I Regressed With a 10,000x God-Tier Multiplier-Chapter 36: Soul Siphons

The deafening roar of the Bone Dragon echoed across the Scourgelands.

Miles away, hidden deep within his black-bone fortress, Vorthos the Lich Lord finally turned his full attention to the southern valley.

He felt the sudden, massive loss of his Undead Knight vanguard.

Vorthos did not send more knights. He changed the rules of the battlefield.

Lucifer sat on his Nightmare Steed. His eyes scanned the bruised-purple fog.

The air pressure in the valley suddenly inverted.

All around the valley, massive structures tore through the ash-covered ground.

Five towering obelisks. They were hundreds of feet tall, forming a massive ring around the Grand Army’s position.

[System Warning: Zone-Wide Environmental Hazard Detected!]

[Hazard: Soul Siphons Activated.]

[Source: Vorthos, Lich Lord of the Scourgelands.]

Lucifer recognized the structures immediately. Soul Siphons. They were massive, stationary magical engines designed to drain the life force of any living creature within a ten-mile radius.

The purple runes flared to a blinding intensity.

A wave of pure, unfiltered necrotic vacuum swept over the battlefield.

It hit the vanguard first.

Lucifer did not flinch. His Warlord core, fused with the Apex Multiplier and his Void Arcanist magic, effortlessly crushed the draining effect.

The dark magic washed over his armor and slid off. Beside him, Elara’s celestial nature protected her. Her golden aura flared, burning away the purple light the moment it touched her silver armor.

The Aether-Steel Dragoons remained perfectly still. They were machines of black steel and blue fire. They had no souls to drain.

The Radiant Arch-Seraphs did not even blink. Their holy light repelled the necrotic vacuum with absolute prejudice.

But the ten thousand Awakened mercenaries were strictly mortal.

The moment the purple light washed over the mercenary column, the screams began.

[Zone Debuff: Soul Siphon Active.]

[Effect: Drains 5% Maximum Health per second. Bypasses standard magical resistance.]

It was absolute chaos.

Veteran fighters, men and women who had survived dozens of brutal campaigns, dropped to their knees.

The color vanished from their skin, turning a sickly, ash-gray. Blood vessels popped in their eyes. The necrotic magic ripped the vitality straight out of their chests, pulling it through the air in faint, glowing red wisps that drifted toward the five towering obelisks.

"Commander!" Lady Scarlett’s voice shrieked over the comms rune. It was the first time Lucifer had ever heard the Crimson Rose sound truly terrified. "My men are dying! The air is eating us alive! Healers cannot keep up with the drain!"

Lucifer looked back at the column.

It was a massacre without a single sword being swung. Hundreds of mercenaries were already unconscious, their bodies shriveling as their health bars plummeted toward zero.

The healers in the ranks cast desperate, glowing green mending spells, but the Soul Siphons stripped the healing magic away faster than they could cast it.

If this continued for another fifteen seconds, Lucifer’s entire mortal army would be wiped out. He would lose his scouts, his infantry, and his massive influx of Fate Energy taxes.

Lucifer opened his Dimensional Vault.

He reached into the dark spatial rift and pulled out the heavy iron pole. The Banner of the Dawn, its pristine white fabric and golden sunburst catching the dim light.

Lucifer drove the spiked base of the Mythic Relic directly into the earth.

CRACK.

The banner stood tall in the ash. But the ambient holy magic stored in the relic was not enough. To counteract five massive, zone-wide Soul Siphons, the Banner needed a colossal power source.

It needed a living conduit to channel the Light.

Lucifer prepared to grab the iron pole. He planned to force his Void Arcanist mana through the holy relic, bending its alignment to his will. It would be inefficient and incredibly painful, but it would save his army.

Before Lucifer’s armored gauntlet could touch the iron, a flash of white silk stepped in front of him.

It was Lyra.

The Dawn Saintess had dismounted her white mare. She did not wear the heavy, parasitic golden halo anymore.

She did not wait for Lucifer’s order.

