The moment the messengers arrived at where the Crimson Fleet was stationed, the first thing they saw was the perfectly untouched Kerslin Castle.
Many of the messengers who often visited Kerslin Castle back in the day couldn’t help but be curious. The castle before them looked exactly the same as it always had in the past. It had not changed at all. However, when their gaze lingered on the castle, they couldn’t help but feel an odd sense of strangeness.
It was almost as if this was the first time they were laying eyes on Kerslin Castle!
The messengers of the various clans stepped into Kerslin Castle with this strange feeling weighing on them.
The feeling grew even more intense once they entered the castle.
The same castle gates, the same plaza, the same light-golden stone corridors, the same spiritual suppression, and even the same magical aura flowed through the walls. Yet, what filled the messengers’ noses was a thick scent of blood. What lingered near their ears were the screams and cries of undead wraiths, and what always remained within the corner of their eyes were seemingly crying spirits.
All of this was evidence that a horrifying blood ritual had taken place here. Moreover, the victims of this ritual had likely been those missing Entom adepts.
Two hundred adepts, seven of which had been Third Grade. An entire army of adepts had just been sacrificed through this blood ritual.
The messengers couldn’t help but feel a deep chill in their hearts at the very thought of this. Even their steps seemed stiffer.
Naturally, Greem couldn’t meet each and every messenger of the numerous clans personally. Only messengers of the major clans could have a personal audience with him. The smaller clans and organizations could only visit Meryl and relay their secret terms and agreements to her.
As a great battle had just concluded here, there were only ruins all around them. These messengers had nowhere to stay but Kerslin Castle. However, after just a single night, all the adepts moved out of Kerslin Castle.
They would rather spend a night in the wild under a mud house eating rations than take another step into Kerslin Castle. That one night of endless nightmares had almost driven them insane.
A certain adept was spreading a rumor of what he had experienced. On the night he was in the castle, he had woken up in the middle of the night. He was horrified to find that he was no longer lying in his large, comfortable bed; he was bathing in a pool of blood.
There were caved-in heads, severed limbs, tattered intestines, and all sorts of white and red substance floating in the pool, along with countless souls of the dead. These souls were trying to climb out of the pool, their pale faces distorted from extreme agony. They reached out with their broken arms and howled at him in despair.
Moreover, the room’s walls, floor, and ceiling had all been covered in a layer of gray substance. The gray substance squirmed and swelled, thick vessels bulging on the surface. The fleshy material was a sickly translucent pink, and it rumbled continuously. Some sort of purple liquid seemed to be flowing within. Occasionally, he even saw specks of undigested flesh and meat.
Living inside the castle felt like he was living in the stomach of a strange lifeform. It was this feeling that made him move out in a hurry and no longer dare to remain inside Kerslin Castle.
The current Kerslin Castle was no longer the Kerslin Castle of the past!
It had undergone some kind of change, becoming…becoming some inexplicable existence that was simultaneously an alchemical lifeform and a biological being of flesh and blood.
That was why the adepts with sharper senses instinctually chose to distance themselves from the castle!
It wasn’t just the messengers. Even the higher-ups of the Crimson Clan were staying in the Motherships rather than Kerslin Castle.
There were only two guests at Kerslin Castle currently– Greem and Mary.
Of course, Shadow Demon always followed at Greem’s side, constantly protecting him.
As for why Greem chose to stay in Kerslin Castle? It wasn’t because he enjoyed the scary atmosphere. He was trying to further convince this strange lifeform, which had broken the limits of magic, to join his side.
Indeed, Kerslin Castle now possessed all the characteristics of an intelligent lifeform. If it weren’t for its lack of a permanent energy supply, even Greem would have trouble controlling this forbidden lifeform that had devoured the entirety of the Entom Clan.
Compared to an ordinary lifeform, forbidden lifeforms grew stronger by employing taboo and forbidden magic. They needed blood rituals, sacrifices, murder, or destruction to fuel their growth. Adepts might look like individuals with no care for the taboo, but they had to abide by the basic principles of being an adept. They could not merely victimize weaker individuals of the World of Adepts.
These were basic tenets of being an adept that had been established for the sake of the adept civilization’s continued growth!
You could choose to break these rules, but if knowledge of your actions got out, you would be blacklisted by every single adept organization. No one would trade resources or expertise with you again.
Some of the more self-righteous adepts would even actively hunt you down; the Adept’s Code of Conduct would not forbid their actions.
Considering the severe consequences, no adept had ever dared to conduct slaughter or blood rituals publicly. Of course, as long as you did it in the shadows and destroyed all evidence, there would be no problem.
There would always be numerous adept apprentices that died silently in private adept towers every year. These apprentices were often sacrifices for dangerous magic or experiments. Most adept organizations turned a blind eye to these instances and would not launch detailed investigations.
After all, the improvement of their adepts meant the growth of the clan’s strength. They couldn’t be happier to see their adepts grow more powerful!
Chapter 1324 - Nightmare Castle
Chapter 1324 Nightmare Castle
Greem slowly woke up from his bloody nightmare.
Even though he wasn’t screaming out of fright, his face had turned pale.
