The Blood Legacy (The Divine Elements Book 1) (32 page)

*cough*   *cough*

Calron suddenly doubled up on the ground as he spat out a large amount of blood!

Turning his head around to look behind him, Calron saw the distant figures of Fatty and the Shadow Corps surrounding the city Lord, as they prevented him from moving.

Calron was forced to use the Blood Mist Step multiple times to make sure he was at a long enough distance away from the Arena!

With barely even the strength to use it once, Calron had risked a great deal by activating the Blood Mist Step multiple times!

*cough*

Calron excruciatingly spat out another mouthful of blood on the ground, as his hands started to tremble with exhaustion.

He had decided to head towards his Master’s home because the Artifact was his safest bet, as it only permitted people with the wooden token to enter. If Calron could safely cross the invisible barrier of the forest, then he had a much higher chance of surviving today.

However, just as he was about turn his head back around, he suddenly saw multiple figures darting towards him!

They were the black armored guards of the city Lord!

Feeling his heart pound against his chest, Calron painfully contracted his muscles as he immediately began to sprint towards the forest!

The guards were still quite a bit of distance away. However, they were rapidly gaining ground, as unlike Calron, they were in their peak condition.

With his quivering knees, Calron forced himself to continue running as he desperately hoped that his body would not fail him right now!

Taking another quick glance behind him, Calron saw that the black armored guards were almost upon him, as only a few meters separated him from them!

Just as he felt that all hope was lost, Calron abruptly spotted the familiar sight of the forest’s entrance!

However, the guards were now only two meters behind him, and Calron could hear the distinct rattling of their armor and the heavy stomps of their legs against the ground.

“I decided long ago to shatter my fate of weakness, so I refuse to die here!”

Calron furiously roared, as he gathered every last drop of strength and willpower that he had, and charged towards the forest!

A sensation of a gentle tingle rippled through Calron’s body just as he crossed the barrier, and stopping after a few steps, Calron vigorously panted in order to regain his breath.

Feeling his nerves start to slowly calm down, Calron raised his head as he prepared to look back at the black armored guards.

*thump*

*thump*   *thump*

His heartbeat started to wildly accelerate, when he saw that the guards were all grinning at him as they stood outside the barrier.

“Teon, bring it out!”

The guard at the forefront shouted as he turned towards another guard behind him.

Teon slowly stepped forwards while holding a strange translucent gem within his hands.

“Did you really think that we didn’t know about this artifact? I don’t know how you were able to enter it unobstructed, or even know of its existence, but none of that matters now.”

The guard at the forefront calmly stated, as his eyes cruelly bored into Calron.

How could the city Lord not know about the Red Boar School possessing an Artifact? Regis had long ago prepared a countermeasure against it, as he knew the school’s Head disagreed with many of his ideals, so he had secretly paid an enormous sum of gold to obtain this mysterious gem that could bypass the barrier of low ranked Artifacts!

Hearing the words of the guard, Calron felt his entire body quivering uncontrollably.

He had thought that he was finally safe from danger, but fate seemed to have other plans for him, as even his safe location was soon about to be compromised.

Suddenly, all the nearby guards released their essence into the air!

The various tendrils of essence merged together into a multi-colored wave and began to pour into the translucent gem that Teon was holding.

A bright multi-colored glow immediately illuminated the entire area, as the gem appeared to be bursting with raw energy!

“Teon!”

Knowing it was time for the next step, Teon slowly brought the gem closer and closer to the barrier, until it suddenly made contact!

BOOOOM!

The invisible barrier around the forest rippled for a brief moment before it returned back to normal.

BOOOOM!

Another explosion sounded out, as Teon started to push the gem further into the barrier.

CRACK!

A tiny crack suddenly appeared at the top of the barrier, and upon seeing that result, the black armored guards frantically increased the intensity of the essence that they were pouring into the gem!

Meanwhile, Calron dumbly stood there as he observed the inevitable collapse of the barrier.

