The only ones which could have so quickly taken over the Viks’ territory were naturally other vampire clans.
Bloodcastle had changed hands a total of three times and finally ended in the hands of the Heinesen Vampires. However, with Mary’s meteoric rise, all the other vampire clans only had two choices: migrating away from the central lands or obediently becoming Mary’s subordinate.
Bloodcastle, once the pride of the Viks, was handed over to Mary by the Heinesen Clan as an offering. It was now the most important outpost for the Crimson Clan vampires in the central lands.
The sinister Bloodcastle was composed of five separate castles and fortresses. It functioned as both the living space of the vampires and as a military fortress. Four of the smaller fortresses that were spread around the main castle were not designed with comfort in mind. They were meant for defense and warfare.
These fortresses were very sturdy in construction. Even their entrances and windows were unusually narrow and small. Most passages only allowed a single, fully-armed guard to walk through. Meanwhile, the critical regions of defense were filled with secret passages, tunnels, and hidden openings to attack from.
The outer layer of Bloodcastle had sacrificed comfort and entertainment for incredible defensive capabilities. In all honesty, Bloodcastle only required two to three hundred elite warriors to stave off an invasion of a few thousand enemies.
Meanwhile, the main castle, which was protected by the four fortresses, was an elegant, majestic construction.
The ill habit of vampires pursuing perfection, elegance, and nobility couldn’t be more evident than in the construction of this building. If this place wasn’t so far away from any other living humans, and if it weren’t for its unusually sinister atmosphere, it would have been easy to mistake the place for a castle meant for the exclusive entertainment of nobles and royalty.
Many guests were now gathered in the main hall on the second floor of the castle.
Naturally, the only ones that could be present here were vampires, all dressed in pretty, noble clothes.
Most of the male vampires wore tuxedos, with neat red bow ties and fancy hats. They held walking sticks in their hands and had neat mustaches under their noses. On the other hand, female vampires wore pretty dresses, sunhats of various colors, and soft silk gloves on their hands. They also wore beautiful, delicate high-heeled shoes.
Everyone was appropriately dressed, perfect examples of the elegance and refined arrogance of the human nobles.
Unfortunately, these individuals were all insignificant small fry. The true masters who could decide the future of the vampires were gathered on the third floor in a secret room, furiously discussing a particular matter.
“With the might of us vampires, we are entirely capable of establishing a new adept clan of our own. Lady Mary, what do you think? Should we not just leave the Crimson Clan and with Bloodcastle as our headquarters?”
A Second Grade vampire was excitedly giving a speech. However, before he could finish, a flash of crimson cut through the room as his entire person exploded in a puddle of blood.
Chapter 1218 - Mary’s Frustrations
The dead vampire came from the Rothers Clan.
They were a vampire clan that had only recently joined Mary.
He might not have been the most powerful individual in the Rothers Clan, but as an advanced Second Grade, he was still a reasonably authoritative figure.
Yet, Mary had killed such a vampire instantly without the chance to retaliate!
All the vampires in the room turned pale when they smelled the thick scent of blood. The couldn’t help but whimper in fright.
“Silence, all of you!” Mary sat upon a tall wooden chair. Her crimson eyes swept across all the vampires present here as she coldly said, “From now on, anyone that dares mention secession from the Crimson Clan will be killed without mercy!”
Having said that, Mary pointed at the puddle of blood, and everything started to move in reverse. The spots of blood spattered all over the room gathered together and reformed into the image of the Second Grade vampire.
“Rothers, he’s your subordinate. Tell us how he should be punished!” Mary’s gaze turned coldly towards a Third Grade vampire sitting to her left.
“Ever since we joined you, the Rothers Clan ceased to exist. Everything is to your will!” Rothers couldn’t help but be shocked by Mary’s terrifying blood magic, and hurriedly stood up to bow.
In all honesty, it wasn’t surprising that she had been able to kill the vampire so easily.
What was surprising was her method of ‘reviving’ the vampire!
Rumors that high-grade vampire lords could freely determine the lives and deaths of their subordinate vampires had always existed since ancient times. Rothers had believed these rumors to be baseless legends. Now, it seemed like high-grade vampire lords did indeed possess unique blood powers.
Blood powers tailored explicitly for use on their subordinates!
The terrified Rothers quickly expressed subservience, now even more respectful and fearful of Mary.
“As expected, you understand where you stand. Very well, seeing as this is his first offense, he is simply demoted from count to viscount. He will be allowed to redeem himself in the future.”
Second Grade vampires held the noble title of count, simply by virtue of their power. Now that he had been demoted to viscount, it meant that he could only enjoy the authority and benefits of a First Grade vampire within the clan. Moreover, the only vampires allowed in this room today were Second Grade counts. Having been demoted, the vampire could only dejectedly leave the meeting.
A total of a single Fourth Grade, seven Third Grades, and twenty-two Second Grades were currently present in this small room.
It was the result of the majority of vampire clans submitting themselves to Mary after her advancement to Fourth Grade. In truth, the Second Grade vampire had actually expressed the mindset of most high-grade vampires here. With such power gathered in this room, they had more than enough qualifications to establish a new clan belonging solely to the vampires in Zhentarim!
