Age of Adepts c1-1513

by Zhen De Lao Lang, 真的老狼

  A mass of thunderstorm was rapidly forming over the empty field. Several thick pillars of lightning were blasting down from the thunderclouds and pointing right at the crimson silhouette that was wildly chasing and hacking away at the elven diviner.

  The Undermoon Assassin leader that had completed her preparations reappeared at the edge of the thundercloud, resentful and upset. She had wanted to rely on her speed to stall the vampire witch, but this Third Grade thunderstorm was keeping her outside.

  These falling blasts of lightning could not distinguish between ally and foe. If she went in, she would be attacked by the thundercloud as well!

  Natasha had no other choice. She turned and dashed at the other vampires that were stopping the elves from reinforcing the diviner. Dealing with these advanced apprentice level vampire spawn was child's play for a Second Grade like herself. It was pretty much a single slash for every enemy.

  Anyone would expect the vampire witch to retreat in such dire circumstances. At the very least, she should avoid this wave of nature spells before continuing with her assassination.

  However, to their surprise, the vampire witch gave absolutely no ground. She endured the savage thundercloud above her and the nature spells that burned her body, keeping close to the diviner's shields, attacking, attacking, and attacking again with her life on the line.

  The destructive lightning blasts descended from the sky, blowing away most of the blood mist around her. The remaining magical energies were still enough to electrify half of Mary's body and turn it into char. Though Mary was already trying her best to use minimal movements to dodge the Rain of Thorns, Faerie Fire, Poison, Starfire, and more, the space she had was limited. She was still beaten within an inch of her life, coughing up blood as her broken body teetered on the edge of utter disintegration.

  The elven diviner within the layers of defenses was still unharmed, but she, the hunter, was already on her last breaths!

  Still, only a thin layer of barriers remained around the elven diviner!

  While the elves relaxed and prepared for one more round of attacks to exterminate the wicked vampire witch, that woman took out a shiny crimson crystal and stuffed it into her mouth.

  The next second, blood energy surged out of her body and instantly created a horrifying mist as thick as blood around her. Her life aura soared once again.

  Dammit. Dammit!

  It was at this moment that the striding Third Grade druid elder realized that his large-scale thunderstorm–despite having dealt tremendous damage to the vampire witch–had also indirectly hindered their own rescue efforts.

  He let out a resounding roar, and the rolling thunderclouds vanished without a trace. The druids that were gathered near the edge of the thunderstorm swarmed forward, lunging into the blinding mist of blood.

  The quickest of them all was Natasha. She rapidly freed herself of the vampire spawn and charged into the mist.

  The imperceptible sound of a cracking shield surrounded by battlecries and roars was horrifying.

  The mist trembled. Elven Diviner Master Kimbell let loose with her feet with no regard as to her old age. Her body had just charged past the area of the mist and was reaching at Natasha when an unbearably sharp blood arrow pierced her head and spun out of the middle of her forehead.

  The blood energy within the arrow had dissolved the brain of the diviner, leaving her head completely empty.

  A loud explosion rang out as the diviner's head exploded. The fountain of blood spurted three meters high and completely soaked the elves and druids around them.

  Natasha let out a furious growl and threw herself into the blood mist.

  Currently, there were as many as eleven Second Grade elves within the mist, while the other Second Grades were keeping a vigilant watch on the outside and continuously casting Nature's Light to purify the blood energies. However, what they never expected was how the dense blood mist seemed to be endlessly replenished. Even with so many elves casting at the same time, they could not rapidly purify the fog.

  Natasha and the druids that had broken into the blood mist seemed to be trapped in a fearsome swamp of blood. It didn't matter how they struggled and ran. Their speed had been suppressed tremendously.

  The ferocious vampire witch even seemed to have created countless clones of herself, fighting everyone at the same time.

  Pained grunts, the sound of nails piercing flesh, the noise of splashing blood, and everyone's angered roars and growls could be heard.

  "Open."

  Druid Elder Toril reached the blood mist and let out a savage roar. A massive green halo immediately crashed down on the blood mist.

  The elves and druids within and outside the blood mist felt nothing. However, as the core of the blood mist itself, Mary felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Her barely recovered body was instantly covered with hundreds and thousands of fine cuts. The flowing fountains of blood soaked her and turned her a crimson color.

  Chapter 684 Rescue Operation

  This single blow had severely wounded Mary.

  If it weren't for the blood crystals she had consumed earlier rapidly turning into blood energy to sustain her body, she would have died at the very moment she was struck!

  The vengeful strike of a Third Grade druid elder was not something that a Second Grade vampire adept like herself could easily endure.

  Natasha and the other druids took advantage of Mary's momentary pause and stall in strength to swarm forward. They used their daggers, paws, and claws to inflict a horrifying amount of damage to Mary's body.

  Mary let out a painful cry. The blood mist retracted, and her tattered and broken body quickly flickered through the flashing blades and escaped the enemy's reach. However, Mary didn't dare to attempt to flee while that furious Third Grade druid elder was still standing at the perimeter.

