The heavy crossbow hit the stone floor. It clattered loudly. 重弩击中了石地板.它发出很大的响声.
The sound broke the paralysis holding the three men. The crossbowman stumbled backward, his boots slipping on the wet rock. He didn't look at his weapon. He stared at the massive, bifurcated skull of the Iron-Core Ursus leaking black fluid onto the dirt. 这声音打破了三人的瘫痪.弓弩手踉踉跄跄地向后退去,靴子在潮湿的岩石上打滑.他没有看他的武器.他盯着铁核乌萨斯巨大的,分叉的头骨,黑色的液体漏到了泥土上.
A peak Rank 2 beast. A creature that required a full squad of heavy infantry to subdue. 二阶巅峰凶兽.这种生物需要一整队重装步兵才能制服.
Dead. One swing. 死的.一挥杆.
The Inquisitor leader with the staff swallowed hard. His knuckles turned white around the silver wood. "Heretic," he hissed. The word lacked conviction. His voice shook. 带着手杖的审判官领袖艰难地咽了口口水.他的指关节在银色的木头上泛白. "异教徒,"他嘶声说道.这个词缺乏说服力.他的声音颤抖着.
Renn stepped over the bear's massive paw. His boots left bloody prints on the stone. 雷恩跨过熊巨大的爪子.他的靴子在石头上留下了血迹.
"Arthur," Renn said again. The Bone-Iron mask distorted his voice into a grating, metallic scrape. "Where did he go after the ritual?""亚瑟,"雷恩又说道.骨铁面具将他的声音扭曲成刺耳的金属摩擦声. "仪式结束后他去哪儿了?"
"The Light protects its servants," the leader chanted. He raised the staff. The crystal at the tip flared with blinding white energy. "Searing Chains!""圣光保护它的仆人,"领袖高呼道.他举起了员工.尖端的水晶闪烁着耀眼的白色能量. "灼热锁链!"
Four thick bands of concentrated holy light erupted from the crystal. They whipped through the damp cave air, entirely bypassing physical distance, and wrapped around Renn's wrists and ankles. 四道粗大的浓浓圣光从水晶中爆发而出.它们快速穿过潮湿的洞穴空气,完全绕过物理距离,缠绕在雷恩的手腕和脚踝上.
The heat was immediate. The holy magic reacted violently with the Abyssal energy dormant in Renn's cells. White smoke hissed from his gray leather coat. The smell of burning fur and ozone filled the cavern. 热度立即袭来.圣魔法与沉睡在雷恩细胞内的深渊能量发生了剧烈的反应.白色的烟雾从他的灰色皮大衣中发出嘶嘶声.洞穴里充满了燃烧毛皮和臭氧的气味.
"I have him!" the leader yelled, planting the base of his staff into the ground to anchor the spell. "Shoot him! Aim for the head!" "我有他了!"首领大喊一声,将手杖根部插入地面以固定咒语. "开枪射击他!瞄准头部!"
The third Inquisitor, who had been completely silent, finally moved. He didn't reach for a weapon. He turned around and sprinted toward the tunnel exit. 一直沉默不语的第三审判官终于动了.他没有伸手去拿武器.他转身,朝着隧道出口冲去.
He didn't make it three steps. 他没能迈出三步.
Renn didn't struggle against the chains. He didn't pull back. He leaned forward. 雷恩没有与锁链作斗争.他没有退缩.他向前倾身.
His thigh muscles bunched. The Nightfall Demon Wolf bloodline surged, flooding his veins with raw, explosive power. He ignored the burning pain tearing at his wrists. 他的大腿肌肉绷紧了.夜魔狼血脉涌动,他的血管里充满了原始的爆发力.他忽略了手腕撕裂般的灼痛.
He yanked his arms inward. 他将手臂向内猛拉.
The Inquisitor leader was physically lifted off his feet. The magical tether worked both ways. The man flew forward, dragged by his own spell, straight toward Renn. 审判官领袖被抬了起来.神奇的绳索是双向的.那人被自己的咒语拖着向前飞去,直奔雷恩而去.
