novelraw Chapter 466: The Death of the Blood Lion
Chapter 466: The Death of the Blood Lion
Chapter 466: The Death of the Blood Lion
Half an hour ago, Fog Sea.
A sky full of fog enveloped this narrow, gloomy island.
The Ferryman of the Underworld River stopped rowing the oar:
"We're here."
"We're here..."
The man on the boat who resembled a beast repeated the words.
Blood Lion disembarked from the dilapidated little boat, arriving at the island they had departed from.
Before setting off, the Black Blood soldiers were brimming with fighting spirit, standing at the bow holding their battle flags high!
But now, on this island, only Black Blood soldiers with faces full of fear remained.
Covered in wounds, they huddled in corners, their eyes filled with terror towards the Black Hunter's domain.
Even mountains of gold could not compel them to set foot in the waters near Moonstone City again.
Not to mention, the soldiers left here now were all wounded and defeated remnants.
"Black Hunter, I will return."
"I will return!"
Blood Lion struggled to straighten his posture and walked towards the depths of the island.
His arms had been severed, hastily replaced with inferior mechanical arms to make him appear less wretched.
Now, the Black Blood Empire had lost eighty percent of its military strength and countless Transcendent resources.
But Blood Lion did not believe this was the end.
As long as the existence of the forbidden dimensional rift was proven, the Empire could certainly allocate more resources from other battlefields!
Not to mention, the Whale Father and the Blood Hunter still retained their combat power.
And also, the power of the edge Great Whale! The power of the Great Whale! Blood Lion repeated this incessantly in his heart.
In his heart, there was no longer any fear of the Great Whale.
All he wanted now was to wash away the disgrace of being the Empire's defeated general and take revenge on the Black Hunter and the Ice Witch!
Revenge! Revenge! Blood Lion quickened his pace, and before he knew it, he had arrived at the deepest part of the Fog Sea, the location of the Whale Father.
Under a giant wall covered in runes, the Whale Father stood by the wall, stroking the ancient patterns on its surface.
Beside him, the Blood Hunter gripped his blade, remaining silent.
Blood Lion roared:
"Whale Father! Why did you not participate in this battle!"
If the Whale Father had participated in this battle, even if they lost, their losses would not have been so devastating.
At the very least, they could have organized forces to attack and search for the forbidden dimensional rift!
If they could obtain the treasures of the forbidden dimensional rift, even burying the entire army would be an outcome he could justify to the Emperor.
The Whale Father turned his head and said calmly:
"Blood Lion, the reason I did not participate in this battle was for a higher power.
The Great Whale's power requires my guidance. Only then can we achieve ultimate victory."
"Guidance?"
Blood Lion clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, his entire person like a ferocious, enraged lion.
The Whale Father spoke calmly, as if the recent great defeat was utterly insignificant:
"Blood Lion, have you been to the Fringe World?"
"Fringe World?"
A flicker of confusion passed through Blood Lion's eyes.
In the Empire, only a small portion of fourth-tier hunters were sent to the edges to become fringe hunters.
The Whale Father nodded slightly:
"At the edges, there are countless monsters, each possessing unimaginable power.
However, they all share one weakness: every inch of their bodies suffers the scorching burn of the pale sky's fire."
What are you saying this for? Blood Lion's eyes flashed with incomprehension, but he did not refute.
The Whale Father continued:
"The only way for edge creatures, even their power, to enter the New Sun World is for them to hide within special containers.
However, most containers are far too expensive, such as those with Deep Sea affinity. Unfortunately, until now, we have failed to capture the Black Hunter.
The best containers are human blood. Only human blood!"
"The Great Whale needs containers, needs more containers! Once the number of containers reaches a certain threshold, I can draw forth the true power from the edges!"
The Whale Father's tone was impassioned.
"Black blood, containers..."
Blood Lion repeated the Whale Father's words.
The Whale Father meant that anyone who consumed the Great Whale blood potion was a container for the Black Whale's descent into the present world.
Blood Lion pondered for a moment.
Counting their one hundred thousand Black Blood Empire soldiers, and the countless adventurers across the sea, at least one hundred and fifty thousand people had consumed the Black Whale blood.
One hundred and fifty thousand human containers!
Even in the Empire, this was a first-class, extermination-level capital crime!
Blood Lion frowned, a faint trace of unease flickering within him.
After all, the power of the God of the Edges was incredibly dangerous.
But then he reconsidered: if they utilized more of the Great Whale's power, they would have a chance to stage a comeback!
"It is precisely to utilize this power of the Great Whale that I had no choice but to remain here, Blood Lion.
Do you understand?"
The Whale Father said.
As his words fell, a massive black eye suddenly appeared in the sky.
