Before Damascinos could understand Darian's meaning, an abnormal surge of agitation suddenly erupted from his body!
The blood-red energy, which had originally merged with him, now produced a violent repulsive reaction, wildly counterattacking like a runaway horse, beginning to devour his flesh and blood body!
"W-what's going on!?"
Damascinos was greatly alarmed, frantically attempting to regain control of the blood-red energy, but he despairingly discovered that this energy had completely escaped his grasp, instead counterattacking his body with even more ferocity.
"Why is this happening?"
Damascinos cried out in panic, "The divine tome clearly states that as long as I complete the ritual, I will be able to perfectly wield the Power of the Blood God and become the new Vampire overlord."
Darian watched his futile struggles and shook his head: "What else could it be? Just as you deceived the other Elders, you yourself were deceived by someone else, and without your knowledge, you became the sacrifice for this offering."
He had already seen Damascinos's information; his status also indicated that he was 'in sacrifice.'
Clearly, Damascinos was one of the sacrifices from the very beginning.
"No! This is impossible!"
Damascinos let out an unwilling roar, but he could not stop his body from gradually disintegrating under the energy's backlash.
"The divine tome... that divine tome lied to me. This was a trap from the start."
Damascinos finally realized, his voice filled with regret and unwillingness, but it was all in vain.
His body rapidly disintegrated amidst the violent surge of blood-red energy, his skin cracking inch by inch, ultimately being completely swallowed by the blood-red energy.
With a short, tragic cry, this painstakingly plotting Vampire Elder finally transformed into a concentrated mass of blood-red energy, suspended in the air, pulsating slowly as if alive.
Under the gaze of Darian and Blade, this mass of blood-red energy seemed to be drawn by some invisible force, beginning to rotate and deform, gradually outlining a blurry humanoid silhouette.
The energy continuously solidified, finally revealing a tall figure cloaked in black.
His face was pale, silver hair cascaded to his shoulders, and a pair of blood-red eyes glowed with an ominous red light in the dimness, exuding a strange and dangerous oppressive aura.
[NPC: Vlad Tepes Dracula]
[Alias: Blood God, King of Vampires, Impaler King]
[Affection: 0]
[Evaluation: The only Vampire to obtain the power of the Vampire progenitor, the iconic star of Vampires. He can be killed, but not truly eliminated; he will revive upon death.]
Dracula?
Darian raised an eyebrow; he was no stranger to this King of Vampires.
In various Vampire-themed films and television works, he is an undisputed classic character.
Whenever the Vampire progenitor is mentioned, the name Dracula is almost always brought up, just as when a cleaver is mentioned, Cheng-ge comes to mind.
Darian hadn't expected that the Blood God the Vampires had always spoken of was actually the legendary Dracula.
What surprised him even more was that this Dracula seemed to possess a truly immortal body; even death could lead to his revival. Wasn't this equivalent to having an infinite number of revival coins!?
Darian was filled with envy.
If he had this ability, he could walk sideways on all servers!
Just as Darian's thoughts were wandering, Dracula's figure in the air suddenly vanished, appearing beside the maid Vampire in the blink of an eye, grabbing her and biting down fiercely on her neck.
The maid Vampire had no power to resist and was instantly drained into a dried corpse by Dracula.
Darian finally understood.
No wonder Frost liked being an old pervert so much; it seems he inherited Dracula's hobby!
Dracula dropped the dried corpse in his hand, tilted his head slightly, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.
"What a nostalgic taste. It's been hundreds of years; I'm finally back."
Dracula's deep voice echoed through the inner hall.
"Who are you?"
Blade gripped the silver sword in his hand, warily watching Dracula.
He sensed that this person was also a Vampire, and definitely one of the older kind.
Dracula's blood-red eyes narrowed slightly, and a look of arrogance appeared on his pale face: "My name is Dracula, and you may also call me—the Blood God!"
"Blood God!?"
Blade's muscles tensed instantly: "You are the most powerful being in Vampire legends that Frost once mentioned?"