“Is this what the heavens have destined for me?”

Calron whispered, as his soul began to drown in despair.

*Yawn*

“Stop making that loud noise, kid! Can’t you see I’m trying to sleep here?”

A grumpy voice abruptly yelled from within Calron’s mind.

“Teacher! You’re back!”

Calron exclaimed as a surge of joy spread throughout his body.

“Huh? Calron! Wait, I awoke already? That’s impossible, I sh-”

A jolt of shock burst out from within Calron’s mind, as he felt the Voice’s astonishment.

“Y-you are in the fifth rank already? Even with the Thunder-Bird’s technique, it’s still impossible!”

The Voice yelled in an astonished tone.

The Voice realized that he was only able to make such a quick recovery because of Calron’s sudden advancement, and their merged souls!

CRACK!

“Teacher, I will explain everything later, but can you somehow deal with those guards?”

Calron frantically asked his Teacher, as he saw that the barrier was soon going to shatter.

“Goddammit, kid! Why do you always chase after trouble?”

The Voice angrily scolded, as it realized the precarious situation they were currently in.

“Tch, it’s more like trouble follows me, rather than me chasing after it!”

Calron sulkily responded back to the Voice.

Even though they were in a dangerous situation, just knowing that his Teacher was back, made Calron ease his worries a bit.

“It doesn’t matter, you brat! Just stop involving me in them! Hmph, looking at the current state of your body, you would be lucky to even land a slap against them. Just run for now, I need to keep thinking!”

The Voice loudly exclaimed as he urged Calron to run.

Wiping away the traces of blood from his mouth, a determined expression etched itself on Calron’s face, as he knew that that was no other choice.

*KACHA*

The shattering of the invisible barrier loudly echoed throughout the forest, as the guards let out a victorious yell!

“I swear on my parents’ grave that if I survive this day, I will return to exterminate Chax and his entire wretched family!”

Calron savagely whispered while glaring at the guards, and then abruptly burst into a sprint towards the inner forest!

Seeing that the boy was escaping again, the guards furiously bellowed as they immediately started to follow behind Calron.

“I will personally strangle this little bastard with my hands!”

The guard at the forefront infuriatedly yelled, as he suddenly activated his movement skill to charge at Calron from behind!

“I do not remember giving you permission to enter this area.”

A cold voice resounded in the forest, as a figure slowly walked towards the guards.

With his silver-white hair wildly fluttering in the wind, Elias leisurely stepped towards the group of guards, as his grey eyes shined with an unnatural glow.

“It has been a while since I was this angry.”

Elias frostily stated, as a crimson mist floated around him.

“Who the f**k are you, old man?”

One of the guards arrogantly spoke, as he sensed that the stranger in front of him was not in the Vajra stage. For these elite guards, only someone in the Vajra stage could threaten their existence. In fact, he guard could not even detect a trace of essence from the stranger!

“Have you ever seen a demon?”

Elias calmly asked, as he completely ignored the talking guard.

“This shitty old man, how dare you ignore me?”

The guard furiously yelled as he stepped towards Elias.

“Youngsters these days truly do not know how to respect their elders… sigh.”

Elias softly muttered, as the aura around him abruptly intensified, and an extremely dense killing intent spread in the air!

“A demon exists within all of us… the only difference is that, I choose to embrace it!”

Elias coldly whispered, as his body suddenly burst into a smoke of crimson mist!

Before anyone could even react, a severed head softly thudded against the ground.

*thud*

A headless corpse slowly collapsed on the ground, while a severed head rolled a few yards away. The nearby guards felt their hands trembling with horror as they witnessed the current scene!

“W-what just happened now?”

One of them numbly muttered as he gazed at the dismembered head of his fallen comrade.

“Shit! This old geezer is a Legacy Inheritor!”

An older guard at the back yelled out with a slight quiver in his voice, while slowly stepping back.

Hearing that the old man was an Inheritor, the rest of the guards started sweating profusely as their hands and knees started to tremble.

