The Dead Man's Codex
This was a set of techniques and technical knowledge created by the dead follower. It used the knowledge of universal biology, survival skills, and defense movements to fight up.
Thane had engineered it to help fight against the growing forces that were against Victoria. Her siblings were very powerful and doted on by a myriad of factions, so in the same generations, their troops were often weaker in power.
But what they lacked in power, they replaced with tenacity and ruthlessness.
"Hmp." Enzo slowly approached a crouching creature on the ground. It was a giant lizard with a fat stomach seated on its belly.
It looked to be full, as its claws shimmered with a wet glow and its razor-sharp teeth bit against its lip.
One of the rules of the Dead Man's Codex was to never initiate a fight against an opponent without making sure it was several times as weakened as it would be normally. Dust in the eyes, poisoning, fatal wounds from a distance—these were all part of the codex as preparations before a fight.
In this case, the gluttonous monster had eaten more than it could chew and was now on its belly, full.
—Gringgg
The sound of a spinning mechanism suddenly resounded from beside the creature as a shadowy figure burst out from the side of a rock's shadow and bared down on the creature from above.
Without a second thought, the figure pierced down on the back of the lizard creature with his spinning dagger, drilling a hole through its body.
—Rawrrrr!!
Feeling the piercing pain in its back, the creature immediately reacted in pain and twisted its body.
It, which previously couldn't move, jerked at this moment as it felt Enzo's dagger dig into its back in a brutal spin of blood and mash.
"Shadow step." Enzo felt the ground underneath him shift as he dove forward and went straight through a shadow underneath him.
A second later, he rose from the opposite-side shadow of the creature, immediately driving into it with his dagger once more.
Every time the creature reacted, Enzo would dive into the shadows and attack it from its blind spots, slowly creating several wears in its skin, bleeding it out.
It wasn't easy, but it was very efficient. He targeted its most vital spots, its underbelly, its neck, its eyes.
Big creatures had a natural weakness when facing anything smaller.
Speed and reactivity.
Enzo banked on this, and sooner rather than later, he was able to gut the creature till it died.
"Four kills today," Thane remarked, his grin oddly bright for a dead man. "You're adapting faster than most would."
The kid, after all of it, had taken a lot of damage internally. The beast might not have been fast enough to squash him, but it was strong enough to toss him around a bit.
And by a bit… well, Enzo's right arm was dislocated at the end of the fight, with him bleeding from several other wounds all over.
"Don't worry, it'll get better," Thane muttered.
Enzo had fought a few terrifying monsters in the past few days. Amongst them were creatures that could kill him with a single swing.
Of course, with the help of the Night Cloak treasure, Shadow Step, and the Dead Man's Codex, he was able to subdue them.
It was still worth noting his tenacity.
"Hm." Enzo nodded at Thane.
"Any echo?" Thane asked with some curiosity.
The beast just now was a corrupted Noble. It was just a rank above what a great warrior was supposed to be able to handle; however, the difference between both was the same as that between heaven and earth.
"No echo," Enzo shook his head.
"Ahh, quite unlucky kid. Not a single echo?" Thane shook his head in disappointment. As a zombie, he couldn't easily kill and receive an echo from beasts. It wasn't impossible, of course, but… it wasn't easy either. He was hoping to get one from Enzo.
Unfortunately, Enzo was so unlucky that he couldn't get a single one either.
"Sorry." Enzo smiled bitterly, watching Thane sigh in disappointment.
Of course, Enzo was lying.
He had indeed received echoes these few days—several, in fact. But he did not tell the dead man. And this was because…
After the night vision, Enzo had identified him as a threat, a threat to him and his success in this voyage. And what more could he do to a threat other than kill him?
This was easier said than done, of course, but what was a little difficult to him in the presence of death?
"Hehe, it's okay kid. Let's go and watch the princess rip into some abominations." Not giving Enzo a second of time, Thane ended the interaction and started taking large strides toward a slope that led downwards.
At a quick glance it seemed like nothing, but as Enzo got closer, the sounds of massive shockwaves caused the very ground to shake.
—Roar!!!!!!!!
Down below, a massive wendigo-like creature standing around 50 feet in the air could be seen, bloodied, fighting against a small silhouette with a broad shiny sword in her hand that whooshed through the air like lightning.
The difference in size was absolutely astounding, yet of the two, the much bigger one was suffering the most.
They could have just snuck their way through the Grand Canyon in all honesty. But Victoria had changed her mind.
Enzo didn't know if it was some form of defiance, a show of strength, or just sheer hate. But Victoria wanted to kill the guardians of the canyon. She wanted to slaughter them one after the other before leaving the planet in triumph.