Lucius sprinted through the tall grass, the moonlight illuminating the savanna before him. While he could see perfectly even on the darkest nights, he had always enjoyed hunting under a full moon. So humans had already appeared on the fifth stage, and one had managed to escape.
He had read all the reports about the human bases on the fourth stage. The humans had believed their walls would protect them, but the hordes of undead they had cultivated proved too overwhelming.
It wouldn't be long until the rest arrived on the higher stages. The fourth stage was vast, and the vampires had been fortunate to discover the human bases so quickly. Without that early scouting, the humans’ situation would have been much better.
The fifth stage, however, was even larger, and finding any human base would have been nearly impossible if not for one critical advantage—they knew the exact location of the catacombs. Those catacombs would inevitably draw the remaining humans straight to them.
The vampires were currently hard at work turning as many beasts near the desert as possible. While the desert lacked many beasts suitable for turning, Nathaniel had raised several sand elentals to aid their cause. These creatures had beco terrifyingly powerful, with so even reaching E grade.
Lucius had yet to evolve himself. He was holding out for the Sanguine Thorn, which one of the humans was currently carrying. His patron had already prepared an item that would allow him to reshape the Sanguine Thorn to suit his needs and empower it further. It was amusing to him that the gods could send items to their blessed. Of course, he had to purchase the item from the system shop for two million credits, but acquiring the Sanguine Thorn would make it all worthwhile. He couldn’t wait to see the looks on the other vampires’ faces when he finally wielded it.
This was why he was hunting non-stop—to find a human base and prepare himself for the upcoming war. The constantly shifting tir for the special quest was unsettling, but as of now, there were only four weeks left. Lucius couldn’t help but wonder why the tir was fluctuating. Was the system not as omnipotent as they believed, or was it simply playing so cruel joke? It reminded him of sothing he might do if he were running a trial for weak humans: give them a countdown, only to suddenly drop it to zero.
Regardless of the reason, the humans were in a dire position. Their only advantage was their sheer numbers. There must have been an enormous population on their planet, Earth. Perhaps it was a large or ancient civilization, but if so, why were they so weak? The humans from Earth were by far the weakest in the entire trial. Even the orcs were stronger, and the humans from the water planet were reportedly formidable, at least according to the scouts’ reports.
Lucius doubted any human could defeat him in a one-on-one fight. The vampiric race was simply too powerful in comparison. They were practically designed to prey on humans. With his blessing and the teachings of his patron, he was confident he could overco any human. Those blood sacks stood no chance against him. If they thought the weak vampire generals left behind to manage the hordes were dangerous, they would be in for a rude awakening when they encountered him on this stage.
Still, there was one thing that nagged at him: how had a human managed to kill a vampire wielding a Sanguine Thorn? The human must have been extraordinarily lucky, perhaps finding the vampire in a weakened state. If the human had defeated the vampire on their own, where were they now?
Whoever possessed the Sanguine Thorn should have no trouble killing most vampires on the fourth stage. Many vampires would have enough credits to escape, so there were only two possibilities. Either the human was hiding on a lower stage and would be forcibly pulled to the fifth stage before the tutorial ended, or they were already here, having pursued a vampire to prevent them from reporting.
Lucius couldn’t decide which theory he disliked more. All he could do was remain vigilant and grow as powerful as possible. He was already at level 80, but there were countless ways for a vampire to beco stronger. The most obvious was to gather as much blood as possible.
On this stage, that task was easier than ever. The massive dinosaurs roaming the savanna struggled to fight a fast opponent like him, and they carried an abundance of potent blood. Their blood was far superior to that of smaller beasts.
Vampires wielding a Sanguine Thorn often relied on weaker vampires to deliver blood to them, as they required massive amounts to improve both themselves and their weapon. It was no wonder they were so powerful, given the resources they consud.
Lucius despised how those vampires now looked down on him. Before the system, he had held a much higher status, and such weaklings would never have dared to approach him.
Now it was the other way around, and he still struggled to accept reality. His solution to this dilemma was to stay as far away from those vampires as possible. If he managed to find the one with the Sanguine Thorn, the power dynamic would shift. Oh, he couldn’t wait any longer.
As he rushed through the savanna, little more than a blur in the darkness, it didn’t take long for him to locate his first target of the night.
Firebreath Gorilla – Level 84
Perfect, an E-grade, Lucius thought with a grin. The beast stood over seven ters tall and was a strong variant. A perfect start to the night. Lucius sped up even further, appearing at the gorilla’s side with his blade raised high.
The gorilla had no chance. By the ti it noticed the vampire, it was already too late. It took Lucius just over thirty seconds to completely dismantle the beast. The blood tasted exquisite, and he couldn’t wait to find his next prey. It was ti for slaughter.
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