"Like I said, I don't really know what disciples do, but I know this kid well. In this year's acceptance test, he scored full marks in all three stages, 666 formed once again. The New Blood Prince Jashua, before you!"
The Young Count was being introduced personally by his Sheikh; it was the perfect time to unleash his blood energy. Jashua didn't hold back; fragments of the marble floor starting to shatter from beneath his feet were flying into the air. Three breaths later, the five-step circle with the hulking youth at its center was pulverized, but the damage stopped a step away from where Eyshan's dress swept the floor. Jashua had shown off his intensity and his control over his power by shoving it right in their faces.
"I won't be able to show off by stating his cultivation level like you guys, but some of the blood on him belongs to the Leader of the Bloody Valley Clan affiliated with the Holy Blood Sect!"
It was impossible not to understand what these words meant; everyone was completely tongue-tied. There was no sound other than the rumble of the distant volcano until the Holy Bone Sect Sheikh shouted.
"Atractivo, let's start the wedding preparations immediately. I found my son-in-law!"
Even though the chalk-skinned man's mouth was closed, his smile could be seen through the gap in his cheek. Unlike him, the face of someone behind the Holy Blood Sect Sheikh was looking at the ground.
"I thank the Holy Bone Sect Sheikh for his offer, but I chose the person I'm going to marry a long time ago!"
Jashua answered with his full voice, while his eyes were on Lareina who had bowed her neck. When the young girl lifted her head, they made eye contact; the drooping lips slowly came alive and stretched into a smile.
"Just my rotten luck!"
Sheikh Hueso lamented slapping his knee; for someone who was going to leave his sect to his granddaughter, Jashua was beyond the ideal son-in-law.
It was impossible not to be impressed by the show of power. The mastery over his own energy type shown by someone who had just joined the sect this year was intimidating. You could be strong, you could also have precise control over your energy, but commanding both of these at the same time was a completely different ballgame.
"You blind squirrel found a nut, you pervert! If it wasn't a team battle, maybe you'd have a chance, but I see you don't even have a fifth warrior!"
After a brief moment of shock, Holy Fire Fuego pushed back so as not to be outdone. She was milking the advantage of coming from the same sect as the Royal Family for all it was worth.
"What an impatient, what a fiery woman you are. If you were just a little bit prettier, we'd be making love until morning, but..!"
Atractivo didn't finish his sentence. If Fuego was audacious, Atractivo was the king of tactlessness.
"You shameless bastard!"
What was said in front of everyone wasn't the kind of thing you just swallow; the Holy Fire Sect sheikh lunged forward with her face flushed.
"Silence!"
The word taking the heat out of the room came from the highest place, from Eyshan who had taken her throne. With this gesture indicating the dinner ceremony was over, she was setting herself apart from the others.
"I don't see your last warrior Atractivo, or did you really come shorthanded?"
The long-haired Holy Blood Sect Sheikh looked to his right and left; there really were four disciples who came to fight.
"I wonder if I forgot to bring her while opening the portal?"
Atractivo's gaze, scanning the surroundings while muttering to himself, turned to a spot along with the sound of feet crushing the shattered marble remnants.
The red-haired girl, holding the daggers with blood flower reliefs on both sides of her body, was advancing with rhythmic steps. Her target was the throne of the Queen of the Hell Realm, Eyshan. Everyone's eyes were on her; the eyes of Eyshan with long black hair widened completely.
She couldn't stay seated; getting up in one move, she moved to the right side of the throne. Her thin long sword appeared in her hands; a breath later, flames in the form of lava would wrap the cold metal.
"You, you!"
When the two words tumbled from her lips, Nafız was exactly five steps in front of her, looking right into Eyshan's eyes. The Fiends gathered in front of their queen. Not just them, Holy Fire Sect Sheikh Fuego had also taken her place in the human shield and drawn her weapon.
"Holy Blood Nora respectfully greets the majestic and beautiful Queen of the Hell Realm!"
Nafız held the hem of her skirt and gave a polite curtsy by gracefully crossing her knees. Her blood-soaked face, even in this state, was turned only to Eyshan.
"You're dead, you died!"
The jaw of thin-faced Eyshan dropped a little more. Her skin color was whiter than the Holy Bone Sect Sheikh Hueso. Her gaze was dull, her expression shapeless; it was obvious she wasn't mentally here.
"Kill her, kill her immediately!"
Receiving the order, the Six Fiends shot off like arrows. Along with the Holy Fire Sect Sheikh Fuego, they were targeting Nora's body.
"Blood Dome!"
Along with Atractivo's two words, the blood-red barrier enveloped all the Holy Blood Disciples. Not long, a breath later, the attacks of the Six Fiends and the woman in red rained down mercilessly on it.
"I just opened the portal in the wrong place, what's there to be so mad about?"
While the Sheikh was pushing the limits of playing dumb, the second wave of attacks rained down on the barrier; the sparks flying around were illuminating the dim room.
"Bone Trap!"
The Holy Bone Sect Sheikh, resembling a walking corpse, unleashed his technique; the top of the blood-colored barrier was being covered with milk-white bones.
"My Queen, please calm down!"
Hueso also called out to Eyshan who had moved towards the back of her throne at the same time; someone needed to snap her out of it. The Queen didn't answer; the Fiends and Fuego continued their attack, the dining hall was about to turn into a war zone.
Right at this moment, the structure housing the dining hall started shaking violently. The cracks forming on the walls spread to the floor and covered all four sides. For about ten breaths, everything inside the structure, which was tossed right and left like a cradle, shifted places.
The paintings on the wall, the carefully set table, the throne of the Queen of the Hell Realm, and everyone whose feet were on the ground were being hurled into different corners. When everything was over, the magnificent dining hall had turned into ruins; the width of the cracks covering the floor and the walls reached two spans.
"He did it, he really made a new weapon!"
The messenger, the right side of whose face was soaked with the blood leaking through his hair, threw open the door of the dining room and burst in. Besides barging in unannounced, he was announcing the news so loudly that the words bouncing from wall to wall despite all the cracks had reached everyone's ears.
"Grand Master Abarran has completed his new weapon!"
On one side Eyshan, the Fiends, the Holy Fire Sect disciples, on the other side the Holy Ice, Holy Earth, Holy Eye teams, and at the furthest point from the door, the Holy Blood, Holy Bone alliance. Along with the news, all of them without exception sprang to their feet; how could they stay put? The Legendary Blacksmith Abarran, living in dungeon captivity for a hundred years, had produced a new weapon.
The cause of the events just a moment ago was exactly this, and judging by the effects, it was a product worthy of the weaponsmith's level. The energy unleashed was enough to turn a tower of the Hell Palace into ruins; the promised prize of this year's tournament was ready.
"We'll go on ahead, we know the way to our tower anyway!"
Atractivo, grabbing his team, quickly bolted from the dining hall. He was fleeing, leaving the place he plunged into chaos with his arrival in ruins.