“So, which one of you wanted to strangle my disciple?”

Elias frostily stated, as drops of fresh scarlet blood dripped from his hand, while he continued to slowly walk towards the remaining guards.

Before anyone could make another move, Elias again exploded into a burst of crimson mist and suddenly appeared behind another guard.

“I will make sure your brothers will join you soon.”

Elias darkly whispered into his victim’s ear, as he thrust his hand into the guard’s chest!

*cough*

The guard excruciatingly coughed up a mouthful of blood, as he slowly dropped onto the floor, never to move again.

“S-send a t-transmission to the city Lord!”

A frantic voice sounded out from one of the guards, as he desperately tried to run away.

Just as the guard began to move, Elias abruptly flashed in front him with a cruel smile on his face.

“Going somewhere?”

Another spurt of blood sprayed into the air, as the guard’s corpse silently thudded onto the ground.

Only three more guards were left standing as their knees miserably shook in fear.

They had all thought that they had finally completed their task when they finally caught up with the boy and saw the hopeless look on the child’s face. Now, under the intense aura of this old man, they all cursed their fates as they realized that their lives were in the hands of this old man!

“Do you have any children of your own?”

Elias icily asked, as his eyes bore into the oldest appearing guard.

“Y-yes, one s-son and a daughter!”

The older guard replied in a shaky voice.

Hearing the older guard’s answer, a howling wind suddenly erupted out from behind Elias as a heavy pressure started to oppress the three remaining guards.

“When did our hearts become so cruel, that we seek to kill each other’s children?”

Elias softly whispered, as the pressure around the three guards continued to increase until their knees crashed onto the ground and drops of sweat formed on their foreheads.

“The day we kill for pleasure, is the day we lose our humanity.”

Elias calmly said, as he walked closer and closer to the three kneeling guards.

Just as he arrived in front of them, the guards suddenly clasped their hands around their necks as the pressure from Elias started to suffocate them!

“P-plea… se… h-have… mer… cy!”

One of the guards despairingly rasped, as tears started to flow from his eyes.

“Mercy does not exist for people like you.”

Elias evenly stated, as a bright light flashed from his grey eyes.

“ARGHHHH!”

Miserable cries of agony sounded out in the forest, as the surrounding grass was slowly being stained with dark blood and the smell of blood seeped into the air.

Hearing the gut-wrenching screams behind him, Calron abruptly stopped and glanced behind him.

“Master!”

Calron tried to yell, but only a hoarse whisper came out.

Calron had been in a daze the entire time as his body slowly took one step at a time, without his conscious effort. His mind was drifting in and out, and even the Voice was completely muted in his head!

Only the loud cries of the guards had brought Calron out of his daze! He leaned against a nearby tree, and panted as he desperately tried to remain conscious.

All emotions and sensations had left his body, as only a ferocious will to survive remained!

Only a few meters separated Calron and his Master, so Elias was still able to faintly hear the hoarse whisper of his disciple.

Elias immediately activated the Blood Mist Step as he rushed towards his disciple.

“Calron!”

Just as Elias arrived in front of Calron, the boy suddenly fainted in exhaustion!

Seeing the current state of the boy, Elias felt a furious wrath welling up inside of him! Calron’s lips were parched and various wounds covered his body from the strain of going past his body’s limits. Using the domain of the legacy and constantly activating the Blood Mist Step, it was a wonder that the boy was even alive!

A sudden light illuminated the surroundings, as Elias’s eyes started to glow mysteriously!

Gently touching the closed eyelids of the boy, Elias softly whispered.

“I had hoped to pass this onto you at a happier time, but current circumstances leave me no choice.”

Suddenly, an intricate and ancient symbol started to form on Calron’s forehead!

Within a few seconds, a celestial white glow started to emit from the symbol as it slowly faded away.

“It is done.”

Elias whispered as the glow within his own eyes started to dim.

“Master?”

Calron softly rasped, as his eyes slowly opened again.

