Returning to the Mysterious Era

Chapter 151 - Rune of Wisdom Completed

A blurry shadow swallowed up the bat creature's head.

Crack!

Like a giant python devouring its prey, the Blood Race's ugly head was crushed, blood spurting from between the assailant's fingers. With a wave of his arm, he flung the headless corpse aside.

On the other side, Duomo acted with equal decisiveness and ferocity. Despite his serious injuries, he could still best the ordinary branch line Blood Race. The martial arts of the Three-Eyed Mad Lion Sect were brutal and savage, with a strong focus on killing; he ruthlessly pierced through the Blood Race member's chest with his hand, crushing its heart.

Amid the rain of blood, the two sprinted along the creek, heading downstream. The hazy blood mist in the air traced along their arms and profiles, leaving behind red streaks.

"Nathan and Ildan were killed?!"

"They're not Blood Race, and nor are they Mercury Hunters. Could they be the Hellsings who oppose all dark creatures? But even the strongest knight-level wouldn't have been able to take down Nathan and the others in their Blood Gift state without a fight," an elderly Blood Race muttered to himself. "It could also be those mysterious martial artists. I've only crossed paths with them once, then never again."

The Blood Race Elder was about to deal with the second living sacrifice on the altar, but upon seeing the two approaching figures, he frowned. Expression darkening, he commanded, "I do not care who those two people are; don't let them get close. The ritual must not be disrupted!"

"Yes." After receiving the order, at least half of the Blood Race guarding the altar rushed out, their black cloaks flapping in the wind. A dozen shadows sprinted upstream along the creek.

With a series of roars and beast-like howls, the direct descendant of the Alphama Bloodline transformed simultaneously. In their Blood Gift state, their muscles swelled so much that their pants and boots exploded. They all turned into a group of bat-like monsters, dark red bristles fluttering.

"What's happening with the Blood Race by the altar?!"

On the other side of the creek, the Mercury Hunters and officers who were engaged in the fierce battle noticed the commotion. Their leader, Will, quickly shot out a crossbow bolt, then turned to fend off an opponent with a slash of his longsword. He rolled backward, landing sturdily on his two feet. Two Mercury Hunters stepped in front of him as protection.

"What's the situation?" Will asked the female officer Cathy, who was standing by a tree trunk. Mercury Hunters were not ordinary humans. The adult members of the blue-eyed family were much stronger physically than the average strong man, with incredibly fast reaction times, hence why they were at the front, acting as a shield to block off the Blood Race's powerful attacks, while the dozen or so officers in the rear provided ranged support. They could see the bigger picture and gather more information.

"Some other people have arrived upstream. They seem to be the Blood Race's enemies!" Cathy said quickly as she reloaded.

"The enemy of an enemy is a friend." Will turned his head to look at the creek and was startled to see a bat monster flying through the air, its chest caved in from a punch, its heart smashed. Blood splattered across a large area of the grass and creek.

Two dark shadows rushed down like sharp arrows, puncturing the Blood Race's line of defense. Many of the enraged Alphama direct bloodline members who charged forward were sent flying, severely injured. Some were punched into a bloody pulp, howling in pain, while others were knocked out by an elbow strike. Their unconscious bodies tumbled into the creek, the current soon carrying them away.

"So fierce!" Will's eyes widened. One of the two rapidly approaching figures seemed familiar. "It's that cold-faced muscle man I saw over a week ago!"

Hearing this, Cathy also turned to look. But her eyesight could only see at the normal human range, leaving her able to detect only the dark silhouettes fighting chaotically.

"The other muscle man is probably his companion." Will narrowed his eyes. He didn't care what the two men were aiming to do, but for now, they seemed to be helping them.

At least half of the elite Blood Race guards by the altar had been sent to intercept those two, which constricted much of the Blood Race's combat power. This might be their only opportunity to disrupt the ritual.

Will quickly made an executive decision. "We'll push across the river! Don't worry about the casualties!" His primary mission was to break through and mess up the blood ritual; casualties were secondary.

"Follow me!" Will shouted and charged back into the battlefield. The Mercury Hunters seized this rare opportunity and began pushing forward. With high morale surging through them, the group steadily advanced, gradually closing in on the creek. They were headed straight for the altar.

