In the castle's basement, there was a spring of blood. At this moment, countless streams of fresh blood surged from the spring, each drop emanating an eerie aura.
And! With the arrival of Erhart...
In an instant, the blood spring seemed to be drawn by some force, beginning to boil violently, as if it were scalding hot water.
"…"
In silence, Erhart slowly undressed and stepped into the blood spring, his eyes filled with unwavering determination.
Erhart didn't know if he would still be himself when he emerged from the spring. In fact, he didn't even know if he would survive at all. But the only thing he did know was that he had no other choice. If he gave up this opportunity, he would remain stuck here forever. There was no alternative for him—this was his only, and absolutely final, option.
Eventually, Erhart stepped into the pool of blood. The boiling liquid instantly enveloped him, devouring him in mere moments.
Everything happened so fast.
"Ahhh!"
Erhart managed to let out a piercing scream.
However! As the blood pool consumed Erhart, a dark purple light flickered in the basement, slowly forming into the shape of a dark purple skull.
"Gahaha~~~"
The skull let out a sinister laugh and rushed into the blood pool.
In an instant, the Erhart who had been nearly consumed, with his consciousness on the verge of vanishing, gradually regained his senses. His eyes gleamed with dark purple light.
In a flash, everything seemed to change completely.
"Impossible!"
"No way!"
"What is this overwhelming power?"
"My descendant, you shouldn't possess such strength."
"You…"
A shrill cry echoed.
But! None of this mattered. No matter what had happened, the facts were clear, and the outcome was inevitable. Changing it? That was utterly impossible.
In this small world, the terrifying power of the Demon Star didn't even need to bother with consuming a long-dead ancient vampire lord who had been clinging to life through the blood pool. Devouring the entire small world would be a trivial task.
However! For the Demon Star, this was a meaningless endeavor. This small world, after the birth of two perfect warriors of the underworld, would become part of the Netherworld's territory, just like other small worlds, fully under the Netherworld's control.
The cycle of souls would all pass through the Netherworld.
And! This soul cycle was of utmost importance to the Netherworld. In fact, it was the very core.
The boost it provided to the Netherworld was like gentle rain soaking the earth—imperceptible in the short term, but over time, the benefits would be immense and staggering. After all, to the gods, time was the least valuable resource.
Especially for the Netherworld of Hades.
Such returns were nothing short of astonishing.
And! Because of this, the Netherworld would never pass up the chance to gain perfect control over a small world. It was like acquiring a new stream of revenue, another asset under their belt!
And! While Erhart was undergoing his transformation, outside the castle…
Tap! Tap!
Along with steady footsteps, a figure dressed in a red priestly robe slowly emerged. His eyes were filled with boundless indifference and calm.
It was the Cardinal!
He looked around slowly, and behind him stood twelve nuns, all wearing perfect nun habits.
The Twelve Sacred Nuns.
Such a configuration, even in the church, was considered top-tier. Behind them stood five hundred fully armored knights, clad in gleaming silver armor.
The Templar Knights.
Cardinal, Sacred Twelve Nuns, Templar Knights.
These three forces combined.
So!
The power contained within this group was immense. Even the world's most powerful church would almost never deploy such an overwhelming force under normal circumstances.
"Rehbold."
The Cardinal spoke slowly, his tone calm. "As an ancient vampire, you've lived long enough. You've served generation after generation of pure-blood vampires. It's time you paid the price for your deeds."
With the Cardinal's cold words...
It seemed that everything was already predetermined.
"…"
Standing in front of the castle, Rehbold's expression remained infinitely calm, without the slightest emotional fluctuation.
Indeed!
As the Cardinal said, Rehbold had lived for a very long time. From the time of the second vampire lord until today, he had faithfully served one vampire lord after another.
It could be said...
Rehbold had witnessed the rise of the vampire clan, as well as its fall.
Now.
The entire vampire clan, once the greatest of all races...
Once considered the most refined of all species, was now reduced to just him and his lord.
However!
Rehbold smiled and shook his head, speaking softly, "I've lived through such long years, and everything I have done was for the vampire clan. While I have indeed reached my limit."
"Still!"
"For me, this life is no longer of any importance."
"Life!"
"As it stands now, I'll gladly give my life for the vampire clan, as my final offering."
Rehbold's voice was soft, yet the softer it was, the more it seemed to underscore the weight of his presence.
Rehbold represented something far greater.
To him...
Life and death were no longer significant. Whether his life ended here didn't matter. After all, in Rehbold's eyes, nothing else mattered anymore.
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