Dungeon Raider System-Chapter 964: Black clouds

Uriel knew from the moment Nika defeated the physical body of the nameless horrors that she had become the dark priestess and she also told him how she felt different, but none of them knew what that meant. However, once they were outside Chichén Itzá and the effects of the protective barrier disappeared the results of their endeavor became clear.

For Nika, it meant that the flux consumption of her skills had diminished greatly and she felt as if she could keep her trait active all day without feeling tired, though Uriel reprimanded her because their bond caused them to have a combined flux energy reserve which meant that she would be using not just her energy but also his. This newly obtained flux consumption efficiency also meant that Nika was now able to utilize skills that she instinctively knew she had, but was never able to use them due to her lacking the energy.

"I don’t want to eat my veggies!" Nika pouted mockingly looking as an exact copy of Luna, though her body was covered in black tattoos that were actually marks of the shadows.

"That is actually impressive." Uriel pondered as he took a lap around Nika scanning the results of her ’Shadow clone’ skill.

"I know! I’m so powerful now!"

"I’m impressed by your ability to imitate Luna, not your skill. Those black marks make it pretty much useless for impersonating other people."

"That may be the case, but I can also add objects, like this." Nika cancelled the shadow clone and activated it again, only now she looked like Medusa wearing a jumpsuit. The black tattoos that covered her skin made it impossible to mix her up with the real Medusa, but the fact that Medusa had a wrench in the hand proved Nika’s point that her ability was not as simple as Uriel thought.

"Interesting." Uriel mused as he scanned Nika’s imitation of Medusa’s body.

"Wow! She really is something." Nika said after stretching. Medusa’s body was almost as flexible as Nika’s and Nika could also move faster in her own body, but she could feel the power behind Medusa’s muscles. She felt as if uprooting a tree was not just possible, but actually easy.

"That’s enough playing for today," Uriel looked the other way somewhat embarrassed after watching Nika exploring Medusa’s body. "we need to figure out where to find the gods."

"Actually, I think they found you already." Nika who had developed the hobby to keep an eye on the weather since their adventure in Spain pointed to the sky where black clouds started forming in the air.

"That curse is still active?" Uriel complained, then continued with a smile. "I guess it’s time to test this." After saying this, he grabbed ’bastard’ the sword Medusa made for him using the meteorite which was described by the system as something that didn’t exist. After hesitating for just a second, Uriel cut himself on the palm of the hand and his smile grew as he confirmed the wound healed on its own almost as fast as it was made.

Back when he was an ascended and had Water warlock’s blessing, wounds took a long time to heal, but thanks to him being now a heavenly rank and also thanks to the humidity of the jungle he was practically invulnerable. However, that wasn’t enough reason to let himself be hit by lightning.

First, because even if he was capable of regenerating from any wound, getting struck by lightning was not a pleasant feeling. And second, because letting himself be hit would be a waste of energy as the sword he now wielded had the ability to channel all sorts of energy.

By using the sword as a lightning rod, Uriel caught the bolt in the air and redirected it to a nearby tree with a devastating effect. It didn’t just destroy the tree but pierced through several trees as if a cannon was fired. Smoke arose in the air shyly as the smoldering remains of wood settled on the ground.

"That’s pretty OP," Nika gaped at the sight, then continued with cunning seductiveness. "hey, do you think I could maybe borrow it?"

"Not a chance," Uriel grunted dissipating Nika’s fantasies of taking advantage of Uriel’s new heart. The refusal was immediate, but then he fell into silent thinking and came up with something. "Nika, is it possible for you to use your skill and clone me while riding the jaguar?"

"Huh? I guess, but I’m not sure I would be able to move in that state."

With Water warlock refusing to take over his body, Uriel was forced to make a new plan and although time was pressing, Uriel still decided it was worth to continue testing Nika’s newly gained abilities. They tested everything they could think of and as a result of their experiments they found out several useful things.

For starters, the regenerative abilities granted by Water warlock’s blessing also extended to Nika, though it was much slower and the extent of what could be regenerated remained a mystery as they didn’t want to risk hurting her. This meant that they could not find out if she was also immortal. They also found out that although Nika could use ’shadow clone’ to imitate a person wielding an item, there were certain limits.

The item in question would feel and weight the same as the original, its hardness had a limit. This meant that although she could imitate items made of orichalcum, they would only be as strong as Nika’s ability allowed it. They also confirmed that if an item broke, she did not feel any pain, but if the biological entities she imitated got hurt she did feel it in the same measure as the original would. Among their findings, there were two that stood out and allowed Uriel to plan accordingly.

"Put your clothes back on this instant!" Uriel scolded.

"What? You just asked me to test if I could get separated from the things I create with shadows." Nika shamelessly shrugged after her blatant attempt to tease Uriel using Medusa’s replica.

"Just take off an earring or something."

"You’re no fun." She said while thinking the exact opposite.

She could indeed get separated with the replicas, but only to about a hundred meters or so. She could still move farther away, but the item would slowly disappear into nothingness. Then there was the fact that she could replicated two different beings at the same time as she confirmed after replicating Medusa, Luna, Sam and Uriel as they were back in the day.

"Did I always look so clueless?" He asked.

"You still look the same now," She giggled. "but it’s cute."

Replicating them and moving them was an entirely different issue as she could control each clone by separate, but not all at the same time. Nika expressed that she had the feeling that she could eventually control a limitless amount of clones at the same time, but that she would need a lot of practice.

And then, there was the final test which solidified Uriel’s plan.

"This might work." Uriel said after watching a perfect replica of himself riding the jaguar. It wasn’t the actual Ocelotl, since the shaman had vanished after he was defeated, but the clone felt and looked exactly the same as his friend did.

"I can either control the jaguar or your clone, but if it’s just riding it should be doable." The words came with Uriel’s voice, but from the replica.

"Hmm... this could maybe fool the gods, but not our friends. They would absolutely question why did I get tattoos out of a sudden. Hold on, I have an idea." Uriel said as he unbuttoned the replica’s shirt.

"Don’t heat the oven if you’re not going to eat the buns." Nika teased.

"Don’t make this awkward, this is my body after all." Uriel scolded.

"Yes, but it still feels like you’re undressing me. Hey, if it’s your body..." Nika said as the intrusive thoughts gained ground at a steady pace.

"If you’re going to do something weird I can’t stop you. Just... please don’t do it in front of me." Uriel uttered in resignation.

"Take your mind off the gutter, I was wondering if Water warlock’s blessing would apply in this case." She proceeded to test her regenerative abilities, but was left disappointed when it healed at the same speed it did before.

"I think we have enough information. From what I understand, you can replicate anything that your shadow has ever touched, though I would advice against cloning large creatures because that would probably drain our flux reserve in an instant."

"Fine." Nika went back to her original form, then asked. "what’s the plan now?"

"Go to New Texas and use shadow clone to replicate me, but make sure nobody knows it’s actually you. Act as if you’re Water warlock on my body the entire time, but make sure that my clone is shirtless to show the tattoos as much as possible. It will make them less suspicious as old tribes used to fight naked to scare the enemy. I’ll give you the Red thread of fate and the magnum to keep suspicions at a minimum and also to keep you safe."

"Sure, then take this. You may be immortal now, but you still need the means to strike objects at a distance." Nika handed him the Peacemaker.

"I’ll keep it in the museum in case you need it. Also, we’ll keep in touch in real time with the smartphone. Just write an email and the subject will pop into my head."

"Are you sure you don’t want to come? With Water warlock’s help you can really teach them something."

"I’m not going for their avatars, I’ll hit them where it really hurts."

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