  That old fellow would certainly deal yet another cruel blow to her if she were to leave the battlefield at this moment.

  There was no way she could endure another attack with her current Physique and Spirit, even with the sustenance of the blood crystals!

  "Quick; do it and pull me away." Mary focused on avoiding the attacks from multiple enemies while wildly roaring within her mind.

  Fifty kilometers away in a silent glade, three blood knights and three blood elves sat cross-legged within a strange hexagram runic array. They each took up a runic node and were feeding blood energy into the mysterious blood pool at the center of the array.

  Meanwhile, Old Fox Vanlier could only rub his hands anxiously and pace about the outside.

  "It's been so long. Why hasn't master sent us the signal?"

  "It's been so long; she should already have given the signal."

  Vanlier suddenly stopped in the middle of his frustration and hastily shouted at the vampires within the array, "Activate it now, hurry! The situation on master's side is not good.”

  The six Second Grade bloodkin redoubled their effort of feeding blood energy, and the one-meter-wide blood pool suddenly expanded at a rapid speed. It instantly devoured the six vampires along with the array itself.

  Blood energy filled the space, the bloody mist so dense that it was impossible to see through it.

  The expansion of the blood pool was only maintained for a mere half second before shrinking back to its original size. Meanwhile, Mary's wounded body mysteriously appeared within the hazy blood mist.

  Mary's right leg exploded into a rain of blood the moment she appeared, affected by some unknown force. Yet, the Bloody Queen seemed utterly unaware of the injury. Her tightly shut eyelids abruptly opened, revealing a pair of blood-red eyes underneath.

  "Let's make full use of our time and leave. We can't wait here for too long. Those elves will be making their way here by following the energy flux soon."

  Mary calmly sat down in the blood pool and absorbed the energy within it to repair her body while giving out orders.

  The old fox diligently rushed to her side and supported her body.
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br />   In a matter of seconds, Mary's broken leg regenerated under the sustenance of the blood mist.

  The newly grown skin was pink and juicy, and so bouncy that it seemed as if water would drip right out of it. However, as the color drained, the slender leg quickly became white and smooth again. The lines were breathtakingly perfect.

  That said, everyone present was a trusted subordinate of Mary. Their hearts were only filled with a deep respect for their willful master. As such, no one would attempt to make comments about her body.

  Once her limb had regenerated, those rose-like crimson runes also started to extend toward the leg. Mary shook her hand and broke free of Vanlier's grasp once the crimson armor covered her entire body once again. She took the lead, transforming into a massive crimson bat and dashing into the depths of the forest.

  Behind her, three blood knights, three blood elves, Old Fox Vanlier, and fewer than three dozen vampires took to the skies and flew north.

  …………

  Mary had casually retreated from the battle, but the elves had been thrown into chaos.

  A Third Grade druid elder had personally backed the army, with two dozen Second Grade fighters for support, and they still let that wicked vampire witch assassinate the noble elven diviner and get away unharmed.

  The opponent's method of departure was genuinely bizarre and wondrous!

  During the bloody battle, mysterious and profound crimson patterns had suddenly covered the witch's body. She had then vanished in a surge of blood. The entire process took no more than three seconds. It was a technique that they had never seen nor heard of before and seemed to be a skill unique to the otherworldly adepts.

  When the elves failed to find Mary's tracks in their surroundings, they couldn't help but fall silent around Master Kimbell's headless corpse.

  Even though they already knew that these invading adepts of mysterious origins all possessed peculiar supernatural abilities, they couldn't have expected this to happen. Hearing of it was not the same as witnessing it. Now that they had experienced firsthand the powers of an adept, they were terrified to discover the massive gulf in ability between both parties.

  A chill wind blew through the hearts of the elves when they remembered that this was no more than an ordinary Second Grade witch; there were still Third Grade and Fourth Grade witches above this. For the first time, they felt the immense weight of the burden upon their shoulders, and for the first time, they felt that they were unqualified to bear such a burden.

  The Calamity of Witches this time seemed torturous!

  This odd thought couldn't help but surface in the minds of all the elves.

  The performance of the elves also infuriated and embarrassed Antoril. He strode forward, his voice as loud as booming thunder.

  "You people lead the rest back to Skywater City. I will pursue these evildoers alone."

  Antoril shook his body and transformed into the giant thunder roc, not even waiting for the elven commander's reply. He beat his wings as violent electricity crackled across his body. Lightning crackled, and the thunder roc vanished from the spot before appeared at the edge of the horizon.

  Before the elves' eyes could catch up with the silhouette of the thunder roc, another blast of thunder rang in the skies. The roc had utterly vanished from sight.

  The only thing left in the sky was the lasting sound of rumbling thunder!

  It seemed Elder Antoril had been completely thrown into a rage by that vampire witch. He had cast aside all the other elves and went in pursuit of the witch alone. With his speed after transforming into a thunder roc, those vampires would not be able to escape him, even if they had an additional pair of wings.

  That said, the vast Fantasy Forest was a large place. The forest was also populated with dense greenery. It was not an easy matter to track the vampires under such conditions.