Renn met him halfway. He drove his right fist directly into the man's stomach. 雷恩半路遇见了他.他的右拳直接击入了男人的腹部.
The protective holy barrier flickering over the white cloak shattered like thin glass. Renn's knuckles sank deep into the Inquisitor's gut. Ribs cracked. Internal organs ruptured. 白斗篷上闪烁的防护圣结像薄玻璃一样破碎.雷恩的指节深深地陷进了审判官的肚子里.肋骨裂开了.内脏破裂.
The man spat a massive mouthful of blood over Renn's iron mask. The silver staff clattered to the floor. The light chains vanished. 那人将一大口鲜血吐到了雷恩的铁面具上.银色的手杖啪嗒一声掉到了地板上.光链消失了.
Renn didn't let the man fall. He grabbed him by the throat with his left hand, lifting him until their faces were inches apart. 雷恩没有让那人摔倒.他用左手掐住他的喉咙,把他举起来,直到他们的脸相距几英寸.
The crossbowman, still sitting in the dirt, wet himself. A dark stain spread across his trousers. 弩手仍然坐在泥土里,浑身湿透了.他的裤子上沾满了黑色的污渍.
"Where," Renn asked. He didn't raise his voice. He squeezed the throat just enough to crush the cartilage slightly. "去哪儿?"雷恩问道.他没有提高声音.他捏紧喉咙,刚好能稍微压碎软骨.
The leader gurgled. Blood bubbled from his lips. His eyes rolled wildly. "Capital... Silver Citadel..." he choked out. The religious zeal was gone. Only raw, animal terror remained. "Took the... the fragment. Promoted to... Commander..."领导咕哝道.鲜血从他的嘴唇里冒出来.他的眼睛疯狂地转动. "首都...银色堡垒..."他哽咽了.宗教热情消失了.只剩下原始的,动物般的恐惧. "拿走了...碎片.晋升...指挥官..."
Renn processed the information. Vane City. The heart of the human kingdom. The headquarters of the Pure Blood Church. Arthur wasn't just hiding. He was using the stolen God's Fragment to climb the ranks. He was preparing the main army. 雷恩处理了这些信息.维恩城.人类王国的心脏.纯血教会的总部.亚瑟不只是躲起来.他正在利用偷来的神之碎片来提升排名.他正在准备主力部队.
"When." "什么时候."
"Two... two days ago. Airship. Please. I...""两...两天前.飞艇.拜托.我..."
Renn tightened his grip. The neck snapped with a sharp, dry pop. 雷恩握紧了手.脖子发出尖锐而干涩的声音,折断了.
He tossed the limp body onto the pile of rocks. 他把瘫软的身体扔到了石头堆上.
He turned his head slowly. The runner had stopped near the tunnel entrance, frozen in place, watching his leader die in less than ten seconds. 他缓缓转过头.奔跑者停在隧道入口附近,僵在原地,看着他的领袖在不到十秒内死去.
"Wait," the runner squeaked. He held his hands up. "I'm just a scribe. I just record the beast mutations. I don't—""等等,"跑步者尖叫道.他举起双手. "我只是一个抄写员.我只是记录野兽的变异.我不——"
Renn flicked his wrist. The Night-Stalker blade cut through the air. 雷恩轻轻一抖手腕.夜行者的剑刃划破了空气.
He didn't throw it. He just used the momentum to hurl a concentrated blade of compressed wind. A rudimentary application of the wind-mana he had absorbed from the forest hounds. 他没有扔.他只是借势而出,凝聚出一道压缩风刃.他从森林猎犬那里吸收的风系魔法的初步应用.
The invisible crescent tore across the cavern. It cleanly decapitated the scribe. The head bounced against the wooden scaffolding. The body slumped forward. 看不见的新月撕裂了洞穴.它干净利落地砍下了抄写员的头.头颅在木脚手架上弹跳.身体向前倾倒.
Renn looked down at the last man. The crossbowman. 雷恩低头看着最后一个人.弩手.
