∼ Day 163 ∼

The grotto and small lake surroundings were dead silent as every living being had run in terror from the menacing presence that the King Basilisk was emitting.

Only the sounds of its massive tail dangerously swishing in the air, ready to strike, and the occasional hiss could be heard.

Breaking that tense atmosphere was a very familiar whistle that sent the basilisk's rage-induced vigilance on high alert. Whirling on the sound, it saw that same figure with wings hovering in the air yet again, however, this time its features were hidden in the blackness of shadows.

This of course didn't perturb the although intelligent, but ultimately wild beast, as it cast its petrifying mental attack once again on the damnable monster daring to try and attack it.

Appearing as if the shadowed figure had been seized in its gaze, the King Basilisk didn't waste time as it attacked with its tail. But the instant the attack landed, the basilisk realized something was very wrong.

Instead of the expected two-legged monster hurtling through the air like before, what emerged from the shadows as they disappeared after the impact was a featureless crimson figure that broke apart into what looked like clots of blood.

It had only the blink of an eye before it discovered the creeping darkness swallowing the ground below, and the hordes of figures rising from that abyss all around it.

Panic consumed the creature and it instinctually attempted to use its Petrifying Gaze so that it could escape into the grotto, but it was too late. Pain erupted and pierced its skull, into its mind, as its vision turned into spots of black and the familiar color of its own blood.

***

Sitting upon a branch not too far from the action, I intently watched and commandeered the scene acting out below.

I had already dismissed the blood-soaked claws of which I had used to rake out its eyes, now simply allowing my blood puppets to handle the remaining work needed to be done.

With the recent unveiling of my domination talent in Ebongrave with the help of Executrix Lana and Lord Nosferas, the number of blood puppets and how powerful I could make them had undergone incredible change and improvement. I also gave me summoned [Heirloom of Sanguinity] that glinted in its splendor as it dominated the rich ambient mana of the jungle.

Still, the King Basilisk was no joke. Although I had pulled off a trick that would've, or at least, should've never worked against a much more intelligent and least instinctually driven opponent, even with its main skill impaired with its loss of vision, it still was dismantling much of my horde with its wild throes of panic and fury.

Of course, this was no problem for me. As it tried desperately to kill, destroy, and throw off the hundreds and thousands of blood puppets of various forms and figures, the basilisk ever so slowly accrued more and more damage. Until even its white scales were almost entirely painted red. But for me, the assault only cost me mana and strain, something I had plenty of when I could draw off my vast supply of vitality in exchange.

Seeing that the serpent was nearing its limit, it was time to end the battle.

I hadn't done much in terms of physical exertion, but my mental effort was obvious as beads of perspiration ran down my face, my mind heavily taxed by the dominating powers that infused my horde of puppets. Pointing my gauntleted arm towards the raging battle below, a sudden change happened to the battlefield.

Like a swirling sea of crimson that collected both the bodies of my blood puppets and the spilled blood of the king serpent, the mass of crimson fused together, into one colossal sphere. Taking form, the mass of blood steadily took a shape to rival even that of King Basilisk.

Although the basilisk was blinded, it could still easily sense the immense amount of power swirling all around it.

It hissed, trying its damndest to flee, but as bloody and battered it was, it was already too late. Feeling a sudden pull on its tail, the escaping serpent was thrown back and stunned. Before it could regain its bearings, its head was grasped by a massive fist that squeezed so hard that its jaw opened in a silent hiss of dread.

Equaling its size, the massive blood puppet I had summoned with the collective bodies of my horde and the serpent's own blood, was like a hulking gorilla. A goliath creation of blood and magic.

Instinctually, unable to escape its firm hands, the serpent coiled around the puppet's figure in a desperate attempt to crush it to death. But the basilisk's fate had already been sealed as the blood puppet's second hand also grasped firmly around the snake's head.

Urged on by the sudden increase in pressure put on its skull, it finished wrapping itself around the construct and began tightening its hold. This of course was a hopeless venture, as even with the serpent's massive size, weight, and strength, in the face of my blood constructs, especially one of such a magnitude partially constructed by the serpent's own immensely powerful blood, the coiling of its body could barely even halt the puppet's movements.

With sickening noises of cracking and squelching that accompanied the shrill hiss of the King Basilisk as the blood puppet crushed its head with its bare hands, the basilisk's skull suddenly caved in, causing what almost sounded like a cacophony of sonorous cracks. The sounds very much like what a glacier would make as it was crushed and cracked.

