Born in Blood



Liam almost laughed when hearing the familiar names through Jargon's daily updates, and the stories behind them.

All things considered, his time at the academy was… good.

It was a necessity.

It provided temporary shelter for Liam to get away from his pursuers. 

There, he managed to understand the world better, to get stronger, and to experience foreign lands.

But he ended up becoming an enemy to the entire country right after.

Nevertheless, Liam was intrigued to find out the meanings behind their names.

Nord's moniker, the Giant's Heir, was the most interesting.

During the 'trip' to the Inheritance Grounds the Academy hosted for all third years, Nord had somehow met the conditions of becoming an heir to the inheritance's bequeathment.

And what he was an actual heir to was the most shocking of all.

Giants!

The so-called 'lost race'.

Liam was actually interested in those tidbits of history during classes. 

The giants were this mythical race that seemed to hold profound wisdom and could enlighten someone's cultivation with just words.

Their physical strength was something ridiculous from what Liam heard. 

Something about picking up mountains with their bare hands and drinking up entire oceans.

So, how the heck did someone like Nord become their heir?

Liam didn't know how that moron had actually met the conditions, but he honestly couldn't care too much. 

And then there was Rin, the Dragon's Flame.

She apparently had figured out a way to infuse parts of a magical beast with her own body and momentarily attain their power.

In truth, that was an amazing ability.

Even around the ballpark of making something like a Black Hole…

…Who was he kidding, of course it wasn't!

Though, Liam put his arrogance aside and admired that ability nonetheless.

The fusion between two races was never easy…

But Liam was attempting it with three!

Still, his attempt was much easier than normal due to the effects of his Blood and the support from the King's Eye.

At the same time, Liam was attempting that with the Shifter Octopus – one of the most mendable and easy to mold creatures to date.

Rin wasn't as restricted. Although the name 'Dragon's Flame' indicated an actual dragon, Liam imagined something less powerful.

Her ability to do that without any supporting abilities was truly commendable.

And finally, there was Nessa… the 'Death Flower'.

She had gained that title due to her ability to mix and match alchemic ingredients to create devastating potions. 

Although it was some time since Liam had met the dainty noble, the moniker Death Flower was a little bit too much for someone like her. 

Unless, of course, she had finally learned a grim thing or two about the world.

Liam scoffed.

It seemed like the Royals of Echoria were trying to drown out Liam's infamy by propagating other, more exaggerated names. 

Liam's existence was a dirty stain on their entire country, after all.

It made it look like anyone could waltz in their finest institutions, siphon them of priceless knowledge, and escape without any further notice.

Nevertheless, Liam thanked them sincerely for their efforts to mask his name.

He didn't care what people thought, preferring that they didn't think about him at all.

Aside from that, there wasn't anything significant from the other major countries. 

Not even the Korsan Lands.

The world was at peace.

But who knew how much of that was real? 

It wasn't like the powerhouses of the world were sipping tea and baking cakes.

Throwing away any unnecessary thought, Liam focused back on the task at hand.

Both the renewed Ravenous Leash Arts and the Triumvirate Body were developing.

For the former, Liam estimated that he was about 50% into remaking it to fit his needs.

And for the latter, it was a fifth of that percentage. The level of complexity between the two techniques was unparalleled. 

'It might take me years to make it at this point.'

Liam supposed that was fair.

Honestly speaking, he was progressing a little bit too fast on all fronts. He somewhat expected there to be a surprise tribulation somewhere.

Still, Liam made full use of the remaining period of peace.

The Blooder's Arts were now perfectly suitable for him.

In his Inner World, Liam activated the Blood Arts.

Ichor seeped through each of his orifices and enveloped him in a glorious set of sleek knightly armor. 

Plates of glamorous, crystalized blood connected in interlocking parts that provided a perfect balance of maneuverability and powerful defense. 

A sharp, angular, blood-made helmet covered Liam's head and hair. 

Partly due to his own tinkering, the front part of the helmet resembled the Oni mask from Liam's childhood.

As a tribute to Revel, he'd shaped the front of the mask to resemble a Blood Demon.

Best of all?

There were two sharp blades – a wakizashi and a katana – in Liam's hands, which would regenerate as long as he supplied it with blood.

At first, they were javelins, but Liam had just swapped those out in favor of his usual swords.

Using the Blood Demon Arts – which was what Liam named it – made him pale a little due to the amount of blood used, but it was totally worth it.

This was why Liam enjoyed periods of peace. 

What was better than raising all qualities of one's strength without the hassles of conflicts and fights?

But life was not that simple.

Soon, the Temple would venture into the Main Lands.

Unforgiven Shadow was patient. 

A few years of waiting was nothing to him. 

But that didn't mean that he would simply remain idle. 

As soon as the Temple grew in force and strength, they would mobilize and make their presence known to the world.

But there was something Liam didn't understand.

The Imperial Legion had a Rank 6 powerhouse.

The General.

One couldn't compare a hill to a mountain.

Nor a mountain to a star.

Obviously, in this analogy, the General was the star.

So, why was the Unforgiven so sure he could enact his revenge?

No less, on the Dual Empire as well?

He had to have a plan.

Liam shook his head.

He was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

All he could do was experiment and train like he always did.

Five more months passed.

Eventually, the period of peace and quiet had been extended for a total of one and a half years.

Liam was roughly 18 and a half years old now.

Finally, he had devoured enough of Wild Fang's body to experience a change in his Blood!

And the result was nothing short of shocking.