BXBX NOVEL Chapter 39: Chapter39-John Must Die!
At the same time, a staggering amount of damage was inflicted!
"-56268!"
A crater, fifty to sixty meters wide, formed where the Rock Python had once been.
The Ice Meteorite's velocity was simply too great; the Rock Python had no chance to resist or evade and was instantly pulverized into mush by John's formidable strike.
[You have slain a lv18 Rock Python (Elite), earning 39,890 Exp!] [Current Level]: lv12 [Experience]: 63,000/250,000 …
The notification of the kill popped up before John.
Yet, staring at the massive crater, he found no joy in his victory.
Within the pit, as the ice sphere slowly dissipated under John's control, what remained of the Rock Python was nothing but a heap of mush.
The once valuable hide was now beyond repair, and the bones were ground to dust, leaving the once decent materials in ruins.
John rubbed his forehead, realizing for the first time that having too powerful a skill wasn't always a good thing.
Adhering to his principle of not wasting resources, John decided to salvage what valuable scales and bones he could find.
After all, he was desperately in need of funds.
He jumped into the crater, rummaging through the remains of the Rock Python, and placed any materials of value into his storage ring.
It was while John was sifting through the remains that...
A dull yellow glow suddenly flashed before his eyes.
Staring at the scroll in front of him, John was momentarily stunned.
Once he realized what it was, a surge of excitement washed over him. "Holy shit, a skill scroll dropped!"
Without a second glance at the Rock Python's corpse, John hurriedly picked up the earthen yellow scroll floating in mid-air.
The information of the skill scroll then appeared before his eyes.
[Item]: Skill Scroll
[Skill]: Ground Spike
[Level]: lv15
[Tier]: Basic skill
[Class]: Earth Spirit Magus, Black Rock Magus, Mountain Sorcerer...
John was thrilled by the skill laid out before him.
Unexpectedly, the drop was the very Ground Spike skill recently wielded by the Rock Python!
Having experienced its power firsthand, John knew well the skill's potency.
Had he not been so adept and agile, someone else might have perished a hundred times over in its stead.
John toyed with the skill scroll for a moment before reluctantly storing it away.
The Ground Spike skill scroll required level 15 to use, and since he wasn't there yet, all he could do was long for it.
However, John wasn't worried. Given his current rate of leveling up, it wouldn't be long before he reached level 15.
The thought of summoning a forest of Ground Spikes with a mere gesture filled him with an intense eagerness, further fueling his motivation to level up.
After sorting through the remaining materials from the Rock Python, John didn't linger and made his way towards the forest.
With powerhouses like Baron and Theodore Winters likely having reached the Crimson Peaks by now, John, eager to seize the opportunity, couldn't afford to stay put any longer.
Meanwhile, in the noble core district of Stellarburg, the basement of a luxurious villa was permeated with a thick scent of blood.
A still-warm body was carelessly tossed into a corner by Lucas Carter, where corpses were already piled up like a mountain.
"Finally, the blood of ninety-nine virgins has been gathered!"
Lucas Carter murmured to himself, his eyes burning with fervor as he gazed at the blood pool in the center of the basement, spanning several meters across.
Surrounding the pool, a dense array of red runes formed a large circle, boiling the blood within as if it were on a stove, with bubbles bursting into plumes of red mist that slowly converged above the pool into what seemed like a mirror made of fresh blood.
Theodore sat at the very heart of the pool, clutching a piece of black cloth tightly in his hands.
His complexion was pale, yet his eyes shone with madness.
"Bloodmirror Chase," he thought, "it's a success!"
However, as time ticked away, their spirits sank.
The Bloodmirror flickered intermittently with images, distorted as if by interference, making them hard to discern and filled mostly with useless information.
Theodore sighed, "Using an item for the Bloodmirror Chase makes finding a person far too uncertain."
Lucas Carter remained calm, having anticipated this outcome.
He had even considered alternative methods to continue the search if the Bloodmirror Chase proved fruitless.
The legacy of the Crimson Demon was too significant to simply abandon.
Just when both had resigned themselves to a lack of results this time...
