Chess Mage of Faerûn

Chapter 544 Chanem's Apparent Death Organs
The beauty of this third-circle necromancy arcane spell lies in the fact that after the recipient enters a state of suspended animation, they not only resemble a corpse and lose vital signs such as breathing and heartbeat, but also possess a series of attributes of an undead creature.

Immunity to instant death, immunity to critical hits and vital attacks, immunity to negative energy and mind spells, immunity to immobilization and paralysis, and a series of other immunity effects essentially give the recipient a new stat sheet, eliminating the weaknesses of a living being and thus avoiding the impending doom of death.

Of course, not immune to decapitation...

Once the recipient is confirmed to be in a state of suspended animation, the alchemical device will immediately unleash a powerful negative energy blast centered on the recipient, creating the effect of a near-death self-destruction, similar to a rudimentary version of the Balrog's incineration explosion.

The damage caused is secondary. After all, the fact that they were able to drive the high-cliff knife team, who were wearing power armor, to the brink of defeat means they were no ordinary enemies. Master Zhang had to strike hard himself; a low-level spell wouldn't change anything.

The real significance lies in the treatment.

Yes, negative energy spells are completely harmful to living beings, especially the person at the center of the spell. They will suffer greatly, not to mention healing, they will probably be drained of their last breath, but they are already "dead"!

The recipient who enters a state of suspended animation is almost equivalent to an undead body. Not only is they immune to negative energy damage, but they can even enjoy the healing effects of an undead creature.

What's even more ingenious is its stealth. After all, if you're about to die and cast a healing spell, everyone will know that the other person is struggling to save themselves and will rush forward to finish them off.

However, negative energy explosions are different. People might think you're desperate and trying to take a last-ditch effort, and they might just laugh it off and ignore it.

Of course, if the other party has a penchant for decapitation strikes, then you can only accept your bad luck...

The seemingly life-saving feigned death technique is not very effective in actual combat, mainly due to its frustrating trigger conditions.

You can't just fake your death at the very beginning, can you? Or pretend to collapse halfway through the game? Who are you trying to fool?

However, near-death triggers are not so easy to achieve. Misjudgment or delay of vital signs can easily turn a fake death into a real death.

Often, people themselves are unaware of their own condition and rely on a low-level trigger spell to make a judgment?
Moreover, after faking death, one has no ability to resist, and even the consciousness is gone. One is truly at the mercy of others, so it can only be used as a last resort when all other options are exhausted, not a last resort.

Which spellcaster would be willing to gamble their life like that? To entrust their fate to the enemy's misjudgment?
Why not just use a teleportation spell to get away?

Unfortunately, the warp gems needed for teleportation, from thief's stones to dimensional stones, are all expensive, starting at several thousand gold coins, and even then, they are hard to find.

No matter how much money my business makes, it can't keep up with the rate at which I'm burning through cash!
While reminiscing about his wallet, Mr. Zhang carefully performed the final step on the device in his hand.

The armor plates, no larger than two palm-sized areas, are inlaid with a variety of patterns and nodes, requiring extremely high craftsmanship. And this is just the basics. The core key lies in the probes that extend from the central hub of the array, resembling appendages.

The living soul probe technology was something Zhang Yuan had observed and learned while doing experiments with his teacher in Gaolibao. Sure enough, it came in handy at this moment, becoming the key to solving the problem of monitoring life signs.

For living beings, or living creatures, there is an unshakable connection between their soul and body. Even in the plane of Faerûn, a person's soul does not simply detach from the body and run away from home.

unless…

Death is imminent.

As the body slides toward a foreseeable death, the union of spirit and body inevitably becomes turbulent, which is then captured by probes inserted into the body, directly triggering the suspended animation mechanism and entering a false eternal sleep before doom arrives.

Of course, the practical application of this device depends on the successful application of the black shell technology, which allows the probe to connect to the external neural interface on the wearer's body surface. Otherwise, having to insert several needles into the body every time would be too troublesome. So, only the final verification stage remains; let's see which lucky individual will be selected!
Inside the cage, the usually fearless apes suddenly felt a chill under Master Zhang's kind gaze and quickly shrank into the corner of the cage to avoid his "kindness".

Sigh, an experiment that could have been done simply by bringing over a cow or sheep would probably end up with meat that tastes like expired frozen meat after being subjected to negative energy. What a waste.

With that thought in mind, the monk didn't let his hands linger, grabbing a lucky mad ape to participate in the next experiment.

The mage invited the other party onto the iron chair, using shackles and chains to calm their excited and joyful emotions. Then, he picked up the armor plate engraved with the device for faking death and aimed four sharp probes at the ribs of the person being studied.

After aiming carefully, he thrust in suddenly!
Looking again at the mad ape, it had already fainted.

His mental fortitude was lacking; the monkey's poor performance spoiled the master's research, and he was truly guilty.

Zhang Yuan frowned, flicked his finger and sent a frost-white ray striking the monkey's face. The monkey grimaced and woke up, then willingly accepted a series of incredibly fun little games.

The status effects of being asleep, stunned, immobilized, or severely injured were not triggered.

"Well, this is the end."

The monk's eyelids drooped slightly, and the glimpse of his eyes held a hint of pity, but more than that...

expect?

The mad ape, who had just recovered from a healing touch, hadn't even had time to express his joy at surviving a disaster when the kind gaze from the villain on the other side felt like a bucket of ice water being poured over his head.

"The serpent's sharp teeth."

The mage spread his five fingers wide, and within the small space of his palm, the power was twisted and shaped by arcane energy into two constantly rotating, pointed cone-shaped force fields, like the fangs of a venomous snake.

huh~
puff puff!

Two powerful, sharp teeth flew towards the mad ape, piercing through its chest and leaving two holes before the monkey could even react.

The fatal wounds that pierced his heart and lungs left Mr. Mad Ape with no time to utter his final words. His eyes widened, his pupils dilated, and he collapsed onto the iron chair, having lost all his strength, showing no signs of life.

Mr. Mad Ape is probably dead.

The mage remained silent, seemingly waiting for something. In the silence, a faint light appeared, suddenly erupting from the mad ape's body and spreading outwards, engulfing everything within a twenty-foot radius like a tidal wave.

As the only living creature in the area, the mage was the first to be affected, but the dim tide of negative energy was blocked by reefs, barely able to get within a foot of the mage's body, as if swallowed up by an invisible giant mouth.

The barrier protecting against energy damage absorbed all the negative energy impact. Zhang Yuan waved his hand to dispel the remaining magical energy and stepped forward to check on the Mad Ape's condition.

Thank you to O銜尾蛇O and 烟灭归尘 for the generous donations, and also thank you to Brother A-Yi, 书即吾命2, and 烟灭归尘 for the monthly tickets. Thank you all!
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(End of this chapter)