"And how are we doing here?" asked Li from high above, his floating platform of roots giving him bird's eye vantage point of the developing battle, and developed it had.

"A challenge, aye, but one within realm of reason for my fist!" shouted Old Thane as used his arm to block a hacking slash from a skeletal guardian, an advanced variant of skeletal knight that had a level of near thirty.

The guardian's broadsword dug in an inch into Old Thane's forearm, but no more, finding it hard to cut into [Iron Skin] boosted flesh. He flexed his forearm, causing muscle to contract over the blade and trap it before socking the guardian in its breastplate. A breastplate that was noticeably less rusted and more robust in both shine and strength than that worn by its lesser counterparts.

The old man's fist slammed into the plate, denting it severely, and no doubt the shockwave emitted from his blow had cracked much of the bone behind it, but it was not enough to entirely drop the guardian. Zagan looked up at the guardian's head and casted a [Disintegration Ray] from his eyes. Twin beams of bright red swathed over the helmed skull before disintegrating both helmet and skull into nothingness.

"I thank ye for that one," said Old Thane as he shoved forwards, sending the guardian's body slamming back into the rock with a metallic impact. He unflexed his arm, and the broadsword dislodged, clattering also on the stone below.

"Looks like things are getting a little harder," said Li. "As expected. The thicker one travels into Undeath Haze, the stronger and stronger the undead become. Old man, think it's time to abandon this solo raid?"

"Aye," said Old Thane with a wistful smile. "I know better than all others that true might comes from the strength of a party, not some bloodthirsty, charge-addled nitwit. I shall join the rest ahead."

"A good idea," said Li. "I came here to tell you just the same thing. But it seems like you've got the gist of it. Join up with the advance group and keep near to Tia, for I am beginning to sense we are reaching the center of the haze."

Old Thane nodded before rushing forwards, focusing on movement more than combat now that he had fallen a fair bit behind the advance party of Vilga, Sheela, and Tia. He used skills to stun enemies and shove them aside, using his advanced hearing and other senses to pierce through the blinding haze to navigate and track the sounds of battle ahead.

Li watched, and whatever undead that Old Thane left behind stunned or shoved, he disposed of in quick order with [Moonbeams] from his eyes that reduced the undead into smoking cinders. Honestly, he could have turned on a wide range [Moonbeam] and just strolled forwards, completely annihilating everything, but that would spoil the fun everyone was having.

And he liked all of this. This struggle through undead haze to reach a boss. It recaptured if just a little bit the magic that had kept him and his friends to the game for so many years. He smiled as he began to recall.

The Undeath Haze was a special environmental effect spawned from either a particularly strong undead or an area infused with a massive number of undead energies comprised of such things as the regrets of the dead, suffering, pain, and so on. In this case, an Oculon was the eye of the haze, naturally creating what was essentially a hurricane of charged energies.

In this hurricane, any undead that was not completely disintegrated or destroyed with holy type energy would eventually regenerate and respawn, meaning that it was imperative to push through the haze as soon as possible.

The haze also limited visibility and near the central eye, it also began to afflict status effects such as a potent healing debuff and slowed mana regeneration, though inversely it did hugely buff undead player characters.

Li himself actually had bonuses to much of his dark Druidry in this haze, though obviously he did not need to use it.

Near the eye of the haze, Li estimated that the strength of the undead would rise drastically. The lesser undead from before were around levels 15-20, and that let him judge that this was an incredibly low leveled haze, though of course, relative to the world's standards, it was a disastrous threat.

Here, where Old Thane was, the undead were beginning to reach the twenties, and at the center, there were fewer undead, but they would probably break into the mid thirties. At that point, everyone would have to start working together, and Li was curious to see how that would unfold.

Li watched with some surprise at the scene unfolding before him at the advance party.

Here, the haze was starting to swirl like mad, whipping up purple tinged winds that howled not just because of the wind, but also because of wraiths and other evil spirits occupying it. The spirits were hard to distinguish, being mere flickers of darkness in the raging maelstrom of purple, but Old Thane could pinpoint their howls and whispers.

"There, Sheela!" shouted Old Thane as he pointed in front of him, right above Tia.