A fleeting image within the Bloodmirror left Lucas Carter frozen in place.
The scene displayed was a ruin, vaguely recognizable as a once-standing church.
Outside its wreckage, a handsome young man of seventeen or eighteen, alongside a breathtakingly beautiful young woman in a black, luxurious gown, stood in silence.
The young man's face was etched with sorrow, as if mourning a great loss.
The young woman, however, glanced at him with a smile, her stunning visage radiating a heart-stopping beauty.
That smile caused an immediate explosion within Lucas Carter's psyche as he stood in the basement.
His eyes bloodshot, he stared at the scene in the Bloodmirror, his body trembling violently with rage.
One was the woman he had pursued for three years, the woman he dreamt of dominating, yet remained beyond his grasp.
The other, a mere nobody who had just offended him, causing him public embarrassment.
And now, these two were together?
Lucas Carter could never have imagined that his search for clues about the Crimson Demon would reveal such a scene.
His chest heaved, and in a hoarse voice, he said, "For three years, I've been nothing but devoted and protective towards you, even forsaking my chance to study in the capital to come to this insignificant Stellarburg! And yet, you've ignored me all this time, only to become so intimate with someone you've just met for a few days?!"
Lucas Carter's breathing grew heavier, and his expression twisted further.
Suddenly clenching his fists, Lucas Carter looked up with hatred brimming in his eyes and bellowed, "Wench! Wench! Seraphina, you shameless harlot! I swear, I'll make you and your lover pay!!!"
Theodore, witnessing this scene, was momentarily taken aback.
He was familiar with Seraphina but had not expected her to be involved with an unknown young man.
He was also aware of Lucas Carter's situation but found himself at a loss for words now.
The scene in the Bloodmirror continued to shift.
Still set amidst the ruins, the focus remained on the young man.
Standing amid the debris, his hand shimmered with a crimson glow...
Theodore squinted, recognizing the shape of an object that seemed like a key!
In that instant, his breath nearly halted.
Theodore sprang to his feet, his eyes bursting with ecstatic fervor.
Excitedly, he exclaimed, "We've found it, young master! We've actually found it!"
Lucas Carter regained some composure, his expression one of astonishment.
He hadn't anticipated that the very thing they had been searching for would be in John's possession!
Theodore approached solemnly, "Young master, it's almost certain that the item is with this young man named John. I'll immediately have someone track down his whereabouts."
Lucas Carter, his face dark with resolve, gestured dismissively, "No need to search. I've had people watching this fellow all along; I've just been too preoccupied to deal with him these past few days.
Now that we know he has what we're looking for, it saves us a lot of trouble.
Go and call Liam over, ask him where John is currently."
Without another word, Theodore left the room.
In just a few minutes, he returned, leading Liam, who was wrapped in bandages from head to toe, into the basement.
Upon seeing the mountainous pile of corpses, Liam couldn't help but shudder. Noticing Lucas Carter's icy stare, he quickly bowed his head and reported,
"Young Master Lucas Carter, John joined Hidden Stars today. Our people saw him leaving Wallfort with a member of the Hidden Stars' Red Gloves, heading towards the secret realm discovered by the Goldworth conglomerate and House Foster."
The secret base of Hidden Stars is hard to locate for ordinary people, but for the Awakened, it's not too challenging if one is determined to find it.
However, very few dare to trouble them.
In a sense, Hidden Stars represents the Federal order; to confront them is akin to slapping the Federal government itself.
This is why Hidden Stars can boldly use the Dark Forest Bar as their headquarters.
Both men were silent for a long time upon hearing Liam's report.
Neither had expected this newly Awakened individual to have already established a connection with Hidden Stars, let alone venture into the high-level secret realm rumored to be associated with a dark god.
Initially, they hadn't taken the rumors seriously, but now, with John heading to this secret realm with the item, they couldn't help but speculate.
After a long while, Lucas Carter exhaled deeply.
His gaze was frosty, his tone chilling to the bone, "Summon all the family's strongest members in Security Zone 301. No matter what, the Crimson Demon's legacy can only belong to us. And now, John must die!"