Lyra grabbed the iron pole of the Banner of the Dawn with both of her bare hands.

"Saintess!" Elara warned, stepping forward. "The relic requires too much mana! It will drain your life!"

Lyra ignored the Valkyrie. She looked back at Lucifer for a fraction of a second.

"I am no longer a statue," Lyra stated fiercely.

She closed her eyes. The Dawn Saintess unleashed the absolute totality of her Awakened holy core.

For her entire life, the Church had siphoned her power drop by drop to fuel their selfish wards. Now, she opened the floodgates.

A blinding, impossible pillar of pure, white sunlight erupted from Lyra’s chest. It rushed down her arms and poured directly into the Mythic Relic. The golden sunburst woven into the fabric of the banner ignited. It literally caught fire, burning with the heat of a miniature sun.

[System: Mythic Resonance Detected!]

[Source: Dawn Saintess Lyra (Level 45)]

[Relic Active: Banner of the Dawn - Maximum Output.] 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

A shockwave of solid, physical holy light exploded outward from the banner.

It formed a massive, shimmering dome of gold and white energy. The dome expanded at the speed of sound, racing across the valley. It slammed into the purple, necrotic vacuum of the Soul Siphons.

The collision of pure life and pure death created a deafening, high-pitched screech that shattered the rocks across the valley.

The golden dome held. It pushed outward, covering the Dragoons, the Arch-Seraphs, and the ten thousand collapsing mercenaries.

The moment the dome washed over the dying Awakened fighters, the red wisps of their stolen life force snapped.

[Zone Debuff Neutralized: Sanctuary of the Dawn Active.]

[Effect: Grants complete immunity to environmental necrotic damage within the dome. Restores 10% Maximum Health per second.]

The mercenaries gasped. Thousands of men and women sucked in massive, desperate breaths of clean, warm air.

The sickly gray color faded from their skin. They looked up at the massive golden dome shielding them from the purple sky.

They saw the blinding white light radiating from the center of the Vanguard.

They saw the Saintess.

Lyra stood at the base of the banner. She was practically glowing, a silhouette of pure divine power against the darkness of the Scourgelands.

But the cost was severe.

Lucifer watched her closely. His void eyes tracked the flow of her mana.

The five Soul Siphons were fueled by a Lich Lord and the ambient death energy of an entire cursed zone. Lyra was a single mortal woman fighting an ocean.

The Banner of the Dawn acted as a perfect conduit, but it demanded fuel. When Lyra’s mana reserves hit zero, the relic began pulling the next available resource.

Her life force.

Lyra’s hands shook violently against the iron pole. The blinding white light in her eyes began to flicker. Her pale skin turned a dangerous, translucent shade of white.

A thin stream of bright crimson blood trickled from her left nostril, staining her pristine silk robes.

"She is burning her own soul," Elara said urgently. She stepped toward Lyra, raising her hand to pull the Saintess away from the banner. "If she continues, her core will shatter."

"Don’t touch her," Lucifer commanded sharply.

Elara stopped, looking at Lucifer in shock.

Lucifer did not move. He kept his eyes fixed on Lyra. He saw the physical agony tearing her apart. He saw the blood dripping from her chin. But he also saw the absolute, unbroken resolve in her posture.

If Elara pulled Lyra away now, the dome would collapse. The mercenaries would die. But more importantly, it would strip Lyra of her choice.

For the first time in her life, she was choosing to suffer for a cause she believed in. She was fighting.

"Hold the line, Saintess," Lucifer said quietly. His voice carried a strange, heavy tone of genuine respect.

Lyra let out a strained, ragged cry. She gritted her teeth, her knuckles turning bone-white against the iron. She forced the last drop of her vitality into the relic.

The golden dome flared one final, blinding time.

The sudden surge of holy magic overloaded the necrotic connection. The magical feedback rushed back through the air, slamming into the five obsidian obelisks.

The thick, purple runes carved into the Soul Siphons shattered. The massive stone pillars cracked loudly, crumbling inward before exploding into piles of harmless black rubble.