[LVL: 32- King Basilisk has been slain!]

[You have been rewarded with 2.7m points of EXP]

[Congratulations! You've reached level 41]

[You've been rewarded with 1 skill point for reaching level 41]

Spasming chaotically, the serpent's length began unraveling itself as its dying body entered its death throes.

Wobbling unsteadily on the branch I was perched on, I had to lay myself down before I fell down.

"Phew," I got out around my irregular panting.

That fight had taxed me a lot more than expected, but despite that, I couldn't help myself from grinning stupidly as I hadn't managed to create and control a puppet even remotely so large before. It had easily broken all lastest records and simply proved how well I was on the path of what best suited me.

Getting back onto shaky legs, I steeled my mind for using, even more, mana and concentration.

Conjuring the highest quality of blood to me, I let streams of the sanguine liquid enter my body, allowing the expansive well inside me that was Siphon to consume it all and turn it into experience and attributes.

[Siphon]

[You've consumed the blood of an LVL: 32 - King Basilisk]

[570122 points of EXP has been acquired and stats have been added]

[Congratulations! You've reached level 42]

[You've been rewarded with 1 skill point for reaching level 42]

Nodding satisfied at the last level I managed to scrounge up, I dismissed the prompt and gave a sad glance at the rest of the blood still residing within the serpent king and the many blood constructs who were both destroyed and still active.

This was about as much blood I could hold in for the day, and it would take me at least twelve or sixteen hours until the trait had processed half of it. That was one of the major downsides with hunting large monsters as their potency; the experience, power, and magic within their blood were spread throughout their massive quantities of blood.

As such, for me, it was far more favorable to hunt powerful creatures with smaller bodies where every single drop of their blood is that much more potent and I can consume it all without having to worry about reaching a capacity. Still, there were some downsides with blood that was stronger, as although it occupied less space, it took an equivalently longer time to digest or process.

I did save what of the serpent's blood I could in containers I had in my [Ring of Holding], but it was almost negligent as there was just that much blood. Plus, I was already using most of the space in the ring for many other items, baubles, and various other necessary miscellany.

Done with what I could and have made sure there wasn't any danger nearby, I dismissed the giant blood puppet as I desperately needed to recover my strength.

Beginning meditation and Mana Condensation, I rapidly began taking in the mana of my surroundings, allowing my body and mind to rest.

I still had my senses peeled for danger, but while I was at it, I directed my attention towards my recent gains and the pending system prompt.

-Status!-

Status Information Attributes Traits, Titles, and Skills -Name- "Xavier Tal'chor" STR 42 ⇒ 49 Skills 20 -Race- Strigoi (Blood Fiend) VIT 185 ⇒ 191 Traits 9 -Sex- Male AGI 114 ⇒ 126 Titles 4 -Rank- D+ DEX 46 ⇒ 48 Skill Points 14 ⇒ 16 -Level- 42/50 INT 44 ⇒ 47 Resistances Health 1254/1758 CHR 39 ⇒ 40 Physical Resistance 38 ⇒ 40 Stamina 386/434 WILL 58 ⇒ 64 Magical Resistance 40 ⇒ 42 Mana 45/466 MAG 153 ⇒ 158 Mental Resistance 36 ⇒ 38

Groaning eternally, I was happy with the results but when my eyes landed on my health, stamina, and mana, it became clearer just how much commanding such an army of blood puppets including that one last goliath one. Although my health wasn't at all in any danger, I had burned a lot of my vitality to conjure more mana, and as such, I would need considerably more time to recover since the damage taken from Blood Conversion could be seen like magical damage as opposed to normal injury and afflictions.

Still, there was another prompt readily awaiting my attention so I didn't waste any more time pondering and went straight on to what I expected were the skill increases. However, what greeted my eyes, while still a lot of skill level-ups, was something wholly unexpected...

[Siphon]

[Skill inheritance ∼ success!]

[Skill - Petrifying Gaze has been added to the skill list]

[Skill - Dominion Mastery has reached level 4]

[Skill - Blood Lord has reached level 3]

[Skill - Blitz has reached level 9]

[Skill - Imbue Rake has reached level 15 and can now be advanced!]

[Skill - Ambrosial Senses has reached level 12]

[Skill - Onyx Body has reached level 15 and can now be advanced!]

[Skill - Mana Control has reached level 15 and can now be advanced!]

[Skill - Stealth has reached level 13]

[Skill - Formation Constructs has reached level 3]

[Skill - Shadow Manifestation has reached level 15 and can now be advanced!]