Whole Bag of Tricks

147 Whole Bag of Tricks

Trash! Absolute trash!

Moonfeather roared in his heart. That damned woman had said ten minutes—and it took precisely that long, not a moment more or less.

Damn this so-called Ascendant King—with such meager abilities, he dared call himself king?

Initially disgruntled at not receiving a high position under the Blood Moon Vampire King, he had schemed to contact the Ascendant King—hoping that once it truly ascended to Vampire King, it would reward him with a founding elder position.

Now, consumed with rage, the old snow owl wished to tear that foolish bull to shreds with his own talons.

… …

As the young man released the bowstring, Moonfeather flapped his wings fiercely, unleashing his innate magical ability.

A thick white mist billowed outward, instantly engulfing a hundred-yard radius.

The Sun-Shattering Bow released another brilliant white beam, tearing through the mist, and then disappearing without a trace.

Though enveloped in the white mist, I remained calm.

My eyes, shining brightly, pierced through the mist, scanning my surroundings with perfect clarity.

What I saw left me puzzled.

Earlier I had been in the dim Mount Strachan, but now I found myself in what seemed like a magical hot spring fairyland. White marble paved the ground, golden branches and peach trees flourished everywhere, and white cranes glided gracefully through the clouds.

Pleasant music filled my ears, and the fragrance of divine nectar and jade dew wafted into my nostrils.

The enchanting atmosphere had a bewitching effect, gradually lowering one's guard and erasing memories of recent events.

Through the mist materialized a bath lined with white pebbles, where ethereal maidens seemed to frolic and play.

An illusion? I pondered for a moment, stowing the Sun-Shattering bow and drawing my straight ceremonial blade.

As a harmonizing vampire lord, Moonfeather naturally possessed powerful survival techniques.

A crimson mist rose in my eyes. My violent and murderous emotions shattered the illusory trance. The powerful and foul demonic energy from the Vampire Devouring External Crystal surged through my body, filling every limb and bone.

I calmly observed my surroundings.

An illusion like this would surely have a follow-up attack.

What I had to do was simple: wait for that crucial moment and strike with lethal precision.

As if confirming my thoughts, water splashed in the steaming bath, accompanied by tinkling laughter like silver bells.

The next moment, three figures, wearing only thin veils, emerged from the water.

However, my expression instantly turned flummoxed.

Before me was a snow owl waving a pink veil in one gnarled talon and clutching a vampire core in the other, casting seductive glances my way with an absurdly coy expression.

Behind the owl stood the tall bull vampire and the skinny old dog, both wearing thin veils that clung to their forms. They gazed at me shyly while clutching vampire cores to their chests.

"This is..."

A cold glint flashed in my eyes as my expression grew eerily calm. I tightened my grip on my blade's hilt, readying myself.

I had expected Moonfeather to use a beauty trap, but this was simply insulting.

… …

Meanwhile, concealed within the mist, Moonfeather was utterly furious.

Moonfeather's magical ability could reveal the deepest desires in a person's heart. Being a young man, surely he would harbor lustful thoughts—and even if he were a true gentleman, there would still be someone he yearned for. This was precisely why Moonfeather had crafted the illusion of beautiful maidens in a hot tub.

Fine... Even if, in the most extreme case, the young man had a heart of stone, hard and unyielding, and the illusion had no effect on him, Moonfeather could still accept that.

But what bewildered and infuriated him most was seeing himself reflected in the pool!

"You've gone too far!"

The white mist could only spread a hundred yards in radius. Since the young man held the treasured bow, escaping would be difficult.

His had originally planned to attack while the young man was entranced by the illusion, either killing or gravely wounding him. Either outcome would allow the snow owl enough time to escape before Aisha Patani's arrival.

But now, his blood rushed to his head, and he charged out directly! He feared the Sun-Shattering Bow, but he wasn't truly afraid of this brat.

Even though he wasn't known for his combat prowess, Moonfeather was still a harmonizing vampire lord!

