[V6C37 – Sorrow of a Silent Parting]
Eden was astonished, but fortunately, his reaction was fast, and he didn’t fire accidentally. He glanced at Nighteye and performed a questioning gesture, to which Nighteye responded by pointing at her own collar, then beckoning him to retreat and go around.
Eden glanced at the three soldiers suspiciously. Two of them were wearing eye-catching Swallow Cloud Cavalry shoulder armor. Eden was no stranger to the Zhao clan insignia.
There were also emblems on their battle armor, but those Eden didn’t quite recognize. However, he didn’t feel that it was important either because it only went to show that their families were just so-so. At the very least, they weren’t strong enough for Eden to remember.
Eden was hesitant because he didn’t feel that it was a big deal to kill the Zhao clan soldiers. However, he didn’t insist as Nighteye gestured once more.
After all, Nighteye was still the nominal leader of this expedition. Moreover, his rank being higher than Nighteye was only temporary because the bloodline of a primo like Nighteye was even higher than his own. Moreover, she had awakened just recently and was in her rapid growth phase. She would catch up to him before long. As for resources, someone who had received the council’s attention couldn’t be lacking in this regard.
The two left quietly, leaving the three camping soldiers with no idea they had just experienced a brush with death.
After traveling a fair distance, Eden couldn’t help but ask, “Why did we withdraw?”
“Those are Zhao clan people.”
Eden was even more puzzled. “I know they’re from the Zhao clan and not of a low status, either. But doesn’t that mean we should kill them?”
“Don’t you feel that we’ve killed too many Zhao clan soldiers lately?”
“So what? The Zhao clan is one of the empire’s four major clans and a great enemy of ours. This is a great opportunity to weaken them. Didn’t your brother Viscount Aaron also die in that Zhao Qianye’s hands?”
A barely discernible hint of pain flashed through Nighteye’s pupils at the mention of Aaron, but she soon recovered her indifference and went on in silence.
Eden noticed that he had spoken out of turn. “I’m very sorry.”
Nighteye sighed. “As a scion of the Monroe clan, dying in battle is the best way to return to the River of Sacred Blood.”
“I agree.”
Nighteye pulled herself together after a period of silent running. “Didn’t you notice that the number of people we’re encountering has increased lately? It looks like we’re already close to the core area. The empire’s twin stars are both with the Zhao clan, so we’ll surely meet them at the colossus’ skeleton. Isn’t it better if we don’t have to fight them first?”
Eden seemed to have understood and said with a nod, “It’s indeed so! It’s best if we let those arachne and werewolves take the front line. If needed, the other clans of my race are also fine.”
Qianye and Zhao Jundu had accumulated shocking military achievements. There was no telling how high their combat strength would be in this world where origin power was being suppressed, but one could easily guess that they were much more powerful than ordinary people. Even with the rank advantage, Eden wasn’t willing to fight head-on against them unless it was necessary. It was naturally the best if other people could serve as cannon-fodder and whittle away at their strength.
At this point, Eden seemed to have understood Nighteye’s intentions. Qianye and Zhao Jundu would surely discover something amiss if they killed too many of the Zhao clan soldiers, and they would likely be confronted first at the colossus’ skeleton.
As for what Eden was truly thinking, no one knew.
As such, the two continued their exploration journey, hunting imperial experts and cautiously exchanging information with the other Evernight exploration teams. When encountering the occasional lieutenant-general-level experts, they would take advantage of their visual range and concealment advantages to evade them.
An entire day passed by in this manner, and even the geniuses of the Evernight faction eventually started to feel tired. Hence, they both agreed to take a break, one keeping watch, while the other rested.
“Nighteye?” It was originally Eden’s turn to rest, but it would seem he was unable to sleep due to certain worries.
Nighteye asked without looking back, “What is it?”
“I heard about some activity from the Holy Son’s side and all of them are targeted at you. This time, they’ve mobilized all of their powers and seem determined to succeed.”
“I know.” Nighteye’s tone was calm. It was as though this were a trifling matter of little significance
“The information I obtained is that Her Majesty Lilith only said that you are free to choose your own path if you managed to obtain an ancient essence fragment. She said she won't interfere, but that doesn’t mean that others from the Perth clan, or even the other clans, won’t take action. The Holy son’s movement this time is an attempt to make you submit before anyone else does.”
“I know.”
“And this strange realm is the best place to do it.”
This time, Nighteye didn’t reply and only remained silent.
Eden sighed. “My words may be a bit too blunt and I hope you don’t take it to heart. Frankly speaking, I’m not too optimistic about you escaping Edward’s grasp. I’ve known him for hundreds of years, and I understand his character quite well. Edward never does anything without assurance. Now that he’s gone all in, I’m sure he’s fully confident about success. What about you? How are you prepared to deal with him?”
“I have my own ways,” Nighteye replied indifferently.
“You do?” Eden laughed helplessly. “We’ve fought side by side for so many days, so I’ve come to understand you a little bit at least. Moreover, I’ve seen all of your information after the council assigned me to this mission. You wouldn’t be saying this if you really had a way out. You’d be retaliating against Edward instead.”
Nighteye simply gazed on at the mist in silence.
Eden sighed once more and said, “I’m sure you already know my intentions at this point. I’d like to extend you an invitation on behalf of the Dark Abyss. You’re welcome to join us if you’re willing or if you have no other choice. The Dark Abyss will shelter you. We can assume the pressure even if it comes from the Queen of the Night herself.”