Unfortunately, as excited as they were by the idea, their Fourth Grade blood master, Mary, did not seem to be moved by the thought of absolute power at all. She immediately surprised this dissenting current with the most violent and cruel method imaginable.
Considering Mary’s romantic relationship with Greem, most of the vampires were willing to accept this situation, as reluctant as they were. Given how intimate Mary was with the clan leader, all the vampires in the Crimson Clan would most definitely reap the maximum benefit as long as she was around.
In fact, some high-grade vampires that had just joined even fantasized that Lady Mary could demonstrate her tremendous powers and make the fire adept submit to her prowess. This way, the vampires would not have to secede, and they would even become the leaders of the massive Crimson Clan.
While these newcomers were scheming in their minds, the veterans who had followed Mary for decades smiled bitterly. Outsiders might not know the details of Mary and Greem’s relationship, but they, the blood knights and blood elves, knew very well what the dynamic was.
These outsiders were going down an entirely wrong path if they were attempting to sow discord between Lady Mary and Lord Greem.
As Mary’s followers, they knew very well that their master was completely under the thumb of their clan leader. Their relationship was also not something that could be moved by resources or benefits.
That was why Soros, Isa, and Spalla, the three marquis vampires, couldn’t help but shake their heads when they saw the outsiders’ excitement. They pitied them for their foolish thoughts. Old Fox Vanlier, whom Mary had forcefully promoted to peak Second Grade with her powers, stroked his beard and sneered coldly.
Everything that he possessed, all the authority he now held in his hands, and all the power within him had been bestowed upon him by Mary. As such, he was probably the most loyal subordinate among all the v
ampires.
Mary’s swift, decisive punishment of the vampire that stood out of line was Vanlier’s idea as well.
While Mary had been intimidating the vampires with her display of power, she silently communicated with Vanlier.
“Master, the current situation we are facing is likely a plot hatched by those old fools.”
“Old fools? Do you mean the Fourth Grades of Zhentarim?”
“Indeed!”
“What have you picked up on?”
“These vampire clans had all been pushed around and oppressed by those Fourth Grade organizations before joining us, be it in the shadows or on the surface. In all seriousness, they only joined us because they had nowhere else to turn to!”
“Isn’t this…good for us?” Mary was somewhat confused. “Those old fools would do us a favor?”
“Perhaps they are doing us a favor, but it’s truly a sinister scheme at heart.” Vanlier put on one of his sly smiles. “They might not have expected your relationship with the clan leader to be as firm as it is. That is why they attempted to create discord between you and him by strengthening your forces. Think about it. Lord Greem is the clan leader of the Crimson Clan, yet you lead the clan’s strongest branch. That would indirectly cause you and Lord Greem to doubt and suspect each other over your intentions. What the vampires here are thinking about are likely ways to sow more conflict between you and the clan leader.”
“Bastards! I was wondering why these vampires were so willing to join me. So this is why! Hmph! Just wait and see what I’ll do to them in the future.”
“Speaking of which, master, what was that technique you just used earlier? To think you could kill and revive a vampire with such ease. How did you do it?”
“Hmph! That is a blood power I obtained after advancing to Fourth Grade– Blood Symbiosis. With this ability, I will be able to store the soul of any vampire subordinate temporarily. With the use of a blood halo, I can reconstruct a body for them.”
Vanlier’s eyes glowed when he heard Mary’s explanation. He couldn’t help but become exceedingly excited.
“Master, if you are capable of such a feat, wouldn’t you be able to wear down any enemy with an endless horde of vampires?”
“Hmph! It’s not as simple as you think.” Mary coldly explained, “Low-grade enemies might have a difficult time destroying a soul, but it is a small matter for those old Fourth Grade fools. If they destroyed your soul along with your body, I would not be able to revive you, even with all the blood power in the world.”
Vanlier frowned and thought about it. He couldn’t help but agree with that assessment.
The powers of high-grade adepts were too strange and unusual. Trying to beat them through sheer numbers was too simplistic and crude of an idea. Regardless, Blood Symbiosis was still one of the most powerful of Mary’s blood abilities.
“Master, if you don’t want their scheme to continue, then why not find something for them to do?” The old fox smiled. “The four vampire clans that joined us also contributed five small planes and one mid-sized plane. Why don’t we pick a grinding stone from among these planes and use it to train our forces?”
“The mid-sized plane, then!” The pride of a high-grade adept appeared on Mary’s pretty face. “There’s hardly anything in those small planes that can draw my interest now!”
“Very well, I will arrange it immediately!”
…………
Fire Throne.
It had been two weeks since Greem returned from the Spirit World.
He had been busy at work dealing with the spoils of war from his adventures all this while.
The Primal Water, the Watersoul Jade, the Starfell Gem, the heart of a thousand-year old treant, the mutated mushrooms, the warhammers of the ogre chieftain, the Bleeding Spear, the corpse of the Feathered God, the divine power crystals, and the egg.
With the exception of the treant’s heart, which was a Third Grade item, all these things were incredibly rare and powerful, even among other Fourth Grade resources!