With a guttural cry, it tore through its own flesh, transforming into a towering figure of ice and shadow. Its form, once sage-like, twisted into something monstrous, dark energy rippling across its body.

The snow owl vampire's monstrous form blotted out the setting sun. Its vast, powerful wings beat the air with hurricane force, sending waves of icy wind surging toward the lone figure below.

Talons—as thick as ancient tree trunks and sharp as polished obsidian—grew larger with the wind. They plummeted with terrifying speed, yet the expected smashing of flesh and earth-shattering tremor never came.

The slender figure below raised his left arm and caught the strongest digit of its talon. As the two immense forces collided, they slowly canceled each other in his palm. The talons pressed downward with glacial slowness, like a crawling turtle.

Their strength appeared evenly matched—any difference between them was negligible.

A mere human body dares to resist a vampire's strength? Moonfeather tightened its talons, a mix of uncertainty and rage coursing through it. With savage determination, it increased the force of its talons by fifty percent!

Never had I imagined the fifth cycle Sanguine Resurrected Body alone could match a true harmonizing vampire's strength. The ceremonial blade in my right hand suddenly blazed with emerald light, mirroring the brilliant green of the two large feathers from the peacock valley.

I slashed upwards!

An invisible ripple, deceptively slow yet swift as an arrow, instantly spread more than ten yards wide.

A hairline crack appeared silently across the fierce, razor-sharp talon. Then, with a muffled snap, a third of the talon split diagonally and plummeted to the ground.

Moonfeather hastily withdrew its claw. Before the pain of its severed claw could register, it spotted my figure lunging forward, blade in hand.

The blade emanated an extremely chaotic aura.

It radiated fierce demonic energy and a chilling green light—and then Moonfeather caught the scent of deadly poison.

As I dashed toward Moonfeather, it spread its wings to strike me. The ironclad wing carried devastating force, yet I didn't dodge. I took the wing's impact on my shoulder, then swiftly slashed my sword across its back.

Trading injury for injury? A sinister delight flashed through Moonfeather's mind.

The power of this famous harmonizing vampire lord was so tremendous that it made Cascadia martial artists despair. My shoulder instantly caved in, but with the help of the green light, I successfully slashed the blade into Moonfeather's flesh.

As expected.

As the cold blade pierced its body, Moonfeather felt deadly poison surge through its muscles and bones. A sizzling sound accompanied the intense burning and corrosive sensation, causing its expression to contort in agony.

Looking back at me, it saw that the wing strike—powerful enough to crush most Crystal Realm martial artists—had merely shattered my bones...

The next moment, a flash of red light swept across Moonfeather's vision.

Bathed in the red glow, I flexed my arm with ease as my shoulder knitted itself back together before Moonfeather's eyes.

Without a moment's hesitation, I lunged forward again.

Our figures crossed paths three times in midair. Each clash left a horrific gash across Moonfeather's body. The deadly poison had already consumed its pink flesh, transforming it into a green fluid that seeped toward its bones and organs.

When Moonfeather raised its head to look at me again, it saw that the red glow had completely healed my injuries.

"You don't even practice martial arts—you just rely on these underhanded, poisonous tactics?" Moonfeather was finally getting anxious.

It was confident about escaping from Aisha Patani because that woman never wasted time on non-essential things. She hadn't bothered with any movement techniques or concealment methods.

After Crystal Realm, she focused solely on the Profound Will Embodiment of Ice Dragon to harmonize her inner crystal.

One could say that she was born to break through to the Fourth Realm and become a Ward of Nature.

Yet despite being weaker, this youth possessed a whole bag of tricks, wielded powerful treasures, and somehow outpaced even Moonfeather—a vampire lord renowned for its swiftness.

He was proving utterly impossible to contend with!

… …

Reminded by Moonfeather's words, I gave a slight nod and formed a sword hand seal with practiced ease, holding my left hand before my chest.

The Vampire Devouring External Crystal shuddered violently as demonic energy erupted from within.

An imposing crimson Knight Sword materialized before me, the slowly rotating light on its edge exuding a fierce aura.