Chapter 365: Bloodline Pill, Still Searching
In a dimly lit room of Retribution's Headquarters, the Blue and Green Region leaders were strapped to Array-reinforced tables with their arms at their sides and bound by the leather of a Tribulation Transcendence Magical Beast.
In front of them were two Players in the Nascent Soul Realm, wearing white gloves and each holding a blue and purple Pill that emitted a light purple fog, almost like poison. They were both nervous, but they had no choice but to listen to their Region Leaders' orders.
"Are you ready, Masters Blue and Green?" they asked.
"Do it. There's no going back now." Blue said quickly, closing his eyes and opening his mouth. He and Green had gathered enough blood from Atticus that they were able to refine two Tier 8 Bloodline Pills, so they both decided to go through with the process.
"Alright, we're dropping the Pills now, and then you're on your own, Region Leaders." the two looked at each other and started a countdown. They hovered the Bloodline Pills above both Region Leaders' mouths, the bitter scent reaching their uncovered noses.
"3... 2... 1... Dropping now!" they released their holds on the Pills and ran to the opposite side of the room as quickly as possible, closing a steel door behind them and engaging a series of locks that would probably not do much good.
On the other side, thirty other Nascent Soul Cultivators had prepared tens of thousands of Advanced Arrays that would hopefully protect them from what was to come. As they hid inside the Arrays, a series of inhuman roars came from the other room, followed by snapping sounds.
"The side effects have already started? It hasn't even been ten seconds!" one of the subordinates looked at the closed door in shock.
Bang!
A massive bulge appeared in the steel door as it bent from the strength of a heavy punch. The Nascent Soul Cultivators added more Advanced Arrays to their defenses out of fear, while a few took out their protective Amulets and checked to make sure they would activate properly.
Bang! Bang!
Two quick punches near the top of the door knocked one of the hinges off and shattered two of the locks, the door bending fifteen degrees outward and on the verge of collapse. A fourth punch followed soon after, tearing down the door and revealing two shadowy figures inside.
The Blue and Green Region Leaders were shrouded in a purple smoke that emanated naturally off their bodies, the signature effect of upgrading the Illusion Element. Their eyes were the same color as normal, but they seemed cloudier, as if the two weren't in the correct state of mind.
Their heads turned left and right as the Region Leaders looked at the thirty-two subordinates hiding behind the Arrays, terrifying the group to no end. Their subordinates had powerful Concealment Arrays protecting them, but the Region Leaders could still see them.
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"GRUAH!" Blue roared as he punched at the Arrays, shattering over half of them with a single hit. His Illusion Mana spread out, covering the remainder of the Arrays and eliminating their presence from the World, essentially rendering the subordinates behind completely defenseless.
A series of screams followed not long after as the two Region Leaders slaughtered their subordinates like sheep. Players and NPCs alike were killed wantonly, unable to resist or run at all. The two Region Leaders' rampage lasted for about ten minutes, and only then did they regain clarity.
"Damn, we killed so many of them. The bloodline of this Magical Beast is insane!" Green commented with a gasp.
"Oh well, the Players will respawn, and the rest are just NPCs. I don't care if we kill a thousand, this bloodline is awesome!" Blue released a hint of Illusion Mana, trying to regain the feeling he had before when he was using it with extreme precision. It would take some time before he gained an understanding of the Element.
"Right, well hopefully Master Black isn't too upset. I don't want to lose reputation over this."
"He won't be upset. After he sees our combat power, he might give us even more benefits!"
***
At the edge of the Velos Continent, a man dressed in simple overalls and black leather boots approached a silver-haired girl seated at a table with a smile. "Honey, are you from another Continent?"
"Don't call me that. And yes." Fria returned her attention to a map she had just purchased from an unsightly woman in one of the stores.
"Ah, well I happen to be a Miasma Navigator. Name's Grotnet. I can take you through the poisonous miasma spread throughout the Continent, at a price, of course."
Fria already knew about the poisonous miasma and nodded. "I see, I'm also looking for some information, perhaps you know about someone named William? He's pretty high-profile."
"William, huh? I have actually. What do you need to know?"
Fria handed Grotnet a bag of a thousand Gold Coins and asked, "I'm looking for him. Do you know where he went?"
"Well... he's quite fast and difficult to track, but if I remember correctly he went to the Revista Faction with his friends first, then to the Velos Faction. He started a war with the Laotonus, Beronius, and Andorea Factions, then captured the Matriarch and both Patriarchs.
He disappeared for a little while, then his dragon mount was spotted flying to the shoreline yesterday. He's a Space Mage, so he could be anywhere."
Fria frowned. He did all that in a few weeks? What the hell, I just got here!
"Maybe I'll go to the Revista Faction then, can you take me there?"
"Not a problem. I'm curious, though, what are you doing searching for a man at the peak of the World? If you catch him in the wrong mood, he might just kill you."
"I have my reasons. I'm not afraid." Fria said simply, though she doubted even a peak Cultivator could kill her in a short amount of time. She had fought the Kamei Hamei turtles already, even if William was a bit stronger, it couldn't be too far past that.
"Alright, then. Take this medallion for your protection and meet with me tomorrow morning. It's going to be a long trip." Grotnet said as he handed Fria a few things, to which she accepted with a nod.
She checked into a hotel but asked around for more information on William just in case, not fully trusting the words of a random man in dirty clothing. Unfortunately, his words seemed to be the truth, William's current whereabouts completely unknown.
If this was the Azures Continent, I would have known where he was almost 24/7. Why is the flow of information here so bad? she could only blame the poisonous miasma.
Thankfully she had the Forums, so hopefully she would glean some information about the NPC soon. Just in case, she switched the notifications setting to the entire World, just in case William had already left the Continent.
As she set her character to rest in the hotel, Fria took off her headset to rest in the real world, but her mind was so full of questions related to the game that she couldn't sleep well.
I don't even know what I'll say when I meet him. Hi, I feel like you remind me of someone, do I seem familiar?
No, what the hell? I must be crazy, who would listen to the words of a crazy person? Maybe I'll just challenge him to a duel.
What if he Ascends before I can find him?