The man was sobbing. He scrambled backward on his hands and knees, pushing himself against the cold rock wall. "Don't. Please. I'll give you gold. I have a writ of passage. Take it."男人抽泣着.他用手和膝盖向后爬,将自己推到冰冷的岩壁上. "不要.拜托.我会给你金子.我有通行令.拿走它."
Renn walked over to him. He crouched down. The silver irises behind the dark metal mask offered no pity. 雷恩走到他身边.他蹲下身来.黑色金属面具后面的银色虹膜没有表现出任何怜悯.
"The Silver Moon Clan," Renn said. "What are the Church's orders regarding them?""银月族."雷恩说道. "教会对他们有什么命令?"
The man swallowed forcefully, his chest heaving. "Extermination. A holy crusade. The decree was signed yesterday. They... they are gathering the paladin orders at the northern border. They are going to burn the Howling Woods."男人用力咽了口口水,胸口剧烈起伏. "消灭.一场神圣的远征.法令是昨天签署的.他们...他们正在北部边境收集圣骑士的命令.他们要烧毁嚎风森林."
Renn's breathing stopped for a fraction of a second. 雷恩的呼吸停顿了不到一秒.
Burn the woods. Wipe out his people. All justified by a fake demonic summoning that Arthur orchestrated. 烧毁树林.消灭他的人.亚瑟精心策划的一次虚假的恶魔召唤证明了这一切都是合理的.
He stood up. 他站了起来.
"Thank you," Renn said. "谢谢你,"雷恩说.
He brought the heel of his heavy leather boot down directly on the man's face. The skull caved in with a sickening crunch. 他把沉重的皮靴后跟直接踩在了男人的脸上.头骨发出令人作呕的嘎吱声,塌陷了.
The cavern fell completely silent. The only sound was the steady drip of condensation falling from the stalactites. 山洞里彻底安静下来.唯一的声音是钟乳石上不断滴落的凝露声.
Renn stood among the corpses. He didn't feel sick. He didn't feel remorse. The human part of him, the part that used to share wine with Arthur and laugh at bad tavern jokes, died on that sacrificial altar. Only the wolf remained. And the wolf was hungry. 雷恩站在尸体中间.他没有感觉不舒服.他并没有感到悔恨.他身上的人性部分,曾经与亚瑟一起喝酒,嘲笑酒馆里的坏笑话的部分,死在了那个祭坛上.只剩下狼了.狼很饿.
[Devour talent triggered.][吞噬天赋触发.]
A massive surge of energy erupted from the cavern floor. It wasn't the weak, wispy red threads he got from the trackers. This was a torrent. 一股磅礴的能量从洞窟地面爆发而出.这不是他从追踪器上得到的微弱的,纤细的红线.这是一股洪流.
Thick streams of pure, condensed mana tore out of the three dead Inquisitors. Golden light. Holy energy. It rushed into Renn's boots, crawling up his legs. 浓浓的纯净凝结法力从死去的三名审判官身上喷涌而出.金光.神圣能量.它冲进雷恩的靴子里,顺着他的腿爬过去.
At the same time, a deep, heavy crimson mist poured out of the dead Iron-Core Ursus. Earth mana mixed with the raw, brutal vitality of a Rank 2 beast. 与此同时,死亡的铁核乌萨斯体内,涌出浓浓的赤红色雾气.大地法力与二阶野兽原始而残酷的生命力混合在一起.
The golden and crimson streams collided inside Renn's chest. 金色与猩红的溪流在雷恩的胸口内碰撞在一起.
Pain flared. A deep, bone-melting agony. Holy energy was absolute poison to his Abyssal core. The two forces violently rejected each other. His muscles spasmed. He dropped to one knee, driving the black sword into the rock to keep himself upright. 疼痛突然袭来.一种深深的,彻骨的痛苦.圣气对于他的深渊核心来说,绝对是毒药.两股势力猛烈地互相排斥.他的肌肉痉挛.他单膝跪地,将黑剑插入岩石,以保持身体直立.
He gritted his teeth behind the mask. He tasted copper. 他在面具后面咬紧牙关.他尝到了铜的味道.
