Natasha drew a small Magic Circle on the ground and had Unas place his left hand on it, "Repeat after me, @##@%￥&..."
After a short, simple incantation, the Magic Circle flashed with black light, Unas felt a cool sensation enter his left arm from his palm. Natasha called out, "Agreed!" and the cool sensation stopped. A tiny consciousness established a mental connection with Unas.
Natasha said, "It's yours now. You can command it to devour the remnants of Fel, but you must also nourish it with your own energy."
Unas closed his eyes and Meditation. He saw a black, octopus-like shadow on his left arm. Several tentacles extended out and attached themselves to the flow of Holy Power, absorbing nutrients. Perhaps because it was still in its juvenile stage, it required very little energy, and Unas could not perceive such a subtle loss of energy.
"You've helped me a lot this time, Miss Natasha, I don't know how to thank you enough," Unas said sincerely.
Natasha was unmoved. "You thank me now, but you might hate me later."
"Haha, no matter what, I will never hate you," Unas said eloquently. "I will never hate such a beautiful girl as you."
Natasha ignored his compliment and changed the subject. "When are you going to use Fel magic? I can help keep an eye on you."
"No need, I told you I wouldn't get you involved too much," Unas quickly refused. "Don't worry, I now have both Holy Light and Shadow weapons, so dealing with a little Fel is no problem for me. If I really need your help, I won't hesitate to ask."
Seeing his determination, Natasha didn't press the matter further. Unas waved and said, "Come on, let's go back. We haven't settled you in yet."
After leaving the cave, Unas warned the Troll not to wander off, as he might come to the Undead Mage for "business" at any time. The two then returned to their base.
Natasha was still outwardly Priest of the Holy Light. Unas casually placed her in the army's Priest, arranged accommodations for her, and then let her rest there.
Next, they needed to decide on the offering. After consulting with the Dreadlord, Unas learned that this spell was quite advanced, and a few sheep wouldn't suffice. They needed to use creatures with higher intelligence and stronger vitality to be effective. After discussing it, the two chose a race that everyone hated— the Gnolls.
Gnolls are not very intelligent and are inherently ferocious. They are born bandits and robbers and have long been enemies of humans. Their unruly nature makes them the most difficult captives to control, and they cause trouble every few days.
After Holiya's ruthless suppression, less than half of the more than two hundred Gnoll captured in the Battle of Lordamere Lake remained. These guys were not even qualified to do hard labor and were completely useless burdens to the Argent Dawn. No one would care if they all died, so they could be used as sacrifices.
Actually, Trolls aren't bad either. According to Bessarius, one Troll's vitality is equivalent to three Gnolls, but Unas was afraid of hurting Haikesi's feelings, so he gave up using Trolls and decided to target the Gnolls first.
Using the excuse of a shortage of manpower for logging, he brought out ten Gnolls. To put on a show, Unas actually drove them to help transport timber. This time he experienced how troublesome these beasts were. They dragged their feet and were unwilling to exert themselves, not even in the same league as the Orcs laborers. It wasn't until he whipped one of them until his skin was torn open that they finally behaved. They were truly born to be scoundrels.
When the logging team finished work at dusk, Unas made an excuse to keep the Gnolls behind, and tied them up one by one in a long string and took them to the cave where the Undead Mage was.
"What are you doing bringing these Gnolls here, sir?" Haikesi looked at the Warden who had come again, completely bewildered.
"You don't need to worry about that. Guarding the cave is your responsibility. Don't let anyone in. Doing that will be the biggest help you can give me."
Unas's murderous aura seemed to remind the Troll of something. He nodded worriedly and offered up the Undead Mage's head.
Unas took the head and dragged the Gnolls into the cave. They then realized something was wrong, and one of them screamed in a broken Common, "Human Thunder, what's going on?!"
Violence is more effective than words when dealing with these guys. Unas punched one of them, knocking out several teeth, and roared, "Shut up, all of you! Cover your ears and squat down against the wall!"
Except for the one who was knocked to the ground, everyone else did as instructed with trepidation. Unas picked up the guy who was limp on the ground, who still seemed to be breathing, and threw him into the corner.
The Dreadlord, having opened a crack in the Holy Power Vortex and sensed the outside world, chuckled, "Ten Gnolls should be enough."
"They were all captured at Lordamere Lake; they were all your sacrifices."
Bessarius said, "No, not before. They are still my sacrifices, but my current weakened state prevents my mark from showing. I once said that they would always be my sacrifices and slaves, but now I am transferring them to you, and you will become their master."
"Then let's not waste any more time, hurry up and get on with it." Unas, not wanting to listen to the demon's next brainwashing attempt, shouted directly.
"Hehe," Bessarius chuckled smugly, believing this was the first step in transforming Unas into a demon. "First, kill that dying guy in the corner; you'll need his blood."
Unas pulled out a dagger, walked over without a word, pulled the Gnoll up, and with a soft hiss, the Gnoll's throat was slit, black blood gushing from the wound.
A ball of green light gathered in Unas's left hand, the familiar hot sensation stimulating his skin. The demon's voice rang out just in time, and Unas followed Bessarius's instructions, chanting one evil single-word spell after another, while using the Gnoll's blood to draw a two-meter-square hexagonal Magic Circle on the ground.
Green light flowed over the black blood. After the last stroke was completed, the entire Magic Circle began to operate. Unas pulled a Gnoll into the Magic Circle as instructed, and then carved his mark on the back of the gnoll's neck—the character "Wu". After a few seconds, he felt a spiritual connection with the Gnoll.
Of course, Unas was in complete control, and he felt that getting the Gnoll to commit suicide was just a matter of a word.
And so, repeating the same pattern, the remaining eight Gnolls were successfully transferred, Unas nine more slaves who were completely his, body and soul.
"How's it going? How's the thrill of dominating others? Hehehe, I can give you more if you want," the devil tempted him constantly, "Including the woman you yearn for, I can turn her into your slave."
Unas struggled to shake off the fantasy of having long, white legs leashed and kneeling on the ground, letting out a long sigh and saying, "I don't need that much, just enough is fine. Get to the point."