"Stop them!" shouted one of the Blood Race guarding the altar. Several branch line Blood Race members immediately entered their Blood Gift state, transforming into half-human, half-bat monsters and charging.

Meanwhile, Cassius and Duomo had their own hands full. The two had fought a life-and-death battle earlier with a terrifying high-ranking Blood Race member in the ruins that lasted at least ten minutes. Although they eventually killed it, both Cassius and Duomo were suffering some serious injuries, and they were finding it difficult to fend off the surrounding attacks.

In their normal state, these dozen bat monsters would have already been killed. But as the two of them had just barely escaped by the skin of their teeth, they were unwilling to use their full strength which could exacerbate their injuries. As a result, they found themselves entangled with the numerous Blood Race members.

Bang!

Cassius twisted his body and slammed his iron-like elbow into a bat monster's chest. The dark red muscle instantly caved in, cracking several bones. Right foot planted on the ground, he flashed forward like a black shadow and sent the creature flying with a kick.

He exhaled, his breath smelling faintly of blood, and noticed that his clothes which had been dripping wet from the creek were almost dry due to his burning body heat.

After escaping from the ruins, Cassius and Duomo rushed to the nearby creek, attempting to wash off the pheromones on their bodies. However, it proved ineffective; the swarm of white scarabs continued to pursue them.

The amber-colored pool that Cassius had jumped into to evade the scarabs likely possessed unique properties of that place, which could block the scarabs' senses. Washing in ordinary water sources was useless.

Whoosh!

From several meters away, Duomo swiftly struck a bat monster on the shoulder with a claw, dislocating its joint using sheer force. He then threw a powerful left punch, and it clashed with the claw of another bat monster. With a powerful burst of strength, he forced it back, his face turning red. Blood trickled out at the corner of his mouth.

Duomo was adjusting his breathing when he heard a hissing sound behind him. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, he saw a large white mass made of a densely packed pile of scarabs, chasing after them and looking like a white torrent. Under the hazy starlight, it seemed as if two creeks were flowing down the forest.

"Cassius, the scarabs are catching up!" he warned.

Cassius had only one thing to say.

"Run!" His eyes flashed with a fierce light. He and Duomo charged forward as one, unleashing a portion of their strength that they had hidden away. His iron-forged hand reached out, an immense force seizing the Blood Race member in front of him. With a swish, he flung it backward.

"Roar!" the thrown bat monster roared, trying to steady itself in the air. The world spun around, the forest, sky, and creek blending together. Suddenly, a streak of white appeared in its peripheral vision.

Boom!

A half-human, half-bat figure plummeted down from the sky, crashing into the white torrent that had been rushing from behind.

"Ahhhh...!" A piercing scream tore through the sky.

The scarab furiously sprayed corrosive liquid from their tails. The mysterious substance seemed to have a specific effect on Blood Race energy as it dealt far more damage than when it touched Cassius's skin. With just a single touch, the skin of the Alphama direct bloodline Blood Race member was completely corroded, leaving nothing but exposed, bloody flesh and white bones.

It struggled to stand up, but the swarm of scarabs smothered its body. As if there was no more energy to drain, the swarm of scarabs parted, revealing a smoldering blackened skeleton on the ground. It looked like a rock amidst a stream of white water.

Up ahead, Cassius sensed his progress bar increasing. Without hesitation, he used both hands to swat the half-human, half-bat monsters backward. The Alphama direct bloodline Blood Race members flew through the air like discarded trash and smashed into the horde of beetles.

For a moment, all he could hear was a mix of agonized howls, creating a terrifying symphony of screams. "Aaargh! Roar! Nooo..."

Large white clouds of steam rose from the small bulges of scarabs. Initially, all they did was writhe around, but they soon stopped moving altogether. Seconds later, clusters of blackened bones were exposed to the air.

The Blood Race members must have done their job of drawing the scarabs' attention because Cassius and Duomo managed to extricate themselves from the swarm. The two's shoes left deep imprints in the ground as they charged forward at nearly a forty-five-degree angle. In a flash, they rapidly closed in on the altar.

Bang, bang, bang... bang, bang, bang...

The two figures quickly slammed through the Blood Race members blocking their way, and dashed further ahead, showing no signs of stopping.

"They're not coming for us?"

"Doesn't matter! The ritual is almost complete as long as..." The Blood Race Elder on the altar narrowed his eyes, but his thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a startled cry nearby. He quickly turned his head to see a massive white flood surging toward them. The smooth backs of the scarabs glistened faintly under the starlight.

