You are being crushed by the Level 35 Undead Lamakai Prophet. 125 points of damage taken.

  Finn shouted in pain and frustration as the creature that held him lifted him clear of the wall, crushing him with its bare hands. He saw the sea of undead faces staring up at him, their eyes gleaming with an animating qlippothic green fire.

  He saw his friends, Tobias and Rosa, fighting for their lives against a sea of monsters. Their blue and green energies flashed around them.

  

  Strength +1 STR per 20 Mana

  Speed of the Warrior. 150 Mana. +50% damage

  Finn flicked through his powers, hurriedly dropping 700 of his own Mana into his Strength as he jackknifed, kicking his feet against the ribcage of the undead prophet and pushing out against the hands that held him.

  

  Your Strength is 79.

  Ascension Path: Fire (Strength) gives you +35 STR.

  Your Strength is 114.

  With a roar, Finn broke through the giant hands as he swiveled, slamming the Pyrrhic Blade down as he fell. Flames surged along his arms, bursting from his hands and his blade as he struck.

  

  You have hit the Level 35 Undead Lamakai Prophet for 175 points of damage.

  Speed of the Warrior. +50% damage.

  You have hit the Level 35 Undead Lamakai Prophet for 275 points of damage.

  There was a dry, hissing snarl, and pointed teeth rasped against each other. Finn slammed into the creature’s side, twisting as he slid down the concertina of bones to land with a roll across the floor.

  The undead prophet reared back, and Finn could see the terrible gash that had smashed through bones and desiccated sinew.

  Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

  The undead creature was nowhere near finished, though, and Finn was still surrounded by the undead.

  

  You have been struck for 40 points of damage.

  You have been struck for 60 points of damage.

  Finn gasped as pain shot through him. The undead priests stabbed at him with their daggers and rusted blades. He stumbled out of the way, bringing his blade up to block one blow, only for another to slice at his lower back.

  

  You have been struck for 50 points of damage.

  There was no way he could fight off this many on his own, even with his temporary god-like strength.

  The Hearthstones! He still had the Hearthstones of Zephyrus and Val-Nord, alongside Blackwood. He had ample Mana, didn’t he? He just needed to use it.

  

  Enhanced Block. 100 Mana. For a limited time, you are almost impossible to hit through blocking, parrying, or dodging.

  Finn’s eyes flickered through his inventory as the next blow narrowly missed him. The next caught his cloak but not his flesh.

  He spun around and raised his free hand to slam it, palm open, into the nearest offending undead, using his Fire-Strike ability to send it flying back in a flaming orb.

  Next, he swiveled, swinging his magical blade around him in an arc and releasing the latent energies inside it as the blade struck one skull after the next.

  

  Fire-Bolt. Convert Mana to Damage.

  He almost emptied the Blackstone Hearthstone into the strike, and a sheet of incandescent fire erupted from the blade. It seared through five, ten, almost fifteen of the undead around him. Finn saw nothing but flames as the cairns burned. He slid to a stop, gasping for air as the stones steamed and the heat shimmered.

  Flash.

  

  You have been hit by the qlippothic wave for 50 points of damage.

  Before Finn could make another move, there was another wave of the qlippothic energy from the corrupted Prism of Fire.

  Esther!

  He turned to see the brilliant green glow ahead of him. He had to get to her. He had to save her.

  But before he could leap forward, a terrible shadow fell over him just before the undead prophet struck him with a two-clawed blow.

  

  You have been struck by the Level 35 Undead Lamakai Prophet for 200 points of damage.

  Finn hit the floor and felt the bulk of the undead beast pressing onto him. He felt the sharp, stone-like pressure of the creature’s ribs as they pushed ever deeper against his body, crushing him into the ground.

  No. No!

  Finn still held onto his blade, but he had to reverse his grip as the undead raised itself just a little, enough to allow it to throw its clawed hands down at Finn’s head…

  He roared and struck at the creature, drawing on the Zephyrus and Val-Nord Hearthstones as he did so.

  

  You have delivered 154 points of damage.

  Fire-Bolt (+1000 damage).

  Speed of the Warrior (+50% damage).

  You have delivered 1779 points of damage to your opponent.

  Finn threw almost all of his Mana into that Fire-Bolt, and there was a dull explosion that spat fire and bits of bone everywhere. The shockwave was so powerful that it hammered Finn against the ground and scattered what few remaining undead there were.

  

  You have defeated the Level 35 Undead Lamakai Prophet. Experience awarded.

  Finn convulsed, feeling the Celestial Engines upgrade him once again.

  However, he didn’t care about ascending in the least. He didn’t care about trying to level up right now. All he could care about was his sister.