[V6C21 – Sorrow of a Silent Parting]
Lin Xitang didn’t reply to this question. “The hunter and the hunted on the battlefield may switch positions anytime. This isn’t worth mentioning, is it?”
Habsburg nodded. “That’s true. Talking about those idiots is a waste of time.” He smiled with a sigh. “Lin, your methods against our dark races are truly ruthless, but you’re even more ruthless toward yourself. I remember the last time you set up a trap to kill me was when you exterminated the Evernight Council’s Lost Paradise No. 3 Laboratory. The bait back then was one of your sons. I heard he unfortunately died.”
Lin Xitang’s calm expression suddenly collapsed. A look of pain or otherwise flashed through his clear, deep eyes. His voice was as deep as a whisper, “War signifies sacrifice for everyone, including myself.” With that, he seemed to have nothing more to say to Habsburg. He simply turned around and left.
“Lin…” Habsburg extended his right arm as he called out. There wasn’t a shred of origin power fluctuation in the air, but a strand of silver hair beside Lin Xitang’s ears was blown up by the wind.
Suddenly, the surroundings alternated between light and dark. The distant skies suddenly turned a deep blue, covered by a widespread nebula. This degree of concentration could only be found in the star zones closest to the top of the world.
The astronomical phenomenon disappeared in the blink of an eye before the firmament reverted to its original state. However, people from the two different factions standing on opposite sides of the vortex became anxious because none of them was a stranger to the visions that had appeared moments ago. It was Li Xitang’s domain, “Celestial Stream”.
All eyes fell upon the two but quickly turned to puzzlement. They had no idea why Habsburg remained motionless, while Lin Xitang had deployed his domain. It didn’t seem like the two had gotten into conflict, either.
Habsburg seemed completely unaware of the changes and only gazed at Lin Xitang’s moving silver hair. Beneath the snow-white hair, there were several faint grey strands emitting a lifeless aura of death. “Your injury never healed. You’ll die within ten years if you can’t advance to the heavenly monarch rank.”
Lin Xitang had already returned to his usual calm at this point. He stood sideways and said calmly without looking back at Habsburg, “Ten years isn’t short for humans. We can do a lot of things.”
Habsburg smiled as he flipped his extended palm over to reveal a mass of scarlet light. “I’ll give this to you.”
That was a drop of blood so indescribably red that it was almost dazzling. It seemed to have accumulated the most intense of vitality but was surrounded by a layer of bubbling sable mist. Upon careful examination, however, one would find that the mist was actually made up of dark flames!
“That which I control is the darkest flames in the world. Whether it’s on Daybreak or Evernight, there’s no one capable of extinguishing it completely. That’s why the only one who can heal you is me.”
Lin Xitang finally shot Habsburg a glance. “No need.”
“I have no plans to suggest any conditions.”
“I know, but still no need.”
“I guessed you would say so, but it still feels uncomfortable to hear in person.”
Lin Xitang turned, took a step, and appeared a dozen or so meters away. But before he could take a second step, he heard a sigh beside his ear, followed by a vast suppressive might spreading out in all directions. The pressure had no enmity or killing intent, but it was magnificent and ancient—it was as though it had undergone the tempering of countless years.
“Lin, my rank is already a prince, it’s just that I haven’t been crowned just yet.”
As calm as he was, even Lin Xitang was shaken by this news. He turned around abruptly and saw the radiance from that drop of blood—previously confined to Habsburg’s palm—slowly expanding outward.
Under the illumination of the bloody light, Habsburg’s countenance became shrouded in a layer of austerity. An incomparably powerful aura inundated the sky above the vortex, pierced into the sky, and shot toward the depths of the distant world.
Countless flames emerged from the air and, like a waterfall, washed over Habsburg from head to toe. The scene was fairly similar to the dark baptism every dark race member would undergo when they came of age. It was just that above the baptism wasn’t darkness origin distillate, but instead, raging black flames centered around a drop of blood.
The flowing flames grew increasingly dense. Habsburg’s figure became unclear under the intersecting black and red hue. Only his silent and restrained countenance was faintly discernible. Suddenly, the flowing flames swept upward to form a flaming crown which gradually landed on the black hair of the Sperger Clan Lord!
Habsburg’s eyes gradually opened. His blood energy was as intense as a surging river of blood.
At this moment, all of the ranked vampires heard a certain calling from the depths of their bloodline. Most of them were still unclear as to its significance and could only feel the jubilation of the long river of sacred blood. Those characters at the level of duke and above stood up solemnly, a uniform imagery projected within their consciousness.
Within the long river of sacred blood—the artery of darkness and the source of all vampires—a fifth blood imprint lit up anew. It was a burning crown.
The experts from the empire’s side approached rapidly once Habsburg released that suppressive might. But they immediately halted their steps because, as experts of similar rank, they were able to sense that the other party had no battle intent. A fight might actually break out if they approached suddenly. Moreover, Lin Xitang was too close to the center of the suppressive might. He would be the one to bear the brunt of the impact if the two sides were to clash.
Duke Wei said tartly, “This is… the coronation of a prince?” He was the eldest within this group, yet even he wasn’t too certain. The humans’ understanding of the vampires was the deepest among the dark races. However, a prince coronation was more or less a legend, even within the vampire community.