It couldn’t be helped. No one would be in a good mood if they were always dreaming about bathing in blood with the screams of begrudged souls all around them.
Mary sat silently beside him. She took out a handkerchief and wiped away the sweat from his forehead.
“How did it go? Did you manage to find its soul core?”
Greem smiled bitterly and shook his head.
Kerslin had sacrificed every single lifeform in the castle through a blood ritual and had then fallen into a deep sleep. If Greem wanted to gain complete control over Kerslin, his only choice was to dive into its nightmare landscape and search for the soul core that Kerslin had hidden away.
Should Greem be able to find it and gain control of it, he would have a new subordinate under him– Nightmare Castle Kerslin.
According to the Chip’s estimations, Kerslin had possessed the power of a beginner Fourth Grade prior to its blood ritual. After the ritual, Kerslin had managed to reach advanced Fourth Grade. If Greem were willing to provide Kerslin with a mega magic generator furnace, Kerslin would be able to rival ultra-powerhouses in some respects.
Of course, most of Kerslin’s power came from its two abilities, Halo of Nightmare and Nightmare Transformation; it was still some distance away from being a true ultra-powerhouse. However, should any ultra-powerhouse carelessly fall into Kerslin’s Nightmare Domain, they would face an unending nightmare!
After devouring so many adepts, including the advanced Fourth Grade Freed and seven Third Grade adepts, Kerslin had reached the level of a forbidden lifeform.
The potential of forbidden lifeforms was unpredictable!
The Chip estimated that the fully grown Kerslin could have the potential to reach Sixth Grade. That was already a terrifying potential for most planar creatures.
That was why Greem had to find its soul core before it fully digested the
power from the blood ritual. Otherwise, he would forever lose the opportunity to control this monster. If Greem forcefully enslaved this forbidden lifeform, what awaited him would most certainly be betrayal in the future.
If Greem was always more powerful than Kerslin, then it might remain an obedient slave. However, the moment Greem weakened, Kerslin would undoubtedly betray him and assault him with all its ferocity.
That wasn’t conjecture- it was a certainty!
Thus, Greem’s current options were limited. He either had to find the soul core and truly control Kerslin or destroy it before it matured. He had no other choices.
“Why don’t you…let me try!” Mary gritted her teeth and volunteered.
One would have to actively delve into the Nightmare Domain if they wanted to search for Kerslin’s soul core. Even though Kerslin had fallen into a deep slumber and was unable to actively operate the Nightmare Domain, the Nightmare Domain’s existence alone was a massive risk to Fourth Grade adepts.
Even Greem had to be extremely cautious every time he ventured into the Nightmare Domain. He was terrified of waking up Kerslin’s budding consciousness. Trying to find the soul core of unknown color, shape, or size under such conditions was nearly impossible.
However, considering this venture’s reward was possibly a Sixth Grade forbidden lifeform in the future, Greem was more than willing to take such a risk!
That was why Greem hesitated for a moment when Mary volunteered. He then smiled and took her hand gently as he said, “How could I let such a beautiful lady venture alone!? I’ll go with you.”
Mary smiled and put her slender, white hand in Greem’s broad palm.
The next second, their mental consciousness melded together and seemed to come into contact with something unusual. Their vision blurred as they appeared in a completely different scene.
Night had fallen.
These were the gates to a towering castle. They were in the plaza in front of the castle, and a stream of carriages was coming in and out of the castle. Elegant men and women in fancy clothes were walking out of those carriages.
The men were gentlemanly and noble, the women attractive and elegant.
They held hands and walked into the castle as pairs, laughing as they did so. Manservants in tuxedos with silver trays in hand waited at the gates with maids in white outfits and rabbit ears on their heads. They bowed and made way for the guests to enter.
What appeared before Greem and Mary was a luxurious banquet rife with an atmosphere of debauchery and enjoyment. The guests conversed gleefully in groups of two or three, dancing along to the elegant tune, or hiding under dim curtains and gossiping amongst themselves.
Such banquets were an unavoidable part of a noble’s life!
Mary stepped out of the carriage with Greem’s help. She looked around her and calmly stated, “This is the plaza in front of Kerslin Castle! It seems Kerslin’s imagination is a bit lacking. It can only project scenes from reality into its dreams.”
Greem smiled and wrapped his hand around Mary’s waist. The two of them walked toward the banquet hall along with the crowd.
“This is just the Halo of Nightmare that Kerslin is radiating unknowingly in his slumber. It is not the actual Nightmare Domain yet. That is why things seem so peaceful.” Greem had entered Kerslin’s dreams countless times. Naturally, he was familiar with many things here.
Mary was dressed in a bright-red silk dress. Her smooth collarbones, shoulders, neck, and arms were all exposed. The skirt didn’t reach further than her knees and revealed her voluptuous thighs and slender legs.
She had a pair of translucent crystal shoes on her feet.
Meanwhile, Greem wore a sharp suit. His muscular body made the shirt a tight fit, and his excellent figure was clear for all to see.
His dark red hair was scattered behind his shoulders. Paired with his black eyebrows, black eyes, straight nose, and firm lips, he radiated an aura of youth.
