Chapter 104: Chapter 32: Prologue to the Blood Sacrifice

The ritual on the altar continues.

Although the elderly man dressed as a noble has already turned into a terrifying creature combining a moth and human, the two gray-robed priests on the altar seem intent on continuing the process. As part of the ritual, they ignited some sort of strange incense and inadvertently scattered wisps of faintly scented powder while circling around the cocoon man.

The surrounding devotees fell into a trance and swiftly succumbed to sleep one by one.

Hank, who was lurking in the crowd, also began to sway his head, then held his breath as those around him started to collapse into slumber, faking an unsteady fall as well.

The incense and powder at the ritual exhibit strong hallucinogenic and hypnotic effects, even someone like Hank, a Transcendent, struggled to resist the powder’s scent, despite him holding his breath in advance, otherwise he might have succumbed instantly.

“Not a common hallucinogenic agent!… It’s a Curio made with Extraordinary Relics!…” Hank bit the tip of his tongue.

He lay on the ground, not daring to move an inch, closing his eyes as if he’d sank into slumber.

These two cultists are immensely powerful!

It’s Hank’s first time encountering such formidable foes; if they were to battle, he might not withstand even the initial wave of hallucinogenic powder due to their weird tactics. An encounter with them means being extremely cautious even with breathing. To deal with such enemies, preparation is essential, or Transcendents on the Warrior Path with robust constitution and willpower can withstand any negative state from the moth powder.

“Feathering failed.”

One of the gray-robed priests removed his hood, revealing a cold face of a man in his thirties. Looking at the cocoon man before them, he expressed disappointment, “It’s begun cocooning.”

“He can’t join us.”

“He can only become a lower servant.”

The originally white cocoon was slowly morphing into a gray cocoon similar to other insects, with the monster inside undergoing a transformation.

The other gray-robed priest also removed his hood, revealing a face almost identical to the first man. They appeared to be twins with nearly identical facial contours.

“We need Sir Nathan’s identity.”

“Without him, it’s difficult to bypass the Night Watcher to enter the gathering.”

The gray-robed priest beside placed his palm on the cocoon man’s face, furrowing his brow, “Only ancient blood can allow the moth mother’s offspring to fully descend.”

“There are too few nobles in Dorne.”

“Will you go, or should I?”

The other gray-robed priest sliced open the cocoon man with a dagger, observing the gyrating creature inside, disregarding its howling screams, and directly severed its newly formed face, calmly saying, “I’ll do it.”

A partial human face was peeled off, and the gray-robed priest remarked, “Simply relying on Disguise Technique makes it difficult to fool those Night Watchers.”

“Has the Doomsday Circus taken action yet?”

The priest beside slightly raised a finger, making the painful screaming moth monster fall into slumber, shaking his head, “Unclear. They’ve only agreed to collaborate with us, summoning the moth mother’s offspring to descend.”

“What about the rest of them?”

The other priest had already adhered the partial human face to his own. His silhouette twisted and shifted, swiftly transforming from a robust man into a somewhat hunched elder, uttering, “Sacrifice them all.”

“Maybe a Feathered one will emerge.”

On the ground, Hank’s breathing paused.

The next moment!

His figure launched upward, and as he rose, two pistols materialized in his palms. Accompanied by a round of gunfire, the two gray-robed priests before him were instantly riddled with bullets. The marksmanship of those on the Ranger Path is unmatched; every bullet Hank fired hit the enemy’s vital spots, either the head or the heart. Considering some monsters possess different fatal weaknesses, he also focused on other vital areas.

Yet an eerie occurrence unfolded.

The shadows of the two gray-robed priests bore numerous bullet holes but didn’t show a trace of blood shedding; their bodies seemed like tattered cloth, directly absorbing all the bullets.

“Not good! Illusion!”

In Hank’s palm, an Alchemy Grenade manifested, yet he glanced at the others lying haphazardly on the ground, gritted his teeth, and hurled it toward the rear.

Boom!

A muffled explosion blasted open the chamber door, and Hank’s fingers maneuvered like a butterfly in a flipping evasion moment, loading a red bullet.

“Night Watcher?”

A faint whisper echoed within the chamber.

“Should be an Investigator.”

“Otherwise, they couldn’t have discovered us,” another voice sounded.

The air was thick with a sickly sweet scent.

Powdery mist spread.

Hank held his breath, attempting to use instinct to locate the enemy’s position, feeling his body gradually weakening. Even holding his breath, his consciousness slowly drifted off.

Poisoned.

Realizing the peril, Hank dashed toward the door.

In that moment.

Behind Hank, there was a slight sound, like the fluttering of a moth’s wings. As he reached the door, Hank instantly turned, aimed at the position behind him, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Bang!

