Countless crimson blood arrows condensed on the inner walls of the blood prison, shooting out with ear-piercing whistles, forcing Alama to keep moving. His greatsword spun into a silver barrier, shattering the incoming blood arrows one after another.
“Hurry up and die, you disgusting thing! What’s wrong? Out of strength?” Elinore’s laughter echoed in the blood prison. “Where’s all that swagger from chasing my troops around? Only defending now, no counter—”
[Parry LV10]
[Trample LV9]
[Charge LV10]
[Heavy Strike LV10]
The shockwave of Trample perfectly merged with Charge’s speed. Alama appeared before Elinore in an instant.
His greatsword swept horizontally with its broad blade, shattering two hastily raised blood curtains and solidly slamming into her shoulder.
*BOOM!*
Elinore flew like a broken kite, crashing into the stone wall behind Sigmund, leaving spiderweb cracks.
If not for the blood prison sealing the space, the aftershock alone would have collapsed half the hall.
Sigmund didn’t even glance at Elinore’s condition. No matter how useless, she was still a duke-tier blood-clan; she wouldn’t die from one hit. The blood prison still standing proved it.
He sighed and took the initiative. “Support me. Watch for sneak attacks!”
Crimson blood energy coiled around his weapon like living things. He clashed with Alama.
Sigmund fought extremely cautiously, every move leaving margin, constantly guarding against whatever hidden card Alama might be hiding.
He had no need to rush. The longer the blood prison lasted, the more advantageous for them. The one who should be anxious was Alama, being eroded by blood poison.
He only needed to play it safe to drag out victory.
Elinore, having taken a heavy blow, grew much more restrained. While cursing under her breath, she controlled blood arrows to attack Alama from tricky angles, creating openings for Sigmund.
As time passed, though Alama hadn’t suffered substantial damage, dark-red blood spots appeared on his exposed skin.
Blood poison wasn’t something to waste casually; it was the condensed blood essence blood-clan used for subordinate promotion rituals. Humans directly absorbing it without first becoming half-vampires turned into failed products: ghouls.
Blood poison, or blood essence, was precious, but worth using against an opponent like Alama. Clearly Elinore had gone all-in this time.
With the blood poison’s erosion, Alama’s movements gradually slowed. Even with Sigmund still fighting conservatively, he steadily gained the upper hand.
“Got any more tricks? Use them now. Don’t take them to your grave.”
Alama remained silent, only swinging his greatsword to shatter surrounding blood arrows.
“Look at you now,” Sigmund’s voice carried mockery, trying to disrupt Alama’s mind. “Level stuck at seventy, strength declining day by day after your peak. For that pathetic human identity, watching yourself weaken; how does it feel?”
“My strength has declined these two years, true, but nowhere near as fast as yours, right?” Alama looked at Sigmund’s fat face and smiled, mocking back for the first time.
Sigmund’s mouth immediately drooped, but he didn’t lose control. His movements still left margin.
Sigmund fell silent. Alama suddenly spoke instead. “I’m the one who wants to ask: what’s so great about being a bloodsucking mosquito? No taste, no sensation of temperature, numb to everything; is that living? A thing that can’t even perform life’s most basic reproduction; no wonder Ina didn’t choose you back then. You weren’t even an option!”
“I think he’s right,” Lin Jun whispered.
It really was too monotonous. Lin Jun had lately felt tired of sugar but had no other choice; quite vexing.
Sigmund ignored the tone-deaf roommate, face expressionless. “So she died, and today you’ll repay the life you owe me here!”
“I owed the boy from back then, not you, blood-clan duke.”
The fight grew fiercer. Sigmund’s bloated body somehow burst with astonishing speed, suppressing Alama like a gale. In a few moves he could take his life.
Yet after another clash that left a wound on Alama’s chest, Sigmund suddenly retreated.
He wore a triumphant cold smile. “What, you thought I’d get angry and duel you fairly? I said it: use your tricks. Don’t take them underground.”
Alama had no time to respond. A blood arrow suddenly pierced his ankle from behind.
As he lost balance, several more blood arrows stabbed into his back.
*Pfft!* Alama violently spat blood, instantly wilting.
“Die already!” Elinore, seeing the chance, condensed two blood-ribbon blades in her hands and leaped over Sigmund straight at Alama.
“Elinore!”
Sigmund’s angry shout only made Elinore faster.
Facing the unstoppable assault, Alama sighed weakly and murmured, “So it’s just you…”
The next moment, the fist-sized circular protrusion on his greatsword’s spine suddenly popped open. Blinding golden light burst forth!
[Sun Stone (Incomplete)]
Elinore let out a shrill scream. The dazzling light instantly stole her vision.
The two figures crossed. When she recovered, both arms were gone. Her neck was half-severed, blood gushing like a fountain.
“Tch! Can’t even kill one!” Alama gritted his teeth unwillingly.
Sigmund’s thrown weapon had struck Alama’s greatsword, deflecting the fatal blow just enough to save Elinore’s life.
This was also why Alama’s current state had dropped so low; he needed to fool two blood-clan dukes.
Even so, Elinore was on the verge of death, completely out of the fight.
The blood prison instantly collapsed. Without support, the ruined hall crashed down, rubble raining.
Alama dragged his weary body toward Elinore. Sigmund didn’t dare act rashly.
Under the Sun Stone’s radiance, he felt his strength draining, entering Weakened state.
The abnormal situation made him extremely wary.
He couldn’t be sure if Alama’s current frailty was bait. He wasn’t willing to risk his life to save that idiot.
At that moment, Lorenzo’s figure smashed through the wall, crashing heavily near Alama.
His longsword was broken in two, bite marks clear on the break. Only one of the three magic crystals on his staff still glowed.
He struggled up, spat a mouthful of blood.
Outside came Velariss’s almost inhuman roars.
Nose swollen and face bruised, Lorenzo quickly scanned the battlefield, grabbed Alama who still wanted to finish Elinore, and said, “No time! We go now!”
He slammed his staff on the ground. A powerful gust lifted both into the air, then split into over a dozen illusions fleeing in different directions.
Outside, Velariss in half-troll form leaped madly, shattering two illusions but finding only fakes.
With the commander retreating, High Fort completely fell into demon hands in half a day.
Humanity no longer had a fortress sturdy enough to stop demon advance.
…
Lin Jun watched Alama escape, panel locked on their real bodies, but he certainly wouldn’t remind Sigmund.
Sun Stone! Sun Stone!
No wonder he couldn’t find the rest of his Sun Stone. Humans had taken it long ago.
Thinking about it, it made sense. Humans had been active in his dungeon early on. Finding some fragments was normal.
Now both the Heartwood fragment and Sun Stone were in the front-line area. Aidin still had no news.
The underground network was close to the front now. Full speed should reach in a week.
The question: how to get them?
Through Sigmund was clearly bad; it would become leverage against him.
Lin Jun’s view swept around, finally landing on Inanna in the garden, charging Puchis…
(End of Chapter)
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