"System," he growled. "系统."他咆哮道.
*Ding.**叮.*
[Host is experiencing severe mana rejection.][宿主正在经历严重的法力排斥.]
[Holy energy and Abyssal energy are fundamentally incompatible.][神圣能量和深渊能量本质上是不相容的.]
[Suggest immediate synthesis to stabilize internal core.][建议立即合成以稳定内核.]
"Do it." "做吧."
[Target 1: Pure Holy Mana (Unrefined)][目标1:纯净圣法力（未精炼）]
[Target 2: Abyssal Remnant Core (Host)][目标2:深渊遗迹核心（宿主）]
[Target 3: Rank 2 Earth Vitality (Unrefined)][目标3:二阶大地元气（未炼）]
[Synthesis requirements met. Warning: Multi-target synthesis carries high mutation risk. Proceed?][满足合成要求.警告:多靶点合成具有很高的突变风险.继续?]
"Yes." "是的."
The blue grid exploded outward, illuminating the dark cavern. It didn't wrap around an object this time. It wrapped around Renn himself. 蓝色的网格向外爆炸,照亮了黑暗的洞穴.这次它没有包裹物体.它围绕着雷恩本人.
The pain vanished, replaced by an intense, freezing numbness. 疼痛消失了,取而代之的是强烈的,冰冷的麻木.
He watched the veins in his hands turn pitch black, then bright gold, then a deep, rusted iron color. The System forcefully broke down the conflicting energies down to their atomic structures. It stripped the 'Holy' attribute from the golden mana, leaving only pure, neutral life force. It crushed the dense Earth vitality and hammered it directly into his skeletal structure. 他看着自己手上的血管变成漆黑,然后是亮金色,然后是深沉的铁锈色.系统强行将冲突的能量分解成原子结构.它剥夺了金色法力的'圣'属性,只剩下纯净,中性的生命力.将浓郁的大地元气碾碎,直接锤入他的骨骼结构之中.
[Synthesis complete.][合成完成.]
[Result: Mutated Bone Density (Passive Trait).][结果:骨密度突变（被动特质）.]
[Effect: Host's skeletal structure is now infused with Iron-Core ore properties. Physical defense increased by 300%. Bones are highly resistant to crushing force and concussive impacts.][效果:宿主的骨骼结构现在注入了铁核矿石属性.物理防御增加300%.骨骼对挤压力和冲击力具有很强的抵抗力.]
[Secondary Result: Mana Core expanded. Host has officially broken through to the Extraordinary Realm - Bronze Tier.][次要结果:法力核心扩大.宿主正式突破非凡境界青铜级.]
Renn exhaled a long, ragged breath. White steam plumed from his mouth. 雷恩长长地吐出了一口气.白色的蒸汽从他的嘴里冒出来.
He slowly stood up. He felt heavier. Not slower, but grounded. Dense. He pulled off his left glove. His knuckles weren't just skin and fur anymore. Beneath the silver hair, a faint, dark metallic sheen caught the dim light. 他缓缓站起身来.他感觉更重了.不慢,但脚踏实地.稠密.他脱下左手的手套.他的指关节不再只是皮肤和毛皮.银发之下,在昏暗的灯光下泛着淡淡的暗色金属光泽.
He clenched his fist. The air popped. The physical strength multiplier was terrifying. 他握紧了拳头.空气爆开了.体力的增幅十分恐怖.
He walked over to the dead bear. He needed proof for the bounty. 他走到死熊身边.他需要赏金的证据.
He gripped the obsidian claws on the bear's right paw. He pulled backward, twisting sharply. Bone snapped. He tore the entire paw free from the joint. It weighed at least fifty pounds. He tied it to his belt with a piece of heavy rope he found near the mining carts. 他抓住了熊右爪上的黑曜石爪子.他向后拉了拉,猛烈地扭动着.骨头折断了.他把整个爪子从关节上撕下来.它的重量至少有五十磅.他用在矿车附近找到的一根粗绳子把它绑在腰带上.
He wasn't done. 他还没有完成.