"Mind your words."
Dracula's brows furrowed slightly, his voice carrying clear displeasure.
"We are noble Blood Kin, not just 'Vampires.' Those foolish descendants actually use such a vulgar term to defile our noble bloodline; it's blasphemy!"
"And that descendant named Frost, who dared to steal my power while I was in slumber, truly deserves death!"
Dracula snorted coldly.
He could gain memories by absorbing others' blood. After feeding on the maid Vampire, he already knew what had happened during his slumber, including Frost's theft of the Power of the Blood God.
Frost had only accidentally obtained an incomplete ritual back then, barely acquiring a small portion of his power, but he also escaped the fate of being completely devoured by the full Power of the Blood God.
Unlike Damascinos, who had just acquired the power but hadn't even had a chance to use it before being taken over by Dracula, the ancestor, making all his efforts in vain.
Dracula looked at Darian, a hint of appreciation flashing in his blood-red eyes.
"You are quite good; to be able to defeat that descendant who stole my power. Although he only obtained a small part of my power, for you, a human, to achieve this is not easy."
"In return for you eliminating that thief, Frost, I shall bestow upon you the highest reward."
Such a good thing?
Darian scratched his head: "How can I accept this? Uh, can I ask what the specific reward is first?"
"My embrace. From now on, you shall transform into a noble Blood Kin, becoming my direct descendant, sharing eternal life and glory."
Darian: "..."
You call this a reward?
This was like a company saying that being able to work for them was the greatest blessing, so don't mention salary.
Darian understood. Dracula had taken a fancy to him and wanted him to be a worker.
"Then do you have any quests?"
Dracula paused, somewhat confused: "What quests?"
Darian was a little disgusted: "You don't understand this? I mean, do you have any matters that need to be entrusted to others?"
"Of course."
Through the maid Vampire's memories, Dracula quickly understood Darian's meaning.
"Now that I have returned, the next step is to make this World reacquaint itself with the majesty of the Blood Kin."
"For hundreds of years, humans have occupied this land for too long. It is time for them to understand who the true masters of this World are."
Dracula looked at Darian and smiled: "I have high hopes for your strength. If you assist me in making the Blood Kin rule this World, you will possess power and status second only to mine."
Darian shook his head: "No matter how many Vampires there are, they cannot defeat humans."
Still, the same old saying: get past the bald boss first.
Even if Dracula had infinite revival coins, he couldn't be a match for the Ancient One. After all, she was someone who could beat up Dimension Demons; no matter how awesome Dracula was, he couldn't be more awesome than a Dimension Demon.
But Dracula clearly did not think so.
He let out a disdainful snort: "That's because there was no leadership from me in the past. From now on, no one can stop the advance of the Blood Kin. Humans will soon fall from the World stage and become our slaves and food."
Darian couldn't help but laugh: "Just now, the few Vampires that existed were all sacrificed by yourself. Where are the Vampires for you to lead?"
"..."
Dracula was instantly choked, but being an old monster who had lived for countless years, he quickly regained his inherent arrogant expression.
"Those useless wastes, if they died, they died. As long as I am given enough time, I can reassemble an even larger Blood Kin army."
Dracula almost got sidetracked, his gaze returning to Darian, his tone laced with temptation: "And you can become my first great general. When the new order is established, everything in the World will be within your grasp. What do you think of this proposal?"
"I don't think much of it."
Dracula said so much, but Darian never received the expected quest notification, so he decisively refused.
A useless NPC who can't even issue quests wants to freeload off a player like me?
Don't even think about it!
"You don't know what's good for you!"
The smile on Dracula's face instantly froze.
He had lived for so long, yet he had never been rejected so directly.
Dracula's voice turned cold: "In that case, let your blood celebrate my return!"
Blade: "..."
No, I didn't say anything, why didn't you ask me?
Bang!!
The ground shattered in response, and Dracula's figure suddenly vanished.
The next instant, he appeared like a ghost before the two, his sharp claws striking with a whistling whoosh!