A hoarse voice akin to chafing metal rang out as an elderly human divine champion spoke, “The vampires are only displaying their might, and Marshal Lin isn’t in danger. We shouldn’t approach for now.”
As Lin Xitang’s colleague over the many years, Luo Mingji was somewhat hesitant. “Why…”
The hoarse divine champion said, “The vampires aren’t just demonstrating their might to us. The ones most distressed over the appearance of a vampire crown prince is probably the dark races themselves, especially the demonkin. Look at those three grand wizards from the Evernight Council. I daresay they’re no happier than us.”
Luo Mingji glanced over at the other side. The dark race warriors of the vampire race had all gotten down on one knee to express their submission and respect for the prince in front of them.
The werewolves and arachne were gathered together but, at least, maintained an attitude of sufficient respect. The three demonkin wizards’ figures swayed a bit. It seemed they had been whispering to one another just a while ago. One of them hurriedly pulled back on the cloak that had dropped down below his ear. This small movement was enough to prove the imperial divine champion’s words.
“What does the crowning of a prince entail?” Luo Mingji’s question was also what the other experts wanted to know.
A prince was a special position in the dark world. They were yet to be called great dark monarchs but possessed at least one special ability at that level. For instance, ordinary divine champions weren’t a match for demonkin princes. Dark princes were just as rare as the great dark monarchs. Vampire princes were also pretty scarce, and most of them were in hibernation. At the very least, there hadn’t been a crowned prince in the thousand years that humans had risen to power.
Among the twelve ancient vampire clans, the Sperger clan’s grand duke had not only advanced to a prince, but he was also crowned directly. This was no less significant than the appearance of a fifth heavenly monarch in the Qin Empire. Not only would this affect the power balance between Evernight and the empire, but it would also cause an even bigger stir among the four great races and Evernight Council.
“A crowned prince can contend with a great dark monarch.” Lin Xitang’s voice was clear and calm. His figure flickered into being before everyone. This information caused all the expressions of all the experts to grow solemn.
“As for its effects, the news can’t be hidden for long, so we'll know within a couple of days,” Lin Xitang turned toward the hoarse divine champion and said, “we should immediately send someone into the bottomless vortex to scout the situation and come up with a follow up plan before the Evernight Council expresses their stance. What does Provincial Governor Li think?”
“Just as Marshal Lin said.” Provincial Governor Li Fangqing nodded in agreement. He was in charge of the military police and was dispatched to Evernight Continent after the bloody battle to perform an inspection. Lin Xitang had asked for his opinion since he was at the scene, but he had no intention to give out orders since the former’s strategies were the top among all marshals.
At this moment, Qianye, who had been running through the wilderness, felt his heart start racing. He had just halted his steps when his entire body trembled, and the Wings of Inception suddenly unfurled on their own. Golden wings of light rushed out from his back and stretched out to their greatest extent. The Book of Darkness also emerged in the depths of his consciousness, stood up, and flipped open.
Qianye only felt his vision grow dark and the wilderness around him disappear. His consciousness had fallen into a certain space.
The massive Book of Darkness lay before him, enshrouded in a thick layer of sanguineous light akin to a flowing river. He saw a drop of blood form in the air and fall into the river, stirring up circular ripples across the water surface and forming thirteen seals in its wake.
However, Qianye soon found something wrong because only twelve seals were formed in the end—there was only an empty defect above the thirteenth position. His consciousness swept over the seals and found those images were extremely clear. It was as though they were right there before his eyes. He could clearly see the meaning behind those incomparably abstruse lines.
The first one was a slowly blooming rose with a golden serpent head reaching out from the stamen—the brightest of them all.
The second was a datura flower with a different color in each layer of its unfolding petals.
The third was a peacock with golden flames burning upon its green wings.
The fourth was a magnificent castle with an ancient aura, and the thorns growing upon its walls spitting out little black flowers.
The fifth was a mass of burning flames outlining the shape of a crown.
At this moment, Qianye suddenly discovered that the twelve seals weren’t all lit up. Half of them were dark and lightless, meanwhile, the fifth seal was gradually lighting up before his eyes.
The ripples upon the sanguineous river had yet to calm down, and the undulations on the water surface grew more and more intense. Qianye had a peculiar feeling that this river was alive, and it was cheering in jubilation.
The moment he came into contact with the will of the sanguineous river, Qianye suddenly realized what the scene before him signified.
That was the origin of all vampires, the very first drop of blood that was the source of all vampire bloodlines. The ripples from its fall condensed thirteen seals, forming the same number of second-generation primogenitors who then went on to found the corresponding ancient vampire branches.
At this moment, the fiery crown seal had lit up completely and was emitting a beckon which seemed to have come from antiquity. The dozens of incomparably powerful wills along the sanguineous river began resonating and soon formed a raging tide poised to engulf the entire world.
Qianye’s consciousness was suddenly pushed out by this unparalleled tide of blood. The color of blood in his eyes hadn’t entirely receded when he opened his eyes in a daze. Then the figure of a person appeared.
Song Zining was watching him from dozens of meters away, his expression solemn.