"This is... Scarabs! Fuck!" The elder's shocked shout pierced through the sky. It was shrill, almost like a woman's scream.

In an instant, the scarab army had the entire altar surrounded. The hissing sound of their legs crawling over the ground was enough to send shivers down one’s spine as acid sprayed everywhere.

"Aaahhh!" The Blood Race members near the altar danced about, limbs flailing, as if performing an intense, frenzied tap dance.

On the other side of the creek, both sides noticed the situation at the altar but were momentarily baffled. Only the elders of the Alphama direct bloodline Blood Race knew of the scarabs' existence in the ruins. The ordinary members of the Alphama direct bloodline had never seen anything like this.

As for the Mercury Hunters and officers, they were even more clueless. The only certain thing was that the beetle army had stopped the blood ritual from progressing further and seemed to be doing some serious damage to the Blood Race. That worked in their favor.

The elite Blood Race members engaged in combat tried to retreat and defend the altar, but Will immediately commanded his team to fight them, and the battle continued.

Will rolled to avoid a Blood Race attack and was about to quickly retaliate with an arrow when a voice suddenly spoke beside him, "Let them through and watch them die."

!

Startled, he instinctively swung his crossbow around.

Crack!

The semi-automatic crossbow in Will's hands was immediately ripped into pieces by two large hands, the force behind it so immense that it was rendered into a piece of scrap metal.

He looked up and saw a cold-faced, muscular man wearing a tattered cloak, and a blond man who stood beside him. Though they appeared somewhat disheveled, they had an overwhelmingly powerful presence. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Yes, Cassius had returned after rushing through the forest.

After diverting the danger eastward, Cassius realized that the scarabs had been much more attracted by the large numbers of Alphama direct bloodline Blood Race and the blood ritual altar than him and Duomo. Now, the beetle army was focused on besieging the altar, not even sparing a glance at the two of them.

After considering this, Cassius quietly circled back around. He still wanted to fill up his Rune of Wisdom progress bar. Seeing that there was just a tiny bit left, Cassius figured that, although he could continue hunting dark creatures later, it was best to finish it in one go today. In any case, the Rune of Wisdom could absorb the essence of calamity from corpses even if they were far away.

"It's you! I didn't get a chance to ask your names," Will said, his voice noticeably less hostile. He threw the remaining pieces of his crossbow to the ground.

"Twilight," Cassius replied.

Duomo glanced at Cassius before saying, "Duomo."

Will quickly assessed the situation and said, "If we let these Blood Race members through, they'll reinforce the altar. Won't that..."

Right at that moment, Cassius extended a large hand, grabbing the arm of a Blood Race member who had ambushed them. He lifted it with his immense strength and flung it through the air.

"Don't worry, those scarabs won't be satisfied even if there were double the amount of Blood Race members here," Cassius said calmly.

When he made his way over, Cassius had discovered a connection between the Blood Race and the scarabs. The corrosive liquid from the scarabs reacted with the Blood Race's blood energy, producing a vapor that attracted the scarabs, which they seemed to relish immensely.

It even overpowered their "grudge" against Cassius! The last time he accidentally stepped on a scarab, the swarm chased him for half a day.

"Well...alright." Will nodded.

Immediately, the Mercury Hunters pulled back in their fight, focusing instead on long-range crossbow fire, just like the officers. In their Blood Gift state, the Blood Race members lacked intelligence and reason. Most of them simply charged across the creek toward the altar. A few others, driven mad by bloodlust, were tossed across the creek by Cassius as if he were feeding them to the beetle swarm.

A dozen more anguished figures instantly appeared within the scarab swarm. Some were in such pain that they pulled out of their Blood Gift state. Once they regained their reason, they let out despairing roars. Some of them desperately struggled to cross the creek, but were kicked back by Cassius and Duomo, who were standing guard.

"No!" The beetle-covered figure tumbled backward into the swarm.

Cassius glanced at the upper right corner and satisfaction flooded through him when he saw the progress bar was nearly full.

Rune of Wisdom ∞:▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆▆

[1]

1. Change in terms for Chapter 130: [Mastery -> Major Culmination], [Proficient -> Minor Culmination], [Beginner -> Entry-level]. ☜