a figure appeared and blocked the attack.
This figure was that of a lady, and she was at the Peak of the Venerable Plane. It was evident that she was dead, just like the other puppets of the man, but compared to the others, there was something off about her.
"You see this puppet, even the Gnomes have been searching for a breakthrough. I was able to do this after years of research." The man explained proudly.
The duo could tell how proud the man was at this puppet, and when they sensed its aura, they understood why. This puppet seems to have retained the original strength of the person while she was still alive. This is a very strange thing to experience because all the puppets they've encountered were always weaker than their original version, unless cultivated.
This one wasn't cultivated in any way, rather, it retained its original strength.
"You've noticed the difference. I guess it's expected since this doesn't seem to be your first encounter with necromancers. However, this is your first encounter with a necromancer of my caliber. I'll change the entire world once I bring my little girl back to life. Even those who hated necromancy will be forced to practice it. Everyone has that special person they wish to bring back to life." The man said.
Thinking about it from his angle, it was understandable to say something like this. There are people who have lost someone close to them and have been thinking of ways to bring them back to life. This was an opportunity almost anyone would take up, Alice and the others included.
Fortunately for the duo, they weren't in such a position, so the best thing they felt to do was to kill off this man before this spread. Once it spreads, then the Gnomes will take control of the human world, this was not something any human was willing to accept.
The lady blocked the lightning bolt and looked at Alice with her listless eyes, she took some steps forward and Alice unconsciously took a step forward as well. There was no fear in her eyes, she can never back down from a fight, even when she's the weaker one, she will never back down from a battle she knows she has a slight chance of winning, especially one of this importance.
Reynolds didn't try to get involved, he knew the man was his target. He let Alice deal with the puppet while he focused on the man.
The man was different from other necromancers who were mostly scrawny. This man was well-built, and it was evident that he wasn't weak either.
"Kid, I'll play with you for a while. If that girl can survive ten minutes with her, I'll applaud her strength." The man didn't think Alice stood a chance against the puppet he just brought out.
This was a puppet that belonged to a grade four Peak Venerable. Alice didn't even have the strength of a Peak Venerable, so how could she fight against a grade four Venerable.
The man made sure his special puppets all had high grades. This will make using them better. As long as they retained their original strength, they would be able to cause unimaginable damage to others. Especially those who look down on puppets.
This was his biggest confidence, this was why he had never tried to leave this area. With a steady supply of information from the Phoenix Faction, he knew when to leave and when to stay. As long as a Sovereign didn't show up, he was fine. Even if multiple Peak Venerables come, he has a few tricks up his sleeves to deal with them.
Also, grade four Peak Venerables aren't all that common, much less those with higher grades.
He didn't know what grade Alice and Reynolds were, but he didn't think they would be above grade three.
Reynolds and the man didn't immediately engage in a fight, instead, they faced off. Reynolds was just as relaxed as the man, it was as if he wasn't about to get into a life and death battle.
The man was captivated by Reynolds' composure.
"Join me, boy. You're different from that girl." The man suddenly spoke up.
"I'm sorry, my friend doesn't like you. I'm good staying by her side." Reynolds rejected the man's offer without blinking.
The man chuckled, "You're a man, you'll understand what I'm speaking about soon enough. Women mostly make rash decisions based on their emotions. Sooner or later, she'll get you killed."
"I mean, take a good look at your current situation, this isn't something that should be happening if not for her rash decisions." The man tried to convince Reynolds.
"You're doing something based on your emotions right now. What does that make you?" Reynolds asked.
Reynolds' question stunned the man. In truth, Reynolds was right. He turned to necromancy because he couldn't bear to lose his daughter. And he had been conducting multiple researches and tests just to make sure he finds a way to bring back his daughter.
"It's different. I'm still calm even with what I'm doing. Yes, I indeed get into this due to my emotions, but it's different. Men and women think differently, you know that." The man said.
"I know, but in the end, we're all people. Women are wired to be more emotional, we are different, we're wired to be rational." Reynolds didn't seem moved by the man's words.
"Hahaha, you're a smart kid. I want you to join me even more now." The man laughed, he looked at Alice who was holding her own against the puppet, "I might've underestimated your friend. How about it, I let her go and you join me?"
"That's a good deal."
Reynolds squinted his eyes and said, "The thing is, you're in no position to make such deals. I'm very confident we will be able to get out of this alive. I don't know about you, but I'm confident we will survive this."
The man looked at Reynolds, then at Alice. He smiled and with a wave of his hand, another figure appeared. A puppet just as strong as the lady that is fighting with Alice.
The man took note of Reynolds' facial expression and didn't see any changes.
"Looks like you have so much time on your hands. How about I keep you entertained." Reynolds vanished after saying this.
He was currently in his merged state, his speed was frightening.
The man's pupils constricted and he turned to his left. A dark screen appeared there, and with the appearance of the dark screen came a 'bang!'.
Reynolds was standing on the other side of the screen which was starting to crack from the fist that collided with it. Reynolds' fist was covered with a lightning gauntlet made from the Elemental Warrior armor, increasing the strength of his attacks.
The man frowned when he saw this. He understood that he miscalculated the strength of not just Alice, but Reynolds as well.
From what he saw, Alice and Reynolds were definitely around grade five experts.
'If I can add them to my collection, it'll be amazing!' The man thought internally.
He was more interested in Reynolds and the lightning armor he was wearing. He could tell that Reynolds' increase in strength has everything to do with the lightning armor. What he couldn't understand was how it was formed.
He didn't see any signs that it was an elemental weapon which was very strange.
'Could it be a secret technique?' He wondered.
The thought of dissecting Reynolds started to become very interesting in his head. Yes, he wanted to revive his daughter, but that doesn't mean he didn't want to increase his strength as well. If he could get a technique like the one Reynolds has, his strength would move to the same level as those grade seven experts, if not even a grade eight expert.