The two of them walked to the doors hand in hand and looked at the lively hall.
Mary’s hand had found its way around Greem’s waist some time earlier. She looked at Greem with a smile and said, “This is the nightmare you have been talking about? If nightmares all look like this, then I would certainly prefer to have nightmares over dreams every night. Hmph!”
Greem shook his head and laughed. He then said in a soft voice, “Do you think that a nightmare world created by a forbidden lifeform would be so simple? Do you think it would terrorize you in such a straightforward fashion, like an illusion? Kerslin has its strategy. It shows you all the nice things first, and then shatters everything abruptly. You had best not throw up when the weird things start happening!”
Mary smiled coldly, “I am the infamous Bloody Queen, after all. What kind of horror do you think could possibly scare me? Speaking of which, it’s been so many times since you’ve come here. Have you got any clues yet?”
As they talked, the two of them walked toward another hall down the corridor instead of entering the main hall. It was quiet underneath the pergolas with the green vines hanging down from above, making for a romantic atmosphere.
At this moment, two young, cute girls rushed past them. The bolder one of the two even gave Greem a flying kiss before running away, giggling.
“Soul forms!” Mary frowned and couldn’t help but mutter.
Greem nodded.
“Everyone at this banquet is in their soul form, including ourselves. Kerslin’s soul core is hidden here, waiting for a banquet of slaughter to begin.”
“There are two phases to this banquet. The first phase is the peaceful phase, which is where we’re at. We can move freely now. The second phase is the slaughter phase. When that happens, everyone at the banquet will fall into a frenzy and start slaughtering everyone in sight. Kerslin will then use the power emanated from their deaths to transform into a nightmare monstrosity. Quite the difficult creature to deal with.”
Mary’s heart trembled when he heard Greem’s evaluation of Kerslin.
Greem was a legendary fire adept with the power of an ultra-powerhouse. If even he felt like the opponent was a difficult enemy, then it wasn’t hard to imagine how powerful the opponent truly was.
Fortunately, this was only the nightmare space radiating from Kerslin’s consciousness rather than the actual Nightmare Domain. Therefore, the Kerslin that appeared here was no more than a nightmare projection of its massive spiritual consciousness.
Even if they ran into danger, they would be safe as long as they escaped the projected castle in a timely fashion.
While Greem was explaining the results of his investigations to Mary, a crimson light flashed in the main hall. The gentle music suddenly changed and turned sinister and terrifying.
The howls of a terrifying monster could be heard in the hall, mixed with the terrified screams of thousands of people.
“The slaughter phase has begun! We shouldn’t dally any longer. Where are you planning to search?” The smile faded from Greem’s face as he asked solemnly.
Mary looked around and said coldly, “I’ll be on the third floor!”
Greem wasted no words as he replied, “The slaughter phase will only last for fifteen minutes. Fifteen minutes later, Kerslin’s nightmare consciousness will be projected. You must retreat to the doors of the castle by then. Otherwise…its nightmare consciousness will have the power of a peak Fourth Grade in here!”
Mary did not hesitate. Crimson light flickered, turning into two wings that lifted her body towards the tower’s third floor.
Meanwhile, Greem turned and walked toward the main hall filled with screams.
His clothes transformed as he walked, and the fire coral staff and Tome of Corruption appeared in his hands.
By the time he arrived at the hall, it had turned into a slaughterhouse filled with scenes and images that would send chills down the spines of the most hardened veterans!
Chapter 1325 - Nightmare Domain
The hall had now turned
into a purgatory of flesh and blood!
The once elegant guests had torn off their masks and were madly chasing and killing each other.
They had no weapons at all.
No, they were simply using the most primal weapons available to the human body– their teeth and limbs.
They wrapped around each other, biting and tearing, using everything they had to attack whoever was around them.
They had lost all reason and manners as humans. They simply lunged and tore at each other like a pack of wild beasts. Their faces were twisted in ugly expressions, and their mouths opened so wide that the sides were starting to split.
They would lunge at the closest target, open their mouths wide, and bite the victim on the neck or body. They would not loosen their bite the moment their teeth sunk into flesh. They howled like animals, all while shaking their heads and tearing off a large chunk of meat from their victim.
Every time a victim collapsed to the ground, seven or eight people with bloody mouths and bloodshot eyes would jump forward and tear the unfortunate person to pieces.
There were no longer any living humans in the hall. There were only beasts!
These creatures had no allies or companions. Every living creature was an enemy to them.
The young men and women who had been dancing with each other on the dance floor were now crouching over the ground, roaring and attacking each other like animals.
Greem had just approached the doors to the hall when two manservants dressed in nice suits lifted their heads abruptly.
Their mouths were covered in blood, and so were their hands.
A pretty noble lady dressed in an elegant gown lay beneath them. Half of her neck was gone, and her chewed esophagus was exposed for all to see. Her chest was bloody, with chunks of meat already missing from her body.
What was more shocking was the fact that the noble lady didn’t seem to be dead, despite her severe wounds. She turned her head around neurotically and snapped with her mouth viciously as if she was also trying to bite at something.
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