Greem put a tremendous amount of thought into how he should deal with them.
The first to be dealt with were naturally the mutated mushrooms.
These had all come from Sage Moat. Consuming them over a long period of time could deliver an increase of 1 to 2 points of a specific stat, with insignificant side effects.
If these mushrooms could be successfully cultivated, they would immediately become strategic resources for the clan.
Though 1 to 2 points of improvement in a specific attribute might not be much for a low-grade adept, it was incredibly significant for high-grade adepts. So much so that you could call it revolutionary!
After returning to the clan, Greem immediately summoned Emelia and had her lead her sporepeople in an attempt to grow these mushrooms. For this purpose, the Crimson Clan had even found a swamp area in the Ailovis Region similar to the Marsh Wetlands and turned the place into a restricted area. A few sporepeople were then selected to cultivate the spores.
Given Emelia’s performance in the Spirit World, Greem decided to reward her with the heart of the thousand-year treant.
Emelia was a plant adept, and the heart was an excellent plant-attribute material. It was a very appropriate substance to carve a staff out of.
With the aid of such excellent material, it was certain that Emelia’s magical powers would improve tremendously!
The second thing that Greem turned his attention to was the Starfell Gem.
Chapter 1219 - Treasures
Starfell gems across history had various properties with no pattern to them. Thus, the appraisal of a starfell gem was more often like an exciting gamble.
Place your bets, big or small!
No one knew what unique attributes an appraised starfell gem would have, and yet, these properties would undoubtedly affect the value of the gem tremendously.
The starfell gem that Greem had obtained also had peculiar properties– it was known as the Cursesinging Crystal. The holder of the gem had a chance of triggering a Phantom Curse when attacking an enemy. This curse would attack indiscriminately and bypass magic resistance entirely.
Another indiscriminate cursed item!
If Greem equipped this gem known as the Cursesinging Crystal, he could trigger a curse when attacking an enemy. This curse would simultaneously and indiscriminately affect the holder of the gem and the individual being attacked.
Just imagine, hit the enemy once, and both you and the enemy would be cursed; that incredibly weird scenario would surely make the battle even more strange and dangerous.
That was why Greem was furious the moment he appraised the Cursesinging Crystal. He wanted to destroy it on the very spot. However, after a while, he thought otherwise.
This strange crystal might not be a good fit for him, but it might be excellent high-grade equipment for another person. For instance…Mary!
Mary had already advanced to Fourth Grade. The origin abilities of vampires made her naturally immune to most curse magic. If this Cursesinging Crystal were in Mary’s hands, the Phantom Curse would only affect the enemy and not her.
What other Fourth Grade items could be more valuable for her!?
Moreover, the Chip detected that the chance of the crystal’s curse triggering was around 8%. It was a little on the low side for Greem. However, for Mary and her incredible Agility and attack rate, an 8% trigger chance was already incredibly high.
Thus, Greem could only regretfully order the Cursesinging Crystal sent to Mary instead of keeping it for himself.
The Watersoul Jade. It was an incredible trump card that could save his life in moments of crisis. Naturally, Greem had to take excellent care of it.
Meanwhile, the Primal Water’s attributes were too mysterious. Even with the Chip’s aid, the progress of Greem’s research was exceptionally slow. He could only remain patient and work on it slowly.
On the other hand, the strange warhammers he had taken from Gorefist were revealed to be
Fourth Grade weapons of high power after the Chip’s appraisal.
Greem didn’t know what material Gorefist had forged these warhammers out of, but they each weighed over 1,600 kilograms. Greem couldn’t even swing them with his 28 points of Strength, let alone use them in combat.
With this, it wasn’t hard to imagine how shockingly strong and powerful Gorefist was!
[Gorefist’s Warhammers. Fourth Grade weapon.
Use requirements: Strength 41 | Physique 38 |
Offensive power: 760 – 980 points.
Abilities: Return, Berserk Strikes, Whirlwind.]
One had to admit that these two warhammers that Gorefist had committed all his resources into creating did indeed possess decent power. Greem even saw traces of principles in the abilities possessed by the warhammers.
However, compared to the high-grade equipment created in the World of Adepts, this pair of warhammers was still too crude and simple!
In particular, that annoying requirement of 41 Strength kept most elementium adepts from using it. Only pure body-refining adepts and certain bloodline adepts could meet the base requirement of using these warhammers.
After examining their attributes, Greem could only regretfully put them away as part of his collection. He would have to see if he had the opportunity to trade it away for other items in the future. Otherwise, equipment with such strict usage requirements will have to gather dust in his personal collection.
[Bleeding Spear. Fourth Grade weapon.
Use requirements: Troll Bloodline.
Offensive power: 600 – 780 points.
Abilities: Energy Projection, Split Attack.
[Energy Projection: Form a spear of light with the user’s power and hurl it at the enemy. Projected spear will have 70% of the Bleeding Spear’s power. Cooldown: 5 seconds.
[Split Attack: Attacks from the Bleeding Spear will split off upon hitting its target, dealing diminishing damage to other nearby targets. Total targets of split attack: 3. Diminishing damage: 70%, 50%, 30%.]
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