Nighteye laughed self-deprecatingly. “Am I that valuable? Is this the will of the Dark Abyss or the council?”
“At least it has been approved by that excellency atop the sacred mountain.”
Eden’s words surprised Nighteye who shot a quick glance upward. A supreme existence atop one of the seven sacred peaks stood at the very pinnacle of the dark race. She asked after a moment of silence, “What do you want from me? Marriage?”
“No, we want you to provide us with a drop of origin blood every ten years for three hundred years.”
Nighteye laughed. “That’s an unbelievably relaxed demand.”
A single drop every ten years would affect Nighteye’s advancement greatly, but not to the point where she couldn’t move forward. Considering the long life-span of a high-ranking vampire, three hundred years was only enough to reach middle age. Judging from Nighteye’s post-awakening advancement rate, it was still possible for her to reach the prince rank. However, all hopes of a coronation would be severed.
But becoming a crowned prince or even igniting a blood seal on the River of Sacred Blood was easier said than done. Just how many brilliant geniuses had appeared from the Twelve Ancient Clans throughout the hundreds of years? There was no lack of those with a bloodline purity equal to that of Nighteye’s. But what came of them in the end? Countless geniuses became mediocre at the terminus of their maturity, and few ever achieved the grand duke status.
The only one who had ignited a blood seal in a thousand years was Habsburg.
That was why the price Nighteye had to pay for this deal was only an ephemeral hope, so the price couldn’t be considered steep. As for what they were looking to do with the origin blood, that really wasn’t important.
The uses of a vampire’s origin blood were vast. The power of blood, in and of itself, had the special effect of actuating one’s vitality. They could be made into various types of life-saving measures that were suitable for all races. Moreover, one drop of origin blood every ten years wasn’t enough to produce a descendant, so Nighteye didn’t need to worry about her bloodline being tampered with.
“I’ll consider it,” Nighteye replied. As for whether her words were sincere or if she was merely offering a polite response, only she herself would know.
Eden said with a nod, “The situation might be worse than you thought. As far as I know, many ancient beings are starting to think about certain prospects after His Majesty Habsburg ignited the blood seal. And among all the awakened primos, your primogenitor origin blood is the closest to the blood seal.”
At this point, Eden spoke no more because he believed Nighteye had already understood. His origin power had recovered, so he rose and continued the journey with Nighteye.
The two of them were able to lock onto the colossus’ skeleton with great clarity, but they were no longer in a rush to go over after figuring out the rules of this mysterious world. On the contrary, they availed themselves to the advantageous terrain to kill more imperial enemies. As such, their path of advancement wound left, right, and even looped backward as they swept through the surrounding area and gradually approached the core area of the colossus’ skeleton.
After another half a day, Nighteye suddenly hastened her steps and ran over to a distant tree. Knowing that her vision was better than his own and that she had likely discovered something, Eden immediately followed suit while paying attention to the flanks.
Nighteye arrived below the giant tree. There seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary here, but she frowned silently as she ran her hand over the trunk. Eden also walked over and shot a glance at the tree trunk. He then tapped lightly upon it and said, “There are traces of battle here. These minute abrasions are likely due to an attack.”
With that, Eden scraped off a small piece of dried stain and observed it on his fingers. “Vampire. And it’s from your Monroe bloodline.”
Nighteye drew her sword. A sanguineous light emerged upon the blade as she slashed open the purple substance below the tree. As she flicked the sludge apart, the bloody radiance on her sword shot out in all directions like a sentient being and began eroding the cut edges continuously.
The blood energy shot out by Nighteye seemed exceptionally powerful. It quickly eroded the substance and revealed an empty area beneath the tree. There was a dense array of pores in the soil from which the purple substance was gushing out. Currently, the blood energy had cleared the sludge away and was seeping in along the pores.
Eden’s expression was complicated. He had tried using demonic energy to erode the substance, but the effects were a far cry from Nighteye’s blood energy. The demonkin’s demonic energy, especially the Deep Abyss clan’s demonic energy, had always been known for their corrosive properties. However, even someone of Eden’s caliber could barely handle this purple substance since the latter seemed to possess significant resistance and devouring properties against all types of energy.
However, Nighteye’s blood energy seemed completely unaffected by the substance as it swept through everything in its path, refusing to stop until they had been completely exhausted.
Eden saw it clearly. This wasn’t a difference in their origin power quantity, but instead, a gap between their intrinsic quality.
This kind of mysterious substance was like a natural testing stone—before it, the superiority of one’s origin power quality would become evident at a glance. Even a marquis or a duke, no matter how powerful they were, might not be able to exert any meaningful effect on the purple substance if their bloodlines were mottled and far from the grand origin. Their blood energies might even be devoured instead.
No corpse was revealed after the substance disappeared. Even the bones had been completely dissolved in a short time, to speak nothing of the flesh. However, some indestructible items would always be left behind. For instance, some small objects made of metal or other rare materials, including their clan insignia.
Nighteye’s expression changed as she picked up the insignia. The emblem, which served as proof of identity for just a handful of outstanding characters in the clan, was made of a special material. She flipped it over and saw the name engraved at the back. Finally, she said with a soft sigh, “It’s Armas.”