Born in Blood



Despite that failure of an attack, Liam kept his smile, just less wider than before.

Over the course of two weeks of working himself down to the bone, he was confident enough in tweaking the vampiric writings of Niveh's Blood Arts. 

Before that, he made absolutely sure to heavily practice the same Meanings on his own, just to gain a steady hand.

To start with, he isolated the writings that were specific only to vampires. 

The art worked just fine for him without those parts. 

Making a few minor adjustments on the Links, Liam finally managed to attune the technique to his body.

'The only problem is how weak it became. To make it stronger, I'll have to add my own Meanings.'

'Only when I fully master the String Arts, I'll move on to the Blooder's.'

Before Liam could throw himself back into his studies and cultivation, his Jade began blinking.

'Ah, is one month already over?'

"I hope you are well, my liege," Jargon's deep voice rang out from the other side as Liam answered the communication device.

Over the course of five to six months, Jargon had already become an inner disciple of the Gushing River Sect, and he had advanced to the liquid-stage of Rank 2.

His martial arts had grown to a decent level, enough to catch his Elders' attention.

Not all Blood Troupe members had reached similar heights, but they were doing well in their own regard. 

Even the regular workers had made thriving businesses, while those who became disciples were steadily growing their strength.

"I'll start with the most important news," said Jargon. Liam appreciated that about the man. How he cut straight in and wasted no time. 

"There was recently a Royal envoy from Echoria spotted heading towards the Main Lands."

Liam snorted derisively. 

Took them long enough.

Thankfully, Liam had already sorted out his circumstances with the Temple. 

If the Seven Clans couldn't find the Temple for centuries, neither could the Royals.

Still, Liam decided to cut back on leaving the underground.

"Other than that, rumors say the Patriarch of the Visionary Clan had entered a coma after her latest vision."

Liam shrugged at that bit of news, albeit he was intrigued at what exactly could do that to a Zenith.

His experience with Oracles made him dislike the profession. Liam wished for the same thing to befall her followers.

After giving Liam the rest of the news, he quickly hung up. 

'The abrupt arrival of the Royal and the Oracle's coma had stirred up superstitious rumors. Are they connected somehow?'

Liam shrugged. It didn't concern him too much.

///

After a few more days of cultivation and studies, the day for hunting a Rank 4 magical beast finally arrived.

Liam had left towards the Temple early morning after lightly training his centers of power.

He made sure to rest well the night before. 

His opponent was going to be a Rank 4 magical beast. He wasn't taking any chances.

Although the Temple wasn't sternly guarded, Liam had to go to the higher Ranking Shadows if he wanted to meet with the Elders.

He entered a more exclusive-looking area consisting of larger versions of his pyramid. 

There were only fifteen or so buildings there, but the density of 'Ora' there was thick.

Liam met with Krel at his large pyramid first. The man's expression was steeled with a battle-ready aura. 

After all, a Zenith was a Zenith. 

Human or beast, they were all monsters.

"Elder Jax has already given you permission," Krel said as he noticed Liam creeping up behind him, gesturing him to enter his house. 

"I knew you'd ask him, so I went ahead and saved you the time. Oh, and the materials for your tattoos are halfway done."

Liam gave Krel a thankful nod as he entered the space, not bothering to look at the decorations or furniture.

"I hope you don't mind me using your space, senior. Your generosity is appreciated."

Instantly, Liam sat cross-legged to absorb 'Ora' into his bones. 

The higher ranking Shadows were going to gather shortly, and he had a few minutes to cultivate.

Krel was shocked at Liam's lack of hesitation. Merely a wink and the kid was already on the floor.

Shaking his head and chuckling under his breath, Krel got ready himself.

It wasn't long before Liam sensed a large group of people approaching the building.

Krel left the room and Liam followed him outside, where five people were waiting for them.

"From left to right, Maeve, Ruth, Iris, Aiden and Oro," Krel told Liam their names as they approached, before whispering the last part:

"Don't focus on their words too much. They'll make you go crazy if you do."

Liam raised his brows.

"Is this the kid?" a tall woman with raven-black hair and large dark eyes asked. She tilted her head curiously. "He's not what I had in mind. I expected someone uglier."

"Lucky bastard is what he is," another woman cursed with a frown.  Her hooded eyes were dark red and her wild hair a similar shade. She was the tallest from the group.

"An Echorian of all people receiving darkness just pisses me off!"

"Ruth! Don't curse the boy… he's also an acolyte," a shorter, kinder-looking woman with curly blonde hair said. Her irises were azure and a kind smile was on her face. "I'm Iris."

"Why are we babysitting him? He's gonna get himself killed," a tanned, thick-bearded and muscular man gave Liam a stern glare. "Don't expect me to look out for you."

"Look at his eyes… he's probing you all as of this moment!" a slim, middle-aged man with short, dark-green hair laughed loudly. "You're good in my book, lad. Name's Oro."

Several glares shot Liam's way at Oro's words, but he smiled awkwardly and made a respectful gesture in response.

"Don't forget why we're gathered today," Krel said with a stern voice. 

"Liam will come along as support. He can pull his own weight, don't try to defend him. We'll be entering the Deep Ends, so make sure you're all prepared."

Despite their initial quips and teases, their expressions instantly grew stern and focused. 

Liam was no exception.