In the explosion of fire, dark green blood splattered, and burning, tattered wings, like those of a moth, shattered skulls, broken antennae, and a cold sharp spike mercilessly pierced through Hank’s chest, protruding from his lung.

Some kind of biological toxin spread within Hank’s body, his consciousness gradually blurred, his entire body paralyzed.

“How do we handle him?” A sharp voice sounded, like the chirping of insects.

Amidst the painful cries, another voice responded, “Offer him to the Moth Mother!”

………

Butterfly Club.

Under dim lights, a group of wealthy and powerful elites indulged in debauchery and merrymaking. This club, located on the southern side of the villa district, was an extremely hidden pleasure-seeking place in the Upper City District, inaccessible to anyone without status or position. Even though the situation in Dorne City has been tumultuous lately, the club’s business remained unaffected. This was because most police forces were used to protect the wealthy area, and the chaos in the Wharf District and Old Town District had not reached here.

“Those Night Watchers are utterly useless.”

In a dim corner, a young man with a hint of drunkenness cursed, “They actually let those lowlifes see the existence of monsters.”

“They are to be held fully responsible for this turmoil!”

The existence of the Transcendent can be concealed from ordinary people, but it was hard to hide from the few who hold power and wealth within society.

Merely attempting to advance to a Transcendent requires a great cost, and even the upper class of secular power will only cautiously select one or two family members for advancement after careful consideration. Of course, if this power didn’t demand such a huge price, the path for ordinary people to advance would most likely have long been monopolized by them.

A companion beside him seemed to want to stop the drunk young man, although the existence of monsters had spread throughout Dorne, discussing it openly was still frowned upon.

“Don’t stop me!…” The drunk young man continued cursing, his voice trailing off, muttering, “If I were a Transcendent, I surely wouldn’t let that monster escape.”

“It’s only because my father forbade me, otherwise I would’ve already…”

One of the companions showed a schadenfreude expression, and one of them turned to a friend beside him, saying, “His father is a major shareholder of Wolf Ship Company.”

“The fire in the Wharf District the other day burned down their family’s estate.”

“A second son without inheritance rights, you don’t need to pay him any mind.”

Then another man nearby joined in, continuing to spill the beans, “That factory was an estate he managed to acquire after much pleading, didn’t expect a fire to clean it out.”

“He absolutely loathes those Night Watchers.”

A light chuckle emerged from the darkness.

Just then, a commotion erupted from the direction of the stage.

As they looked up, the people around began to stir excitedly. An extremely enchanting and beautiful Dancer appeared on the stage. She had a towering bosom, snow-white skin, a slim waist, and long legs. She gently took off the sheer shawl on her body and strutted like a cat around the stage. Her seductive figure immediately attracted everyone’s gaze nearby.

“Gentlemen, your drinks.”

A handsome and well-mannered waiter came over with a suave moustache, bringing cocktails to the rich young men.

The atmosphere on stage heated up.

Someone threw a handful of Dinar Paper Currency onto the stage, under the dazzling lights, the Dancer, with alluring allure, danced an exotic dance filled with passionate seduction. Her skin glittered in the lights, as if inlaid with fine diamonds. Her every move, smile, and glance captivated everyone present, regardless of gender or age, unable to look away.

In the corner.

The waiter serving drinks had a cold smile on his lips. He glanced at the enchanting Dancer on stage, raising an eyebrow as he approached the initially loud, drunk young man.

He lifted the frail body of the young man as if picking up a chick.

Those around seemed completely oblivious, continuing to be mesmerized by the tantalizing dance on stage. Some even choked themselves, their flushed faces full of frenzied desire.

“You know what?”

“Your words made me angry.” With a playful expression, the waiter looked at the young man he could easily crush with his grip, “Though I also wish to slay those troublesome Night Watchers.”

“But I respect them greatly!”

“A group of strong Transcendents, unconcerned with power and status, indifferent to glory and disgrace, devoted solely to safeguarding the order of the real world, concealing the madness of the Bizarre Realm.”

“How dare someone like you, protected in reality, point fingers at those defending reality?”

“You want Extraordinary Power, don’t you?”

“Here, let me give it to you.”

A faintly pulsating white cocoon appeared, descending onto the young man’s heart, fine white threads piercing flesh, the excruciating pain jolted him awake, his terrified face twisting and struggling, then slowly turning into a fully encapsulated cocooned human.

The lights flickered momentarily.

“Power outage?”

As the waiter turned to look at the stage, beneath the flickering lights, the Dancer’s clothing was already entirely removed. Yet, the people around, once eagerly excited, suddenly froze, followed by screams upon screams, under the flickering lights, the Dancer tore off her own skin, then amidst the audience’s terror-stricken gaze, she peeled away her human skin bit by bit.

Blood spilled forth, transforming the entire club into a human purgatory at once.

………

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