Knock, knock, knock—
Knock, knock, knock—
A man in a black robe knocked on the door a few times. After getting no response from inside, the knocker gestured to the people around him.
The hotel waiter, also cloaked in a black robe, understood and opened the door with a key card.
Inside the room, Ryn and Elysia were unconscious, slumped over the table, their hands hanging limply.
Seeing that Ryn and Elysia had fallen for the trap and passed out, the infiltrating robed figures all showed smiles of contempt and triumph.
They tied up Ryn and Elysia with ropes, put them in sacks, and then two women carried Elysia while seven or eight strong men carried Ryn, taking them away from the hotel.
What they didn't notice was that their large group had mysteriously gained two new robed members, one tall and one short…
Along the way, for some reason, the group carrying Ryn found it increasingly difficult. The strong men, who could normally work in the fields all day, were now panting and struggling to walk.
"This guy… he's definitely something else! He's so heavy, even with so many of us, it's a struggle…" said one of the burly men carrying Ryn's left shoulder, sweating profusely, to his companions.
"Yeah… feels like he weighs a ton. This guy's body density is probably more extreme than we imagined…"
"The more unusual he is, the more likely he has some extraordinary power! Their blood must be delicious too!"
"Enough."
The leading robed man interrupted the conversation. "Hurry up, the Sorceress is waiting!"
The group fell silent and quickened their pace towards the location of the Sorceress mentioned by their leader.
But because Ryn was so heavy, the group carrying him had to take turns, with group after group relaying him forward.
By the time they reached the Sorceress's hut, the team carrying Ryn had already been swapped out five times…
The destination was a rustic wooden hut that stood in stark contrast to the surrounding concrete shacks.
Outside the hut, two women placed the sack containing Elysia to one side and looked disapprovingly at the latecomers carrying Ryn.
"You're too slow. The Sorceress has grown impatient."
As if a great weight had been lifted from them, the men carrying Ryn threw the sack containing him directly onto the ground. The sack landed with a loud thud, startling the two women.
"This guy is special, so…"
Seeing the two women, who had been so arrogant just now, suddenly startled, the leader of Ryn's carriers wanted to explain.
But before he could, an old crone, adorned with strange ornaments and with painted patterns on her face, emerged from the hut and interrupted him with a wave of her staff.
"Enough. No need to explain. I have foreseen everything.
The ritual is ready. Bring them in!"
The crone pointed her staff at Elysia's sack, then at Ryn's, before turning and walking back into the hut.
Since the crone had spoken, the others said no more and carried the sacks containing Elysia and Ryn into the wooden hut.
The wooden hut was dilapidated, but its interior was completely out of place for a rural farmer…
Various gold and silver jewels with a special luster were scattered around the room. Famous paintings, poems, and other symbols of wealth owned by high society's elite filled the walls.
Any one of these items would be enough for a person to live a life of luxury, but the dozens of people who entered the hut didn't even glance at the gold and silver, instead looking with fervent eyes at the crone leading the way.
This small wooden hut was just a facade, meant to confuse the world.
The crone opened a secret door in the hut, leading the villagers to a vast, hundred-meter underground space.
Though it was underground, it looked more like a secret research facility, with walls made of a special metal material.
And in the center of this secret base stood a gruesome, blood-stained cross. On the cross was a tightly bound youth.
Thick chains, as thick as a fist, bound the youth tightly. Besides being able to turn his head slightly, he couldn't move at all.
His body was covered in various hideous cuts, some of which were clearly fresh, the blood not yet fully closed, dripping down his body drop by drop.
And below the cross was a vessel for collecting the youth's blood…
Besides these cuts, the youth's body also showed many signs of peeling skin, as if from prolonged exposure to the sun…
The villagers showed no mercy in their eyes for the miserable youth, only disgust and anger…
They brought two more crosses, identical to the one holding the youth, and placed them in the prepared slots.
Then, they tied Ryn and Elysia to them, just like the youth.
After they were done, the crowd turned to look at the old crone in unison.
The old crone walked forward and stood in front of the youth. She poked a new wound on the youth with her staff, stirring it around a few times…
The pain from the wound made the youth's eyes snap open. Seeing the old crone and the surrounding villagers, the youth let out a self-deprecating, cold laugh.
But when he saw the two new crosses with people tied to them, the youth took a deep breath and then spat a mouthful of bloody phlegm onto the old crone's face.
"How dare you! Kalpas, how could you treat the Sorceress like that!"
"It seems the sun's exposure isn't enough to make you lose the will to resist! We'll cut his food rations in half again tomorrow!"
"He's just a blood-producing material, how dare he resist! I say we should break his limbs again. They'll heal after a while anyway!"
Seeing the old crone insulted by Kalpas, the villagers, who revered her as a god, erupted in an uproar, clamoring to punish Kalpas.
"Heh heh…" The old Sorceress wiped the filth from her face and looked at Kalpas with a cold smile.
"You still have a lot of energy! If you're so energetic, why not produce some more blood!"
The old crone's face suddenly became hideous. She pushed her staff deeper, and blood flowed from Kalpas's body like water, dripping down the staff.
Kalpas's face contained in pain, but it was more of an angry.
"Roar—"
Kalpas let out an inhuman roar, bellowing at the crone.
But neither the crone nor the villagers were fazed by this. They were already used to it. Not a single one of them was afraid of Kalpas's roar. Some even wanted to go up and slap him, asking him what he was roaring about.
Because everyone in this village knew one thing…
Kalpas would not harm people, even though he possessed the power to break free from his chains and kill everyone present…