Vlad clenched his teeth, turning the solid blood into liquid before spinning it above his head to deflect the countless attacks.
SHING SHING SHING
Arrows and spells soon collided with the blood, which looked like liquid steel—strong and resilient.
Vlad snorted irritably, his eyes suddenly glowing a crimson red as his muscles swelled so much they looked ready to burst.
"Attention, men!" he shouted furiously. "Formation!"
The barbarians immediately raised their shields and readied their swords, thick sweat running down their foreheads as they also activated their abilities.
Young men became warriors.
Warriors became monsters born for battle.
"Aura!" Vlad shouted, and immediately all the others yelled together in unison.
WOOOOOSH
Aura roared like a beast, slamming against the earthen walls and shaking them, while the men above began to fall one after another.
Cultivators fell one by one as the newly invoked spells dissipated.
Then the mortal archers turned pale and trembled, yet still tried to remain standing and little by little began to rise with difficulty.
Only the spells activated beforehand remained.
"What?Is it over yet?"
Suddenly, the battlefield fell silent as Vlad stepped forward with a whistle.
His head moved to the right, where only moans could be heard, then he turned to the left, hearing nothing but painful groans.
He then sighed in relief.
"None of them have aura… what a relief. Otherwise, this would be a death corridor."
He laughed in amusement, until thunder roared and heavy rain began to fall.
Vlad narrowed his eyes as he saw Kai appear in front of him like a ghost.
"Aura, is it?" Kai said. "Your aura is truly overwhelming. But I wonder what happens after your numbers are reduced by half."
Kai laughed lightly.
All it would take was killing a few of them, and then all the rest would rise again.
Vlad's eyes widened. Kai could clearly sense the feeling passing through his heart.
Fear—pure, genuine fear.
A demon was afraid of a newborn.
But why?
Kai's senses quickly sharpened as his mind worked faster and faster, trying to understand the reason.
However, the barbarians did not wait idly and soon took a step forward, shouting.
"Stop!" Vlad ordered in alarm, and they instantly froze in place like statues.
Vlad's fear seemed to flow straight into the hearts of every one of them.
Vlad stepped forward, approaching Kai and placing his hands behind his back.
The storm roared louder and louder.
"I've already lost many men today. Forget this battle. Let's negotiate—give me some goods and we'll leave you in peace."
Kai laughed.
Vlad swallowed before speaking again.
"Look, everyone is unconscious. No one will know about this. You can even say you drove us away alone and everyone will believe it. You'll be a hero!"
Kai's laughter only grew louder.
"All right, all right, just let us leave here alive. That's all I ask. We've all lost too much today. We also have families—mothers, wives, daughters. Have mercy."
Kai laughed even louder, his laughter growing darker before he spoke.
"And isn't it like that for everyone?" Kai looked deep into Vlad's eyes. "I also have a family and people I care about. One of them is right behind me, and even so you were going to kill me, and then her, if I hadn't killed your army first."
"I can offer you other things," Vlad said with a serious expression. "You're trying to become a demon, aren't you? I can offer you my guidance. You could become more than I ever was."
Kai smiled broadly.
"I already had that theory, but you're an imperfect evolution, aren't you?" Vlad clenched his teeth before nodding in confirmation.
"At first I tried the perfect evolution. Fighting Wild and Ferocious beasts is easy, after all, but it simply becomes impossible after a while. You always need to be stronger, always fight someone even stronger, more experienced, with thousands of advantages you don't have."
Vlad laughed before looking at Kai.
"Imagine you, Kai—just a little stronger than you are now, but having to fight celestial gods, beings capable of destroying worlds at will. That's exactly what will be expected of you, very soon."
Kai pondered his words briefly.
"Your eyes… they can see something, can't they?" Kai said, making Vlad's smile falter. "What do they tell you?"
Vlad burst into laughter.
"My eyes see a beast on the verge of evolving, Kai. A beast with an evolution that defies nature—more than perfect, more than legendary, something that could enter the myths."
Kai fell silent. He could feel a call coming from outside himself, stirring his aura.
He only lacked the fangs to evolve; after all, killing so many men had given him enough aura.
And then, it would be time for the glorious evolution.
Something above legendary.
Something mythological.
'If I'm already dangerous now, imagine when I evolve… that's what he fears.'
Without warning, Kai stepped forward, flames emerging from his mouth as his eyes focused like never before.
His consciousness accelerated, and his paws burned with searing flame in preparation.
"You'll regret this!" Vlad clicked his tongue before summoning a shield in front of himself.
Flames washed over Vlad's shield, filling his entire field of vision.
"Fire is just fire. What do you think that's going to do against me?"
As soon as the flames weakened, Vlad commanded the blood to surge forward like a cutting saw.
At that moment, he once again had a clear view of the scene.
However, his eyes widened when he saw that Kai had vanished.
"Where did he go?" Vlad murmured in surprise.
BOOM BOOM BOOM
Explosions caught Vlad's attention, and he turned urgently.
Kai had taken advantage of the opening and ignored Vlad, running straight toward the barbarians behind him.
BOOM BOOM BOOM
Kai's paws exploded with flames, delivering crushing blows.
The barbarians didn't even realize what had struck them down.
In their vision, there was only a blur racing from side to side, reaping lives like death itself.
Vlad immediately tried to attack Kai, who simply positioned himself behind the barbarians, using them as shields.
"What do you think happens first—me killing all your men, or you catching me?"
Kai laughed, proposing a game of cat and mouse.
Meanwhile… the aura of the environment diminished.
Mortals and cultivators began to rise once more.
And of course, the bloody mist of Shattered Sky approached at Vlad's will.