That eye was pure black, as if composed of countless spirals!
Gravity descended.
Instantly, the stone statues, soldiers, trees of the entire island, even the souls of humans, were all plucked out by this force, flying into the air.
The souls are being sucked in!
Being sucked in!
Blood Lion's flesh trembled, forcing him to exert his most powerful technique to stabilize his own spiritual energy field.
The spiritual energy field of that black eye had even surpassed the limits of a fifth-tier Transcendent.
The Whale Father spread his arms, waving the black hole eye as casually as if wielding a small weapon:
"Blood Lion.
And now, I have mastered the power of the edges. On this sea, no one is my match."
A drop of cold sweat rolled down Blood Lion's forehead, unable to describe his complex emotions at this moment.
The Whale Father was not lying.
In his spiritual vision, the Whale Father's spiritual energy field at this moment surpassed all fifth-tiers he had ever seen.
To be precise, it was far above them, already touching the boundary of another, higher realm.
God of the Edges... Blood Lion couldn't help but recall this term.
As long as one could borrow the power of the God of the Edges, one could reach another tier.
However, anyone who used this power would inevitably suffer backlash in the end.
Anyway, the one suffering backlash won't be me... Blood Lion laughed heartily, clapping his hands:
"Excellent!
Whale Father, let us conquer Moonstone City together! Let that Black Hunter and Ice Witch, lost in their joy, witness the might of the Empire!
I guarantee you, after this battle, you will no longer be an honorary citizen of the Empire, but a true noble of the Empire!"
The Whale Father said calmly:
"I have no interest in the Empire's conquest or honor."
"???"
Blood Lion was stunned.
The Whale Father's true purpose had always been a mystery.
The Whale Father tilted his head, looking towards the other end of the sea, a nation full of flowers and gold.
"Blood Lion, what we desire is not to conquer Moonstone City, but to conquer that ancient family that abandoned us."
"Ancient family..."
Blood Lion thought for a moment, then laughed loudly:
"Good! Whale Father, the Empire will not forget you!
Even if it's the Canary family, the oldest family of the Goldenfinch Kingdom, the Mother Goddess family! We will help you crush them!"
"You?"
The Whale Father's sidelong glance fell upon Blood Lion's battered and bruised body.
A hint of wariness flashed in Blood Lion's eyes.
He instinctively sensed a trace of danger, a danger that seeped into his very marrow.
"Blood Lion, you seem to have misunderstood. Among 'us', you are not included."
The Whale Father stretched out his hand:
"Although only those with Deep Sea affinity are the most perfect containers, a fifth-tier Transcendent is still a decent lower-tier container."
"Lower-tier container..."
The Whale Father's plan still lacked a fifth-tier sacrifice.
Blood Lion immediately retreated, hurriedly bellowing:
"Soldiers! Cover me!"
However, his voice received no response.
Blood Lion strained to turn his neck, looking back.
He saw that, without exception, all the Black Blood Empire soldiers had terrifying pitch-black branches growing from their bodies.
Swish!
A sharp blade stained with black blood pierced through his fragile heart.
"Blood Hunter!! How dare you!"
Blood Lion's eyes widened, looking at the familiar blade protruding from his chest.
A continuous stream of thick black blood mixed into his weakened body!
From the very beginning, the Blood Hunter and the Whale Father had coveted his flesh!
An endless stream of black blood soaked his flesh, reaching even his soul!
And his flesh also began to fall off bit by bit, his bones continuously growing spiral patterns of pitch-black.
Assassination! The leader of a mere small pirate crew actually dared to assassinate an Empire's general!
Blood Lion glared furiously:
"The Empire! The Empire, the Empire will never let you go—"
"Soon, the Empire too will submit to me, the new god of the sea—"
The Whale Father snapped his fingers.
Swish!
Accompanied by a dazzling sound of shattering, Blood Lion's flesh exploded, leaving only black and white bones.
And the shape of these bones just happened to form the appearance of a greatsword.
All the surrounding black energy began to converge towards the greatsword.
A bone sword made from the flesh of a fifth-tier Transcendent... The Whale Father pulled up the greatsword, saying mockingly:
"Let's call it the Black Lion Greatsword. This fifth-tier container should be able to briefly withstand the power of the Black Whale."
The Blood Hunter nodded.
From the beginning, in the final deduction, the Whale Father did not need the Blackfin Crew, nor the Black Blood Empire's army, nor even pirates.
As long as he could control this power of the Great Whale, the Whale Father alone would be enough to take on the entire Moonstone City, to challenge all the Saints and Legends of the sea!
Whether it's the Ice Witch or Hayer...
And next, as long as they used Moonstone City as a stepping stone, forcing millions to consume the Black Whale's blood, then that power would be enough for them to become sixth-tier, or even higher existences.