He walked over to the spot where the Inquisitor leader had planted his staff. The rock wall there was fractured. A faint, sickening purple light pulsed from deep within the fissure. 他走到了审判官领袖放置法杖的地方.那里的岩壁已经断裂.一道微弱的,令人作呕的紫色光芒从裂缝深处涌出.
Renn drove his fingers directly into the solid stone. The iron-infused bones in his hand didn't even ache. He crushed the rock like dry clay and dug deep. 雷恩将手指直接插入坚硬的石头中.他手中的铁骨根本不痛.他把岩石像干粘土一样压碎,然后挖得很深.
His fingers closed around something sharp and freezing cold. 他的手指抓住了某个尖锐而冰冷的东西.
He pulled it out. 他把它拉了出来.
It was a jagged crystal, the size of a dagger. It was completely black, but shifting purple smoke swirled inside it. The whispering started immediately in his head. Faint, scratching voices promising power, blood, and endless hunger. 那是一块锯齿状的晶体,有匕首大小.它通体漆黑,但里面却有紫色的烟雾在旋转.他的脑海里立刻响起了窃窃私语.微弱,刺耳的声音预示着力量,鲜血和无尽的饥饿.
An Abyssal Shard. 深渊碎片.
Arthur's people were planting these in mana veins to corrupt local wildlife. It was an incredibly efficient way to manufacture a crisis. 亚瑟的人民将这些植物植入法力静脉中,以腐蚀当地的野生动物.这是制造危机的极其有效的方式.
The Abyssal remnant in his chest pulsed greedily. It wanted to eat the crystal. 他胸口的深渊残骸贪婪地跳动着.它想吃掉水晶.
Renn didn't let it. Eating raw Abyssal energy would degrade his sanity. He needed to process it. 雷恩不让.吃原始的深渊能量会降低他的理智.他需要处理它.
He held the black sword in his right hand. He held the crystal in his left. 他右手握着黑色的剑.他把水晶握在左手上.
"System.""系统."
[Target 1: Night-Stalker Blade (Common Tier)][目标1:夜行者之刃（普通级）]
[Target 2: Abyssal Corruption Shard (High Tier Material)][目标2:深渊腐化碎片（高级材料）]
[Synthesis requirements met. Begin process?][满足合成要求.开始处理吗?]
"Yes.""是的."
The blue light engulfed his hands. 蓝色的光芒吞没了他的双手.
The shard didn't melt. It shattered. Thousands of microscopic black fragments flew into the air and violently embedded themselves into the matte black steel of the sword. The blade vibrated intensely. It let out a high-pitched metallic shriek that echoed through the empty mine. 碎片没有融化.它破碎了.数以千计的微小黑色碎片飞向空中,猛烈地嵌入剑身的哑光黑钢之中.刀刃剧烈震动.它发出尖锐的金属尖叫声,在空荡荡的矿井中回荡.
The blue grid faded. 蓝色网格褪色.
Renn looked at his weapon. 雷恩看着他的武器.
It was no longer a simple, straight blade. The metal had warped, curving slightly backward like a predator's fang. The edge was jagged, lined with microscopic serrations. A deep, glowing purple groove ran down the center of the flat. 它不再是一把简单的直刃.金属已经变形,像掠食者的尖牙一样稍微向后弯曲.边缘呈锯齿状,布满微小的锯齿.一条深邃的,发光的紫色凹槽沿着公寓的中心延伸.
[Synthesis complete.][合成完成.]
[Result: Void-Fang Cleaver (Rare Tier).][结果:虚空之牙切割刀（稀有等级）.]
[Effect: Armor penetration increased. Wounds inflicted by this weapon suffer 'Abyssal Rot'—stopping natural and magical healing for a short duration. Weapon is bound to Host's bloodline.][效果:护甲穿透力增加.这种武器造成的伤口会遭受"深渊腐烂"——短时间内停止自然和魔法治疗.武器与宿主血统绑定.]
He swung it. It felt weightless in his grip, perfectly balanced. The air tore apart with a sharp hiss. 他挥动了它.他握在手里感觉毫无重量,完美平衡.空气随着尖锐的嘶嘶声而撕裂.