His complexion had started to become healthier and even the wounds on his body started to heal at a slow pace.

Although the healing effects were not as miraculous as Elixir of Rejuvenation, Calron at least regained a bit of his vitality and stamina.

“YOU LITTLE SHIT! YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN ESCAPE?”

A furious echo resounded throughout the forest as the ground started to shake with tremors!

Calron’s eyes abruptly opened in panic as soon as he heard that familiar voice.

“Haha, I guess we are truly having a shit day, eh Calron?”

Elias asked in an amused voice, as he gently gazed at Calron.

“Master! That’s the city Lord, we need to escape now!”

Calron frantically shouted, as he quickly got up on his feet.

“Huh? What happened to my body?”

Calron stated as he curiously touched his body.

“You will soon learn of it later, I need you to follow my instructions carefully now, Calron.”

Elias sternly spoke as he deeply gazed into Calron’s eyes.

“Run to my hut, and underneath the mat, you will find a large inscription pattern etched on the floor. Immediately place a drop of your blood on it, and it should activate. I had been saving it for an event like this, but I had hoped that it would be me that would have to run and not you.”

Elias gingerly said as he ruffled Calron’s hair.

“Master, what will that inscription pattern do?”

Calron hesitantly asked, as he felt that his Master was hiding something from him.

“It will take you to the Desolate Mountains. Now, GO!”

Elias hastily stated as he felt that Regis was drawing close.

“Master, what about you-“

Calron started talking, but was immediately cut off by Elias.

“Child, do not worry about me… I have lived a long and satisfying life… just do not forget about me… “

Elias softly whispered as he lovingly gazed at Calron.

“M-Master? What are you talking about?”

Calron’s voice started to tremble as he realized what this meant.

With tears blurring his vision, Calron suddenly rushed towards Elias as he tightly embraced him!

“Haha, you need to go now, child. A whole new life awaits you… “

Elias tenderly spoke as he patted Calron’s head.

Another loud roar reverberated throughout the forest, as Regis furiously bellowed.

Breaking the embrace gently, Elias pushed Calron towards his hut.

“GO!”

With tears streaming down his face, Calron gave a deep bow to Elias, as he ran towards the hut.

Seeing that his disciple had left, Elias’s aura abruptly changed as the vicious and bloodthirsty killing intent returned!

Just as a blazing figure wrapped in flames appeared within his sight, Elias savagely roared.

“TIT…TAN”S… FURY!”

………………….

Meanwhile, Calron sadly stood in front of his Master’s hut as he realized that this was the first time he was ever entering it.

Turning his head around to look behind him, Calron gazed at the distant trees with a forlorn expression on his face.

“Master… “

Wiping his tears away, Calron slowly entered the hut.

The room was completely empty besides a bed and a mat. There were no further possessions in the entire hut!

Elias had never bothered with worldly materials and that was reflected in his home.

Walking towards the mat, Calron gingerly swept it away as it revealed a large circle with various patterns etched onto it. They vaguely resembled the symbols on his palm, but Calron was uncertain. However, the inscription pattern on the floor was definitely related to the Blood Legacy!

“Kid, are you ready?”

The Voice abruptly asked in a serious tone.

Biting his palm, Calron slowly placed his hand over the large circle as a single drop of blood splashed onto it.

*shua*

A dim scarlet glow filled the room, as the patterns on the floor seemed to come alive!

“Life will be hard from here on forth, Calron. You will be alone, without the warmth of friends or family.”

The Voice somberly stated to test the boy’s resolve.

“Who says that that will be my fate? I will create my own destiny!”

Calron firmly responded with a determined expression on his face, as he started to take a step into the inscription circle.

“Haha, that’s my boy! Let’s go!”

The Voice happily yelled, as he urged Calron.

“The Desolate Mountains, huh?”

Calron softly whispered to himself as he finally stepped into the circle.

A bright crimson light suddenly burst from the hut, until it slowly faded away and revealed an empty room.