The first time Lord Leo left, he was still thinking of retrieving his two servants. These two had formidable abilities, had served him for years, and were highly valuable. However, the second time he fled, he no longer considered them. After all, no servant, no matter how important, was worth risking his life to save.
After Lord Leo’s departure, the two servants relied on their skills to barely survive. Although life was tough in the labyrinth, they endured, but food was scarce. Days would go by without sustenance, and their strength began to dwindle.
Charlot Mecklenburg appeared nearby and observed them for a while, confirming that these two servants were not vampires.
Vampires were highly arrogant and fiercely exclusive. The older a vampire, the more arrogant and xenophobic they became. Even though the Byron Empire did not crack down on siring offspring harshly and had even implemented the "First Embrace Certificate" to regulate it, many older vampires were still unwilling to create descendants. Those inclined to sire offspring were usually younger vampires.
Lord Leo's two blood thralls were merely "servants" controlled by vampires. They possessed certain vampiric traits but, having never received the First Embrace, were far inferior to true vampires.
For example, they could not replenish their consumed blood energy by absorbing life essence.
While Lord Leo remained trapped in the Machubi Fortress Labyrinth, his exceptional vampire talents allowed him to remain energetic and at his peak strength. In contrast, his two blood thralls had already dropped to only 60-70% of their full power.
Charlot extended his hand and made a slicing gesture. Before the two servants realized it, they were already separated. By the time they noticed, their companion was nowhere in sight.
Charlot retrieved his Vampiric Axe, infused it with Bloodflame Aura, and hurled it.
Each clan within the Byron vampires had unique bodily traits. Most vampires could only form a single Blood Vortex, their tier determined by the strength of their blood energy. Once their cultivation reached a certain level, vampires would accumulate blood energy to condense a Blood Core for ascension.
Charlot, now a Fifth-Tier Transcendent, possessed Bloodflame Aura far more refined and robust than before. Combined with the amplification from the remaining four Blood Vortices of Blood Glory, his Vampiric Axe whistled through the air with a mournful wail. It struck one blood thrall squarely in the back, sending him sprawling to the ground before he could react.
With his sneak attack successful, Charlot patiently waited until the Vampiric Axe had absorbed every last drop of the thrall’s life essence. Then, he summoned the weapon back. As he attempted to digest the influx of life essence, his Blood Glory within him suddenly boiled, and an abrupt mutation occurred.
The life essence of Lord Leo's blood thrall acted like poison in Charlot’s body. It rampaged wildly, burning like fire and freezing like ice, wreaking havoc on his bodily functions.
Charlot was both shocked and terrified. He mobilized his Blood Glory in an attempt to expel this life force, but it was to no avail. Frantically, he combed through his memory of the Protagoras Scrolls, searching for any mention of a solution to such a situation.
Charlot had faced evil gods twice, once staring down two at the same time. This experience had not only elevated his spirituality but also sharpened his memory. Every word he had read in the Protagoras Scrolls during his university days was crystal clear. Yet there was nothing about this scenario.
In his panic, Charlot remembered the two Vampiric Scrolls he possessed—Vampiric Scroll II and III from the Adonis Clan and the one given by Lord Leo of the Arthur Clan. While struggling to suppress the poison-like life force ravaging his body, he quickly flipped through the scrolls.
Vampiric Scroll II from the Adonis Clan contained only secret techniques without any extraneous explanations. Charlot found nothing useful. Pinning his last hope on the Arthur Clan scroll, he quickly scanned its contents, and his eyes lit up when he found a secret technique that matched his situation perfectly.
Back when the thirty-seven vampire clans had yet to establish a nation, they freely exploited their vampiric traits, slaughtering Transcendents to advance their ranks. Their rampant behavior angered the empires across the continent, triggering a massive retaliation led by human Transcendents like Protagoras. Six vampire clans were wiped out completely, exterminated by humanity.
After the Byron Empire was established, the vampires swore not to hunt Transcendents indiscriminately. In return, the human empires agreed not to kill Transcendents to practice Blood Glory. This created a fragile balance.
From that point on, except in times of war, very few humans pursued the Blood Glory technique.
However, vampires remained cautious, fearing that another figure like Protagoras might emerge. Thus, the Scroll Compilation Committee, gathering the brightest minds of thirty-one vampire clans, devised a technique: Origin Blood Ignition. This secret art was specifically designed to counter Blood Glory.
The core principle of Origin Blood Ignition was relatively simple. By invoking the powers of the Nine Ancestral Evils who ascended to become dark gods in ancient times, each vampire clan imbued their blood energy with a unique "mark."
A vampire who mastered Origin Blood Ignition would have blood energy far purer than their peers. Their blood could not be consumed by vampires of other clans, nor could it be absorbed by humans practicing Blood Glory. Their strength would grow at an astonishing rate.
Though an auxiliary technique, Origin Blood Ignition was more precious than any offensive art.
Because it required the invocation of dark powers, only the Three Imperial Clans and Six Royal Clans could practice it. However, it could not prevent intra-clan cannibalization. Lord Leo, being of the Arthur Clan, naturally had the Origin Blood Ignition mark within his blood thralls.
“Damn it!”
“What now?”
“Only by mastering the Arthur Clan’s Blood Clan Verbal Spellcasting can I neutralize the backlash from Origin Blood Ignition...”
In that moment, Charlot realized he had no other choice. He channeled the venomous life essence into his throat and activated the sixth Blood Vortex using the secret method of Blood Glory.
As the Blood Vortex in his throat activated, the strange force intensified further.
Charlot forced the other five Blood Vortices into dormancy and, following the Arthur Clan’s technique, began forming Blood Clan Verbal Spellcasting runes.
Back then, even the great philosopher Protagoras had failed to obtain the Arthur Clan’s secrets. The vampiric techniques he acquired were dominated by the Arsilo Clan, followed by the Adonis Clan and the Berros Clan, another member of the Six Royal Clans. The remaining ten techniques were from duke-level and marquis-level vampire clans.
Now, Charlot had no established methods to reference. He could only compare Blood Glory and the Arthur Clan’s scroll to create a technique of his own.
At first, Charlot found the Blood Clan Verbal Spellcasting runes massive, intricate, and utterly incomprehensible. After dozens of failed attempts, he vomited a mouthful of thick, black blood. The black blood hissed as it hit the ground, corrosive enough to eat through the stone floor.
At that moment, a calm voice echoed from the void: “Little one! The Arthur Clan’s technique is not something to be toyed with like this.”
Charlot’s heart leapt in shock. Suddenly, a will invaded his mind. The will did nothing—simply plucking at his consciousness like one would a harp string.
A flash of insight struck Charlot, and he exclaimed, “I understand! I understand now...”
The previously impenetrable Blood Clan Verbal Spellcasting runes suddenly split apart in his mind, as clear as mathematical formulas...