Chapter 620: Within the Abode

[TL: Asuka]

[PR: Ash]

At the end of the dark cave, an elliptical stone door stood. Regis lowered his voice to a whisper, and for the last time, he told the witcher, “Proceed with caution, Roy. Just like I said.”

“I know, Regis. My mind’s still echoing that message. I won’t forget it.” Roy held the five ancient coins tight.

Regis took a deep breath. With a trembling hand, he took a piece of basalt out of his pocket. There were runes on it. He slid it into the rock’s crevice, and it fell in place. The door started to rumble and slithered up. Dust crawled out of the cracks, and debris fell like rain, only to be deflected and crushed by red and silver barriers.

A bone-chilling gust of wind pounced at the visitors. Regis and Roy froze, their breathing coming to a stop for a moment, then they quickly went into the darkness. The inside of the abode was bigger than the caves outside. Pillars connecting the ground to the ceiling were seen everywhere. There were forking paths, subterranean rivers, hanging stone bridges, stalactites with water dripping from their ends, fluorescent plants, and more. Every level of this place had their own decoration.

A gust of breeze came from nowhere, brushing past the witcher’s cheek, and it brought with it an icy sensation. This place was a few degrees colder than it was outside. Roy’s medallion was buzzing like a rat trying to escape from a mouse trap. The chaos energy around him was abundant, and it was working in a peculiar manner, creating all sorts of different sceneries.

On a stone wall, water that gleamed white was flowing up from the ground, ignoring gravity. The water slithered to the ceiling, meandering through the stalactites. Some of the vapors that flew from the water formed bunches of beautiful, transparent coral. Over the last thousand years, the Unseen Elder’s energy field had changed his abode to something different than what it was.

No one spoke along the way. Regis led the witcher through an inverted waterfall, past a beautiful corridor, and then they arrived at the end of their trip. It was the core of this abode. The chamber was rough and spacious. Besides a few stone pillars and oil lamps hanging from the chains slithering down the ceiling, there was nothing else.

But the moment the two stepped into the chamber, they felt something clutching their throat. The air seemingly turned into something viscous. They had to try their hardest just to breathe normally. Their hearts were starting to beat faster all of a sudden, as if they’d just come out of an intense training session.

The darkness was silent, but Roy knew a pair of eyes was watching them through the shadows. The Unseen Elder, just like his name implied, hid within the darkness. The witcher calmed down. Like Regis demonstrated, he bowed humbly, hanging his head low, and he held his sacrifice high up with both hands.

Dark winds scattered around the chamber, the oil lamps swayed by an invisible force. Flames were lit, and they swayed like will-o’-the’-wisps. Roy felt his hands getting lighter. The ancient coins were gone. When he raised his head, he was met with a gaunt profile. The figure was sickly, icy, and ancient. He was wearing nothing but a black-brown fustanella made of beast hide. Not an inch of hair was seen on his body. His naked skin was a deathly, sickly white. Hideous scars not unlike burn marks decorated his body. The figure’s nails were a few inches long, hanging by his side like the roots of plants. Before his chest, a copper necklace hung. Ancient magic radiated from it.

His face was covered in wrinkles, especially on his forehead and sides of his nose. His lips were unbelievably thin, his sunken eye sockets housing a pair of yellowish-black eyes. There was not a hint of emotion in them. He was cold, as if he were just a corpse that came out of a grave.

The man was obviously unwelcoming of any company.

‘The Unseen Elder

Age: 2200 years old

Status: Tribe elder

HP: ?

Mana: ?

Strength: ?

Constitution: ?

Dexterity: ?

Perception: 20

Will: 30

Charisma: 10

Spirit: ?

Skills:

Higher vampire usual skills all Level 10.

Crimson Domain (Passive): The Unseen Elder can control the blood of all living beings in his domain.

Master of Shadows (Passive): Throughout his life, the Unseen Elder has witnessed the darkest depths and the chaos energy of this world. He has mastered them. The darkness is locked within his body. He can unleash it anytime he wishes and trap his target within forever. The target will not realize it at all.

Leader: (Passive): The Unseen Elder stands at the pinnacle of higher vampire bloodline. One thought is enough for him to force all vampires from the lowliest to the top of them all to obey his orders. They cannot defy him.

Immortal (Passive): The Unseen Elder will not decay with time. Instead, it will grow stronger until it breaks free of its mortal shackle.’

***

“Lien… tohn…” Regis spoke in vampire tongue, and he broke Roy’s concentration. Before his leader, Regis couldn’t even control his body or voice. He was struggling and looking timid. He tried his best to express his humility, too scared to even look at the silhouette before him.

“Gesap… drang… inpll… ttaweng…” the Unseen Elder replied curtly, his voice deep and impatient. It sounded like metal rubbing against sandpaper, and the tempo of his speech felt weird. He would stop after saying one word, as if the act of talking was torturous for him.

As he spoke, a sliver of black smoke lashed out of the air and hurtled at Regis. The barber-surgeon was subjected to torture. The smoke kept Regis frozen, and he bent backward like a cooked shrimp. The higher vampire shivered, his face vacant, but there was a hint of agony flickering in his eyes. His eyes rolled back, and he seemed to have lost consciousness.

The Elder looked at Roy coldly. “Speak your last words, murderer.”

Roy felt great pressure seizing him from the inside out. He felt a stabbing pain shooting through his bones, and blood oozed out of his skin, as if he’d lost control of it. His cheeks were drenched red soon after, but the bloodied witcher said calmly, “Let Regis go, and I can get you home.” He stood up straight, staring at the Elder. He was a Most High, and he would not bow to anyone.

“The…then… You know my home?”

Roy turned solemn. The silhouette blinked into nothingness and appeared right before the witcher. Roy saw his teeth. He was close to the witcher.

“Fifteen hundred years ago, during the Conjunction, you and a few other tribes were transported to this world against your will. Your home is a planet far, far away on the other side of the universe.”

Time paused for a moment. The air and chaos energy fell into silence. The flames flickering in the lamps froze up and were turned into crimson gemstones.

The Elder closed his mouth and looked at Regis. Regis was released of his torment. He heaved a sigh of relief and fell to the ground, breathing heavily. The Elder turned to the earnest witcher. He spoke in common speech, though it was stiff. “How can you prove it, witcher?”

Roy heaved a sigh of relief. Now he knew his plan was feasible. The Unseen Elder could not resist the temptation of going home. He said, “I possess the Elder Blood, a lost bloodline of the Aen Elle tribe. I, to an extent, control space. If I have a waypoint for your home planet, I can open the…”

For some reason, Roy stopped talking. The Unseen Elder’s gaze turned sharp, and he harrumphed in displeasure. The air rippled, as if it was going to be shattered like a mirror, but the Elder did not fly into a rage.

Roy nodded. Finally, he said, “I can open the Worldgate.”

An invisible sliver of strength guided a drop of Roy’s blood off his cheek, and it flew toward the Elder’s finger. The Elder had a taste, and his eyes flared with frightening intensity. Black flames roared, and he huddled so close to the witcher, he was millimeters away. “Elder Blood. The blood of time and space. You are not lying. Tell me the plan. In detail.”

Roy took a deep breath. He chose his words, and he spoke.