The draining vacuum vanished entirely.

The Scourgelands returned to a standard, stagnant necrotic fog. The immediate threat was dead.

The golden dome of sanctuary flickered and dissolved into a gentle shower of warm light. The Banner of the Dawn dimmed, its fabric returning to normal white cloth.

Lyra’s grip on the iron pole finally failed.

The Saintess collapsed backward. Her eyes rolled up, and all color drained from her face. Her body went completely limp, falling toward the dead, ash-covered earth.

Lucifer moved instantly.

He bypassed the Zephyr’s Grace Emblem. He simply closed the distance.

Lucifer caught Lyra before she hit the ground. He slid his arm around her waist and supported her upper body with his other hand.

She was incredibly light, completely emptied of both mana and physical strength.

He gently lowered her to the ground, resting her head against his dark leather tunic.

Lyra’s eyelids fluttered. She forced them open a fraction of an inch. Her striking blue eyes were dull and exhausted. She looked up at Lucifer’s face, tracing the sharp lines of his jaw and the swirling void in his eyes.

"Did I..." Lyra whispered. Her voice was barely a breath. Blood stained her lips. "Did I hold them back?"

Lucifer looked at the exhausted Saintess. He looked past her, at the ten thousand mercenaries slowly picking themselves up from the dirt, entirely alive.

Lucifer pulled a high-tier healing potion from his Dimensional Vault. He uncorked the crystal vial with his thumb and held it to her lips.

"You broke his trap," Lucifer said softly. His voice lacked its usual cold edge. "You saved the line."

Lyra managed a weak, exhausted smile. She drank a few drops of the potion, the magical liquid immediately soothing her shredded throat.

"I am not a caged bird," Lyra whispered.

"No," Lucifer agreed. He brushed a stray lock of blonde hair away from her bloodstained face. "You are not."

Lyra’s eyes closed. The healing potion stabilized her core, dragging her into a deep, necessary unconsciousness. Her breathing slowed to a steady, rhythmic pace.

Lucifer held her for a moment longer. He looked at her pale face. She had proven her worth ten times over. She was not just a tool for the Cathedral; she was a warrior in her own right.

"Rest," Lucifer whispered to the sleeping Saintess.

He carefully lifted her into his arms. He stood up and carried her over to Elara.

"Keep her safe," Lucifer ordered. He gently transferred Lyra into the Valkyrie’s arms. "She stays behind the Arch-Seraphs. She is not to be disturbed until she wakes."

"I will guard her with my life," Elara swore. She held the unconscious Saintess protectively, her golden eyes burning with deep admiration for the mortal woman.

Lucifer turned away. He stepped back up to his Nightmare Steed and vaulted effortlessly into the saddle.

The Soul Siphons were destroyed. The mercenary column was intact. But the deep, guttural roar that had echoed through the fog moments before had not been silenced.

The heavy gray mist in front of the Grand Army swirled violently.

The ground shook as massive, skeletal claws dug into the cracked earth. The mist parted, revealing a creature that defied reason.

The Bone Dragon stepped onto the battlefield.

It was the size of a mountain. Its ribcage was large enough to swallow a cathedral. Sickly green fire burned in its massive, empty eye sockets. A thick aura of condensed death magic rolled off its bleached bones, instantly freezing the ground beneath it.

[System Warning: Legendary Boss Encounter!]

[Entity: Spectral Bone Dragon (Level 48)]

[Status: Enraged.]

Vorthos had lost his Vanguard and his Soul Siphons. The Lich Lord had sent his ultimate weapon to finish the job.

Lucifer sat on his Nightmare Steed. He looked up at the towering, mountain-sized undead monster. He did not draw back. He did not issue a defensive order.

Lucifer drew his longsword. The Carnage Core flared a blinding, violent ruby red.

"I’ll handle the rest," Lucifer stated coldly.

He pointed his glowing crimson blade directly at the Bone Dragon.

"Vanguards! Dragoons!" Lucifer roared, his voice echoing over the entire valley. "Bring that beast to the ground!"