Good. 好的.
He walked back to the human corpses. He stripped them of their coin pouches. Sixty gold coins in total. A small fortune for a border town. He found a silver signet ring in the leader's pocket, stamped with the holy cross. He took that too. 他走回人类尸体旁.他抢走了他们的钱袋.一共六十金币.对于一个边境小镇来说,这是一笔不小的财富.他在领袖的口袋里发现了一枚银色图章戒指,上面刻有神圣的十字架.他也接受了.
He didn't touch their white cloaks. He walked over to one of the broken mining lanterns scattered on the floor. It still had oil in the reservoir. 他没有碰他们的白斗篷.他走向散落在地板上的一盏破碎的矿灯.油藏里还有油.
He smashed the lantern over the pile of bodies. He picked up two flint stones from the dirt and struck them together. 他把灯笼砸在尸体堆上.他从泥土里捡起两块燧石,把它们敲在一起.
Sparks caught the oil. Fire bloomed immediately, hot and bright. It licked at the white fabric, turning the holy symbols into black ash. 火花沾到了油上.火焰立即绽放,炽热而明亮.它舔舐着白色的布料,将神圣符号化为黑色的灰烬.
Renn didn't stay to watch them burn. 雷恩没有留下来看着它们被烧毁.
He turned his back on the flames and walked up the dark tunnel. The heavy bear paw thumped rhythmically against his thigh. 他背对着火焰,沿着黑暗的隧道走去.沉重的熊掌有节奏地敲击着他的大腿.
He emerged into the late afternoon light. The rain had completely stopped. The sky was a pale, washed-out blue. 他出现在午后的阳光中.雨完全停了.天空是苍白的,褪色的蓝色.
He stood at the entrance of the mine and looked south. 他站在矿井口,向南望去.
Vane City was a two-week ride from here. The capital of the human domain. A fortress of white stone and holy magic. 维恩市距离这里有两周的车程.人类领域的首都.白色石头和神圣魔法的堡垒.
He couldn't just walk through the front gates. A lone mercenary with no background would be stopped, questioned, and eventually exposed. The Church's intelligence network was too thorough. 他不能直接走进前门.一个没有背景的孤独雇佣兵会被拦住,审问,并最终暴露.教会的情报网太严密了.
He needed a reputation. He needed a mercenary company so ruthless, so efficient, that the nobles in the capital would actively seek him out to solve their dirty problems. 他需要声誉.他需要一个如此无情,如此高效的雇佣兵公司,让京城的贵族们主动找他来解决他们肮脏的问题.
He needed to build his own army. 他需要建立自己的军队.
Deadwood Ravine was the perfect breeding ground. It was filled with desperate men, exiled fighters, and people who hated the Church just as much as he did. 戴德伍德峡谷是完美的繁殖地.那里挤满了绝望的人,流亡的战士,以及和他一样憎恨教会的人.
Renn adjusted the collar of his gray coat. He pulled the wide-brimmed hat lower over his silver eyes. 雷恩调整了一下灰色外套的领子.他把宽边帽拉低,遮住银色的眼睛.
He began the walk back down the mountain. The mud slushed beneath his boots. 他开始步行下山.泥浆在他的靴子下流淌.
The Iron Fangs mercenary group claimed they owned the ravine. They had twenty men. 铁牙佣兵团声称他们拥有这个峡谷.他们有二十个人.
Renn touched the hilt of the Void-Fang Cleaver. 雷恩触碰了虚空之牙切刀的刀柄.
Twenty men sounded like a good starting point for a hostile takeover. 二十个人听起来像是敌意收购的一个很好的起点.
By nightfall, the name "Ash" wouldn't just be a whisper in a tavern. It would be a brand burned into the throat of the borderlands. The first step toward the Silver Citadel. The first step toward Arthur.到了夜幕降临,"艾什"这个名字就不再只是酒馆里的耳语了.这将是烙在边疆喉咙上的烙印.迈向白银堡垒的第一步.迈向亚瑟的第一步.