And by then, they would also have the qualification to be called demigods, to challenge the oldest family of the Goldenfinch Kingdom.
The Whale Father asked:
"Blood Hunter, aside from the Blood Lion interlude, is there any other intelligence?"
The Blood Hunter lowered his head, thinking for a moment:
"Whale Father, clues to the forbidden dimensional rift have already appeared, on a burning sea beast."
"Forbidden dimensional rift..."
The Whale Father frowned deeply, covering his nose.
In ancient legends, the method to advance to the sixth tier was not by utilizing the power of the God of the Edges, nor by relying on the blessings of righteous gods.
The clearance reward of the forbidden dimensional rift was the true path to advancing to the sixth tier, to stepping onto the path of godhood.
Unfortunately, the ancient families firmly held the forbidden dimensional rifts in their grasp.
Once, in his youth, he tried to seek clues about advancement. Merely mentioning it once cost him his wife and child.
Who would have thought that one day, the gate he had knocked on countless times, the gate he had humbly begged for countless times, would actually appear in this desolate edge land!
The Blood Hunter continued:
"Whale Father, the forbidden dimensional rift can create miracles. What if the forbidden dimensional rift possesses the power to allow the Ice Witch, or the Black Hunter, to reach the sixth tier?"
By having one hundred and fifty thousand people consume the Black Whale's blood, they already possessed the might to allow the Black Whale's power to descend completely.
Those who consumed the Black Whale's blood, even if they became corpses, turned to dust.
Their souls would still be bound to the earth, becoming anchor points for the Great Whale's descent into the present world.
But this power might still not be able to contend with the true power of the sixth tier.
A deep red flashed in the depths of the Whale Father's pupils:
"No, the forbidden dimensional rift has a probability of producing a sixth-tier profession card, but time is already insufficient. The Black Hunter couldn't possibly digest a sixth-tier profession card!"
"But..."
A flicker of vigilance passed through the Whale Father's pupils.
The reason the forbidden dimensional rift was a sealed rift was precisely because within the rift, there existed items that could create miracles.
They must be vigilant against the Ice Witch and the Black Hunter finding the forbidden dimensional rift!
Currently, he had not yet fully mastered the digestion of the Great Whale's power.
If he acted prematurely, there was an extremely high probability he would suffer backlash from the Great Whale, becoming its slave!
Before completely digesting this power, before becoming the god of the sea, he could not yet make his move.
And this would take at least two more weeks, even a month!
The Whale Father raised his hand, pointing at the Ferryman of the Underworld River:
"Blood Hunter, you and the Ferryman of the Underworld River, go search for the forbidden dimensional rift.
No matter what, you must prevent them from finding the forbidden dimensional rift."
The Ferryman of the Underworld River was not human, but a special existence born from a rift in the Underworld River.
It itself possessed special water affinity and ghost affinity. Over the sea, it could easily detect the situation within ten thousand meters.
It could be said that the Ferryman of the Underworld River was the strongest Disaster Messenger on the sea.
The Ferryman of the Underworld River nodded:
"I know. The location of the Ember Beast. It, like me, can traverse through rifts."
The Whale Father lowered his head, sighing:
"Kill the Black Hunter. Now, we no longer need him. I can now bear the power of the Great Whale."
In his original plan, if Chen Qi could bear the Great Whale's power, he could create a black god of the sea without any risk.
No longer holding back against the Black Hunter.
This was the first time the Blackfin Crew abandoned the 'do not kill' order regarding the Black Hunter.
The Blood Hunter nodded:
"I understand, Father."
The Blood Hunter would not fail. Aside from the Ice Witch and himself, on the sea, the Blood Hunter was the strongest fifth-tier Transcendent.
The Whale Father raised his head, looking up at the Great Whale in the sky, drawing ever closer.
...
Moonstone City.
After finishing the plans for finding the Ember Beast, Chen Qi, along with Fen, Palu, and others, returned to the shelter base.
Little Crow and the Ice Witch were fully focused on researching the Black Blood Potion.
And Fen was treating the Book Saint's injuries.
The eruption of black blood, the descent of the Great Whale...
All these phenomena meant the crisis was not yet over.
After bidding farewell to Fen, Chen Qi eagerly headed to the basement of the base, the rift workshop that could withstand the power of fifth-tier Transcendents.
Chen Qi took out the Lamp affinity rift unique item, the Little Starlight Lamp, and the Heart affinity rift unique item, the Hive Heart.
Now, he had gathered the two most important unique items!
This also meant he could master the complete power of the Sea Shepherd!
Chen Qi took a deep breath, moistened his throat, and said:
"It's time to master the Azure Pastoral Song."