  The elven commander hesitated for a moment. He knew very well that it was no more than a dream to have the elves chase after the vampires on foot. As such, he left behind a squad of thirty-five flying units to continue tracking the enemy. She then brought the rest of the elves and the corpses of their dead companions to begin the sorrowful journey home.

  …………

  Greem only received news about Billis and Mary much later in the evening.

  Bug Adept Billis had been forced to scurry about the surroundings of Greenwater City by Spear of Vengeance Eijae. He was not in any immediate danger, but who knew what accidents might arise if things were to drag out.

  On the other hand, Mary was madly fleeing toward the north of Fantasy Forest with what remained of her bloodkin elites.

  Behind them, the fearsome Third Grade druid elder was keeping a tight chase. There were several times where he had almost discovered Mary's tracks. If it weren't for crucial decisions from Mary to send out various baits, the druid elder would have intercepted their entire party.

  As the clan leader of the Crimson Clan, Greem had no choice but to consider a rescue operation when two of his most important subordinates had fallen into such a predicament.

  When Greem brought these two pieces of news to Alice, who had always told him to proceed with caution, she actually nodded and agreed wholeheartedly.

  Greem stared at the eager Alice with a weird look on his face. He couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, "Weren't you always saying that the two elven goddesses had their eyes on us? Why aren't you stopping me this time?"

  Alice replied unamusedly, "Could I stop you even if I tried?"

  Greem hesitated for a moment and shook his head: "It's different from usual this time! Mary seems to have poked the nest of some nasty hornets this time. If I don't go to her aid, her small crew of vampires will probably not be able to escape the pursuit of a Third Grade druid elder. That is why I have to go!"

  "Since this rescue operation has to be carried out, why should I waste the effort to try and stop you. This time, we are moving out with all our forces and might. At any rate, this should be much safer than having you sneak into Garan alone." Alice explained with a smile on her face.

  Even though Alice was making perfect sense, Greem couldn't help but feel like she wasn't speaking the complete truth when he looked at the smiling face she displayed now.

  Still, having been together with her for such a long time, Greem had an excellent understanding of Alice.

  If she chose not to tell him the truth, then there had to be sufficient reason for why she didn't just lay it out for him. Perhaps the timing was not ripe, or maybe the powers of fate were at work. Regardless, all Greem needed to know was that Alice would never harm him.

  Greem decided not to pursue the question with this understanding in mind. He exchanged a couple more ideas with Alice and hurriedly went to arrange for the departure of the flying ship.

  Alice could finally let out a breath of relief after Greem had left.

  "Do you really not intend to tell him that the dragons have also intervened in this war. If you follow him into Garan, your chance of dying will be as high as eighty percent!"

  A cold and crisp voice rang out resentfully from the darkness but was quickly drowned out by a wild and deep voice.

  "What's there to be afraid of? We just need to send the enemy packing back to where they came from. Are we supposed to wait until we have absolute certainty before we commit to an action, just because we have become Fate Witches?"

  As the voices rang out, their owners appeared– Alice's only two deputies, Berserk Witch Sofia and Icelady Snowlotus. The only other remaining Fate Witch had only just advanced seven years ago. She was as yet unqualified to participate in these secret discussions.

  "Hmph! Fight, fight, fight; all you know is to fight! Do you know what we will run into during our trip into Garan this time?"

  "Isn't it just a group of bloody lizards that can fly and a group of annoying children of nature?"

  Icelady Snowlotus couldn't help but sigh again when she saw the coarse and seemingly indifferent face of Berserk Witch Sofi
a.

  "That is a flight of terrifying dragons that reach up to Second and Third Grade. Even the weakest green dragon among them could easily eat you alive. Moreover, the most powerful Third Grade emerald dragon in the flight would be enough to exterminate our entire group."

  "And what about it? Are we to give up because the enemy is strong? Don't forget, our only mission here is to help Alice obtain the Staff of Divination and advance to Second Grade. As long as we can complete this task, we can sacrifice all irrelevant individuals and matters. We can cast that all aside." Sofia called out loudly without a care for the circumstances.

  She put it very crudely, but her words rang true.

  With no rebuttal available to her, even the brilliant Snowlotus had no choice but to shut her mouth!

  Chapter 685 Outsider

  Alice shook her head helplessly and sighed at the sight of her bickering deputies.

  "This is the true portrayal of the life of a Witch of Fate!

  "Pursuing Fate! Gathering the powers of Fate!

  "And where would powers of Fate be produced? Naturally, where the planar conflicts were most intense and where the disagreements were most heated!

  "Yet, we Witches of Fate are all weak and frail believers of Fate without even the ability to kill a chicken. We have to pass through the tumultuous abyss and the edge of the waves without any protection. Any single wave of water would crush our bodies in pieces.

  "What is the only thing we can rely upon at this moment?

  "Of course, the powers of Fate that we so devotedly believe in!

  "Since Fate has brought us here, it will not let us run into our own deaths. A path that we can walk down alive must have been left here amidst the uncertain future and the threatening powerhouses.

  "The only guide that leads us to that path will be our faith in Fate!