"Watch out!"
Blade shouted. His instincts, honed by years of battling Vampires, made him react almost the moment Dracula moved, quickly raising his silver longsword to try and block Dracula's claws.
Clang!
Just as the blade met the claws, a piercing metallic snap rang out!
This silver longsword, which had cut off countless Vampire heads, broke like a withered branch. The upper half of the blade spun and shot out, embedding itself deeply into a mural on a nearby wall.
Blade's pupils constricted, a chill running up his spine.
With astonishing reaction speed, just before the claws reached him, Blade sharply leaned back. The claws grazed his throat, but he still couldn't completely avoid them. His chest clothing, along with his flesh, was torn open with several bone-deep gashes, and blood instantly gushed out.
The immense impact sent him flying violently, like a kite with a broken string, crashing into a stone pillar in the inner hall. With a muffled grunt, a mouthful of blood sprayed from his mouth.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The moment Blade's body blocked the damage, Darian unhesitatingly raised his golden desert eagle and fired several shots at Dracula's vital points.
Dracula noticed his actions but showed no intention of dodging, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes.
One must know that Frost's power originated from him, so Dracula was naturally immune to all the weaknesses of ordinary Vampires. Silver bullets and other weapons targeting lower-ranking Blood Kin were simply insignificant in his eyes.
He could use this opportunity to display his power, to make Darian understand how futile resistance was, and to completely surrender in despair.
"Ah!!"
As Dracula thought this, a heart-wrenching pain suddenly swept over him, making him let out a desperate scream.
He clearly felt that after the bullets entered his body, a sacred energy seemed to spread within him, continuously burning his flesh and bones. This intense pain made him unbearable.
"What kind of power is this!?"
An expression of disbelief appeared on Dracula's face.
Having lived for so many years, this was the first time he had experienced such power, as if it was specifically born to counter beings like him.
Dracula had not fully absorbed the maid Vampire's memories.
He couldn't really be blamed for this; the lives of these descendants who lived into modern times were truly too debauched and corrupt, especially in the free country of America, and with the Vampire's immunity to all diseases, they played even harder.
The indecent memory fragments in the maid Vampire's mind, such as master-servant relationships and various letters, truly opened the eyes of this Vampire ancestor.
Dracula had always prided himself on his nobility and elegance, naturally disliking such depraved scenes. He only glanced at them a dozen times before stopping, thus missing a lot of useful information, such as Darian's Holy Light.
Seeing Darian use a power he didn't recognize, Dracula had no choice but to re-examine the maid Vampire's memories. Among a heap of unbroadcastable CG animations, he finally found the reason.
"A clergyman with a gun? Someone from Heaven?"
Dracula was bewildered; what was all this nonsense?
Darian, dual-wielding his golden desert eagle, said to Dracula: "Dracula, it's not too late to turn over a new leaf. According to modern law, you haven't committed any illegal acts yet."
"I guarantee you, I can arrange an identity and a job for you. With your looks, which are only slightly below mine, being a celebrity should be no problem. In this era, you might even get an invitation to Twilight, playing a Vampire who falls in love with a human and rivals a werewolf."
Dracula: "..."
I, the majestic King of Vampires, you want me to be a celebrity playing a Vampire?
And the kind of Vampire who falls in love with humans and competes with werewolves for affection!?
"Human! You have successfully enraged the great Dracula!"
Dracula's face darkened, feeling an unprecedented insult!
As his anger surged, a viscous blood-red energy surged out from within him, flowing around his body like a living thing.
All the bullet holes Darian had made on him rapidly healed at a visible speed. The newly grown flesh wriggled closed, returning to normal in an instant.
Even the holes in his clothes caused by the bullets were completely repaired, showing no trace of damage.
This was somewhat similar to Mystique Raven's ability, both able to change clothes at will.
But Raven at least had a sense of shame, usually wearing a coat outside.
Dracula, however, wore nothing, which meant he was completely naked at this moment.
Absolutely scandalous!