Michael joined the Crysalis Deer to fight against the Lionheart Commanders and the Pryar Guardians.
He used Insert to channel a tremendous amount of energy and lifeforce into the Crysalis Deer. The High Beast initially rejected Michael's help but sensing that the energy and lifeforce inserted into it wasn't hazardous, the High Beast accepted it.
Michael unleashed the Dome of Extraction to tap into the energy and lifeforce of the Soldiers that were about to charge at him. He drained their energy and activated one Cursed Seal to extract their lifeforce more easily as well. Michael followed up by continuing to insert more lifeforce and energy into the Crysalis Deer before exerting Archangel's Grace as well.
It required a few seconds and a lot of focus, but Michael managed to tend to the Crysalis Deer's wounds. The large gnashes all over its body healed swiftly and the exhaustion that tormented the High Beast was wiped away.
Michael didn't stop there. He unleashed Enhancement with Insert to apply several layers of Enhancement onto the Crysalis Deer. The High Beast's strength increased drastically, pressuring the Lionheart Commander to unleash the hidden properties of his Soultrait.
Michael's Spirit Eyes were fully unleashed, granting him great insights into the Commander's Blood Manipulation Soultrait. He learned a lot about the Soultrait's hidden properties and unique effects.
'His blood has been altered. It has a higher energy conductivity than most Artifacts. Blood Manipulation... It has great power but seems to be of a rather low star rating.'
The Lionheart Commander could control his blood with great precision. He could unleash it into the surroundings to drain the surrounding energy and retract the blood to enhance his physical strength temporarily. The excessive energy would replenish the used-up energy within his energy storage, therefore, granting him more means to continue using Blood Manipulation or switch to use his rapidly replenishing energy to empower his Artifacts.
Michael licked his lips as he continued to study the characteristics of Blood Manipulation. The corner of his lip curled up after a few seconds.
'That should be feasible.'
He manifested the Soul Grimoire and used several Soul Tears at once.
The Soul Tears amplified the potency and power of his Soul, Extraction, Enhancement, Reinforced Sword Qi, Glacicle, Insert, Taming, and Superior Constitution.
Michael felt a tuck in his chest as the Soul Tears' effect was fully displayed. His Soultraits grew stronger and something about his Soul changed – though only temporarily.
Power surged through his entire being as he unleashed Heavenly Beast Physique and Enhancement simultaneously. Several layers of Enhancement were applied to his body and Superior Constitution, pushing his physical strength past the limit of a Lesser Lifeform. He turned into a flash and appeared behind another Pryar Guardian.
The Pryar Guardian noticed Michael, changed his stance in a smooth motion and brandished his broadsword in Michael's direction. The broadsword was coated in blazing flames as it plunged down with the intent to cleave Michael in two parts.
Michael summoned Aethyr in the form of a shield and used Enhancement twice to reinforce the Aethyr Shield. That didn't decrease the tremendous force flaming broadsword or its impact, but it provided Michael with everything he needed to initiate a counterattack.
He blocked the cleave which pushed his feet deep into the ground. Simultaneously, Zeroa's mythical flames erupted. Hundreds of blazing blades made from azure flames conjured around the Pryar Guardian.
The blades were shrouded in a silver aura, Reinforced Sword Qi, that compressed the azure flames and shaped them to look more like swords. Glacicle reinforced with Enhancement shrouded the Reinforced Sword Qi, only for another layer of Sword Qi to coat the Glacicle Swords that coated the compressed Qi Flame Swords.
Michael's energy was drained rapidly, but that problem was solved easily as he allowed the three Cursed Seals to erupt. The upper part of his face was covered in one Cursed Seal whereas the remaining two Seals covered his upper body and right arm.
Michael could tell that a portion of Extraction's limiter had been removed. However, alongside that Michael could tell that the emotions wreaking through him grew less stable. His emotional stability suffered greatly and he didn't have the means to control them precisely anymore.
Every single Link of Loyalty that had been cut in the last few hours pulled at Michael's Soul, and it was not like his enemies stopped killing his people either. More subjects died as he blocked the Pryar Guardian's attack...and more would die the longer the fight continued.
Something deep within Michael erupted and he unleashed True Extraction in the form of a half-controlled half-uncontrollable Dome of Extraction.
The Extraction Aura had fused into the Dome of Extraction, further enhancing True Extraction's power in Michael's proximity. The energy and lifeforce from every being in his surroundings were drained rapidly.
The Untamed Awakened and Michael's subordinates noticed what was going on as Michael's surroundings were shrouded in a vibrant golden hue. Immortal Knight called everyone back to retreat until no one was left in the range of the golden hue. Only then did they continue to attack once again.
They allowed Michael to let loose and consume his enemies without having to fear killing his people in the process.
'Don't you fucking dare to take control of my body! IT'S MY BODY!!!' Michael roared in his mind as his body was overflowing with energy and lifeforce. The power that erupted from True Extraction killed more than a thousand Lionheart in his proximity and thousands of enemies were still suffering from the power of Extraction that invaded their bodies.
The Elementals and Forest Elves attacked with long-range projectiles. They attacked the suffering Lionhearts and ended their lives. There was no mercy in war. Mercy was for the weak.
Michael sealed the Cursed Seals the moment he sensed that the energy and lifeforce in his body was more than enough to deal with the Pryar Guards. He controlled the Mythical Flame Qi Swords that had been encased with compressed Qi Glacicle Swords. The Swords burst forward at Michael's will and pierced and erupted, piercing through the Pryar Guardian at once.
The Qi Glacicle Sword shattered, unleashing a burst of compressed freezing mist that extinguished the flames in the environments at once – except for the Mythical Flame Qi Swords. They burned through the freezing mist thanks to being coated in compressed Reinforced Qi and killed the Pryar Guardian before they continued moving through the proximity, killing another Pryar Guardian.
The Pryar Guardian's sight had been shrouded by the freezing mist and an additional use of Spiritual Domination was all Michael needed to kill him.
Three Pryar Guardians, the cream of the crop of the Zentika Empire's native forces, had been killed in no time.
Michael was overflowing with lifeforce and he didn't have a Soultrait to make use of it. He could infuse his lifeforce into others using Insert and use Archangel's Grace to accelerate the mending of their wounds, but he didn't have enough time to do so.
The accumulated power of Archangel's Grace was also nearing its end. Michael didn't spend much time with Maria in the last few weeks. He didn't have enough time to accumulate more power within the Mark of Fate.
That was bothersome right now, but it was not something Michael could change right now. He applied Taming to access Zeroa's spatial affinity and teleported to the Untamed Awakened.
He reached Lokai who stared at him with wide eyes when he inserted every bit of excessive lifeforce into her.
"Don't you want to kill some High Lionhearts? Go for it." Michael's lips curled upward into a devilish smile.
Lokai returned a bright smile and unleashed Life Conversion. She transformed the lifeforce Michael had just inserted into her body and applied the accumulated authority within Life Conversion to enhance her physical strength. The massive amount of lifeforce that had entered her body was more than enough to cross the threshold of a Lesser Lifeform.
For the next 15 minutes, Lokai's physical power reached the standards of a Higher Lifeform!
Michael moved back straight to the Crysalis Deer. He applied the massive pool of energy that surged through every inch of his body to eliminate the remaining Pryar Guardians one by one.
The Crysalis Deer protected Michael as if its life depended on it. It guarded Michael against the Lionheart Commander's erratic attacks and wrath.
Once the Pryar Guardians were dead, Michael's concentration landed on the Peak Tier-4 Awakened.
It was about time to kill the Lionheart Commander!