Tia herself was in a standoff against an enormous Zombie Drake, sidestepping a breath of liquid rot, and she was entirely focused on the drake before her, eyes narrowed and ears twitching, not at all noticing the malevolent growth of hooded darkness and ethereal limbs willowing above her.

Sheela hissed as she clasped her hands together, a little splatter of blood flicking from her palms colliding. She had a few wounds on her by now from the much stronger undead, and the haze's healing debuff prevented her shamanic healing spells from being as effective. But that meant she had all the more blood to use as a resource for incredibly powerful dispelling spells.

A red sigil formed around the wraith's shadowy body in a ring before exploding, setting the spirit ablaze in blood colored flame that quickly disintegrated it.

Old Thane nodded before looking to the threat that faced him and Vilga, cutting them off from Tia's duel with the drake. It was a Flesh Golem stitched from the various bodies of several abominations and armored with spiked steel. Through tears in its body, noxious gas spewed forth, threatening to inflict poison damage to all that made contact with it.

"I shall follow your lead, Vilga," said Old Thane, and Vilga growled before rushing forwards.

The golem was more than twice her size, but she was easily several times more agile than it. She dashed under a heavy sweeping strike from the golem's battering ram of an arm and slashed upwards with glowing claws, using the [Qi Claws] skill that projected mana infused claw strikes forwards.

Bladed white lights shot forth from her fingers, slicing into the golem's torso and carving out great scars in it. From those scars, blood and entrails and chunks of body parts spilled out, but the damage was not enough.

Old Thane followed quick behind Vilga and nodded at her, beginning to analyze how she moved and finding the best way to support her. He noticed that her combat style was almost pure offense, flowing like a raging typhoon in her twirls and relentless offense, but not having much in terms of self-defense.

"I'll take this blow!" shouted Old Thane as the golem went for another sweep. He gritted his teeth and took the golem's club-like fist right to the chest. The fist was almost as large as the old man himself, but he ground his feet into the rocks and stood firm, grasping at the fist with both his arms, anchoring himself to it.

His body tinged red, and his veins became unnaturally visible like shivering serpents as he activated [Berserk], finally dipping into his Berserker subclass skills. The skill would massively enhance his strength stat while also providing him incredible resistance to most forms of damage including the noxious fumes that poured over him from the golem's arm.

"Helm!" shouted Old Thane, though it sounded more like bestial growl at this point. "Break the helm!"

Vilga looked up at the flesh golem. Its head was a fusion of several kinds. Of humans, orcs, beastmen, and any number of creature, but its multi-eyed and jawed face all found safety under a horned helmet adorned with glowing green runes of defense.

She grunted before she leaped up once, landing atop the arm Old Thane held still and using it as a stepping stone to jump high above the golem's head. She spun in the air as she flung down her leg in axing motion, her heel encased in glowing white energy in the shape of a thick spike meant for punching through armor.

Her heel slammed into the golem's helmet with a groaning wrench of metal tearing, and the qi-infused impact of the blow traveled down the length of the helm, splitting it neat in two. She leaped backwards, and the two halves of the helm fell heavily down, crushing stone below.

"Sheela!" roared Old Thane as he used [Giant Strength], his muscles suddenly engorging with mass, making him seem twice his size as he shoved the golem to the side, breaking the balance it had held in its pillar like legs of flesh. "The head!"

Sheela materialized seemingly out of nowhere on all fours, jumping forwards to the golem's falling form. She was using [Stalk] to maintain stealth, recognizing that this deep in the haze, she as an Assassin primary could not afford to take hits to the same extent as Vilga and Old Thane.

But where she lacked in durability, she made up for in monstrous offense. She shot forwards, wreathed in spiraling crimson patterns, and she essentially drilled into the golem's thick neck, shredding it apart and tearing the head clean off in one fell motion.

"Now, onwards to our dragon!" shouted Old Thane as he tossed the golem's body behind him with a heavy breath. "Sheela, keep watch over spirits, for neither can I nor Vilga deal with their ilk. And Vilga, fear not for stray blows for I have watch over ye."

The two beastwomen nodded, and Vilga ran forwards while Sheela faded away into the shadows on all fours.

Li felt a sense of pride from the old man. It was highly evident that in his youth, Old Thane was the shotcaller. He was the one who glued together the party and made it work.

It made Li realize just how much more to the old man there had been other than farming, though certainly, that was the part Li appreciated the most.